The fate of reincarnation
Li Xiangxi scratched his head, looking at the love letter. "I really don't know. The letter was never taken to Wan Yin's place, so it definitely isn't hers."
Lin Shaocheng asked, "Has Li Jiaoniang ever touched this book?"
Li Xiangxi had never read the book before, let alone let anyone else touch it. Suddenly, he remembered something: "One day she came to pick up some medicinal herbs, and I left the book for a few minutes."
Lin Shaocheng had smelled this perfume before. He bought it in the south and gave it to his mother. His mother thought it was too girly and kept it at home. This perfume was a counterfeit that came from Hong Kong. It was neither high-end nor low-end. There probably wasn't another bottle like it in Beijing.
Li Jiaoniang was both Lin's mother's student and a distant relative. He was truly helpless with his mother. It seemed that going to the south with Guorong was imminent.
Li Xiangxi said helplessly, "Then what are you going to do? If she doesn't admit it, there's nothing you can do, since her name isn't on the list."
Lin Shaocheng couldn't think of a solution for the moment either. "I'll discuss it with your sister-in-law. You can go to work with peace of mind."
"The truck will be leaving in two weeks, bro, don't forget."
Inside the house, Li Guorong stopped chopping meat. Li Guolan picked up a rag to wipe her hands and asked, "What do we do now? We're not in the village. If we were in the village, we could just go to her door and tear her mouth apart."
Li Guorong thought of Li Jiaoniang. In the beginning, it was Li Jiaoniang who gave him random advice on buying gifts that didn't suit Lin's mother's taste. Later, she stirred up trouble at the entrance of the supply and marketing cooperative. Now, she's putting love letters in books to divert attention.
Lin Shaocheng said, "To catch a thief red-handed, we haven't caught her in the act yet. If we told anyone, probably no one would believe it."
Thinking of the incident where his second brother had caused a death, Li Guorong asked, "Is there any handwriting of hers? Let's compare them. Doesn't this count?"
Li Jiaoniang's signature is on the notebook in Lin Shaocheng's warehouse, but those few words alone cannot serve as evidence. Most people in the factory are literate, unlike in the village.
Seeing Lin Shaocheng's expression, Li Guorong knew it wouldn't work, but this letter was the trigger that caused her to lose a chance to save her life, and she couldn't bear to let it go now.
Li Guorong's eyes lit up. "I'll bring you food from the factory tomorrow."
Lin Shaocheng nodded. "Do you have any ideas?"
"Then just leave it alone."
"Is that Engineer Lin's wife?" Several women huddled together, secretly glancing at Li Guorong.
One of the male employees, preoccupied with watching Li Guorong, bumped into the wall.
"Lin is really lucky. Wasn't she supposed to be a country bumpkin?"
“If you’re not good-looking, how can you possibly fall for someone in the village?”
Lin Shaocheng sat in the middle of the cafeteria, with several books on his right. Only Lin Shaocheng and Li Xiangxi remained in the cafeteria, along with Li Jiaoniang and her friend, who sat to the left and behind.
Li Jiaoniang casually glanced at the middle; the thick English book was still with Li Xiangxi, and Lin Shaocheng had an even thicker math book beside him. She bit her lip; it seemed the plan hadn't been completed.
"Jiao Niang, why don't you go back and rest, Jiao Niang?"
Li Jiaoniang snapped out of her daze and shook her head. "I'm not full yet. You should go back first."
The clicking sound of high heels suddenly rang out in the cafeteria, and Li Jiaoniang looked towards the entrance.
Li Guorong wore red high heels, jeans that hugged her long, straight legs, a red floral shirt, large metal earrings, and her small curly hair made her face look small.
Li Jiaoniang bit her lip even harder, her eyes blazing as she stared intently at Li Guorong's obviously expensive and fashionable trousers.
