Chapter 7 – Bruises Behind the Door
As soon as Han Zixuan left the mansion for business that evening, the silence shattered.
Xun Lanyue's footsteps stormed down the corridor, heels clicking like knives. Her face was a mask of sweetness until she slammed Qiao Xueran's bedroom door shut behind her.
Inside, Xueran sat cross-legged on her bed, playing with a small wooden doll, humming softly.
Without warning, Lanyue's hand cracked across her face.
Slap!
Xueran fell sideways, eyes wide with fake confusion, the fool's mask unbroken.
Another slap. Then a kick. Lanyue's fury poured out in waves — jealousy, humiliation, and the memory of that morning's embrace twisting her heart like barbed wire.
"You think you've fooled him? You think he cares for you?" she spat, striking again. "You're nothing but a stain! A fool! A curse that should have died with your parents!"
Each word was punctuated by another blow. Xueran's lip split, blood streaking pale skin, but she never screamed. She only whimpered like a frightened child, the mask she had mastered since that night in the snow.
Finally, Lanyue's breaths came ragged, her hands trembling. She left Xueran crumpled on the floor, muttering,
"If he ever looks at you again… I'll tear you apart."
The door slammed.
The Maid
Moments later, the door creaked open again. A small figure slipped inside — Zi, the quiet maid with downcast eyes, the only one in the house who dared show kindness.
She rushed to Xueran's side, kneeling.
"Miss… are you all right?"
Xueran lifted her gaze slowly. Her cheek was swollen, her lip bleeding, her arms bruised. But her smile — faint, eerie, knowing — curved her lips.
"Zi… don't cry."
The maid's hands trembled as she dabbed at the blood with a cloth. Tears slipped down her face.
"Why don't you tell the boss? If he knew—"
Xueran caught her wrist, her touch deceptively gentle. Her voice dropped low, almost a whisper — a voice that was not a fool's.
"Not yet."
Zi froze. Her eyes widened, realizing for the first time that there was steel beneath the broken mask.
Qiao Xueran leaned back against the wall, eyes burning with the memory of two graves in the snow.
"When the time comes… she will pay. They all will."