Chapter 13

Gu Yinyin’s heart sank into enormous shock.

She did not know what on earth was happening.

There was a Mei Ling who looked exactly the same, and there was a Shen Guo’an who looked exactly the same.

Guo An, Guo’an… so, was this truly a parallel world?

In this world, she had married Guo An and even had children with him!

Gu Yinyin’s emotions were extremely complicated, yet mixed with a faint, indescribable joy.

So, in her past life, did Guo An also like her? Otherwise, why would the two of them have had so many entanglements?

As for Shen Guo’an… he looked exactly like Guo An, but what about his temperament?

She leaned slightly sideways on the bed, lost in thought for a long while without any change of expression, when suddenly she began to feel an intense, intense anticipation for Shen Guo’an’s return.

If Shen Guo’an’s character was different from Guo An’s, then she would still resolutely divorce him. But if she discovered that Shen Guo’an’s nature and appearance were the same as Guo An’s, then surely she would be unwilling to let go of the marriage.

She liked Guo An—she truly liked him…

But as for the Shen Family, those insufferable people, she absolutely could not endure them.

While Gu Yinyin was in a daze, Da Wa and Xiao Wa silently exchanged glances, both a little worried about their mother.

Da Wa took out his notebook and said: “Mother, I’ve finished writing the characters. I want to go to the mountain for a bit.”

At the mention of the mountain, Gu Yinyin frowned and sat up from the bed. “What are you going to the mountain for? In just over an hour the sun will set.”

Da Wa spoke in a low voice. “I want to pick some pears from the mountainside. Right now it’s pear season—the wild pears are big and sweet… You’ll definitely like them.”

If she could eat the sweet pears, then Mother would no longer be unhappy.

Gu Yinyin lifted her head to look at the sky outside. Thinking that country children indeed rarely had such things to eat, she nodded her consent. “Alright then, I’ll go with you both. But we must go quickly and come back quickly.”

The mother and her two children soon headed to the back mountain. Since it was only up to the mountainside, Gu Yinyin was not too afraid, but whenever she remembered being pushed down the mountain in her previous life, hatred surged within her. She hated Mei Ling so much she could strangle her!

That wretched woman surnamed Mei—here in this world she was still scheming against her everywhere. If Gu Yinyin caught her again, she would make sure to destroy Mei Ling completely.

Da Wa was sharp-minded and had an excellent memory for paths. Very quickly, he led Gu Yinyin and Xiao Wa to a pear tree on the mountainside. He shimmied up the tree in no time, plucked the largest pears from the very top, and tossed them down, while Gu Yinyin and Xiao Wa hurried to catch them.

The freshly picked wild pears were a golden yellow. Xiao Wa quickly grabbed the largest one, went to rinse it clean in the nearby stream, and handed it to Gu Yinyin. “Mother, eat this!”

The young girl’s clear eyes sparkled with laughter, her delicate face was sweet and lovely, and behind her the trees were already turning yellow, forming a picturesque scene. Gu Yinyin’s heart softened at the sight.

“Thank you, my good baby.” Gu Yinyin accepted the pear and took a bite; sweet juice burst forth at once.

She had never liked pears before, always feeling that eating them was no different from drinking plain boiled water. Only now did she realize—what had she been eating all those years?

This was the real wild mountain pear, delicious and full of juice, so addictive with every bite.

The mother and her children picked nearly half a sack of wild pears before they happily went down the mountain. Seeing the smile on Gu Yinyin’s face at last, Da Wa finally felt relieved.

They followed a small path back toward the Shen Family home. To get there, they had to pass the small clearing behind Director Qiu’s house. In that clearing stood a stone mill, where villagers usually came to grind things, and when idle, people often sat there chatting.

Before Gu Yinyin even approached, she vaguely heard voices.

“Oh my, isn’t that Gu Yinyin? She and Educated Youth Lin…”

Gu Yinyin’s steps halted. The two children were whispering to each other, but when they saw her stop, they hurriedly asked in unison: “Mother, what’s wrong?”

“You two go back first. I have some business at Director Qiu’s house.”

