Yun Zhen picked up her phone and checked the time. It was already 11 a.m.

She glanced at the bookshelf and saw that Pei Hao in the tiny world was actively exploring his surroundings. Seeing that he was moving around just fine, she went downstairs to the house next door.

Yun Zhen, who had been in a good mood, found her spirits dampened upon returning home. Her second aunt, Feng Xiaojun, and her cousin, Yun Jiali, were there, sitting comfortably on the sofa, sipping tea and chatting. There was a hint of smugness on their faces, as if they were waiting for some drama to unfold.

“Uninvited guests never bring good news,” Yun Zhen thought, feeling a sense of foreboding.

As expected, the moment her second aunt saw her, that sharp tongue couldn’t wait to start. “Zhen Zhen, I heard you quit your good job in Shen City? And now you’re writing online novels at home? Young people are so impulsive. How much can you even make from writing? Can it possibly be more than what you earned in Shen City?”

Yun Zhen didn’t bother to answer directly. Instead, she coolly responded, “Second Aunt, it’s not even Dragon Boat Festival yet, and you’re already here for the zongzi? My mom is doing all the work by herself—it’s pretty tiring. Why don’t you give her a hand?”

Yun Zhen’s mom was an excellent cook, and her zongzi were famously delicious. Every year during the Dragon Boat Festival, she would make extra to share with relatives and friends, maintaining social ties and goodwill.

But over time, this kind gesture had become something others took for granted.

Now, the leaves for the zongzi had just been bought, and someone was already here to collect.

Second Aunt’s face flushed with embarrassment at Yun Zhen’s words. Her eyebrows shot up, ready to lash out, but Yun Zhen’s mother quickly stepped in to smooth things over. “The job in Shen City wasn’t that great—too much work and hardly any room for promotion or raises. Zhen Zhen didn’t like it, so she quit. It’s good she’s back home to take over the family supermarket, so her dad and I can retire early and enjoy life.”

Second Aunt wasn’t pleased to hear this. “Zhen Zhen is already 26 and hasn’t even had a boyfriend yet. Shen City is full of great prospects, and she just quits her job and comes back to Yashi? She used to be so good in school—what happened? You can’t just dream of becoming a famous author. You have to be practical!”

With a tone full of sarcasm, she belittled Yun Zhen, then proudly started praising her own son.

“Our Jia Rui is a programmer in an internet company in Beidu. He earns 20,000 yuan a month! Let me tell you, it’s better to pick the right major than to get into a good university. Zhen Zhen may have graduated from a 211 university, but she can’t compare to Jia Rui in terms of job performance. Sister-in-law, you should think carefully. If Zhen Zhen is so clueless, she won’t be able to manage such a big supermarket.”

Yun Jiali, the cousin, added fuel to the fire, “Cousin, a friend of mine said the online writing business is very unstable. Many people make only a few hundred yuan a month, or even less. It’s almost as hard as making money from the stock market. You were really unwise to give up such a great future in Shen City.”

The mother and daughter duo sang the same tune, speaking as if Yun Zhen had made a foolish and self-destructive decision.

Their pretense of giving well-meaning advice was transparent to everyone present.

Yun Zhen’s parents owned a large supermarket called “Fuhui Duo,” and the family was well-off. They doted on their only daughter, Yun Zhen, providing her with a comfortable upbringing.

The Yun family was small, with Yun Zhen’s father having only one brother, Yun Zhen’s second uncle. Second Uncle and Second Aunt had a son, Yun Jia Rui, who was 25 and working in Beidu, and a daughter, Yun Jiali, who was 20 and studying at a teacher’s college in the province.

Yun Zhen had always been the top student among her peers. However, she didn’t get into her first-choice major, architecture, during the college entrance exam. Instead, she was assigned to the polymer materials major, a field she had chosen as a backup. This cold and obscure major became her biggest regret. She spent four years studying something she didn’t like and struggled in her career afterward.

She graduated from a top university with a poor major, while her cousin Yun Jia Rui graduated from a third-tier university with a good major. Their career paths diverged significantly, and Second Aunt was extremely smug about it, frequently comparing the two in recent years.

Yun Zhen’s second uncle was the principal of a prestigious local high school. Despite being well-respected, he didn’t have much wealth. Second Aunt, who favored sons over daughters, didn’t think much of Yun Zhen and always believed that Yun Zhen’s parents’ supermarket should be inherited by her son, Yun Jia Rui.

In the south, people value family unity, and since Yun Zhen’s parents didn’t have many close relatives, they had been tolerant of Second Aunt’s harshness out of respect for Yun Zhen’s second uncle. However, they were not foolish enough to hand over the family business.

Yun Zhen didn’t like her second aunt and cousin, and she knew exactly what they feared most. Seeing them sneering and mocking her, she shot back immediately, “It doesn’t matter. If I don’t succeed in writing, I can always come back and take over the supermarket.”

Then, she turned to Yun Jiali, who was wearing heavy makeup and dressed in luxury brands, and asked, “By the way, when are you going to pay back the 3,000 yuan you borrowed from me last year? How does a college student spend so much money all at once? You’re not dating a ‘phoenix man’ who makes you pay for everything, are you?”

Yun Jiali instantly fell silent, avoiding any mention of the debt.

Second Aunt’s face turned awkward as she forced a smile and changed her tune, “Young people should pursue their dreams. That’s good. Managing a supermarket is tedious and boring, and you mostly deal with older people. It’ll be even harder to find a partner then.”

She was clearly afraid that Yun Zhen might actually return to take over the family business.

While selecting vegetables, Yun Zhen’s mother glanced at them and calmly urged, “It’s almost lunchtime, so you should take Jiali home for a meal, sister-in-law. I’ve been so busy and tired that I hurt my back, so I won’t be making zongzi this year. You might want to order some from the market, so you don’t end up without offerings during the holiday.”

The hint to leave was obvious, and even Second Aunt couldn’t stay after that.

They had come over to belittle Yun Zhen and perhaps score a nice meal, but after just a few exchanges, they realized they wouldn’t even get the traditional holiday gifts this year.

Second Aunt left in a huff, dragging Yun Jiali behind her, all the while poking her daughter’s forehead and scolding her loudly, “A girl who’s good at studying is still useless. When you graduate, you’ll have a harder time finding a job than a man. You’d better get married and have kids while you’re young, or you’ll end up as an old maid who can’t find a husband!”

“If you dare to stay at home and sponge off us after graduation, I’ll kick you out!”

With the annoying pair finally gone, Yun Zhen’s mood soured.

Such conversations had occurred many times over the years. Even her most face-conscious second uncle had once indirectly suggested that she was a classic case of “early bloomer, but unpromising in the long run.”

The unspoken rules of society are often harsh: in the first twenty years of your life, you’re judged by your academic achievements; in the next twenty, you’re measured by how much money you make. By the time you’re forty, if you haven’t accomplished something significant, people will label you as mediocre.

No one is exempt from this. Everyone faces comparison and the judgment of others, whether they like it or not.

Yun Zhen didn’t enjoy comparing herself to others, but comparisons had a way of finding her.

Though she appeared calm and composed on the surface, inside, her pride stung. Being belittled like this was something she couldn’t completely ignore, even if she never let it show.