Inverse Blaze

"Slap!" The sound of a palm striking a face echoed clearly through the banquet hall. Mu Rulan felt her cheek go numb from the pain, the taste of iron filling her mouth.

The onlookers showed no sympathy. Dressed in luxurious attire, meticulously groomed, and holding glasses of red wine or champagne, they wore cold, mocking smiles.

"Say it again!" Mu Zhenyang trembled with rage, his eyes burning with a blood-red fury. To an outsider, it would seem Mu Rulan was his enemy, not his own daughter.

Mu Rulan wore her school uniform, now stained with red wine. Her back was straight, as unyielding as a birch tree. Her eyes were bright, filled with defiance, her fists clenched tightly. "I did nothing wrong!"

"You..."

"Dad... no, Uncle Mu, it's my fault. Don't blame Sister. It's all my incompetence..." Bai Suqing spoke weakly, her delicate face marked with a deep slap imprint. As she shook her head, her black hair couldn't hide the mark, reigniting Mu Zhenyang's anger. He swung his hand again, sending Mu Rulan crashing to the ground.

In front of so many outsiders, he showed no mercy, slapping his own daughter twice for the sake of an outsider. This was her father.

Mu Rulan sat on the ground, a faint smile tugging at her lips, though her eyes uncontrollably reddened.

She felt wronged. Bai Suqing had only been in her home for half a year, yet she had stolen her parents, her brother, and her lover. Mu Rulan had always thought she might have done something wrong, but Bai Suqing had personally admitted to her that it was all part of her scheme. While Mu Rulan foolishly believed she had a sister to cherish, Bai Suqing had plotted against her, arranging for her to be gang-raped by school thugs, then pretending to comfort her, making her feel grateful. The next day, Bai Suqing posted the video online, humiliating her and causing her fiancé's family to reject her for being "impure."

She had explained to her friends, her parents, her brother, but all she received were cold stares and mockery. They said, "Mu Rulan, you're despicable. Suqing has been so good to you, yet you slander her behind her back. No wonder those things happened to you. It must be heaven punishing you. You deserve it!"

Yes, she deserved it. It was her own fault for not seeing through people. She had always been stubborn, unable to endure being betrayed by everyone. After several attempts to explain were met with disbelief, she stopped caring. At least she wouldn't let Bai Suqing take her dignity. She believed in one thing: those who care about you don't need your explanations, and those who don't care won't believe them anyway.

Since they didn't believe her, she discarded them from her heart. She was still the stubborn, prideful girl she had always been. She couldn't fight against a schemer like Bai Suqing, but she could avoid her. She didn't want parents or siblings who could be stolen away, nor did she want lovers or friends who could be taken. But she never expected this black-hearted white lotus would leave her no way out. When she returned home to fetch some belongings, Bai Suqing had to stir up trouble. Bai Suqing said she was surprised Mu Rulan still had the face to come back. Mu Rulan retorted that it was her right to return, and that a pheasant like Bai Suqing, who had lost her parents and came to steal others', could never become a phoenix even if she entered the Mu family.

So, Bai Suqing had her crony slap herself, then burst into tears. There were so many self-righteous defenders, even her own parents and brother sided with Bai Suqing.

Mu Rusen sneered coldly, saying having such a sister must be the worst luck of his life.

Mu Rulin stood at the back of the crowd, his gaze cold, as if he were just watching a stranger's drama.

"Will you apologize or not?!" Mu Zhenyang was furious. Hadn't this daughter embarrassed him enough? He regretted not strangling her at birth to save himself the humiliation today!

"Rulan, apologize to Suqing. You're the older sister. How could you say such things to your younger sister? Apologize now!" Her mother, Ke Wanqing, comforted Bai Suqing while shooting Mu Rulan a sharp, icy glare, laced with threat.

Mu Rulan's eyes were cold. She stood up and walked out without looking at anyone. Her back was straight, her figure slender and frail. No one could make her bow or bend, not even her own parents. Today, she had spoken the truth and was publicly humiliated by her parents. If she had struck Bai Suqing, they might have wanted to tear her to pieces.

"If you take one step out of here without apologizing, you're no longer my daughter!" Mu Zhenyang was so angry he wanted to grab a stick and beat her. She was challenging his authority as a father and the head of the household! How dare she disobey him!

Mu Rulan clenched her fists and continued walking out without a word. Who would want to stay in such a family? She, Mu Rulan, had hands and feet. Even if she had to beg on the streets, she would never set foot in this place again!

Behind her, she heard a few harsh curses, but Mu Rulan acted as if she hadn't heard them. The bright moonlight bathed her figure, making her look lonely and frail.

As she reached the roadside, Bai Suqing's anxious voice called out from behind, "Sister! Sister, don't be impulsive! It's my fault. Don't leave. I'll go! Sister..."

Mu Rulan ignored her. The headlights of an approaching car shone brightly, stinging her eyes.

"What's the rush?" Bai Suqing's originally soft voice turned sharp and piercing. She grabbed Mu Rulan's hand, her smile mocking. "I'm not done playing yet."

"What else do you want? I have nothing left. What more could you possibly take?" Mu Rulan shook off her hand and glared at her coldly, her expression stubborn, as if she didn't care about what had been taken from her.

Bai Suqing narrowed her eyes. "I want to see you cry! I want to see you kneel on the ground like a dog, begging me. I want to see you dirty and lowly, like an ant. But why won't you cry?" She hated Mu Rulan's pristine, aloof demeanor. Even after being gang-raped, even after her body was no longer pure, she still looked as clean and innocent as a child. This image made Bai Suqing want to tear her apart!

Mu Rulan's lips curled into a cold, defiant smile. "I'm sorry, but you'll never get your wish in this lifetime."

"Then just die!" A murderous glint flashed in Bai Suqing's eyes as she pushed Mu Rulan into the road.

"Crash!"

Mu Rulan's shocked expression seemed frozen on her face. Her entire body felt as if it had been shattered, and crimson blood quickly spread from her head. Her neck twisted, her eyes dazed as she looked ahead.

She saw Bai Suqing's sinister, triumphant, and disdainful smile. She saw her family running over. She saw that the person who had hit her was the man she had once loved with all her heart.

The act of pushing her into the road was so obvious that anyone with eyes could see it.

Yet, they seemed all too happy to see her die.

Mu Zhenyang said, "Don't take it to heart. It's not your fault."

Ke Wanqing hugged Bai Suqing, who appeared to be in shock, and comforted her, "It's okay. I still have you, my dear daughter, who's even closer to me than my own."

"Tch, that kind of woman should've died long ago. Her existence was an embarrassment!" Mu Rusen chewed gum, his hands in his pockets, looking at Mu Rulan lying in the road as if she were a piece of trash.

"I've only ever loved you," the man who had just killed her declared passionately to Bai Suqing in the next moment.

Her consciousness faded. In the moment before death, amidst her resentment, she felt a strange sense of admiration. To be able to kill someone in public and still be comforted—that was true success.