Chapter 542: Chapter 182: The ’80s Drama Queen is Forced to Become a Top Student (17)

"Yeah, we have a lot of pocket money. And with the New Year coming up, we’ll have another big sum coming in..."

"I don’t have time to spend money right now. I have to study. You have to suffer hardship to rise above others!"

Sheng Leyun couldn’t help but laugh. "What are you talking about? When have you ever seen your Sister Yun short on cash?"

"I have money, but Grandma doesn’t want me to touch it. She says that kind of money should only be used in an emergency and can’t be touched otherwise."

"I just want to bring everyone along to earn some spending money and gain some real-world experience at the same time. Making money is a skill in itself."

"Once we have a financial foundation, we can cheerfully pursue our dreams and live the lives we want. Life is short, we can’t let money hold us back!"

Her little group of friends breathed a sigh of relief. As long as Sister Yun wasn’t short on money, it was fine.

’So, Sister Yun wants to lead them in making money?’

In the eighties, "private entrepreneur" was still a very distant concept for them.

If you had a stable job, who would be willing to take risks and do strenuous, less-than-respectable work?

However, it seemed that private entrepreneurs made money very quickly. One by one, they went from being strapped for cash to being exceptionally generous, and even their personalities were affected.

"Sister Yun, we’ll follow your lead."

Sheng Leyun nodded. "Alright, I’ll go home and think it over. We’ll talk more tonight."

On her way home, she ran into Ren Xingchen, who was dragging her exhausted body home from work.

Ren Xingchen now worked as a female laborer in a textile factory, an eight-hour day spent sitting in front of a sewing machine.

Thinking back to her comfortable life of being kept by a man, and then looking at her current hardship where buying a white flour bun was considered an extra treat, Ren Xingchen cried herself to sleep every night.

Wherever there are people, there are politics. The culture of comparison among the female textile workers was rampant, and they were particularly exclusionary. They especially disliked pretty women.

Thus, Ren Xingchen became the target of bullying and isolation. The grievances she suffered at the factory were taken out on her stepdaughter and stepson when she got home.

In the span of half a year, Xiao Hailan and Xiao Haiyang seemed to grow up overnight. Their maternal grandparents had all but vanished, not even letting them through the door.

To survive under Ren Xingchen’s roof, they, who had never lifted a finger to do housework before, quickly learned to handle all the chores.

Even so, life for the family of three was twisted into an exceptionally miserable state.

Ren Xingchen saw the young girl walking toward her.

The girl wore a red corduroy smock over black pants, with a matching red hat and scarf. The dimples at the corners of her lips always seemed to hold a smile. Her eyes were bright and brilliant, and her fair face had a cute, baby-fat roundness to it.

Her delicate and pretty appearance was truly a joy to behold.

Ren Xingchen’s lips trembled. She couldn’t stop herself from calling out, her voice full of deep emotion, "Yunyun, Mommy is so sorry."

"Mommy never thought Xiao Xuezhen was such a heartless monster..."

"I know I was wrong now. Can Yunyun forgive Mommy?"

Sheng Leyun brushed past her, the corners of her lips curling up. "Ms. Ren, your daughter died a long time ago. The moment you abandoned her at the train station."

Ren Xingchen shook her head repeatedly, reaching out to grab her clothes.

But Sheng Leyun dodged her nimbly, her eyes dark and heavy as she stared at her.

"Ren Xingchen, you don’t deserve to be a mother!"

The original owner of this body had never cared about anyone else, only this mother whom she had fawned over for her entire short life.

If Ren Xingchen had protected the original owner even a little, that foolish girl would never have gone down a path of no return.

Even when given a chance to rewrite her life, she had not a single wish, so devoid of desire it was heartbreaking.

Ren Xingchen’s apology was especially sincere. "Yunyun, I didn’t do it on purpose, really. I... I was just resentful of your father."

"I know you’ve suffered a lot, but who knows the bitterness I’ve been through? I married a man who was never around. What good was it for him to just stuff money at me?"

"I wasn’t asking him for a life of wealth and luxury. I just hoped he could make us, mother and daughter, feel secure and safe from bullies. That when a lightbulb burned out, someone would be there to fix it, and when a pipe broke, someone would be there to repair it. Was that so hard to achieve?"

