Squinting in the torchlight, Su Li's gaze passed over everyone in the courtyard, one by one.
It was the same people from her past life, with the same looks in their eyes. She had remembered their vile expressions for an entire lifetime, never once forgetting. Especially *hers*!
Su Li's gaze finally settled on the face of the person before her.
'Qin Caihua. No, I should call her Qin Shanshan.'
This girl, originally named Caihua, had changed her name to Qin Shanshan after starting high school because she thought her birth name was ugly.
Qin Shanshan was the same age as Su Li, both eighteen years old. She was the younger daughter of their next-door neighbor, Aunt Li, and the only girl in the village to attend high school. She was also the only 'best friend' Su Li had poured her heart out to after marrying into the Tang Family.
In her past life, it was this very 'best friend' who had sown discord, causing Su Li's relationship with Tang Mo to deteriorate. And on this day, the day Tang Mo disappeared, it was her 'unintentional' suggestions that convinced the villagers Su Li had sold the boy!
As if that accusation wasn't enough, her 'best friend' went on to fabricate a secret lover for her, slandering her name and utterly ruining her life.
In her past life, Su Li had been framed by this intimate friend she'd poured her heart out to. Only after watching her kill without spilling blood did Su Li see her supposed best friend's true colors. She had nearly gone insane with rage that night!
The depth of her former affection was matched only by the depth of her subsequent pain and hatred. Su Li loathed Qin Shanshan, and the two who were once like sisters had become mortal enemies.
Su Li had dreamed of getting revenge, but in her past life, she could barely fend for herself, let alone exact vengeance.
Su Li only discovered the reason for Qin Shanshan's elaborate scheme to frame her after Shanshan married Tang Yuanxiao, becoming his third wife.
Qin Shanshan was eight years younger than Tang Yuanxiao. The age gap was too large for them to be considered childhood sweethearts, but since their families were neighbors, they had known each other since they were young.
During her first blush of youth, Tang Yuanxiao returned from the city, handsome and dashing, leagues ahead of the other village boys. Qin Shanshan felt the first stirrings of a crush, but before she could even sort out her feelings, Tang Yuanxiao got married.
His wife was from the city—beautiful, well-mannered, and miles ahead of a young country girl like Qin Shanshan.
Qin Shanshan had nearly given up hope when, unexpectedly, Tang Mo's mother died in childbirth. Her ambitions were rekindled, but she was still too young, and Tang Yuanxiao was rarely home, so all she could do was wait and scheme.
She was young, but her mind was full of schemes. Mrs. Tang had always been fond of her, and everything was going according to plan—until Su Li came out of nowhere.
She grit her teeth and swallowed her bitterness, cozying up to Su Li with ulterior motives. She drove a wedge between Su Li and Tang Mo, even hinting, both overtly and covertly, that Su Li should "take care of" the boy. When that failed to work and her patience was wearing thin, Su Li finally handed the butcher's knife right to her.
Qin Shanshan was ecstatic. She used Su Li's hand to eliminate that eyesore, Tang Mo. Then she used Tang Mo's disappearance to eliminate Su Li, all while winning the Tang family's favor. It was killing three birds with one stone! Her success was just around the corner!
"Aunt Tang, don't be anxious. You should ask Su Li properly," Qin Shanshan said, first comforting Su Li, then turning to placate Mrs. Tang.
How could Mrs. Tang not be anxious? Tang Mo was her everything. The more Qin Shanshan tried to calm her, the more agitated she became. "Su Li, tell me! Where did Momo go? Didn't I tell you to watch him? If you dared to sell him, I... I'll never forgive you."
Mrs. Tang was over fifty. Though normally mild-mannered and patient, she completely erupted, her eyes filled with a crazed look.
Su Li believed she would do exactly as she said. She had learned that the hard way in her past life.
Seeing Mrs. Tang's crazed expression again and remembering everything she had done to her, a flash of hatred crossed Su Li's eyes. She forcefully pried the woman's hands off her and said in a cold voice.
"Who said I sold Tang Mo? Who was it?"
'They were pinning the blame on her so fast. It had only been a moment, and they'd already reached a verdict. Su Li was certain that even though they called it suspicion, if she hadn't found Little Tang Mo, the accusation would have stuck to her once again, no matter what.'
Hearing Su Li's question, Mrs. Tang's eyes went blank for a second. She couldn't seem to recall who had said it, or even where the idea that 'Su Li sold Tang Mo' had come from.
"Su Li, nobody said that exactly. It's just... Momo is missing, everyone's worried, and they remembered you once said you were going to sell Tang Mo, so they just..." Qin Shanshan immediately explained.
She called it an explanation, but it was really a reminder of Su Li's past words, meant only to solidify the suspicion that she had sold Tang Mo.
Mrs. Tang had returned home at dusk to find the house empty. She wasn't worried about Su Li's absence, but when she saw Tang Mo was gone, she rushed out to find him.
He wasn't at Aunt Li's next door, nor at any of the other neighbors' houses. She quickly searched half the village but couldn't find Tang Mo. No one in the village had seen him all day.
That was when Mrs. Tang started to panic. The villagers helped her search. They scoured the entire village and even the mountain behind it, but there was still no sign of Tang Mo. At first, the villagers tried to comfort Mrs. Tang, suggesting that since Su Li was also gone, she might have taken Tang Mo with her.
But Qin Shanshan, ever so eager to help, expressed her "worries," guiding everyone toward the suspicion that Su Li might have sold Tang Mo.
The Su Li of the past had been hopelessly naive. Goaded by Qin Shanshan, she had become resentful that Tang Mo wouldn't call her "Mama" and had foolishly decided to learn from Zhao Guihua, the village's infamous shrew.
Zhao Guihua was also the village's notoriously vicious stepmother. She was fierce, constantly beating or cursing the two children her husband had with his first wife. Her favorite refrain was, 'You little monsters, if you don't listen, I'll sell you.'
The two children were terrified of her. The moment they saw her, they were like mice seeing a cat, tremblingly calling her "Ma."
Qin Shanshan had told Su Li that children needed to be harshly disciplined to be obedient and call her "Mama." So, copying Zhao Guihua, Su Li had once threatened to sell Little Tang Mo.
More than half the village had heard about this threat. Because of Su Li's subsequent behavior, nobody liked her. So now, in their hearts, they were convinced that if Tang Mo was missing, Su Li must have sold him.
The moment Qin Shanshan finished speaking, the villagers' gazes turned on Su Li, full of suspicion, hatred, and disgust. Murmurs broke out among them.
"Did Su Li really sell Little Tang Mo?"
"Who else could it be! Tang Mo is such a well-behaved boy; how could he just disappear like that!"
Hearing this, Su Li couldn't help but let out a cold laugh. "This is absurd."
Mrs. Tang lost all control. She grabbed Su Li and demanded frantically, "Tell me! Where did you sell my grandson? Tell me now! If you don't talk, I'll kill you!"
'Even though she hadn't even said Tang Mo was missing, events were unfolding exactly as they had in her past life. Everything was identical. Qin Shanshan's words, the crowd's reaction... it was all the same. How ironic... How utterly ironic.'
Su Li couldn't help but lower her head with a scornful laugh. She suddenly abandoned the idea of explaining to everyone that Tang Mo was simply asleep at home.
'Since Qin Shanshan has gone to all the trouble of setting the stage, I might as well play along. I suffered so much injustice in my past life. This time, I have to at least collect some interest.'
Having made up her mind, Su Li helped Mrs. Tang up, just as she had in her previous life. "Mother, you've misunderstood. How could I possibly sell Tang Mo? Please don't accuse me so wrongly. Get up, please."