After Rebirth, I Married the Great Demon King

Cheng Lie lowered his eyes, letting Zhao Haishuang reprimand him without making a sound.

The icy hostility from earlier seemed to vanish completely.

A heavy silence filled the room.

Zhao Haishuang was filled with restless irritation, yet she still didn’t lose her temper. In truth, she rarely did.

She was such a gentle and beautiful woman—how could she carelessly get angry?

She tossed the book onto the ground casually, the corners of her mouth curving into a sly smile, radiant as a sorceress: "Xiao Lie, listen to Mama. Don’t read too many books. Do you even understand them? You’d be better off just having fun."

The study door closed once again, leaving only Cheng Lie alone inside.

The sky grew darker, and the final rays of the setting sun receded, swallowed by the encroaching night.

The boy was also consumed by the darkness—cold and utterly alone.

He remained in the same seated posture, unmoving for a long time, like a statue.

...

When Yun Shifei arrived home, Aunt Zhong was already preparing dinner.

Xu Ya saw Yun Shifei return and asked, "Shifei, you’re back? How was tutoring today?"

After what had happened yesterday, Xu Ya hadn’t had the chance to say much to Yun Shifei.

At last, they had a topic to talk about.

"It was okay, but my foundation is really weak." Yun Shifei sounded a little frustrated. Her expression, however, remained as calm as ever, as if she’d completely forgotten about yesterday’s events.

This attitude of hers made Xu Ya feel even more guilty. The pain in her heart was like a tiny insect gnawing away at her bit by bit.

This was her daughter. Even though she’d slapped her yesterday, now the redness and swelling on Yun Shifei’s face had diminished, leaving behind bruises that were shocking to look at.

Yet, Yun Shifei bore no resentment toward her.

In this moment, Xu Ya felt that she truly owed Yun Shifei far too much.

As Yun Tiancheng had said, she shouldn’t have been so unfair.

Yun Sisi had been raised by her since she was little.

But Yun Shifei was her biological daughter, who had endured so many hardships outside all these years.

She should treat Yun Shifei better.

If Yun Sisi really felt hurt because she was being kind to Yun Shifei, then perhaps she had loved Yun Sisi in vain.

She believed that Yun Sisi would eventually understand.

"Mom, Sis, I’m home," Yun Sisi said cheerfully as she changed her shoes at the door.

Every Saturday afternoon, she would go to the studio to practice dance.

But today, she didn’t enjoy it much.

Because of what happened yesterday, her mind kept wandering during practice, and she repeatedly made mistakes, earning several critiques from her instructor.

Since she started dancing, she had always been praised; being reprimanded today was something she couldn’t quite handle.

As soon as she got home, she clung to Xu Ya and whined, wrapping her arms around her: "Mom, I’m so tired."

Xu Ya stroked her hair affectionately: "Our little Sisi worked so hard. You’re amazing."

Being praised like this by Xu Ya, Yun Sisi’s heart steadied somewhat.

Indeed, Xu Ya still liked her as much as ever.

She had been afraid that, because of what happened yesterday, Xu Ya might start thinking she was not as considerate anymore.

She was about to say something, but then saw Xu Ya turn to Yun Shifei and say, "Shifei must be tired too, studying all day."

Yun Shifei hadn’t expected Xu Ya to speak so warmly to her and quickly shook her head: "Not at all. I actually enjoy studying."

Yun Sisi: "..."

Yeah right. With your grades, claiming you enjoy studying? That’s harder to believe than someone telling her the sun rises in the west.

But right now, Yun Sisi’s emotions were in turmoil.

What unsettled her most was the unsettling realization that Xu Ya’s attitude toward Yun Shifei genuinely seemed to have changed.

A while ago, Xu Ya had also shifted subtly in how she treated Yun Shifei, but it was always done quietly—for instance, buying her gifts.

Although it had annoyed her, Yun Sisi had pretended not to notice.

She knew Xu Ya would be mindful of her feelings and wouldn’t overtly favor Yun Shifei in front of her.

But now, Xu Ya had actually shown concern for Yun Shifei right in front of her!

And even during dinner, the dishes served were all Yun Shifei’s favorites.

Every single one of them!

Even the dishes she hated the most—sweet and sour fish, scrambled eggs with tomatoes, and osmanthus sugar lotus root—were served.

All because Yun Shifei liked sweet foods.

Yun Sisi: "..."

She felt an enormous sense of grievance deep in her heart.

Even though Xu Ya made her favorite spare ribs, she couldn’t truly enjoy it anymore.

Yun Sisi picked at her food, her mood downcast and her appetite gone.

She wished Xu Ya would pay attention to her feelings, but Xu Ya didn’t. She kept placing food on Yun Shifei’s plate.

How infuriating!

After only a couple of bites, Yun Sisi set down her chopsticks: "Mom, Sis, I’m full. I’ll go upstairs to read now."

"Sisi, are you not eating any more? You’ve barely touched your food," Xu Ya finally diverted a bit of attention to her.

Her words only made Yun Sisi feel even more aggrieved. Tears welled up in her eyes.

"Mom, you know I don’t like sweet things. Why did you make so many sweet dishes today?"

"But I also made spare ribs, shrimp, and bok choy—the foods you love."

Xu Ya looked puzzled. Today, she had asked Aunt Zhong to prepare twice the usual amount of dishes, just to cater to her two daughters’ preferences.

So why was Yun Sisi unhappy?

Her thoughts shifted, and Xu Ya suddenly understood.

After dinner, Xu Ya went upstairs to find Yun Sisi.

"Sisi, why are you upset? Tell me," Xu Ya asked gently.

"I just don’t like sweet food," Yun Sisi muttered sulkily.

"Just because of that?"

Yun Sisi nodded.

Xu Ya gazed at the young girl before her.

In the past, she had pampered her, treating her like an only child. Perhaps that’s why Yun Sisi had grown so spoiled.

She couldn’t help but recall Yun Tiancheng’s words from before.

Yun Sisi had become spoiled, and Xu Ya shouldn’t indulge her so much moving forward.

She had always believed Yun Sisi was genuinely thoughtful.

It wasn’t until now, seeing her demand that others not eat what she didn’t like or else she’d get upset, that Xu Ya realized she had truly spoiled Yun Sisi too much.

This time, she didn’t coddle Yun Sisi like she used to. Instead, Xu Ya said, "Sisi, there’s something I need to talk to you about."

Her expression turned serious in an instant, catching Yun Sisi off guard.

It froze her grievance mid-flow.

In that moment, Xu Ya’s expression was eerily similar to Yun Tiancheng’s from last night.

Could it be that Xu Ya also thought she...?

Yun Sisi was terrified.

She didn’t want to hear what Xu Ya had to say, but Xu Ya went on anyway: "Sisi, last night I thought about it for a long time. I realized I’ve been too imbalanced in how I treat you and your sister. When I think about it now, I feel I’ve really been unfair to her."

"Mom..." Yun Sisi wanted to say something, but the words stuck in her throat, unable to come out.

"Sisi, your sister suffered so much while she was away. Now that she’s finally back, I should be a little kinder to her, don’t you think?"

Faced with Xu Ya’s earnest gaze, Yun Sisi had no choice but to nod.

But deep inside, she wanted to scream her denial.

Be kind to her—what about me?