“I can’t believe the Cheng family could be this shameless!”
On the way back to the health clinic, He Mei was still indignant on Li Wanqing’s behalf.
Li Wanqing smiled. “All right. At least we’ve got the money back now. The most important thing is to get Nono healthy.”
The moment she mentioned the little girl, He Mei’s heart ached.
“Wanqing, it’s all because I’m useless. I haven’t been able to help you with anything these past two years.”
Li Wanqing patted her shoulder. “You’ve already helped me a lot.”
If He Mei hadn’t brought the educated youths from the youth settlement to help the original owner over the past two years, she might not have survived until now.
“That doesn’t count!” He Mei said seriously. “Back when we were on our way to Renxing Brigade, if you hadn’t helped me, I don’t even know which remote mountain village I would’ve been trafficked to.”
The original owner had come from the provincial capital of Hunan, while He Mei was from Sichuan.
Although they came from different places, they had boarded the same train in the provincial capital of Hunan.
In those days, the old green trains were crowded and packed with all kinds of people.
The original owner was quite beautiful, so she attracted unwanted attention soon after boarding.
Several men approached her, trying to strike up conversations and offering her drinks.
The original owner was cautious and never fell for their tricks. Those men eventually turned their attention to He Mei, who was also pretty and well-dressed.
The original owner was timid and hadn’t wanted to get involved in someone else’s business.
But when she saw He Mei collapse and those men about to take her away, she couldn’t bring herself to simply stand by.
While the group wasn’t paying attention, the original owner immediately reported them to the railway police, saving He Mei.
When they discovered that they had both been assigned to the same brigade in the countryside, He Mei became even more friendly toward the original owner.
By the time they returned to the health clinic, Cheng Nuo had already woken up. She was sitting obediently on a chair with a piece of candy in her mouth.
“~Mommy~ Mommy~”
The moment she saw Li Wanqing return, she slipped off the chair and wobbled toward her mother.
She had barely taken two steps before plopping down on her bottom.
She looked at Li Wanqing with pursed lips, her little face full of grievance.
Li Wanqing quickly picked her up, affectionately rubbing her cheek against the little girl’s neck and making her giggle.
Although Cheng Nuo was already over a year old, her body was weak. Whether it was speaking or walking, she lagged far behind children her age.
He Mei reached out and playfully teased her.
“Little Nono, do you still remember Auntie?”
Cheng Nuo looked up at He Mei and nodded vigorously.
“Auntie~~~”
He Mei’s heart nearly melted.
Such an adorable child—how could the Cheng family bear to treat her so harshly?
【It’s a shame Auntie eventually married a bad man and had a terrible life.】
Li Wanqing had been smiling as she watched her daughter, but the moment she heard those words, her smile disappeared.
She stared at He Mei in astonishment.
He Mei felt a little uneasy under her gaze.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
Li Wanqing narrowed her eyes slightly before asking in a low voice,
“Are you seeing someone?”
He Mei was startled, and her entire face instantly turned bright red.
“You… How did you know?”
Li Wanqing: …
There was no way she could sell out her own daughter!
“I guessed,” Li Wanqing said with a smile. “So it’s true?”
He Mei became even more embarrassed, but she didn’t deny it.
“We’ve known each other for about half a year.”
Li Wanqing was surprised.
“How come I’ve never heard you mention him?”
He Mei looked annoyed.
“Every time I came to see you, your mother-in-law guarded you like you were some kind of treasure. When would I have had a chance to tell you?”
Li Wanqing: …
All right.
The original owner had barely been able to take care of herself. She really hadn’t had the energy to worry about anyone else.
“So when are you planning to get married?”
Deep down, Li Wanqing really didn’t want He Mei to get married at this point.
In a little over a year, the college entrance examination would be restored, and He Mei would have a chance to return to the city.
If that happened, would she be able to avoid marrying that scumbag and rewrite her life?
He Mei waved her hand.
“We haven’t thought that far ahead. His family is a little poor, so we’re thinking about buying him a permanent job first.”
