Shen Wei received the latest notification from the system.
"Save the anti-hero Mu Zhixing."
It was followed by a brief introduction.
Mu Zhixing was a girl who suffered from her parents' divorce at a young age and was abused by her wicked stepfather. With her genius painting ability, she gained worldwide fame.
But on the very night of her success, she committed suicide.
This extreme act unveiled the scars from her childhood.
Art lovers around the world mourned the loss of the genius.
Radicals took revenge on her biological parents and stepfather who had mistreated her, but the painting prodigy would never return.
After reading her introduction, Shen Wei said, "She was just a painter. How could she be considered an anti-hero?"
The information provided by the system never mentioned that she had harmed anyone.
The system replied, "It's because she was a friend of He Lingfeng. All her painting earnings were used to sponsor the destructive computer genius He Lingfeng."
Shen Wei pondered, "I see. So how is Mu Zhixing doing now? She hasn't been bullied, has she?"
The system answered, "Not yet, but she has less than half a month before the incident."
Shen Wei's heart skipped a beat.
With time running out and the task being critical, she had to bring Mu Zhixing back quickly.
For all the anti-heroes, the system provided clues to identify the specific individuals and their locations.
Otherwise, finding someone would be like searching for a needle in a haystack.
But this time was too rushed. She had to act immediately and prevent the future painting genius from being bullied by her wicked stepfather.
...
At this moment, Mu Zhixing was in the living room.
Her mother and younger sister had just gone shopping and bought a lot of things.
Although only 5 years old, the younger sister had a boastful mentality.
She kept showing off the new things her mother had bought for her to Mu Zhixing.
"Sister, look at this new dress mother bought me."
"This is the new strawberry hair clip mother bought me."
"Mother said I look like a little princess wearing this. Did you see these shoes? These are crystal shoes that only princesses have."
"But mother didn't buy anything for you."
As the younger sister flaunted her new possessions, the mother added fuel to the fire, "Of course I would buy things for you because you're a smart and adorable baby, unlike your sister who looks unpleasant."
Saying this, she glared at Mu Zhixing.
Mu Zhixing, only 6 years old, stood there helplessly.
Seeing her meek demeanor infuriated the mother, who grabbed her and pinched her arm hard. "Raising you is like raising an enemy."
The pain on Mu Zhixing's arm made her want to cry.
But when the mother saw her about to cry, she grew even angrier and pinched her inner thigh hard.
She didn't stop until Mu Zhixing burst into tears.
The younger sister clapped and cheered, "Mother is so powerful!"
Mu Zhixing's mother divorced her biological father.
She then moved in with her stepfather and gave birth to a younger daughter. Mu Zhixing always felt like an outsider.
When the younger sister was little, it was fine, but as she grew older and understood flaunting and jealousy, she would constantly emphasize to Mu Zhixing that their mother didn't love her.
Whenever Mu Zhixing showed the slightest discontent, the younger sister would run to their mother and tattle.
No matter what, Mu Zhixing would be the one punished and beaten in the end.
The last time someone said Mu Zhixing looked better than her younger sister, the latter cried for a long time.
In the end, the mother beat Mu Zhixing until she was covered in bruises, and only then did the younger sister stop crying.
Since then, the mother and daughter's oppression of Mu Zhixing had become more frequent.
What happened today, with just a few pinches on her inner thighs, was considered lenient treatment.
Although Mu Zhixing felt sad and felt that her mother didn't love her and preferred her younger sister, girls are naturally drawn to their mothers.
Moreover, she had an important matter to tell her mother.
At this moment, the younger sister was playing dolls with her kindergarten friends in her room.
The mother was baking the younger sister's favorite pizza in the kitchen.
Mu Zhixing followed her silently, wanting to speak but not daring to open her mouth.
Soon, the mother pushed her aside, "Why are you here? Get out of the way!"
Mu Zhixing, used to being suppressed by her mother, had a slightly timid nature. She paused for a moment and said softly to her mother, "I have something to tell you."
"Father keeps hugging me and touching me!" Her voice trembled as she spoke.
The "father" she referred to was clearly her stepfather living with them.
