The next morning, Alexandria woke up and saw that it was already very bright outside. It seemed like she had slept for a very long time. But she felt much better than the dizzy and heavy feeling she had yesterday.
When she got up, her stomach was growling. There was nothing to eat in this old house. Alexandria grabbed a stick, planning to go out to find some food and maybe "beat the dog" a little.
At this time, there were not many people at home. Only the oldest daughter-in-law, Yissy, and the lazy Jay were there. Alexandria planned to eat first, then practice a bit. Remembering what she knew, she went straight to the kitchen.
She saw Yissy there. She was making lunch for the family. When she saw Alexandria, she looked shocked like she saw a ghost. She knew all about the family's situation. The old man at home had already said that when the men came back at noon, they would go to her room to collect her dead body.
This morning, she had told others that the second daughter-in-law was sad because her son died. She had hit the wall and was now lying at home, close to death. But now, seeing Alexandria alive and holding a stick, Yissy almost scared to death.
Alexandria saw Yissy's shocked face and smiled wickedly. She said, "Sister-in-law, are you cooking?"
Yissy gave a short "hmm" but then quickly got angry. She thought, why be polite to this bad luck? She wanted Alexandria to do the work.
Yissy usually hit and scolded the original woman badly, but she was smarter than Old Madam Shao. She did it quietly and secretly.
Alexandria did not want to put up with her. She slapped Yissy hard, making her stunned. After a long moment, Yissy said, "You cheap woman, how dare you hit me?"
She tried to rush forward to hit back, since she had treated the original woman the same way.
Alexandria saw her coming and slapped her several more times, hitting Yissy down on the ground. Yissy cried out in pain, never expecting Alexandria to be so bold and hit so hard. She no longer dared to fight back.
She planned to wait for Old Madam Shao and her husband to come back and punish Alexandria.
Alexandria looked at Yissy, who was no longer resisting, then went to the pot and lifted the lid. Two big sweet potatoes were steaming inside. It looked like they were ready. Underneath was a big pot of mixed porridge, white and good to eat for breakfast.
Alexandria took a big bowl, put the two sweet potatoes inside, and carried it back to her room. It was very hot, so she let it cool.
Earlier in the kitchen, she had seen a cabinet with a lock. Alexandria knew it held all the good stuff—brown sugar, cakes, rice, and flour. Old Madam Shao would take out just enough for everyone before locking it again.
Alexandria took a hammer and smashed the lock. Yissy screamed loudly, saying Alexandria must be crazy. Even Yissy was afraid of Old Madam Shao.
Old Madam Shao was not only stingy but very strong-willed, the boss of the village. No woman could beat her in a fight or argument. She was shameless when she shouted.
With three sons at home, others had to think twice before fighting her.
Now Alexandria had smashed the most treasured cabinet of Old Madam Shao. When Old Madam Shao came back, she would surely be furious.
Alexandria didn't care. Seeing all the good food inside, she took everything to her room.
Jay heard the loud noise outside. He came out to see what was happening. When he saw Alexandria was safely moving some food, he shouted angrily, "You damn person, how dare you steal food!"
Then he rushed at Alexandria, trying to slap her. But before he got close, Alexandria kicked him hard, sending him flying more than two meters away.
Yissy didn't have time to warn Jay. He was already lying on the ground, unable to get up, crying in pain. Alexandria put down the food and walked over.
Maybe because of the hate the original Alexandria felt for Jay, Alexandria now wanted to break him into pieces more and more.
But Alexandria would not kill him. She knew this time was different from before. Killing people here would get punished by the law.
She did not want to become a target. Even though she was not afraid of the police, dealing with them was troublesome.
Seeing Alexandria slowly coming closer, Jay kept cursing, "You stinky bitch, how dare you hit me! Later, I will make you pay! I am Jay, and you won't get away! Ah!"
Before he finished, Alexandria stepped on his mouth. "Your mouth is too dirty. I need to shut it for you!" She pressed harder with her foot.
"Ah! Let me go! Or my mom won't forgive you!"
"Really?"
Alexandria kicked him several more times. The sound of flesh scraping against the ground scared Yissy so much she almost wet herself. It looked very painful.
After kicking him, Alexandria put her foot between Jay's legs. "How about now, still want to scream?"
Jay suddenly felt a heavy pressure. Seeing Alexandria's half-smile, he got so scared he wet his pants. He knew Alexandria could really ruin him.
"Miss, I'm sorry! I'm worse than a pig and dog! It's all my fault! Please don't hit me anymore, sobbing."
Seeing Jay actually wet himself, Alexandria looked disgusted and quickly pulled her foot away. Then she calmly went back to eating breakfast.
Only Yissy and Jay were left there crying. Was this woman possessed today? She was completely different from before.
Alexandria did not care about Yissy and Jay's miserable state. She happily carried the delicious food she found in the kitchen back to her small room. It had cooled down a bit, so she quickly picked up the porridge, eating a bite of sweet potato and a sip of porridge with great pleasure.
Even simple things could taste so good! Then she had a piece of steamed egg cake, sweet and soft. There were so many tasty foods in this time. She felt moved.