Not long after arriving home, Zhang Cheng, who had left work early, arrived with his wife and three children, carrying large and small bags.
One day, good news kept coming. The mother was beaming and humming a song as she headed straight for the kitchen.
Wearing an apron, Zhang Cheng helped Tong's mother with her work, his movements surprisingly swift.
Not only did they make the oil-splashed noodles that Qi An wanted to eat, but they also prepared a whole table of dishes.
The three children sat in a row on small stools watching cartoons, while Qi An and Nana sat on the sofa chatting.
Nana was extremely worried when she learned that Qi An had lost his job.
Aunt Shuhui's family consists of only two women. How are they going to manage the mortgage and their livelihood?
Qi An casually told her that he had won five million in the lottery.
Nana was stunned. Was this the legendary "surviving a great calamity means good fortune is sure to follow"?
She grabbed Qi An's hand and inhaled sharply.
While feeling envious, Nana also breathed a sigh of relief.
With this money, even if Tong Qian can't find a job because of that incident, at least she and her mother won't have to worry about making a living.
Nana looked on with envy: "Ahhh, when will I get to have such a good thing happen to me?"
Qi An laughed and said, "Are you envious? I traded my marriage and children for this, would you trade?"
Nana glanced at Zhang Cheng, who was busy in the kitchen, then at the three adorable children, and shook her head: "No trade."
She whispered a reminder to Qi An: "Remember to tell Aunt Shuhui not to spread this around, you know why."
"Yes, I know, but..."
Qi An grinned mischievously: "There's someone I need you to specifically promote."
Nana understood immediately, blinked, and said, "Don't worry, I'll make sure to inform everyone."
She was also curious whether that old hag who always hoped for other people's misfortune would be furious if she knew that Tong Qian had won five million.
The meal was a pleasant one for both the host and guests. Qi An finished three bowls of oil-splashed noodles and ate many other dishes.
Two of the dishes were cooked by Zhang Cheng, and they actually tasted quite good.
After eating and drinking their fill and chatting for a while, Zhang Cheng took his wife and children home.
Zhang Cheng was exhausted from delivering food all day and went to bed early. After settling the child in, Nana went into Wang Fang's room.
Wang Fang had just finished her daily prayer—cursing Li Shuhui and Tong Qian to have terrible luck and die soon.
Seeing Nana come in, she snorted, "What are you doing here?"
"Tong Qian has been discharged from the hospital. Zhang Cheng and I took some things to Aunt Shuhui's house to visit her before we came back."
Wang Fang hurriedly asked, "That brat was unconscious for a month, is she completely ruined?"
Nana covered her mouth and laughed, "I don't know if I'm useless or not, but I can eat three bowls of oil-splashed noodles in one meal, and I can carry a big bucket of water in one hand without bending over."
Wang Fang: "..."
She said defiantly, "I don't believe she has no problems at all."
Nana deliberately said, "Oh, by the way, there's something you guessed right: Tong Qian lost her job."
Wang Fang slapped her thigh hard, overjoyed: "I knew it! No matter what she says, she killed someone. How could any company possibly want her?"
"Now that's a problem, no other company will want her either. Without money, I wonder how she and her daughter will manage in the future."
She looked excited and began to imagine how miserable Li Shuhui and her daughter would be in the future.
"Once the mortgage is paid off, the house will be gone. Tong Qian's reputation is ruined, no man will want her and she can't earn money, so she'll definitely have to rely on Li Shuhui to support her. It's really tragic."
"Haha, Li Shuhui has to go out and set up a stall again. She worked hard for twenty years to become a top student, but it's all useless. She's so old and still has to get up early and work late to make money. How pitiful, haha."
"She was so smug before, but in the end I still won. I, Wang Fang, am luckier than her."
Nana looked at her with pity: "I'm sorry to disappoint you. Aunt Shuhui is incredibly lucky, and things will only get better from here on out."
"You're talking nonsense, that's impossible, she..."
Nana interrupted her: "Tong Qian won the lottery, can you guess how much she won?"
Wang Fang looked stunned: "How...how much?"
Nana held up five fingers: "Five million."
Wang Fang was stunned. This number was beyond her comprehension; she couldn't even imagine it.
"Tong Qian just walked down the street, casually bought a lottery ticket, and won five million. You call that tragic?"
Wang Fang's mouth was wide open, and she was panting like a broken bellows, unable to utter a single word.
“With this five million, she can pay off her mortgage in one go. The rest can be deposited in the bank, and even if Tong Qian never works, just living off the interest will be enough for her and Aunt Shuhui to live comfortably.”
