The person approached her and asked, "Shi Li, why are you here?"
Shi Li thought to herself that she could now guess who the staff had mentioned was coming to visit Hong Yan today.
Shi Li forced a smile, "If I'm not mistaken, I'm here for the same reason as you."
Lu Yiyue, Shi Li's former aunt-in-law, let out a silvery laugh and nodded, "That's quite possible."
Song Ying restrained herself as she observed Lu Yiyue, not understanding the wordplay between her and Shi Li.
"Seeing her in a bad state makes me feel better."
Shi Li nodded, "What a coincidence, we feel the same way."
"By the way, I heard that after she went to prison, your Youngest Uncle Shi still remained devoted to her. Such a touching love story."
Though she spoke of it as touching, her tone was full of mockery.
Hearing her mention Youngest Uncle Shi, Song Ying vaguely guessed the identity of this lady.
Someone who held a grudge against Hong Yan and looked down on Youngest Uncle Shi could only be one person - Youngest Uncle Shi's ex-wife.
Shi Li greatly respected this former aunt-in-law, as it was Youngest Uncle Shi who had wronged her. Therefore, after their divorce, the Shi family treated her like a daughter, and Shi Li gained another aunt figure.
Shi Li smiled apologetically, "My uncle is blind, as you well know. It's good that he's devoted. At least when she gets out of prison, she'll have a home and won't go around harming others."
Shi Li's words pleased Lu Yiyue. Generally speaking, anyone who criticized Youngest Uncle Shi in front of her would win her favor.
"You naughty girl, you've become quite the smooth talker. Oh, by the way, my eldest niece is getting engaged in a few days. Remember to come and join the fun. Don't always shut yourself up at home studying. There's no end to studying, you should enjoy yourself more while you're young."
Lu Yiyue turned to Song Ying with a smile, "This must be the Xu's daughter. You should come along with Shi Li to have some fun too."
Song Ying was clearly surprised that Lu Yiyue had guessed her identity, a flash of astonishment crossing her face.
She looked at Song Ying with eyes full of affection, "You look a lot like your father and your aunt."
So that was the reason? If blood relations could be determined by just a face, why hadn't others noticed, Song Ying wondered puzzledly.
Of course, it wasn't just based on her face. Looking like the Xu family was one aspect, but the most important thing was what Shi Li had just said about them coming to visit Hong Yan.
Now, those willing to come to the prison to visit Hong Yan, apart from Youngest Uncle Shi, were probably all here to watch the show.
Shi Li didn't have any deep grudges against Hong Yan, her new aunt-in-law, not enough to make her come all this way. So she must be accompanying the girl beside her.
Before being recognized by her birth family, Xu's daughter had been raised in the Shi family.
The Shi family were all kind-hearted people, so the girl would have been well cared for in their home, and naturally, her relationship with the Shi family would be good.
Based on all these reasons, Lu Yiyue had guessed that Song Ying was the Xu family's daughter.
Song Ying's bright, big eyes were full of shock. Lu Yiyue resisted the urge to pat her head, only saying to the two girls, "I won't keep you any longer, go on in quickly. If you miss me, feel free to come to our house anytime to play."
Her floral parasol lowered, covering her complex expression.
Actually, she had once had her eye on Xu Xing. Xu Xing's appearance and learning were outstanding among his peers, making him a good match for an arranged marriage.
However, Xu Xing had fallen in love with a girl without any background, and they quickly married and had a child.
Her family then found other young men from good families for her. The Third Shi wasn't the most outstanding among these men, but he had a good appearance, a nice personality, was easy to handle, and had a clean background, unlike others with messy private lives.
Although her family chose marriage partners, they weren't the type to sell off their daughter.
When choosing a husband for their daughter, the daughter's opinion was naturally the most important.
Comparatively speaking, The Third Shi scored the highest, and she ultimately chose to marry him.
She and The Third Shi didn't have a sacred love before marriage, but after several years of marriage, they treated each other with respect and lived quite harmoniously.
As long as The Third Shi didn't flirt with women outside and didn't engage in domestic violence, she could live with him. Nothing else mattered much.
They hadn't had children after marriage, and neither her in-laws nor her own family had pressured them.
Knowing the many downsides of having children, she didn't have a strong desire to have a baby.
So when The Third Shi brought Hong Yan to her and said he wanted a divorce, at that time she only felt relief: it was fortunate that she had always used contraception and hadn't had children. Otherwise, for a child, encountering this kind of family and this kind of father would have been a disaster.
When The Third Shi said he wanted a divorce, she had no objections.
The Third Shi was just a troublesome old man, not some precious commodity. How could she possibly be unwilling to let him go?
Her maiden family was still there, and they could support her. As long as she had money, what kind of man couldn't she find?
High heels clicked on the cement floor, making a tap-tap-tap sound.