Da Wa and Xiao Wa quickly went back. As soon as those few women saw the children, they shut their mouths. Yet the moment the children left, the women began chattering again.

“Those two children are so pitiful! Stuck with such a shameless mother! If I were Gu Yinyin, I’d have already smashed my head and died! And she still goes out every day—what a disgrace!”

“But tell me, why would that Educated Youth Lin take a liking to her? Going into the cornfield with her, tsk tsk… Just thinking about it makes my old face burn red…”

Eldest Sister-in-law Zhang curled her lip. “Because she’s cheap, that’s why…”

Her husband had mentioned more than once that when Shen Guo’an wasn’t home, many men in the village were eyeing Gu Yinyin because of her beauty. Eldest Sister-in-law Zhang had kept this firmly in mind, deciding that Gu Yinyin must have loose morals and seduced men. So whenever she spoke of her, her words grew especially harsh.

Gu Yinyin had sent the children away precisely so she could deal with this freely.

She walked over and suddenly slapped Eldest Sister-in-law Zhang hard on the back. “Well, what a coincidence—so this is where you’re gossiping?”

Eldest Sister-in-law Zhang nearly jumped out of her skin. “Y-you… why are you here?”

“Just passing by. I heard you talking, so I came over. You were just saying I went into the cornfield with Educated Youth Lin? Which cornfield exactly? How come I myself don’t know?”

Eldest Sister-in-law Zhang’s face turned the color of pig liver. She had overheard Director Qiu and Mei Ling talking about it, but since eavesdropping was disgraceful, she could not admit how she knew. Still, she was convinced that what Mei Ling said had to be true.

“Gu Yinyin, how would I know when or which cornfield you went into with him? Anyway, you just did! Enough, I don’t care to argue with you anymore—I’m going home to cook.”

Gu Yinyin grabbed her arm, smiling without warmth. “Going to eat, are you? Nobody’s leaving until this matter is made clear. The moment you open your mouth, it’s me and some man in a cornfield, as if it were the truth. What if I went around saying you were rolling in the cornfield with some fellow from the village? What would you do then? Come on, let’s go to Captain and have it out.”

Eldest Sister-in-law Zhang would never agree to that. The person she feared most was the Captain, so she hurriedly protested: “Why drag me there! The business with you and Educated Youth Lin in the cornfield—that was Mei Ling who said it! The whole village knows! Mei Ling’s so close to you, she said she saw it with her own eyes!”

Mei Ling? Gu Yinyin did not respond immediately. Eldest Sister-in-law Zhang sneered: “Cat got your tongue? Since you did it—”

Gu Yinyin cut her off coldly. “And whatever she says becomes truth?”

Eldest Sister-in-law Zhang spread her hands. “Anyway, everyone in the village knows you and Educated Youth Lin went into the cornfield! Even if you don’t admit it, it’s still a fact…”

Yang Xiaoqin, who was standing by, added: “Exactly. Gu Yinyin, why make things hard for Eldest Sister-in-law Zhang? She wasn’t the one who spread it.”

Gu Yinyin, having the Original Owner’s memories, knew quite a lot about the affairs of the village. She also knew that Eldest Sister-in-law Zhang and Yang Xiaoqin were notorious gossips. Yet ordinarily, their relationship had never been this harmonious.

Folding her arms, she gave the two women a slow, sweeping look. “Oh, you’re right—Mei Ling does love spreading tales. Even out of nothing, she can spin something. I remember the last time she told me she saw Old Zhang and Yang Xiaoqin together in the little grove behind the village at night. Didn’t Old Zhang even grab one of his own chickens to nourish Yang Xiaoqin? You two seem awfully close. Back then I didn’t believe her, but now I think maybe I should.”

Eldest Sister-in-law Zhang froze. Her husband did indeed have a wandering eye, though she usually pretended not to notice. But that one time when a chicken went missing—it had truly been odd.

A man could fool around, but a chicken must not be lost! Eldest Sister-in-law Zhang immediately glared fiercely at Yang Xiaoqin. “So it was you who ate my chicken?”

