Chapter 40.3

In the afternoon, Jiang Rou and Li Xin busied themselves with cleaning the house, washing and putting away unused items, and hanging out old clothes to air out any musty smells.

While they were busy, Zhang Yan suddenly arrived.

Zhang Yan must have walked over, as she was sweating. She came in and, seeing Jiang Rou, asked eagerly, “I heard you got accepted into college? ”

Though phrased as a question, her tone was filled with certainty.

In the village, Huang Qingqing, a child from the same village who hadn’t passed the exam, cried at home. Her parents scolded her for being useless and compared her unfavorably to Jiang Rou. The news spread throughout No. 1 Middle School, eventually reaching Zhang Yan.

Zhang Yan had not anticipated Jiang Rou’s success. If she had known Jiang Rou would excel so much, she wouldn’t have tried to introduce her to the pockmarked man from town. College students were rare and highly sought after, even in the city.

Regretting her earlier decisions, Zhang Yan brought a basket of eggs and said with a forced smile, “Where’s An An? I brought her some eggs.” Her warm and friendly demeanor was a stark contrast to her previous arrogance.

Jiang Rou was taken aback. “No need. An An is allergic to eggs. You can take them home for your son.”

Zhang Yan seemed not to have heard her and continued, “Are you packing up? Where are you going? ”

Jiang Rou, feeling exasperated, continued to wash her shoes by the sink without responding. Seeing that Jiang Rou remained silent, Zhang Yan sighed and spoke earnestly, “I know you’re upset about what happened before, but I’m your mother. I wouldn’t want to harm you. Think about it: wasn’t your grade poor before? Zhang Mazi may be ugly, but he’s wealthy and will treat you well. What’s wrong with that? Your father is unattractive and poor; life is much harder under those circumstances.”

“Of course, I never expected you to be so outstanding. If I had known you could go to college, I wouldn’t have married you off so easily. Among my three daughters, didn’t I always dote on you the most? ”Zhang Yan said, trying to sound affectionate.

Jiang Rou wasn’t interested in these manipulative words. She replied unhappily, “What’s the point of saying this now? I’m married.”

Zhang Yan’s smile grew more insidious. “Silly, you can get divorced after getting married. Li Xiao has no future; he’s just a gangster. It’s unfair for you to be with him.”

Jiang Rou stared at her in disbelief.

Zhang Yan’s eyes narrowed, still smiling. “Mom is doing this for your own good. There are people in our village who will run away even if they have children. There’s nothing to be reluctant about. If you’re really worried, let me raise her. I promise to raise her well. As for Li Xiao, what does he have besides his looks? I heard there’s a lot of chaos outside, and with his appearance, women will come after him even if he doesn’t look for them. Men prefer sons, and you only had a daughter. Moreover, you were the one who attached yourself to him. What if he meets someone he likes outside? Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

Jiang Rou sighed deeply. It was no wonder several people in the Jiang family were manipulated by her; her eloquence was indeed impressive, speaking right to people’s hearts.

Perhaps in the previous life, “Jiang Rou” had also heard such things, and combined with other reasons, she chose to leave An An and run off with a wealthy man.

Jiang Rou shook the shoes in her hand, splashing water onto Zhang Yan, who stood beside her.

She ignored her and went to the middle of the yard and spread the shoes out to dry.

Zhang Yan’s face darkened as she was splashed with water. “You little brat…” she muttered angrily.

Jiang Rou stood up, her face feigning surprise. “Oh, mom, you’re still here? I thought you left. Why didn’t you say anything just now? ”

Zhang Yan could tell that Jiang Rou was doing it on purpose. Her face changed several times, her chest rising and falling with anger. She had probably never encountered someone so resistant to her tactics.

Li Xin heard the commotion outside and came out with An An in her arms. Seeing Zhang Yan, her face immediately darkened.

Zhang Yan noticed her too, and her gaze scrutinized Li Xin. The girl was fair and pretty, not inferior to Jiang Rou.

Zhang Yan had also heard about Fu Xiaoyue’s situation, and, knowing that Xiaoyue had been taken away by the police, she asked, “Is this Xiao Wu? ”

Jiang Rou frowned and positioned herself to block Zhang Yan’s view. “No, this is Li Xin, Li Xiao’s cousin. Xiao Wu was adopted and now lives somewhere else with her adoptive parents.”

Zhang Yan curled her lips in dismissal. Hearing that it was Li Xiao’s cousin, she lost interest. In her mind, people with the surname Li were not worth her concern.

After Zhang Yan left, Li Xin asked Jiang Rou, “Sister, she won’t come back, right? ”

Jiang Rou reassured her, “Don’t worry. If anyone asks you in the future, just say you’re Li Xiao’s cousin. That should be enough to confirm your identity.”