Thinking about the interesting turns of life, Lu Yiyue couldn't help but laugh.
Before Hong Yan had a chance to leave the visiting room, she was met by the next wave of visitors.
While she had managed to remain calm when facing Lu Yiyue, upon seeing Song Ying, who now looked like a little princess after her transformation, she completely lost her composure.
"What are you doing here? Haven't you ruined me enough already?"
Faced with the strange looks from the nearby prison guards, Song Ying good-naturedly explained, "My adoptive mother has a bit of a temper, please excuse her."
Song Ying picked up the speaking tube and said gently, "Mom, even though you kidnapped me and caused me to be separated from my birth parents for over ten years, we were still mother and daughter for more than a decade. I still have feelings for you. I was worried you might not be able to adapt to prison life, so I prepared a lot of food for you, all your favorites."
Hong Yan's eyes flickered slightly. Her hatred for Song Ying was intense, but if Song Ying could bring her some benefits, she was willing to show affection towards her.
"Mom knows that Xiao Ying is a good child. It was all mom's fault before. You shouldn't hold it against me. Mom has nothing now, only you."
Song Ying put on a deeply moved expression, "Mom, I love you too."
"Then can you talk to your birth parents about writing a letter of forgiveness for me? You want mom to get out of prison soon, don't you?"
"Mom, of course I hope you can get out of prison soon. I will talk to dad and mom about this, and I'll put in a good word for you in front of them."
She would talk about it, but whether it was now or years later when she discussed it with her parents, well, that depended on her memory.
Her dear mother also knew that she had always been slow-witted, so forgetfulness was normal.
Hong Yan gripped the phone, "Good Xiao Ying, didn't you say you brought good things for mom? Where are they?"
Song Ying put on a regretful face and said, "Oh my, I did bring a lot of food and clothes, but you know the prison rules, they don't allow outsiders to give things to inmates. I wanted to, but rules are rules, we can't break them."
Hong Yan almost couldn't resist her years of ingrained instinct to curse Song Ying out over the phone.
She held back from hurling abuse, not because Hong Yan had been rehabilitated in prison, but because she was still hoping Song Ying would go home and write a letter of forgiveness. For now, she couldn't afford to offend Song Ying.
So she forcibly held back and said, "It's alright, mom knows you're a good child. It's enough that you had the thought."
Song Ying had never seen Hong Yan so gentle and pleasant, like a truly loving mother.
"I'm glad you don't blame me."
Having played her prank on Hong Yan, Song Ying was in high spirits, her milk ducts flowing smoothly.
In the car, she took the initiative to suggest, "It's been a long time since I've seen grandma and aunt. Why don't we go home for dinner together tonight?"
Then she turned to instruct the driver to turn around and head to the mall.
Song Ying explained to Shi Li, "In the past, it was always aunt and grandma buying things for me. Now that I have money, I want to buy some gifts for them too."
Since it was her kind intention, Shi Li couldn't stop her.
However, when Song Ying got out of the car and headed straight for the jewelry store, Shi Li couldn't help but say, "Aunt and grandma don't lack those things. You can just bring some fruit and snacks. Don't buy anything expensive."
Shi Li seemed to have just discovered Song Ying's hidden attribute as a shopaholic, particularly fond of spending money on those around her.
But Song Ying uttered a profound truth, "We can just look without buying anything."
With no other choice, Shi Li could only go in with her, intending to prevent Song Ying from spending money or use her own card instead.
Entering the jewelry store, Song Ying spotted a familiar figure and called out enthusiastically, "Yuqing, are you here shopping too?"
Shi Li wondered inwardly, [When did she make this friend? How come I don't know about it?]
Song Ying and Li Yuqing had only exchanged contact information a day ago, but they had hit it off so well online that they seemed like old friends.
That's why Song Ying was particularly warm when she saw this "old friend."
Shi Li's inner thoughts seemed to come with their own background music. Before Li Yuqing turned around, she only heard Song Ying's voice and didn't immediately recognize her, as they had mostly communicated through text and hadn't spoken face-to-face much.
It was thanks to Shi Li's inner monologue that she knew Shi Li was behind her.
Song Ying quietly introduced Li Yuqing to Shi Li, "She's a classmate from the original Class 3. Yesterday at the school gate, when she saw I had ordered too many bubble teas, she helped me carry them back to the classroom." She conveniently omitted the fact that she had actively asked for help.
Li Yuqing was accompanied by a young, fashionable woman who was her older sister. They had come to buy some jewelry as part of her sister's dowry.
When Li Yuqing turned around, Shi Li got a clear view of her face.
[She's the youngest daughter from that rainy night massacre case]
Li Yuqing: ??
[The rainy night butcher is her brother-in-law]
Li Yuqing: Whoa!