Yang Xiaoqin paled with fear. “No, it wasn’t me… I didn’t…”

Within moments, the two gossipy women were tearing into each other, cursing hoarsely at the top of their lungs. Gu Yinyin gave a cold snort and turned on her heel to leave.

Old Zhang and Yang Xiaoqin indeed had a secret affair; after this, neither of their families would have peace.

But the rumor about her sneaking into the cornfield—its true source was Mei Ling. She had to properly teach Mei Ling a lesson.

That night, after Da Wa and Xiao Wa had fallen asleep, Gu Yinyin quietly tore a page from Da Wa’s exercise book, found a pen, and after pondering for a long while, began imitating someone else’s handwriting.

Gu Yinyin had no other special skills, but her ability to copy handwriting was unmatched. In the past, her parents had been too busy; when her exam papers received full marks, there was no one to sign them. She had no choice but to slowly learn to imitate her parents’ signatures, and over time she had truly perfected the skill.

Very soon, Gu Yinyin had filled a page, then folded it up and slipped it into an envelope.

The next morning, Liu Wenxiu got up to make breakfast. Gu Yinyin quickly rose too, and the two of them together prepared a simple meal. After eating, Da Wa went off to school, Xiao Wa stayed home to play, Li Ailian and Ma Hongmei took Tieshuan to school to plead with the teacher, and the other adults went to the fields. Gu Yinyin also hurried to her work.

That day she neither came too early nor too late. She wore a white long-sleeved polyester shirt patterned with blue flowers, black trousers, and her face, as always, was delicate and rosy, with lips like cherries and eyes brimming with watery brightness. She looked fresh and beautiful, and simply standing there, she unconsciously drew the gaze of many of the men.

Once again, Mei Qing was in charge of assigning tasks. She stood among the crowd with her back straight, smiling warmly. At the instant she caught sight of Gu Yinyin, her gaze flickered slightly, yet she quickly maintained her amiable expression.

That day marked the start of the autumn harvest. Every year at this time, the production team was overwhelmingly busy, to the point where even the sickles were not enough. From a pile of sickles, she picked up one that was small and light, then handed it to Gu Yinyin. “This one is light and easy to handle. Use this one.”

Mei Ling stood nearby watching, a faint smile tugging at her lips. That morning, her elder sister had casually mentioned in front of her that Gu Yinyin looked weak and should be given the light sickle. Yet this sickle was a bit too sharp; the joint where the handle met the blade was unstable and tended to come loose. For now, it had been stuffed tight with some iron wire—if it had been patched with mere cloth strips, the blade would have slipped easily while cutting corn and injured someone.

Injure someone? Upon hearing this, Mei Ling had immediately gone to tamper with that sickle in secret.

She was very eager to see Gu Yinyin cut and bleeding.

That woman, spoiled by Shen Guo’an until she was lawless, truly deserved to suffer a little!

Gu Yinyin knew nothing of this. Holding the sickle, she was delighted. “Thank you, Comrade Mei Qing. You really are both beautiful and thoughtful!”

Mei Qing continued to smile kindly. Yet who would have expected that as Gu Yinyin turned to leave, she accidentally bumped into Mei Ling.

“Ah, sorry!” Gu Yinyin apologized quickly and turned away toward another spot.

But just then, another man who was waiting in line to receive a sickle curiously bent down to pick something off the ground. “Hey, what’s this? How did it end up here? Comrade Mei Qing, have a look.”

He handed the envelope over. Mei Qing glanced at it and instantly recognized her younger sister Mei Ling’s handwriting.

On the envelope, written clearly, were the words: To Educated Youth Lin.

Her heart gave a heavy thump. Without thinking, she tore the envelope open.

Inside, the handwriting was indeed Mei Ling’s—crooked and ugly, riddled with mistakes—but the contents were still unmistakable.

Educated Youth Lin, I know this must come as a surprise, but I must confess my feelings. I really like you. You are the most outstanding young man I have ever met…

Mei Qing’s hands trembled. She had guarded against this and against that, yet she had never imagined that her very own younger sister also harbored feelings for Educated Youth Lin!