“I’m raising money for it right now. Once he gets a permanent job, we’ll get married.”
Li Wanqing’s heart sank.
That sounded exactly like the setup for a scumbag.
Unfortunately, she couldn’t just say it outright.
What could she possibly say?
“My daughter told me you’re going to meet a scumbag, so hurry up and dump him”?
“Find some time to introduce him to me. I’ll meet him and make sure he’s good enough for you.”
If she could help this girl before leaving Renxing Brigade, it would also count as repaying one of the original owner’s debts of gratitude.
Li Wanqing thanked Meng Renjie and then left with her daughter.
He Mei went with her, accompanying the mother and daughter home.
When they arrived at the Cheng family’s courtyard, the place looked as though it had been ransacked.
Things had been overturned everywhere.
Anyone who didn’t know better might have thought the house had been robbed.
The door to the eldest son’s side of the house was tightly locked, clearly indicating that no one was home.
Li Wanqing guessed that the mother and daughter-in-law had probably gotten into another fight, and Zhao Chunhua had taken Cheng Zhenxing back to her parents’ home again.
“You shameless wench! How dare you come back!”
Liu Yufen grabbed the broom beside her and charged toward them.
Her vicious appearance made Cheng Nuo’s little body tremble in fright.
Li Wanqing quickly stepped aside while holding her daughter.
He Mei immediately stepped in front of her and blocked the broom.
“Auntie Liu, if you keep acting like this, I’ll report you to the brigade headquarters!”
Liu Yufen glared at her.
“What the hell does it have to do with you? Go ahead and report me! I’m not afraid of you!”
She had already gotten the money. There was no way the people at the brigade headquarters would still interfere in the dispute between her and her daughter-in-law.
Her money!
That damned Li Wanqing!
And that troublesome Zhao Chunhua had actually threatened that if she didn’t split the eldest son’s share of the money, she would never let her grandson come home again!
That was the Cheng family’s grandson—their only male heir!
How dare she keep him away!
Although Liu Yufen had said all that, she ultimately didn’t dare swing the broom again.
What kind of sin had she committed to deserve this?
After finally becoming a mother-in-law, she still had to suffer at the hands of her daughter-in-law!
He Mei followed Li Wanqing into the room.
Everything inside had already been turned upside down.
Their belongings had been thrown everywhere, and the clothes scattered across the floor were covered in mud from being trampled on.
“Wanqing, they’ve gone way too far!”
Furious, He Mei was about to go outside and confront them, but Li Wanqing stopped her.
“Forget it.”
The most important thing was that she had gotten her money back.
She was in a good mood and couldn’t be bothered to argue with the Cheng family.
“But how are you supposed to live here now?”
Looking at the mess filling the room, He Mei couldn’t help worrying about her.
Li Wanqing, however, didn’t seem bothered at all.
“I already talked to the brigade leader. I’ll stay at the educated youth settlement for a while. The room I used to live in has been empty all this time. It’s perfect for Nono and me.”
She had expected the Cheng family to retaliate.
Old Man Cheng hadn’t shown himself during the commotion earlier. He had probably intended to let Liu Yufen make a scene first, then step in at the right moment to mediate and coax her into handing the money back.
In other words, Liu Yufen would play the villain while he played the good guy at the right moment!
Unfortunately for him, his plan had miscalculated.
She wasn’t the original owner anymore.
She had a completely different soul inside her now, so there was no way he could fool her with a few sweet words.
With He Mei’s help, Li Wanqing packed her clothes and everyday necessities into bags.
He Mei carried Cheng Nuo in front, while Li Wanqing carried a bag on her back and another bag in each hand as they left.
Liu Yufen, who was sitting in the main room, glanced at them before turning to the old man beside her.
“Looks like the third son’s wife is leaving. Aren’t you going to stop her?”
She didn’t want to keep that woman around, but her money was still in that wretched woman’s hands!
Cheng Anju narrowed his eyes and slowly blew out a ring of smoke from his hand-rolled cigarette.
“Let her go. She needs to suffer enough before she’ll be easy to control.”