C14 Chapter 14

The closer she got to home, the more people were talking. Everyone had a different version of the story—some of it even dragged her into it.

“Tsk, hasn’t the Chen family been out of food for a while? Where’d they get white rice to trade for brown rice?”

“Who knows? These days, what family can even spare white rice?”

“Didn’t the Chen family’s eldest daughter-in-law stash a bunch of stuff? Wouldn’t surprise me if the white rice was hers.”

“Wasn’t the Chen family’s eldest daughter-in-law borrowing grain yesterday?”

“You believe her? Let me tell you—I'd sooner believe a word out of Wu Laizi’s mouth than anything the Chen family’s eldest daughter-in-law says.”

Wu Laizi was the village’s most notorious troublemaker. Not only was he shameless, he lied like he breathed—never a single honest word.

Wan Qiqi was beyond frustrated. These people were actually comparing her to Wu Laizi!

Was she really that kind of person?

Before she even stepped into the yard, she could already hear crying from inside.

“Why is my life so miserable... the grain we just traded for...”

Lee Chongniang’s wailing carried even through the crowd, getting more pitiful—and louder—by the second.

Wan Qiqi finally understood. The couple had gone into town early that morning to trade white rice for brown rice, and on the way back, they’d been robbed.

Villagers crowded around the mud-brick wall, craning their necks to see what was happening inside, whispering nonstop.

Seeing the gate jammed with people, Wan Qiqi couldn’t help thinking: Don’t these folks have anything better to do? The second something happens, they come running to gawk.

She squeezed into the yard, swung the gate shut behind her, and swept her eyes around. Spotting a bucket of filthy water, she grabbed the dipper and splashed it up onto the wall.

In an instant, someone didn’t dodge in time and got drenched, cursing at the top of her lungs. “Wan Qiqi, you heartless witch! You soaked me!”

“Oh my goodness, Mrs. Zhao! I’m so sorry,” Wan Qiqi said, flashing an innocent, harmless smile, as if it had truly been an accident. “It’s just so hot out—I thought I’d cool the wall down a bit.”

Mrs. Zhao kept cussing for a while, wiping water out of her hair as she stomped back toward her own home.

Wan Qiqi shot the crowd a sharp look.

Everyone figured the Chen family’s eldest daughter-in-law was back to her old self—only now she seemed a little sharper, too. They turned and left one after another. Nobody wanted to waste breath arguing with that vicious woman, and they definitely didn’t want her latching onto them.

Once the yard was finally clear, Wan Qiqi turned and looked at Lee Chongniang, who was sitting in the courtyard.

Her hair was a mess, her face streaked with tears. One hand pressed against her belly as she sobbed, and the other kept slapping her knee.

The moment Lee Chongniang lifted her eyes and met Wan Qiqi’s gaze, she quickly dropped her head again, too scared to look at her. Under her breath, she murmured, “Why is my life so miserable...”

She was terrified Wan Qiqi would blame her for what happened, so she could only play up how much of a victim she was.

Chen Yongxing stood beside her. There were still bruises on his face, and his clothes were torn in a few places.

When he saw Wan Qiqi, he lowered his head too, not daring to say a word.

The eldest sister-in-law had handed the white rice to Mom, and he and Chongniang had quietly taken it away without saying anything.

He’d only meant to trade the white rice for brown rice so the family could stretch it for a few more meals. After all, his wife was pregnant—she couldn’t live on rice bran all the time.

But who would’ve thought that in the time it took him to step away and take a leak, a bandit would rush out, snatch the rice, and even send Chongniang tumbling.

When he ran after him, he got jumped by the guy’s partner and beaten with a sack over his head.

He’d heard there were thieves showing up in other villages, and that people bolted their doors and windows tight at night. He just hadn’t expected them to be so brazen in broad daylight—stealing food and beating people up on top of it.

Chen Yongxing’s chest felt tight with a mess of emotions. He didn’t know how to face Wan Qiqi. The family had finally gotten their hands on some grain, and they’d gone and lost it.

Wan Qiqi let out a sigh and dropped the bamboo basket from her back onto the ground. “As long as you’re not hurt,” she said, sounding helpless.

As soon as she finished speaking, not only were Chen Yongxing and Lee Chongniang stunned—even Mrs. Wang looked shocked.

Wan Qiqi had actually said, “As long as everyone’s okay, that’s what matters”?

In the past, if anything of hers went missing at home—even something as tiny as a sesame seed—she’d raise hell. Now their food rations were gone, and she was acting like it was no big deal.

For a moment, everyone stared at Wan Qiqi like they didn’t recognize her.