Even so, just like every other household in the village, the family still used simple everyday forms of address for the children.
The four sons were simply called Eldest, Second, Third, and Fourth.
As for the daughters, they were directly referred to by names like Yingniang.
Among the grandchildren, the boys were ranked from First Lang to Sixth Lang, while the girls were called First Girl all the way to Eighth Girl.
Of course, this was just the common naming habit in the village.
After all, if someone stood at the village entrance and shouted “First Lang!” at least seven or eight boys would probably answer at once.
The Zhao family had never split into separate households, and the reason was simple.
On one hand, there was the traditional belief that “while the parents are alive, the family must not divide.”
But more importantly, Zhao Yingzhang’s status as a xiucai exempted his household from military conscription.
Otherwise, how could they possibly have kept so many sons alive?
Without the protection of his scholar status, most of the men in the family would have long since been dragged off for military service, with very few likely to return.
Take the eldest grandson, Zhao Yanjing, for example.
If the Zhao family had already split up, and he no longer fell under Zhao Yingzhang’s protection, he would have reached the age for conscription last year.
Still, even though their home had been expanded again and again—so much so that even the backyard once used for growing vegetables had been built over with additional rooms—it still wasn’t enough to accommodate the ever-growing family.
As a result, the grandchildren still had to share rooms, two or three to a room.
Having a room to oneself was simply impossible.
The room the original Zhao Shiyu had lived in was shared with Zhao Ningshuang and Zhao Yanjin.
Since the three of them all belonged to the second branch of the family, it made sense for them to live together and look after one another.
Early this morning, Zhao Yanjin and Zhao Ningshuang had gone to the market in town with their mother, Madam Jiang.
They probably wouldn’t be back until after lunchtime.
And when they left, they hadn’t woken the original owner of this body.
So she had stayed home, happily sleeping in.
But even if everyone else had gone out, the room door would definitely have been left shut.
Yet right now, Zhao Shiying was standing inside their room.
There was no need to ask—she had obviously let herself in without permission.
…
“Eighth Sister, didn’t Fourth Aunt ever teach you basic manners?”
Zhao Shiyu narrowed her eyes critically, making no effort to hide the malice and suspicion in her gaze.
“Who told you that you could come into my room while I was sleeping?”
Her tone sharpened.
“Don’t tell me you saw that my eldest and fifth sisters weren’t home, noticed I was asleep, and sneaked in here to steal something?”
…
“Seventh Sister, how can you say that about me?”
Zhao Shiying’s face instantly filled with grievance.
“I only came in because the sun is already high in the sky, and I was worried Grandmother would scold you for being lazy and lacking manners if you slept any longer. I was only trying to help. How can you misunderstand my good intentions like this?”
Her face looked pitiful and wronged.
But inwardly, she was cursing furiously.
…
[This transmigrator really is a horrible person. She opens her mouth and immediately accuses me of being a thief. Doesn’t she realize I’m only eight years old right now? If I get stuck with the reputation of being a thief at this age, what am I supposed to do when I grow up?]
[With a reputation like that, it’d be hard to even find a husband!]
[At first, I felt just the tiniest bit guilty about stealing her opportunities. But now? Hmph. She deserves it!]
[With character like this, how is she qualified to be the female lead? Is Heavenly Dao blind?]
[Still, I didn’t lose out either. Since she dared accuse me of stealing, I’ll just mock her for being lazy and lacking manners—sleeping in until the sun’s already on her butt.]
…
Zhao Shiyu almost rolled her eyes again.
Did this girl seriously think she was fooling anyone?
Didn’t Zhao Shiyu know perfectly well that beneath that child’s skin was a fully grown adult?
For all she knew, the woman inside might even be middle-aged—or elderly.
And yet here she was, pretending to be some innocent little girl.
How revolting.
Bah! You old White Lotus!
…
“Eighth Sister,” Zhao Shiyu said coolly, “when you pretend to look pitiful, could you at least wipe that gleeful expression off your face?”
She paused for two seconds as if carefully considering her next words.
“The way you look right now is honestly a little…”
She tilted her head.
“Vicious.”
Then her gaze sharpened.
“And another thing—you don’t act like a child at all. If you didn’t still have my cousin’s face, I’d think some wandering ghost had possessed you.”
She stared directly into Zhao Shiying’s eyes.
“Eighth Sister… you’re not really the original Eighth Sister anymore, are you?”
…
Zhao Shiying’s expression changed dramatically.
…
[Shit! Am I really being that obvious?]
[No… wait! What right does this dead girl have to call me out? She’s exactly the same!]
…
Naturally, she couldn’t say that aloud.
Instead, she forced her face into an aggrieved expression and looked at Zhao Shiyu pitifully.
She even tried to squeeze out a couple of tears for effect.
But after blinking repeatedly, not a single tear emerged.
…
[Damn it! Is my acting really that bad? I’m so jealous of those people who can cry whenever they want. I’ve been trying this whole time and can’t even force out half a tear.]
…
“Seventh Sister…”
Her voice trembled with false hurt.
“I was clearly trying to help, yet you’ve twisted my intentions like this. You’ve truly broken your little sister’s heart.”
…
If any adult overheard this conversation, they would immediately find something off about it.
Because whether it was Zhao Shiyu or Zhao Shiying, neither of them sounded remotely like eight-year-old children.
The two of them were like crows standing on a pile of coal—neither had any right to call the other black.
Still, it wasn’t entirely their fault.
Each of them knew exactly what the other really was.
And yet both were standing there pretending ignorance.
The resulting awkwardness was impossible to ignore.
…
“Fine,” Zhao Shiyu said impatiently. “Now that you’ve checked up on me, I’m getting dressed. You can leave.”
She waved dismissively.
“Our family can’t afford servant girls, and I certainly don’t need you helping me change clothes. Just standing there is an eyesore.”
First things first—get this troublesome thing out of her room.
…
Zhao Shiying bit her lip and put on another aggrieved expression, though she didn’t insist on staying.
“Then hurry and get up, Seventh Sister. I’ll wait for you outside. Grandmother said we’re supposed to go dig wild vegetables today. If we go too late, all that’ll be left are the scraps everyone else ignored. Those can’t even be eaten—they’d only be fit for feeding the chickens.”
Though she was cursing under her breath, she reluctantly left the room.
Even after stepping outside, however, she didn’t leave the courtyard.
After all, Zhao Shiyu now carried the soul of the female lead.
That meant her opportunities could appear at any moment.
There was no way Zhao Shiying would miss that.
According to what she knew, the female lead’s first major opportunity after transmigrating was hidden at the foot of the mountain where they often gathered wild vegetables.
Even so, Zhao Shiying didn’t dare relax.
After all, now that she, a transmigrator into the novel, existed in this world, who knew what kind of butterfly effect she might cause?
She was waiting to steal Zhao Shiyu’s opportunities.
And if she stayed too far away, how could she possibly snatch them?
That was why she’d used gathering wild vegetables as an excuse—to trick Zhao Shiyu into going out with her.
What she didn’t know, however, was that the moment Zhao Shiyu transmigrated, she had gained the ability to read minds.
Every curse, every scheme, every little calculation in Zhao Shiying’s heart had already been laid bare.
And since Zhao Shiyu knew all of it…
how could she possibly let her succeed?