C1 Sesame Small Circle

Spring 1984, Lotus Root Village.

Bai Qiaoqiao's second uncle and his wife were on their way back home from work when they were tragically killed by a falling boulder from the mountain. The family was in the midst of a chaotic funeral when three-year-old Bai Qiaoqiao noticed her third uncle, Bai Yuanchao, and his wife, Zhao Xiaohong, sneaking up to the attic.

In her previous life, Qiaoqiao remembered how this couple had caused her family so much trouble. Seeing them up to no good again, she quietly followed them.

Upstairs in the bedroom, Zhao Xiaohong was rummaging through the closet. "Where's the money?" she exclaimed, turning everything upside down. "It can't be gone. We felt a thousand bucks when we first got back."

Wow, they were stealing from the deceased! Qiaoqiao recalled that her second uncle and aunt had returned from work with a year's worth of savings. When the family prepared the bodies, they found no money, suspecting it had been taken by passersby. Little did they know, it was these two who had taken it!

Some people never change, no matter how young. Back then, in the countryside, people didn't trust banks much. They either sewed their money into their clothes or hid it at home. Bai Yuanchao was now feeling around under the mattress, checking if the money was hidden there.

"I've been working for so many years; I've saved at least a few thousand bucks. Keep looking, and don't let the others find out," said Bai Yuanchao.

As Zhao Xiaohong joined in searching the bed, the couple was close together.

Bai Qiaoqiao saw her chance and deliberately lowered her voice, saying, "Uncle, Aunt."

"Ah!"

Caught off guard, Bai Yuanchao and Zhao Xiaohong were startled by Bai Qiaoqiao's sudden whisper, which was intentionally breathy.

They both whipped around, and with a loud "thud," they accidentally bumped heads.

"You little..." Zhao Xiaohong started to scold, but Bai Yuanchao quickly covered her mouth.

They turned back in fright to see the three-year-old Bai Qiaoqiao standing there, head tilted, watching them with an innocent and harmless look.

Relieved, Bai Yuanchao and Zhao Xiaohong thought they could easily coax the little girl and smooth things over.

However...

Bai Qiaoqiao suddenly shouted downstairs, "Help! Uncle and Aunt are stealing!"

Bai Yuanchao/Zhao Xiaohong: "!"

This was an old wooden building, with only a narrow staircase separating the floors. Bai Qiaoqiao's childlike voice echoed, and the whole place erupted!

"What's going on?!"

"The bodies are still downstairs, and someone's bold enough to sneak upstairs?!"

Relatives and neighbors in the funeral parlor were shouting angrily as they rushed forward. Bai Yuanchao and Zhao Xiaohong were in a panic, wanting to escape but too scared to jump out the window. In their confusion, they ran to the door, only to find people blocking their way downstairs.

Seeing Bai Qiaoqiao standing at the door, Zhao Xiaohong's temper flared. She lifted her foot to kick, "You little brat..."

But Bai Qiaoqiao wasn't really a three-year-old. As Zhao Xiaohong's foot came toward her, she grabbed her leg.

"Ouch!"

Zhao Xiaohong stumbled backward, her head hitting the wooden door.

"Qiaoqiao?!" Bai Shengli shouted his daughter's name as he was the first to rush upstairs.

Bai Qiaoqiao immediately started fake crying loudly to her dad, "Wah! Dad! Uncle and Aunt are stealing things! Aunt even tried to kick me!"

Her mom, Lin Yuefen, feeling sorry for her daughter, quickly rushed over to pick her up, looking her over, "Sweetie, are you hurt?"

Not hurt! And that's not important!

Bai Qiaoqiao continued her fake crying while pointing at Bai Yuanchao and Zhao Xiaohong, "They're stealing from Uncle and Aunt's things! Don't let them get away!"

Stealing from their own recently deceased brother and sister-in-law!

The staircase was narrow, unable to hold many people, so many craned their necks from below to see what was happening.

Rushing upstairs were Bai Shengli and his wife, along with their helpful neighbors, Shen Jian and Mao Jinlan, among others.

"Yuanchao, are you really stealing from your brother?!" Bai Shengli exclaimed, both shocked and furious.

Bai Yuanchao tried to deny it, "Who's stealing? That's nonsense. We just came up to take a look!"

Zhao Xiaohong, eyes wide like a cow's, chimed in, "Exactly! Sister-in-law, look at your kid, making stuff up! I almost tripped over her just now, and my head's killing me. I need to go to the clinic."

She continued to groan about her headache.

Most kids would just cry at this point, right?

But Bai Qiaoqiao pointed at them, speaking clearly, "I'm not making it up! Look! They turned the room upside down!"

Mao Jinlan, ever the concerned neighbor, rushed over, pushed the couple aside, and exclaimed, "It really is a mess! You two have no conscience! The couple downstairs is still there, aren't you afraid they'll come after you at night?"

Zhao Xiaohong stumbled from the push and, ignoring the state of the room, began to wail, "Oh, this is too much! First, the kid trips me, then you push me! Oh, my head hurts, Yuanchao, these people are going to be the death of me!"

Bai Yuanchao held his wife close, trying to make a quick escape. "Please, let us through! Xiaohong has a terrible headache, and I need to get her to the clinic right away. If something happens, it'll be on you!"

A relative chimed in, "Yeah, get her to the clinic fast. We don't want any trouble!"

Bai Yuanchao and his wife were eager to slip away.

Bai Qiaoqiao shouted, "They stole money from my uncle and aunt! It's my brothers' money! Make them give it back!"

Hearing this, Bai Shengli's anger flared.

The second branch of the family had five sons, and now they were trying to take their parents' money!

Bai Yuanchao started to protest, "The kid's just making things up..."

"I'm not lying!" Bai Qiaoqiao screamed. "They took a thousand dollars from my uncle! They even said there must be more and planned to steal it before anyone noticed!"

Stealing from the dead!

Bai Shengli was furious, grabbing his younger brother and wrestling him to the ground.

Bai Qiaoqiao watched in shock, realizing her father had a fiery side in his youth.

In truth, she was an old soul in a young body, having been reborn at three years old after a near-death experience. Though the Bai family was dirt poor now, in her past life, they had become quite wealthy.

Unfortunately, in her past life, her father, Bai Shengli, was too much of a nice guy. Even though he struck it rich overnight, he spent his life shackled by family ties, ending up in debt to the tune of billions.

The most infuriating part was that even after the Bai family went bankrupt, Bai Yuanchao, who only knew how to spend money and cause trouble, sneaked off to gamble in Las Vegas, racking up massive debts and getting himself detained.

In Bai Qiaoqiao's memories, her father always talked about "family" and "not holding grudges." Even when things were this dire, her parents, despite their age and frailty, flew to rescue him. Tragically, the plane crashed, and they never returned.

But in this life, Bai Qiaoqiao refused to let her father be manipulated by those two parasites from the Third Branch. She was determined to raise her family to be a cold-blooded, successful dynasty.

In her heart, she cheered her father on: "Go, Dad! Crush those who aren't worth a dime!"