The Ex and Her Riches novel (Gwendolyn and Maverick)

This isn’t self-harm, Sienna. Everything that Asher’s doing now is how I punished Evelyn… He’s taking the

punishment on her behalf. Is he trying to persuade me to let Evelyn off?” Gwendolyn muttered.

Needless to say, Sienna was stunned. My goodness! How can Gwendolyn think of her brother that way?

“Gwen, Asher hasn’t mentioned Evelyn once since the homecoming feast. He’s doing this to atone for his sins. He’s

doing this for you!”

Gwendolyn fell silent, and for a long while, all she could hear was Asher’s strained, raspy chanting coming from the

ancestral hall.

When she finally cracked the door open, the sight of her brother’s badly scarred back made her feel a twinge of

heartache.

That, however, only lasted a few seconds.

After much contemplation, Gwendolyn curled her lips into a half smile. “Well, he does have sins to atone for. Since

he’s already punishing himself, you should just let him be. Otherwise, he won’t be able to ease his guilt, and it’d

continue to eat away at him.”

Sienna, on the other hand, couldn’t stop sobbing. After all, how could she bear to see her husband in so much pain?

“But, Gwen… Asher’s using a horsewhip. His body won’t be able to take it if he whips himself twenty times a day.”

Once again, Gwendolyn gave it some thought.

Even though Asher has hurt me the most, I can’t deny that Evelyn’s the one who carried out all the misdeeds. His

greatest mistake was not stepping forward even after learning about the truth. He doesn’t deserve to be my

brother… In any case, I’m always impartial when I have a score to settle. I won’t show favoritism, nor will I falsely

accuse anyone.

With that thought in mind, Gwendolyn looked sternly at Sienna. “Tell him he doesn’t have to go to such an extent to

gain my sympathy. He can recite the Heagurn Sutra daily if he’s genuinely keen to atone for his sins. If he doesn’t

want to, that’s also fine by me. I won’t get anyone to check on him, either. As for whether I’d forgive him, only time

will tell… I’ll think about it again when he has managed to undo all the hurt he caused me.”

After leaving that scathing response, Gwendolyn turned on her heel and strode off, her face devoid of emotions

Sienna couldn’t do anything but stare at the woman’s retreating figure and sighed.

The next second, she entered the ancestral hall and crouched behind Asher to check on his wounds.

The man’s white shirt had long been ripped open at the back, and after whipping himself forty times over two days,

his skin was all torn and bloodied.

Sienna was utterly heartbroken, and as much as she wanted to comfort her husband, she didn’t dare to touch his

wounds for fear of hurting him.

The only thing Sienna knew was that she had shed a life’s worth of tears over the past few days.

“Look how badly injured you are, Hubby. You’re even running a fever now. Why don’t we stop reading tonight and

get you some medication? We can carry on with this tomorrow.”

Alas, Asher said nothing as he continued to hold and recite the scriptures.

Knowing it’d be impossible to persuade him, Sienna had no choice but to stay by his side and sob quietly.

Meanwhile, in the countryside, Evelyn had suffered yet another fainting spell.

Not only was she mentally and physically exhausted after consecutive days of hard labor, but she had also lost a

substantial amount of weight.

When Margaret left for dinner with Ezra and William, Norman hastily sneaked into Evelyn’s room to check on her.

The latter had smiled at him that morning, and he was completely mesmerized by her warmth and beauty.

It was hard to believe how such an innocent and pitiful young lady could be a psychopath like his mother had told

him.

Therefore, Norman decided to question Evelyn in person.

He crept stealthily into her room, but to his surprise, the woman was already propped up in bed and staring at him.

Norman scratched his head sheepishly and chuckled. “Well… I only came to see how you were doing and if I

needed to get a doctor for you.”

Since Evelyn couldn’t speak loudly due to a sore throat, she beckoned the man over.

Unsurprisingly, Norman went up to her like a moth to a flame.

As soon as he was near, Evelyn grabbed his hand and placed it against her neck. “If you want to help me, kill me.”

