Free Web NovelChapter 189: Chapter 189: The Shameless Cao Qiu
The first day of the Lunar New Year passed quite pleasantly. The Lin family spent it at home eating and drinking, watching TV, or going for a stroll downstairs when they got restless.
The second day of the new year was traditionally for visiting one’s maternal grandmother, but since Chen Fengjiao’s side of the family didn’t live nearby, the Lin family didn’t go out. They spent another day at home.
Things started to get lively after the third day. The Lin family may not have had many relatives, but given Lin Shan’s position, there was no shortage of visitors.
None of the visitors came empty-handed; they all arrived with smiles, carrying gifts. At first, Gu’er would come out and sit with them for a while, but she eventually stopped. She couldn’t stand the way they sized her up.
When the sixth day arrived, Gu’er heard another knock at the door. She shut her bedroom door tightly. ’Whoever it is, whatever they want, it has nothing to do with me. I’ll just pretend I don’t exist.’
Gu’er picked up a book. There were still many characters she didn’t recognize, but that was okay—she had a dictionary. She’d been using it to learn a lot of new characters lately, so reading wasn’t as strenuous as before. She had fallen in love with books, from which she could learn so much about the world and how it worked.
Gu’er immersed herself in the world of the book.
"Sis, Sis."
Someone was knocking on Gu’er’s door.
Gu’er recognized the voice. It was Lin Zheng. She went over and opened the door. freewёbn૦νeɭ.com
"What’s wrong? Are you bored? Come on in. I can teach you some nursery rhymes."
Gu’er knew Lin Zheng must be bored dealing with all these people, too.
"No, Sis,"
Lin Zheng shook his head, then stepped inside and closed the door. He whispered to Gu’er, "Sis, Aunt Wu from upstairs just brought two people to see Mom and Dad. Everything was fine at first, but after they talked for a while, Mom and Dad got angry for some reason. The woman was shouting at Mom, demanding you come out to see her. She said you’re her daughter-in-law! Sis, whatever you do, don’t go out there! I have a bad feeling about that woman. She seems really aggressive."
Lin Zheng described the situation outside. His face was etched with worry; he couldn’t imagine how his sister knew someone like that.
Gu’er frowned. ’Her daughter-in-law?’
Suddenly, Gu’er understood.
"Zheng, those two people... is the man quiet, and the woman the one who never stops talking?"
Gu’er asked Lin Zheng.
"Yeah! The man just sits there smoking, and he even ashes on the floor. It’s so gross."
Lin Zheng explained with gestures, his little face scrunched up in distaste.
’So it really is Sun Jiaming’s parents.’
Gu’er had expected them to show up much sooner, but they never did. She had asked Sun Jiaming about it, and he’d said he hadn’t told his parents about her. They didn’t know she was in the city, so they hadn’t come looking for her.
Their showing up now meant one of two things: either they had returned to the village themselves, or someone from the village had told them what happened. That’s why they had come to her door.
The thought of Cao Qiu made Gu’er’s head ache. She really didn’t want to go out there and face her. But if she didn’t, her mother—who already disliked Sun Jiaming—would be even more opposed to him after dealing with a woman like Cao Qiu. freewēbnoveℓ.com
"Xiao Zheng, you sit here and play. I’m going to go take a look."
Gu’er got up, but she didn’t want Lin Zheng to leave the room.
"Sis, aren’t you scared?"
Lin Zheng tugged on the corner of Gu’er’s shirt.
"I’m not scared. Be good, you stay here and play."
Gu’er patted his head.
The moment Gu’er opened the door, she heard Cao Qiu’s voice.
"Gu’er really is my daughter-in-law, how could I be lying? When the Zhou family threw her out, she stayed at our house! The matter between her and Jia Ming was settled right in front of the village elders. Jia Ming even threw a fit and fought with me over it, and my own mother-in-law gave them our family heirloom! Everyone in the village knows about this, I’m not trying to fool you! You’re Gu’er’s biological mother, you can’t just refuse to acknowledge this! Gu’er can’t just toss our Jia Ming aside now that she’s living the good life, can she?"
