"Oh, Julia, I have a feeling this baby is a boy. Not bad, not bad—much better than your sister."
Julia blushed and tilted her chin slightly, her voice dripping with false humility.
"Aunt, don’t say that. Boys and girls are the same, as long as my husband likes them."
Her husband, the well-dressed and ever-smug son-in-law, chuckled, patting Julia’s hand. "Boys are good, boys are good..."
From the other side of the room, laughter erupted as Nate scrolled through his phone. I turned to look at him.
I had been an outstanding student all my life—top of my class, disciplined, determined. And yet, I ended up married to this town’s infamous good-for-nothing, a man who never even finished junior high.
That year, I should never have married him.
When my dream of studying abroad was crushed, I didn’t give up. I set my sights on becoming a civil servant.
But when the political background check was announced, someone maliciously reported me.
Rumors spread like wildfire. My mother dragged me to my grandfather’s grave, forcing me to kneel.
"Swear!" she demanded. "Swear that you will never take the postgraduate exam, never take the civil service exam, and never bring shame upon me again!"
Later, I secretly moved into a rented apartment to prepare for my postgraduate entrance exam. When my mother found out, she burned all my study materials, nearly setting my room on fire.
Then, my four-year relationship ended.
His parents disapproved of me. My aunt wasted no time, scheming behind my back.
"I've had someone calculate your daughter’s fate," she told my mother. "She’s destined for hardship. Her path is to marry and fulfill her duty as a wife. That’s the only way."
And my mother believed her.
They took my dowry deposit while I was away.
That night, my mother did something she had never done before—she cooked an elaborate meal and shared a few drinks with me, her voice unusually gentle.
"As long as you listen to me, I’ll find you a good husband," she promised.
Naively, I thought she had finally freed herself from my aunt’s control.
I didn’t know then that I was nothing more than bait.
That night, a man entered my room.
That man later became Nate.
—
A sudden commotion jolted me back to the present.
"Oh, baby—"
My daughter was at my aunt’s feet, coughing violently, her tiny face flushed red.
"It’s just a little mustard. Girls can’t be this weak. She’s too delicate!" my aunt scoffed.