Chapter 67 Yao Xiaoli divided the food among herself, while Tao Xiaoxiao had plenty of strength and means...

Nine days after the article "Paper Wedding Dress" was published, Yao Xiaoyu stayed up most of the night to finish writing Miao Wuni's story. Miao Youjin's story on paper ended at the moment when she returned the bonded laborers' freedom and the woman quietly lit an ever-burning lamp for them.

The story goes on for a long time, but whether it's Miao Youjin participating in the founding ceremony of the People's Republic of China, the factory director's struggle after the public-private partnership, or Miao Youjin using the pre-established luxury status of silk to go abroad to make money and build the motherland, Yao Xiaoyu's entire family would be finely chopped into minced meat the moment she wrote it.

This world is so strange. Writing about ghosts is less dangerous than writing about people, and writing about darkness is safer than writing about light. Once the corrupt rulers see the feasibility of a bright and promising future, their first thought is to strangle it.

Writing is a mentally taxing activity. Yao Xiaoyu finished writing the story of Miao Youjin, rubbed her eyes as she looked at the sky that was already slightly bright, went downstairs to refill the ice packs and brought them back to the room. She pulled a sleeve of her clothes over her eyes and fell into a deep sleep in the blink of an eye. When she woke up again, the sun had already moved from east to west.

"Stop yelling, I'll take you out for a big meal later."

Yao Xiaoyu patted her protesting belly, yawned, and went downstairs to wash up. She happened to see Wenrou flipping the mosquito coil, and suddenly remembered something.

"Little fish..."

"It's almost the end of the month, shouldn't we pay for the prescription by now?"

Wenrou's excitement froze. She stared wide-eyed as if she didn't recognize Yao Xiaoyu. A deathly silence filled the air. Wenrou looked at her daughter like a statue, as if hoping she would say something, but Yao Xiaoyu just looked at her quietly.

After a dozen seconds, or maybe three to five minutes, Wenrou finally got up. She stomped down the stairs, and a clanging sound came from the room on the second floor. Yao Xiaoyu just kept changing her posture and waited until the thirty-one copper coins were forcefully slapped into her palm.

This money is the licensing fee for mosquito coils.

After her gentle foot healed, she no longer wanted to stay in the yard all day. However, she had been under strict control for too long and found it difficult to break free from the rigid mindset that she had no reason to go out. But once a person has a thought, they will find a way to find a loophole. After hearing Zhou Chunhua lament that the children of the people she worked with were crying every day because of mosquito bites, she thought of the mosquito coils that Yao Xiaoyu had made last year.

Going out without a reason is certainly not a good thing for a woman, but stepping out of the yard to supplement the family income is perfectly justified. Picking mugwort is not a heavy job, and going out every three to five days puts Wenrou at ease. However, last year, apart from buying the materials, Yao Xiaoyu made all the mosquito coils herself, and they had no idea about the proportions.

Wenrou wanted to go out for a walk, but she also really wanted to earn some money, so she privately asked Yao Xiaoyu for the mosquito coil recipe. Yao Xiaoyu didn't say anything at the time, but when the Yao family was present that evening, she revealed the matter—the recipe was something she had developed, and the family could use it. She didn't care how much the Yao family made or what price they sold it for, but they had to give her a copper coin every day for usage fees.

The price was practically free, but Wenrou never considered asking her daughter for something and having to pay for it. Even with the Yao family mediating, Wenrou still had a falling out with Yao Xiaoyu. As time went on, her anger subsided, but she couldn't find a reason to back down, so their relationship became strained until today.

"Xiaoxiao, come out with me."

Yao Xiaoyu roughly understood Wenrou's thoughts, but she had no intention of coaxing or yielding. She didn't lack love, nor did she need the nominal elders of this era to decide her life.

...

To celebrate the completion of her second novel, Yao Xiaoyu and Tao Xiaoxiao went out for a big meal and brought back four pink fruits for Yao Xiaoli.

