Aunt Liu returned home, and her daughter Liu Guifang immediately frowned upon seeing the empty basket. “Mom, where’s the meat? Didn’t you say there’d be meat today?”

Aunt Liu was still fuming over the matter and jabbed her daughter’s forehead. “Meat, meat, meat—that’s all you ever think about! If only you were useful enough to catch Zhou Yueshen’s eye, I wouldn’t have to wake up early and work late just to take care of those little orphans! Now that his wife has shown up, what are you going to do?”

She looked at her daughter’s increasingly plump figure, rough skin, and dowdy outfits, then thought of Zhou Yueshen’s new wife—a city girl with skin so fair it practically glowed—and felt nothing but disappointment.

Her daughter was already twenty-four. Aunt Liu had spoiled Liu Guifang since childhood, leading her to develop sky-high ambitions, always believing she’d marry into the city.

They’d finally arranged a marriage for her, but within two months, her husband died.

His family blamed her for being ill-fated, claiming she’d brought misfortune, and drove her back home.

Being a widow didn’t help her prospects, and with her age, she couldn’t settle for the village men while the city men wouldn’t even glance her way. Before she knew it, she was nearly twenty-five and still unmarried.

Two years ago, Zhou Yueshen had married, only to divorce soon after.

So Aunt Liu set her sights on him. She started helping out at his place daily, and over time, they became familiar. She offered to take care of his children, and since Zhou Yueshen was busy with work, he agreed.

She’d hoped to gradually push her daughter into his life, assuming he’d eventually take a liking to her.

But even after Liu Guifang helped out several times, Zhou Yueshen never spared her a second glance.

And now, he’d taken another wife.

At the mention of Zhou Yueshen, Liu Guifang’s face flushed with embarrassment.

She hadn’t thought much of him at first—private business owners couldn’t compare to civil servants in status.

Her goal had always been to marry into the city, so when her mother first sent her to the Zhou household, she’d been reluctant.

But after seeing Zhou Yueshen, she changed her mind.

Now, hearing her mother’s words, she panicked. “Wait, Mom, what do you mean? What wife?”

“That girl from the Lin Family! I heard she’s educated, and Zhou Yueshen even gave her three thousand in betrothal gifts!”

“But—wasn’t she not their real daughter? Didn’t they say the engagement fell through?”

“She wasn’t, but the real daughter came back! She took Lin Sisi’s place and showed up at his doorstep!”

Liu Guifang was frantic. “What? How could this happen? What am I supposed to do now?”

“Hmph, what else? Drive her away! Don’t worry, even if I don’t interfere, those little orphans won’t make life easy for her.”

Aunt Liu, still resentful over the humiliation she suffered at Si Nian’s hands, decided she’d stop going to the Zhou household starting tomorrow. Let’s see how she handles three children on her own! When Zhou Yueshen inevitably comes begging for help, she’d make sure to exaggerate how Si Nian couldn’t stand her presence.

The thought made Aunt Liu smirk. She didn’t even have grandchildren of her own, yet she was stuck taking care of someone else’s. If not for her daughter’s sake and the perks she could squeeze from the Zhou household, she’d never lower herself to being a maid.

Chin raised, she was certain Zhou Yueshen would come crawling back to apologize.

With that, her mood instantly improved.

Meanwhile, in the city, at the Si household…

The family sat around the dinner table, and Si’s Mother sighed. “I wonder how Nian is doing. I hope she’s adjusting to the countryside.”

Si’s Father also wore a guilty expression. At the time, overwhelmed by pity for their biological daughter, he’d impulsively suggested Si Nian take her place in the marriage. Now, the thought of his carefully raised daughter being handed over to a country bumpkin weighed heavily on him.

“Dad, Mom… maybe I should go talk to Nian and convince her to come back. I’ll keep trying to persuade my foster parents to return the betrothal money. If they refuse, I’ll work to earn it back myself. I’ll drop out of school and find a job—I won’t let you suffer because of me.” Lin Sisi sat with tears in her eyes, her voice full of remorse.

The moment she mentioned quitting school, both parents protested. “Absolutely not! You’re our daughter—how could we let you work instead of study?”

Coming from the countryside, they were already worried the Fu Family would look down on her. But knowing she was still in school gave them some relief—educated women were highly valued in this era. If she excelled academically like Si Nian, the Fu Family might accept her.

But if she started working? What would people think?

And three thousand yuan was no small sum. The average worker only made thirty or forty a month—how long would it take her to earn that much? They had no idea what the man did for a living to afford such a dowry.

If it were just a few hundred, they might’ve scraped together the money. But thousands? That was impossible.

They weren’t about to play the fool and pay off the Lin Family’s debt.

“Let’s just leave it be. We’ll make it up to her in other ways.”

Unwilling to let their daughter drop out but equally unwilling to pay, they resigned themselves to letting Si Nian bear the hardship.

No matter how deep the affection, when interests clashed, even the strongest bonds could shatter.

Lin Sisi exhaled in relief. As if she’d actually work for Si Nian’s sake! That woman had stolen over a decade of her life—she hadn’t even begun to repay her yet.

This was only the beginning. She’d known the family would never cough up three thousand yuan, nor would they let her quit school. She’d said those words precisely to make them abandon Si Nian completely.

Si Nian… in our past life, you stole my future and left me in misery. Now, the tables have turned. Don’t blame me—blame your parents for their mistake, the one that ruined my life.

Si Nian sneezed as she finished drying Yaoyao’s hair and dressed her.

Now that the little one was clean, she looked even more adorable. Though her skin was slightly chapped, children healed quickly. Si Nian dabbed some of her own snow cream on the girl’s face, leaving it soft and moisturized.

After playing for a while, Yaoyao grew tired and dozed off almost instantly.

Her tiny head nestled against Si Nian’s neck, her fine hair silky to the touch.

There was something soothing about the warm, milky softness of a child—it made one reluctant to let go.

Plus, Yaoyao was so thin she weighed almost nothing, making her easy to carry.

Once the girl was sound asleep, Si Nian gently laid her on the bed.

The bed was now covered with her pink floral silk bedding, cool and comfortable—perfect for summer.

The only downside was that the man’s wooden bed lacked padding, making it uncomfortably firm.

But this was the countryside. Si Nian wasn’t so delicate that she couldn’t handle a hard mattress.

She gathered her thick black hair into a ponytail. In her past life, overwork and stress had left her nearly bald.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep