After leaving the Yue family, the young couple hurried straight to Xiaoling Village to bid farewell to Nan Sheng's grandparents, uncles, and aunts.
The elderly couple looked healthy and in good spirits. After seeing their daughter's true nature, they no longer mistreated themselves and instead helped their son and daughter-in-law with lighter chores, bringing the family closer together.
The couple brought many gifts, and Nan Sheng's aunt insisted on preparing a meal, saying even a single bite would make them happy. She immediately slaughtered one of the chickens they had brought.
In just three hours, they ate two full meals—even Lin Han, with his big appetite, felt uncomfortably stuffed.
Before leaving, Nan Sheng's aunt packed all the dried mushrooms and wood ears from their home for her, adding, "If you like these, just write to us. Next time we go to town, we’ll mail you more."
As the saying goes, "Time reveals a person's heart." If not for Zhong Yanyan's help during the drought, the family would have starved. The Zhong family was deeply grateful to Nan Sheng and Lin Han.
On the way home, Nan Sheng sat on the bicycle’s rear seat, rubbing her stomach. A thought suddenly struck her. "Lin Han, we can’t take this bicycle with us. Should we sell it or leave it here?"
Lin Han said either was fine and left the decision to her.
Her parents already had a bicycle, and she didn’t want to give it to his family. Leaving it at home wasn’t safe either, so Nan Sheng decided selling it was the simplest solution.
Normally, since Lin Han was taking his wife and child away, Lin Guozheng should have gathered all the children for a farewell meal at the old house. But because Nan Sheng and Lin Xue didn’t get along, they simply brought food to Eldest Brother Lin’s home and asked Zhou Wei to prepare the meal.
When Sizhong came to call them, Nan Sheng gave him two pieces of meat. "Tell your mother and wife to make meat-filled dumplings. Let’s keep it simple—no need for too many dishes."
Nan Sheng didn’t plan to help with the cooking. She and Lin Han were busy packing their belongings.
The remaining oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar would be taken back to Wangshan Village by Mingli. Clothes and food were packed to be mailed the next day, and the leftover grain would be sold to Yan Shaoshu.
She took the money, planning to have her younger brother deliver supplies to the couple periodically.
Looking around the now half-empty house, Lin Han turned and took Nan Sheng’s hand. "Wife, are you afraid of moving to a new place?"
Nan Sheng smiled and shook her head. She was like duckweed—she could thrive wherever she drifted.
Lin Han mistook her confidence as complete trust in him, warmth flooding his chest. His expression softened.
"I promise you, Nan Sheng," he said, "as long as I’m here, you’ll never have to fear anything. I’ll make sure you never regret marrying me."
She squeezed his hand in return, resting her head lightly on his shoulder.
She admitted Lin Han was exactly her type, but Nan Sheng would always be Nan Sheng. She had her own ambitions and wouldn’t stake her future entirely on a man.
That evening, Lin Han’s family of four went to the old house for dinner. Aside from Eldest Brother Lin’s family and the elderly couple, Zhou Wei and her husband had only invited Third Brother Lin.
Throughout the meal, the sound of Lin Xue scolding and hitting her children echoed from another room, though everyone pretended not to hear.
The table was laden with steaming dumplings, a large pot of chicken stew with vegetables (Eldest Brother Lin had slaughtered one of their own), and three other stir-fried dishes—four plates in total.
Lin Han and Nan Sheng exchanged a glance, both smiling wryly. Their stomachs were still full from earlier, yet here they were, facing another feast.
Wang Yuting seemed awkward around Nan Sheng, busying herself by serving her younger siblings. Lin Han only ate sparingly, spending most of the time drinking with Lin Guozheng and his brothers.
Fan Shuting felt a pang of sadness as she looked at her second son's family, knowing she might not see them again for a year. She wondered if her grandchildren would even remember her as their grandmother.
Zhou Wei noticed Nan Sheng wasn’t eating much and kindly placed five or six dumplings into her bowl.
