Qiu Yingying is reborn and bound to a learning system.

Qu Xiaoxiao was woken up by her own car key.

She lay sprawled on the sofa in room 2202, wearing clean pajamas, covered with a blanket, with a pillow under her head. Her phone lay to the side, its screen black. Outside, the sky was bright, and the living room was so quiet that only the faint hum of the kettle in the kitchen could be heard.

"Awake?" Fan Shengmei's voice came from the dining table, with a deliberately soft tone of consideration. "Have some water first, don't get up suddenly, you looked terrible last night."

Qu Xiaoxiao sat up, feeling dizzy and her throat as dry as sandpaper. She took the warm water Fan Shengmei handed her and gulped down half a cup before regaining some strength to speak: "How...how did I get home last night?"

"You took a taxi." Guan Juer poked her head out from the kitchen, holding a bowl of porridge. "You sent me a WeChat message saying, 'I can't hold on anymore.' Sister Fan and I went downstairs to pick you up, and you collapsed here as soon as you came in. We changed your clothes and wiped your face and hands."

Fan Shengmei carefully placed a plate of freshly fried egg sandwiches on the table and lowered her voice: "Xiaoxiao, what exactly happened at your family? Last night you kept muttering 'property certificate,' 'my mom,' and 'my dad.'"

Mentioning these words, Qu Xiaoxiao felt as if she had been hit hard in the head with a blunt object. The scene in the villa last night instantly flooded her mind—the pile of red marriage certificates on the coffee table, her mother's red eyes, her father's furious roar, and the words, "You actually schemed against me."

Her stomach clenched suddenly, and she almost vomited.

"I'm going to wash my face." She got up and walked towards the bathroom, her steps unsteady.

Guan Juer watched her retreating figure, her brows furrowing with worry: "She can't go on like this; she needs to eat something."

"Let her calm down first." Fan Shengmei sighed and pushed the porridge in front of her. "She will talk when she's ready."

Qu Xiaoxiao splashed cold water on her face in the bathroom. The person in the mirror had sunken eyes, dark circles under her eyes, and chapped lips, looking as if all her energy had been drained away. She stared at herself in the mirror for a few seconds, then suddenly smiled, but the smile was devoid of any warmth.

It turns out that the "home" she worked so hard to prove herself and desperately tried to protect was already completely rotten.

She dried her face, walked back to the living room, sat down at the dining table, and slowly ate the porridge. The porridge was cooked until very soft, melting in her mouth, with a slightly salty taste, just like Guan Juer's usual thoughtfulness—she had deliberately added less sugar in case her stomach felt uncomfortable.

"Thank you," she said softly.

Fan Shengmei looked at her and carefully said, "Xiaoxiao, if you trust us, just tell us. If you try to carry this all by yourself, you'll run into trouble sooner or later."

Qu Xiaoxiao paused, her hand holding the spoon still. After a long silence, she finally recounted the events of the previous night in fits and starts: how her mother quietly placed the stack of property deeds in her hands, how she calmly said, "This is a backup plan I'm leaving for you," how her father kicked the door open, how he roared and accused her mother of transferring assets, and how he shifted all the blame onto her mother.

She didn't go into detail about her mother's forbearance over the years, nor did she go into detail about her father's favoritism and indifference over the years; she only told the most crucial part.

Qiu Yingying's eyes reddened as she listened, and she slammed her hand on the table: "This is outrageous! How could your father do this?! Those houses were earned through your mother's hard work, why should they be given to that spendthrift son?!"

"Keep your voice down." Fan Shengmei glared at her, but couldn't help but tear up. "Xiaoxiao, your mother has really had a tough time."

Guan Juer said softly, "Xiaoxiao, you always said you didn't like women who broke up other people's families, but the root of this problem isn't with other people, it's with your father. It's because he was unfaithful to his family, didn't love your mother, and wasn't kind to you. Everything your mother did was to protect you, and also to protect herself."

Qu Xiaoxiao lowered her head, her fingers gripping the spoon tightly until her knuckles turned white.

"I didn't want them to get a divorce before." Her voice was soft, with a slight, almost imperceptible tremor. "I always felt that no matter how much they argued, it was still a family. I worked hard and made money desperately, just to show my dad that I was no worse than Qu Lianjie. I wanted him to come back, and I wanted to make this family a little more complete."

