Song Qinghuan spoke vividly, and everyone present was deeply drawn into the story.
Third Sister Liu was usually a gossip, and with such explosive news right in front of her, her eyes widened until they were round as coins.
Seeing she had achieved her goal, Song Qinghuan glanced at the sky. “Third Sister, Aunt Wang, I have to hurry back now. You two can keep chatting.”
Aunt Wang put down the chives in her hands – she had been listening with great interest. “Leaving so soon? It’s still early. Sit down and tell us more – who exactly is the person Lu Qiming likes?”
Song Qinghuan’s mysterious demeanor had only whetted their curiosity.
“Oh, I shouldn’t really talk about this kind of thing. What if people say I’m spreading rumors later? Everyone just needs to know the gist of it – I won’t say any more. Auntie, I really have to go back. There’s a whole pile of work waiting for me at home, or my parents will be unhappy.”
Everyone in the alley knew Song Qinghuan was a good girl, and not one of them didn’t feel for her. Old Madam Wei waved her hand. “Right, right, go on back first.”
Song Qinghuan left with a smile on her face. Before she had even walked far, she heard a few people whispering.
“The Lu family really didn’t handle this properly. No way – with such big news, I have to go find someone to ask about it.”
Third Sister Liu left a trail of melon seed shells behind her, patted her butt, and got up to leave.
The others were still dwelling on the gossip. Only when she was sure the news would spread did Song Qinghuan feel at ease heading home.
“You damn girl – you run around god knows where all day. You just called off a perfectly good marriage like it was nothing. Have you even thought about how hard it is for a girl from an ordinary family like us to become an official’s wife?”
In the courtyard, Zhao Yufang – who was doing laundry – seized the chance to start scolding as soon as she saw Song Qinghuan return.
Song Qinghuan had usually done all this work, but lately she had suddenly changed. It was as if someone else had taken over her body, and she spoke more and more boldly.
Thinking about having someone eating for free at home made Zhao Yufang so angry she could spit blood.
Song Qinghuan looked down at her with little expression on her face. “Did you hide when humans were evolving? Do you have no brain at all? You’re always looking for shortcuts. The best shortcut would be to die right now – are you going to do it?”
Song Qinghuan’s words hit like cannonballs, attacking Zhao Yufang without mercy.
“How dare you talk to your mother like that? I see now – all these years I’ve raised an ungrateful wretch. I tell you to marry, and you refuse. Do you think you can turn the world upside down?”
Song Qinghuan let out a cold laugh and glanced at her. “Don’t worry – before I turn the world upside down, I’ll send you to hell first.”
Zhao Yufang trembled with rage. “You… you… you unfilial daughter! How dare you speak to me like this? When your father comes back, I’ll…”
Bang –
Before Zhao Yufang could finish, she was met with a door slamming shut.
Song Qinghuan sat at her desk, calmed herself down, and began reviewing. As soon as she opened her book, time flew by until it was dinner time.
Zhao Yufang snorted coldly through the door. “Since you won’t listen, you might as well be sick every day. Until you come to your senses, you won’t get a single meal.”
After all, daughters were just a burden. Song Qinghuan would be married soon anyway – if she ate one less meal at home, Zhao Yufang could save one more meal ticket.
Song Qinghuan was bringing this on herself, and it saved Zhao Yufang the trouble of saving all the meat and eggs for Song Yunfei.
She muttered quietly outside, but Song Qinghuan was completely unaware.
She looked at the calendar on her desk – the exam was in half a month.
Resting her chin on one hand, she marked the key points in her book and made notes in red pen as reminders.
“Time is running out. I need to make the most of every moment these days.”
She rubbed her sore neck and made a detailed plan.
This exam was no small matter – it would determine her future. Once she had a simple plan in mind, she felt more settled.
She had already taken this exam once before, so she knew how to prepare better. After the written test came the interview, and the higher her score, the better the department she would be assigned to.
Song Qinghuan set her sights on the top. On her desk was a cup of spiritual spring water – at first she had only thought the water from her space was sweeter, but after drinking two cups, she found her memory had improved significantly.
Especially when it came to memorizing key points, she could almost remember them after one look – even the more complex ones were no problem.
Song Qinghuan looked at the water in her enamel cup in surprise. “If this water helps improve memory, could it have other special effects too?”
She looked at the only mirror on her desk and felt her eyes were brighter. Whether it was wishful thinking or not, her fatigue had lessened, and she now felt full of energy.
She hadn’t discovered any other effects of the spiritual spring water yet, but compared to ordinary well water, it was better in both taste and value.
Once she got into the hospital, maybe she could make the spiritual spring water the focus of her research. If its effects were truly greater than ordinary water, it might have extraordinary results in the pharmaceutical industry too.
Song Qinghuan flipped through her book, reading ten lines at a glance, yet understanding all the difficult points and key concepts thoroughly. She took advantage of her good state of mind and focused on studying.
After dinner, Song Shouyang glanced at Song Qinghuan’s room – there had been no movement since he came home.
Zhao Yufang glared at him and tapped her bowl impatiently. “What are you looking at? If she doesn’t eat, we save food. What girl her age doesn’t get married? She really thinks she’s some precious jewel, calling off the marriage with the Lu family.”
She clearly meant for Song Qinghuan inside to hear her words.
But Song Qinghuan was completely absorbed in her studies, so focused that she didn’t hear a sound from outside.
Song Shouyang tapped his cigarette in the ashtray. “Heaven always leaves a way out. If she doesn’t want to marry Lu Qiming, we’ll find someone else. At worst, we’ll ask for more betrothal money.”
He lowered his voice. “We’ve raised her all these years – she can’t just eat for free. Once we get the betrothal money, it’ll still be firmly in our hands.”