Cao Qiu’s speech left Gu’er speechless. ’That’s not what she said back then, was it? And when did we ever settle things in front of all the villagers and elders?’
"Alright, that’s enough. My Gu’er is still an unmarried young woman. When it comes to her marriage, we, her parents, will make the decisions for her. Nothing is set in stone yet, so stop calling her your daughter-in-law. Even if something was arranged, they aren’t married. If you keep talking like this, how is my Gu’er supposed to face the world?"
Chen Fengjiao didn’t bother to hide the displeasure on her face. She truly detested this woman, who reminded her of those awful days back in the village.
"You can’t say that. My Jia Ming, he..."
Unconvinced, Cao Qiu started to retort to Chen Fengjiao.
"Auntie, Uncle, you’re here."
Gu’er spoke up, interrupting Cao Qiu.
Cao Qiu’s mouth was still open to speak, but upon seeing Gu’er, she immediately cried out.
"Oh, Gu’er, my dear girl! You’re finally out! Auntie missed you to death! Tell me, why didn’t you come visit your Auntie after coming to the city? Have you forgotten how good I was to you? You heartless girl, now that you have your real mom, you don’t want your mother-in-law anymore, huh?"
Cao Qiu beamed, rushed forward in a few steps, and grabbed Gu’er’s hand with immense enthusiasm.
Hearing her words, Gu’er shivered. Were she and Cao Qiu really that close? The last time they met, Cao Qiu had looked like she wanted to eat her alive and told her to get lost. Now, seeing this smiling face made her cringe inside.
Gu’er tried to pull her hand back, but Cao Qiu held it tightly and wouldn’t let go. She pulled Gu’er down to sit on the sofa. The look in her eyes was one of utter satisfaction, and the words from her mouth were sickeningly sweet, as if she were Gu’er’s real mother.
Gu’er felt embarrassed for Cao Qiu. ’How can she say such things? How can she act this way? Can a simple change in my status really transform a person so completely?’
Chen Fengjiao’s expression was thunderous. Seeing Cao Qiu clinging to Gu’er’s hand, she had to fight the urge to go over and pry them apart.
Lin Shan also frowned slightly. Although he had made inquiries and knew that Sun Jiaming’s parents weren’t good people, seeing them today left him with a very poor impression. It was a real shame for a young man like Sun Jiaming.
"Gu’er, come sit over here. Why are you sitting with her? It’s not like you’re that close."
Chen Fengjiao called out to Gu’er. She really couldn’t stand to watch anymore.
"Yes."
Gu’er answered and tried to get up. Sitting next to Cao Qiu made her skin crawl, but Cao Qiu just held on, refusing to let her go.
"Oh, come on now, sister. Gu’er is your daughter, but she’s also my daughter-in-law. What’s the difference whose side she sits on? She lives here, so you see her every day. I just got here, can’t you let us two have a moment to be close?"
No matter what Chen Fengjiao said, Cao Qiu simply would not let Gu’er go.
Gu’er was in awe of Cao Qiu’s shamelessness.
"Oh, Gu’er, your Auntie really misses you. Why didn’t you come visit me? I talk about you all day long at home. Honestly, you silly child."
"Oh, Gu’er, you should come to our house tomorrow. I’ll make you sauerkraut turnovers. My sauerkraut turnovers are absolutely delicious. The smell alone is heavenly."
"Oh, Gu’er..."
"Oh, Gu’er..."
Cao Qiu held Gu’er’s hand, her mouth never stopping as a constant stream of words poured out.
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Thank you to 125401451 for the monthly ticket, and to Ning Zhihai for the thumbs-up! Thanks to everyone for your support. My daughter had a performance this afternoon, and I didn’t get back until almost 6. I made dinner for her and her dad, and then started writing before I even got a chance to eat. I’m going to go grab a bite now. Have a great day, everyone!
