However, Gu Jiaojiao’s money was no longer given to her, so let the Gu family ruin that wretched woman.

Sheng Xinglian’s letter was indeed received by the Gu family. At this moment, in the dilapidated thatched cottage, sat the emaciated Grandpa Gu, the critically ill eldest son of the Gu family, the listless father, and the mother who was barely holding on to her last breath.

Also present was the eldest son of the Dong family, Dong Qihua’s father, who had driven back from the commune to pick up his second nephew after receiving a telegram from his eldest brother-in-law.

“Dong… do you know Sheng Liangyuan from your compound?” Grandpa Gu asked, holding the letter in his hand.

“I do. Sheng Liangyuan lives next door to me,” replied Uncle Dong, who was usually not fond of talking.

“Lian’er wrote back saying she is not our Gu family’s daughter. Our Gu family’s daughter is Gu Jiaojiao. Did you know that?”

Uncle Dong glanced at his skeletal sister, who seemed as if a gust of wind could blow her away. He felt a pang of sadness. Over the years, their father and brothers had done their best.

Now, everything had improved, and Grandpa Gu could return to teaching. Unfortunately, the eldest grandson had returned home injured, and Grandpa Gu, already at the end of his rope, fell seriously ill from the shock.

The organization had arranged for many renowned doctors, but neither the grandfather nor the grandson showed any improvement. The authoritative doctors even advised them to prepare for the worst.

His sister was only forty-three, yet she was hunched over like a sixty-year-old woman.

“I know a little. I heard that Gu Jiaojiao is also in poor health, and now… now…”

Uncle Dong looked at the Gu family with pity, unable to finish his sentence.

“Uncle, please tell us, what’s wrong with my sister?” asked Gu Jingtai, the second son of the Gu family, with concern.

Rumors were spreading in the farm that his sister, Gu Xinglian, had climbed up the social ladder and abandoned them. He didn’t believe it and secretly went to find her, but she indeed refused to acknowledge him, even hurling harsh words at him, claiming she was not the Gu family’s daughter.

Fuming with anger, Gu Jingtai returned to the farm and got into a fight with his friends, which left his mother with only a breath of life left.

The rest of the Gu family also looked at Uncle Dong with eager eyes.

Uncle Dong gathered his thoughts, organizing his words carefully, and said, “Jiaojiao has been pampered by the Sheng family since she was a child. It’s said that due to her premature birth, she has always been in poor health. Since learning that she is not the Sheng family’s biological child, she has been causing trouble for Sheng Xinglian…”

“Impossible! My daughter would never be like that,” the mother wailed hysterically.

Once, she was also a proud daughter of heaven. Her father was a high-ranking official, and she fell in love with Gu Chengzhou from the capital.

Gu Chengzhou was handsome and talented, and she was no less. The two fell in love at first sight. Their children should have been smart and lovely. Although life was tough, their children had good character.

Their daughter, no, their adopted daughter, was just a bit timid, but her personality had no other flaws.

She and her husband had already turned gray. How could their bloodline be so despicable?

“If Jiaojiao is really that bad, it’s because the Sheng family didn’t raise her well,” she said firmly.

Uncle Dong: …

The Sheng family is a noble household. Could they really not raise her well? But he couldn’t bring himself to say that the Gu family’s bloodline was bad.

However, Jiaojiao’s reputation in the compound was really poor. Even he, who didn’t like to listen to gossip, often heard about Jiaojiao’s misdeeds.

Especially their younger sister, Dong Yuanyuan, and his daughter, Dong Lili, who would chatter about Jiaojiao’s faults at the dinner table.

“Is it our younger sister who said that? She’s just like her mother, no good. A dragon gives birth to a dragon and a phoenix gives birth to a phoenix, but a mouse gives birth to a daughter who will dig holes.”

Mother Gu, with only a breath left, was now furiously criticizing the Dong family’s youngest daughter.

Mother Gu was only physically weak, not mentally. Thinking this way, she realized that the two daughters had been switched by her stepmother.

Because it was her stepmother who had attended to her during her postpartum period.

Uncle Dong was sweating profusely, not daring to speak carelessly, afraid that his sister might die from anger.

“Uncle, could you bring Jiaojiao to see my father one last time?” the listless Father Gu finally spoke.

The critically ill eldest son of the Gu family, who might or might not have heard the conversation, lay silently on the recliner.

As Uncle Dong was unsure how to respond to father Gu, the eldest son suddenly said, “I… want to see Lian’er one last time.”

“Brother, she won’t come back,” Gu Jingtai said angrily.

“Then let’s go see them,” Grandpa Gu concluded.

*

At the Su family, after Su Shuoci’s repeated explanations, Su’s mother and younger sister finally realized they had misunderstood.

Su’s mother said awkwardly, “Should we ask Chunni to fetch Dr. Sun to take a look?”

“No need. You all go out. I will wake Jiaojiao up.”

After the three members of the Su family left, Su Shuoci lifted the large towel blanket and saw Gu Jiaojiao open her eyes.

“Jiaojiao…”

“Get off~”

“Jiaojiao, do you want some water?” Su Shuoci quickly jumped onto his wheelchair, poured a cup of warm water, and handed it to his wife.

Gu Jiaojiao, wrapped in the towel blanket, revealed her sexy collarbone and arms as white as lotus roots…

Su Shuoci gulped down his saliva and carefully fed her the water.

Gu Jiaojiao, still weak, drank half the cup of water.

“Do you know anything about medicine? I wasn’t actually unconscious, but you… made me faint.”

Gu Jiaojiao was too embarrassed to say that she had fainted from his kiss. She had wanted to have a proper relationship with him.

Her first kiss was her first kiss; she didn’t want to dwell on it. “Next time, remember, my body is delicate and can’t handle the pressure of your hands.”

“Jiaojiao~ Did you faint because of my pressure?” Su Shuoci now felt his hands burning hot.

Earlier, he had been too anxious, feeling no ripples in his heart, not even during the kiss, only anxiety.

Now… he touched his lips, which were also burning hot… all the way to his heart…

Gu Jiaojiao looked at the blushing man. Had he really felt nothing before?

If she had known, she wouldn’t have said anything.

“Jiaojiao… I’ll go fetch a bucket of hot water for you to bathe,” Su Shuoci said, then got on his wheelchair and left.

Gu Jiaojiao had already partitioned a simple shower room in their room the day before. She wasn’t used to going out to wash in the morning.

She took out two bottles of drinks from her space. This body was too weak. Although she had been going out to sell rice every day these past few days, she hadn’t exercised enough.

The original owner had a poor appetite, but Gu Jiaojiao had a great appetite, eating everything with relish, and her body had improved a lot compared to before.

While she was bathing, Su Shuoci cleaned the bamboo mat and put the towel blanket and pillow into the washing machine.

Although it was a fully automatic washing machine from Gu Jiaojiao’s space, the Su family had no running water, so it could only be used as a semi-automatic washing machine.

Even if Su’s mother and sister didn’t recognize the value of the high-quality towel blanket, they assumed it was bought from the Overseas Chinese Store.

They didn’t ask, and Su Shuoci didn’t explain. Even if they did, he wouldn’t tell the truth.

After bathing, Gu Jiaojiao also washed her hair and took out a hairdryer from her space. Su Shuoci helped her dry her hair.

Once everything was done, Su’s mother had already prepared the meal. “Mom, your cooking is delicious.”

“Of course, your mom was the best chef in the surrounding villages back in the countryside. It was just a case of a skilled woman lacking the means,” Su’s father said with a honest smile.