"Eat up, sister-in-law! I used the meat you brought in the filling—it’s delicious. Don’t worry, there are plenty of dumplings today!"
With that, she added two pieces of chicken to Nan Sheng’s plate, her generosity bordering on excessive.
Nan Sheng: "..."
Thanks a lot, really.
When no one was paying attention, Nan Sheng quietly divided the dumplings between her son and daughter. Meanwhile, Lin Guozheng asked, "Second Son, who’s going to look after your house while you’re away? Should you leave a key with me? I can come by every few days to heat the kang for you."
Though well-intentioned, Lin Han declined. He knew his brother-in-law Mingli occasionally needed to store goods from the black market at their place.
"No need, Dad. Mingli will drop by often. Besides, there’s nothing left in the house except for some bedding."
Zhou Wei’s eyes widened. "Are you mailing all your grain too? How much would that cost in postage?"
Nan Sheng smiled. "Sister-in-law, we only had about two hundred catties left, and I sold all of it."
"Well, then there’s no need to check on the house—it’s just an empty shell now," Zhou Wei remarked carelessly. She had plenty of grain at home and hadn’t even considered eyeing Lin Han’s share.
Third Brother Lin, however, was different—he was poor. He’d hoped Lin Han would divide the leftover grain among their parents and siblings, but now that dream was dashed. His sister-in-law had sold it all.
Heartbroken, Third Brother Lin shoved several dumplings into his mouth. Might as well eat more—these meat-filled dumplings are too good to pass up.
After the meal, Lin Han’s family left. Zhou Wei didn’t let her daughters-in-law clear the table, instead assigning the task to Sizhong and Sicheng.
The elderly couple lingered, reluctant to return home and face Lin Xue’s sulking. Fan Shuting sighed mournfully. "Second Son has grown distant from us. He’d rather trust his brother-in-law with the house than ask us for help."
Zhou Wei almost chimed in, but a glance at her husband’s grim expression made her swallow her words.
Lin Guozheng simply bowed his head in silence. Too much had happened over the past year. With Lin Han’s family well-off and lacking nothing, they’d naturally shifted their attention to their other children.
If their son had grown distant, it was only because they, as parents, had failed him.
Before bed, Eldest Brother Lin instructed Zhou Wei, "Second Brother’s family is moving to the military base. They’ll have to buy everything there—it’ll cost a fortune. Pack half of our dried vegetables, mushrooms, and wood ears for them to take."
Zhou Wei nodded. She didn’t mind parting with the mountain goods—grain was the lifeblood of farmers, but these were manageable.
At dawn, Lin Han got up to cook for the children, letting his wife sleep in. After breakfast, he rode his bike to the school to handle the withdrawal formalities.
He’d only come to inform the school that the parents were aware of the withdrawal, ensuring they wouldn’t face trouble later. But to his surprise, a female teacher stopped him.
"Excuse me, are you Lin Sizhe’s father?"
Lin Han halted at the call and turned to see a young woman. He immediately took a few steps back to maintain distance.
"Yes, I am. Is there something you need?"
Though Lin Sizhe had moved up to fifth grade, where Fan Shuting was now his homeroom teacher, Tang Jing, his former teacher, still cared deeply for the bright student.
"Hello, I’m Tang Jing, Lin Sizhe’s previous homeroom teacher. I’d like to have a word with you."
"I heard you are a respected military man, but since you're rarely home, you might not be aware that your current wife, Nan Sheng, treats your child poorly. She often scolds and hits him, and even forced Lin Sizhe to drop out of school to work in the fields.
Lin Sizhe is a very bright boy. I hope you’ll pay more attention to him in the future and not let his education go to waste."
Lin Han’s expression grew stern at hearing Nan Sheng being painted in such a negative light. It’s normal for children to be disciplined when they misbehave—just because she’s a stepmother doesn’t mean she should be accused of abuse.
That wouldn’t be fair to her!