Li Guorong took out a lunchbox from his bag. Next to Li Xiangxi was Cui Dalaba, the loudmouth from the factory, who loved to gossip. Cui Dalaba said loudly, "You're really something, sister-in-law. There are so many dishes. I told you that Engineer Lin said there would be something good to eat today and wouldn't let me order."
The sweet and sour pork on the table exudes a tempting aroma, whetting the appetite. There's also Mao-style braised pork, which has a different fragrance from regular braised pork. Steamed butterfly fish brings a rare refreshing touch to the meat dishes. There's also a plate of hot and sour shredded potatoes and vinegared cabbage, along with brown sugar ice jelly topped with hawthorn and melon seeds.
Cui Dalaba picked up a piece of braised pork and put it in his mouth. It was salty and sweet with a hint of spiciness. "Good cooking skills. It tastes completely different from Beijing cuisine."
The three of them ate and drank, and Cui Dalaba praised Li Guorong from beginning to end with his silver tongue, making Li Jiaoniang twist her handkerchief out of shape.
After everyone had eaten and drunk their fill, Cui Dalaba got a free meal and diligently carried Li Guorong's lunchbox. Li Xiangxi picked up the English book, and Lin Shaocheng, arm in arm with Li Guorong, completely forgot about his book and schoolbag. The four of them left in a lively atmosphere, leaving only Li Jiaoniang behind.
Li Jiaoniang looked around. The auntie who was cleaning the cafeteria was still inside, quite a distance away. She picked up her bag, which contained three pink sheets of paper. Sweat beaded on her forehead as she shakily began to write, her hand moving faster and faster. Once she finished, she stood up, tucked the letter into her sleeve, slung her bag over her shoulder, and casually walked toward the center.
About 100 meters from the cafeteria, someone called out, "Hey, Shaocheng, where's your bag?"
Cui the loudmouth turned around and said, "Engineer Lin, you have a terrible memory. I'll go get it from you."
Lin Shaocheng quickly said, "I can't accept that."
After some back and forth, the four of them headed towards the cafeteria. As they walked on the muddy ground beneath the cafeteria window, Li Guorong suddenly shouted, "What are you doing?"
Li Jiaoniang's hand trembled, and a pink letter fell from her hand. Li Jiaoniang put Lin Shaocheng's bag on the table and pretended that nothing had happened.
Li Xiang rushed in like the wind, picked up the paper on the ground first, and cursed, "You are shameless. You know my brother is getting married, and you still write love letters to him again and again."
Li Jiaoniang was already flustered and subconsciously said, "No, give it back to me."
Cui Dalaba also looked at the love letter, "What is written on this? What nonsense are you talking about? Engineer Lin is completely innocent."
The cafeteria staff also came out to see what was going on.
Li Jiaoniang's face turned bright red. Seeing Li Guorong's fashionable attire, she was momentarily overwhelmed. The bed he wrote about in the letter was really big. If it were true, where would she, an unmarried girl, put her face? "What evidence do you have that it's mine?"
The sound was sharp and piercing, attracting the attention of several workers from the branch office who lived near the canteen.
When Cui Dalaba saw Li Jiaoniang shouting, his already loud voice became even louder, "I saw it with both eyes, you stuffed this lewd letter into Lin Gong's bag."
Li Jiaoniang retorted, "I just saw that Lin Gong had forgotten to take his bag, so I was about to pick it up and return it to him when I accidentally knocked the letter out."
Li Guorong said from the side, "This pink letter paper is not common, and it has a faint fragrance, similar to the scent on this little girl."
Lin Shaocheng said, "There aren't many people in the factory who use perfume. Was the last letter from you?"
Li Xiangxi took out a piece of letter paper from his English book. It was a similar type of letter paper, and the scent on it was almost the same.
Seeing that more and more people were gathering around her, Li Jiaoniang said with red eyes, "You're framing me."
Several male employees who had a crush on Li Jiaoniang quickly chimed in, "It's not like Jiaoniang's name is on it, let it go, it's not a big deal. If someone wrote me a love letter, I'd be thrilled."
