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Mrs. Liu Jin saw the child’s perplexed state and was in a hurry, “Qiao Qiao, you must quickly tell Miss Su you’ve thought it through; this is what your Aunt wants you to say.”

Seeing the struggle on Jin Qiao’s face, Su Wenyue didn’t want to pressure her too much, as after all, she needed to come to a decision herself.

“Let’s do this: first, take Jin Qiao to wash up and change her clothes, let her eat something, and then she can tell me her decision. This is a big matter concerning her entire life, after all, so it’s normal for her to need more time to think.”

“Exactly, exactly,” Mrs. Liu Jin quickly agreed, also hoping to use this time to persuade her niece.

As Su Wenyue spoke, she took out a set of clothes from the box, which were originally made for Mrs. Liu’s daughter, Xiao Hua, aged seven this year. Although Jin Qiao was a few years older than Xiao Hua, their sizes were similar, and now the clothes would fit Jin Qiao just right.

“This is a new set of clothes I made; they should fit Jin Qiao in terms of size. Take them for her to change into. The ones she’s wearing are too old to keep,” Su Wenyue said.

“How can we accept this? Our Jin Qiao is just a poor girl from the countryside; she doesn’t deserve such fine clothes.” Though Mrs. Liu Jin was a bit shrewd, she wasn’t ungrateful. She had always been planning for Jin Qiao’s future, already asking too much of others; she wasn’t about to accept more than she should, her face wasn’t so thick-skinned.

“There’s no harm in taking them, regardless of how Jin Qiao decides, she will still be staying with my Su Family. Giving her a set of clothes is not too much to ask; as long as she works hard in the future. Also, what she’s wearing now is truly too tattered for wear,” Su Wenyue said without mentioning that Jin Qiao’s clothes were more ragged than a beggar’s. The only thing that made Jin Qiao look different from a beggar was the cleanliness of her torn clothes. The young girl indeed seemed diligent and tidy.

Jin Qiao had been brought by Mrs. Liu’s eldest sister-in-law. Sensing her duty, Mrs. Liu consciously took Jin Qiao to get cleaned up, and Su Wenyue, having spoken, naturally couldn’t use the communal food supplies. She took flour from her room and went to the kitchen to cook several bowls of noodles—one for her mother-in-law, and the remaining two for Mrs. Liu Jin and Jin Qiao.

The effect of fresh clothing on a person was evident. After being washed and dressed in new clothes, the pitiful and unsightly little girl had transformed into a pretty and lovely young girl, obediently following behind Mrs. Liu Jin.

“Eat quickly; I made this specially for you. Aunt Liu must be hungry after the long journey too—eat together.” Su Wenyue called Mrs. Liu Jin and Jin Qiao to sit down, brought the noodles to them, the fragrant pork noodles bedecked with scallions, so tantalizing it almost made Liu stand salivating.

“Then I won’t be polite,” Mrs. Liu Jin said, truly hungry. In her hurry to bring her niece to the Han Family, she hadn’t had lunch, just taking two pastries and eating them with water, one for each of them. She was already famished and seeing the big bowl of enticing pork noodles, she couldn’t resist and started eating heartily.

Yang Juxiang and her daughter, lured by the aroma, came over, thinking someone was having a private feast. Seeing Mrs. Liu Jin and Jin Qiao eating with relish but without a portion for themselves, they felt very uncomfortable.

“Fourth Daughter-in-law, I didn’t eat my fill at noon, and I’m a bit peckish now. Are there any noodles left? Serve me a bowl, too—it smells so good,” Yang Juxiang assumed the posture of an elder in front of Su Wenyue, with Jiang Chunlan swaggeringly sitting at the table, waiting for Su Wenyue to serve them noodles.

Su Wenyue was somewhat speechless upon seeing Yang Juxiang and her daughter; naturally, she didn’t accede to Yang’s request, her lips curling in a cold smile, “I’m sorry, but I only made just enough noodles for us; there aren’t any extra. If you want to eat, you’ll have to cook them yourself.”

“Su Wenyue, we are also guests of the Han Family, and this is how you treat your guests? My mother is hungry. Go make her a bowl of noodles quickly, or do you want me to get my Aunt here right now, to ask you to do it herself?” Jiang Chunlan said commandingly at Su Wenyue’s side. Perhaps Su Wenyue’s avoidance over the past few days had given her the impression that Su Wenyue was intimidated by them, making her rather brazen.

“It’s not mealtime right now. I thought we made so much food at noon, and considering how much you and your mother had, you should be full. How can you be hungry again so soon? You certainly can eat!” Liu couldn’t hold back and wasn’t shy in her sarcasm.

“You!” Jiang Chunlan didn’t want to argue with Liu but turned her attention back to Su Wenyue “Su Wenyue, just say whether you will do it or not. Do you believe I will go find my Aunt this instant?”

Su Wenyue had no interest in stooping to Jiang Chunlan’s level and, ignoring her, gave Mrs. Liu Jin a few instructions before directly returning to her room, leaving Jiang Chunlan fuming. She couldn’t really go to Mrs. Yang, and she also sensed that her aunt clearly favored Su Wenyue, the daughter-in-law, so whose side her aunt would take wasn’t certain.

Mrs. Liu Jin and Jin Qiao quickly finished eating their noodles and came over.

“So, Jin Qiao, have you thought about what you want to choose?” Su Wenyue earnestly wanted to know Jin Qiao’s decision. Since she had said Jin Qiao could work for the Su Family without selling herself, Jin Qiao wasn’t foolish; surely she would choose not to sign the Death Contract.

“Qiao Qiao, what did your Aunt tell you? Tell Miss Su your decision,” Mrs. Liu Jin said with a smile. When she had earlier reminded Jin Qiao, she had said nothing in response, presumably taking in what was said. Besides, Jin Qiao wasn’t foolish; wouldn’t she know what choice was best for her?

“Miss Su, I’ve thought it over, and I want to sell myself into the Su Family, please grant my wish!” Jin Qiao knelt to the ground with a thud and stated resolutely.

“Have you truly thought this through? This is a matter that affects your whole life. If you sign the Death Contract, there’s no turning back, and you have better options,” Su Wenyue said in response to Jin Qiao’s answer, wanting to be sure one more time. To tell the truth, she was quite surprised by Jin Qiao’s choice. She couldn’t fathom what the child was thinking.

Mrs. Liu Jin, who hadn’t fully grasped what was happening, now suddenly understood and her smiling face turned to anxiety, “What nonsense are you spouting, child? Didn’t you promise your Aunt you wouldn’t sell yourself? Why are you changing your mind now? You have to realize that once sold, your life will no longer be your own.”

Turning to Mrs. Liu Jin, Jin Qiao also bowed deeply to her, “Aunt’s kindness is deeply engraved in my heart, but I am resolute in my decision. If I don’t sell myself, given the nature of my stepmother, she won’t leave me alone even if I’m at the Su Family. Furthermore, after everything I’ve been through, I’ve come to understand that I want to sever ties with that household once and for all.”