Chapter 207

Sunlight streamed through the gaps in the curtains when it suddenly struck me—I was no longer that naive girl.

The mirror reflected faint lines at the corners of my eyes. The once-clear gaze now held an indescribable complexity.

"Miss, your father requests your presence in the study," the butler reminded softly outside the door.

I set down the comb, my fingers brushing against the faded bow hairclip on the vanity. A gift from him on my sixteenth birthday.

In the study, Father stood by the window with his back to me. His silhouette seemed more stooped than I remembered.

"Have you made your decision?" His voice was hoarse with exhaustion.

I tightened my grip on the documents—a marriage alliance agreement that would determine the fate of two families.

There was a time when I would have thrown a tantrum over such matters. Now, I simply nodded in quiet acceptance.

As I left the study, my phone vibrated. A message from him: "I heard you're getting engaged?"

I didn’t reply. Tucking the phone away, I suddenly recalled that day under the cherry blossoms when he smiled and promised to protect me forever.

So this is what growing up means.

Not that we change,

but that we learn

to bury our most precious things

with our own hands.

"I chose a handsome man, the son of a village official." Emily Johnson traced the rim of her teacup absently. "He promised I'd never work the fields—he'd handle all the chores, hunting, fishing, even earning money. For years, he's cherished me like a treasure."

Margaret Johnson's heart clenched.

Her beautiful daughter, alone in that unfamiliar countryside. Those idle troublemakers must have set their sights on such a pretty girl.

Emily had no protection. The care packages from home grew scarcer—her daughter-in-law kept complaining about raising two children, demanding financial support.

What other choice did her youngest have but marriage?

Margaret's eyes stung. She'd been blind to her daughter-in-law's manipulations. That woman's false virtue and the grandson she'd borne had skewed Margaret's judgment.

Emily observed her mother's guilt with detachment.

Too late.

The original Emily was already gone. Even if she'd survived, that tragic ending would still have been partly her family's doing.

"Without his protection, I'd probably look as old as you by now." Emily's tone was flat, as if recounting someone else's story.

Margaret felt her heart being shredded.

That rushed departure to the countryside—they hadn't even packed properly.

"Won't you come home with me?" Margaret couldn't hide her disdain for this rural son-in-law. Even knowing he'd protected Emily didn't warm her to him.

"No." Emily's refusal was absolute.

As for visiting the city? Maybe later. She'd avoid it during college entrance exams too.

Her family home was a den of wolves—she wasn't a fool.

Margaret's chest tightened.

"Your brothers adored you..."

"They did." Emily met her mother's gaze squarely. "But marriage shifted their priorities. Before I left, when my fiancé was scheming behind my back—do you think they didn't know? Choosing to turn a blind eye severed those sibling bonds."

This truth needed stating.

Could husbands really remain oblivious to their wives' schemes?

Weighing a lifelong partner against a sister they'd loved for years—any man would know which mattered more.

Margaret paled.

If her daughter-in-law had truly plotted, could her eldest son have been ignorant?

Even she, as a mother, couldn't believe that.

Knowing his sister was being betrayed yet doing nothing. And they'd blamed their second son...

Each breath hurt.

When had her children become like this?

Does growing up always mean changing hearts?

Emily watched coldly.

These were the original Emily's family debts—none of her concern.

They weren't blind. They simply refused to believe their own could betray family.