The Stepmother’s Counterattack: Raising a Child in a Bygone Era
Chapter 397 - 396: Like Mother, Like Daughter

Chapter 397: Chapter 396: Like Mother, Like Daughter

Despite telling herself countless times that the person behind her wasn’t worth any of her expectations, her heart still ached like it was pierced when she heard the utmost sarcasm from the other party.

"Like mother, like daughter. In this respect, I indeed inherited from you. Aren’t you also unable to control dad?"

Only the closest people know where it hurts the most when the knife stabs.

When Chu Yuqing was struck in her sore spot by Zhong Qing, she could no longer maintain her facade. She grabbed Zhong Qing’s face and slapped her hard.

"What do you intend to do? Your dad has already relented and allowed you to marry into the Yan Family. Why aren’t you willing? Are you still delusively playing the savior to rescue others? Look at yourself now, as pitiful as a dog. Aren’t you laughable?"

Zhong Qing’s eyes were red with provocation. "Because I’m not inhumane like you."

The hand that Chu Yuqing raised again was caught by Zhong Qing. "If you ruin my face, aren’t you afraid dad will get angry? It’s been a long time since you felt the taste of the whip, right? I don’t mind helping you return to the past."

Chu Yuqing retreated several steps in fear, as if recalling some terrifying memory.

Seeing the undisguised mockery on Zhong Qing’s face, she flew into a rage from embarrassment. "You refuse to leave this family. Could it be you’ve fallen in love with him? How could you be so cheap?"

Zhong Qing picked up the table lamp and hurled it. "Get out!!"

Chu Yuqing dodged quickly; otherwise, she might have suffered a bloody head on the spot.

Not daring to stay any longer, she turned and left in haste.

Locking the room door, the quiet and sealed environment finally allowed Zhong Qing a slight sense of relaxation.

Her body hurt, but not as much as her heart did.

She sat in the corner hugging her knees, staring blankly out at the pitch-black night through the window; her eyes resembled the lifeless depths of the sea, devoid of any light.

Her fingertips touched something cold. Looking down, it was a piece of broken lamp glass.

Tears silently fell down her cheeks.

How could there be such a mother in the world?

To escape her own hell, she dragged her own daughter into the foul muck, committing the world’s most heinous acts under the guise of the closest kinship.

It would have been better if she had never been born.

Living was too painful for her, too exhausting.

In her next life, she definitely didn’t want to be someone’s daughter again.

...

Late at night.

Usually at this hour, Shen Mingzhu would have long been fast asleep, but today she tossed and turned, unable to find sleep, her mind constantly occupied by the events at Li Garden.

The more she thought about it, the more something seemed off.

She didn’t have a high tolerance for alcohol, but she wouldn’t be so drunk from a few sips of red wine as to pass out.

Zhong Qing said it was lack of oxygen, yet Shen Mingzhu clearly remembered that the charcoal basin was brought in last, and she hadn’t even had the chance to taste its flavor.

Setting aside whether two fists-sized pieces of charcoal could deplete the oxygen in the whole private room, even if they could, it wouldn’t happen that fast.

She was to blame for being confused at the time and for trusting Zhong Qing, which led her to believe the explanation of fainting due to lack of oxygen.

There was no reason for Zhong Qing to lie to her, unless she was covering for someone.

So, was it Mrs. Zhong?

Although Shen Mingzhu didn’t understand Mrs. Zhong’s motives, the thought that she had no memories of being unconscious for over an hour sent a cold sweat down her back.

She quietly got up and went to the bathroom, took off her nightgown and pajamas, and examined her entire body in the mirror. Finding no abnormalities or discomfort, her unease was slightly alleviated.

"What are you hiding here for?"

Seeing Pei Yang enter the bathroom, Shen Mingzhu wasn’t surprised.

His experience on the battlefield and working at sea made Pei Yang’s vigilance much higher than that of ordinary people. With her tossing and turning in bed like flipping an egg in a pan, he probably hadn’t slept well either.

