Old Mrs. Song is reborn; get out of here, you scumbag husband and illegitimate child!

Song Xianglan walked straight up and pressed down on Widow Wang's hand.

She took four ten-yuan bills from her purse and placed them on the barbershop counter.

"It's a promise, I'll give it to you." Song Xianglan stared at Yu Xiujuan.

Yu Xiujuan looked at the forty yuan on the table and pushed the money toward Song Xianglan.

"Aunt Song, I really can't accept this. I've wronged you before, and this money is too hot to handle."

"Stop talking nonsense."

Song Xianglan grabbed the money and forced it into Yu Xiujuan's hand. "Let's keep things separate. You make a living with this skill now. How can you run a business at a loss? I don't need this little bit of money."

"You also have to take care of people..." She didn't mention Daya.

Yu Xiujuan held the money in her hand.

Her eyes instantly welled up with tears.

"That's too much." Yu Xiujuan looked down and rummaged through her change box. "These days, a perm doesn't even cost forty. I'll give you your change."

"Keep the change, please."

Song Xianglan turned and left, saying, "The craftsmanship is worth the price. Take it."

Xiaoxia took the opportunity to get close to Yu Xiujuan and lowered her voice.

"Sister Xiujuan, your skills are impeccable!" Xiaoxia said with a grin. "I'll come to you for a haircut when I'm on vacation, okay?"

"Sure. Come on over."

Yu Xiujuan composed herself and turned to remind them, "However, when you go back, please don't mention to my parents that I opened a shop here. If they come knocking on our door, this business will really be ruined."

"Don't worry. We're tight-lipped, we won't tell a thing even if you beat us to death," Xiaoxia readily agreed.

Several people arrived at the entrance of the gold shop.

The ugly woman opened the glass door and squeezed in first.

The owner of the gold shop was a very fat man, with a gold chain around his neck that was as thick as his little finger.

Seeing the five people rush in, the wrinkles around her eyes all creased up, and she quickly came out from behind the counter to greet them.

"Ladies, please feel free to look around." The shopkeeper introduced the gold items on display, "They're all the latest styles from Hong Kong this year. Don't let our small location fool you; we update our designs very quickly."

"Let me see that ring with the character '福' (fortune/blessing) on ​​it."

The ugly woman leaned over the counter, pointing inside, "Take that one next to it with flowers, let me compare them."

The boss quickly took out two red velvet trays.

"This is solid. It looks very elegant on an elderly person," the shopkeeper flattered.

"Who said it was for an old man?" Liu Chounu rolled her eyes at him. "This is a ring I mended for my daughter-in-law."

"Chrysanthemum didn't get anything when she came to my house. She's been incredibly kind to everyone in my family, young and old, so I have to make it up to her. I can't let people talk behind my back."

The boss readily agreed.

Quickly hand over the biggest one.

Song Xianglan walked along the glass counter to the other side.

"Let me see the gold nuggets you used for your wedding." Song Xianglan knocked on the glass.

The boss turned around and quickly took out a gold nugget.

"There are those with one qian, two qian, five qian, and one liang."

Song Xianglan weighed the items in her hands, then continued ordering without looking up: "Fifty of them, one tael each. Also, two gold rings. The gold bracelets should be peony-patterned, and the earrings should be those gold lilac ones."

The boss's hands trembled as he listened.

These are all solid, large items.

We ran into a big customer today.

The ugly woman clicked her tongue, "I usually buy gold bars that cost one qian each, but you've given me one tael each."

Song Xianglan smiled and said, "Save as much money as you can while you still have some. It can be used for the children's coming-of-age ceremonies, weddings, and other things. It also looks nice as a gift."

Liu Chounu thought for a moment, "Give me five one-qian gold nuggets. And five two-qian ones as well."

After Song Xianglan finished selecting the larger items, she turned to look at Xiao Yan.

"Xiao Yan, come here." Song Xianglan beckoned to her.

Xiao Yan lowered her head and moved over.

Song Xianglan pointed to a plain gold ring on a small tray next to her.

"Try this."

Xiao Yan immediately put her hands behind her back and retreated repeatedly.

"Third Aunt, I won't try it on." Xiao Yan stamped her feet anxiously. "I'm clumsy at work, and it's inconvenient for me to wear this. If I lose it, I couldn't afford to pay for it even if I sold myself."

"Just try it if I tell you to."

Song Xianglan grabbed her hand and slipped a plain ring directly onto her ring finger. "The size is just right."

"Boss, I'll take this plain ring too," Song Xianglan said.

Xiao Yan was so anxious that she reached out to pull off the ring on her finger.

"Third Aunt, this is too precious. How can I possibly accept your gold?" Xiao Yan's voice cracked; she had never even owned a silver ring in her entire life.

Song Xianglan pressed down on the back of her hand, preventing her from taking it off.

"A young woman looks better with gold on her hand," Song Xianglan said firmly. "This ring is a plain band, thin and light, very cheap, not worth much at all. You can wear it as a little trinket."

