The recipient was Qin Feiyang, and it was a thick stack of envelopes.

However, both Qin Hanshu and Qin Feiyang guessed who the letter was really addressed to.

Qin Feiyang hadn't opened the letter yet, and hesitantly asked Qin Hanshu, "Do you... want to see it? Or should I read it to you?"

Qin Hanshu took the letter directly and said indifferently, "I'll read it myself."

Qin Feiyang added worriedly, "If she says anything unpleasant, don't get angry."

Qin Hanshu smiled and said, "I won't."

Since Qin Feiyang joined the army, he has only communicated with Qin Hanshu. The two would exchange greetings through Qin Hanshu, but they have never contacted each other directly.

This time, when Yang Aizhen wrote to Qin Feiyang, she indeed started by asking about Qin Hanshu.

Yang Aizhen begins her story with the death of Hu Dayong, recounting her tragic life over the past year.

She was coaxed and tricked by Old Mrs. Hu into transferring her household registration to Daxing Township. But as soon as the registration was transferred, Old Mrs. Hu's attitude changed instantly, and she became even more mean to her than when Hu Dayong was around.

Before dawn, Grandma Hu would wake them up to work: feeding the pigs and chickens, cooking, and washing clothes. Besides housework, they also had to work in the fields to earn work points.

Yang Aizhen works from morning till night without a moment's rest, and only gets four or five hours of sleep a day...

She had considered returning to the city.

However, since the household registration has already been transferred, it is very difficult to transfer it back.

Secondly, Old Mrs. Hu kept a close eye on her, and if she noticed that she intended to run away, she would beat her with a stick.

After being beaten several times, Yang Aizhen became afraid. Even if she had the chance to run away, she wouldn't dare to take another step.

At this moment, Yang Aizhen thought of her biological daughter.

She hoped Qin Hanshu would pick her up.

Yang Aizhen painstakingly saved up some money for stamps and sent a letter to the place where Qin Hanshu was sent to work in the countryside.

Because she forgot the exact address, the letter was only sent to the educated youth office in the county.

Yang Aizhen was unaware that Qin Hanshu had already married and joined the army. Only after her letter was returned did she write to Qin Feiyang.

In her letter, Yang Aizhen asked Qin Feiyang if he knew anything about Qin Hanshu's situation, and also asked Qin Feiyang to help her contact Qin Hanshu as soon as possible so that Qin Hanshu could rescue her from her predicament.

She's dying.

Saying she was "dead" is definitely an exaggeration, but judging from the bitter complaints Yang Aizhen made, her life was indeed similar to that of an animal.

Qin Hanshu quickly read the letter, then handed it to Qin Feiyang so he could take a look as well.

After a while, Qin Feiyang looked at her and saw that she looked calm, which put his mind at ease.

"Xiao Shu, what are you thinking?"

Qin Hanshu gave a nonchalant snort, "You can reply to her, just say you don't know anything, and don't mention my recent situation."

It means completely ignoring Yang Aizhen.

Thinking of Qin Hanshu's experiences, Qin Feiyang felt no sympathy for Yang Aizhen whatsoever.

The kind and virtuous aunt of the past now only exists in my memory.

Qin Feiyang nodded, "Okay, I'll listen to you."

***

"Grandma, give me fifty cents, I want to go out and play." After finishing his meal, Hu Bingbing wiped his mouth and asked Grandma Hu for money.

Not long after returning to his hometown, Hu Bingbing was lured into playing cards. He was utterly incapable of playing cards; he was just throwing money away.

Grandma Hu tried to intervene, but it was no use. If Hu Bingbing didn't listen to her, he would lose his temper.

Old Mrs. Hu had no choice but to go along with it.

Fortunately, each loss was only two or three cents, or three or five cents, so Grandma Hu didn't take it too seriously.

Although her son is dead, the salary he paid her over the years is still there, enough for her to support herself in her old age, plus enough to help Hu Bingbing find a wife.

Seeing that Old Lady Hu was in a good mood, Yang Aizhen nervously made a request.

"Mom, can I not get out of bed today? I'm on my period, and I don't feel well."

"No way!" Old Mrs. Hu roared in anger, "What do you mean by feeling unwell? That's a problem only young girls have! You're over forty, you've had children who are already so big, and you're trying to use this as an excuse to be lazy? Have you no shame?!"

Yang Aizhen felt wronged; she hadn't lied.

Back in the city, she was always in good health, and even when she was a young woman, she had no health problems.

But during this period, I've been harassed by Old Lady Hu...

Yang Aizhen continued to plead.

Old Mrs. Hu glared fiercely at Yang Aizhen, "You, surnamed Yang, do you think you can get rid of me just because you sent a letter to your daughter?"

Old Mrs. Hu sneered, "Even if your daughter receives the letter, she might not necessarily come to pick you up."

"Mom, how did you know I was sending letters out..." Yang Aizhen was a little frightened, but she was relieved to see that Old Mrs. Hu did not intend to hit her because of this.

As for Grandma Hu saying that Qin Hanshu wouldn't come to pick her up, she didn't believe it.

Her daughter has been sensible since she was a child, how could she just stand by and watch her own mother suffer?

However, Qin Hanshu didn't seem to know what had happened, as she wasn't at the queue-cutting area.

She hoped to find out about Qin Hanshu from Qin Feiyang. If not, she believed that Qin Feiyang would come back after learning about his aunt's situation.

As if she could read Yang Aizhen's mind, Old Mrs. Hu rolled her eyes.

"I advise you to give up now. Don't you even think about what you've done to your own daughter? How dare you expect her to take care of you!"

"If I were your daughter, I'd rather never see you again!"