Jiang Bowen was taken aback, feeling a sudden sense of surprise. Today, Ye Li seemed different from before. He sneered inwardly—could it be that she was afraid he didn’t want her and was trying some new way to attract him? But he had always liked charming, delicate, and cute girls. A wooden beauty like Ye Li could never attract him, no matter what she did.
Thinking this, Jiang Bowen struck a pose he thought was suave and handsome, running his hand through his hair.
“Ye Li, here’s the deal. Look, I don’t like you. If you insist on marrying me, I don’t even want to glance at you. Why bother? Why don’t you just go tell my mom that you fancy someone else and break off the engagement with me?”
Ye Li’s lips curled slightly, a hint of mockery in her eyes. “Jiang Bowen, you think I care about you? If you want to break off the engagement, fine—give me five hundred yuan as compensation, and then we go our separate ways.”
What bad luck! He claimed she liked him, but even without a mirror, she could see his arrogance clearly. He was cozying up to Ye Zhirou while trying to pin the blame on her—what nonsense!
Jiang Bowen didn’t expect Ye Li to have the nerve to demand five hundred yuan. She must be crazy poor—she probably didn’t even make that much in a year. He figured she was deliberately making things difficult for him, refusing to break the engagement sincerely.
“Ye Li, stop pestering me! I’ll be honest with you—if you stripped naked and lay on my bed, I’d still find you annoying. I can’t stand gold-digging types like you! Go tell my mom you’re involved with some wild man and end the engagement! Don’t get in my way, or I’ll make sure you can’t stay in Haishi at all!”
Ye Li’s expression turned cold. She raised her hand and slapped Jiang Bowen squarely across the face without hesitation.
“Smack!” The sharp sound echoed, and she withdrew her hand, shaking it behind her. His shamelessness was real—she even felt pain in her hand from slapping him.
Jiang Bowen clutched his face, eyes wide in disbelief, and then an overwhelming rage surged through him. That damn girl actually dared to hit him!
“You dare hit me? You’re looking for death!” he spat through clenched teeth and swung his hand at her.
Ye Li snorted with disdain, sidestepped his slap, and delivered a well-aimed groin kick.
“Ahh…” Jiang Bowen let out a piercing scream, clutching his lower body and curling up on the ground like a boiled shrimp.
“Hmph, you really thought I was a sick cat?” Ye Li crossed her arms, looking down at him from above, a mocking smile on her lips, her tone dragging provocatively: “Jiang Bowen, I’ll say it again—if you want to break the engagement, talk with money! We’ve been engaged for three years, and asking for five hundred yuan to compensate for my lost youth isn’t unreasonable. If you don’t want to, fine, I’m not in a hurry anyway.”
She flicked the dust from her sleeve, gave him a teasing glance, and turned to leave.
Jiang Bowen trembled in pain, utterly powerless. Watching Ye Li walk away, he slammed a fist into the ground, glaring venomously at her retreating back. “Ye… Ye Li, you won’t get away with this. I won’t let you off!”
Ye Li ignored his threats. In her previous life, Jiang Bowen was the root cause of all her suffering. Everything that happened was because of him. Today’s kick was just a small collection of interest. She had returned through rebirth, and no one who hurt her in her past life would escape.
After work, Ye Li returned home. Liu Hongmei had already composed herself and put on a fake, sweet smile when she saw Ye Li. “Oh, Li Li, you’re back! I made something delicious for you tonight. Last night, we didn’t call you for dinner because you were sleeping so soundly—we didn’t want to wake you.”
Ye Li watched her performance calmly, raising an eyebrow. What was this woman up to? No good deed goes unpunished. She sensed Liu Hongmei was scheming something again today.
As dusk fell, Ye Jianguo returned from work, riding his Phoenix-brand bicycle. He worked at the Hongxing Machinery Factory in the south of the city. Seeing Ye Li, he rarely smiled.
“Li Li, I bought your favorite Yunnan-style rice cakes at the grocery store—here, take them!” Ye Jianguo handed her the package with a cheerful smile.
Liu Hongmei opened her mouth but forced herself to stay silent.
Ye Li was stunned for a moment but accepted the rice cakes without hesitation. You don’t refuse a gift. Since her mother passed away, she hadn’t even had a single candy, let alone rice cakes.
Ye Zhilei came out of his room. Yesterday, for the Mid-Autumn Festival, the Ye family elders had brought him home to celebrate. Spotting the rice cakes in Ye Li’s hands, he immediately reached to grab them.
“Ye Li, give me the rice cakes!”
Ye Li ignored him, dodged his hand, and tucked the rice cakes into her cloth bag.
Ye Zhilei let out a wail, flopped on the ground, and rolled around in a tantrum. “Ah… ah… Dad, beat this wicked girl! She won’t give me the rice cakes!”
He screamed at the top of his lungs, all bark and no bite.
Ye Li didn’t even furrow her brows. She stepped past him and returned to her room.
Ye Zhilei, a fourteen- or fifteen-year-old boy, had been spoiled rotten by Liu Hongmei. At home, whenever things didn’t go his way, he would immediately throw himself on the ground, crying and wailing. She was long since used to it. Besides, what did his crying have to do with her?
Seeing this, Liu Hongmei felt heartbroken! She rushed over in a few quick steps, coaxing Ye Zhilei to get up, then turned to Ye Jianguo with a mock scolding look: “Old Ye, why didn’t you buy an extra pack of Yunnan-style rice cakes? Look at how greedy the kid is!”
Ye Jianguo saw his son fussing and throwing tantrums like a three-year-old and felt a surge of irritation.
“That half-grown boy, why is he so greedy? He gets two pounds of pastries a month, and he finishes them in half a month. The rice cakes I bought today were even given to me by Old Li.”
But after all, it was his own son. Seeing him wailing relentlessly tugged at his heart, so Ye Jianguo forced himself to coax him gently: “Alright, stop crying! Next month, Dad will buy you some more!”
“No, no! I want them now! Why can that wild child Ye Li get the rice cakes? Make her give them to me!” Ye Zhilei shut his eyes and threw a tantrum, spewing a mouthful of complaints.
Liu Hongmei held Ye Zhilei, feigning helplessness, and looked at Ye Jianguo: “Old Ye, why not let Li Li share some with Zhilei? She’s his older sister—she should let her little brother have some.”
“Alright, alright, my precious ancestor, stop throwing a fit, okay!” Ye Jianguo hesitated, about to say something, when he looked up and saw Ye Li open the door and stride out.
“Li Li…” he started to speak, but before he could finish, Ye Li coldly raised her hand and slapped Ye Zhilei across the face.