"Ah! Now that's satisfying," Jing Shu thought, feeling her mood lighten as she watched the drama unfold.
Su Yiyang pointed at Zhang Zhongyong's mistress with shaking fingers and charged forward, his face flushed with anger. "Are you even human? How can you treat Su Meimei like this?"
The woman staggered back in fright and screamed, her voice piercing the small space, "Husband, husband, come out quick! That bitch's family is here to cause trouble."
Under the weak beam of the phone light, Su Meimei's body was covered in ghastly scars. They looked like the marks left by bee stings last year; some were still oozing yellow pus. One of her eyes was ruined by a huge ugly scar so that you couldn't see the eyeball at all; it was just a hollow, terrifying socket.
Wrapped in a foul-smelling blanket that reeked of damp wool and old sweat, she was curled in the corner of the bathroom, her limbs twitching and white foam bubbling at her mouth, completely unconscious.
The worst thing was that Su Meimei was tied to the toilet with thick rope, her wrists chafed raw.
To anyone who looked, she was a gaunt, wrinkled old woman. You wouldn't recognize her as the person she once was.
Zhang Zhongyong came out of the master bedroom and put his mistress behind him like a shield. He was the same as ever: a polite, well-dressed scumbag. "Let's talk this out civilly. Don't lay a hand on Ai Lin."
"Pfft, you shameless mistress, Zhang Zhongyong, you filthy shameless man. You put your rightful wife in the toilet and let your mistress take her place; you're nothing." Wang Fang had always been sharp with her insults, and she didn't hold back now.
"Don't you dare curse my mother!" Suddenly a little chubby boy barreled out of the bedroom and began punching and kicking at Wang Fang's legs. The kid was eleven or twelve; his blows didn't hold back at all. One swing landed hard enough to knock out one of her teeth, which skipped across the dirty floor.
Jing Shu grabbed the child by the back of his collar and tossed him straight back into the bedroom. There was a loud thud as he hit the hard floor and immediately started bawling.
"Ai Yong!" Ai Lin cried, rushing forward in distress. Jing An moved instinctively to protect Jing Shu, but in doing so he barreled into Ai Lin. The collision shoved Ai Lin into Zhang Zhongyong's arms in a picture-perfect pose, though Ai Lin's head slammed hard into Zhang Zhongyong's jaw. There was a sickening crack; he spat out two of his teeth into his palm.
Jing Shu almost laughed, but she swallowed it down. It wasn't really the time for that.
The place erupted into chaos. Ai Lin's mother came out of the back, and Zhang Zhongyong's mother came out, too; they both went to soothe the crying child. The two-bedroom apartment suddenly swelled with people, a suffocating press that was exactly the same as before in Jing Shu's past life.
Back when things were different, Su Meimei and Ai Lin had at least shared the master bedroom, the son stayed in the second bedroom, Zhang Hanhang slept in the kitchen, and the two older women stayed in the living room. But fate had changed this time around.
Jing Shu's mother, Su Lanzhi, stepped forward and stopped to look at the wretched state of Su Meimei. "She is in that state. Why wouldn't you get a doctor? How did she try to kill herself?"
Zhang Zhongyong was furious, spitting blood and shouting as he wiped his mouth, "Get a doctor, my ass. That old bitch tried to kill herself. Hmph. Zhang Hanhan stole my sleeping pills and downed them all. Those pills cost me a fortune!"
Zhang Hanhan wailed, her shoulders shaking as she played the part of mourning. "My mom said her pain kept her from sleeping. She asked me to get sleeping pills so she could feel better. Who would have thought; who would have thought. Boohoo!"
Su Yiyang crouched down, wanting to help her up, but then he noticed the crawling bugs in the blanket and the heavy stench. He froze and could only say, "Then do a gastric lavage. There's still a chance if you wash her stomach. Call a doctor!"
Ai Lin pointed a trembling finger at him. "You go. You two go and take them both away."
Su Lanzhi frowned, her gaze turning to the boy. "Zhang Hanhan, why didn't you call your maternal grandfather when this happened?"
Zhang Hanhan shook her head through her sobs. "After he passed away last year he never called again. We couldn't find him. Otherwise, would that person dare treat my mother and me like this?"
Zhang Zhongyong sneered. "Your maternal grandfather is in no condition to help. Save your breath."
Jing Shu's mouth twitched into a smile and she picked up the phone, dialing a number. After a short ring, Su Guosheng's voice came through the speaker. "Hello? Who is this?"
Zhang Hanhan's voice choked with excitement. "Grandfather? It's me. Your Hanhan. My mom is dead. Zhang Zhongyong, that dog of a man, killed her. He is trying to kill me now. Please save me. You already lost one daughter, you can't lose your granddaughter. Come pick me up, please? I will live with you forever. Boohoo. Grandfather, you're the only family I have left."
There was a long, heavy silence on the other end of the line.
"Grandfather, my mom died so horribly. Zhang Zhongyong forced her to kill herself. She took sleeping pills and started foaming and convulsing. You weren't here these past six months; you don't know how he and that fox have treated us. We have been treated worse than pigs and dogs, boohoo."
Jing Shu frowned. She thought it was a little selfish to be talking like that when the woman wasn't even dead yet.
Just as she was deciding whether to say something to Su Guosheng, an aged female voice came through the phone. "Ai Lin was my hireling. If she forced that bitch to death, then Ai Lin did well. Su Meimei deserves to taste being the third. Good job. As for you, Zhang Hanhan? I can take you in, but do you dare come?"
Zhang Hanhan stammered, her body trembling. "Y-you are..."
The voice answered, "I'm your maternal grandfather's legal wife. You should call me Maternal Grandmother. Any other business?"
Everyone there looked stunned, the silence stretching. Jing Shu's mouth slowly opened. She never imagined the story would be this dramatic. In her previous life she had no idea there were so many hidden family histories.
Zhang Zhongyong finally released Ai Lin's hand and asked in disbelief, "Why? How long has this been going on? Why were you hiding it from me? Ai Lin, didn't you love me?"
A mocking laugh came over the phone. "Love you? Fifteen years ago you were a nobody. You had no money and no power. Why should such an exceptional woman be your mistress and bear your child? If I hadn't paid tens of thousands every year, who would have put up with you?"
Ai Lin's mouth fell open. She clung to Zhang Zhongyong's arm and shook her head frantically. "Zhongyong, listen to me. At first I took the job for the paycheck, but after I was with you I really fell for you. Our child is Ai Yong. I love you, Yong. I love you. Don't you understand?"
Zhang Zhongyong felt something different, a dark shadow hanging over him. He nodded weakly. "Maybe."
Ai Lin ground her teeth together. After the apocalypse she had worked hard to make a life and clung to Zhang Zhongyong's leg, afraid to let go. Who would have thought that an old witch would come to stir the pot? And this whole family wasn't any better.
"You old witch, you have been cheating for a long time. Your current child isn't even Su Guosheng's. It's time he found out!" Ai Lin roared into the phone.
Then the call cut off with a sharp beep. The air in the cramped room turned cold.
Only Zhang Hanhan laughed, a jagged sound. "I'm my grandfather's only bloodline. He won't abandon me."