Chapter 39; Zhang Xiaohui thought back to her previous life.

She had lived two lifetimes, but unfortunately, her previous life wasn’t very good.

In her previous life, she found rural life hard and, for a temporary job in the city, she married her husband from that life.

Unfortunately, that man was a scoundrel, and he beat and scolded her.

She lived a miserable life, and by the 1990s, she finally outlived him.  Unexpectedly, she opened her eyes and found herself back to before she had gotten married.

She was a darling of heaven, able to live again with her memories.

However, she came back a bit late, and it was too late for her to go back to school.

But she still gained a lot of benefits from her previous life’s memories.  Recently, she even met a benefactor and got a temporary job, which was about to be made permanent.

But this life was very different from the one she had experienced before.

For example, Zhang Yuandong’s wife and children should have all died that winter, but now they were not only alive, but they were also doing well.

But in these years, there should have been many people who starved to death, but now they were all living well, so Lin Yue and her son were not as outstanding anymore.

She felt that the strange phenomenon in the village came from the “good fortune” brought by her rebirth, because only in Tian Da Village did so many strange things happen, and other places were all similar to the original trajectory.

But Zhang Yuandong’s return made her start to doubt.

In her previous life, Zhang Yuandong also returned to the village after the flood.  At that time, he was missing an arm and had been disfigured.  He returned with a body full of injuries.

It was said that he had completed a very dangerous mission and had been awarded a first-class merit.  At that time, it was a big deal in the entire county, and many leaders came to visit him.  Zhang Yuandong even became the director of the county public security bureau.

Unfortunately, less than half a year later, he was killed by his enemies.  It was said that he died a terrible death.

After Zhang Yuandong’s death, his parents and siblings were all given preferential treatment.  They not only received a lot of compensation, but they also arranged for the children to go to school in the county.

Later, after Zhang Zhiwei died, Sun Hongmei went to ask the county leaders, and the whole family moved to the county to live.

After the reform and opening up, the twins went into business and made a lot of money.  Zhang Xiaohui still remembered that before she died, they were already famous entrepreneurs in the city.

Zhang Xiaohui had thought more than once, if she were Sun Hongmei’s daughter-in-law, she would definitely get along well with her in-laws and treat her younger brother and sister-in-law well.  Even if she became a widow later, she wouldn’t remarry, and she wouldn’t be as selfish and capricious as Lin Yue, who only knew how to argue with her in-laws and bully her younger sister-in-law.

Yesterday, the old couple heard that Zhang Yuandong had returned, and they stayed at home until dark but didn’t see him come over.  They were very angry.

She didn’t know why, but she put a lot of eye drops in front of Sun Hongmei.

To show that she was well-informed, she even told Sun Hongmei about Zhang Yuandong’s injury and his first-class merit in her previous life.

But now it seemed that Zhang Yuandong didn’t have any injuries at all, and even the hideous scar on his face from his previous life had disappeared.  Zhang Xiaohui’s hands trembled.

She never thought that Sun Hongmei would be so stupid.  A living person was standing in front of her, and she could actually ignore it and even say that he had lost an arm.

Zhang Xiaohui wanted to stop Sun Hongmei, but it was too late.  She pulled Sun Hongmei’s sleeve, wanting her to stop talking, but Sun Hongmei was in a fit of anger and threw her aside.

Zhang Yuandong’s eyes immediately became sharp.  The fact that he almost lost an arm was unknown even to the army, and besides him and Lin Yue, only the group of people who had chased him knew.

How did Sun Hongmei know?  The last mission had cost the lives of more than a dozen people.  If Lin Yue hadn’t saved him in time, he might have died there too.

This time on the mission, he had left the citation for first-class merit on the commander’s desk, swearing that he would not receive it until after the mission was over and he had avenged his comrades.

The citation had not even been issued; how did Sun Hongmei know?  His gaze swept over the people in the room, finally stopping on Zhang Xiaohui, who was hiding behind Sun Hongmei, clutching her arm and not daring to cry out in pain.

Lin Yue was also shocked by this big piece of gossip.  She looked at Zhang Yuandong’s intact arm, then looked around the room, instantly understanding something, and looked at Zhang Xiaohui in shock.

The atmosphere in the room was too strange.  Sun Hongmei was stunned by Zhang Yuandong’s sharp gaze and slowly calmed down.  She finally realized something was wrong.

Zhang Yuandong was in no hurry.  He leaned lazily against the wall, arms crossed, feet resting on a small stool in front of him, quietly watching Sun Hongmei and Zhang Xiaohui behind her.

He looked nothing like a serious and disciplined soldier, but rather like a carefree rogue.

Those long legs were really eye-catching, making the room seem cramped.  Lin Yue couldn’t help but look at them a few more times.

Zhang Yuandong sensed Lin Yue’s gaze and quickly put his legs down, sitting up straight.

He cleared his throat and said, “Mother, where did you hear all this nonsense?  I’m right here in front of you.  Can’t you tell if I’m injured or not?”

“?” Sun Hongmei turned her head and glared fiercely at Zhang Xiaohui. Zhang Yuandong also turned his gaze to her.

