The grapes on the plate had a glistering appearance from the water droplets on them and looked especially tempting. There was also a pile of blueberries that smelt very fragrant.
“Try some of the fruits from our courtyard!”
Qiao Mei took a few grapes and handed them to Li Gui. She was afraid that Li Gui would feel uncomfortable and wanted her to open up more.
Li Gui tasted a grape and was immediately captivated by how sweet it was. Her eyes lit up, it was as if she had not eaten such delicious fruits in a long time.
She slowly relaxed as well.
“It’s like this. Not long after I got married, your grandmother came to look for me and said that you were going hungry…” Li Gui said, her eyes looking like they were filled with memories.
Even after she went to the city, Old Madam Li would come and look for her every few months to ask for money and other things.
The round-trip train fare was not cheap, but Old Madam Li would evade the fare and steal a ride. When she saw the ticket inspector, she would find a place to hide, then she would find a seat again after the inspector left. Anyway, the long distance did nothing to dissuade Old Madam Li from looking for Li Gui.
In any case, in the past decade or so, she had never stopped giving Old Madam Li money and other things.
As Li Gui told her story, she looked at Qiao Mei and asked again with an indignant expression, “She… really didn’t come over even once? She didn’t give you money even once?”
There was a tremor in her voice.
“Yes, the entire village can be my witness. She didn’t come over even once, and I didn’t take anything from her,” Qiao Mei said firmly.
Li Gui felt terrible. She lowered her head in silence and placed her hands together helplessly.
Qiao Mei did not say anything and just looked at her.
The original owner of the body was particularly disgruntled about the fact that Li Gui got remarried, left her alone in the village when she was still young and caused her to almost starve to death. She was very fixated on this matter and even hated Li Gui very much.
The original owner of the body had previously told Qiao Yu that she wished she could fight with her mother.
However, Qiao Mei was not the original owner of the body. She had transmigrated here and naturally did not share the same emotions, so she did not hate Li Gui. In fact, from Li Gui’s standpoint, she could understand some of the actions taken.
She had almost starved to death when she was young not because her mother was unwilling to support her, but because her mother was not smart enough.
To put it in another way…
Li Gui was simply too unlucky to have such a top quality mother.
Qiao Mei originally had no feelings for Li Gui, but after hearing what Li Gui said, she gave a long sigh.
She pitied her a little and wanted to help her.
“Let’s get grandmother to take out the money,” Qiao Mei said.
Li Gui shook her head repeatedly and kept saying no.
Qiao Mei found it strange and questioned her back, “Are you still concerned about the kinship between the two of you? She had lied to you so terribly!”
A person can be stupid, but not foolishly filial.
Otherwise, even if she wants to help, there is nothing she can do.
“No, no, no, that’s not what I meant,” Li Gui shook her head again and said. “No, you… you can’t beat her. She’s very shrewish.”
Her mother was very shrewd and vicious when it came to the things she cared about. Qiao Mei was still young and was unlikely to be a match for Old Madam Li. Moreover, Qiao Mei was currently pregnant.
It would not be worth it if anything should happen to her while dealing with Old Madam Li.
After saying that, she looked at Qiao Mei’s stomach with concern.
Qiao Mei felt her gaze and instantly understood what she meant. She smiled immediately.
Not bad, it would be worth helping her.
“Besides, I’m afraid there’s not much left of that money. By now, it would be almost all spent. When her eldest grandson got married, they spent a lot of money.”
Li Gui could not help but sigh.
The betrothal gift alone cost 60 dollars for that wedding and it was considered a high price for that time. She had wondered why her family still had so much money and also why her mother had not asked her to subsidize part of the costs.
It turned out that… she was the one who had actually paid for everything.
Qiao Mei smiled again and sized up Li Gui’s face. Suddenly, she had a little bit of affection for this instant mother of hers.
“Well, then how is your life now? Is Zhang Qian good to you? Do you have any new children?”
Li Gui looked at Qiao Qiang uneasily.