Ye Li woke up to complete silence. Outside the window, a bright full moon hung in the sky, its soft light streaming through the lattice and illuminating the room. It seemed it was already nighttime. Ye Jianguo and Liu Hongmei had likely finished dinner and gone to bed. It was Mid-Autumn Festival, yet no one had called her to eat. Ye Li smirked lightly, indifferent. She had long since taken note of this family’s character.
Ye Li opened the door and turned on the light as she walked into the kitchen. Everything was spotless—not a single grain of rice left behind. Unlike before, she no longer tolerated injustice; today, they would find her impossible to deal with.
She grabbed a kitchen knife and went to the door of the storage room. As expected, an iron padlock hung on it. She sneered—this pathetic lock actually thought it could stop her. She slammed the knife down on the lock, and with a loud clanging sound, the door swung open.
Ignoring the possibility of waking Ye Jianguo and Liu Hongmei, Ye Li entered the kitchen, grabbed a plate, and went into the storage room. She rummaged through the household supplies, scooped out some flour, and began making hand-pulled noodles for herself.
As she kneaded the dough, the door suddenly banged open. Liu Hongmei came out, face full of anger: “What do you think you’re doing? Cooking in the middle of the night? How can you waste the household grain like this!” She gasped at seeing Ye Li using white flour. That wretched girl—she was supposed to save the fine flour for her own son, and Liu Hongmei herself wouldn’t even dare to eat it; tonight, it would all be wasted on Ye Li.
Ye Li paused, expressionless, looking at her. “I’m hungry. I’m making some food for myself.”
Liu Hongmei forced a smile, but it was insincere. “Everything in this house is under my control. If you want to eat, you need my permission.”
Ye Li ignored her and continued working. Seeing this, Liu Hongmei reached out to grab the mixing bowl. Ye Li’s reflexes were quick; she moved the plate aside. She snorted coldly, picking up the knife at hand and, with complete disregard, swung it toward Liu Hongmei: “Aunt Liu, if you don’t want these hands, come try it!”
“Ah!” Liu Hongmei screamed, scrambling to dodge, her heart racing in terror. This girl really dared to act so viciously.
Ye Jianguo, hearing the commotion, stepped out from the room and scowled: “Why are you still awake in the middle of the night? What nonsense are you doing?”
Ye Li twirled the knife in her hand; the gleaming blade made Ye Jianguo wince. “I’m hungry. What’s wrong with making some food? You don’t care about me, you don’t even call me to eat, and now you don’t even let me cook for myself. How is this fair?” Her voice was calm, but her eyes carried a ruthless sharpness.
Ye Jianguo frowned, surprised by her boldness today. Fuming, he blew out his breath, glaring at her: “There are rules in this house. You can’t just do whatever you want. Who eats in the middle of the night?”
Ye Li’s lips curled into a mocking smile: “Rules? Have you ever treated me like family? I hand over my entire salary every month, and even eating a little flour is considered waste?”
Ye Jianguo was rendered speechless. Liu Hongmei, meanwhile, wailed tearfully: “You heartless girl! Raising you hasn’t been easy!”
“Aunt Liu,” Ye Li replied lazily, “that makes no sense. When have you ever really raised me? Everything you eat or wear, it comes from my earnings.”
She no longer argued, treating them as invisible, and continued kneading the dough efficiently, boiling water, rolling the noodles, and cooking them.
When Liu Hongmei saw her crack an egg into the pot, her heart ached terribly. She could no longer restrain herself and stepped forward to protest again.
Ye Jianguo tugged her back and subtly gave her a look.
The couple returned to their room. Liu Hongmei, fuming, whispered to Ye Jianguo: “Old Ye, let her run wild in the house like this. She’s your daughter—you need to control her. No one would dare say anything.”
Ye Jianguo placed a finger to his lips and gently shushed her: “Hongmei, we can’t push this girl too far yet.”
“Why not? Old Ye, do you suddenly care because she’s your real daughter? I’ll remind you, Zhizhi is your real daughter too!” Liu Hongmei sat on the bed, sobbing pitifully.
Ye Jianguo smiled apologetically, wrapped his arm around her shoulder, and whispered a few words. Liu Hongmei immediately stopped crying, her eyes sparkling: “Really?”
Ye Jianguo nodded and quietly said, “Lin Zhiyue was the eldest daughter of a wealthy family. When she married me, she mentioned in passing that she had hidden some valuable items, all to be left for Ye Li as her dowry. At the time, I tried to pry a few times, but she was too tight-lipped. I think she must have told Ye Li where those treasures are.”
Liu Hongmei trembled with excitement. She scolded Ye Jianguo: “Old Ye, why didn’t you tell me earlier? If you had, maybe I could have coaxed those treasures away by now.”
Ye Jianguo held her hand and comforted her softly: “Alright, alright, blame me! I was afraid Lin Zhiyue would implicate me, that’s why I didn’t say anything. Besides, in these times, those treasures can’t be shown to anyone.”
Unaware that her father was scheming behind her back again, Ye Li finished cooking and ate, finally letting out a long sigh of relief. In her previous life, she had always gone hungry, eating only sporadically until death. Now, she could finally enjoy a hot meal.
After finishing, Ye Li got up and casually cleaned the pots and dishes.
After finishing her meal, Ye Li couldn’t fall asleep right away. Tossing and turning in bed, she kept thinking about the note that had fallen out of the photo frame during the day. She decided to investigate No. 2 Qingshi Street.
Under the cover of night, she grabbed an iron shovel and sneaked out. Walking alone along the quiet streets, the full moon of the Mid-Autumn Festival shone brightly, casting a daylight-like glow on the ground. The surroundings were eerily silent.
Arriving at No. 2 Qingshi Street, the slightly dilapidated house looked particularly sinister in the darkness. Ye Li took a deep breath and scaled the yard wall, entering the courtyard. The yard was overgrown with weeds, and the old sycamore tree rustled in the night breeze.
After cautiously surveying her surroundings, she approached the tree and began digging with all her effort. Not long after, the shovel hit something hard with a “crack.” Her heart raced as she quickly cleared the soil around it, revealing a large wooden chest.
She tried to move the chest, but it was firmly set in place, unmoving. The lid of the chest had no lock. Curiosity got the better of her, and she slightly opened it to peek inside. She was instantly stunned.
Although the sycamore tree blocked the moonlight, she could still see the chest filled with a golden glow—an entire crate of gold bars.
From afar came the barking of a dog, sending her heart racing and sweat breaking out across her body. Ignoring everything else, she focused her mind and sent the wooden chest into her personal space.
Squatting beneath the sycamore tree to catch her breath, Ye Li gradually calmed down. She then worked hard to fill in the large hole under the tree, tamping the soil down solidly, before quietly sneaking back home.