The main room of the Yu family's old house was filled with smoke, making it hard to keep eyes open.
Uncle Yu, Celine's uncle, sat sideways on a small stool by the door.
He blew smoke rings while talking to Grandpa Yu, who sat in the big chair. His tone was sharp and bitter.
"Dad, didn't you hear? Today the whole market is talking! They say the eldest brother's two kids, Eleanor and Celine, were driving a big truck like it was free."
"They nearly emptied Juanna's fruit stall, Shop Owner Jison and his brother's meat shop, and several vegetable sellers too!"
He exaggerated with his hands.
"Tsk tsk, from the look of it, anyone who didn't know would think some big boss came to buy goods!"
"People in the village say the eldest brother is quietly making a fortune!"
Grandpa Yu, the old man of the Yu family, held his old pipe.
He slowly tapped the ashes onto his shoe sole, his brow slightly furrowed, eyes cloudy but showing some disbelief.
"Getting rich? Just by Eleanor?"
He snorted with a hoarse voice from years of smoking.
"Isn't he just running errands and delivering packages? How much money can he make?"
"Maybe he's just working for some boss, showing off money that's not even his?"
Grandpa Yu took a slow puff and added:
"Besides, if they really had spare money, why not use it to treat Shenan's leg first?"
"Why waste it all buying so many chickens, ducks, fish, fruits, and vegetables at the market?"
"This nonsense, do you really believe it?"
His words clearly hit a sore spot for Uncle Yu.
He suddenly stood up, threw his cigarette butt to the ground, crushed it hard with his toe, and his voice rose sharply.
"Dad! How can you not believe it! I saw many people say the same! It can't be fake!"
"I think it's Mother Zhou who spoiled those kids!"
"They all got clever, clearly have money but pretend to be poor every day, guarding against us like thieves!"
Uncle Yu got angrier and spit almost flew out.
"Just the other day, Mom only wanted to check in, maybe... cough, hoped they could help out a bit since the family is in trouble."
"But what happened? That Celine girl actually kicked Mom out!"
"Didn't even give her a warm meal. Mom even fell and hurt her leg on the way back!"
"And until now, have they gone to the hospital to see her?"
At this, Grandpa Yu's wrinkled face grew serious. He paused in smoking, his eyes showed obvious unhappiness.
He remembered how Grandma Wang came back a few days ago, and how she ended up in the hospital.
It seemed those kids really were spoiled by Mother Zhou.
Mother Zhou never thought about it. If it wasn't for him helping out in the village all these years, occasionally speaking up for her and stopping gossip, could she, a widow with so many kids, have lived this quietly?
Now, they don't even come home. They don't visit Grandma when she's sick.
But despite many complaints and doubts, Grandpa Yu still felt the "getting rich" story was strange.
He didn't know the full story about the eldest brother's family.
Mother Zhou's small income, Eleanor's hard-earned delivery money, and Shenan's slow-healing leg...
None of it looked like they could suddenly spend a lot at the market.
"Getting rich? It's not that easy... I doubt it."
This matter seemed odd.
Grandpa Yu squinted, took a deep drag on his pipe, and started thinking deeply inside.
Celine didn't know that the goods she and her second brother Eleanor had bought from the market had caused a huge stir in the village and even caught the attention of the old manor.
Right now, she was happily reunited with Eleanor and her younger brother Minoo.
Eleanor had come back early. The eldest brother Shenan had already told him everything that had happened recently.
As the first in the family to get into university and having worked as a teacher for several years, Eleanor was much more open to new things than Mother Zhou and the others.
So when he heard about all this, although surprised, he didn't show it too much.
"Second brother!"
Seeing this long-awaited figure, Celine couldn't hold back her excitement and threw herself into his arms.
When they were little, she always followed him around. He had been with her through much of her childhood.
"Hey, Celine."
Eleanor gently patted her back, looking fondly at his sister.
He wiped away the tears on her face and comforted her in a soft but firm voice.
"That's all lies. None of it will happen. How could I ever kill myself?"
These words made Celine suddenly lift her head from crying.
She was stunned. Right, Eleanor was such a strong person, someone who never frowned even when slandered or attacked online. How could he commit suicide?
In her past life, Eleanor's suicide was a heavy burden on her heart, so she never dared or wanted to think about it.
Now hearing this, she felt there was more to the story.
Seeing Celine's reaction, Eleanor smiled slightly.
"I'm your second brother, the one who fears no hardship!"
His words cut straight through Celine's doubts.
Her hatred for Vanissa flared up again, burning like an unstoppable fire.
But just then, a small hand gently tugged at her clothes.
"Sister."
The voice was soft but carried a power she couldn't ignore.
Celine snapped back to reality, her anger instantly soothed.
She pulled away from Eleanor's arms and looked at her brother Minoo with gentle but firm eyes.
"Missed sister?" She stood on tiptoes and ruffled his hair.
When Mother Zhou was pregnant with Minoo, she was already old and had lost her husband. She was heartbroken, so Minoo was born with autism.
The whole family spoiled him, and as his sister, Celine had poured endless love into him.
Hearing her gentle words and feeling her touch, Minoo slightly raised his eyes, then quickly looked away.
He glanced around and obediently squeezed out two words: "Missed."
Seeing this, Celine couldn't help but smile and gently straightened his head.
"Look at sister and say it again, okay?"
Though reluctant, under her expectant gaze, he made an effort to meet her eyes and softly repeated,
"Missed."
At that moment, she seemed to see a small ray of hope breaking through his autistic world.
To reward him, she took out a crystal core and handed it to him.
This crystal core was special, given by Red — a water-blue level two crystal core that shimmered beautifully in the sunlight.
Minoo was fascinated, holding it carefully and examining it.
After a moment, he suddenly said, "Head feels good."
This simple sentence stunned everyone.