Li shook his head; he needed to keep a close eye on this menace himself.
"Fourth Aunt, you all know my mother. She's not one to stay put. If I get married, I'll be ruining her life. Besides, I don't want to get married. I can live a good life on my own."
Qian Musheng and Aunt Qian both sighed as they left. Bailian was such a heartless person; she was the one who dragged the child down. Xiaoli was such a good child.
Another year has passed in the blink of an eye. Xiaoli's live streams are very profitable, but she told Bailian that it's barely enough to buy groceries. Bailian doesn't understand these things and believed her.
Although the two lived a poor life, they managed to get by. The house remained the same as before, without any changes.
It's not that Xiaoli doesn't want to buy things, but rather that once she does, they quickly run out. So, Xiaoli simply stops buying things. Anyway, she has everything in her space, so she doesn't feel uncomfortable at all.
"Xiao Li, I'm out of money, could you transfer me some more?"
Xiao Li was watching a video and didn't even look up.
“Mom, I’m out of money too. I donated it all to the welfare home. Don’t you always say you want to do good deeds? I’ve donated it all.”
Bai Lian was speechless with astonishment. Doing good deeds is good, but you can't leave no money at all.
"Mom, you should be more frugal. I give you a thousand every month."
Bai Lian stammered and dared not speak again. She had spent all her money on steamed buns to give to beggars. How was she going to survive the rest of her days?
She looked around and realized that her house was exactly the same as before, with nothing inside.
I vaguely remember there was an old clock in the main room, which she sold last month. I think the money was borrowed by Zhang Wu's family to build a house.
My younger brother also brought the newly bought TV home, and we haven't bought another one since.
It seems that Zhao Liu borrowed the refrigerator to hold a banquet and never returned it.
...
Bai Lian blushed, a rare occurrence for her, but then she became proud again. Her daughter was now doing good deeds with her, and she was sure to be rewarded.
What's wrong with an empty house? As long as there's food to eat and a bed to sleep in, that's enough.
Xiao Li would never eat coarse food with her. She would go into her space every day to have a good meal. Only Bai Lian truly only had one bite to eat and one bed to sleep in.
However, she was happy to do it, so Xiaoli stopped caring about her.
Ten years later, Bai Lian seemed to have aged twenty years. She now looked like a real old woman, even though she was fifty-four years old, she looked like she was seventy.
She was no longer able to work, and Xiaoli didn't give her any money except for buying rice and vegetables for her every day.
She harbored resentment towards Xiaoli, but there was nothing she could do about it.
"Xiao Li, can't you help Xiao Ji? He's been wandering for a long time, and now he's old enough to enjoy his retirement. Anyway, you have to take care of me, so one more person won't make a big difference."
Over the years, Xiao Li has long been accustomed to Bai Lian's eccentric way of thinking.
"Mom, you can take him in, but you'll have to handle his own affairs. I won't interfere with you."
Bai Lian recalled that last year, she picked up a child from the roadside and brought him home, which resulted in her being covered in lice, causing her pain and itching.
She also gritted her teeth, farted, and talked in her sleep every night, which made it hard for her to sleep. Later, when she had a physical examination, she was diagnosed with hepatitis B and had even infected herself.
Thinking back on what she had experienced those days, she began to have second thoughts.
"Okay, whatever you say. You can't just donate money to do good deeds; you have to take action."
Xiao Li nodded. "Mom, I'm just following your example. I've already donated my food allowance for this month. For the remaining ten days, you'll have to make do with vegetable leaves. I don't have any money to buy meat."
Bai Lian's face stiffened. Remembering the taste of food without salt or oil, she felt even more bitter than if she had eaten bitter melon. She finally shut up.
Xiao Li looked at Bai Lian. Twenty-five years had passed, and she was still incorrigible. It seemed hopeless.
She shook her head, silently took out a listening talisman, and implanted it into Bai Lian's body. This was a talisman that could hear other people's thoughts, and it was valid for one month.
☆
There is a large banyan tree at the entrance of the village. In the hot summer, the villagers like to go there to escape the heat and chat.
Bai Lian loves this kind of thing the most; she likes to be the center of attention wherever she goes.
"Everyone's here, what are they talking about?"
She walked over with a smile, took out a handful of sunflower seeds from her pocket, and distributed them to everyone.
Everyone accepted the gifts with smiles and thanked them as they went.
"This Bai Lian is such an idiot. After all these years, she still brings us melon seeds. They're really delicious."
"Oh, this sucker is here again. Let's try asking her for a few more dollars later. It's perfect timing to buy him candy when the baby comes back today."
"I hope Bailianhua won't ask me for money? I have no intention of paying that back; I'm saving it all for my son's wedding."
...
Bai Lian's face stiffened, filled with disbelief. Everyone was clearly saying thank you, but she could hear what they were really thinking. Was this what everyone thought of her?
She didn't have time to think about why she could hear other people's thoughts; she only felt an overwhelming sadness in her heart.
Isn't she good enough? She's willing to lend them anything, and she never even thought about asking them to pay her back. How did she become a sucker?
Everyone surrounded her and started talking, but Bai Lian didn't respond. She was listening to their thoughts, and the more she listened, the more bitter she felt. She felt that all these years, her sincerity had been wasted.
For the next month, she went out every day and heard the other side of many people's hearts, but not a single one of them thought of her good qualities.
When she refused Zhou Qi's offer to lend her money to buy meat, he didn't even try to hide it.
"What? You're out of money? Are you kidding me? Xiao Li gives you a thousand yuan every month, and she used to give our family two hundred yuan every month. Why is there none this month? Hurry up and give it to us."
Bai Lian thought of Zhou's youngest daughter, who was about the same age as Xiao Li and was chubby. She didn't look like she was short of money for food at all. How could she have been so blind as to lend her the money?
After she refused Wu Jiu's request to borrow money to buy a dishwasher, Wu Jiu also scolded her.
"You'd be better off giving your money to me than to a beggar. We're from the same village, after all, we know each other better than outsiders. When you get old, I'll make sure you get a drink of water."
Bailian recalled the last time she went to the Wu family's vegetable garden and picked a vegetable, she was scolded by their daughter-in-law for a long time. She thought that when she got old, she might not be able to drink a drop of water from their house.
...
Each and every one of these incidents chilled her to the bone.
Will good deeds be rewarded? Will others be genuinely grateful? She didn't know; she was just filled with regret.
She truly regretted it.
★
A month later, the listening talisman stopped working, and Xiao Li didn't put it on her again, but continued to live her lukewarm life.
Bai Lian seemed to come to her senses and felt sorry for her daughter. From now on, she would take great care of Xiao Li, not only cooking delicious food for her but also buying her new clothes.
It's too late; the original owner is no longer here.
Xiao Li maintained a shallow familial bond until Bai Lian died, at which point she left this world.
(over)
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