Evil Presence.

Qiao Miao's laugh subsided gradually, starting tears in her eyes. She patted her chest thrice, as if the hard laughter caused pain there. Traces of anger crept back into her eyes, as her gaze collided with Tang Yu's. She glared daggers at the latter.

"This girl's black presence doesn't augur well for your future, Huan! Just as she stepped a foot in your house, your economy got into trouble! The unceasing heavy rainfall of three consecutive days since her marriage has caused extensive damage to your crops. At first, the gutsy wind spoiled the standing paddy plants, before pushing them into the ground, now stagnant water in the fields has ruined the rest. Isn't it a reversal of your fortune?" Qiao Miao threw the question at her friend, spreading negativity.

Song Huan obviously bought it. After all, a man is known by the company he keeps. People are wired to be attracted to people with whom they have a certain degree of connection. Qiao Miao and she had connected over their superstitious beliefs years back. The little spark of affection that Tang Yu had gained in her mother-in-law's heart by loosening her attitude and cleaning the chicken coop began fading away fast. Now, Song Huan looked at her through a different lens.

Four heads poked out of the kitchen door, one above another in a straight line, fully engrossed in the scene opening out gradually to their view.

Qiao Miao felt a stirring of mild happiness, driving her point home successfully. "Obviously, as we can't meet the consumption needs of our village this year, rice and other veggies are fetching exorbitant prices. Our economy will go sour! Famine is looming large. But, look at her…!" She pulled out a finger from her fist and pointed it at Tang Yu. "Instead of saving for the lean times ahead, she is luxuriating in soaps! Look at the froth, and you yourself can tell how much she has wasted there."

Song Huan's gaze followed the direction, and took in the puddle of soap water. Her friend's words indeed held water. At the sight, her anger rose. She exhaled hot breath which was instantly carried away by the softly blowing air.

Tang Yu's long, butterfly-like eyelashes fluttered, processing the hurricane of shit information. How come washing her hands clean translated into splashing the cash?! The kooky aunt laid into her for no reason!

"Huan, do you remember the year my Xixi was born? An extensive drought ravaged our area when I was expecting her. All our crops failed. All the ponds both small and big ones, dried up, perishing the fish. The Lotus river had also started running dry by the end. It bore down very hard not only on the farmers, but also on the entire village." A distant look took over Qiao Miao's eyes, as she reminisced about the past. "The temperature rose to a point even breathing became a chore. Many of the villagers died over it. Chants of prayers filled every house. Then, just as my daughter had been born, a deluge of rain began pouring for half a day." Joy sparked in her eyes, before spilling all over. "That short spell of rain broke that curse of drought. The entire village rejoiced over my daughter's birth!"

A big conflict broke out in Song Huan's heart at the words. That year's drought was burned into her memory, the worst disaster in living memory. Qiao Xi was indeed lucky; and her birth snatched them from the clutches of bad luck. Even the head priest of the state temple blessed her for that.

Qiao Miao raised her chin, pride was very apparent in her expression. "The lose is more yours than mine. Don't stick your head in the sand. Recognize the ill omen then cast it out. It's a friend's advice who always has your best interest in mind." She said it with her chest. "Don't be fazed by her father's status. If you don't even have ground under your feet, what is the point of having shade over your head?"

A subtle shift in Tang Yu's eyebrows betokened her annoyance. She was a dark presence? Like seriously?! She had a strong impulse to slap a sparknote version of logic on the woman's face who had been creating some hypotheticals that may or may not happen. Even if the latter's words were to come true, it would be due to a natural disaster, not for her presence! A superstitious person through and through! She closed her eyes, choking back her urge, thinking better of it. She couldn't foist her logical opinions on them, as they weren't down for it, to say the least. She had her head screwed on right.

Superstitions were deeply rooted in ancient people's brains, coming down from their ancestors. So, they would most definitely rival when their deep-seated beliefs would be questioned.