She was 6 years old and attended kindergarten.
Although not as prestigious as her younger sister's kindergarten.
But the kindergarten teacher had said that no matter if it's a boy or a girl, the areas covered by their small vest and shorts should not be touched by others.
Girls mature earlier than boys, and Mu Zhixing vaguely knew this was something quite shameful.
She didn't dare make a scene and secretly went to find her mother.
However, upon hearing this, her mother mocked her instead.
"You little brat, you're just a few years old and already making up stories like that. What do you know? Why say such disgusting things?"
"How shameless can you be, thinking of that at such a young age! You have no sense of decency!"
"Your father was just doting on you. Your younger sister doesn't even get that kind of treatment, yet you're not only ungrateful but also saying these vile things."
Tears filled Mu Zhixing's eyes.
Her expression of wanting to cry but not daring to looked truly pitiful.
Mu Zhixing inherited the best traits from her parents.
Although her biological parents were just average people, she seemed to have hit the genetic lottery.
With her big eyes and pointed chin on a small face, even in old clothes, she appeared to be a beautiful budding flower.
In the past, even talent scouts for child models had approached her.
But Mu Zhixing was too timid. When modeling clothes, she couldn't open up, so she was rejected.
Having lost the opportunity to be a money-making tree, her mother treated her even worse.
At that moment, a neighbor knocked on the door, "I'm cooking right now but realized I'm out of ginger. Do you have some? Can I borrow a couple pieces?"
Being neighbors, the mother said, "Sure, here you go."
Probably out of courtesy, instead of leaving right away after getting the ginger, the neighborly neighbor wanted to chat for a bit.
This neighbor lady was a kindhearted person.
Knowing that Mu Zhixing's mother favored her younger daughter, she had mentioned this issue before in conversation, after all, they were like sisters from the same mother.
Children don't hold grudges, so there's no need to be so extreme. But Mu Zhixing's mother remained stubborn.
Seeing Mu Zhixing crying pitifully, the neighbor felt sympathetic and said, "Why is this child crying?"
She silently lamented, "Poor thing!"
Such a beautiful little girl, living with her own mother is worse than living with a stepmother.
Mu Zhixing's mother seemed able to see through the thoughts of the neighbor auntie, and snorted, "Auntie, you don't even know what this child just said, quickly say again what you said earlier."
Although Mu Zhixing didn't know about the sordid affairs of adults, she still vaguely felt embarrassed and could only cry, not daring to speak again.
Her mother immediately said, "Look, look, she said I favor her little sister, she acts like someone has terribly wronged her!"
The auntie forced a laugh, "After all, it's one's own child, just comfort her, children's thoughts are delicate."
There was nothing more to say staying here, so the neighbor made an excuse about having a dish simmering and turned to leave.
After she left, Mu Zhixing's mother said to her, "I was saving face for you earlier by not saying anything, otherwise you would never be able to hold your head up again, slandering your father, trying to steal your mother's man, have you no shame?"
Mu Zhixing cried sorrowfully, and finally returned to her "secret corner" on the balcony to find her paintbrushes and paint.
She couldn't write yet.
Painting was like keeping a diary for her, her best friend.
But today, when she opened her paintbrushes, all the watercolor brushes had been soaked in water, unable to apply any color at all. The sketchbook had also been torn into a mess.
Only her little sister would do such a thing.
Mu Zhixing was usually forgiving, but this sketchbook and these brushes were her spiritual sustenance. With them ruined like this, she immediately went to confront her sister.
"Why did you ruin my sketchbook like this?"
Her sister was used to bullying her older sibling on a daily basis.
She said, "So what if I did it? In the future I'll tell Mom not to buy you any more paintbrushes, you'll never be able to paint again!"
These words struck Mu Zhixing to the core. She didn't know where the strength came from, but she pushed her sister with force.
Her sister was first incredulous.
Then she wailed in anger, "You actually dared to push me!" and burst into tears.
Mu Zhixing stood rooted in place, a sense of dread slowly drowning her heart.
Having made her little sister cry, she knew her mother would never let her off the hook.
