Musheng looked at him with a smile, "What 'Love Potion' can you possibly pour?"
It was just that on Monday, Ma Changying had her brain thoroughly washed.
The original owner of the body didn't have a good life, as she was angered to death, which was more or less related to her nominal mother, Ma Changying.
The original owner was not to say particularly smart, but at least she never needed her family to worry about her studies. Unfortunately, the Ma Family was not very well-off, and Ma Changying was easily persuaded, leading to the original owner's tragic death.
From a young age, the original owner was somewhat frail, not to say sickly, but she definitely couldn't endure basic physical training like 'running' or 'frog jumps'; otherwise, she would feel very uncomfortable. Due to this, she had disliked physical education classes since elementary school.
And in this world, there are often many oddities. Neighbors around the Ma Family and residents of the same community would often whisper into Ma Changying's ears, suggesting that since Musheng was physically weak and would get married later, dragging a sick body might become a burden to the family. They also implied it would be better to give all the resources to her younger brother, Ma Nanji. Ma Changying, easily influenced, eventually began to believe these words and treated Musheng as a burden, becoming increasingly harsh towards her.
Ma Nanji, too, became disapproving of his own sister because he believed what others said.
It was just five days ago when the gossipy neighbor Wa Miaohua came to borrow money. Before Musheng's father left, he left a sum of money for his two children. Musheng had planned to use it for her four years of university living expenses, and naturally, that money was in Ma Changying's hands.
After Wa Miaohua learned of this, she belittled the uselessness of Musheng's education, and somehow managed to persuade Ma Changying to lend her the money. When Musheng found out, she clearly realized that, given the Wa Family's character, the money was unlikely to be returned. Her hope for university living expenses was thus dashed, and in a state of despair and fury, she suddenly fainted and inevitably died.
In that instant, the current Musheng was reborn. She ran a high fever for a whole day, and when she regained consciousness and took in the original owner's memories, she seriously confronted Ma Changying. She refuted all the grievances she had suffered over the years, woke Ma Changying up to the truth, and thus Ma Changying's attitude towards her underwent a significant change.
Unfortunately, the dead cannot be brought back to life. But it seems that the original owner had no will to live on anyway. She left no final words, and when Musheng received her memories, there wasn't much resentment or unwillingness— it was as though she had watched someone else's movie.
This brother, he's really foolish!
Perhaps it was Musheng's disdainful look that was too obvious, Ma Nanji's anger flared up impulsively again. This time he couldn't care less about the wound on his forehead or who caused it; he lunged forward to teach Musheng a lesson. Although he wouldn't hit her, he definitely wanted to pinch her hard to vent his frustration.
But just as he pounced forward, his vision blurred suddenly, and his world spun. A great force pressed his head into the couch, and the scent of the leather sofa filled his nostrils. Ma Nanji struggled to breathe, his limbs flailing, but he couldn't break free from the grip above him.
Musheng held down Ma Nanji with one hand and rolled her eyes. She called out to the kitchen, "Mom, don't cook for him. He's being disrespectful and dared to try hitting his sister. Let him go hungry for a meal first!"
Ma Changying came out of the kitchen upon hearing the shout and saw Ma Nanji desperately squirming under Musheng's hand. She dared not interfere, so she simply agreed somewhat sheepishly, "Then I won't cook for him."
Ma Nanji immediately stopped struggling.
Musheng blew on her nails and withdrew her hand, eyeing Ma Nanji, who was sufficiently agitated, before casually suggesting, "Even a clay figure has a temper. You'd better go around the neighborhood and find out the current situation. I used to think you were too young to understand, but now you're seventeen. It's time you learned how to respect your sister."
Ma Nanji sprang to his feet "suddenly," his once arrogant pompadour hairstyle now a mess and his face reddened from the struggle. He cast a resentful glance at Musheng, then quickly ran off back to his room and slammed the door shut with a bang.
Musheng couldn't be bothered with him. She greeted Ma Changying and went back to her room to sleep.
Ma Changying was a single mother. Musheng was very young when she divorced her husband; hence, she changed both of her children's surnames to match her own. She had never remarried, in part because Ma Nanji disapproved.
The current Musheng didn't feel much for her, and though it was never easy for Ma Changying to raise two children on her own, the fact that the original owner was angered to death remained an obstacle. Consequently, Musheng's attitude towards Ma Changying was lukewarm.
...
The next day, at precisely eight o'clock in the morning, Musheng got up on time. When she came to the living room for breakfast and didn't see Ma Nanji, she decided to ask out of sisterly kindness, "Where's Ma Nanji?"
Ma Changying was drinking porridge with a somewhat proud and joyous expression, "He got up before you, had breakfast and went out for a run. He says he's exercising now." Her words carried a hint of pride, reflecting her past indulgence towards her son. Now she was unconsciously making comparisons with Musheng, but thankfully Musheng didn't mind.
She scoffed imperceptibly. That lordly brat usually slept until 11 or 12 in the afternoon during the holidays, and today the sun rose from the west. He must have been upset last night and gone out to vent his anger.
But she kept silent, allowing Ma Changying to bask in the illusion that "my son has become so outstanding now," and once breakfast was over, went to get ready.
She was supposed to go to work at eight, but after a last-minute change of mind the night before, she no longer wished to. She couldn't be bothered to collect the few days' wages she was owed either. Now that the loaned money was recovered, she had no worries about her expenses. Even if she had to advance her tuition fees, she could still manage for two years. Two years were enough for her to find a good job.
She unapologetically took Ma Nanji's iPad from his room to play with. When Ma Changying came out to clean, she saw it but didn't say anything. Instead, she smiled and suggested, "Musheng, let me buy you a phone."
She felt somewhat guilty when she said this. Over the years, she had pampered her son, buying him a computer, an iPad, but had never gotten a phone for her daughter.
Although the Ma Family was not rich, they were not in dire poverty. Even providing Ma Nanji with various electronic devices was manageable, but adding a daughter to the mix would stretch their budget too thin. Thus, the family's financial difficulties were mainly from Musheng's perspective.
"Okay."
Musheng didn't refuse; she indeed needed a phone.
Just then, she finally found the news she was looking for, and she exclaimed softly, "Hmm."
'A major car accident occurred on the outer ring highway of Magic City. A private car collided with two trucks, the private car was crushed into scrap, and the female driver died on the spot!'
Musheng's fingers traced lightly over the word "died"...