On the wedding day, my wife was abnormal

After Lin Zhen took Cheng Xuan away, only Wan'er and You Meng, who was still immersed in great shock and complicated emotions, were left in the room.

Wan'er's pair of gentle eyes fell quietly on Youmeng, keenly capturing the turbulent waves in her eyes and the fragility beneath her cold appearance.

Wan'er curled her lips and waved to the maid Yunxiang standing by: "Yunxiang, please go down first. I want to talk to Miss Youmeng for a while."

There were only two people left in the house.

Wan'er's smile grew wider, carrying a warmth like a spring breeze. She waved at Youmeng, "Sister Youmeng, come here. Don't stand there. Come and sit here."

The call of "sister" was natural and intimate.

You Meng's body stiffened slightly at the shout, and her chaotic thoughts were forcibly pulled back.

Looking at Wan'er's face, which was sincere and kind without any airs, the strings in her heart seemed to be plucked.

After hesitating for a moment, he still walked obediently to the embroidered cushion beside Wan'er and sat down. His back was still straight, like a sword ready to be unsheathed, but the vigilance in his eyes was slightly reduced.

"Don't be so tense," Wan'er chuckled, reaching out and gently patting Youmeng's slightly clenched hand on her knee. "You'll be by my side from now on. You'll be my closest person. Relax a little, and just treat it like a chat between sisters."

"Madam, your words are too kind. I dare not..." You Meng said in a low voice.

"What do you mean by humble or not humble?" Wan'er pretended to be angry, then smiled brightly, "The prince sent you to my side and entrusted the safety of the person he cherishes most to you. This is a great trust in you! And this trust also makes me trust you! So..."

Wan'er looked directly into Youmeng's heroic eyes with a sincere look, "I sincerely want to acknowledge you as my sister! Are you willing?"

"Sister...sister?" You Meng murmured, and her eyes instantly surged with complex waves.

After twenty years of blood and gore, "sister" has become nothing more than a cold code name in the way of heaven, and has never contained any warmth.

Not to mention that the other party is the noble Crown Prince’s Consort?

The huge difference and the sudden kindness made her panic and have a hint of secret desire.

She shook her head subconsciously: "Madam! This... is absolutely unacceptable! How dare I, a humble person, address you as my sister? It's against etiquette!"

"Silly sister," Wan'er took the initiative to hold Youmeng's cold hand with thin calluses, and the warmth was passed on. Youmeng's fingertips trembled almost imperceptibly.

Wan'er's voice was filled with reassuring power. "What's the difference between status and etiquette? In my eyes, Shangguan Wan'er, friendship far outweighs empty formalities! If the prince believes in you, I will believe in you too! Since I believe in you, I am willing to treat you sincerely like a sister!"

She held Youmeng's hand tightly, her eyes burning, "Just tell me, are you willing to acknowledge me as your sister?"

The warmth that wrapped around the palm spread from the fingertips to the heart.

Youmeng looked at Wan'er's clear eyes, which were full of sincerity and expectation without any pretense, and the solid barrier in her heart cracked for the first time.

The feeling of being accepted and cherished was unfamiliar yet made her palpitate.

Her throat tightened, and under the gentle gaze, she nodded slowly but firmly, her voice a little hoarse: "I...will. I'll listen to my sister."

The word "sister" was as light as a mosquito, but it drained all her courage.

Wan'er's smile blossomed like a peony, bright and joyful: "Good! That's great!"

She shook Youmeng's hand vigorously, "Haha, haha, from now on we are sisters! Don't call yourself a lowly official anymore, it's too distant!"

"Yes, sister." You Meng nodded, her voice became smoother, and a warm feeling quietly arose in her.

Wan'er finally let go of her hand and leaned forward slightly, with just the right amount of curiosity and concern: "So... can you tell me now? About your family story?"

Her eyes were gentle and encouraging. "From now on, we're sisters. Your worries are my worries. Tell me, and I'll share your worries, okay?"

