Chapter 20 Did a Dog Eat Your Conscience?
After speaking, Nan Xiao shoved him out, leaving Xiao Zekai fuming.
—
At the Xie family’s main residence, Old Master Xie sat deep in thought in his grand armchair.
When Auntie Zhang came to deliver tea, he stopped her.
“Have Chengyu and Nan Xiao been the same these past few days?”
By “the same,” he meant living under one roof yet in separate rooms, barely seeing each other.
Auntie Zhang nodded. “Yes. Even sharing a roof, they hardly cross paths. How can that work…”
Smack! Old Master Xie slammed the armrest. “That useless brat! Absolutely hopeless!”
Auntie Zhang’s eyes flickered, and she leaned closer with a smile.
“I think Nan Xiao is a good child. If the two of them spent more time together, Young Master Chengyu would surely grow fond of her. Why don’t we think of a way?”
—
Nan Xiao knew nothing of the plotting in the Xie household. These days she had been busy on set, watching filming, reading, and writing scripts. Life felt fulfilling.
But that afternoon, Xie Chengyu suddenly approached her.
“Do you have time tonight? Accompany me to a dinner.”
Nan Xiao blinked in surprise. “What dinner?”
Their marriage was hidden. Normally, he attended such events alone or with someone from the secretary’s office. Never once had he asked her.
“It’s a family dinner with Second Uncle. Just a few relatives.”
At those words, her heart sank.
The entire Xie clan knew of her sham of a marriage. They laughed behind her back—mocked her scars, mocked how her husband never came home even once in three years.
So the flicker of happiness she’d felt at being asked quickly died.
She lowered her eyes. “Alright.”
She didn’t want to go. But until the divorce was finalized, this was still part of her “duties” as a wife.
Yet inside, a voice whispered: He lets Xu Ruoxin call him ‘husband’ in public without rebuke, failing in even the most basic duty of a husband. Why should you fulfill a wife’s duty?
Her agreeing to go—was it really just responsibility? Or was it because she wanted to be near him?
That thought chilled her. She needed to purge such weakness fast.
—
That evening, they drove to a manor on the outskirts of town. After parking, they followed a butler into a small banquet hall.
Fewer than ten people attended—all core members of the Xie family. Among them were Second Uncle and Second Aunt.
Second Uncle was a greasy, overweight middle-aged man with roving eyes who always ogled Nan Xiao when he thought no one noticed, disgusting her to the core.
Second Aunt was a sharp-tongued social climber. A year ago, she’d even tried pushing her niece onto Xie Chengyu’s bed—only to have him throw the girl out. That incident had left Nan Xiao furious.
So when she greeted them with a faint “Second Uncle, Second Aunt,” her distaste was obvious.
But tonight, strangely, both were unusually courteous, even fawning. They peppered her with questions, smiling obsequiously. Nan Xiao frowned, baffled.
Just then, a young man in his early twenties walked over—handsome but with a sneer that betrayed his arrogance. His eyes glimmered with open contempt the moment they landed on Nan Xiao.
Second Aunt pinched him sharply and whispered, “Fix your face. Greet your sister-in-law properly!”
Xie Huaiyu looked at his mother in disbelief. She had always despised Nan Xiao as much as he did. Why the sudden change?
Rolling his eyes, he drawled, “Sister-in-law,” his tone dripping with mockery. Then, slowly and deliberately, he added:
“We’re all family here. Rare chance to gather together. Why act so distant, Sister-in-law? Take off the mask and let everyone see your true face.”
The hall fell silent.
Even the usually mild-mannered Third Uncle and Aunt frowned in disapproval. But a few younger cousins smirked, eager for drama.
Nan Xiao’s gaze snapped to Xie Huaiyu, ice-cold.
He had always tried to humiliate her, cornering her into shame before others. Back then, she’d endured for Chengyu’s sake, swallowing her pain and crying alone.
But not anymore.
Her voice was frigid as steel.
“You know perfectly well my face was scarred. Yet you still demand I show it to everyone. What’s your aim? Did a dog eat your conscience?”
