My daughter was sick, so I went to her apartment to take care of her. The moment I stepped inside, a putrid stench hit me. I offered to clean up her place. Clara’s roommates’ faces immediately soured. “What smell? There’s nothing wrong with this apartment!” “If you think this place is too rundown, then just tell Clara to move out.” Clara impatiently pushed me away too. “Mom, you came to see me, fine. But don’t be so dramatic and embarrass me, okay?” Was my sense of smell faulty? But when I went to bed that night, the odor was so strong I couldn’t sleep. Finally, I discovered the stench was coming from my daughter! I quickly brought her to the shower, scrubbing her several times, but the smell remained incredibly pungent! I had no choice. I decided to hire professional cleaners and have them disinfect the apartment from top to bottom. But Clara’s roommates felt offended and argued with me. In the chaos, I was pushed. My temple struck the sharp edge of the coffee table, and I died instantly! When I opened my eyes again, I was back at the moment I first entered the apartment, and the putrid stench assailed me once more…
The rotten stench instantly made my stomach churn! But why did none of them, including my daughter, seem to notice anything? “Mom, what are you doing here?” “My roommates have been taking great care of me. In a few more days, I’ll be able to go out for class again. You really didn’t need to come.” Lost in a daze, Clara walked over and took my luggage. Although she said I didn’t need to come, her eyes were filled with surprise and emotion. In the past, I had been too strict with Clara, which made our relationship not very close, but I knew she deeply craved my approval and love. Her roommates were also very welcoming, inviting me to join them for hotpot. I realized that as long as I didn’t mention the smell on Clara and trigger their hostility, I could get along with them. Coupled with my accidental death in the previous life’s argument, I decided to hold back for now. I would investigate the source of the stench without provoking any conflict with them. The next day, I went straight to the hospital for a check-up, and the results showed my sense of smell was perfectly fine! I even conducted multiple confirmations, ensuring that what I could smell was exactly the same as what any other normal person could smell. This meant the stench definitely existed. It was just that I could smell it, but Clara and her roommates couldn’t. Thinking this, I immediately bought strong-smelling items like perfume, durian, and stinky tofu, planning to test their sense of smell when I got back. I placed these items in different corners of the apartment. But I quickly found that the foul odor emanating from Clara had already permeated the entire room, completely masking all other scents. This test was pointless. Even if their sense of smell was fine, there was no way they could detect the things I’d hidden. Just as I was about to collect the items and put them all together, Clara suddenly rushed out of her room. “Mom, what’s that awful smell?” My heart leaped with joy. “Clara, you can smell it too?” Clara’s brow was deeply furrowed. “It’s choking me! How could I not smell it?” I immediately grabbed her hand, eager to take her to the hospital to investigate the source of the stench. But Clara quickly pushed me away, strode to the corner, pulled a box of stinky tofu from behind the curtain, and glared at me accusingly. “Mom, my roommates are really clean. Why would you secretly put stinky tofu here? Are you trying to attract rats?” Before I could respond, Clara’s roommates returned from class. The moment they walked in, they pinched their noses, looking disgusted. And within two minutes, they had found everything I’d hidden. “Ma’am, we respect you a lot. Please, could you show us some respect too?” “If you want to stay here and take care of Clara, please don’t bring such smelly things back again!” My scalp prickled. What was going on? They couldn’t smell such a strong, putrid stench, yet they could smell durian that hadn’t even been opened?