"Trying to seduce me in the middle of the night?"

Pei Yang came close, wanting to be affectionate, but Shen Mingzhu was not in the mood.

"Pei Yang, I have something to tell you..."

"You talk, I’ll do."

The man wore close-fitting thermal underwear. His warm body temperature, along with his familiar scent, like that of cedar, penetrated through the thin fabric and onto her skin.

Shen Mingzhu’s anxiety suddenly dispersed.

"Ding-a-ling-a-ling."

The shrill telephone ring interrupted the two of them.

Pei Yang went to answer the call while Shen Mingzhu dressed.

Before she could pull on her pants, Pei Yang came running back with a grave expression, "Mingzhu, Zhong Qing tried to kill herself."

Shen Mingzhu’s pants dropped to the floor from her hands.

...

When Shen Mingzhu and Pei Yang arrived at the hospital, Zhong Qing was undergoing emergency treatment.

Among the Zhong family’s relatives present were Chu Yuqing and a nanny.

Chu Yuqing greeted Pei Yang and Shen Mingzhu politely.

Shen Mingzhu merely nodded slightly to Chu Yuqing, unwilling to converse with her.

Every time she recalled how the other party had deceitfully entered Li Garden with nefarious intentions, Shen Mingzhu felt a wave of disgust.

She went straight to Yan Yi and asked about what had happened.

Yan Yi pointed towards the end of the corridor, "Let’s talk over there."

"Okay."

Chu Yuqing cast a furtive glance at the retreating backs of the two, then approached Pei Yang, "I’m sorry for troubling you to come all the way here, Qingqing is really too foolish. It was just a quarrel with her father. What father and daughter do not argue?"

Seeing Chu Yuqing’s sorrowful distress, Pei Yang offered some comforting words.

Little did he know, the seemingly vulnerable and beautiful woman before him was actually a cold-hearted and venomous person, who had nearly colluded with her husband to assault his wife.

At the end of the corridor.

Yan Yi told Shen Mingzhu, "...actually, Zhong Qing has severe depression, but she refuses to accept my help. Aunt Qing said that Zhong Qing became impulsive after an argument with her father, but I think it’s related to her condition."

Shen Mingzhu was shocked and filled with self-reproach.

She had considered herself close friends with Zhong Qing, yet she had failed to notice Zhong Qing’s depression.

"You shouldn’t blame yourself, she concealed it too well. I only noticed after being in contact with her for a long time."

"Then what can I do to help her?"

Yan Yi smiled, "You’ve been helping her all along, haven’t you noticed? Her mood is always better when she’s with you."

I am too.

...

After a night of emergency treatment, Zhong Qing had finally escaped danger.

Nevertheless, due to excessive blood loss, she remained unconscious.

It was almost dawn.

Pei Yang went back to look after the child and the food factory, while Shen Mingzhu stayed in the hospital.

If Yan Yi said her presence could alleviate Zhong Qing’s condition, she would stay with her a while longer.

Chu Yuqing went to consult with the doctors about the condition, leaving Shen Mingzhu, Yan Yi, and the nanny in the ward.

The heating in the ward wasn’t very strong, and worried that Zhong Qing might catch a cold, Shen Mingzhu stepped forward to pull the blanket up higher.

As she bent over to tug the blanket, she inadvertently caught sight of faint purple finger marks around Zhong Qing’s neck.

She subconsciously pulled open Zhong Qing’s collar to get a clearer view, but the sight that met her eyes stunned her.

She saw crisscrossing, vicious crimson welts on the snowy-white body, each one shocking to behold.

Clearly, they were signs of a brutal beating.

Who did this?!

In a flash, Shen Mingzhu remembered the bite mark she had seen on Zhong Qing’s chest during their hot spring visit.

Encountering such a perverted man, who wouldn’t be depressed?

Meeting her eyes, which were full of rage, Yan Yi looked bewildered.

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