“What? You’re still young and full of life! You ought to cherish it!” Norman exclaimed while pulling his hand back in

shock.

Despite that, he could swear a peculiar feeling washed over him when his calloused fingers grazed against the

woman’s fair, tender skin.

Before long, Evelyn had tears in her eyes as her face became etched with pain and utter despair.

She pointed to the door and said hoarsely, “I’ve been wronged and sent here because everyone out there is

bullying me. I don’t want to live anymore. Please help me…”

By then, the spark in her eyes was long gone, and all that was left was agony and sorrow.

Norman panicked at the sight of the crying woman, but unfortunately, he didn’t know how to comfort her.

Evelyn once again grabbed his hand and gave him a pleading look. “I’d rather die than continue living this tortured

life of mine. I beg of you… Please help me!”

“No. I can’t do that. If you’ve truly been wronged, then there must be a way to uncover the truth. I can help you

clear your name.”

A glint suddenly flashed across Evelyn’s eyes as she gestured for Norman to come closer. With that, she leaned in

and whispered a few words into his ear…

…

Margaret had just finished her dinner and dropped by to check on Evelyn when she caught the duo in what seemed

like a compromising position.

“You blockhead! Why would you get close to someone as depraved as her?” Margaret thundered as she rushed

forward and pulled Norman’s ear. “She’d take advantage of you and hang you out to dry!”

When Evelyn tried to intervene, a red-faced Margaret slapped her so hard that she fell onto the bed.

“Do you think I have no idea what you’re up to? You’re playing on my son’s simple-mindedness and seducing him

into doing your bidding. If you pull this stunt again, I won’t let you off!” the latter warned.

Evelyn merely held her face and said nothing. The impact of the slap had left her seeing stars, and she didn’t have

the strength to sit back up, either.

“Mom, stop hitting her. Can’t you see how pitiful she is? She has been wronged!” Norman retorted as he pried

himself from his mother’s grasp to help Evelyn.

Furious beyond belief, Margaret struck her son across the cheek. “Wronged? You id*ot! Are you blind? How can you

pity a woman like her? Oh, you’ll be the death of me! I must teach you a lesson today… Otherwise, you’ll fall into

her trap again!”

The next second, she dragged Norman out by the ear and asked Ezra for the horsewhip used to punish Evelyn.

Not long after, the courtyard was filled with the sounds of Norman howling in pain and begging for mercy.

Back in the room, Evelyn was silent and grim.

D*mn it. I can’t believe Margaret caught us earlier. I suppose she’ll watch me like a hawk from now on… Who

knows? She might torment me even more viciously too. From the looks of it, I’ll have to back down and behave

myself for a while. Once Margaret and the Harris family’s bodyguards let their guard down, I’ll think of another way

to escape this hellhole. I can only hope that Norman believes me and is willing to lend a helping hand when the time

comes…

Just as Evelyn was contemplating her options, the door suddenly burst open.

Margaret stormed into the room and pulled Evelyn off the bed, determined to drag the latter out so Ezra could

execute the daily punishment.

Evelyn silently endured Margaret’s wrath and soon found herself in the courtyard.xo.com fast update

Snap!

When the first whip came down, Evelyn dropped to the ground with a loud thud, the pain searing through her body.

Sure enough, after what happened with Norman, Ezra had become even more heavy-handed than in the previous

days.

As if that wasn’t bad enough, he continuously whipped the woman without giving her time to catch her breath or

get to her feet.

All Evelyn could do was hold her head and grit her teeth through the beating.

However, the longer it went on, the more she felt her consciousness slipping and her pain getting numbed.

Before blacking out, she suddenly realized how much she missed Marcus and Asher.

Even though Dad and Asher can’t legitimize my status in the Harris family, they’re the only ones who love and dote

on me. They’ve given me everything I wanted so I can live an easy, comfortable life… If I had never harmed

Gwendolyn and kept my identity as an illegitimate daughter secret, would I be able to continue living a life free of

worries and pain? Was I wrong? H-Have I made a mistake?