The second night watch arrived.
"Why are you back?" Qiang Yuxian greeted her, taking the bag from her hand, "Why didn’t you bring Tongtong over? Grandma has been talking about her these past few days."
"I just got back from a business trip, haven’t even been home yet, I came to see Grandma first," Ye Meiyun said as she stepped forward and hugged Grandma Ye, swaying her from side to side, "Grandma, you haven’t forgotten your older granddaughter because of the little one, have you?"
"You child!" Grandma Ye laughed heartily, deep wrinkles forming on her face, "Which granddaughter isn’t my granddaughter? You, ever since you were little, have been jealous of Meiru. Now you’re all grown up and still jealous of your sister, aren’t you embarrassed?"
"Who made you all favor her?" Ye Meiyun only then noticed her sister’s swollen eyes and let go of Grandma, sitting next to Ye Meiru and hugging her, "What’s wrong now?"
"It’s nothing, just feeling a bit down, felt like crying." Ye Meiru pushed her sister’s hands away, "I’m going to wash my face."
"What happened?" Ye Meiyun blinked at Grandma Ye, "Grandpa still hasn’t accepted her?"
"Your grandpa has already forgiven Meiru. It’s just that she remembered something from the past and got a bit sad," Grandma Ye whispered to her older granddaughter, "She’s your sister, be more tolerant and don’t always use such harsh words on her."
"Who made her so ungrateful? Zhou Mikang is such a good man, and she didn’t want him but went after some foreign guy with blonde hair, and now she’s suffering for it, right? I don’t want to hurt her, but I’m afraid if I don’t, she might make more decisions that hurt others and not benefit herself.
It’s only been a bit better these past two years. Before, whenever I attended gatherings with friends from our circle, I would always get criticized. Even though it was her who erred, they would still place the blame on me. Being her sister has really brought me misfortune."
"Alright, alright, it’s all in the past, don’t dwell on it." Qiang Yuxian stuffed a piece of osmanthus cake into her daughter’s mouth, "Eat something sweet to sweeten your mood."
"Mom, you always sided with her, that’s what spoiled her this way," Ye Meiyun grumbled discontentedly, "Ever since we were little, you made me give in to her in everything, and look where that has gotten us now? Anyone who doesn’t give in to her ends up living uncomfortably, we might as well have produced an emperor."
Ye Meiru lingered in the bathroom for quite a while before coming out. She was well aware of her sister’s dissatisfaction because of her, her sister had a particularly hard time in her marriage matters, ultimately having to marry a common worker as her brother-in-law. Hence, she owed her sister a debt she could never clearly state or repay in her lifetime.
"Is brother-in-law doing well?" Ye Meiru asked softly after sitting down.
"He’s just as ever, spending all day messing around in the factory..." Ye Meiyun snorted, "Studying some screw for ten days straight without coming home, I tell you, at this rate, he might not even be able to find his way home."
"His willingness to progress is good," Grandma Ye consoled, "Even though his family and social status do not match your classmates’ husbands, in terms of obedience, not a single one can match him, right? People need to be evaluated by both their strengths and weaknesses, not just by comparing others’ strengths with your own shortcomings."
"Alright, Grandma, I’m just venting. Tongtong is already three, I’ve settled down now. Speaking of which, compared to Yan Xin and Zhao Yulu, I’m still the luckiest.
They married into their husbands’ families and ended up being like maids, with lots of rules from both their mother-in-law and their granny-in-law. Don’t worry, I won’t blame Meiru anymore. In fact, I even have to thank her; if it weren’t for her, I wouldn’t have married a man of his social standing."
Yan Xin and Zhao Yulu had been Ye Meiyun’s playmates from childhood, the three of them were as close as could be growing up, and remained tight friends as adults. But it’s with girls; good friends or not, when it comes to work and marriage, they couldn’t help but compete.
"Sis, are you really... really not blaming me anymore?" Ye Meiru stared pitifully at her sister, "I’ve always felt so guilty, if it weren’t for me, you definitely could have married into the Mei family."
Hearing this, Ye Meiyun’s face immediately darkened, and then with a forced laugh, she stood up: "Grandma, Mom, I’ve got to go, I have some errands. I’ll visit another day."
"Meiru, why must you always bring up the wrong topic?" After seeing off her older daughter, Qiang Yuxian reproached her younger daughter, "You know exactly what your sister feels like; why bring that up?"