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Yama's Wedding
I am the second son of Xiao Yao Villa. At the age of eleven, I enjoy a life of luxury and the envy of others. At the very least, everyone believes that I was born into a fortunate situation. Who wouldn't think so? A person who is sickly every day, relying on medicinal herbs to survive year after year—if it weren't for the wealth and power of Xiao Yao Villa backing me, how could I possibly live to see adulthood?
Everyone tells me that I should learn to be grateful. Grateful for what? Grateful that they haven't given up on this useless burden that brings no benefit to Xiao Yao Villa, yet consumes a large amount of precious medicine to sustain? But isn't this useless burden exactly what they wanted?
I am Xiao Yao Yu. My elder brother is the well-known Xiao Yao Hao, the Eldest Son of Xiao Yao Villa, destined to become the Master of Xiao Yao Villa in the future. And what am I?
From a young age, I knew I was a failure. In a martial arts family like Xiao Yao Villa, having a second son who is frail and unable to practice martial arts is a disgrace. Fortunately, Xiao Yao Villa has an exceptionally talented Eldest Son who has already inherited the true teachings from our Old Master at such a young age. He is generous and carefree, a rising star among noble families.
I envy my elder brother; he possesses what I lack—a healthy body, the status of a legitimate son, and a charismatic personality. I am a bastard; my mother passed away long ago. According to what I've heard, my mother was once a maidservant by Madam's side. After my mother's death, Madam took me in and treated me as her own. I respect Madam; she truly cares for me, providing me with the same food and supplies as my elder brother.
My illness is something I was born with; my mother's poor health meant that I inherited her heart condition. Thus, my father never allowed me to practice martial arts for fear that I might fall ill. I always thought this was my father's way of showing love, but deep down, I felt guilty for being such a burden to him and for not being able to repay Madam's kindness. Because of this frail body, I cannot contribute anything to Xiao Yao Villa. I loathe my own body and envy my brother. He takes care of me well; although we cannot train together, he secretly teaches me some techniques—not anything profound, just enough to make me happy. Even if those techniques are merely flashy moves, I practice them diligently in secret, hoping that one day my father would see and feel proud.
However, I never expected that after performing the moves my brother had secretly taught me for my father, instead of seeing his joyful smile, I would face his furious wrath. My father's harsh reprimands and Madam's gloomy expression left me bewildered. What had I done wrong? Soon enough, my father discovered that it was my brother who had taught me these techniques in secret. He confined my brother and made him swear never to teach me any martial arts again.
I didn't understand why this was happening. Clearly, I hadn't fallen ill because of those techniques, yet both my loving father and Madam disregarded my desperate pleas and forbade me from learning martial arts.
I couldn't comprehend why even my younger sisters had masters teaching them martial arts while I had neither a master nor the freedom to practice secretly—was it solely because of my sickly body?
I sneaked into my father's room with the intention of pleading with him once more. However, I overheard him talking with Madam and learned the truth behind everything.
"You promised me before that Xiao Yao Yu would absolutely not be unable to practice our Xiao Yao Villa's martial arts; you must not forget." Madam's tone was completely different from her usual gentle demeanor towards us; what I heard now was an extremely sharp voice directed at the servants.
"Madam, this was an accident. How could I have known that Hao'er would secretly teach him martial arts?" Though his father's face was hidden from view, the voice clearly carried a tone of careful appeasement.
"You dare to blame Hao'er? Don't forget who shamelessly seduced my maid all those years ago. If not for that, how could such a wild child have been born? Who had to let them into Xiao Yao Villa just to protect your reputation?" Wild child? Was Madam referring to me?
"Madam, my dear wife, if it weren't for that damned maid taking advantage of my drunkenness back then, none of this would have happened. Thankfully, my good wife understands the situation and has spared my reputation from disgrace. That seductive maid was even killed by my own hands, wasn't she? Please, don't be angry."
I covered my mouth in fear of making a sound. My mother had been killed by the very man I called father!
"That woman is dead and gone; I never expected she would still be alive after all these years. You wouldn't be feeling sorry for your son and secretly reducing the dosage of his medicine, would you?"
Medicine? What medicine? It seemed that the drug Madam mentioned was somehow related to me.
"My dear wife, I have been following your orders and adding the proper amount of medicine to that brat's jar every month. If nothing unexpected happens, he will die from heart palpitations in a few years. Don't worry, he certainly won't live past twenty."
"Hmph! If it weren't for fearing it would affect your reputation, why complicate things? I could have just strangled him at birth. Hao'er is the true master of this estate; no one can obstruct his path."
"Yes, yes, yes, Madam. Hao'er is our only son; naturally, I will pass Xiao Yao Villa on to him. You can rest assured."
"Of course! Our Hao'er is so exceptional; he will undoubtedly be the sole master of this estate."
That night, I stumbled back to my room in a daze. I didn't even know how I made it back. My whole body trembled. What had I just heard? Tears streamed down my face as I entered the room, afraid to cry out loud. This room, this villa was not safe. I could only tightly hug myself and curl up in a corner.
My mother did not die of illness; she was killed by my father, whom I had always respected. My heart condition was not something I was born with; it was inflicted upon me by the very people I thought loved me—Madam and my father—who wanted me dead. They were the culprits behind my years of suffering simply because I stood in my brother's way. I had never sought to compete for anything; my greatest desire was merely to run freely through the fields with those who were healthy. Yet all of this had been premeditated. Why? Why?
Why not let me die at birth instead of subjecting me to such torment? "Hahaha! Hahaha!" All these years, I had considered these people my family, respected them, cared for them; they must have laughed behind my back at how foolish I was. No wonder my father wouldn't let me learn martial arts—he feared that if I did, I might pose a threat to my brother. How wonderful it must be for him to have such a good father and mother paving every road ahead of him while mine... What about me? What about my father? What about my mother? What am I even worth?
Over the years, due to my health issues, I have endured countless disdainful glances from the servants and suffered much humiliation. I even concealed the bullying I faced from my own father and Madam. Every time pain struck, I secretly bore it in silence. Now, it all feels like a joke; those servants might just be sent by them to torment me. How else could they be so audacious? I even found myself afraid that they might worry about me.
What I thought was familial love, what I believed to be goodness, turned out to be nothing more than a game for others to laugh about over their meals. I felt like a fool, played with at their whim, and the irony is that all these years, I mistook thieves for my family.
Because my mother was not of noble birth, she was ruthlessly killed without even a name to her memory, falsely accused of being a seductress who brought disaster. Because I was not of noble birth, I was abandoned and tormented, merely to pave the way for my elder brother. I was expected to suffer and obediently fade away! No, I refuse to accept this. The pain I've endured over the years will be repaid in double; I will make them taste the agony of betrayal by their own kin.
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