Although Akloit’s economy was doing well, ranking in the top three nationwide, the average salary had reached a level of $7, 000.
However, even if you saved every penny of that $7, 000 without spending anything, it would still take ten years to accumulate one million dollars.
Moreover, Jillian had no particular education or technical skills, relying on selling drinks at the village entrance to earn a living. It was considered good if her monthly income could stabilize at 5, 000. One million dollars would be enough to provide her whole family with a good life for ten years.
Sean was extremely anxious, his lips turning pale. Ever since the Lawrence family went bankrupt, his former friends who used to flatter and curry favor with him had all turned their backs.
He was no longer the haughty young master of the Lawrence family, nor did he have a monthly allowance of tens of thousands of dollars. Now, he relied on part-time jobs during his spare time to afford his food, clothing, and shelter. Where would he get so much money for her?
“Jillian, you’re asking for the impossible. I don’t believe you don’t know how the Lawrence family’s siblings are struggling. You should have some conscience.”
Melody lived next to the Lawrence family. She often witnessed Sean sacrificing his share of meat for his mentally disabled sister while he contented himself with plain water and sandwich.
Even if the villagers didn’t have much money, they had land. With a bit of hard work, they could grow their own vegetables without spending much throughout the year.
Melody felt sorry for the two adolescents who had no adults to rely on, so she occasionally sent them some vegetables she grew herself. Sean couldn’t repay her with money, but he had inexhaustible strength and often helped her with digging.
Now, witnessing the despicable Jillian bullying them, Melody couldn’t hold back her anger. Being an upright person, Melody felt she had to speak up.
Jillian had long held a grudge against Melody for no reason other than the fact that the the latter also earned money by selling drinks at the village entrance. Their stalls were set up facing each other, on both sides of the entrance.
It was obvious to everyone whether one family had more business than the other. However, the entrance area was public, and they each had the right to do business there without the power to drive the other away.
Over time, their hatred grew, especially as Jillian saw how close Melody was to the Lawrence siblings.
“Conscience? Bah! You, an unscrupulous woman, still have the face to talk to me about conscience? Don’t forget who introduced you here in the first place. And after you got married, you stole my business. It’s you who lacks shame!”
Upon hearing this, Melody was even more furious. “You, the shameless one, are truly twisting black and white. It was I who first came up with the idea of selling water here, and I discussed it with you since I see you a good friend. But you stole my idea and set up your stall before me, taking the spot I had found.”
“You said it yourself, you only had the idea but didn’t take action. Why couldn’t I sell water then? Who gave you the right to claim that spot as yours? All I know is that I was the first to set up my table there.”
“You said it was an idea, but you hadn’t taken any action. So why can’t I sell water? Who says you’re the one who found that spot? All I know is that I was the one who put the table there first.”
The villagers remained silent, but some suddenly understood. No wonder Jillian and Melody couldn’t stand each other. The origin of their enmity was now clear from their fragmented words. From the bits and pieces, everyone could guess the truth of what happened back then.
Melody and Jillian both came from the south and were middle school classmates. They came to Akloit together to work. Later, they heard that a tourist attraction would be developed here. With savings and some social experience, Melody didn’t want to continue working in the factory, doing meaningless repetitive labor.
Melody shared her entrepreneurial idea with her best friend, Jillian. Jillian appeared supportive on the surface but actually stole her business idea and took action ahead of her.
Meanwhile, Melody had always been highly regarded by her superiors in the factory due to her hard work. When they heard she wanted to resign, everyone was reluctant to let her go, so they advised her to reconsider for three days. If she was still determined after three days, they would process her resignation.
Because of the time delayed, Melody missed the opportunity to be the first vendor there. However, there was someone in the management who had a close relationship with her and happened to be from Hurtlepool. So, he acted as an intermediary and consulted with the village chief.
Melody rented his house and obtained the village chief’s permission to set up a small stall at the entrance across from Jillian’s. Since coming here, Melody also met her lover, a hardworking and kind villager from Hurtlepool.
After they got married, Melody moved out of her rented house. Her husband treated her well, so their life as a couple was going quite well. This made Jillian extremely jealous. She had a strong sense of comparison and when she saw Melody getting married and living a good life, she also found a local Hurtlepool resident to marry.
However, she just randomly found someone and was only interested in the fact that the man had a house here. The man wasn’t as good as she had imagined; he was not only lazy but also an alcoholic. Moreover, her mother-in-law favored boys over girls, so Jillian faced constant criticism from her mother-in-law for giving birth to a daughter.
It wasn’t until she gave birth to a son and improved her position at home that she started a small business and had some income. With confidence, Jillian became arrogant and domineering. Her mother-in-law doted on her grandson, and as long as she gave her husband money to buy alcohol, she controlled everything in the household.
In Jillian’s eyes, her son was worth a million dollars. If the Lawrence family dared not to give her what she wanted, she would take them to court!
However, to everyone’s surprise, Cheyenne agreed without hesitation.
“A million dollars? Sure!”
Sean immediately became anxious, “Sis, no.”
Melody also frowned. Whether it was for the sake of the Lawrence family or her personal grudges, she didn’t want Jillian to get that million dollars. Jillian was already arrogant, and if she had some money in her hands, wouldn’t she be over the moon?
The other people in the village expressed their envy. Jillian received a million dollars just like that. Why couldn’t they have such good luck?
Jillian herself was also excited. She almost fell off the couch but managed to conceal it.
However, she was regretful inside.
She regretted not asking for more. This woman drove a car worth millions, so a million dollars was like a drop in the bucket for her.
In the next moment, a young girl’s cold voice, tinged with a sarcastic laugh, pleasantly echoed in everyone’s ears.
“A million Joss paper? Is that too little? How about I give you more? Let’s start with a billion so that Lord Yama won’t accuse me of being stingy later.”
Jillian felt like she was being mocked and her face turned red with anger.
Sean also felt relieved. He almost thought his sister was really going to give that shrew a million dollars.
Melody, on the other hand, burst into laughter when she realized what was happening.
“Well, well, well, if that’s the case, a billion is too little. Since we’re all from the same village, I’ll give you another billion. That adds up to two billion. Jillian, when will you bring a rotten pot to collect it all? Otherwise, the ashes will fly everywhere, and that’s not eco-friendly.”