Xie Tingting looked up at Nan Yuanman, her emotions suddenly collapsing, her voice choked with sobs: "I... I originally hoped that after she found out I was dead, she would be a little bit sad, a little bit regretful, regretful for how badly I treated her when I was alive, but... but..."
Her nominal mother showed no sadness or grief whatsoever; her words and actions were full of calculation regarding the compensation she would receive.
With red eyes, Xie Tingting hugged Nan Yuanman's legs and slowly told her about her life before she died.
She was born into an ordinary family; her parents were just ordinary workers.
When she was one year old, her parents left her with her grandparents in the countryside to raise her in order to earn money to support the family, while they went to S City to work in a factory.
That departure lasted for ten years.
In the past ten years, they have only visited her and her grandparents a handful of times. Every time her grandparents mention that she has grown up and want them to bring her to live with them and send her to a good school so that her studies will not be hindered by the rural school.
But every time, their excuse was that the house there was too small and their wages were too low to support three people.
She believed it, but in the eleventh year, when she was happily waiting for her parents to come back to see her, her father called and said that her mother had given birth to a younger sister for her in the hospital.
Tell her that with her younger sister, she won't be lonely anymore.
At that time, they did not feel that their rented house was too cramped, nor did they feel that they could not afford to support a child. They took their younger sister with them and raised her, while still leaving her to live with her grandparents.
It wasn't until her grandparents passed away that they had no choice but to bring her to live with them.
At that time, Xie Tingting felt that her happy days had arrived. She could proudly tell her classmates that she was not a child abandoned by her parents; she had a father and a mother.
But she never imagined that it wasn't the beginning of happiness, but the road to hell.
She only learned after she came to live with her parents that her younger sister had been frail and sickly since childhood due to congenital heart disease. She had been spoiled and pampered by them and had become extremely arrogant.
Her parents also asked her to give in to her younger sister on many occasions.
Whenever she showed any sign of reluctance, her mother would say to her, "You're the older sister. Your younger sister is already like this, and who knows if she'll even be able to grow up. Can't you be more accommodating to her?"
"Tingting, it's Mom's fault that your sister isn't healthy. You're a good child, and Mom is proud of you. You two sisters are connected by blood, so please help your sister more in the future."
"You're a big girl now, Tingting, don't fight with your little sister."
As Xie Tingting spoke, her very soul trembled slightly, her beautiful face filled with pain and confusion: "But I don't understand, my sister is her daughter, but am I not her daughter either?"
"Compared to her, I am the child she owes the most to. Is it because I am too sensible that she has been bullying me like this all this time?"
She did struggle and suffer, but at that time, she also felt that her mother cared about her.
He would take her to the hospital when she had a stomachache, cook her a stomach-soothing soup, prepare brown sugar water for her during her period, prepare winter clothes for her, and prepare comfortable underwear for her...
At that time, she felt that her parents loved her.
This allowed her to still harbor expectations of them, only to be repeatedly hurt afterward.
"I finally got a good grade and won the school scholarship, but instead of praising me, she asked me to give the scholarship to my younger sister so that she could have money to travel and relax. She also told me to work a summer job to pay for her expenses when she didn't have enough money..."
Xie Tingting sat on the ground with a bitter expression, muttering, "Even now, her eldest daughter is dead, and she isn't sad or upset. She just wants to extort more money."
Even so, I still long for their love. Don't you think I'm ridiculous?
Nan Yuanman listened quietly, reached out and patted her head tenderly, then honestly said, "Yuanman doesn't understand."
“Yuanman’s mother is dead, and her father is dead too. She doesn’t understand what parental love feels like, but Yuanman knows that her grandparents must have loved her very much.”
Xie Tingting's grandparents raised her very well; she is kind, honest, sensible, and responsible.
“Sister, your grandparents certainly don’t want to see you ruin yourself like this because of a few people who don’t love you.”
Xie Tingting was initially apologetic for Nan Yuanman's words, but she was stunned when she heard what she said next.
Nan Yuanman cupped her face and said seriously, "Because Yuanman was also raised by her grandfather, and her grandfather loves her very much. Your grandparents must love you very much too. You should live a good life with their love in your heart."
The cub's little hands were chubby and a little warmer than an adult's. When they landed on Xie Tingting's face, she felt as if she were enveloped by a cloud. Her mind, which had been shaken by her mother's reaction, gradually cleared up.
Looking at Xie Tingting's dazed expression, Nan Yuanman assumed that she was still fixated on gaining her parents' love. She tilted her head in slight distress and said, "Sister, there are ways to get your parents' love. How about... we hire some extras?"
"Let them play your mom and dad, let them be your parents and love you, how about that? We don't want the bad dad and bad mom from before!"
After all, she herself had never been loved by her parents and didn't know what it felt like to be loved by them. But she knew that Xie Tingting's parents were unreliable and that it would be difficult for her to get love from them.
Just like... her mother, who once longed for the affection of the Jiang family.
If people's hearts are biased from the beginning, they will not turn back later.
She racked her brains, but this was the only terrible idea she could come up with.
She found out about hiring extras while scrolling through Douyin on her watch!
Xie Tingting couldn't help but smile, a hint of relief appearing in her eyes. She turned her head slightly and rubbed the little boy's chubby hand: "Thank you, Yuanman. I think I know what to do."
She's being too attached to appearances.
She really shouldn't be fixated on two people who don't love her.
The surrounding temperature gradually decreased as she spoke, and wisps of yin energy slowly circulated. An ancient gate slowly appeared behind Xie Tingting.
Nan Yuanman paused for a moment when she saw the Gates of Hell. The next second, Xie Tingting heard two very familiar, aged voices coming from behind her: "Tingting!"
Xie Tingting's soul froze, and she quickly turned around. When she saw the two familiar, old and short figures standing before the gates of hell, a look of astonishment appeared on her face: "Grandpa, Grandma? You..."
The petite old woman, wearing the floral shirt she wore at the funeral, but still as energetic as she was in life, strode forward and slapped her shoulder with exasperation: "You child, how old are you? Why did you come down here to keep us two old folks company!"
The old man floated to her side, looked at her as if he wanted to say something but hesitated. In the end, he just sighed, reached out his old and rough hand and gently rubbed her head: "It's alright, it's alright. With Grandpa and Grandma here, no one will make you suffer injustice anymore."
"Grandpa! Grandma! Waaaaaah—I miss you so much!" Xie Tingting burst into tears, opening her arms to hug the little old man and the little old woman.
As Nan Yuanman listened to her crying, she felt a lump in her throat and wanted to cry herself.
She pouted, sat on the steps, and hugged the small coffin in the small cloth bag tightly. She also missed her grandfather a little.
Why isn't Zhang Shimian here yet?
At this moment, Zhang Shimian had already arrived at the Jiang family's house. Before she even went inside, she saw Jiang Lixuan driving out in a hurry.
His heart skipped a beat. Jiang Lixuan was in such a hurry, could something have happened to Yuanman?
Zhang Shimian thought for a moment, then stepped forward and opened his arms to block the way: "Hey, Brother Jiang, are you looking for Yuanman? Can I hitch a ride? I'm looking for her too!"
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