“Okay,” Li Xin said.

—o—o—o—

In the evening, Jiang Rou prepared a table full of delicious dishes for Aunt Wang and Uncle Wang.

“Aunt, uncle, I’m asking you to take care of my sister for the next year. Their school provides lunch, but I think it’s troublesome for her to cook dinner every day after school. So, I thought she could have dinner at your place. You don’t have to prepare anything special—she’ll eat whatever you have. She’s easy to feed.”

Aunt Wang smiled with pleasure. “Oh, don’t be so polite. Just speak directly. You’ve even cooked so many dishes. Really, I don’t know how to thank you and Li Xiao for saving your uncle.”

She continued, “It just so happens that our home has become a lot quieter since Junjun went to college. We’re looking forward to Xinxin coming over to eat. It’ll make the house livelier.”

Jiang Rou smiled and asked Li Xin to stand up and toast the two of them. She then instructed Li Xin, “When I’m not at home, you should work hard. During vacations, help Aunt look after the stall. When you’re at home, take the initiative to help out, okay? ”

Li Xin nodded quickly after hearing this.

Aunt Wang patted her on the shoulder. “Why are you being so polite? ”

She then asked, “When are you leaving? ”

Jiang Rou replied, “Tomorrow morning. We have a lot of things to take care of. Xinxin will come with me to the south, and I’ll let her come back when school starts.”

Aunt Wang said, “It’s good to go to the south and see a big city. It’s incomparable to our county town. She’ll be able to broaden her horizons and have a better chance of passing the exam in the future.”

—o—o—o—

The next morning, before dawn, Jiang Rou and Li Xin set out.

Aunt Wang from next door also got up early to help without saying a word.

Jiang Rou was touched and let her carry An An while she shared a bag with Li Xin.

On the way, Aunt Wang spoke a lot. She expressed regret that they wouldn’t have many opportunities to meet in the future and hoped that Jiang Rou and Li Xiao would make a name for themselves in the South. She wanted them to prove themselves so that people like Lin Meiru could see their success and recognize their worth.

She spoke with the authority and care of someone who felt like an elder.
When sending Jiang Rou to the train, Aunt Wang’s eyes were red. “Come back when you have time in the future.”

Jiang Rou’s nose felt sour as she waved her hand. “Of course. Take care of yourself. I will take you to the south to play in the future.”

Aunt Wang replied with a soft “Good.”

An An woke up as soon as they got on the train. After the train started moving, she pressed her face against the window, looking outside. Jiang Rou held her little arm and shook it gently. “Say goodbye to Grandma Wang.”

An An, not fully understanding what was happening, kept waving her hands.

Jiang Rou lowered her head and kissed An An’s head. “Don’t be sad. We’ll see Daddy in a few days.”

Upon hearing “Daddy,” An An looked up at Jiang Rou, and then buried her little head in her arms.

—o—o—o—

Four days later, Jiang Rou arrived at G Province Railway Station. She and Li Xin dragged large and small bags of things out. Jiang Rou reassured her, “It’s not far. The bus stop is across the street.”

As they exited the station, they saw Li Xiao waiting outside with an old van parked next to him.

Li Xiao spotted them and quickly moved to pick them up.

He effortlessly lifted the heavy snakeskin bags—one in each hand—and strode toward the van.

Jiang Rou and Li Xin sighed with relief. Jiang Rou followed behind with An An in her arms. Once Li Xiao put the bags down and turned around, he said, “I rented a small house outside G University. It has two rooms; one is for Xin Xin.”

Jiang Rou asked him, “Where is Zhou Jian?”

Li Xiao walked closer, stretched out his hands to hug An An, and said, “He doesn’t live here. I gave him the house I had before, which is closer to the store.”

Jiang Rou nodded.

An An, seeing her father, who had turned darker, opened his arms to her, twisted her body, and clung tightly to Jiang Rou’s neck to avoid him.

Jiang Rou didn’t know whether to laugh or cry and kissed An An’s forehead. “What’s wrong? That’s your Daddy.”

Li Xiao, seeing this, reached out to rub An An’s head in mild annoyance. “Don’t you recognize your own Daddy? ”

An An twisted her head and avoided his touch.

Jiang Rou smiled and said, “She was very happy at home when she knew she was coming to see her Daddy.”

She continued, “A few days ago, she found out she was coming to see you and kept repeating it. Now, let your father hear you call him Daddy.”

Even though An An couldn’t pronounce it clearly, Li Xiao felt pleased.

“Although she is small, she can understand almost everything I say, and her memory is very good. I taught her some actions, like greetings during the New Year and saying goodbye, and she learned them after just one try. She just doesn’t like to speak much.”

Li Xiao enjoyed hearing these things, and his smile grew warmer.