If none of us had problems with our sense of smell, then something was seriously wrong with Clara’s scent! The bizarre situation made me deeply worried about her health. The next day, I deliberately booked a luxurious dinner at a hotel, opened an expensive bottle of wine, and presented each of Clara’s roommates with an exquisite gift. Once I had won them over, I said kindly at the dinner table: “I bought those smelly things today because I found traces of rats and wanted to use them to lure the rats out and get rid of them.” “If you don’t mind, tomorrow, while you’re at class, could I have a cleaning company come in for a thorough clean? I’ll cover all the costs, and I’ll also pay for a month’s worth of groceries—” Before I could finish, one of Clara’s roommates slammed her fork down. “Ma’am, just say what you mean. There’s no need to be so hypocritical.” The other roommates’ faces gradually hardened. “She’s right, Ma’am. I know you come from a good family and you look down on this apartment, feeling like Clara is suffering by living here. But we didn’t force Clara to stay, you can move out anytime!” “Hmph, we may be poor, but we’re clean. What’s the need for a thorough cleaning?” Faced with their snide comments, Clara’s eyes reddened with embarrassment as she quickly explained. “I don’t look down on you, and I’m not planning to move out.” “Mom!” “If you dislike this place, then just leave. I’m not as dramatic as you are. I love it here, and I’m happy living with them!” I was utterly bewildered. Why were their reactions so extreme? My attitude had been good, and I’d even used gifts to soften them up. Even if I *had* shown some disdain, under normal circumstances, they shouldn’t have lashed out at me so directly, right? Moreover, I’d used rats as an excuse; I hadn’t even mentioned the stench! An inexplicable sense of unease spread through my heart. I couldn’t help but suspect that Clara and her roommates were deliberately hiding something. “Clara, why did you all react so strongly when I suggested a thorough cleaning?” “Please tell me the truth, okay?” “I’m your mother. Whatever has happened, I’ll understand and protect you.” Back in the bedroom, I prepared to have a heart-to-heart talk with Clara. In my previous life, even after Clara showered, the foul smell on her hadn’t faded at all, which was why I called for professional cleaning. The result was that they acted like maniacs and literally killed me on the spot! The experiences of both lives made me almost certain: they were hiding something in the apartment that they dared not let outsiders discover! “What do you mean?” “Mom, are you suspecting that we’re doing something bad and hiding it from you, that’s why you don’t want me to get cleaners?” Clara’s eyes were already red, brimming with angry tears. “Is it because I didn’t get into a prestigious university and disappointed you, that you’re prejudiced against me now?” “I’m not smart, but I’ve tried so hard, Mom!” “If you don’t like me, then just leave! Don’t disrupt my life! My roommates might just be ordinary university students you look down on, but I like them very much. Please, don’t make them hate me and ruin my friendships, okay?” I hadn’t expected Clara to be so emotional. Her words were like a knife, sharply piercing my heart. In the past, I had high expectations of her and was strict, which led to her personality problems. But I had already realized this and was doing my best to make amends. How could I not like her? Looking at Clara’s tear-filled, red eyes, my heart uncontrollably tightened with sorrow. I hugged her tightly. The next second. A sudden chill ran down my spine, and I cried out. “Clara, what exactly have you been through?”
I noticed a detail I had always overlooked! My daughter kept saying her roommates were good to her and that she liked them very much. But in neither the previous life nor this one had I ever seen her roommates help her, or even say a single comforting word. How could such a cold attitude signify a good relationship? Had they discovered Clara’s character flaws and manipulated her? And was the strange smell on Clara a means of their manipulation? At this thought, my body started shaking uncontrollably. I couldn’t remain calm anymore. Clara, her eyes full of tears, asked me, “Mom, what exactly are you trying to say?” I shook my head, not daring to voice my suspicions, afraid of agitating Clara’s fragile emotions. I needed to find evidence first! My sense of smell was fine, which meant the smell on Clara definitely existed. And the only reason others “couldn’t smell it” was one possibility: they were pretending! It was also possible that Clara was suffering from severe emotional manipulation, and her mind and perception were affected, making her unable to smell it herself. Proving my theory would be simple: I just needed to take Clara out! The smell on her was so strong; passersby would surely notice… “Clara, you’re almost recovered. How about I take you out for a stroll today?” “We can also buy some things for your roommates to help maintain your friendships.” The next morning, I suggested taking Clara out. As expected, she cared a lot about her roommates and happily agreed. I noticed that no matter where Clara was, the foul odor on her was particularly strong. But strangely, until we walked out of the apartment complex, no one even glanced at us. Couldn’t they smell it, or didn’t they realize the source of the stench was my daughter? I gradually felt panic and unease. I stopped a passerby who was walking past. “Young man, do you smell anything?” The young man looked at me strangely. “No, I don’t smell anything!” How was that possible? How could he not smell the stench from so close? I frantically continued walking with Clara, then stopped another person. But I asked ten people in a row, and they all said they didn’t smell anything! This was absolutely wrong! My sense of smell was fine! “Mom, what are you doing acting so frantic?” Clara couldn’t stand it. She stopped me, clearly embarrassed, and turned to walk away. I felt like I was on the verge of a breakdown! What exactly was the problem?
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