Han Muzi looked at the girl standing behind Tang Yuanyuan and saw herself in those eyes. She had also been in the same position when she first married into the Ye Family.
Meng Kefei felt Han Muzi peering at her and shrank back even more out of fear.
“Is that you, Fei? The one who’s been friends with Yuanyuan for years?” Han Muzi tried her best to soften her voice and seemed more warm and approachable.
As expected, Meng Kefei nodded after hearing that.
“Yes.”
“I hear from Yuanyuan that you’re always looking out for her. Since you’re here now, you should ease up. Perhaps you can stay here for a couple of days too. Yuanyuan, do you want to sleep with her?”
Tang Yuanyuan quickly put an arm over Meng Kefei’s shoulders. “Yes. Fei and I will stay together.”
“Okay. I’ll get someone to sort that out, then.”
…
That night, Meng Kefei ate dinner with the whole family. Throughout the meal, she was too afraid of making any movements because she did not want to do something wrong.
Fortunately, Tang Yuanyuan took care of her and kept putting more food in her bowl. Between Yuchi Yishu’s parents, other than Han Muzi, the one Tang Yuanyuan called Uncle Ye was cold. He only nodded and said one thing to her, and did not have any other expression on his face.
At first, Meng Kefei thought he did not like her. But she realized later that he treated everyone that way and even treated his son even more poorly. Therefore, she got used to it.
When Little Sprout heard that Tang Yuanyuan was sleeping with Meng Kefei that night, she insisted that she wanted to join them. Then, the three of them ended up sleeping together.
Right before they went to bed and right as Meng Kefei realized that she did not bring any spare clothes, Tang Yuanyuan brought in three sets of outfits.
“Aunty Han prepared this for the three of us. They’re all the same style. Fei, this is your size.” Tang Yuanyuan handed over a blue nightgown to Meng Kefei.
“Ah, I get one too?”
Meng Kefei was flattered. I didn’t know Aunty Han was so caring. After she took the dress, she felt slightly touched.
Then, the other two girls pulled her into the bathroom in high spirits.
The three of them were in the shower together which Meng Kefei was not used to at first. She was very reserved until they started splashing water at her, then they all had fun together.
After their shower, the three girls each changed into their identical nightgowns and snuggled together. Once the lights were off, Little Sprout suddenly asked, “Yuanyuan, Fei, What do you guys want to do when you grow up?”
That was probably the one topic that little girls would talk about whenever they got together. After all, children always anticipated their own future.
Tang Yuanyuan spoke up first, “Eat all the delicious food in the world, then open up my own restaurant chain!”
Little Sprout blinked and queried, “But there is a lot of delicious food in the world, Yuanyuan. What are you thinking of specifically?”
Tang Yuanyuan did not know how to choose after being asked like that. Indeed, there are plenty of delicious foods in the world. “I’m just going to open a lot of stores when the time comes. What about you?”
“I don’t know either. As long as I can live with my daddy and mommy, I’ll be really happy. Though, I do want to sing.”
“Sing?” Tang Yuanyuan was surprised. “Aren’t you learning to dance now? Why the sudden interest in music?”
Little Sprout bit her bottom lip and did not respond.
After a while, Little Sprout asked, “What about you, Fei?”
“That’s right, Fei. You haven’t told us yours yet.”
In truth, Meng Kefei was not interested in joining their conversation. As a child from a poor family, what privilege did she have to hope for a bright future? She was only trying to get by. It was uncertain when life would get difficult for her and she might have to drop out of school. She could not afford to think any further ahead.
“Fei?”
She pulled her focus back and smiled. “I don’t know what the future holds either. I’ve never thought about it. I’m just trying to live each day to the fullest.”
Because Little Sprout was still naïve and clueless, she replied blatantly, “Your wish is so cool, Fei. Living each day to the fullest. I want to do that too!”
Meng Kefei smiled bitterly. This is a child who was spoiled and showered with love growing up. How could she understand the struggles of someone like me?
As the three girls talked, Little Sprout fell asleep first followed by Tang Yuanyuan.
Meng Kefei listened to the sound of their steady breathing from beside as she stared at the dark wall and was unable to fall asleep for a long time. Her eyes lit up so brightly in the dark night that it was slightly astonishing.
What future can I hope for?
In this big and marvelous house, I’m just like a worm that was born in the dark. I can never reach the top. I might have to drop out of school anytime or have to face societal pressures.
Closing her eyes, she felt anguish in her heart.
Life is just not fair. Some people are born with a silver spoon in their mouths. Everything has been laid out for them, and all they have to do is walk along the paved path.
I, on the other hand, was born with nothing. No one did all the hard work before me, and no one is there to cheer me on. I’m alone. Even if I tried, I’ll just end up at everyone else’s starting point.
How sad is that?
Moreover, the cost of the material of the nightgown she was wearing now might just be equivalent to a whole month of her living expenses.
See; the clothes of the rich are a month of my living expenses while I am still trying to figure out how much more I could save on my expenses every month.
That night was the hardest night for Meng Kefei to get through. She did not know when she fell asleep, but she started to feel tired so she closed her eyes and eventually fell asleep.
Not long after she fell asleep, however, she heard a sound from outside. Frightened, she immediately woke up and noticed that there were footsteps outside.
Meng Kefei saw that it was around dusk. She looked at the time and it was only five in the morning. Why are there footsteps outside at this hour?
She slid out of bed quietly and carefully tiptoed outside.
After taking a look around, she did not see anyone. Thinking that she might have misheard, she prepared to head back inside when she heard a guy’s voice.
“Up so early?”
Her back instantly stiffened. She quickly turned around and realized that it was Yuchi Yishu. He had changed into a tracksuit and was wearing a pair of sports shoes. It looks like he’s going for a morning run.
No, I shouldn’t be thinking of this right now. She waved her hands and explained, “I-I’m sorry. I just heard some noise so I came out to see. I didn’t mean to—”
“Okay. It’s still early. You should go back to sleep.”
She asked naturally, “Are you going for a morning run?”
“Yes.”
“Oh, o-okay.”
She turned around and went back into the room. After she closed the door, her heart was still pounding very quickly.
