When she heard Huo Meishu say this, Huo Meishu immediately became interested. She pulled her chair closer and adjusted her sitting posture, smiling as she said, "That's more like it."
Rong Dai gave a faint smile but didn't say anything. If this hadn't happened, she definitely wouldn't have asked such a question.
But this incident had given her a huge shock. She couldn't imagine what would have happened if not for Huo Shaoting's help. This time, she really might have perished along with Zuo Ran.
What meaning was there in her rebirth then?
Even ants cling to life. Of course she didn't want to die either.
"Let me tell you about my big brother. His wisdom goes without saying. He handles things swiftly and decisively, and is very capable. He always has that stern look on his face, with his heart completely immersed in his work."
As Huo Meishu spoke, Rong Dai noticed her eyes brimming with distress.
"But I know he's very lonely. He uses all his strength to protect those close to him. Our dad died in a car accident when we were very little. My mom was just a woman who knew how to be a good wife and mother, and didn't understand anything about the business world."
"The Huo enterprise has been passed down since my grandfather's generation. The Huo family has an unwritten rule that the eldest son inherits, but my dad passed away early, and my mom couldn't lead the company. My grandma only had my dad, while my second uncle's side had many descendants who strongly opposed this unwritten rule passed down by the elders."
"So in the two years after my dad died, our family lived very poorly. My second uncle's family showed us no mercy at all. If it hadn't been for grandma stepping in to take over, we might have had to rely on others just to survive."
Huo Meishu's eyes turned red as she spoke, flickers of anger in them.
Although Rong Dai couldn't empathize, she understood very clearly how fierce the struggles were between relatives in a clan.
Especially when the pillar of support was lost, and they could only be bullied, such was the way of the world.
"But grandma was getting older, and she couldn't keep running the company forever. So this burden fell onto my big brother's shoulders."
Huo Meishu's voice was muffled, as if something was stuck in her throat.
She looked up at Rong Dai, her eyes full of pleading. "Do you know? My brother was only eight years old then. I remember he used to be very mischievous, but after he went with grandma to the company and came back, I never saw him laugh again."
"When other eight year olds are being spoiled in their parents' arms, playing with all kinds of toys, my big brother was immersed in the adult world of scheming and vicious, dirty tricks."
"Big brother used to play with me before, but after that, whenever I saw him, he'd be following grandma, dressed in a little suit even at eight years old, his face as cold and emotionless as a machine."
As Rong Dai listened, her heart couldn't help but ache.
She found it hard to imagine an eight year old child having to face the adult world. How much willpower must that have required?
"Do you know, whenever I went with second brother and mom to amusement parks, the yearning yet restrained look in big brother's eyes - it really broke my heart."
Huo Meishu couldn't help bowing her head and crying. Others only saw the glorious splendor of the wealthy Huo family, but no one understood their bitterness.
"My big brother wasn't always so aloof and stern. He had no choice, because he was the eldest son, the heir of the Huo family. What my big brother really needs is a woman who can make him experience joy, anger, sorrow and happiness, to make me feel he's a man of flesh and blood. Then I wouldn't feel so guilty."
"All these years, second brother and I only had to do what we wanted. Any difficulties weren't for us to worry about. But this all came at the cost of big brother's freedom and happiness. There have been many women around big brother who wanted to get into his bed, but he was so cold...sometimes I even wondered if he had issues in that area."
Rong Dai had been listening intently, her heart twisted as if she'd pulled a muscle. But hearing Huo Meishu's last words, she couldn't help breaking out in a cold sweat.
This really was a sister, to dare suspect her own brother's virility in this way.
"So when he was willing to marry you, even though your background wasn't suited to the Huo family, as long as big brother liked you and agreed, we would support it. We can't enter big brother's world, so we thought having you get close to him, giving him some warmth and letting him know he's not alone..."
"But after how you were...we all became a bit disheartened. And big brother was increasingly unhappy. I was so scared that big brother wasn't doing well. Although he doesn't think we owe him anything, everything we have now came at the cost of his freedom."
Huo Meishu cried as she laughed, unable to stop herself from grasping Rong Dai's hand tightly, gazing at her hopefully. "But now everything's good. Although this incident was dangerous, I saw a vivid side of big brother. He really cares a lot about you. You truly frightened him this time."
Rong Dai's heart stirred, and Huo Shaoting's cold, stern face inexplicably came to mind, making her heart race faster for no reason.
But she suddenly thought of something, and the joy in her heart instantly sank, replaced by a surge of sourness.
The one Huo Shaoting cared about was Rong Dai, not her!
If Huo Shaoting was willing to marry the original, it meant he at least had feelings for the original.
But herself...thinking this, her heart inexplicably twisted into a knot, the sour swelling pain like ants gnawing at the tip of her heart, making it slightly hard to breathe.
As expected, this was heaven's punishment for her.
In her past life, she had wronged so many of her clansmen. Even reborn, what right did she have to live a cherished life?
Thinking this, her gaze inevitably darkened.
She was herself. She would never be the original Rong Dai that Huo Shaoting cared about. The one Huo Shaoting cared for was that Rong Dai, not her.
This realization struck her heart heavily!
The joy and delight that had just sprouted in her heart, even the fantasy of the beautiful future the two could have, swiftly turned to ash in her heart.
She was herself. She had her own dignity and pride. She would never be anyone's substitute.
Even without the right to be loved, she would live out this life well on her own, repay the karmic debt of her past life properly, and do right by her clansmen in their graves.