She looked up, her eyes brimming with tears, but stubbornly refused to let them fall: "But I only found out last night that I'm a joke. My mother endured it for over twenty years, and I knew nothing. I even blamed her for dragging me into all this, for scheming against her. Wasn't I a terrible jerk?"

Fan Shengmei held her hand, her tone gentle yet firm: "You're not a jerk, you just desperately want a family. But you have to understand, a family isn't built by one person alone, nor can it be made whole by you compromising alone. Your father's heart isn't with you and your daughter; this family is rotten to the core."

Guan Juer nodded: "It's not that your aunt doesn't love you, it's that she loves you so much that she's paving the way for your future."

Qiu Yingying also came over and said seriously, "Xiaoxiao, your mother is right! That property originally belonged to you and your daughter, and it was earned by your parents after they got married. It's marital property, so why should it be given to that good-for-nothing spendthrift Qu Lianjie from his ex-wife? That doesn't make sense. If your father doesn't care about you, you should care about yourselves!"

The sisters' words were like warm currents, slowly melting the ice in Qu Xiaoxiao's heart. She thought of the hardships her mother had endured over the years. Despite being a pampered heiress, she had to learn to cook for the workers in a small workshop; despite having her own career ambitions, she chose to step back for her family; despite feeling incredibly wronged inside, she always put on a brave face in front of her.

She suddenly felt very guilty.

"I need to apologize to my mom." She stood up abruptly. "I was so immature before."

Fan Shengmei nodded: "Go ahead, and talk to your mom properly. Remember, you're not alone; we'll always be on your side."

Qu Xiaoxiao's eyes welled up with tears, and she nodded vigorously, "Thank you all."

She turned around, picked up her bag, and quickly walked out of 2202.

When Qu Xiaoxiao arrived at her mother's apartment, the security door was ajar and not locked as usual.

Her heart skipped a beat, and a strong sense of unease rose within her for no apparent reason. She pushed open the door and saw that the heavy curtains in the living room were drawn, making the light as dim as dusk.

"Mom?" Qu Xiaoxiao called out tentatively, but there was no response.

She hurried inside; the bedroom door was ajar. Through the crack, she saw her mother lying on the bed, her face as pale as paper, her eyes closed. On the bedside table was an empty bottle of sleeping pills and a half-finished glass of warm water.

"Mom!" Qu Xiaoxiao's heart clenched instantly. She rushed over to the bedside, her hand trembling as she reached out to check her mother's breath.

A faint breath brushed against her fingertips, and Qu Xiaoxiao's tears instantly streamed down her face. She gripped her mother's hand tightly, her voice choked with sobs, "Mom! Wake up! Don't scare me! Mom!"

Her voice was filled with desperate sobs as she repeatedly called out, frantically trying to grab her phone to call 120, but her mother gently pulled her wrist.

Qu's mother slowly opened her eyes, her gaze unfocused, her voice barely audible, like a mosquito's hum: "Xiaoxiao, don't hit me, let me sleep for a while."

"Sleep? What sleep?!" Qu Xiaoxiao cried out, tears falling onto her mother's hand. "Mom, how could you be so foolish! What will I do if you leave? Mom!"

Looking at her daughter's tear-streaked face, a hint of guilt flashed in Qu's mother's eyes, but it was quickly covered by a deep weariness: "Silly child, Mom is tired, really too tired."

"If you're tired, just rest. Why did you do something so foolish?" Qu Xiaoxiao hugged her mother tightly, as if afraid her mother would disappear if she let go. "Mom, what happened? Tell me, we'll solve it together. Don't bear it all alone!"

Leaning against her daughter's chest, Qu's mother finally erupted after more than a decade of pent-up grievances and despair. She broke down in tears like a child, her tears soaking Qu Xiaoxiao's shirt: "I've been depressed for a long time, Xiaoxiao. I got sick from the first time your father went to see his ex-wife behind my back, from the first time he brought that bastard child home, from the first time he ignored you. I'm so tired."

