Chapter 7: The Pendant Disappeared

“Mom, I’m fine.” She wasn’t just saying this to comfort her mother she truly was unharmed.

The redness on her face came from rubbing peanuts, and the rope marks on her wrists were self-inflicted. In this era, the village had no concept of fingerprint verification, so even if she had tied herself up, there was no way to prove it.

After all, Jiang Jiali had already been cast as the wrongdoer. Combined with her usual reputation in the village, everyone formed preconceived notions that no one would believe him anyway.

Besides Jiang Jiali, even Liu Guixiang and Lu Niannian might have doubts. But so, what? Jiang Jiali was currently unconscious, and even if he woke up, nobody would trust his words.

The only pity was that she hadn’t done the deed herself. She needed to fully embody the victim role so she could torment them properly later.

She had to make them suffer thoroughly before moving out.

“Wait until your father finishes discussing matters, then come home with us. We’re not staying in this place anymore.”

Chen Xueying grasped her mother’s hand: “Mom, I can’t leave. If I go now, what if the Jiang family turns the tables and claims I was kidnapped? Everyone here is from the Jiang family. What if Jiang Jiali denies everything later?”

Wang Shufen was immediately stumped by Chen Xueying’s question. Chen Xueying was preparing her mother in advance; this matter was half-truths, half-life. When Jiang Jiali woke up and understood the seriousness of the situation, he would deny having hit or tied her up.

“Mom, I’m completely innocent. I need to stay right here.”

“But…” Wang Shufen looked at her with concern.

“Mom, this time Jiang Jiali’s beating really woke me up. I won’t be infatuated with him anymore. Besides, you and my sisters-in-law have work to do you need to spread this news quickly.”

“If we’re too late and things settle down, it’ll be bad if Liu Guixiang and Jiang Jali coordinate their stories later. Then we won’t be able to explain things clearly.”

“Right now, it’s only because Jiang Jiali was caught in the act that he doesn’t dare say anything. But who can guarantee what will happen once he recovers?”

Wang Shufen’s eyes shifted as she listened to Chen Xueying’s words, clearly taking them to heart. She wiped her tears: “Don’t worry, daughter. Leave this matter to your mother and your sister-in-law. I’ll go tell your sister-in-law to spread the word throughout the village. I’ll come find you again later!”

“Okay!” Chen Xueying nodded emotionally. “Mom, thank you so much!”

Wang Shufen gave her a reproachful look: “We’re family no need for thanks. Just don’t let your head get muddled again in the future.”

She sighed, swallowing all the words she wanted to say when she saw her daughter’s swollen face.

She needed to go back and boil some eggs to roll over her daughter’s face. Look how badly her face was beaten, those Jiang family people were truly despicable.

Wang Shufen hurried away, leaving Chen Xueying alone sitting on the kang, calm and composed unlike a woman who had just been injured. Her hand unconsciously moved to her neck.

That was where her grandmother’s pendant used to hang, but now it was empty.

Ever since her blood unlocked the Dimension, the pendant had disappeared.

In her previous life, just before her wedding, her father was suddenly reported to be abusing power for personal gain. She only learned later that it was Jiang Jiali who did it, he hated her for liking him, preventing him from being with his true love.

He went to the commune leadership to report to her father. How hateful that she initially thought it was just someone jealous of her father who reported him, completely unaware it was that ungrateful wolf’s doing.

Because she used to be love stricken, she often asked her father to help Jiang Jiali’s family and Lu Niannian evade labor duties.

That was why her father had no defense when the authorities came to investigate.

If not for the fact that most of the village consisted of the Chen family and their relatives, her father’s position as village secretary would likely have been stripped outright.

Now, during this probation period, even though Jiang Jiali had insulted her so deeply by not showing up for the wedding, no matter how furious she was, she couldn’t call off the marriage directly.

In her previous life, Jiang Jiali had colluded with his uncle, coaxing and pressuring her father into giving up his position as village secretary. Later, Jiang Jiali’s uncle took over that role.

Jiang Jiali harbored hatred for their family. After his uncle assumed power in her past life, he continuously assigned her father the hardest and most exhausting tasks, which ultimately led to his tragic death in an accident.

Even after her father’s death, they showed no intention of stopping. Not only did they assign the most grueling work to her family, but Jiang Jiali, as the work point recorder, consistently shortchanged their family’s labor credits.

With many mouths to feed but no grain, her eldest and second brothers had no choice but to risk going up the mountain.

The mountain was infested with venomous snakes, and in her previous life, both brothers were bitten to death.

Later, the third brother, to support their critically ill mother, sister-in-law, and mentally disabled nephew, resorted to taking risks in the black market. Somehow, Jiang Jiali discovered this and reported him, leading to the third brother’s arrest.

In the end, only the elderly, weak, sick, and disabled remained in the family. One can imagine how difficult life became afterward.

But by then, she had already died. If not for being unable to reincarnate after death and following her son, she wouldn’t have witnessed any of this.

Now that Jiang Jiali was embroiled in such a scandal himself, if he tried to report to others again, he would have no credibility left.

Instead, he should be worried about her family reporting him for his promiscuous relationships.
Just as Chen Xueying was lost in thought, her elder brother Chen Qinghai’s voice came from outside: “Little sister, are you in your room?”

Chen Xueying snapped back to reality, walked to the door, and opened it: “What is it, big brother?”

Chen Qinghai first studied his sister’s expression. Aside from the frightening swelling on her face, she appeared relatively calm. Clearing his throat, he said:

“Dad and Granduncle have already proposed the marriage exchange. Your mother-in-law has agreed, but she said you must be present when building the house.”

After speaking, Chen Qinghai glanced anxiously at his younger sister.

Their father claimed this was their sister’s idea, but none of the siblings believed it. Still, this arrangement was indeed the best for her.

However, he knew how blindly devoted his sister had been to Jiang Jiali all these years. Liu Guixiang’s demand for her presence was clearly just a ploy to exclude her from the housing allocation during the separation.

“Since you’ve decided on the marriage exchange, it’s better to completely break ties with Jiang Jiali’s side!” he cautiously reminded.

Normally, his sister was the gentlest person, but whenever it came to Jiang Jiali, she became a different person—unwilling to hear a single word against him.

Looking at her wonderful elder brother, Chen Xueying fought back the tears welling in her eyes and nodded firmly.

Her reaction, however, made Chen Qinghai mistakenly think she was still grieving over Jiang Jiali’s betrayal. He felt as if he were crushing his spine, making it hard to breathe.

They had argued tirelessly on her behalf outside, yet Chen Xueying remained ungrateful.

The two walked one after another toward the courtyard. From afar, Liu Guixiang, standing amidst the crowd, spotted her and immediately broke into a wide smile on her round, moonlike face.

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Zephyr Yizelle

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