Chapter 6

She and An MeiYun could not possibly get along peacefully.

After wandering as a lonely ghost for hundreds of years, she no longer cared as much about her initial hopes and longing for her loved ones.

At the moment of rebirth when she regained life, the joy of having a second chance naturally made her want to reclaim all that was hers and make An MeiYun pay the price.

But feelings required mutual effort, and one-sided obsession would only lead to self-harm.

In this life, An ZhiXia wanted to be more selfish and live well.

She also wanted to save the An family, after all, from the perspective of her previous life, they were victims like herself.

But with life reset to a time before everything happened, An MeiYun was the one raised by them since childhood as their beloved daughter, while An ZhiXia did not feel she could compare to An MeiYun's position in their hearts.

Just a few words were enough to make her go from full of anticipation to utterly disappointed.

Seeing her speak so firmly, An JingZhi's expression also showed some anxiety. "Little Grass, don't rush to make a decision. Dad knows no matter what MeiYun's original intentions were, the harm she caused you is irreversible. If you really cannot accept coexisting with her under one roof, our family can make other arrangements for her. Don't reject us outright, okay?"

This was the plan An JingZhi had discussed with his wife. Although they wanted to keep both girls by their side, ultimately, the girl before them was their own flesh and blood. And due to their mistakes, she had suffered so these past years, so they should love and cherish her more out of both emotion and reason.

As for MeiYun, they had raised her all these years and doted on her at home, so they had done right by her.

He would also do his best to arrange things well for her and not let her suffer hardship.

An ZhiXia understood they had raised An MeiYun for 18 years and invested a lot of feelings and effort that could not disappear in an instant.

For An JingZhi to choose her and make An MeiYun leave the An family was already the biggest compromise he could make right now.

An ZhiXia clenched her fists, seemingly deep in thought and struggle.

An JingZhi did not rush her for an answer but waited patiently, though also feeling somewhat anxious.

An ZhiXia lowered her head. Suddenly, she felt her wrist grabbed as An ZhiAng pulled her along out the door.

At the entrance, they happened to run into little cousin carrying half a basket of fish, grinning happily with excitement.

"ZhiAng you're here? Are you taking little sister out?"

An ZhiAng gave a quick reply and continued pulling An ZhiXia along.

The midwifery next door to the Zhou house was now dilapidated. The courtyard wall was propped up with several wooden sticks to prevent collapse, and large cracks ran along the house walls.

"You brought me here, is it to persuade me to compromise?" An ZhiXia looked up bewilderedly at the ruined house, imagining the scene of four babies being born here.

This was the beginning of her life and tragedy, a scene both joyful and infuriating.

"Of course not." An ZhiAng looked at An ZhiXia sympathetically. Perhaps due to being twins, from the first moment he saw her, he felt a strange sense of familiarity.

It was a desire to get close to her yet also fear of frightening her with rashness, making him unconsciously exercise great care. An ZhiAng had never experienced this feeling before. Even previously when he thought An MeiYun was his twin, he never had any particular desire to get close to her. His only feeling toward her was that as the only girl in the family, he should indulge her a bit.

But after meeting An ZhiXia, An ZhiAng finally understood the difference between feeling obligated to cherish someone and sincerely wanting to cherish someone.

The former would make him feel frustrated while the latter was voluntary and came with a deep sense of happiness.

"Little sister, when I first found out at home that someone had swapped my sister, I didn't feel anything. Even on the way with Dad to pick you up, I didn't think I would have any special feelings for you. After all, we had never met or spent time together. We were total strangers. But can you understand, from the moment I first saw you in the room, I desperately wanted to get close to you and give you the best of everything I have..." An ZhiAng didn't know how to describe this feeling. He just felt so pleased with his sister no matter how he looked at her. Even her head of withered yellow hair just made his heart ache when he saw it. An MeiYun had enjoyed the family's love and care growing up, with the best food, clothes, and education because she was the only girl. No one, young or old, did not indulge and dote on her.

Yet the one who should have had all this suffered so much undeserved misery because of their family's mistake and the Guo family's sinister plot.

In that moment, An ZhiAng suddenly felt immense dislike towards An MeiYun.

"Little sister, I didn't say all this today to demand anything of you. I just want you to know we are connected by blood and are true family. If you really dislike having An MeiYun in the house, go back and I'll tell Mom. Eldest brother isn't home right now, so I'll get second and third brother to come speak together. We can't let anyone bully my own sister anyway. If Mom still disagrees, I'll take you to live with Grandpa and Grandma. Our old madam has never liked An MeiYun, saying she's too scheming and not like our An family. Turns out she saw right through her. She really isn't one of us. Old madam will definitely like you when she meets you. Although at first glance your face resembles Mom's fiercely, do you know, your eyes look exactly like Grandma's when she was young. I've seen Grandma's old childhood photos..."

An ZhiAng seemed unusually talkative today, not knowing what he should or shouldn't say, so he just said everything.

He could see the flash of disappointment in little sister's eyes when Father said An MeiYun could stay.

He was afraid she wouldn't want to come back with them, afraid his dear sister would refuse to acknowledge him.

After finishing, An ZhiAng looked to An ZhiXia but saw her gaze on him was wandering and distant.

Anxiously frowning, he reflexively grabbed her arm. "Little sister, you don't believe what I said?"

"No, of course I believe Fourth Brother. It's just that no one has ever cared about or loved me before in my life. My heart still can't quite believe I also have family who love me."

As An ZhiXia spoke, she pulled her arm back because An ZhiAng had grabbed her scarred injury.

Although the wound had healed, being gripped still caused some pain.