"But he was just so... difficult."

Sheng Leyun interrupted her with a light laugh. "Ms. Ren, I may not be old, and I may not have had anyone to teach me, but does that mean I’ll just let you fool me?"

"If I recall correctly, it was you who despised the poor environment of my dad’s family housing complex, complaining it was too far from the city. That’s why you kept delaying our family of three from reuniting sooner."

"But what was the real reason? Do you really want me to spell it out?"

Ren Xingchen’s heart skipped a beat. "Wh-what do you mean?"

Sheng Leyun smiled faintly. "I don’t mean anything by it. The document severing our ties has already been written. From now on, we’ll each live our own lives."

"But if you refuse to admit it, should I remind you of your scandalous behavior back in our hometown?"

"Isn’t it because you couldn’t make it in your hometown anymore that you finally decided to be with a chief editor on a dead-end salary?"

Ren Xingchen’s face went deathly pale. She glared at Sheng Leyun with hatred. "You... you dare!"

Sheng Leyun pressed her lips together. "What’s there to dare? Wasn’t it me who sent your husband to jail?"

"If you keep blocking my way to talk to me, then I’ll just go tell everyone, all sad and sobbing, about how ’good’ you were to me back in our hometown. How whenever *that someone* came to visit, you’d give me money and send me out to buy snacks..."

"But then one time, I came back early and saw..."

Ren Xingchen gritted her teeth and snarled, "Sheng Leyun, have you no shame?"

Sheng Leyun clicked her tongue and shrugged. "If you had the nerve to do it, why wouldn’t I have the nerve to watch?"

"It was just an unmarried man and woman chatting in a room with the door closed. What are you so afraid of?"

Ren Xingchen glared at her. "So you really don’t want me as your mother anymore?"

"Nope, no way. I wouldn’t dare," Sheng Leyun said, shaking her head repeatedly. "I finally managed to escape. Why would I be foolish enough to jump back into your trap?"

"Then give me money. Two thousand yuan—no, three thousand! Otherwise, I’ll tell everyone that at such a young age, your hands are dirty and your mind is filthy!" Ren Xingchen added with particular excitement, "Besides, your father isn’t Sheng Xibao at all!"

Sheng Leyun’s head snapped toward her. "What do you mean?"

Ren Xingchen lazily held out her hand. "Give me the money and I’ll tell you. Otherwise, you can just hear it from someone else."

"The only reason you and that old Mrs. Guo can live a peaceful life is because everyone thinks you’re the family of a martyr, so they all look out for you, isn’t it?"

"Tell me, if they found out you’re not, and that a little girl like you is carrying so much money..." At this, she laughed with great satisfaction. "I’m afraid your doorstep would be worn flat by all the visitors!"

Sheng Leyun sneered. "Pathetic."

After saying that, she turned to leave without a backward glance.

Ren Xingchen was stunned. "Hey! Don’t you really want to know whose child you are?"

Sheng Leyun waved her hand dismissively. "Not interested. After having a wretched mother like you, I have zero interest in finding my roots."

Ren Xingchen was furious. She had just dropped such a huge bombshell, yet Sheng Leyun was completely unfazed. This was not at all how she had imagined it.

"Your mother got pregnant out of wedlock and almost jumped into a river with you. I was the one who saved her. And after she gave birth to you, I took you in and raised you as my own daughter."

"You could say that if it weren’t for me, you and your mother would both be dead!"

Sheng Leyun said, "Oh," and added, "You don’t need to demand money from me."

"First, back then I was in my birth mother’s womb. I didn’t ask you to come running to save us, much less ask you to adopt me and make me suffer!"

"Second, I already did the math for you before. Between us, you’re the one who owes me four hundred yuan."

Ren Xingchen lifted her chin slightly. "Since you’re not Sheng Xibao’s child, you can’t take that one thousand three hundred yuan!"

Sheng Leyun looked at her in surprise. ’So after all that, this is what she was after.’

Sheng Leyun nodded. Just as Ren Xingchen breathed a small sigh of relief, thinking she had succeeded, Sheng Leyun chuckled and said, "Regardless of whether I’m my dad’s biological daughter or not, legally speaking, he is still my dad."

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