Stella whispered, “Mom, that boy looks so miserable.”
I was about to buy him a small cake when I saw an old lady limping toward him. Without warning, she slapped the boy on the head. “What are you looking at, you little brat? All you think about is food. You don’t even have money for it!
“Your useless mother is going to bankrupt the whole family, and here you are, drooling over
some cake!”
“But Grandma, today is my birthday.”
“Birthday?” Beatrice slapped the boy on the head again. “If it weren’t for you, I’d be living a much better life right now!
“Your mother chased away my daughter–in–law, who could actually make money!”
As she said that, she pinched the boy’s ear. When he screamed in pain, she pinched and twisted it harder. The bystanders would have thought she was trying to rip it off. Her face twisted further with anger.
Stella did not know what Beatrice was capable of. She wanted to help the boy.
I instinctively pulled her behind me. Just as I was preparing to leave, Beatrice saw me.
“Harriet?” She hobbled over to me and my daughter. She smiled warmly at me. But when she saw Stella, her face immediately darkened.
“So, this is that little troublemaker, huh? She’s all grown up now. No matter how well you raise her, what’s the point? She’s just going to get married anyway when she gets older.”
Stella became upset and shouted at her, “Why did you call me a troublemaker?”
Beatrice glared at her. “Don’t interrupt when adults are talking!”
“Beatrice, how dare you talk about my daughter like that!”
When Beatrice saw that I was angry, she quickly forced out a smile. “Harriet, I didn’t mean it like that. You know a daughter can’t be an actual heir, right?
“You’ve been single for so many years. You must still be thinking about Nathan.
“I’ll make them get a divorce. Then, you can have a son with Nathan. If you want to keep this troublemaker, I won’t stop you.”
Without even waiting for my response, Beatrice dialed Nathan’s number on the phone.
2/2
