Liu Ailing's Probing

The next morning, Wang Yao lay in bed, looking up at the mosquito net above her head. She was momentarily dazed before realizing that it was already the second day of her rebirth.

The chirping of birds echoed outside the window, and the aroma of chili oil wafted from the kitchen next door, indicating that Ms. Liu Xiangmei was making breakfast. She rolled over in bed, feeling a wave of relief, and thought, "Mmm, this is so comfortable. I don't want to get out of bed."

Knock, knock, knock. Liu Xiangmei poked her head in. "If you're awake, get up and eat quickly. Come with me to the fields in a bit."

Wang Yao reached out to Liu Xiangmei and said coquettishly, "No, I need you to pull me up before I get out of bed."

Liu Xiangmei left with the words, "Then you can go hungry," and turned to go back to the kitchen.

How heartless! Only a broad-minded daughter like her could tolerate that.

She said she didn't want to get up, but Liu Xiangmei's chili oil made her mouth water. She quickly got dressed, grabbed her toiletries, and went to the pond in the yard.

This pool was built by Wang Tianmiao herself after she separated from the family. It's been more than ten years. Her family usually washes themselves, does laundry, washes vegetables, etc., all in this pool, which is very convenient.

Wang Yao was brushing her teeth diligently when she heard that annoying sound.

Liu Ailing said with a smile, "Yaoyao just woke up? It's so much easier now that she's not in school. She should get some rest at home."

Wang Yao turned to look at Liu Ailing, and she hadn't seen that smiling face in a long time.

For decades in her previous life, all that remained in her memory of Liu Ailing was her sharp and mean-spirited nature. Especially after they learned that she had returned and called the police, Liu Ailing was summoned to the police station. Upon seeing her, the police pointed their fingers at her and cursed her as a heartless harlot, a piece of trash, and so on... using all sorts of nasty words.

The reason Liu Ailing scolded her at that time was because she was worried that it would implicate her. Later, her grandmother took on all the problems by herself, and when Liu Ailing saw her again, she was just smug.

Now that Liu Ailing is being so kind and gentle to her, something is definitely amiss. If someone acts strangely, there's always something fishy going on. If someone's words don't match their true feelings, there's definitely something fishy going on.

She spat out the foam in her mouth and chuckled, "Yes, it's really tiring for us scholars, unlike my aunt who was freed from school so early."

Liu Ailing graduated from junior high school and was admitted to high school, but her family wouldn't let her go, wanting to save the money for her younger brother, who was ten years younger than her, to go to school.

However, her younger brother was a hopeless case. He stopped going to school after graduating from elementary school, so the family paid for him to attend a vocational school. He was also unruly in vocational school and got into many fights with street thugs. He was eventually expelled and officially joined the ranks of thugs. If I remember correctly, her brother had a rib broken last year.

After graduating, Liu Ailing worked in the county town. When she reached the legal marriage age, her family found her a husband. They only had one requirement: a high bride price. However, Liu Ailing looked down on all the men introduced by the matchmaker and refused to marry.

Until one day, when Liu Lan returned to her parents' home, she heard about Liu Ailing, who had just graduated from junior high school and was quite pretty. She was overjoyed. Since they were all from the same village, she promised to treat Liu Ailing well and help her support her parents' family. After some haggling, she finally settled on Liu Ailing.

Liu Lan originally disliked her eldest daughter-in-law, so she wanted to find a daughter-in-law from her own family who was of one mind with her. Liu Ailing was good-looking and knew how to get along with people, so she liked her even more. In the end, Liu Ailing gave birth to a big, fat grandson for the Wang family, and she wanted to praise Liu Ailing to the heavens.

Although Liu Ailing's life after marriage was relatively comfortable, the inability to continue her studies back then remained a thorn in her side.

So don't be fooled by the phrase she often says: "It's useless for girls to study; they'd be better off going out to work and earn money early."

However, she was very concerned about her younger sister's schooling. Every month, she would go back to her parents' home to inquire about her sister's academic performance. She would give her sister the money she had worked so hard to save without hesitation, as long as her sister needed it for her studies.

Now her younger sister has become the only college student in their village. Whenever someone mentions her sister in front of Liu Ailing, she becomes as proud as a rooster.

As soon as Wang Qian finished speaking, Liu Ailing's face darkened instantly, and her smile vanished completely.

She gave Wang Qian a deep look. "Envious? Maybe you'll be free soon too!"

The morning breeze felt cool on Wang Yao, even though it was summer. She rinsed her mouth, put her toothbrush cup aside, and answered innocently, "I don't know how. I have a good mother."

Liu Ailing clenched her teeth, her face even more unpleasant than before. She snorted and turned to leave.

Wang Yao watched her retreating figure. It seemed the snake's fangs had already grown out; she needed to speed things up.

"Yaoyao, how long are you going to wash your face? It's all soggy."

"They're here!"

Wang Yao quickly washed her face and went into the room. She saw that Liu Xiangmei had already mixed the noodles for her on the table, with an egg on top.

While eating her noodles, she said, "Mom, my aunt came to talk to me just now, and it felt weird."

"What's strange?"

"She was so kind to me, isn't that strange?"

Liu Xiangmei was speechless. "They're giving you a nice look, and you're still not happy?"

Wang Yao: "Ever since my aunt married into the family, I've never seen her give me a kind look. She's always so attentive without a reason, she's definitely up to no good."

Liu Xiangmei was speechless. "What's on your mind all day? Think more about how to get good grades at school."

"She even said that I might not have to go to school anymore!"

Liu Xiangmei: "She's talking nonsense. As long as you get good grades, Mom will definitely support you to continue your studies. Don't listen to her nonsense; she's just jealous of you."

Wang Yao: "Yes, I know. My aunt is no good."

"Is your sister-in-law home?" Wang Tianhua's voice suddenly rang out from the doorway.

The mother and daughter both looked towards the door. Wang Yao noticed the large dark circles under his eyes and asked, "Uncle, you didn't go to work today?"

“Yes, I took the day off today,” Wang Tianhua said, turning to Liu Xiangmei. “Sister-in-law, Mom wants you to come over.”

Liu Xiangmei got up to get a stool for Wang Tianhua, and while clearing away the dishes, she asked in a puzzled tone, "What do you want from me so early in the morning?"

Wang Tianhua: "I won't sit down. Let's go over now after you've finished eating, sister-in-law!"

Seeing that Wang Tianhua looked unwell and seemed so anxious, Liu Xiangmei took off her apron and prepared to go over and check on him.

As Liu Xiangmei passed by, Wang Yao whispered, "Mom, don't forget what you promised me."

Liu Xiangmei didn't quite understand what Wang Yao was saying, so Wang Yao repeated, "If they ask you for help and don't say what it is, don't agree yet."

Looking at Wang Yao's serious little face, Liu Xiangmei thought that this child was always worrying about nothing, so she waved her hand and quickly followed Wang Tianhua.

Wang Yao watched Liu Xiangmei's retreating figure. After the two of them went inside, she hurried over and squatted down under the window of their living room.