Tang Yu's sharp eyes calmly roved over everyone, before letting out a subtle breath of helplessness. She couldn't afford any more than what she already got on her plate. She had to beat them playing their own game.

Murmurs of female voices came from the kitchen, it wasn't lost on Song Huan. She looked at them over her shoulder — their expressions reflecting hers. Fear of doom, worries for near ones, resentment for Tang Yu — cocktail of emotions shadowed their usual smiling happy faces. She turned her gaze to Qiao Xi, her eyes containing bursts of regrets. The elephant in the room gnawed at her heart. How on earth would she broach the pivotal topic to her son?! He was a big believer of monogamy.

The Mu family's changing attitude towards Tang Yu didn't fly under Qiao Xi's radar. Her mood lightened, so did her mother's.

Just then, a middle aged man with a hunched back and craggy appearance came in, carrying a sack on his shoulders. He shot Tang Yu a look of disapproval.

Tang Yu: "....."

"Keep it there," Qiao Miao pointed towards a kitchen wall, indicating the man to put the sack there. He propped the sack up on the ground against the wall, then left.

"What is there, Miao?" Song Huan asked, amidst the turmoil of her heart.

"Bananas. Xixi's father cut the largest stem this morning for your family from our garden. It has fifteen hands, each made up of almost twenty fingers. He cut it, seeing me eagerly anticipating to catch up with you. If not for the rain, I would've come sooner. Only to be disappointed... Anyway, we should take our leave." Qiao Miao turned on her heels, heading towards the back door.

"Why don't you sit and have something?!" Song Huan offered desperately.

Qiao Miao halted in mid-stride. "Light and darkness can't exist in the same place at the same time. One has to leave. I'll throw some pause. Hopefully, you will mull over my words."

The statements raised Tang Yu's eyebrows. It took her a lot of mental blocks to remain silent. Nevertheless, she just wasn't the person to stomach injustice with a sealed mouth. A glint flashed across her eyes, as she stared at Qiao Miao. 'What an uppity! Soon, the weight of your own words would topple your ego down.'

Song Huan stretched her lips in a thin line, before following the mother-daughter duo till the backdoor.

….

Hunger began drumming inside Tang Yu's stomach, carrying out a vigorous protest. She shoved the incident at the back of her head for then, and sprinted to the kitchen for breakfast. But, to her surprise, everyone swiftly moved away to the corners, as if she was carrying a life threatening plague. She froze for a second at the oddity, running her gaze on them. She wasn't clued up as to why everyone's gaze was locked on her shadow. "What happened?" She couldn't but ask, taking a step forward.

"Stop! D-don't come towards me!" Li Diu stuttered out, pressing her back against the bamboo wall, exerting her all might. It was as if she was trying to merge with the wall. Horror twisted her face. "Please, go outside!"

Everyone seemed to be up in arms about her presence per se. The absurd behavior completely threw Tang Yu for a loop. "But, why?"

"Shove off, will you?" Mu Jiayi screamed at the top of her voice, concerned for her second elder sister-in-law. "We don't want your shadow on us!" She fessed.

Tang Yu's lips parted slightly, fully taken aback. "And what's with my shadow?"

"It's evil!"

"It may shorten our lifespan!"

"Our lives might be plagued with bad events." A long series of response had been released in the air one after another, anxiousness bubbling hot in the atmosphere.

Tang Yu sealed her eyes, connecting the dots. She couldn't help crossing for them some maturity. "I'm hungry. You guys may leave the kitchen for a while. Ten minutes will suffice." Taking the food to her bedroom would stack more negative points on her name. And, as for using the dining room, only guests were supposed to use it; clearly she wasn't one.

Before her words could touch the ground, all the girls flew like bats out of hell.

The way everyone was ostracizing her put a damper on Tang Yu's mood. Not for a minute, did she ever feel so lonely. Feeling like the child left out, she pouted, and picked up the only breakfast left for her — the soggy fried dough. "Eww!" Excess oil made her cringe. She put it back in the plate, looked around the kitchen, and went for the banana stem.