"Then...can my two sons come with me? The younger one is still breastfeeding, and the older one can't be left alone at home. It won't do if there's no one to take care of them."
"Go where?"
Liu Yuelan immediately straightened her face and her tone turned cold.
“The house is so small, with three rooms. One is for me and Youming, one is for the kids, and the other is for storing things. How can it accommodate so many people? Besides, only Youming earns money, and his salary is just enough for the three of us. How can we support a whole family? You're going to help out, not move.”
Chen Xinghua was immediately in a dilemma.
She really wanted to go.
Going to her daughter's house, even if it's just for a few days, will allow her to hold her head high in the village and shut up those who gossip behind her back that "she raised her daughter for nothing."
But the problem is, what will happen to the two kids if she leaves?
At this moment, Liu Chunhe, who had been sitting silently to the side, straightened her back and stared straight at Liu Yuelan.
"How much money do you give your mom each month when she cooks at your house?"
"If you hire someone to cook for you for a month, you have to pay them, right? She's your mother, but she's a living, breathing person who needs to eat and wear clothes. How can you expect her to work for free?"
Chen Xinghua quickly nodded as well.
“Yes, you can’t work for free, can you? Even though I’m your mother, I can’t be treated like a farmhand.”
Unexpectedly, Liu Yuelan raised an eyebrow and snorted coldly.
"She's my own mother. I'm helping my own family, and you still want to calculate money? What kind of logic is that! You're the younger brother, and instead of helping to take care of your elders, you're here calculating money? Is that how a son should act?"
Liu Chunhe immediately understood, but her face remained expressionless.
She had long known that her older sister was outwardly filial but inwardly scheming.
Trying to use your mother as free labor while pretending to be "filial"—do you really think everyone else is stupid?
He immediately stood up and replied firmly.
“Then she won’t go. If you want to find someone to do the work, find someone else. My mother is not your servant, much less your old ox tied to the stove.”
Liu Yuelan got angry, her face turned bright red, and she started cursing.
"Hmph, it's all because of your preference for sons over daughters! You only dote on your son and don't care about my life or death at all! You live a life of luxury at home while I starve in the countryside, and you still have the nerve to talk about money here! What kind of brother are you? You're a complete ingrate!"
Liu Chunhe sneered and did not back down.
"Don't care about you? Then who forced Mom to give you her dowry money as a bride price? Who said 'a daughter is like water spilled from a cup, don't worry about her'? What are you pretending to be pitiful for now? If you really care about Mom, pay back the money you owe her first, then talk about filial piety."
"Fine, I won't care. Who cares what you say!"
Liu Yuelan grabbed her bag and was about to leave.
"I'm going back right now and taking all my things! Staying here even a day longer is just asking for trouble!"
It turns out that she had left a few clothes and an old leather suitcase in the old house, which contained some odds and ends.
She hadn't intended to keep it; she just considered it as something to be thrown away.
But now was the perfect opportunity to go back to the cave dwelling and pour the packet of medicine hidden in his sleeve into Zhu Xiuqin's bucket.
As soon as Zhu Xiuqin's family used this water, they would experience excruciating abdominal pain within twelve hours, followed by unconsciousness.
The person was gone by the next morning.
Anyway, Youming had already said that he would arrange for Shen Zhiyu to come and take a look around the area tomorrow morning, and if he found the body, he would call the police.
At that time, Shen Zhiyu will be the first person to discover it.
With him around, things proceeded smoothly, and no one would suspect her.
Thinking of this, Liu Yuelan almost couldn't help but laugh out loud.
The sky had darkened, and the evening breeze rustled through the wild grass.
These cave dwellings are nestled against the cliff and are old houses left over from the village's early years.
No one lives there on weekdays; it's considered a vacant, publicly used house.
If someone needs to temporarily leave some things at someone's house, or if they have nowhere to sleep while visiting relatives, they can stay overnight.
Therefore, these cave dwellings were never locked; she could simply push the door open.
She crouched down and went inside, quickly took out the small paper packet, walked briskly to the bucket in the corner, opened the lid, and poured all the powder in.
The powder dissolved instantly upon contact with water, leaving not a trace.
She closed the lid, took two steps back, and checked the surroundings again.
After confirming that no one had seen him, he clapped his hands, a cold smile playing on his lips, and quietly turned and left.
She didn't stop, but went straight through the muddy courtyard and into the cave dwelling where Chen Xinghua lived.
The cave dwelling was dimly lit, with only a kerosene lamp flickering weakly beside the earthen bed.
Her breathing was still a little rapid, but she forced herself to calm down and sat on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) pretending to tidy up her needlework.
In her nervousness, she didn't notice that just as she left Zhu Xiuqin's house, a small figure was tiptoeing and slipping into the house next door not far behind her.
"Mom, I saw her pour something into the bucket."
The speaker was Xie Panxing, Shen Cunpu's younger sister, who was huddled behind the door, her face tense and her voice very low.
"Is what you saw real?"
Su Qingzhi gently squatted down and raised her hand to smooth Xie Panxing's messy hair.
Xie Panxing stood ramrod straight and nodded emphatically.
“She saw it clearly. I was hiding behind the woodpile, and she thought no one could see me.”
Su Qingzhi took out a White Rabbit milk candy from her pocket, carefully unwrapped it, and handed it to Xie Panxing.
"Xiao Xing, you can't tell anyone about this, remember? Not a single word can be leaked."
Her tone remained gentle, but with a hint of seriousness.
Xie Panxing took the candy and held it tightly in her palm.
She looked up and nodded earnestly.
"I'll remember, Mom. I won't tell anyone who asks."
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