Ye Ling couldn't believe her mother had the heart to talk to her. After some thinking and considering past life's events, she vaguely understood the motive behind the timing, and looked up at her mother without showing any emotion.
Pretending to be dumb and dazed.
Bai Xue struggled to start the conversation, yet her daughter in front of her remained silent, as if punching through cotton, using all her strength without getting any reaction, which instead made her feel suffocated and hurt.
Fortunately, over the years in the compound, Bai Xue had developed a skill, though not much else—she could smile no matter how her opponent behaved. Therefore, in everyone's impression, Bai Xue was a person without temper, like a lump of dough that could be kneaded any way you want.
So, despite being annoyed inside, Bai Xue quickly calmed down and smiled amiably, saying, "You're such a child, when we were buying clothes just now, how did you find that salesperson?"
"Ah," Ye Ling seemed to just realize, and then, sounding rather infuriating without backing down, said, "She was quite nice, seeing that the clothes Mom bought for me didn't fit, she even volunteered to help pick out others."
Bai Xue twitched her mouth and squeezed words out through clenched teeth, "I'm not talking about the person, I'm talking about her job. Nowadays, jobs like theirs are highly valued, they can easily get hold of fabric and clothes, unlike us who need ration tickets to buy things like canned food, without tickets you can't buy anything, but they are different, they have their own ways, many people suck up to them."
"Moreover, such places aren't easily accessible for everyone to work at." As Bai Xue spoke, she kept her gaze fixed on her daughter, wanting to see her reaction.
Ye Ling's young and naive face showed a faint reaction, slow to understand, before letting out an "oh," indicating that she understood but still said nothing more.
In her past life, when her mother persuaded her to quit school and work, Ye Ling remembered she did not react this way. Previously, she was vain, tempted by the idea of earning money to buy many fashionable clothes, praised by people in the compound for being sensible and earning early, and upon hearing the family was struggling financially, her mother wanted her to help alleviate the burden, she immediately agreed to quit school, ending her studies.
Looking back now, Ye Ling thought she was truly foolish in her past life, otherwise how could she fail to see through such matters? Living again, apart from feeling most sorry towards Shen Bin, she felt she had not wronged anyone else.
Bai Xue realized her method wasn't working when the elder daughter remained silent, so she switched topics, "Lingzi, it's just because our family conditions aren't great, otherwise this age is perfect for wearing nice clothes. Generally, in the city, girls at your age usually work to earn money and spend, so they seem better dressed than you."
"In recent years, your father's salary hasn't increased much, merely a few yuan, and everyone is in a similar situation, but there are many expenses in the family too. I want to work, but if I go, there's nobody to look after the house. Your father is seldom home, what would you all do?" Bai Xue sighed and lowered her head.
Ye Ling replied indifferently, "What's there to do, I've grown up in the countryside, never needed mom to care for me. As for Ye Qian, isn't she in school every day? Mom can still come home after work in the evening to cook for her."
If she hadn't lived another life, Ye Ling wouldn't have seen through her mother as a lazy person. In the compound, other women were working; those few at home were only there because their husbands had high positions, and even among those with high positions, some still worked. If really feeling burdened by one person supporting the family, why wouldn't they go and work? Moreover, the father is a professor, arranging a job for family members isn't difficult, unlike ordinary families where it's mandatory to take over a position to work.
Bai Xue was blocked by her daughter's words.
Before Bai Xue could find a reason to retort, she heard her daughter speak again, "Working now, even if earning money, should think about the future too. With education, there will be various jobs available in the future. People should not just look at the present but look further ahead."
Bai Xue's eyes widened, her chest puffing with anger, yet she couldn't find a way to argue.
Well then, it seems this daughter isn't dumb or dull, she's just thoughtless, a blunt person, or rather a stone in a stinky toilet—both smelly and hard.
[Heart was uncomfortable yesterday, then the child had a fever in the middle of the night, I just feel like being a single mother is really exhausting, I'll try to update more tomorrow during the day. I'm sorry.]