Chapter 19 – Inhuman!

“It wasn’t me who stole someone else’s spot! I didn’t!” Gu Wanrou shook her head madly. Everyone knew that going to jail meant your whole life was over. She couldn’t let that happen.

Bai Cuiyan immediately shielded her daughter behind her. “That spot was given up voluntarily by Gu Siqing. She felt unworthy of it herself—why should our Wanrou go to jail?”

Unworthy? Gu Siqing almost laughed out loud. Did they think she was stupid?

As the argument continued, the elderly grandparents came downstairs. The soundproofing upstairs was good, so they hadn’t heard much, only wondered why things were taking so long and came down to check.

“What’s going on?” the grandmother asked, a little confused. “Why is it taking so long? Did the thief get away or something?” She assumed the police were here for a theft.

Seeing the old lady arrive, Bai Cuiyan’s mind spun quickly. She rushed to her side and whispered the situation to her.

As soon as she heard, the old woman’s eyes widened. She glared at Gu Siqing, then immediately softened her expression when facing the police officer and said with a cooperative smile, “Yes, yes, this college spot was given up by Gu Siqing—definitely not a case of impersonation.”

Gu Siqing nearly burst out laughing again. This old woman is really something. Still, she remained silent, wanting to see how far the old lady would go.

Unexpectedly, the old woman suddenly walked up to her, grabbed her arm, and patted her back. “What’s wrong with you, child?” she scolded. “Sure, we arranged for you to marry Shen Qingyan even though he’s in poor health, but the family is well-off! You married into a good life—why bring this up now?”

“Go tell the officers clearly: you gave up the college spot on your own! Why should your cousin go to jail?”

The neighbors watched, stunned by the dramatic twist. One reversal after another!

The police officer frowned and barked, “Madam, we’re handling an official investigation here. Please don’t lay hands on her.”

Taking the opportunity, Gu Siqing stepped away, lightly pushing off the old woman’s grip. From a few meters away, she addressed the officer calmly:

“I did not give up my spot voluntarily. They stole my chance to attend college.”

She wore a faint, almost amused smile. The old woman was furious, veins bulging on her forehead.

“You’re spouting nonsense!” she snapped.

“Nonsense?” Gu Siqing smiled lightly and turned back to the officer. “Not only did they steal my right to study, they also seized my family’s property, took my parents’ belongings, and forced my two kids to work for them. If they didn’t beat them, they yelled at them.”

“They wouldn’t even let my kids eat their fill! They’re just two years old! How heartless can they be?”

She turned to the watching neighbors. “I’ve worked like a dog in that house. And still, we went to bed hungry almost every night.”

Hearing this, Shen Qingyan’s heart clenched. From the moment he stepped in and saw the angry shouting, he had suspected the family didn’t treat his wife well. But hearing the details now… his chest ached. Starving? Beaten? His expression turned to pain.

If only I had found them earlier, maybe they wouldn’t have suffered so much.

“You little brat! Stop lying!” Bai Cuiyan shouted in panic. So many people were watching, and Gu Siqing actually dared to say such things? Where was their dignity?

But just then, the neighbors began to murmur:

“Bai Cuiyan, give it up. Everyone knows what you did.”

“We used to walk past their door and hear the yelling. Always cursing that poor girl, Siqing.”

“Those kids were always weak and wobbly when we saw them, like they’d faint any minute.”

“And Siqing never wore new clothes. Always hand-me-downs from Gu Wanrou.”

“We can all vouch for that. Her clothes were patched and worn.”

“That house was left to Siqing by her parents, wasn’t it?”

“This family is just disgusting. We could hear them screaming from upstairs!”

“They treated her like a maid!”

“I once saw Siqing’s sleeves too short, and her hands were bruised purple. She was definitely being grabbed or hit!”

One after another, the neighbors spoke up. The police officer’s brows knitted tighter. His expression turned darker.

In a time when families should support one another… they took her inheritance, abused her kids, stole her opportunity to study. From every angle, this is inhuman.

“Didn’t her parents have good jobs?” another neighbor added. “They must have left money behind when they passed. How did the girl end up starved like that?”

“Exactly!”

“I say that eldest Gu man isn’t even human. Living in someone else’s house—should’ve treated their kid kindly!”

“They must’ve stolen the inheritance money too.”

“Definitely used it all on their own kids. Didn’t you see how their kids always wear the best, most fashionable clothes?”

“They really did. All top-quality.”

“No conscience at all!”

The crowd grew angrier. They couldn’t believe the cruelty from Gu Daikai’s family. And he’s the uncle? Were they not afraid the girl’s parents might come back from the dead to haunt them?

Gu Daikai felt like invisible slaps were striking his face one after another. His cheeks burned with shame.

Bai Cuiyan couldn’t say a word. She kept shooting death glares at Gu Siqing, filled with hatred. It’s all this damn girl’s fault! If she hadn’t told Shen Qingyan, this wouldn’t have blown up like this!

If they had known marrying Shen Qingyan would lead to this, they’d never have allowed it. She’s siding with outsiders!

“Let’s stop talking,” one neighbor said. “The grandparents are still here. They never thought they were mistreating their son’s daughter, so what use is it for us to speak now?”

The grandmother and grandfather, standing to the side, felt their faces burning in shame. The whole family had lost face.

No one knew what they were thinking. Even Gu Wanrou looked resentful, trying to figure out what to do next.

Only Gu Ruizhuo, who had been scolded earlier by the police, was still fuming. Seeing the tide turn against them, he walked to the doorway to shut the door.

“You people need to stop gossiping. This stuff all belongs to us! My second uncle is long dead!”

“He died, so it all belongs to us, doesn’t it? My grandparents only had two sons—my dad and my second uncle.”

Then he sneered and added, “And Gu Siqing’s no good either. So what if she found the real dad of those two bastards? She had those kids in secret, didn’t she? A slut’s just a slut!”

Every word stabbed into Shen Qingyan’s heart. He looked up at Gu Ruizhuo, feeling for the first time a deadly urge to kill.

“You shameless scum!” Gu Siqing shouted, storming over and pushing the door back open. “The neighbors only said a few words and you can’t handle it?”

“Isn’t what they said true?”

“Ruizhuo, can’t you see your parents and grandparents have already been disgraced? Yet you still act like this?”

“You’re really something. Living off what my parents left behind, and now your face is even thicker than the walls!”

“Pah!”

Ruizhuo had been spoiled all his life, constantly called “good boy” by his grandparents. He couldn’t take it. He slapped Gu Siqing’s hand away.

“Gu Siqing, they raised you, gave you food. You should be grateful!”

“And now you dare talk back?”

“You should have handed over everything to us, without complaint. Don’t you dare act high and mighty now!”

Ruizhuo was full of disdain. Since childhood, he had been told everything in the house would be his. No one could take it from him. He had treated it as his birthright—including the house. To him, Gu Siqing was just a dog they raised. Her dead father? Irrelevant.

The old man and woman would cover for him. He was the one meant to carry on the Gu family’s bloodline—everyone else was just a footnote.

“You’re shameless to the core!” Gu Siqing clapped slowly. “Your level of shamelessness is something I’ll never reach.”

“My parents left behind a house and money to ensure my future—not to feed ungrateful snakes like you, who abused their child!”

“And about feeding me—don’t forget how much scholarship money I brought home every year. My awards and my parents’ money were more than enough to support me!”

“I’m sure plenty was left over too!”