Chapter 3

When she reached the hall, the elders of the Marsh family had already arrived, and their eyes were all trained on her.

Nina was standing right next to River at the center of the crowd. They were whispering and giggling. They looked right at home and familiar with everything.

When Violet saw that, it stung her so much that her eyes burned.

One of the ladies said coldly, “On your knees. You’ve married into the Marsh family for five years, and you still can’t obey the rule of the morning greeting? You are late, and you have broken the rule.”

Alan immediately stepped forward to whip her twenty times.

Violet instinctively looked at River.

Last night, he had seen that her wounds had not healed. She thought he would feel pity for her. When he met her gaze, he faltered for a moment, then said, “Next time, wake up earlier.”

There was no sympathy in his voice, and he did not defend her at all.

Violet gritted her teeth and closed her eyes to brace for punishment.

Just as the whip was about to fall on her, Martha spoke up in her defense. “Forget it. She was just punished yesterday, and her body can’t take it. Just make her copy the family genealogy so that she will reflect on her actions before our ancestors.”

Alan took half a step back and put the whip away.

Clang!

Suddenly, the vase on the table fell and hit the floor, shattering into dozens of pieces.

Nina’s face turned white. “I-I didn’t do it on purpose…”

She wanted to pick the pieces up, but River stopped her. “Don’t! You’ll get hurt.”

Martha had brought that vase with her when she got married. It had been with her for more than thirty years.

Martha’s face turned red in rage as she stared at the shards. “What are you doing? Punish her!”

“Mother…” River stepped forward to shield Nina, and there was an urgent edge to his voice. “It’s just a vase. If it shattered, so be it. If you like it, I’ll get another one for you during the next auction.”

Martha glared at him, but in the end, she did not punish Nina. She simply turned away. “You’d better think carefully about how you will handle this.”

The crowd dispersed. Before they did, they glanced at Violet. There was pity and mockery in their eyes.

There were only three people left in the hall. River looked down and patted Nina’s arm. “It’s okay. You didn’t do it on purpose. Don’t blame yourself.”

Violet was still kneeling on the floor. The wounds on her back burned and her knees hurt.

She pushed herself up. The last bit of warmth in her heart had faded.

She had only woken up two minutes ago, and she was almost whipped. In the end, she still had to copy the family genealogy and be humiliated in public.

But when Nina destroyed a precious vase, River was willing to defend her, regardless of the cost.

It seemed like the family rules were different for different people.

The strict rules were only used on her, who was supposed to be River’s wife.

Violet sneered and said, “So, the Marsh family’s rules only apply to me.”

River frowned.

He said stiffly, “You broke the rules on purpose when you were late for your morning greeting. That was a deliberate act. But Nina didn’t do it on purpose. The situation is completely different. You shouldn’t treat them the same.”

The sneer fell off Violet’s face.

She did not argue, throw a tantrum, or defend herself. She just looked at them calmly. “Yes. You always decide who is right and wrong based on who they are.”

Then, she left the hall.