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nAfter sending Xia Fang off, Qiao Mei returned to the kitchen and hummed a tune as she cleared the crockery and cutlery. As there was a water heater in the house, the water was warm and not cold at all.

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nIn the past, there was no such advanced equipment in the village. She guessed that her grandfather, Qiao Qiang, had probably never seen such an electric appliance before. Even in the county city, there were not many families who would be able to afford it.

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nWhat she did back at home was to boil water in the big cooking pot and then use the cold water in the well to neutralize the temperature of the water. The water in the well was cold even in summer. Qiao Mei really disliked not being able to find a good solution to get warm water. After all, no matter how well the big cooking pot was scrubbed during washing up, it was impossible to guarantee that there was no oil at all after that.

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nGiven the situation, it was inevitable that there would always be some oil in her bath water, even though it was just a thin layer and not a lot.

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n“When there’s a chance, I’ll think of a way to bring one back and ask grandfather to install it for me. I can’t let go of such a good thing.” Qiao Mei was still thinking about how to connect the pipes in the village when she heard someone pounding on the door.

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nQiao Mei stood at the kitchen door and looked out before she stopped herself.

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nBefore Xia Fang left, she had told Qiao Mei not to open the door for anyone. Besides, if the visitor was really looking for Aunt, the visitor would go off to look for her at the hospital if there was no one at home, and would not knock for too long.

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nUnexpectedly, not only did this person continue to knock on the door, but the knocking became more forceful, as if the person would smash a hole in the door if it was not opened.

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nQiao Mei frowned slightly and wiped her hands clean before opening the door.

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nAs soon as she opened the door, she saw an aggressive woman who looked a little older, with not very good skin. She even had very serious dark circles under her eyes and she was quite thin.

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n“Who are you and where’s Auntie Xia Fang?” the woman said disdainfully.

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n“She went out. If you’re looking for her, come back tomorrow.” Qiao Mei rebuffed the woman the moment she heard her asking for Xia Fang. She was about to close the door when the woman stopped her.

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n“I’m not here to look for Auntie Xia Fang. Go ask that country bumpkin to come out,” the woman said.

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nCountry bumpkin?

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nCould she be talking about me?

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nQiao Mei smiled and said, “Maybe I’m the country bumpkin you’re looking for.”

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nThe woman looked at Qiao Mei in disbelief. According to her mother, the person who came was a poor villager. The person in front of her did not look like a woman who did farming in the countryside.

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n“You must be Qian’e,” Qiao Mei guessed.

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n“You know about me?” Qian’e looked at Qiao Mei and asked.

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n“Yes.” Qiao Mei nodded. After hearing the whole story from Xia Fang, she felt as if she knew enough about Qian’e.

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nHowever, the unexpected thing was that Qian’e misunderstood what Qiao Mei meant and thought that Xia Zhe had told Qiao Mei that she was Xia Zhe’s fiancée.

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n“You knew about me but you still married Xia Zhe! Shameless thing!” Qian’e suddenly became irritable.

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nQiao Mei had a puzzled look on her face. She found herself unable to understand what Qian’e was saying.

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nThe surrounding neighbors came out to see who was causing the commotion. When they saw that it was Qian’e, most of them came to help Qiao Mei while some people remained watching from the side.

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n“Xia Zhe’s wife, ignore this crazy woman and hurry back into the house,” said an elderly female neighbor in the crowd.

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n“Pfft! Who are you calling Xia Zhe’s wife! I’m Xia Zhe’s girlfriend!” Qian’e yelled loudly when she heard this.

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nQiao Mei looked helplessly at the woman in front of her who had come to cause trouble. As she could not teach the woman a lesson, she clenched her fists in anger and blamed it all on Xia Zhe for going around incurring “romantic debts”!

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n“You! You must have used some tactics to get Xia Zhe to marry you! What’s your name! How many people are there in your family! Who allowed you to marry Xia Zhe!” Qian’e threw out a lot of questions, almost like she was checking up on all of Qiao Mei’s ancestors.

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n“My name is Qiao Mei. As for your other queries, you can find out for yourself since you’re so capable.” Qiao Mei rolled her eyes and paid no heed.

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nQian’e stomped her feet in anger, and Qiao Mei then asked, “Who are you? What’s your designation? Are you the director of the women’s community in this apartment complex?”

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n“Hahahahahaha!” The neighbors who were watching the commotion burst out laughing.

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nFor a woman to become the director of the women’s community in her apartment complex, she needed to have a happy family, to have given birth and raise children, as well as to be married. It’s not a position that anyone could take up.

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n“You! I’m Xia Zhe’s fiancée! You stole my man!” Qian’e pointed at Qiao Mei and said.

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nThe neighbors standing around could not take it anymore.

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