"Was the stepfather in that story really a villain?"
Under the moonlight, Xie Mi smiled faintly, but the smile never reached her eyes.
"Let me tell you a different story."
"There was a little girl who grew up with only her stepfather to rely on. They lived in a small fishing village and didn't have much money."
"Her stepfather looked fierce, and people often assumed he was someone they shouldn't mess with. But contrary to his appearance, he was a gentle man who treated the girl well. Even when life was hard, he never considered abandoning a girl who wasn't related to him by blood. He even paid for her schooling."
"But the girl was far more intelligent than other children her age. She thought herself exceptional, refused to settle for mediocrity, and was determined to climb higher."
"And her first step was to leave the little fishing village that kept her trapped."
"So she began a plan that would take years."
"She deliberately washed her stepfather's clothes by the river near the village. She deliberately refused to let him take her to school or pick her up, walking three kilometers there every day instead. She deliberately let people catch seemingly accidental glimpses of the injuries on her arms-all of which she had inflicted herself."
"She spent years constructing a lie, making everyone believe her stepfather abused her. Then she acted like a frightened, sensible child, winning everyone's sympathy."
"Finally, when she was twelve, she found the right opportunity and personally orchestrated her innocent stepfather's imprisonment."
"At last, she could leave the fishing village. She was sent to an orphanage in the city, and kindhearted people who saw her tragic story on the news felt sorry for her. They offered her help and funded her education at a decent middle