"I dare not tell you, I dare not let you know that your mother is a useless person, unable to even manage her own marriage, unable to protect her own daughter." Her voice was broken and intermittent, filled with a deep-seated weariness. "I am a wealthy heiress, a successful career woman who returned from studying abroad. How proud and glamorous I was back then, yet I was blind to marry Qu Guoqiang, a divorced man. I married down to him, helped him build his business from scratch, and all I got in return was his indifference, betrayal, and favoritism!"

"He doesn't love me, he never has. He only has his ex-wife, his son, and his so-called 'family lineage' in his heart. In his eyes, I am nothing more than a tool that brings him resources and manages his household affairs. In his eyes, you are nothing more than a dispensable daughter."

"Qu Lianjie owed 100 million yuan. His first thought wasn't to make Qu Lianjie bear the consequences, but to sell the company, transfer assets, and kick my daughter and me out of the game. I've been planning this for over a decade, just to leave you a way out, but I still couldn't hold on any longer."

Qu's mother cried uncontrollably, "I can't sleep every night. Every time I close my eyes, I see him and his ex-wife's happy family, just like when you were little and you were crying all alone at home, just like when I was struggling in my marriage. I'm so tired, Xiaoxiao, I want to be free."

Qu Xiaoxiao hugged her mother, tears streaming down her face like a broken string of pearls. She had never known that beneath her mother's glamorous exterior lay such deep pain and such heavy torment. She had always thought her mother was strong and invincible, but she had forgotten that her mother was also a woman, capable of sadness, despair, and needing someone to lean on.

"Mom, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," Qu Xiaoxiao apologized repeatedly, her voice choked with sobs. "I was so immature, so selfish. I only thought about keeping this family together, but I never asked if you wanted to, and I never understood your pain and hardships. Mom, I was wrong. Please don't hurt yourself anymore, okay?"

She gently patted her mother's back, just as her mother had comforted her when she was a child, her tone incredibly firm: "Mom, we're getting a divorce! We're divorcing Qu Guoqiang! We don't want a man who doesn't love us, who doesn't cherish us, or a marriage that makes us suffer so much!"

"Those assets are rightfully yours. You built them from scratch with him, you traded over a decade of your youth and tears for them. Transferring them to my name is a fair deal! Why should we give them to that good-for-nothing spendthrift Qu Lianjie? Why should our hard work fill his hole?"

"I've disliked women who break up other people's families since I was a child, but this whole thing is Qu Guoqiang's fault! He was unfaithful to his family, didn't love his wife, and wasn't kind to his daughter! He doesn't deserve to be your husband, he doesn't deserve to be my father!"

Qu Xiaoxiao's voice carried years of suppressed anger and determination: "Mom, we won't show him any mercy! My daughter and I can live a much better life! Without him, without Qu Lianjie, without all that messy people and things, we'll live more freely and happily!"

"As for Qu Guoqiang, I will fulfill my filial duty and visit him during holidays. I will also take care of him when he gets old and sick. But don't even think about helping Qu Lianjie or his ex-wife! Those delusions will never come true! Now that the property is in my hands, I will absolutely not return it to him. Don't even think about it!"

Nestled in her daughter's arms, listening to her firm words and feeling her warm embrace, Qu's mother cried for a long, long time until her tears dried up. The despair and exhaustion in her heart were gradually dispelled by the strength brought by her daughter.

She hugged her daughter tightly, her voice hoarse with the pain of surviving a disaster: "Okay, good daughter, Mom will listen to you. We'll get a divorce, and we'll live a good life together."

Qu Xiaoxiao held her mother, feeling her trembling gradually subside. She silently vowed: from this day forward, she would protect her mother and ensure she lived a truly happy and carefree life. She wanted her mother to know that she wasn't alone; she had her daughter and the sisters of the 22nd floor, who would all be there for her and support her.

She stood up and carefully helped her mother up: "Mom, let's go to the hospital, get her to vomit up the medicine, and have her checked out properly. From now on, we'll never touch anything that hurts us again."

Qu's mother nodded and leaned against her daughter obediently. Sunlight streamed through the gaps in the curtains, falling on the mother and daughter and bringing a faint but firm warmth.

Qu Xiaoxiao knew that the road ahead might still be bumpy, and she might still encounter entanglements with Qu Guoqiang and Qu Lianjie, but she was no longer afraid. Because she had her mother and sisters, and enough confidence and courage to face all storms and welcome their new life.