Transmigrated as an Unwanted Ugly Girl

Chapter 386 - 204: The Incident (Part 2)

However, the family didn’t have much white flour. So unlike the corn cakes, they couldn’t just make half a basket’s worth, which would last for several meals. Each person only got one large piece of flatbread. But as the name implied, it was thin, so a large piece didn’t amount to much.

Granny Hua had never eaten anything so delicious. They always saved a little white flour each year, but she only ever used it to make dough drops; she had no idea how to make anything fancier.

So, instead of satisfying her craving, that one piece of flatbread only made her hungrier for more. After Meizi left, she couldn’t stop thinking about the flatbread in the pot, and she was completely absent-minded while she worked.

In the end, she decided to eat half of it.

’Besides, Meizi knows how to make them,’ she thought. ’If Changming wants some, he just has to say the word, and she’ll definitely make them for him. I figured that out a long time ago. Meizi really dotes on Changming. If *I* wanted some, she wouldn’t necessarily make them for me.’

Having found herself a suitable excuse, she began to eat her son’s food with a clear conscience.

This woman was actually a lot like Meizi—both were rather innocent and artless. Their dispositions, however, were polar opposites.

She had only intended to eat half. Her son hadn’t come home for his meal yet, so she had to leave some for him. But once she took a bite, she couldn’t stop. Like a child, she was overcome with craving. ’I might as well eat it all,’ she thought. ’When Changming gets home, if there isn’t enough food, I’ll just make him some dough drops. My son is so dutiful; he’d never blame me for eating his flatbread. This is perfect! I can even ask him to get Meizi to make another batch.’

With her reasoning settled, she ate with particular delight.

But Meizi was worried about Li Changming being out. After chatting with her mother for a little while, she couldn’t resist running home to see if he had returned. ’If he isn’t back yet, he must be starving, right?’

As she entered the courtyard, she caught the scent of flatbread wafting from the kitchen. That smell of savory sauce was so familiar—she had made it herself! Her heart leaped with joy. ’Changming must be back and eating!’

"Changming..." Meizi bounded lightly up the steps and rushed to the kitchen door.

But Changming wasn’t in the kitchen. There was only Granny Hua!

Granny Hua was in the middle of stuffing the last piece of flatbread into her mouth, her cheeks bulging. Meizi had caught her red-handed. It was far more awkward and tense than if Li Changming had been the one to see her. A lump immediately caught in her throat. She couldn’t swallow, but she couldn’t spit it out either. She looked like she was about to choke to death.

Meizi didn’t care that the old woman looked like she was choking. All she knew was that the flatbread she had left for Changming was gone. This woman had stolen it all.

In that moment, anger, sorrow, and utter confusion welled up inside her.

Yes, she was at a complete loss!

In all the days since she had married into the family, Gou Dan’s mother had constantly warned her to be on guard against Granny Hua, calling her gluttonous and lazy. But for some reason, Meizi hadn’t found Granny Hua to be anything like the rumors suggested. So she hadn’t felt particularly ill at ease, aside from having to watch over her and hurry her along with her chores.

But now, seeing her sneak food with her own eyes—and what she was sneaking was what Meizi had left for her own son—the rumored behavior had appeared so suddenly that she didn’t know how to react.

This was Changming’s mother, after all. She couldn’t just march up and pull her ear like she might with Gou Dan. But how could she just let it go? Changming hadn’t even eaten yet!

She couldn’t hit her, and she couldn’t yell at her. Panicked, her tears began to fall. "You ate all the flatbread! What’s Changming going to eat?" she sobbed. "You... you... you already had a piece, didn’t you?"

Meizi stared at the woman through blurry, tear-filled eyes, wishing she could march over and pry the flatbread right out of her mouth. But that was impossible. If Granny Hua still had a piece in her hand, Meizi would have snatched it away without a second thought. But it was already in her stomach. What could she possibly do?

Feeling utterly lost, she just stood there and bawled her eyes out. Her mind flashed back to what her mother had told her just a little while ago—what to do if Granny Hua bullied her. As if struck by an idea, she cried out, "You stole the flatbread! I’m going to tell my mother!"

When she didn’t know what to do, she told her mother. Her mother had always been her pillar of support.

Granny Hua stared at the heartbroken, sobbing Meizi, completely dumbfounded.

She forced herself to swallow the mouthful of flatbread. Just as she was about to speak, she heard Meizi’s cry and her heart sank. She knew, of course, that the ’mother’ Meizi was referring to certainly wasn’t her. If Gou Dan’s mother found out, how would she ever get off easy?

Speak of the devil. Just then, Gou Dan’s mother’s voice drifted in from the courtyard. "Meizi, what is it? Goodness, why are you crying?"

As it turned out, Gou Dan’s mother had asked her daughter several times if Granny Hua was bullying her. Meizi always replied that her mother-in-law was fine, just a bit slow with her chores. Not believing a word of it, she had decided to sneak over and check for herself. Otherwise, with Meizi’s naive nature, she could be taken advantage of without even realizing it.

She had already snuck over quietly several times without seeing anything amiss, so she could only suppress her suspicions and bide her time.

Today, she had seen Meizi come home for a visit, only to sit for a moment before rushing off, saying she was worried because Li Changming hadn’t returned yet. After her daughter left, she thought it over and decided to follow her.

When Meizi saw her mother, she instantly found her anchor. "Mother," she sobbed, "I left flatbread for Changming, but *she* ate it all! Changming hasn’t even eaten yet!"

Gou Dan’s mother was very sharp; she naturally understood who her daughter was talking about. She had agreed to let Meizi marry and live in this old house not only because she planned to build her a better one, but for another reason as well: she wanted to use the time they were all living together to find fault with Granny Hua, teach her a harsh lesson, and put her in her place.

She had been waiting for so long for an opportunity like this; she certainly wasn’t going to let it go. Normally, she wouldn’t make a mountain out of a molehill over a mother eating a piece of her son’s food. But since she was looking for a fight, she couldn’t worry about such trifles.

So, she rolled up her sleeves and stormed into the kitchen. She faced Granny Hua, who had just managed to swallow the food in her mouth, glared at her, let her face fall into a scowl, and unleashed a torrent of curses. (To be continued.)