This made the old lady’s heart ache terribly.
She gently patted the little girl’s head and said with a stern face, “That absolutely won’t do. Girls are the most precious of all—you must take good care of yourself. Your grandmother is unreliable. When your mother comes back later, I’ll take you to the hospital to have it checked. We can’t let it leave a scar…”
Qiao Lihua blinked at the old lady, then instinctively glanced at Old Madam Qiao again.
Her small head was filled with confusion.
But Grandma always said that since she was a girl, she was like the weeds on the ground—worthless…
Old Madam Qiao said coldly, “It’s just a bit of scraped skin. Using honghua oil is already a waste, and you still want to go to the hospital? Do you know how much that costs? I’m not paying for that!”
The Qiao family was by no means poor. Both elderly parents received pensions, and Shen Yunchu and her husband also worked at a factory. But Old Madam Qiao simply refused to spend money on Qiao Lihua and her mother.
Sister-in-law Li fanned the flames from the side. “Oh dear, then who do you plan to let pay? Surely not us? After all, we all saw who shoved the child, Sister Qiao.”
Old Madam Qiao felt that she was truly unlucky today.
Grinding her teeth, she had no choice but to accept the loss. Forcing a smile, she said, “Oh, I was just speaking out of anger. How could I not care for my own granddaughter? Of course I’ll pay.”
Nan Lingyi picked Qiao Lihua up and held her in her arms. She was taking the child to the hospital not just because of her forehead injury, but also because she wanted the girl to undergo a thorough checkup. With the way Old Madam Qiao treated her, who knew if there were other injuries…
Qiao Lihua ate her candy and gently rubbed Nan Lingyi’s hand over her injury.
This was something she had never experienced before.
So she grew quite close to Nan Lingyi.
Shen Yunchu always rushed home as soon as she got off work. She didn’t feel safe leaving her daughter alone with her mother-in-law, so before long, she returned.
As soon as she entered the courtyard, Shen Yunchu instinctively searched for her daughter. Instead, she saw her in the arms of an elderly woman, smiling happily.
She let out a breath of relief and walked over, speaking softly, “Lihua, Mommy’s back.”
Qiao Lihua’s favorite person was her mother. She happily threw herself into Shen Yunchu’s arms.
When Shen Yunchu saw the wound on Qiao Lihua’s forehead, her face changed at once.
She was useless—unable to protect her child. Her father ignored her completely, her stepmother was sweet-faced but cruel-hearted, and even her job was controlled by the Qiao family. She couldn’t even get a divorce. When she had once mentioned it, Old Madam Qiao mocked her, saying, “Fine, go ahead and leave. Once you leave our Qiao family, your job is gone too. Lihua is from the Qiao family—you’re not taking her with you…”
She had no way out and could only think of every possible way to protect her child. Whenever she wasn’t home, she sent her daughter to kindergarten.
But even so, Lihua still ended up injured again and again. And yet her mother-in-law always claimed the child was just naughty and had fallen on her own. Lihua was such a good girl—how could that be?
“Mommy, this is candy Grandma gave me. You try some—it’s really sweet and tasty…”
What child didn’t like candy? But Old Madam Qiao would only ever let Qiao Lihua taste a bit for show. Now, though, there was a whole handful of candy in the little girl’s pocket…
It made her so happy that she wanted to share this joy with her mother.
Shen Yunchu also wanted to buy candy for her child, but every month, her wages were taken by Old Madam Qiao.
“Did you thank Grandma?”
Qiao Lihua answered in her childish voice, “Thank you, Grandma.”
At that moment, Nan Lingyi, who had been sitting sideways, turned around. “No need,” she said.
When Shen Yunchu saw Nan Lingyi’s face clearly, her eyes widened instantly, and she instinctively covered her mouth…
(End of Chapter)