Li Guorong said, "That's not how it works. Lin Shaocheng is my man, and we're not unmarried. Isn't this morally reprehensible? If word gets out, will the factory's reputation be ruined?"
Seeing that the men were speechless after being rebuked, Li Jiaoniang thought they were really useless. She looked at Lin Shaocheng with pitiful eyes, trying to get him to let it go.
Unfortunately, his flirtatious glances were misplaced; Lin Shaocheng completely ignored them, watching Li Guorong perform with a smile in his eyes.
Seeing this, Li Jiaoniang thought of what was said at the factory about the big house Lin Shaocheng bought for Li Guorong, and her heart burned with rage. She recalled everything Teacher Lin had told her, "You vicious and despicable woman, how dare you say such things? You stirred up trouble between mother and son, made Lin Gong move out, and made Teacher Lin cry all the time. Teacher Lin was just advising you to spend less money. Look at you, you have the whole capitalist style. You should be arrested and sent to a labor camp."
Li Guorong has never lost a fight or cursing match in his past or present life. "What are you saying, you shameless green tea bitch? Your thieving eyes are always darting around my husband. It's none of your business to interfere in my family affairs. What right do you have to tell me what to wear? This is the most popular style in the South. This is in response to the call of the times. What do you know, you country bumpkin?"
Upon hearing the term "country bumpkin," Li Jiaoniang reacted like a firecracker, reaching out to tear at Li Guorong. Lin Shaocheng quickly intervened, and books, bags, and lunchboxes fell to the ground with a clatter.
Li Guorong was no delicate young lady; he had plenty of tricks up his sleeve. With his hands, he pinched Li Jiaoniang until she screamed in pain. Lin Shaocheng blocked all of Li Jiaoniang's attacks, and Li Guorong even complained that he was getting in her way. If it weren't for him blocking her, Li Jiaoniang wouldn't have been able to touch her at all, given her speed.
Amidst the flying debris, a pink letter flew out of Li Jiaoniang's bag, as if frozen in snow.
Li Xiangxi chuckled and said, "What is this? Still saying you didn't do it."
Li Guorong gave Li Xiangxi a "good job" look.
The older women next to her whispered among themselves and looked at Li Jiaoniang with disdain. Li Jiaoniang was so frightened that she grabbed her bag and shouted, "It wasn't me, it wasn't me!"
He pushed past several people and ran out the door.
Li Guorong smiled slightly, then quickly suppressed his smile, tidying up the things on the ground with the expression of a wronged wife.
Li Jiaoniang's reputation at the factory was ruined. When she got home, her mother slapped her, saying, "How could you be so shameful? Tomorrow you'll give your job to your younger brother."
Li Jiaoniang covered her face, "Mom, didn't we agree that I would give the job to my younger brother after I found a good partner?"
Mr. Li snorted coldly, "Back then, Teacher Lin asked you to be with his eldest son, but you didn't want to. Now that he's married, you're eager to become his mistress. You've made my family lose all face. The eldest son of the Wang family in the village doesn't have a wife right now, so I've talked to his family and told you to hurry up and marry into their family. You'll have land to farm and won't have to worry about food and drink."
Li Jiaoniang saw Li Guorong dressed in gold and silver and thought that the life Li Guorong was meant to live was the life she was meant to live. She was still working in the factory, so how could she go back to digging for food in the fields? "I'm not going. I want to marry Lin Shaocheng. I'm going to find Teacher Lin."
Li's mother said, "This is the job that Teacher Lin introduced to you. You'd better hand over your work to me tomorrow, or I'll slap you."
Li Jiaoniang, unable to resist the powerful, could only return to her room in tears. Unwilling to marry the farmer, she grabbed her bundle and ran towards the train station. She refused to accept her fate and wanted to be adorned in gold and silver. Little did she know that a middle-aged couple at the train station were watching her intently.
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