Fen Guo is a dim sum with a skin and shape similar to shrimp dumplings. The shop Yao Xiaoyu ate at was worth every penny. The Fen Guo skin was made by a top-notch chef using sweet potato starch and wheat starch. There wasn't a single pleat or crack. There were four colors and four fillings. The black one was made with only good shiitake mushrooms. The yellow one was made with minced chicken and dried scallops. The filling was made with snow peas mixed with cilantro puree and green dye. The filling was ham, shrimp, and carrots. It was a happy and colorful red.

The little girl happily accepted them, looked around first, and when she saw that no one was paying attention, she ate two of them directly. She tore off a little bit from one and stuffed it into Yao Ping'an's mouth. She broke the remaining one into two pieces, one big and one small. She gave the big one to Zhou Chunhua and the small one to Wenrou. Yao Tianrui hadn't returned yet, so the tiny bit under his fingernail was put in the bowl and saved for him.

Watching Yao Xiaoli bustling about, Yao Xiaoyu suddenly became curious about what had happened after the braised pork knuckle was brought back last time. The little girl who used to always share the food with her family, no matter how much she craved it, had actually learned to divide it up.

"I'll treat them the way they treat me."

Yao Xiaoli appeared beside Yao Xiaoyu at some point and spoke softly. Yao Xiaoyu followed her gaze and saw that Wenrou was putting her half of the tea fruit into the bowl that Yao had reserved for Yao Tianrui. Although Zhou Chunhua and Yao Pingan did not put all of theirs in the bowl, they also broke off half of theirs.

"Sister, you said you would support my studies as long as I pass the exam, is that true?"

Yao Xiaoli looked at Yao Xiaoyu as if she were looking at a drowning person's straw.

"real."

Yao Xiaoyu gave an affirmative answer, agreeing to only cover tuition and living expenses up to middle school. However, Yao Xiaoli did not offend her, and she was willing to make some preferential treatment based on her gender.

"It doesn't matter if your family doesn't care. As long as you don't repeat a grade, I'll support you through high school if you get into middle school, and I'll support you through university if you get into university."

Yao Xiaoyu still didn't understand what had happened, but that didn't stop her from reassuring Yao Xiaoli.

Tuition is expensive, but that's okay, Yao Xiaoyu is good at making money.

"Um!"

Yao Xiaoli's eyes reddened, and she nodded vigorously.

...

When did it become clear that Yao Tianrui was the only one in the Yao family who was truly valued?

The moonlight was like water, and Yao Xiaoli tossed and turned in bed, unable to fall asleep.

Her mother doted on her brother, and her father doted on her. Yao Xiaoli always felt that she and her eldest brother had the same status in the Yao family, but that was just an illusion created by comparing her treatment with her second sister. It wasn't until her second sister left the family that the real conflict surfaced.

Because of her gender, the affection her parents had for her second sister was projected onto Yao Xiaoli. If love is rated out of ten, after her second sister passed away, her father loved her seven points, her mother loved her three points, and her grandmother still treated them equally.

It sounded fair, but Yao Xiaoli gradually discovered that no matter which of her parents or grandmothers got the best things, her eldest brother always got the things that lasted longer.

For example, of the four pieces of pastry that her father had given her, she took two pieces and her older brother took one piece. They were supposed to eat one piece a day, but she finished hers in two days, while her older brother ate it for four days.

This kind of thing happened often. She initially thought it was just her imagination, until one time her second sister took her out for a nice meal. She brought back a pancake with a whole braised pork knuckle inside. The family had divided it up in the kitchen and brought it out. She got the biggest portion. Because she ate it too quickly, she choked. She went to the kitchen to get some water to soothe herself and saw half a pancake on the plate. Her grandmother was still telling her mother:

"Remember to make sure Tianrui eats; he's the pillar of the family, so he needs to eat more."

But in another bowl, there was already a portion of food for the eldest brother.

Zhou Chunhua spoke as if it were the most natural thing in the world, and Yao Pingan and Wenrou also looked completely justified. Yao Xiaoli finally realized that her intuition was correct. Yao Tianrui naturally received preferential treatment in terms of resources because of his gender. What Yao Xiaoli thought was fairness was just a joke hidden behind the scenes. The father loved him seven parts and the mother loved him three parts, but the maximum score was twenty parts.

