☆ Rebirth
Since ancient times, beauties have often met tragic fates. Beyond the Four Great Beauties, even Lin Daiyu—like a fragile flower—died young. Xiao Banli, believing herself strong enough to resist fate, barely made it out of the orphanage, hoping to lead an ordinary life in a regular family. Yet, she married three times, divorced twice, and lost one husband to death. When she died, she was carrying a child.
Pushed from an eighth-floor window by her third husband and his mistress, she fell with her hands protectively cradling her seven-month-pregnant belly. She hit the ground head first, her brain matter splattering, but her hands alone couldn’t shield her child. Her tragic scene horrified those nearby, a pool of red blood stained the morning’s sunset.
When she was 8 years old, she ran out of the orphanage clutching a freshly snatched cookie, only to be tripped by a blackened foot sticking out from the wall. The hard-won cookie fell straight into the mud, and she felt so wronged that she instantly burst into loud sobs. The blackened foot quickly withdrew, replaced by a blackened hand that picked up the muddy cookie. Through tear-filled eyes, she watched as a man with his face hidden by his hair carefully tried to blow the dirt off. But the more he blew, the dirtier it got. Her sense of injustice deepened, her mouth quivered, and she cried even harder.
The man, now flustered, gripped her small shoulders, trying to soothe her, but paused as his hands touched her. He asked, stunned, “Child, what’s your name?”
Orphanage manners taught her to always answer politely when asked. Through hiccupping sobs, she replied, “Xiao, Xiao, Xiao Banli.” The moment she finished, she resumed crying, though she heard the man sigh beside her.
“Xiao Banli, three marriages and three divorces—men are unfaithful, beauty brings tragedy, and villains prosper.”
These sixteen words would foretell her entire life.
—
When she opened her eyes again, the sight of dilapidated desks and chairs filled her vision. Xiao Banli gasped, staring in disbelief at the tangible scene before her. Her mind was still fixed on the hateful face of her husband as he had pushed her off the building, yet in the blink of an eye, she was back in the orphanage, just before she was taken in at the age of sixteen.
Outside, the hustle and bustle was clear—it was today, the day she was to be adopted into a family everyone called a model family. Little did they know, that family was nothing but wolves in sheep’s clothing.
Why had she returned to when she was sixteen? She ran her hand over the room’s worn desks and chairs, everything felt real, full of edges and corners. Even the splinters on the desk were still sharp, pricking her fingers just as they used to when she had spent countless moments trying to pull them out, often leaving her hands bloodied by the needle.
“Knock, knock.”
The flimsy door rattled with the knock. “Ouch.” A splinter jabbed into her finger, and Xiao Banli’s brows furrowed.
“Banli, come out. Those teachers are here. They’ve always liked you and want to adopt you. Don’t you like them too? Come on out.” The director’s hoarse voice called from outside the door.
Xiao Banli was already sixteen. Most children adopted from the orphanage were around six years old, with younger ones being chosen more easily. Xiao Banli had spent all sixteen years of her life there, never managing to get adopted despite numerous attempts. Then, two years ago, a couple who were both teachers came to the orphanage looking to adopt. They instantly took a liking to Xiao Banli, the quiet girl who stayed unnoticed in the corner. By sixteen years old, she was starting to show traces of beauty, yet her unkempt appearance often deterred prospective adoptive parents.
Even the ten-year-olds knew to make an effort to be clean and tidy, all in hopes of winning people’s favor. They understood how to keep smiling, showing off cute dimples or their little white teeth, charming anyone who came to visit. But Xiao Banli, with her silent demeanor, never smiled or sought attention, simply standing quietly in the corner. No one noticed her—let alone considered adopting her.
“Banli, Banli.” The door shook, creaking as if it might break any second.
Xiao Banli clutched her finger, staring at the faded yellowed walls. She closed her eyes and forcefully slammed her head against them. The moment her head hit the wall, her emotions crumbled, it was as if she’d returned to that horrifying instant of impact when her head struck the ground and her brain matter spilled out. Pain surged through her body, blurring the lines between past and present, as if her skull had split open again.
“Banli, what’s wrong?”
The door finally burst open. The director, lifting her black skirt, rushed to Xiao Banli’s side. Xiao Banli fought the throbbing in her head and the blurriness clouding her vision, clenching her teeth as the sting in her finger from the splinter grew sharper.
“What’s wrong with Banli? My goodness… wasn’t she perfectly fine this morning?” More people entered the room, and Xiao Banli struggled to stay conscious, her mind floating in and out.
“Does this child not want to be adopted? I called her from outside just now, but she didn’t respond. When I opened the door, I saw her slamming her head against the wall. She’s usually so quiet—this is the first time she’s acted out like this.”
That’s right, she truly didn’t want to be adopted by those heartless teachers. Tears welled in Xiao Banli’s eyes as she clung tightly to the director’s skirt.
