After returning home, Qiao Wanyue didn’t want to face the Qiao family.
She went straight back to her small room.
“Qiao Wanyue, are you satisfied now?” Qiao Shanshan spoke in a sinister tone.
Qiao Wanyue: ?
Qiao Shanshan said, “Did you already know I went home to be with Brother Huaiyuan? You deliberately let the Lu family come to our door just to ruin my reputation. You’re like me—you’ve been reborn too, haven’t you?”
Qiao Wanyue frowned.
She pushed her away. “What nonsense are you talking about?”
Qiao Shanshan grabbed her. “I’m telling you, no matter what tricks you use, Yang Huaiyuan belongs to me. He is mine…”
Slap—
Qiao Wanyue shook her numbed wrist.
Her eyes turned cold. “Qiao Shanshan, if you don’t know how to respect your elder sister, then I’ll teach you.”
Slap, slap, slap, slap—
She struck her several more times. Qiao Shanshan’s face was already swollen; after the blows, even the two front teeth she had left fell out. Her hair was disheveled, making her look like a madwoman crawling out of hell.
“Qiao Wanyue!”
Slap, slap, slap—
More slaps.
“Qiao Wanyue, stop it! Haven’t we had enough chaos already?” Qiao Sheng shouted angrily.
Qiao Wanyue said coldly, “Dad, was this situation caused by me? You protected her when she married Yang Huaiyuan and dumped all the blame on me. Now she comes to question me—I want to ask you, am I even your daughter?
I’m a human being too. I feel pain.”
“In front of so many people, you said I was clinging to Lu Yunzhou and let my sister marry Yang Huaiyuan. Is that my fault?”
Qiao Sheng said impatiently, “Does the truth even matter?”
“Is the truth more important than family?” the second brother said.
Slap—
Qiao Wanyue slapped Qiao Xingjia.
“Qiao Wanyue, are you crazy?!”
Qiao Wanyue looked at him. “Of course the truth doesn’t matter to you. No matter what I suffer, it’s only natural in your eyes. Qiao Xingjia, I shouldn’t have saved you back then—I should have let you drown.”
Back then, Qiao Xingjia had fallen into the water while playing. He couldn’t swim. Qiao Wanyue, who was catching loaches by the river, saw him and tried her best to pull him out. But his desperate struggle nearly dragged her under several times.
In the end, she used almost half her life to save him—but she fell into the water herself. After being rescued, Qiao Xingjia ran away in fear, leaving her struggling in the river.
If not for a passerby, she would have drowned.
When they got home, Qiao Xingjia said innocently, “I thought she could swim.”
“I’m your second brother.”
Slap—
Another slap.
“You’re not worthy.”
Qiao Wanyue took a deep breath, then turned and left the courtyard.
Qiao Xingjia watched her back, feeling as though something important had been torn from his heart.
But only for a moment.
He was certain that by tomorrow morning, Qiao Wanyue would still cheerfully call him “Second Brother.”
“Treat your sister better,” Qiao Sheng rarely scolded his son.
“Got it.”
As for which sister, it was unclear.
Qiao Wanyue returned to her room and locked the door. She discovered that it had been searched again. But her room was the same as before—she had already stored everything in her space, even the wooden bed.
She entered her space and placed the bedding inside one of the wooden houses. There were too many items from the Qiao family—things she didn’t need were piled into storage.
Qiao Wanyue discovered that the Qiao family had quite a few treasures: fine rosewood chests, exquisite jade bracelets, and most surprising of all—a box full of gleaming gold bars.
She had struck it rich.
Qiao Wanyue laughed.
But as she laughed, she began to cry.
In her previous life, Mother Qiao had claimed there was no money and forced her to drop out of school.
She had remained illiterate all her life.
And yet, they had hidden a whole box of gold.
How ridiculous.
Qiao Wanyue was sad for only a minute before the sight of the treasure soothed her. In a small, inconspicuous box she found under Liang Xiu’s bed, she discovered a chest filled with jewelry.
She picked up one piece. Though she couldn’t appraise it, she knew it was priceless.
For generations, Qiao Sheng’s family had been poor peasants in the brigade.
How could they have such valuable items?
Could it be Liang Xiu?
She thought about it—Liang Xiu had never mentioned her background. When she married Qiao Sheng, she only had an elderly mother and had come from another place to rely on relatives. Someone who owned such jewelry must have come from wealth or nobility.
Unable to figure it out, Qiao Wanyue stopped thinking about it.
She found paper and a pen, spreading a blank sheet across the table in the wooden house.
She was going to write a letter to Lu Yunzhou. Even if she couldn’t change his fate, at least he should know that his wife had changed.
Dear Comrade Yunzhou,
Hello. I am Qiao Wanyue, the elder sister of Qiao Shanshan. My younger sister privately registered her marriage with Yang Huaiyuan and sent my household registration booklet to you. I do not know whether you have already registered our marriage.
I sincerely apologize for this matter. If you wish to pursue responsibility and dissolve the engagement, I will cooperate. If you are willing to continue the marriage, we can maintain it and get to know each other first.
The battlefield is dangerous. Please take care and stay safe.
I will wait for your return.
—Qiao Wanyue
After writing the final word, Qiao Wanyue put down her pen. She read the letter over twice, then placed it into a prepared envelope. Tomorrow, she would have it sent by telegram.
After finishing the letter, she entered her space and fetched a basin of water. She washed her face, dried it, and looked at herself in the bronze mirror. The large scar on her forehead had faded considerably—barely noticeable unless examined closely. The undiluted spiritual spring water had a stronger effect.
Qiao Wanyue thought for a long time but couldn’t figure out how to bring the spring water out to give to Lu Yunzhou. Then she noticed the bright red apples nearby. Apples of this size and color were rare in this era.
Since the spring water had healing properties, perhaps the food grown there did too.
Qiao Wanyue was a woman of action. She immediately picked a basket of apples, filled a water bag with spring water, and added the medicinal powder she had found. The clear water instantly turned green.
Satisfied, she finished her preparations.
After leaving the space, she saw the Qiao family sleeping in the courtyard, wrapped in straw mats.
Qiao Wanyue locked her doors and windows, moved Mother Qiao’s bed out from her space, laid out a thick cotton quilt, and even bathed inside the space.
She had a comfortable night’s sleep.
The next morning, she woke to the sound of Qiao Shanshan arguing with the second sister-in-law.
The second sister-in-law blamed everything on Qiao Shanshan. If she hadn’t insisted on registering her marriage with Yang Huaiyuan, the Lu family wouldn’t have come, and the Qiao house wouldn’t have mysteriously lost so many things.
Perhaps it was all the Lu family’s scheme—to empty the Qiao house in retaliation.
Qiao Shanshan, of course, refused to accept the blame.
After exchanging a few heated words, the two began fighting early in the morning.
Qiao Wanyue leaned against the window, watching the commotion unfold.