The Abused Heroine Stops Pretending [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 83.1

Everyone sat in the open courtyard, gathered around small tables and stools. Looking up, they could see the dazzling stars filling the sky, and glancing down, they spotted fireflies flickering among the grass.

The chirping of insects filled the air, and mosquitoes buzzed around their legs as they swatted them away with palm-leaf fans.

“Nan-jie, the stir-fried river snails you made are amazing even better than my mom’s!” Erniu exclaimed, giving an exaggerated thumbs-up.

Qin Nanshu lightly tapped his back with her fan. “No amount of flattery will work. You’re never going near the river again.”

The tap didn’t hurt at all, and Erniu laughed heartily. “Got it!”

Qin Nanshu glanced at the other kids, who quickly chimed in, “We got it, Nan-jie!”

Qin Nanshu smiled. “Good.”

When she turned her head, she met Chi Yu’s gaze. The little girl’s eyes were large, her pupils dark and round like glistening grapes.

Seeing her like this, Qin Nanshu said, “Xiaoyu, you can’t go to the river either.”

Chi Yu instantly beamed, her sweet dimples appearing as she nodded vigorously and let out an “Mmm,” looking utterly delighted.

Her smile was contagious, and Qin Nanshu couldn’t help but grin too. The other children, seeing the adults laugh, joined in as well.

“Fireflies, fireflies! Let’s catch fireflies!” Xiaoqiang shouted.

“No,” Tang Jing said sternly. “What did you all just promise me? Have you forgotten already?”

Fireflies hovered near the riverbank grass, and going there to catch them risked an accidental fall.

The little ones stuck out their tongues and made faces, not daring to mention catching fireflies again.

After finishing the snails, the kids clamored for Granny Qin to tell them stories, they loved listening to her tales.

Tang Jing poured a glass of water for Chi Yu and sat beside her, fanning them both while swatting away the mosquitoes around their legs.

Chi Yu reached out, making soft sounds, gesturing for Tang Jing to hand her the fan.

“You want to fan?” Tang Jing asked.

Chi Yu nodded.

“Here you go.”

Taking the fan, Chi Yu imitated Tang Jing’s motions, though most of the breeze ended up blowing toward Tang Jing. She then copied her, swatting at their legs to shoo away the mosquitoes.

Watching her focused expression, Tang Jing chuckled, finding her utterly adorable.

Life felt so peaceful and carefree. Tang Jing’s gaze drifted toward the distant mountains, lost in thought.

“Mmm.” A gentle poke on her arm brought her back.

Tang Jing turned to her. “Tired of fanning? I’ll take over.”

Chi Yu shook her head and pointed toward the western path.

Following her finger, Tang Jing spotted Gu Sihuan standing there. It was unclear how long she had been watching, the night was too dark to make out her expression.

Tang Jing stood up. “I’ll go see what’s up.”

Chi Yu nodded, slowly waving the fan.

“Sisi,” Tang Jing called as she approached. “What brings you here? Is something wrong?”

“Nanshu, can I stay at your place tonight?” Chi Yu’s voice trembled with tears as she wiped her eyes, clearly upset.

“Of course,” Tang Jing replied hesitantly. “Did your parents hit you again?”

As soon as this topic came up, Chi Yu couldn’t hold back the surge of grievances and resentment. “Why was I born a girl? If I were like my two brothers, maybe I could live like a lord every day too.”

Chi Yu had said this many times before, and Tang Jing didn’t know how to respond.

There was nothing wrong with being a girl. It was just that some people stubbornly believed in raising sons for old-age security, thinking that daughters would eventually marry into another family. In their minds, a married daughter was like spilled water gone forever so they saw no reason to treat a future daughter-in-law well.

This kind of mindset was all too common in the village.

“Xiao Nan, who’s there?” Grandma Qin called from the other side.

“It’s Sisi,” Tang Jing replied before turning back to Gu Sihuan. “Come on, let’s go over.”

“Your grandma!” Gu Sihuan hesitated. She knew full well that Grandma Qin had never liked her, which was why she often arranged to meet Qin Nanshu outside, just to avoid running into the old woman.

