Chapter 4: The Strange Song Family
Sitting on the bus ride home, Song Ye observed the dust floating on the country road and the rows of low houses passing by. It was the first time since her rebirth that she truly felt the reality of being fifteen years old again.
She had indeed come back, returned to this familiar town, changed her fate, and gained a fresh start in life.
Even someone as cold-hearted as Song Ye couldn't help but feel a touch of sentiment and emotion in this moment.
However, this emotion only lasted until she reached her doorstep. Despite not having any contact with her family for almost fifteen years, Song Ye still vividly remembered the humbleness and weariness of her life in the Song family.
With a creak, she pushed open the old door, and the sound echoed through the hallway, momentarily silencing the laughter coming from inside the room.
Song Ye's mother, Lu Lan, sat on the living room sofa and glanced at the door. A trace of disgust flashed in her eyes as she was about to speak, but before she could, her second daughter, Song Tingting, and third daughter, Song Meimei, sitting on the sofa, spoke up in their shrill voices without hesitation. "Song Ye, close the door already! It's freezing outside, do you want to freeze me to death?"
Lu Lan frowned upon hearing this and looked at Song Ye's dirty clothes. "Are you out of your mind, wandering around like this? Your clothes are so dirty, you don't look like a proper girl. Come inside quickly."
At that moment, Song Yuanzhi, the only male member of the family sitting on the sofa, remained silent. He held himself with an air of superiority and gave a disdainful glance to his unfavored daughter.
Song Ye's eyes, hidden beneath her bangs, turned icy. The heart that had been joyful and light due to her rebirth quickly sank once again. Even after fifteen years, the faces of the Song family were still as detestable as ever.
She pursed her lips, holding back the words she wanted to say to her parents. She closed the door, walked back to her room alone, and unexpectedly heard Lu Lan's sarcastic voice from behind her. "Don't even bother saying hello. You should stay in a hotel or hostel if you know our home conditions are difficult. Traveling, what a loser."
Her words were echoed by her two daughters, their voices audible through the closed door.
Song Ye sat on the edge of her bed, looking at the narrow space filled with clothes and socks. She sat on the other side of the bed without even glancing at it.
The Song family lived in a cramped space with only two rooms and a living room. The three daughters had to squeeze into one room, with beds stacked on top of each other. Song Tingting and Song Meimei occupied the lower bed, while Song Ye had to sleep on the upper bunk, where even sitting up was a challenge.
In her previous life, Song Ye was responsible for cleaning and taking care of the household chores for the Song family. After being away for three days, the small room was already in disarray, especially her own bed, which was cluttered with dirty clothes and socks belonging to Song Tingting and Song Meimei.
In the past, Song Ye would have worked hard and complained about this, but now that she had been reborn and understood the cause and effect, she wouldn't let herself be bullied again.
Finally finding a secluded spot, Song Ye took the rough stone out of her storage space and placed it under the dim light to observe it carefully.
The stone had a black sand skin and a delicate, hard texture. It was an old pit planted rough stone. Having been involved in the jadeite trade in her previous life, Song Ye knew that this rough stone had the potential to yield jadeite. The goatee man had carefully hidden the stone in the secret compartment, indicating that it must be an extremely valuable item.
It was said that breaking jade was difficult even for immortals. In the world of gambling stones, some people became rich overnight by relying on rough stones, while others went bankrupt just as quickly. Even the most advanced instruments couldn't reveal the true nature of the stone.
Song Ye played with the stone in her hand, thinking about her current abilities, and decided to give it a try.
With a single thought, the shape of the black rough stone quickly appeared in her mind. She continued to probe inside, and suddenly, she saw a clear green color.
A hint of green!
Song Ye's heart skipped a beat as she carefully examined the water head and color of the jadeite. She tentatively concluded that this was an old pit glass species jadeite, extremely valuable and second only to imperial green.
Unexpectedly, she had acquired such a valuable treasure by chance. Song Ye's gaze swept over the narrow upper bunk, and she made up her mind to find a way to make some money.
As she pondered which wool markets were nearby in Cloud City, a voice called out from outside. "Huh, acting like a lady of the house, waiting for someone to serve her." It was Song Tingting, speaking with the same snarkiness as Lu Lan, which didn't match her beautiful appearance at all.
"Second sister, maybe she's tidying up the room," Song Meimei chimed in, a fourteen-year-old with a cute and innocent demeanor, but her eyes always had a calculating gaze. She thought of the messy room being cleaned up and felt pleased. She then shouted toward the head of the household, "Song Ye, it's time to eat!"
In this family, everyone treated Song Ye as a servant, and her two younger sisters had never called her "sister." So when Song Ye walked out of the door and saw only leftovers on the table, it wasn't surprising.
The Song family had always been like this, instructing Song Ye to work during mealtimes. By the time she finished her work and everyone else had finished eating, Song Ye could only have the leftovers and then be responsible for washing the dishes. It had become a routine she remembered all too well.
But today, looking at the three or two plates of leftovers, Song Ye had no appetite at all. Since becoming an assassin, her standards for food had become higher, and it was truly difficult for her to stomach these things.
After standing at the table for three seconds, she decisively turned around. "I'm not hungry. You can go ahead."
With that, she started walking toward the door. At the moment she was about to leave, the stunned people in the house finally reacted.
"Stop!" Lu Lan's sharp voice rang out, high in decibels, painfully piercing their eardrums due to her obvious breathlessness.
Song Ye froze but didn't turn around. Her act of defiance only darkened Lu Lan's expression completely. "Song Ye, you dare to leave without permission? You think the food at home can't sustain you, a big Buddha? Whether you want to eat or not, before you leave, wash the dishes and chopsticks for me."
She could skip a meal, but she had to do her chores.
Never before had Song Ye felt Lu Lan's favoritism so acutely. She quietly turned to look at Lu Lan sitting at the table, her tone devoid of any fluctuations. "I have something to attend to outside. With so many people at home, I don't think I'll be missed if I wash the dishes alone."
As soon as the words left her mouth, Lu Lan slapped the table with a loud noise. "Song Ye, I can't discipline you anymore, can I? You dare to talk back when I give you some work. As the eldest sister in the family, you set a terrible example. I can see that you need a lesson."
With that, Lu Lan grabbed the broom next to the toilet and rushed toward Song Ye, ready to strike her.
This broom was exclusively used by Song Ye to clean the house, but Lu Lan would take it out in moments of anger, finding endless reasons to take it out on Song Ye, even for the slightest displeasure in her life.
In the past, Song Ye would suppress her anger and obediently take the beating. But today was different.
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