At that time, Anna was three years old. She was clueless and just followed anybody who feed her wherever they go. In this case, her nanny, the woman who made her warm milk, played with her every day.
Every time she met a stranger, Anna would hide behind this nanny's clothes. She relied on her to give her protection and affection.
However, she was still a baby child. She would be naughty and disobey occasionally. Every time she was naughty, the nanny would hit her, whether on her hand or spank her bottom. Even if it's not hard, it will still hurt and make her cry.
She became afraid of her, but she didn't give up on repeating her mischief. Long story short, Anna was often hit or pinched on her ear, making her cry out loud.
After she was hit or pinched, the nanny would apply oil to the red marks on her smooth skin. She loved the scent and cool breeze of the oil.
At first, she did not understand why the woman applied oil every time she had bruises on her body. It was not until she turned three that she understood why. Apparently, the oil was medicine to remove the bruises on her body. She didn't mind as long as she could smell the fragrance of the oil on her body.
Then one day, she was overly naughty to the point of making the nanny lost her temper.
SLAP!
This time the nanny hit her harder than before. She couldn't bear the pain and started crying as it was the most painful slap she ever received. She began to dislike her nanny. But if that woman left her, then who could she rely on?
"What are you doing!? What are you to us? You have no right to hit her!"
Her crying stopped when she heard a thunderous frightening cold voice. Anna looked at her eldest sister there with a terrifying gaze.
She rarely saw her sister with passing each day. Anna did not know that her sister needed to go to school from morning to the evening and only could play with her at night. However, she knew that this young girl is her family.
Hearing the cold voice and angry gaze from her sister, Anna didn't dare open her voice to cry for fear of being scolded by her sister.
Her body trembled as her older sister walked towards her. Her eyes dared not look at her sister and only looked down for fear of being hit again.
What if her sister will hit her too? What if her sister gets mad at her? What if...
What she was worried about never came as she felt two arms gently wrapped her small build before she felt like lifting from the ground.
She closed her eyes, not daring to see what would happen to her when she felt her forehead being kissed. Only then did she open her eyes to look at her sister.
How strange, her sister's gaze was no longer emit a frightening cold aura.
"Anna, don't be afraid. I won't let anyone hurt you."
Little Anna couldn't understand the meaning of her sister's words yet, but she did understand one thing. She felt protected. She felt loved by her sister.
All this time, Anna thought it was her caregiver who gave her the protection and love she wanted. But what her sister gave her now was very different from how she felt with the nanny. In fact, she began to realize that the woman who had been with her did not love her sincerely.
Strangely she started crying again and hugged her sister's neck. Somehow Anna was sure her sister wouldn't scold her even if she cried so hard. Her cry was even louder as she felt a gentle pat on her back in a soothing whisper.
"I don't like seeing you here. If I find out you hurt my younger sisters again, I won't stay silent."
Her sister turned and walked away from the woman whose face had turned pale. Anna did not know what kind of expression her sister made to make the nanny's facial as white as bones like that. She never knew until this day.
Ever since that incident, Anna realized that her sister's sharp and cold gaze was still there as she watched the nanny's movements. As Anna witnessed those terrifying look from her eldest sister, her body felt like she was shaking.
However, every time Cathy shifted her gaze toward her or the twins, Cathy's eyes instantly changed with great affection and much softer than before.
Once, she was naughty and disobeyed her sister's instruction to get a warning look from Cathy. The gaze was quite different from the nanny's angry stare. But her eldest sister's gaze way more frightening than the nanny.
Her sister never gave her a beating or spanking. If she were naughty and disobedient, Cathy would give her a time out by placing her in a corner or confiscate her toys for hours.
She cried out loud, hoping her sister would turn back to let her off, but her sister gave no response.
Because she was tired of crying, Anna finally stopped crying, and only sobs could be heard. That's when her sister walked over to her.
"Are you done crying?"
Anna could not answer because she was still sobbing. Besides, her sister's tone was not as warm as usual. She knew her sister was still mad at her.
"Will you disobey me again?"
Anna shook her head quickly. She didn't want to be punished anymore. She wanted to play. She wanted to be pampered by Cathy like the twins.
Anna felt relieved when her sister gently stroked her head. She saw her sister's two hands wide open in front of her.
"Come here." said her sister softly with a smile, as usual, the loving, gentle smile.
Without being told twice, Anna immediately shuffled into her sister's arms and once again shed tears.
Her sister gently wiped her tears and invited her to play with their twins.
Since then, Anna has decided not to be naughty or to argue with her sister. When she was angry, her sister was much more terrifying than a nanny.
But when she and the twins were sweet and obedient, her sister's attitude was much warmer and gentler towards them than the nanny woman.
In her eyes, Catherine was not only a sister but also a mother and a friend. She was sure that her twins also feel the same way.
Hold on. Why did Anna retrieve her childhood's memory while she was in a nerve-wracking situation?
It's because she saw that frightening cold gaze again. Her sister rarely looked at someone with unfriendly-cold eyes. Since she hadn't seen that look in a long time, Anna had long since forgotten it.
And yet, here she is. Once again saw the attacking look in her sister's eyes. That gaze was aimed at a woman who was taller than the two of them, about one hundred and seventy centimeters? Anna didn't know either.
The woman was wearing a dark, luxurious-looking gown with beads that looked like diamonds adorning her waist. Anna even had time to ask if it was a real diamond?
The make-up used by the woman was too bright, obviously not to her taste, who preferred a natural or soft make-up. Even so, the woman looks beautiful and elegant. Everyone could see that this woman came from a respectable family.
But… Is it wrong for her to think that she was relieved that her sister came to protect her and created enemies from an upper-class lady?