Now, the realization hit her. Even on normal visits, Grandma Qin was displeased when she came to see Qin Nanshu. If she stayed the night tonight, wouldn’t the old lady be even more upset? Hesitantly, she said, “Nanshu, maybe I should just go home.”

“What about your parents?”

“It’s fine. At worst, I’ll go back later, after they’ve fallen asleep,” Gu Sihuan said.

Tang Jing didn’t try to persuade her further. After all, she had no desire to share a bed with Gu Sihuan.

According to the world background the system had provided, Gu Sihuan didn’t actually like Qin Nanshu. What she felt wasn’t affection, it was need.

She needed someone to keep her company, to help her when she was in trouble, or simply to listen to her vent about the mess at home. And Qin Nanshu was that person.

The two had grown up together, were the same age, and shared common interests.

On top of that, Qin Nanshu was optimistic and uplifting. Every time Gu Sihuan came to her weighed down by negativity, she’d leave feeling much better after pouring out her troubles.

Qin Nanshu understood her, comforted her, how could someone so comforting not be considered likable?

“Then come sit for a while,” Tang Jing said.

It was late, and the village was pitch black everywhere. At least there was moonlight tonight on moonless nights, it was so dark you could easily stumble into a ditch.

“Okay.” Gu Sihuan followed her. When she saw Grandma Qin, she forced a smile and greeted, “Good evening, Grandma Qin.”

“Hmm.” The old woman gave a lukewarm nod in acknowledgment.

Tang Jing led her over to where Chi Yu was sitting, keeping a distance from Grandma Qin so Gu Sihuan could relax a little.

Chi Yu watched as Qin Nanshu brought Gu Sihuan over, nervously picking at her fingers. She was a little afraid of Gu Sihuan whenever they met, the other girl would either say something cutting or give her a cold look.

Now that she saw her approaching, Chi Yu quickly lowered her head, afraid to see the disdain on her face.

As Gu Sihuan got closer, she noticed Chi Yu too and frowned. “What’s this little mute doing here?”

She didn’t know why the sight of this mute girl irritated her. Maybe it was because she was prettier, or because Qin Nanshu gave her special attention. Or maybe it was just that Grandma Qin doted on the mute girl, all these contrasts between them made her feel uncomfortable.

But the fact that the little mute had no parents gave her a slight sense of accomplishment. However, when she thought about her own parents, who favored sons over daughters, she felt it might be better not to have any at all.

Qin Nanshu couldn’t hear Gu Sihuan’s inner thoughts, or she would have been deeply disappointed in this childhood friend of hers.

Actually, Qin Nanshu had already disapproved when Gu Sihuan used to complain about the villagers in front of her. As they grew older, Gu Sihuan learned to hide her thoughts, though she still occasionally vented, which Qin Nanshu could tolerate.

“You can sit here.” Tang Jing brought over a stool and placed it on her other side, so that sitting in the middle would separate the two of them.

Unlike Qin Nanshu, she didn’t view this childhood friend through rose-colored glasses. No matter how well Gu Sihuan hid her thoughts, her eyes gave everything away.

When greeting Granny Qin earlier, she had clearly been displeased but forced a smile. Yet when it came to Chi Yu, she didn’t even bother pretending, her disdain written all over her face. It was obvious this was how she usually treated Chi Yu.

“Slap!” Gu Sihuan smacked her own calf, then spread her hand and frowned. “Nanshu, there are mosquitoes here.”

“Let me help.” Tang Jing took the fan from Chi Yu and began fanning while gently patting their legs, attending to all three of them in turn.

Seeing her also pat Chi Yu’s leg, Gu Sihuan felt a pang of displeasure. But she held her tongue, knowing that speaking out would only upset Nanshu.

Though Nanshu usually sided with her and listened to her, she was too straightforward clueless about the romantic gestures Gu Sihuan adored and never one for sweet talk. She was like a block of wood, rigid and inflexible.

After watching her pat Chi Yu’s leg again, Gu Sihuan said stiffly, “Stop patting me. Just take care of yourselves.”

Noticing her tone, Tang Jing asked, “What’s wrong?”

Chi Yu also glanced over.

