Chapter 245: The Path of Self-Destruction

Shitou looked at Lu Yichen and asked, “Brother, where will we live in the city? And I heard from Shanzi’s mother that in the city, you have to buy everything, even vegetables. It’ll cost a lot more. Maybe I should just stay in the village and go to elementary school here.”

Lu Yichen replied, “But I’ll be working in the city, and your sister Luo Qiao will be studying there. Are you sure you want to stay in the village alone?”

Shitou felt a little conflicted. He had already spent so much of his brother and sister’s money, and moving to the city would only mean spending more. He felt a bit embarrassed.

He then said, “But when I get to the city, I won’t be able to help with anything.”

Lu Yichen, knowing exactly what Shitou was thinking, reassured him, “Your job is to study well. If you get into a good university and start working, you can take care of us later, and that’ll be just as good.”

Shitou nodded but still said, “That will take a long time.”

Lu Yichen didn’t say anything more and just started packing. He had already completed the necessary procedures yesterday and reported to his new job. Today, he was back to pack up and prepare to take Shitou to live in the city.

Meanwhile, Gao Suhua was sitting in the courtyard, threading the peppers she had picked from the field onto a string. The string of peppers hung under the eaves, looking quite attractive.

Zhao Xiaomei, who had been sitting idly, put down the peppers in her hand and said, “Mom, are we just going to let Luo Qiao get away like this?”

Gao Suhua didn’t stop what she was doing and replied, “Why are you in such a hurry? There’s still time.”

Zhao Xiaomei said irritably, “Mom, school starts the day after tomorrow. If Luo Qiao goes to high school, what chance will we have?”

Gao Suhua reassured her, “Don’t worry. I’ve already made plans.”

Ever since Luo Qiao had threatened her last time, Gao Suhua had been scheming how to deal with her. Luo Qiao would definitely return to the village within the next couple of days, and even if she didn’t, she would come back to get her things once school started.

That would make it even easier for her to act. By then, no one would know that she had done anything. If Luo Qiao didn’t return, the villagers would just think she was busy studying and didn’t want to come back to the village.

Her calculating look was impossible to hide. She thought to herself that as long as this plan succeeded, she would have an extra 200 yuan in her pocket, which made her very happy.

She was absolutely determined not to let Luo Qiao leave Ji City. She had heard from that family before that they were from Beijing. If Luo Qiao went to school in Beijing and ran into that family, wouldn’t that cause trouble for her own daughter?

With these thoughts in mind, she quickened her movements. Looking up, she saw her second daughter still fuming. “Why aren’t you threading the peppers faster?” she scolded.

Since the incident last time, her second daughter had seemed like a different person, always wearing a sour expression.

The next day, Luo Qiao got up, washed and ate breakfast, then headed early to the bus station to catch the bus back to the village.

To her surprise, she ran into Zhang Xiao on the bus. Zhang Xiao greeted her enthusiastically, so excited she didn’t know what to say. She wanted to tell Luo Qiao the truth but was worried about being too abrupt and scaring her.

So she patiently chatted with Luo Qiao about various topics, mentioning that she’d visit her when she had the time.

Luo Qiao just smiled and didn’t say much. After all, they weren’t very familiar. The last time they had met was when she had taken their military vehicle to the city, and they hadn’t seen each other since.

When they reached Chaoyang Commune, Luo Qiao got off of the bus and headed toward the village.

She happened to run into the accountant’s wife, Aunt Ding Caifeng who asked, “Luo Qiao, you’re back? Are you feeling better?”

Luo Qiao smiled and replied, “Yes, Auntie. Where are you headed?”

Ding Caifeng smiled and said, “School is starting tomorrow, and my nephew on my mother’s side is starting middle school. He’s doing well in his studies, so I went back to my mother’s home to bring him some notebooks and pens.”

Luo Qiao smiled, “Your nephew is lucky to have an aunt like you.”

Ding Caifeng chuckled, “My nephews and nieces are very close to me. Since Jianqiang is my only child with no siblings, I think it’s good for them to stay close, so they can help each other out in the future.”

As they chatted, they soon entered the village.

Zhao Xiaoyun, the youngest daughter of the Zhao family, saw Luo Qiao returning to the village and ran home excitedly. “Mom, mom! Luo Qiao is back! She just entered the village with Aunt Caifeng from the accountant’s family!”