After being reborn, the aloof female CEO became a paranoid.

I didn't sleep a wink all night. I took a short nap in the morning and woke up at noon.

Zhou Yu rubbed his eyes, and as soon as he opened the door, he heard bursts of laughter and cheerful voices coming from downstairs.

He stood at the top of the stairs and looked down, only to see Zhou Ze chatting animatedly with a man and a woman in the living room.

The middle-aged woman, who looked like a noblewoman and had a plump figure, was their aunt, Zhou Yuzhen.

The young man sitting next to her was Zhou Yu's cousin, Shen Tianling. He was only one year older than him, but he left a deep impression on Zhou Yu and his hatred for him was hard to dispel.

Zhou Yu would never forget the faces of these two people, even if they were reduced to ashes.

In his past life, it was this mother and son who twisted the truth in court, insisting that he had murdered Xu Xinran's mother and brother, thus saddled him with a fabricated crime, imprisoned, and unable to defend himself.

At this moment, hatred surged in Zhou Yu's heart like a tidal wave. He clenched his fists so tightly that his nails dug deep into his palms, almost drawing blood.

But he knew that now was not the time to act impulsively; he had to restrain himself and not let hatred cloud his judgment.

He closed his eyes, trying to calm himself down, and quietly went down the stairs, hiding around the corner to observe.

Zhou Ze and Zhou Yuzhen were already very close. At this moment, Zhou Ze said something to them, and Zhou Yuzhen was amused by Zhou Ze and laughed heartily. The two looked like a mother and son, extremely affectionate.

The sight made Zhou Yu feel incredibly frustrated. From childhood, because Zhou Yu was an illegitimate child, no matter what he did or how well-behaved he was, his aunt simply didn't like him. It was as if he were invisible, forever unable to fit in.

Suddenly, Zhou Ze spotted a figure at the corner of the stairs and called out, "Big Brother!"

Zhou Yuzhen and Shen Tianling also looked over at the sound. Zhou Yuzhen's face immediately darkened, and then she straightened her back and adopted a haughty posture.

Shen Tianling put down his teacup and smiled gently at Zhou Yu, saying, "Xiao Yu, come here quickly, we've all been waiting for you."

Zhou Yu walked downstairs and greeted her coldly, "Hello, Aunt."

"Oh dear, as expected of someone who's going to be the Xu family's son-in-law, he's got quite the airs. The elders are coming to visit, and he's only getting up now, making me wait downstairs... These people, once they climb the social ladder, really start to disrespect their elders."

Zhou Yu didn't want to argue with Zhou Yuzhen's sarcastic remarks, but in the end he couldn't hold back.

"Heh, Aunt, the way you're saying that makes it sound like I'm deliberately being disrespectful to you." Zhou Yu's lips curled into a cold smile, his eyes filled with disdain.

"I just recovered from my illness and wanted to sleep a little longer to recharge, but I didn't expect my aunt to come so early. I'm so sorry."

Seeing this, Shen Tianling quickly tried to smooth things over, "Mom, please don't blame Zhou Yu. He's just recovered and needs to rest. Besides, we're not strangers, why bother with these things?"

Zhou Ze chimed in, "Yes, Auntie, my brother is always the most filial to you. This must be a misunderstanding."

But Zhou Yuzhen was clearly not buying it, and continued to speak coldly: "Filial piety? I haven't seen it. I'm more worried that with his arrogance, he won't even recognize our Zhou family after he enters the Xu family."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yu's inward sneer intensified, but he remained outwardly composed.

He gently pulled his hand away from Shen Tianling's and said calmly, "Auntie, you flatter me. I, Zhou Yu, am still a member of the Zhou family, no matter what. However, I do have a prior appointment today and cannot chat with you any longer. Please forgive me."

Zhou Yu knew perfectly well that these three were all cut from the same cloth, utterly hypocritical. He really didn't want to watch them put on an act in front of him anymore, so he made up a reason and tried to slip away as quickly as possible.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he lifted his leg, Shen Tianling grabbed his shoulder with such force that it seemed as if he wanted to nail him to the spot.

Zhou Yu exerted his strength, but he still found it difficult to break free easily.

Then his smiling, tiger-like cousin came up to him and said, "Zhou Yu, Mom and I came here specifically to see you today. The weather is nice today, and I wanted to go horseback riding, but I'm not a very good rider, so I wanted you to come with me. Just think of it as a way to relax."

"horse riding?"

Zhou Yu felt a chill run down his spine, his brows furrowing involuntarily, a sense of foreboding rising within him.

Memories of her past life flooded back like a tide. Shen Tianling had once suggested riding horses together, but it turned into a disaster.

When the horse went out of control, he charged forward recklessly, only to fall off and, most seriously, suffer a groin injury...

During that period, it felt like he had fallen into hell; the dual torment of body and mind nearly drove him to the brink of collapse…