“Nothing.” Gu Sihuan forced out the words. She couldn’t very well admit she was jealous. And what was up with Nanshu? Wasn’t she supposed to like her? Why was she being so attentive to another girl?

“The little mute hasn’t gone home yet. Is she staying at your place tonight?” Gu Sihuan asked.

Before Tang Jing could answer, Granny Qin, who had somehow approached unnoticed, spoke up. The other children had already been taken home by their parents, leaving only the few of them in the courtyard.

“Yes, Xiaoyu will be staying with us tonight,” Granny Qin said, clearly directing the remark at Gu Sihuan.

Gu Sihuan’s expression froze. She hadn’t expected Granny Qin to overhear.

“It’s getting late. Time to head inside and sleep.” Granny Qin motioned for Chi Yu to follow her.

Chi Yu hesitated, looking at Tang Jing, who nodded. “Go ahead. Follow Granny inside first.”

Chi Yu obediently nodded.

Only after Granny Qin had gone inside did Gu Sihuan dare to ask, “Is the little mute sleeping with you tonight?”

“Yeah,” Tang Jing replied. “My bed’s big enough.”

“Oh.” Gu Sihuan didn’t know what else to say. It felt like the Nanshu who had once been hers alone was now being shared with that little mute. The thought left her deflated. She stood up. “I’m going home.”

“I’ll walk you back,” Tang Jing offered immediately.

“No need,” Gu Sihuan refused.

Ignoring her, Tang Jing stepped forward. “Let’s go.”

Seeing her like this, Gu Sihuan cheered up again, her gloomy mood lifting as she followed her toward her own home.

When they arrived at her courtyard, she found the door locked and realized she didn’t have her keys. The house was pitch black inside, clearly indicating that her parents and older brother had already gone to bed.

“Do they really not want me as their daughter anymore?” Gu Sihuan stomped her foot in frustration.

Tang Jing said, “Come on, let’s go sleep at my place. I’ll talk to Grandma about it.”

At this point, Gu Sihuan had no other choice. Even if Grandma Qin looked displeased, she had no option but to steel herself and stay at Nanshu’s house for the night.

“That little mute is sleeping on the same bed as us?” Gu Sihuan’s expression soured. She already disliked that little mute, and now she had to share a bed with her, it made her feel all kinds of awkward.

“Don’t worry, she’ll sleep on the inside, not next to you,” Tang Jing reassured her.

“That’s better,” Gu Sihuan pouted.

When they returned to Qin Nanshu’s house, Gu Sihuan hesitated outside the door for a long while before finally entering.

Tang Jing happened to be coming out of Grandma Qin’s room and said to her, “Grandma’s asleep. Come in quickly.”

Hearing that Grandma Qin was asleep, Gu Sihuan sighed in relief and immediately headed to her room.

Chi Yu had been urged by Grandma Qin to take a bath and was now wearing clothes that Qin Nanshu had outgrown, too small for Tang Jing but just the right size for Chi Yu.

Noticing Gu Sihuan lingering at the doorway, Tang Jing asked, puzzled, “Why aren’t you going in?”

Gu Sihuan stepped inside and stood by the desk.

Tang Jing entered and smiled at Chi Yu. “Xiao Yu, your Sisi-jie is staying here tonight too. Is that okay?”

Chi Yu lay neatly on the inner side of the bed, hands folded over her stomach. She nodded in response.

“Why ask her? It’s your house, not hers,” Gu Sihuan rolled her eyes.

Tang Jing wondered if Gu Sihuan had zero emotional intelligence, always saying the most unpleasant things. She couldn’t fathom what the original host had seen in her.

Seeing Chi Yu grow even more tense at her words, gripping her clothes tightly with a look of unease, Tang Jing worried that Gu Sihuan might say something even worse. She quickly urged, “Alright, let’s get to bed.”

Having already showered after dinner, Tang Jing climbed straight into bed.

Gu Sihuan didn’t want to sleep next to Chi Yu, so she took the outermost spot, with Tang Jing in the middle.

The bed was truly spacious built by Qin Nanshu’s parents when they were alive, though the couple had only used it for a couple of years before passing away. Later, it became Tang Jing’s bedroom.

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