Since entering the house, he had finally taken a good look at this woman.

He didn’t understand women’s fashion, but he could tell that her outfit was definitely not something an ordinary peasant woman could afford, especially the sandals on her feet. Thinking of the price he had seen in the department store earlier, his gaze became even sharper.

Zhang Xiaohui was flustered by his gaze and quickly apologized, “S-sorry, Yuandong Ge, I just heard it from others. You know, some things get exaggerated as they are passed around. I didn’t know if it was true or not, so I told Mama.”

“Mama?” Zhang Xiaohui’s lips trembled, “T-Third Aunt!”

Zhang Yuandong seemed very good-natured, “So that’s it.  I don’t mind, but you should be more careful with what you say in the future. Don’t spread rumors about things you don’t know are true. Look how scared you made my mother.”

Sun Hongmei didn’t care about Zhang Xiaohui being embarrassed. She only cared about what she wanted, “Even if you weren’t injured, you should have a resettlement allowance when you come back from the army, right? Hand it over!”

Zhang Yuandong said seriously, “The army has given me a job. What resettlement allowance do I need?”

Sun Hongmei was furious and was about to scold him when two twelve or thirteen-year-old boys rushed in from outside. It was Zhang Shouren and Zhang Shouyi, the two brothers.

They ran in from outside and stood respectfully in front of Zhang Yuandong, calling out, “Big Brother!”

Zhang Yuandong finally showed a genuine smile on his face. He looked them up and down, “Not bad, you look a lot stronger than last time.  But you’re still a bit thin. You need to exercise more.  How’s your studies?  Are you keeping up?”

Zhang Shouyi grinned, “We’ve been going to school when we’re not busy with farming.” He also couldn’t help but look Zhang Yuandong up and down, obviously having heard about his injury.

Lin Yue felt that the conversation between the three brothers was a bit strange. It didn’t sound like the conversation between brothers who hadn’t seen each other in a long time, but more like a father lecturing his sons.

Sun Hongmei saw her two sons and was furious, “Who told you to come here? You don’t listen to me at all, do you? Did you finish the work I told you to do?”

Zhang Shouren pleaded, “Mother, Big Brother has finally come back. Don’t make a fuss. Let Big Brother and Sister-in-law stay for a reunion dinner tonight.”

Sun Hongmei slapped her leg and scolded, “What dinner?  There’s no food left at home. You only know how to eat, eat, eat. Why don’t you think about how our whole family has no decent income and might starve to death!”

The two brothers were embarrassed and quietly defended Lin Yue, “Sister-in-law sends money every month, and she often sends food to our family. Don’t say that in front of Big Brother!”

Sun Hongmei was so angry that she twisted each of her sons’ arms hard and scolded them for being ungrateful and being bewitched.

Unfortunately, the two children were no longer as young as they were. They wouldn’t cry uncontrollably just because she twisted their arms.

Lin Yue hadn’t said a word since entering the house, and she had been standing silently watching the drama.

She didn’t pay any attention to Sun Hongmei’s constant nagging, but instead secretly observed the appearance of the four siblings.

She looked at the three brothers standing together, and then at Zhang Xiaoxi who was secretly looking through some food supplies, and she realized that Zhang Yuandong’s appearance was very different from his younger siblings.

And Zhang Zhiwei’s appearance was even more different from Zhang Yuandong.

Although it could be said that Zhang Yuandong looked more like Sun Hongmei, he had a kind of out-of-place aura in this family, like a white goose suddenly appearing in a flock of gray ducks.

For example, those thick eyebrows and phoenix eyes, and his height of almost six feet, made him stand out.

If Lin Yue hadn’t heard Xu Fu mention Sun Hongmei’s past, she might not have noticed. Now that she knew that Zhang Yuandong wasn’t Zhang Zhiwei’s biological son, it was very obvious.

She was still lost in thought, and Zhang Yuandong had already stood up decisively, “Alright, we’ll go now. The two kids are still young and can’t go without food. Su Sensen has saved us some food. We won’t stay any longer.”

Sun Hongmei didn’t get any money, and she could tell he was mocking her, so she was furious and chased after them, scolding them all the way to the door.

Lin Yue told the two children to cover their ears. Sun Hongmei was swearing too much, and it wasn’t appropriate for children to hear.

Zhang Yuandong turned around and glared at her, and his old mother immediately shut up.

She hadn’t forgotten this demon. She remembered how he had scared her before he left last time.

Sun Hongmei turned back to the courtyard and saw Zhang Xiaohui standing at the door. She was even more angry and said nastily, “It’s not raining anymore, and the flood has receded. Why are you still hanging around my house? Go back to your own house!”

Zhang Xiaohui had been pampered for days and couldn’t stand this kind of humiliation. She wanted to leave immediately, but unfortunately, she couldn’t leave yet. She had to endure it.

Her own house hadn’t been cleaned up yet, and her parents, brother, and sister-in-law hadn’t moved back. If she was really kicked out now, she would have nowhere to go.

Thinking about this, she chased after Sun Hongmei into the house and continued to follow her, flattering her.