Chapter 183 Fault No. 1
Shen Nian'an said no more, wiped the tears from her face with the back of her hand, turned around and walked out of the study quickly.
She returned to her room and sat in front of the dressing mirror. Looking at herself in the mirror with her delicate makeup, her thoughts drifted uncontrollably back to six years ago.
At that time, she was not yet the spoiled and willful eldest daughter of the Shen family.
She went from being a little girl who was loved by her parents to a poor little girl who was not loved by her father and mother and who had to worry about her all the time.
After the arrogant Mrs. Shen came back, she seemed to be born knowing how to make people love her.
She could always pinch the softest part of the flesh on the inside of her upper arm, twisting it and causing excruciating pain.
But what frightened and saddened her more than the physical pain was her mother's reaction.
Every time she was pinched until her eyes were filled with tears, she would go to her mother to cry, but her mother would always cover her mouth in panic and whisper:
"Nian'an, be good and don't cry or make a fuss. If everyone knows about this and Dad gets to know about it, he'll think we're deliberately trying to ruin the eldest lady's reputation."
“You have to be sensible. It took a lot of effort for Mom to be recognized by Dad and become Mrs. Shen in the eyes of outsiders. You can’t mess this up.”
"If Dad doesn't like us anymore, Mom won't like you either..."
"Nian'an, do you understand?"
The little girl was frightened by these words.
She was afraid of her father's displeasure, and even more afraid of losing her mother's love.
So she learned to hold back her tears and never dared to complain in front of her classmates.
Later, her brother took her away.
She remembered nestling in her brother's arms, asking with grievance and confusion, "Brother, why is Auntie so good at pinching people? Why does Mom sometimes love me so much, but sometimes just watch me get bullied and ignore me?"
Her brother was silent for a long time, and his peach blossom eyes, which were always smiling, revealed a complex emotion that she could not understand.
Instead of coaxing her like his mother did, he chose to tell her the truth.
He said, "Nian'an, Mom loves us."
"It's just... Mom's love is because we are Dad's children."
"She loves Dad, so she loves us."
"So, when we are put together with Dad's likes and dislikes, we become unimportant."
That night, her brother told her many things she didn't know before.
He said that his mother was actually quite outstanding. In the old days forty years ago, she was the most outstanding girl in the clan affiliated with the Shen family. She was smart and beautiful.
At that time, everyone thought that she would at least be one of my father's concubines. They were childhood sweethearts, and my mother had long been secretly in love with my father.
But later, times changed, and my father insisted on marrying the first lady, and promised that it would be her only.
My mother was sad for a long time, but she did not marry anyone else. Instead, she studied hard and was admitted to the best university. With her own abilities, she gradually became my father's right-hand secretary.
Later, when the clan wanted to offer her to her father, she did not hesitate, and thus Shen Que was born.
A few years later, her gentle companionship and love were seen by her father, and she, Shen Nian'an, was born.
My mother is very smart. She is the most capable secretary at work, and she is also elegant and gentle as Mrs. Shen. She has never brought shame to the Shen family's reputation outside. Only when it comes to things related to my father, she is always like two different people.
Her brother touched her head and said softly, "Nian'an, maybe she isn't a good enough mother sometimes."
"But that's because she loves her father too much."
"Everyone told her since she was little that her father was her most important, so she dedicated her heart to him early on."
"So, don't blame her too much."
However, little Shen Nian'an could not understand and tolerate like his brother.
From that day on, she became more and more arrogant and domineering in front of her mother, because she found that as long as she didn't touch the eldest lady, her mother would always indulge her, as if it was a compensation for guilt.
That night, her brother said to her, "It doesn't matter what others do, Nian'an, you must remember to become strong."
He even gave her a wry smile and told her, "Do you know why that lady is so good at pinching people? She specifically picks on the inside of your upper arm?"
Shen Nian’an shook his head.
"When I was a child, she pinched me so many times that I could hold back my tears even when I couldn't hold back my tears in other places. So she would pinch me where I was. Later, she found that when she pinched the inside of my upper arm, no matter how hard I tried to hold back my tears, I would still cry. So she would pinch that place specifically."
Shen Nian’an was so shocked that he couldn’t speak.
In her heart, the brother who is omnipotent and always protects her has actually been bullied like that?
Brother Shen Que looked into her eyes and said seriously, "So, Nian'an, I hope you can hold power tightly in your own hands like I do."
"Only in this way will you not have to be afraid of anyone and not rely on anyone."
“The most important thing is to be strong.”
From that moment on, even before she fell in love with Gu Chengyu at first sight, Shen Nian'an had made up her mind that she would become the young lady of the Gu family.
She wanted to stand at the highest position so that no one could bully her or her brother anymore.
Later, when she was eighteen years old, she caught a glimpse of Gu Chengyu at a banquet, and it was almost inevitable that she would fall in love with him.
Putting aside the Gu family's immense power, Gu Chengyu's innate sharpness and arrogance are something that the children of the Shen family who grew up under oppression can never achieve.
Her brother was also arrogant in front of outsiders, but she knew that many things in his bones were different.
For the willful and arrogant Shen Nian'an, there are many important things he wants to do.
She wants to be the best, marry the most powerful man, and hates all women who are prettier than her...
But all this happened in front of his brother Shen Que.
Nothing.
Brother comes first.
Fault number one.
In the mirror, Shen Nian'an slowly raised his hand and touched the skin on the inside of his upper arm, which had long been free of any marks.
There still seems to be a dull pain there.
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