Nana asked with a smile, "Now, do you still think Aunt Shuhui has a bad life?"
Jealousy twisted Wang Fang's old face: "Why is she so lucky? God, why is she so fortunate, and why am I so miserable..."
"Pfft..."
Consumed by jealousy, Wang Fang coughed up a mouthful of blood.
After delivering the message, Nana left feeling relieved.
Wang Fang didn't stop all night, sometimes cursing and sometimes crying, until she could no longer make a sound.
It wasn't until Zhang Cheng went to bring her breakfast in the morning that he realized something was wrong.
The room reeked of excrement and urine. Wang Fang was incontinent, her mouth was crooked, her eyes were drooling, and she could no longer speak.
After being taken to the hospital for a checkup, it turned out to be a stroke with hemiplegia. He was told to go home and wait to die.
So Zhang Cheng pulled them back.
After returning from the hospital, Wang Fang's mouth was full of pustules, which were painful and itchy, making it impossible for her to eat or drink.
Nana felt that it was because she had cursed and had a foul mouth that she had become so disgraced.
The abscesses spread rapidly, covering every inch of her skin in less than three days.
It looks like a disgusting monster.
The pain, like a hundred ants gnawing at her heart, tormented Wang Fang constantly, making her wish she could die immediately.
At this point, even Wang Fang began to suspect that she was truly being punished.
The evil she had committed in the past was now coming back to haunt her, and she finally regretted it.
She had a dutiful son and daughter-in-law, as well as three adorable grandchildren. She could have lived a peaceful and happy old age surrounded by her children and grandchildren, just like any other ordinary elderly person.
Why is she so greedy and insists on comparing herself to Li Shuhui?
Why introduce a murderer to Tong Qian, pushing her into a pit of fire?
But it was too late for regrets. She rotted away little by little under inhuman torture until she was reduced to a pile of rotting flesh, and only then was she finally freed and passed away.
When Tong's mother learned of her death, she said nothing, only let out a long sigh.
With that, the last enemy who killed Tong Qian was dealt with, leaving only the task of caring for Tong's mother in her old age and seeing her off in her final days.
After claiming the prize and paying off the mortgage, Qi Anquan had three million left. He gave it to Tong's mother and then went to bed.
With a large sum of money in her pocket, the old lady walked with a swagger, feeding and caring for Qi An well, and never mentioned blind dates again.
But deep down, she still held onto hope that her daughter would meet someone she liked and have someone to keep her company in the future.
However, the old lady gave up quickly.
Because her resentful daughter said she was traumatized by murder and developed a disease that made her unable to face men.
Mother of the Child: "..."
Bullshit! She was flirting with the handsome waiter when we went out to eat last time.
Fine, if we don't want to get married, then we don't want to get married. As long as she's happy.
With all three children in school, Zhang Cheng quit his delivery job at Qi An's suggestion and opened a small restaurant with Nana.
Most of the capital came from his godmother, Li Shuhui, who essentially invested in the company.
Zhang Cheng is hardworking and skilled, while Nana is sweet-talking and has high emotional intelligence. Together, they have made their small restaurant a great success.
He paid off his mortgage in just three years, and life got better and better.
The mother then acted up again, suggesting that her daughter undergo in-vitro fertilization to have a child of her own, so that she wouldn't be lonely in her old age.
"You only need to have one child, boy or girl, it doesn't matter. Mom will help you raise it, and you can just enjoy life afterward."
Qi An said speechlessly, "Do you know why you've suffered for half your life?"
The mother said, "Because your father died early, it was naturally hard for me to raise you all by myself."
Qi An shook his head: "Wrong, because you have a child."
Mother of the Child: "..."
Just then, a daycare center opened in the neighborhood, and Qi An sent the old lady to see the children for three days.
On the fourth day, Tong's mother rubbed her aching back and refused to go any further.
From then on, the topic of having children was never mentioned again.
The old lady has completely come to terms with things. She spends her free time dancing in the square, going on trips with senior citizen groups, and taking all sorts of photos with silk scarves that dominate her social media feed.
Occasionally, I'll indulge in a little something fancy, like going shopping, getting beauty treatments, or having a fancy meal with my daughter, or being taken on a world tour to broaden my horizons—it's all so wonderful!
The old lady lived to the age of eighty-five without any illness or pain, and passed away peacefully in her sleep.
On her deathbed, she held Qi An's hand and asked, "Good child, what is your name?"
"Qi An".
"An'an, if you see Qianqian, please tell her I'm sorry for me."
"good."
"You must all be well from now on, safe and sound, healthy and strong."
The mother smiled and closed her eyes.
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