LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 1:
Chapter 1: The Lin Family Is Like This:
[Break your legs, give you a pair of crutches, and tell you that without me, you can’t even walk, so you have to be grateful!]
Lin You stared at this line in his diary, feeling disoriented.
Wasn’t he dead?
Why was he seeing this sentence again?
More importantly, why was this diary in front of him?
This line had been written by him three months ago on the first page of his notebook. But now, with his death behind him, why was it here?
Could this mean… rebirth?
“Lin You!”
A sharp voice echoed from downstairs, interrupting his thoughts.
“How long are you planning to hide up there? Do you dare to act but not admit it?”
The voice belonged to his second sister, Lin Shiyan. The familiarity of it confirmed his rebirth.
Lin You closed the notebook and shook his head. “Five years… even a dog would have learned its lesson by now.”
But he wasn’t a dog. He was the only biological son of the prestigious Lin family.
Looking around his familiar room, Lin You felt a bitter smile spread across his face. The memory of his death resurfaced vividly. He tucked the notebook into his bag and stood up.
“Do you think the problem will resolve itself if you stay silent?” Lin Shiyan’s voice came again. “You’ve grown bold, haven’t you? Now you’re resorting to violence?”
Lin You pressed his temples, trying to clear his muddled mind. He recalled the vision of his future he had seen before his death.
With a soft sigh, he murmured, “It’s time to put an end to this.”
The root of the conflict was Lin Tianyang, the beloved adopted son of the Lin family.
After Lin You had been kidnapped as a child, the Lin family had adopted a boy named Lin Tianyang to fill the void.
His biological parents and seven sisters treated this so-called younger brother like a treasure. They catered to his every whim, fearing he might be hurt or displeased. If he wished for the stars, they would refuse him only because the moon was closer.
Lin Tianyang, for his part, lived up to their expectations. He excelled academically, was well-behaved, and exuded a charm that endeared him to everyone in the Lin family.
The Lin family was a prominent and affluent household, and Lin Tianyang had been groomed in its etiquette and nobility since his arrival. In stark contrast, Lin You had spent twelve years wandering with a monk, often going hungry. His complexion was sallow, and his demeanor lacked the refinement of the adopted son. Side by side, they seemed worlds apart.
Over the five years since Lin Tianyang’s arrival, Lin You had grown accustomed to hearing words like:
[Are you starving in your past life? Do you need to hoard food? How shameless. Forget it, I won’t eat anymore.]
Criticized by his sisters during meals, Lin You gradually began to eat less, fearing he might upset them. He adjusted his eating habits to match their preferences, but soon they found new faults in him.
[Please stop saying you’re part of the Lin family at school. It’s embarrassing. You’re like a country bumpkin, and I can’t believe we brought you back.]
To avoid further humiliation, Lin You started leaving for school early in the morning, before anyone else in the family was awake.
While Lin Tianyang enjoyed a chauffeured ride to an elite school and received an allowance of 50,000 yuan a month, Lin You attended the worst school in Hangzhou, with a mere 300 yuan allowance. His father called it “raising a boy in poverty.” After covering tuition and basic expenses, Lin You had almost no money left. Often, he walked to school to save on bus fare.
Eventually, Lin You took on odd jobs to make ends meet. When Lin Tianyang discovered this, he tattled to Lin Yuan, their father.
Enraged, Lin Yuan scolded Lin You for tarnishing the family’s reputation and threatened to send him away.
The Lin family frequently treated Lin You like a burden they regretted picking up.
Despite his efforts to integrate into the family, to please them, and even to accommodate Lin Tianyang, Lin You faced relentless criticism and disapproval. Hunger forced him to sneak into the kitchen at night for scraps, but even then, he was berated:
[Stealing food again? What’s next, stealing valuables? A person’s character is shaped early. You’re already hopeless.]
[Do you think the Lin family cares about scraps of food? You eat secretly because you’re deceitful. Is this what your monk father taught you?]
[Look at Tianyang. If you were half as good as him, we wouldn’t have to worry so much.]
Lin Tianyang became an insurmountable benchmark. Whenever Lin You faltered, the refrain was always the same: [Look at your brother Tianyang!]
Lin You’s death was a culmination of years of neglect.
In his third year of high school, he suffered from unbearable stomach pain, likely caused by stress and prolonged malnourishment. Initially, he tried to endure it, but as the pain worsened, he informed his mother, Lan Lin.
Her response was dismissive:
[Don’t use this as an excuse to skip school. Why does your stomach hurt? Tianyang ate the same food, and he’s fine.]
[You just want to slack off. I know your tricks. Get up and go to school. Don’t make me angry.]
Forced to attend school despite his pain, Lin You collapsed at the gate. The school contacted his parents, but Lan Lin brushed it off with a single remark:
[What a troublemaker.]
She arranged for the driver to head to the school, but as soon as Lin Tianyang called, asking to be driven to an outing with friends, her priorities shifted instantly.
Without hesitation, she redirected the driver to Tianyang’s school instead.
Lin You died waiting for someone from his family to show up. His last thoughts were of longing—for his mother to hold him, for his father to acknowledge him, for his sisters to call him their brother with pride.
But instead, his life ended in loneliness.
Why had they brought him back if they intended to treat him like this?
If given another chance, Lin You swore he would never rely on the Lin family again. This time, he would live his life without compromise.