Chapter 16

Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation

“Then eat more vegetables and less food. I’ll cook shrimp for you next time.”

He Jihong smiled kindly and picked up a few pieces of braised pork for Tang Weiguo. Then, she secretly glared at Chu Qiao, who was eating shrimp in big mouthfuls. She wasn’t afraid of dying from overeating.

Tang Weiguo smiled and agreed, but his heart was bitter. He really didn’t like to eat shrimp. What the hell was Chu Peng doing?

The phone rang. He Jihong stood up to answer the call. “Sister Yuzhen, I was just about to call you. I’m eating. Have you eaten yet…”

Chu Qiao’s hand that was peeling the prawns paused. Zhu Yuzhen, Gu Jianshe’s mother, her evil mother-in-law from her previous life.

Calling at this time was definitely about the morning blind date, and it definitely wouldn’t be good. Chu Qiao quickened her pace of peeling the prawns. Before the storm came, she had to fill her stomach.

The smile on He Jihong’s face slowly froze, and her grip on the phone became tighter and tighter. Her voice turned cold, “Sister Yuzhen, I got it. I’ll talk to her properly. I’m really sorry. Sigh, my identity is too sensitive, and some things are really hard to say. As long as you don’t blame me, you can talk to Jianshe. Next time, I’ll introduce him to someone better.”

After exchanging pleasantries for a while, He Jihong hung up the phone and forced out a smile. Tang Weiguo was still around, so she couldn’t lose her temper.

However, her heart was burning. This little sl*t was playing it by ear. She told her that the blind date was pretty good, but Gu Jianshe wasn’t satisfied at all. He said that this little sl*t clearly expressed that she wasn’t willing to be the stepmother of two children. She also said that her heart wasn’t good, that she couldn’t be bullied, that she couldn’t work, and that she couldn’t have children. What was worse was that she ordered a lot of things on their first meeting.

No wonder Gu Jianshe was so scared that he ran away. This little sl*t definitely did it on purpose. She just wanted to stay at home and enjoy her life. Hmph, in her dreams!

He Jihong looked at Chu Qiao coldly and chewed on the red braised meat hatefully. Gu Jianshe couldn’t do it anymore, so she would ask someone to find an older widower. Hmph, this little sl*t didn’t know what was good for her. Originally, she wanted to find a good marriage for her… Since the little sl*t didn’t care about fortune, then don’t blame her for being ruthless.

Lunch was finally finished. Tang Weiguo felt the strange atmosphere, as if he was sitting on pins and needles. He hurriedly finished his meal and took his leave.

“Come back next time to play!”

He Jihong sent him to the door and even asked Chu Peng to send him downstairs. After the two of them left, the smile on He Jihong’s face disappeared, and her face was as dark as the bottom of a well. She closed the door and shouted at Chu Qiao, who was sitting quietly, “What did you say when you met Gu Jianshe? You said that you don’t want to be a stepmother, that your heart isn’t good, that you can’t work and can’t have children, and that you can’t be bullied. Are you a rich young lady? Are you going to marry him and become his ancestor?”

Chu Yuanzhi secretly complained. The World War had come again, and he didn’t know what had happened recently. The house wasn’t peaceful every day, and his wife didn’t like his daughter. Chu Qiao didn’t seem to be as obedient as she used to be. Sigh, it was too difficult for him to be caught in the middle.

“I never wanted to be a stepmother. Gu Jianshe’s ex-wife gave birth to a child. This man is a curse to his wife!” Chu Qiao said slowly and even took a shrimp from the plate to peel. Her actions were so elegant that He Jihong’s eyes were almost fuming.

She was so angry that she wanted to die, but this little b*tch still had the mood to eat shrimp. This was a blatant provocation!

“Stop eating! I’m talking to you!”

The furious He Jihong shouted at the top of her voice. Even Tang Weiguo downstairs heard it, so the neighbors could also hear it. At this time, they were basically eating lunch at home. The sudden roar alarmed the people on the first floor. Some of the gossipy ones even ran out with their food to watch the show.

“It seems to be Doctor He. What happened to her?”

“Did she quarrel with Doctor Chu?”

The few women exchanged gossipy glances and walked closer to the He family’s house. Chu Qiao’s voice came out from the crack of the door. “Aunt He, you speak your mind. I’ll eat my meal. I’m not full yet.”

“I told you not to eat anymore. Are you deaf?”

How could He Jihong stand such provocation? She was not a good person to begin with. The reason why she could maintain her virtuous reputation all these years was because Chu Qiao was honest and dull. Otherwise, the family would have been thrown into chaos.

The crisp cracking sound startled the people outside the door. A few women were shocked and looked at each other, but their eyes were especially excited.

The good stepmother had finally revealed her true vicious face. There was a big show to watch today.

Chu Qiao looked at the broken porcelain pieces on the ground and the large prawns scattered all over the ground, and sighed regretfully. She still said unhurriedly, “Aunt He, I’m only 21. I’m not at the age where I can’t get married. Not to mention the Gu Jianshe that you introduced to me, who still has two children. The older one is eight years old, and the younger one is eight months old. I definitely can’t take it. If Aunt He thinks that I’m having free meals at home, then I can go back to my hometown in the countryside. My mother left me an acre and three cents of land, so I can still fill feed stomach.”

“What kind of fairy do you think you are? What’s wrong with Gu Jianshe? He has a bright future and a good family background. So what if he has two children? You can learn by taking care of them slowly. I’ve worked hard to plan for you, but you’ve been quietly sabotaging me. Chu Yuanzhi, I won’t care about your daughter anymore. She can do whatever she wants!”

He Jihong’s voice was a little lower, but it was still much louder than usual. The women outside who were listening to the gossip were all excited. They had finally caught He Jihong in the act.

Hmph, what kind of virtuous step-mother? Wasn’t she just pretending? Now, her true colors had been revealed.

Forcing a 21-year-old step-daughter to marry a widower with two children… How could such a man be good? He Jihong didn’t have any good intentions. She arranged for her biological daughter to be with a good young man with outstanding looks and a good family background, while only allowing her step-daughter to become a step-mother.

“Her heart is too ruthless. That girl, Chu Qiao, has always been honest. She can’t even speak up for herself usually, yet she was forced to resist. It can be seen just how bad that man called Gu Jianshe is.”

“How many stepmothers are good? He Jihong is just putting on an act. She talks nice, but we don’t know how she deals with Chu Qiao behind our backs!”

“I’ve seen He Jihong’s true face long ago. Look at how Chu Qiao dresses. She looks fat and big, like an aunt, from behind. Her biological daughter, Xu Bilian, gets new clothes every few days. The treatment of the two daughters is worlds apart. I used to say that He Jihong had a heart of a snake, but you didn’t believe me.”

“Do you know that the incident of Chu Qiao suffering from heatstroke a few days ago was caused by Xu Bilian? She made Chu Qiao run back and forth seven or eight times during the hottest time of the afternoon. She ran back and forth from the machine tool factory to our family’s building five or six miles just to get Xu Bilian a piece of clothing. In the end, she suffered from heatstroke. Fortunately, Aunt Wang saw it, or Chu Qiao would have lost her life.”

“It’s not unusual for Xu Bilian to do such a thing. Before she got married, she always bullied Chu Qiao. Sigh, this child Chu Qiao has a tough life. She can’t even rely on her own parents, and she’s also honest. It’s hard for her to beg for food from her stepmother!”

..

Everyone sighed in unison. They sympathized with Chu Qiao, but that was it. They couldn’t stand up for Chu Qiao. He Jihong’s family background was good, and they couldn’t afford to offend her..