Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Sheng An was only a year younger than Sheng Ning, and her wheat-colored skin had a healthy and shiny glow. The bridge of her nose was high, and her brows were thick and full. She didn’t conform to the current beauty standards, and several people in the village had even gone so far as to say she was ugly.
But in the future, she was a drop dead goddess.
When Sheng An saw her, a fire burned in her eyes. “What are you doing back here?” she demanded aggressively. “How dare you come back!”
“An’an, don’t talk to your sister like that,” Shen Luhua admonished in displeasure.
“Mom!” she exclaimed. “Why are you still defending this vicious jinx after everything that happened? Hasn’t she caused me enough harm?” Sheng An’s voice trembled as she spoke, and she stared daggers at Shen Ning.
“I’m sorry, An’an,” Sheng Ning said, her guilty conscience eating away at her. In her previous life, Sheng An had died before she finally went to see her.
Sheng An’s body was sent back by the mayor’s family. However, all the elders in the Sheng family discriminated against her because she wasn’t biologically related to them. They used the excuse that she was already a married woman to avoid her presence defiling their ancestral land, refusing to even allow her corpse to pass the door. They were unrelenting and ruthless in their insults. Even a passerby would’ve felt outraged on her behalf.
Sheng Ning could remember every detail clearly. Sheng An was as thin as a stick lying in the coffin by the walkway in the village.
Even in death, she wasn’t able to enter the house.
Sheng An was unsettled by the look in Sheng Ning’s eyes. “Why… why are you looking at me like that?” she asked, unable to maintain her hostile expression, and took a step back. But the act of retreating filled her with shame, and she ran over to Shen Luhua. Taking her mother by the arm, she said, “Just ignore her, Mom. Let’s go.” With that, she pulled Shen Luhua along with her and headed to the fields at the back of the village.
“An’an, stop throwing tantrums.” It was rare for her stepdaughter to come home, and, as a stepmother, she needed to give her a warm reception. It wouldn’t bode well for the family’s reputation if word got out that she was an unkind stepmother.
“Mom, am I your biological daughter, or is she?” Sheng An stomped her foot in exasperation. Hatred poured out of her eyes as she glared at Sheng Ning, and her distinctive-looking eyes began to well up with tears.
“Ever since we were young, you’ve fawned over her, and you’ve always given her the best toys and best food. Whenever you were busy with farm work, I was the one who had to do the housework, and when she wanted to join the song and dance ensemble, you forced me to marry the mayor’s idiot second son just so you could get her into the ensemble. What else do you want from me? Or will you only be satisfied when I’m dead?”
Sheng An’s words were like a blunt knife that sliced at Sheng Ning’s heart. Each cut left a bloody and murky mess in its wake.
“I’m sorry, An’an.” Shen Luhua’s heart ached intensely for her daughter, and she wasn’t in the mood at the moment to cajole her stepchild. She hugged Sheng An and said apologetically to Sheng Ning, “Ningning, why don’t you go back to the house and rest? I’ll prepare a delicious meal for you when I come back later.”
“What’s left in the house to make a meal with?” Sheng An asked straightforwardly. “There’s practically nothing left in the pots!”
Shen Luhua gave an embarrassed chuckle. The family was indeed poor. In order to cough up the amount needed to send Ningning to the General Union, everything of value in the house was sold. They were currently waiting for the autumn harvest. Otherwise, the family would have no choice but to go hungry.
“Go ahead, Mom.” Sheng Ning wipe the tears off her face with her sleeve. “Sister’s just in a bad mood. You don’t have to worry about me,” she said with a smile to the stepmother she had once vehemently hated.
She was a huge scoundrel in her past life! She was beyond lucky to have such a good mother, which was something she hadn’t appreciated then. In this life she was resolved to be a filial daughter and a proper sister.
When Shen Luhua heard her words, her eyes widened in disbelief. Even the infuriated Sheng An stared at her in shock.
“Mom, I’ll go back to the house and make some food. Come home as soon as you’re done!” Sheng Ning smiled. The venomous look in her eyes she had sported in the past was long gone. As she gazed at Shen Luhua, her eyes were warm and kind, and it made those around her feel especially comforted.