The morning sunlight streamed into the room through the window. Wang Xiuxiu slowly opened her eyes, stretched, and, estimating that it was still early, decided to stay in bed a little longer.
Although the bedding was rough, she had gradually gotten used to this simple life compared to the discomfort she felt when she first arrived.
Who would have thought that just half a month ago, she was busy among skyscrapers, enjoying the conveniences of modern civilization.
But now, she has become the second daughter of the Wang family—Wang Xiuxiu.
The Wang family was considered relatively wealthy in Shitou Village, thanks to Wang Xiuxiu's biological mother, Yu.
Yu was the youngest daughter of the owner of a general store in the county. When she was young, she fell in love with Wang Degui, a traveling merchant. Despite her family's objections, she resolutely married him and moved to Shitou Village.
Yu used her dowry to build the brick house where the Wang family now lives. The couple once lived in harmony and had two sons and a daughter.
However, fate is unpredictable. Not long after giving birth to her youngest son, Madam Yu died of a sudden illness.
At that time, Yu's family had already sold the shop and moved to another place with their son.
Wang Degui had no choice but to raise his three children alone, and life became difficult.
Wang Degui didn't intend to stay with his wife. After the mourning period, he asked matchmakers everywhere to help him find a second wife.
Eventually, through an introduction, he married Chen Chunhua.
Chen Chunhua was young and beautiful, gentle and considerate. Although she came from a humble background as a maid, she won Wang Degui's heart.
Her arrival brought Wang Degui a long-lost sense of warmth and satisfaction.
Aside from not having any children, she fulfilled all of Wang Degui's fantasies about a wife.
In his youth, he wandered the streets and alleys, dreaming of marrying a rich girl and living a life of luxury.
But Wang Degui also knew that it could only be a fantasy.
A lady from such a prestigious family is someone I, a commoner, could never hope to climb up to.
The first wife, surnamed Yu, came from a family that was quite wealthy.
He is arrogant and spoiled, so he always has to be patient and accommodating.
But Wang Degui felt that being able to marry her was a great blessing he had earned before Buddha.
Chen Chunhua, on the other hand, was more beautiful and younger than Yu, and also possessed a gentle and considerate nature.
Although she was born a maid, she was exceptionally good at satisfying Wang Degui's vanity.
Whenever Wang Degui thought about these things, he felt like he had gotten a great deal!
Five years after Chen Chunhua entered the family, Wang Xiuxiu's elder brother got married and married Hong Xiaodong from Hong Xiucai's family.
Logically speaking, scholars, considering their social standing, would absolutely refuse to form marriage alliances with peasant families.
But this Scholar Hong was an old scholar who had been taking the imperial examination for nearly twenty years.
Harboring dreams of passing the imperial examinations, his family's fortunes gradually declined.
By the time Hong Xiaodong reached marriageable age, her family had been struggling to make ends meet for a long time.
After marrying Chen Chunhua, Wang Degui experienced the joys of being a respectable person.
So even though Chen Chunhua tried to dissuade him openly and secretly, Wang Degui still insisted on spending a considerable dowry to marry his eldest son to Hong Xiaodong from a poor scholar's family.
Although Hong Xiaodong was the daughter of a scholar, she didn't know many characters.
After marrying into the Wang family, she initially pretended to maintain the dignity of a scholar's daughter.
Once he figured out the family's background, he revealed his true nature and acted without restraint.
In Hong Xiaodong's view, her stepmother-in-law, Chen Chunhua, had entered the family five years before her. She was all talk and no action, but her father-in-law was easily swayed by her. When she first entered the family, she had suffered quite a bit from Chen Chunhua's subtle attacks.
As for the second sister, Wang Xiuxiu, she's a foolish and easily manipulated person.
Hong Xiaodong usually looked down on her.
The third brother, Wang Chengwen, is currently studying at the academy. He has been raised by Chen Chunhua since she entered the Wang family and now treats her as his own mother.
Hong Xiaodong had cursed Wang Chengwen in his heart several times, saying that this silly boy had a brain full of books, but he actually mistook that old hag for his mother and forgot his own mother. He had completely wasted the kindness of his mother-in-law in giving him life!
Although Chen Chunhua was known for her tendency to cause trouble, she was genuinely kind to Wang Chengwen.
If someone who didn't know the situation saw them, they would really think they were a mother and son.
---
After lingering for a while, hearing noises outside, Wang Xiuxiu dared not delay any longer and got up to put on her shoes.
The family members got dressed and prepared to head to the threshing ground.
Before leaving, Wang Degui looked at Wang Xiuxiu, who was so thin that a gust of wind could blow her away, and frowned, saying, "Er Yatou is not fully recovered, so she should stay at home and cook."
After saying that, ignoring Hong Xiaodong's hesitation, he picked up the drying rake and left home.
Wang Xiuxiu felt a surge of secret joy.
Happiness came so suddenly that she happily rolled around in bed for a while before slowly getting up to plan what she needed to do that day.
---
Although the autumn sun is not as intense as the summer sun, it still carries a scorching heat.
Wang Xiuxiu didn't care at all; on the contrary, she felt that it had come at just the right time.
Her body radiated coldness from the inside out, as if even her bones were permeated with chill; she desperately needed to bask in the sun.
Wang Xiuxiu simply moved a wooden stool, sat in the yard, and slowly picked some green vegetables.
The vegetable leaves were still covered with morning dew, glistening in the sunlight.
Her thoughts had already drifted far away, reflecting on her experiences over the past two weeks.
Xiuxiu's original form was the second child in this family.
Her mother, Madam Yu, was a typical traditional woman with deeply ingrained patriarchal ideas.
Although Xiuxiu never went hungry growing up, she never received any love or care from her mother.
Madam Yu only had eyes for her two sons, especially her eldest son, Wang Chengwu, who was the apple of her eye.
As for Xiuxiu, she was just an insignificant presence in the family.
Over time, Xiuxiu's personality became timid and cowardly. She always swallowed her anger and dared not argue.
Although Madam Yu didn't like her, at least during her lifetime, she had enough to eat and drink and her life was passable.
But ever since Chen Chunhua married into the Wang family, Xiuxiu's life took a sharp turn for the worse.
Chen Chunhua appears gentle and virtuous on the surface, but in reality she is scheming and secretly makes things difficult for Xiuxiu.
She took advantage of Xiuxiu's timid nature and exploited her even more, making her do the hardest work and eat the worst food.
What about Wang Degui?
He may not have noticed, or he may not have cared; in any case, he never paid attention to this daughter.
Xiuxiu is also stubborn. She never spares any effort in her work, and she will never complain when she is wronged. She just silently endures it.
The little girl, only thirteen years old, was tortured to the point of being emaciated, with hardly any flesh left on her body.
Ultimately, a mild cold took the life of this young girl in the prime of her life.
Thinking of this, Wang Xiuxiu couldn't help but sigh.
She put down the bowl of vegetables in her hand, rested her chin on her hand, and began to think about her future life plans.
Although being transported to this era caught her somewhat off guard, she has always been an optimistic person.
Since we're already here, we should make the best of it and focus on living a good life.
But improving the quality of life is an urgent matter!
Wang Xiuxiu secretly made up her mind and began to consider her strengths: intelligence, beauty, kindness, generosity, optimism...
No, no, we've gone off-topic.
These are crucial, but they are not immediately useful.
After thinking for a while, she actually found something she was good at.
Given her current status and position in the Wang family, she probably needs to plan more carefully.
Wang Xiuxiu stood up, dusted herself off, and decided to start by improving her diet.
After all, you need to be well-fed to have the energy to change the status quo.
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