The ugly woman stood aside and chimed in.

"Xiao Yan, listen to your third aunt."

Liu Chou-nu walked over and said, "This plain bracelet is the cheapest. You won't feel pressured to keep it. If your third aunt really forced you to wear a solid gold bracelet, you definitely wouldn't be able to wear it. Keep it."

Xiao Yan blushed, stopped struggling, clutched the ring in her hand, and whispered a sentence.

"Thank you, Third Aunt. I'll work harder in the future and pay you back the money I used to buy the ring."

"Silly girl. You cannot refuse a gift from an elder."

Widow Wang watched this scene and waved to the boss.

"Boss, give me two of these plain rings too."

Xiaoxia was stunned.

"Mom, why did you buy two rings?" Xiaoxia asked, puzzled. "Uncle Zhao already has a ring."

"Who said it was bought for your Uncle Zhao?" Widow Wang picked up two plain rings and stuffed one of them into Xiaoxia's hand. "One is for you, and the other is for Zhao Yuan."

Xiaoxia, clutching the ring, suddenly widened her eyes in surprise.

Widow Wang spoke frankly, "Today is my wedding day with your Uncle Zhao, and Zhao Yuan must be feeling very anxious. Giving her the ring is also a gift for our daughter, and from now on we'll all be of one mind. I will treat you all equally."

Xiaoxia felt a warmth in her heart upon hearing this.

He rushed over and grabbed Widow Wang's arm.

Several women went on a shopping spree in the jewelry store.

The portly boss was beaming from ear to ear, and he and his two employees were running around serving tea and water to these lucky customers.

The night bus in Lingang Town stops at the dirt road intersection.

Song Yulu got off the car, dragging her suitcase.

A cold wind carrying the smell of the sea rushed towards me.

This place is so remote that there isn't even a small hotel; all you can see are dark, mud-brick houses.

Song Yulu did not linger.

She managed to hire a pedicab from the roadside and drove back to a nearby large town overnight before finally finding a hotel with a crooked sign to stay in.

Early the next morning.

It was just dawn.

Song Yulu went to the town's supply and marketing cooperative.

Rice, flour, cooking oil, and boxes of biscuits and bread.

She only buys things that can stave off hunger.

Then he went to the household goods section and bought a whole bunch of laundry detergent and soap.

It filled four large sacks.

She flagged down a tricycle on the street.

"Go to the temple over there in Lingang." Song Yulu handed over the money. "Find Master Jinchan."

The cyclist was a thin, old man.

He carried the sack onto the vehicle and climbed onto the seat.

"Young lady, go find Master Jin Chan." The old man pedaled hard. "She's a very kind person. It's a nunnery, and she's the only nun there. But there are quite a few women helping out there."

Song Yulu sat on a sack in the back of the cart.

Looking at the receding wasteland on both sides.

It took more than half an hour of bumpy travel.

The tricycle stopped in front of a dilapidated temple near the village.

Song Yulu paid the fare and went inside carrying her things.

The courtyard is not big.

Several elderly women were sweeping the floor, while two young women were washing clothes by the well.

A strange, muffled groan came from the base of the wall.

Song Yulu looked in the direction of the sound.

His steps froze on the spot.

Several children were crawling on their hands and feet in the mud. Their clothes were covered in dust.

Look to the side.

Five large wooden barrels, each about half a person's height, were lined up along the base of the wall.

There was a child stuffed into each bucket.

The children's heads were tilted against the edge of the wooden barrel.

His limbs seemed to have no strength, and saliva dripped from his chin onto his collar.

An elderly volunteer sweeping the floor came over and took the things from Song Yulu's hands.

"You must be terrified," Grandma sighed. "Many people from this area go out to sea to fish, and families without men can't support themselves. Many families have disabled children they can't raise, so they dump them at the temple gate in the middle of the night."

Song Yulu's voice was dry, "Those buckets..."

"They're all children with cerebral palsy. Their bodies are weak, they can't sit up, they can only sit in buckets."

Grandma pointed to the creatures crawling on the ground, "They were all brought back and cared for by Master Jinchan. Some of them have heart problems, so Master went around begging for money to take them to the hospital for treatment."

Grandma shook her head.

His tone was filled with undisguised heartache.

"The boys who were cured were all taken away by their families. The only healthy children left in this yard are girls. Because of the one-child policy, they were all abandoned here because they were girls."

What she didn't say was that when the girl turned seventeen or eighteen, her parents would naturally step forward and say which one was their child and they would have to take her home.

Song Yulu looked in the direction her grandmother was pointing.

Several healthy little girls in the backyard were also helping with the work.

Her heart skipped a beat.

She walked to the wooden barrel at the base of the wall.

The child in the bucket stared blankly at her.

Saliva was drooling out, and snot was hanging from his nose.

Song Yulu did not dodge.

She bent down, wiped her nose, and then reached out to lift the child out of the bucket.

The person in her arms lay limply, their head resting on her shoulder.