“It seems she really doesn’t want to be adopted, or perhaps she dislikes that couple?” The assistant director sighed, standing up with a sorrowful glance at Xiao Banli, who lay in the director’s arms with an unmistakable plea in her eyes. Turning around, he headed for the door. Xiao Banli watched his retreating figure until it disappeared, and only then did she finally relax, closing her tear-filled, hazy eyes.
Xiao Banli knew she had escaped those cruel teachers. For three days, she lay on her worn-out bed. Inside her sixteen-year-old body was the soul of a twenty-eight-year-old, and scenes from her previous life played endlessly in her mind. Xiao Banli thought, if Heaven had truly given her another chance, she wouldn’t seek adoption or marriage. This way, the tragic fate of her past life would never come to pass.
“Banli, aren’t you ready yet? The sun’s so nice outside today.” Yuan Muxiao came into the room, leaning over Xiao Banli’s bed. “Banli, I heard from the director that you don’t want to be adopted? You idiot! Those teachers are really good people, aren’t they? You were even looking at them with such excitement before.”
Xiao Banli turned to look at Yuan Muxiao, who was so close by. Like her, Yuan Muxiao was also sixteen and hadn’t been adopted, but for a different reason—not because no one wanted her. Instead, Yuan Muxiao would boast that she’d only let herself be adopted by someone powerful and that she’d one day become that person’s successor. Over the years, she’d driven away numerous potential adopters with her stubborn antics and tearful protests.
In the end, Yuan Muxiao truly did get adopted by a powerful figure from a prominent family. Ironically, Xiao Banli’s first husband would later cheat with Yuan Muxiao. Knowing he was Xiao Banli’s husband, Yuan Muxiao had still seduced him, slept with him, and eventually appeared in Xiao Banli’s home, ordering her out as if she were the mistress of the house. Xiao Banli understood that Yuan Muxiao would stop at nothing to achieve her goals and knew that, despite growing up in the same orphanage, there was no deep sisterly bond between them—even though they once shared a single found steamed bun.
“Banli, why aren’t you saying anything?” Yuan Muxiao furrowed her delicate brows, waving her hand above Xiao Banli’s head. Xiao Banli pressed her lips together tightly, remaining silent.
“Are you still not feeling well? Banli, if you miss this adoption opportunity, who knows if anyone else will want to adopt you? You’re so silly—the director said that if you can’t get adopted, you’ll have to become a nun,” Yuan Muxiao chattered in her ear, while Xiao Banli just stared at her without blinking.
The door opened again, and the director, dressed in a black skirt, stepped inside. The prayer beads in her hand gleamed softly. “Banli, are you feeling any better? I can tell that the couple is really sincere—they just called to say they’ll come back tomorrow to see you. Are you afraid of leaving the orphanage? Or is there something else?”
Xiao Banli’s heart skipped a beat. They’re coming back? “Director, I…I don’t want to leave the orphanage. I want to stay here.” Despite the hoarseness from her recent illness, her voice still held the clear, sweet tones of a sixteen-year-old girl, sounding unexpectedly pleasant.
“That won’t do.” The director shook her head disapprovingly. “The orphanage isn’t a place to keep orphans forever. After all the hardship you’ve endured here, you finally have a chance to enjoy a better life outside. Why would you want to stay within these four walls for the rest of your life?”
That isn’t a blessing—it’s a curse.
Xiao Banli screamed inwardly, though she dared not show it on her face. “Director, I…I don’t want to…”
“It’s alright. I know it’s hard for you to adjust right now,” the director interrupted. “They’ll come back tomorrow to see you. And they said they’re patient and willing to wait until you agree.”
The director’s words hit Xiao Banli like a bombshell. She clenched her fists tightly. Was there truly no escape? Then why was she reborn at all…
“Director, isn’t the Ouyang family coming to adopt a maid tomorrow?” Yuan Muxiao glanced disdainfully at Xiao Banli, who had been constantly rejected, and then happily turned to ask the director.
The director paused for a moment, then nodded. “You can start preparing. Just make sure to perform well when the time comes.”
Yuan Muxiao raised her arms in delight. “Great! I’ve been waiting for this day!”
The director sighed. “Don’t get too excited too soon. A big family is different from an ordinary one. Be careful and serve them well. I’ve always been against you going to a big family. Only small families can treat you well. Like the couple who wants to adopt Banli—they will definitely treat her with love and care.”
Yuan Muxiao smiled sweetly and shot a glance at Xiao Banli. “She doesn’t even want this, and besides, I don’t want to go to a small family.” After speaking, she skipped out of the room, leaving behind a swaying ponytail.
At sixteen, Yuan Muxiao had already fully revealed her ambitions.
In her past life, two weeks before she was pushed down the stairs, the headlines in the newspaper were about Yuan Muxiao, saying that she had become Ouyang Honghui’s 28-year-old wife. With a 30-year age difference, no one knew just how tainted this seemingly heartfelt love really was.