Looking at Wan'er's sincerely concerned eyes, the last trace of vigilance in Youmeng's heart completely disappeared.

She took a deep breath, as if pulling out the most painful thorn buried deep in her soul.

For the first time, he took off all the tough masks on his handsome face in front of Wan'er, revealing deep fatigue and heavy grief.

"Okay, actually... there's nothing much to say... Sister..."

You Meng's voice was like dead leaves falling in the autumn wind, and her eyes were cast empty into the distance, as if she had penetrated time and space and returned to the small village called Xilin under Cangzhou Prefecture.

"That was a long, long time ago..."

The candlelight in the room flickered slightly and the incense curled up.

She took a deep breath, and the breath was so heavy that it seemed as if a huge rock was pressing down on her. When she slowly exhaled, her voice was already barely noticeable hoarse.

"Back then, our family wasn't wealthy, but we were considered a well-to-do farming family. My parents were hardworking and loving, tending a few acres of thin land. Our lives were simple, but peaceful and harmonious. I remember there was a small mulberry field in front of the house, where my mother was always busy. When my father came home from the fields, he would carry me on his shoulders to watch the sunset. That was... the only happy time in my life..."

Her voice was slightly choked, and for the first time, tears welled up in her eyes, but beneath that mist was surging pain.

Wan'er's heart tightened instantly, and her hand unconsciously covered Youmeng's clenched fist and slightly trembling hand, providing silent support.

"But those days are too short..."

You Meng sniffed sharply, forcing down the sob in her throat, and her voice suddenly became cold and suppressed.

"Later... Cangzhou was hit by a severe drought! Not a drop of water fell for three years! The fields yielded nothing! Thousands of miles of barren land were covered in starving people... The little food we had at home was quickly depleted. My parents sold everything of value in the house, but they only managed to buy a few handfuls of moldy chaff."

Her nails were almost digging into the flesh of her palms, and her voice became hoarse with extreme pain: "We really couldn't survive. Father took us to my grandfather's old house in a town further north. My grandfather was a small landlord there..."

When "Grandpa" was mentioned, Youmeng's pupils suddenly shrank, and deep hatred burst out of her eyes!

The hatred was so strong that Wan'er felt a palpitation in her heart.

"At first, Grandpa gave us a side room to live in because of our blood. Grandma wasn't in good health by then. Mother was only in her early twenties, hardworking and dedicated. To repay the kindness of taking her in, and to provide for me and my younger brother, she rose from the heavens and went to the grave, taking on most of Grandpa's chores and helping out, sewing, washing, and doing everything to the best of her ability... Her hands were covered in thick calluses..."

Youmeng's voice was once again trembling with sobs, expressing her sorrow for her mother's meticulous care.

"But... that old bastard! That beast in human skin!"

Youmeng's emotions suddenly got out of control!

She suddenly raised her head, her eyes bloodshot, her chest heaving violently, and her voice squeezed out from between her teeth, a cry of blood and tears: "He fell in love with my mother's youthful beauty! When my grandmother went to the temple to burn incense and pray for blessings... he actually blocked my mother in the woodshed! He used threats and inducements, and my mother fought desperately... But that old man..."

You Meng's whole body was shaking like a leaf in the wind, and her voice was torn by extreme anger and humiliation.

"…but he grabbed my brother! He grabbed his neck and yelled at my mother, 'Don't obey me? I'll throw this brat to the ground and kill him! And then I'll kick your whole family out! Let them starve to death in the wilderness! Who will dare to intervene?!'"

Wan'er covered her mouth, her beautiful eyes filled with shock and pain. She could imagine the despair at that moment!

What a human tragedy this is!

"Mother... Mother did this for my brother, for us..."

Youmeng's tears could no longer be held back, and they rolled down, hitting her clenched fists. "She...she compromised...and accepted the years-long hellish torture!!"