Chapter 135: An Insincere Apology Is Not Needed

As soon as Liu's mother returned with the cement, she saw many people walking toward her: "Laomei, who was that young man who delivered things to you in the big truck today?"

Before her daughter left, she had guessed someone would come to their door and instructed her not to hide the truth; rather than letting them speculate wildly, it was better to explain directly to avoid trouble.

Liu's mother brushed the dust off her hands: "That young man is the soldier who saved Chuxue on the mountain before."

"Oh, I was right, the one in the military uniform that day is the young man driving the truck today."

"Laomei, so what is this young man doing here today?"

"Exactly, could it be he's taken a fancy to your Chuxue?"

"You dare not speak such words recklessly; he came today to repay a kindness. It is true he saved my Chuxue that day, but my Chuxue also helped him; when he was injured, my Chuxue delivered the message to his comrade."

"So that's how it is; this young man is quite a good person."

"Turns out he came to repay a kindness."

"Laomei, since the family split, your household has been much smoother; Shanliang's leg has hope, and you've even built a big house; just wait and see good days ahead."

"Indeed, your Chuxue is clearly a girl blessed with fortune."

But just then, the little daughter of the accountant's family, Liu Shuqin, standing not far away, interjected: "You are truly being insincere; her fiancé from the county town married another girl, yet you say she's blessed? What a joke."

Hearing these words, Liu's mother's face immediately turned cold: "Such a rotten piece of trash; do you think my Chuxue would ever look at him? How dare you speak with such sarcasm here?"

"I'm just stating the facts; why are you, auntie, getting so angry?"

The accountant's family had only one son and one daughter, so the daughter was raised spoiled; not many village girls went to school, and she was one of them.

The Liu family's second branch was an exception; all three daughters had attended school.

Liu Shuqin and Chuxue were the same age and went to school together, but one was a poor student and the other an outstanding one.

Liu Shuqin graduated from junior high but failed to enter senior high; among several girls of her age, only Chuxue went to senior high, and Liu Shuqin had always held a grudge over this, slandering Chuxue behind her back many times.

And now, here she was jumping out again.

Just then, the accountant's wife, Peng Ailan, also walked over; she doted on her daughter but was not someone who couldn't distinguish right from wrong: "Shuqin, why are you everywhere? Hurry and apologize to Aunt Shanliang."

Though they both bore the surname Liu, they were beyond the fifth degree of mourning: "Mom..."

"What 'Mom'? How did I teach you?"

Even if Liu Shuqin was unwilling, she dared not disobey her mother in front of so many people; she gritted her teeth and prepared to apologize.

But Liu's mother said: "I don't need an insincere apology; my family's affairs do not need your daughter to pass judgment; better to mind your own business."

"The Chen family's son acted inhumanely; it is not my Chuxue's fault. I'm afraid only she would have spoken those words before; at such a young age, it is better to accumulate more virtue in one's speech."

Liu's mother gave her no face at all; after all, Liu Shuqin had caused trouble behind her back many times. She hadn't held it against her before because it wasn't necessary, but this girl truly had problems; she had been given too much leeway.

Liu Shuqin had never been so humiliated before: "On what grounds do you say such things about me?"

"Then on what grounds do you speak about my Chuxue? Don't think we are unaware of what you did before; we were just too lazy to hold it against you, and now you're pushing your luck?"

"How did my Chuxue provoke you? Isn't it just that she is better at studying than you? You failed to enter senior high, yet she did; did you need to speak ill of her behind her back time and again?"

"You're lying."

"Whether I'm lying or not, you know better than anyone; do you dare swear to heaven that you never slandered my Chuxue behind her back?"

Liu Shuqin naturally dared not swear; she turned and looked at her own mother: "Mom, they are all bullying me."

At this point, someone who could no longer stand it spoke up: "I say, Shuqin, if you hadn't started the trouble first, would they have spoken about you? Besides, Laomei didn't say anything wrong; you've spoken ill of Chuxue many times before."

Perhaps because her own daughter was indeed ambitious, Liu's mother now felt fully confident; she turned and looked at the accountant's wife: "Ailan, you know your daughter's character best. If I ever learn again that Shuqin is playing those low-level tricks behind my back, don't blame me for coming to your door."