Volume One, Chapter Five: Calamity to Loved Ones

"Miss Su, it's time for dinner."

It was Aunt Zhang, the housekeeper of the Xiao family, calling her downstairs for the evening meal.

"Alright, I'm coming," Su Tong replied.

Descending the stairs and entering the dining room, Su Tong paused in surprise.

The spacious dining room held only herself and Xiao Shiyu.

Perhaps noticing her confusion, Xiao Shiyu offered an explanation. "Don’t be fooled by how empty it seems today. Our family is quite large; except for the married aunt, everyone lives here. Grandfather and grandmother are visiting Aunt's home in the capital, Father and Mother are on a business trip abroad, my younger sister is away at a competition training camp, Second Uncle’s family of four went to Europe for vacation, and Third Grandfather... well, you know, he probably won’t be back for several days."

He paused, as if remembering something else, and added, "There’s also a cousin who only comes home occasionally."

Su Tong was silent for a moment—such a detailed introduction was hardly necessary.

As the two were eating, a hurried voice rang out.

"Aunt Zhang, quick, get me something to eat, I’m starving!"

Before the words had finished, a man swept in like a gust of wind.

He wore a striking floral shirt and red trousers, exuding flamboyance. His hair was red and curled, with two studs in each ear, beast-like tattoos covering his forearms, and an unruly expression that gave him a wild, untamed air.

He hadn’t expected another presence besides Xiao Shiyu.

His gaze swept over Su Tong, and his eyes flashed with astonishment.

Her face was pure and sweet, yet her figure was voluptuous—she was a rare beauty.

"Hey, there’s another little beauty here. Brother..." he began, but Xiao Shiyu frowned and interrupted sharply, "Xiao Weiyi, Su Tong is my guest. Keep your frivolous remarks to yourself."

He turned to Su Tong and introduced, "This is the cousin I mentioned earlier, Xiao Weiyi, Second Grandfather's grandson."

After the introduction, he added pointedly, "You don’t have to pay him any mind."

Xiao Weiyi shot Xiao Shiyu a scornful glance, his careless attitude unrestrained as he slid into the seat beside Su Tong.

"Little beauty, don’t be fooled by Xiao Shiyu’s looks—he’s boring. Want to have some fun? Let Brother show you a different life."

His flippant tone made Su Tong uncomfortable.

She swallowed her food and lifted her eyes to regard Xiao Weiyi.

In her previous life, it was he who stole vital information from the Xiao family and sold it to the Su family, enabling the Su family to swallow up the Xiao family’s business in a single year, sending the Xiao family into ruin.

A true traitor to his kin.

By rights, this was an internal matter of the Xiao family and not her concern.

But in her past life, she had witnessed him at her funeral, performing a lewd act in front of her portrait—disgusting her to the core.

This time, she would not let him off so easily.

Su Tong gave him a sweet smile and agreed, "Alright, but I’ve just arrived today and haven’t prepared everything yet. How about tomorrow night?"

Anyone familiar with Su Tong would know from that smile that someone was about to suffer.

But Xiao Weiyi knew nothing about her, and seeing her innocent, clean smile, he couldn’t help but lick his lips and swallow.

"Sure, sure."

Su Tong felt another wave of disgust, quickly finished a few mouthfuls of rice, and said to Xiao Shiyu, "I’ve eaten enough. I’ll return to my room."

With that, she rose and left.

Behind her, Xiao Weiyi called out, "Little beauty, see you tomorrow night."

Su Tong smiled back at him, but a cold glint flashed in her eyes.

Xiao Shiyu, seeing how Xiao Weiyi harassed Su Tong, was furious. He cursed him and left the dining room.

Catching up with Su Tong as she was about to enter her room, Xiao Shiyu apologized, "Su Tong, I’m sorry. Xiao Weiyi is the only remaining bloodline of Second Grandfather’s branch and has been spoiled. He’s unreliable, so just ignore him."

Standing at the door, Su Tong replied considerately, "I’m a person who distinguishes between gratitude and resentment. You don’t need to apologize for others’ faults."

Still feeling responsible, Xiao Shiyu promised, "Tomorrow I’ll send Xiao Weiyi away. When you start school and live on campus, I’ll let him come back."

"That’s unnecessary. I won’t let anyone bully me," Su Tong didn’t want her presence to cause trouble for Xiao Shiyu.

She paused, then continued, "But anyone who tries to bully me, I’ll pay them back double—no pleading will change that."

She deliberately emphasized the last sentence, and Xiao Shiyu caught her meaning. He replied directly, "If Xiao Weiyi does anything to you, you can punish him as you see fit. None of us will object."

Su Tong took his words with a grain of salt.

Xiao Weiyi’s nature was surely a result of family indulgence. Even if Xiao Shiyu wouldn’t object to her disciplining him, others in the Xiao family might.

Out of respect for Xiao Shiyu’s sincerity, Su Tong recalled Xiao Weiyi’s features and decided to speak plainly.

"Your cousin has a low, narrow forehead, brows pressed close to his eyes, and no wealth in his fate—his destiny is to leech off his family. He first caused the deaths of his grandparents, then his parents. If you keep him around, the next ones he harms will be you."

In the past, Xiao Shiyu would never have believed such words. But after witnessing Su Tong’s abilities today, he was shaken.

Still, believing that Xiao Weiyi’s fate was to drain his family was difficult.

He hesitated and said, "Second Grandfather and Second Grandmother died of illness, and Uncle and Aunt died in a car accident. That shouldn’t have anything to do with Xiao Weiyi, right?"

Su Tong sighed inwardly and replied, "It is related. They died because Xiao Weiyi drained their luck."

Xiao Weiyi and Su Xi had similar fates—both were solitary stars, cursed to bring misfortune to their kin.

The difference was, Xiao Weiyi absorbed his relatives’ fortune, slowly draining them.

Su Xi, on the other hand, simply brought bad luck to those who stayed close.

That’s why Su Mingzhe and Shen Xianglan dared not keep Su Xi by their side. They spent eighteen years using forbidden techniques to slowly change her fate.

Without a change in fate, Su Xi would never have been able to return home.

"This..." Xiao Shiyu’s face was uncertain, and eventually he sighed helplessly.

Night fell.

Su Tong lay on her bed, reflecting on the day’s events.

The fate-changing ritual was now under her control, and the Su family’s retribution would soon follow.

Today, she had saved Xiao Shiyu’s life, repaying the debt she owed him from her previous life.

Earning merit was now her most urgent task.

Her master had used a secret method to bring her back, paying a heavy price. Only by swiftly earning enough merit could she minimize the backlash her master suffered.

By her calculations, she owed 10,000 units of merit in this world’s terms.

Today she had earned three, leaving 9,997 to go.

She rather wished Xiao Shiyu would pinch her cheeks more often.

Each pinch earned her one merit. If he pinched her 20,000 times, she’d have enough.

But the laws of Heaven would not allow such a loophole.

Likely, after earning one merit this way, it would stop working.

She would have to find another way.

The road to repayment was long and arduous!