Just like the toffee that Dad asked Grandma to buy before, she got seven and her older brother got three. It seemed like her older brother got less than her, but Dad had secretly given him ten. She only got less and even less, but she was still smug and thought it was fair that her parents favored one of her.

...

It was a rare rain in Shanghai, and the weather was much cooler. Yao Xiaoyu, who had been staying in her room for many days, took Tao Xiaoxiao and hopped on a rickshaw to enjoy the rare comfortable days, eating, drinking, and having fun. The first two days were fine; although they couldn't pinpoint a destination, they would usually head back as it got dark.

Starting from the third day, the two of them came home later and later, sometimes even late at night. Yao Tianrui hadn't gone to work yet, and Yao Xiaoyu and Tao Xiaoxiao had already gone out. When Yao Tianrui got home from get off work, the two of them still hadn't returned.

This is really worrying: what if they go away for so long and never come back?

The Yao family also tried to take some measures, but Yao Xiaoyu never listened to their earnest advice. They wanted to use physical means, but since the two of them had legs, and Tao Xiaoxiao was also very strong, even if everyone combined, they could only fight to a 1:9 ratio—if Tao Xiaoxiao threw a punch, they would meet in the afterlife.

What's all the fuss about the two young ladies coming home late?

At first, there were some rumors, but when the two actually encountered people with ill intentions, Tao Xiaoxiao punched out all their teeth with a few punches, tied them up with ropes, and dragged the six burly men, whose arms were thicker than Tao Xiaoxiao's waists, down the entire street, leaving a long trail of blood. After that, the rumors dissipated like mist in the sunlight, leaving only the famous saying of the Tao family's daughter:

"I'm not some delicate young lady; I have plenty of strength and skill!"

Emotional blackmail was useless, physical methods were ineffective, and even drugging someone meant they wouldn't eat together. Even the most fervent external support was shattered by Tao Xiaoxiao's punches. The Yao family was forced to accept the reality that they had to pay Yao Xiaoyu to pull strings.

The leisurely jobs in Luobogang are generally filled by the capable, whether it's through power or money. In rare cases, someone might actually get lucky, like Yao Xiaoyu's previous job. The Yao family originally wanted to see if they could have a second chance, but now they can't wait any longer.

It's heartbreaking to spend the silver dollars to find Yao Xiaoyu a job, but it's truly devastating to not find her a job and let her go with the ten dollars we paid each month!

Money plays a powerful role. In just two days, he managed to dig a hole for himself and could wait until the weather got cooler before starting work. Yao Tianrui couldn't wait to tell Yao Xiaoyu about the situation and only felt at ease after confirming that Yao Xiaoyu accepted it. Yao Xiaoyu would keep her promises. By keeping people tied down with work, he could secure his fixed income of ten yuan!

Days passed by, but summer seemed to have no end in sight. Yao Xiaoyu wasn't in a hurry; she just read books and newspapers, ate, and slept, living a Zen-like life, much like a capybara.

"What did you say?!"

Yao Xiaoyu slammed her hand on the table with a loud bang, making Pi Xiukang wince in pain, but Yao Xiaoyu seemed oblivious, only shouting:

"Say what you just said again if you dare!"

She had already cut Miao Youjin's story to the point of returning freedom to the bonded laborers, but this side still felt it couldn't be written, saying it would affect social stability and be detrimental to international relations, and wanted to cut Miao Youjin's story to the point before attending the banquet!

This is absolutely outrageous!

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Author's note: Tao Xiaoxiao's name will not be changed for the time being, because many readers are discussing the issue of changing Tao Xiaoxiao's name. The author plans to wait a while to see which side has more support.

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Don't ask why Xiaoyu is willing to support Yao Xiaoli in taking the college entrance exam. It's because her sister is a woman she knows, and Xiaoyu has the ability to do so. It's that simple!

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