After returning, Lin Xue first went to her third brother Lin Jianshe’s house. The two of them were close in age and had the best relationship.
After chatting with her sister-in-law for a while, she immediately labeled her yet-to-be-met second sister-in-law as vicious—how could someone hit a young girl like Siyu? Her parents must have misjudged her character.
"Third sister-in-law, I’ll head back to Mom’s place first. Let’s have dinner together tonight."
"Got it!"
Sun Qian gritted her teeth in hatred for Nan Sheng. Having her younger sister-in-law back was truly a delight.
Before Nan Sheng even finished her work, Sicheng ran over to tell her not to cook dinner—they were all going to eat at their grandparents’ place.
"Why? Is it someone’s birthday today?"
Sicheng grinned. "Auntie is back, and she brought lots of good food. She’s treating us all tonight."
Nan Sheng agreed. Whether she ate or not didn’t matter, but it was good for the kids to have a better meal.
After work, Nan Sheng went home first. Sizhe was already there, having just lit the stove. He didn’t know yet that Lin Xue had returned.
"Son, don’t bother. Your aunt is back. We’re eating at Grandma and Grandpa’s."
Hearing that Lin Xue was back, Sizhe didn’t show any joy. The three of them changed into clean clothes before heading to the old house—they were the last to arrive.
To show respect, Nan Sheng even brought all the milk candies from home, planning to share them with the kids later.
Her mother-in-law waved them over. "Second daughter-in-law, come sit. You haven’t met Xue yet, have you? This is your sister-in-law."
Nan Sheng wanted to greet Lin Xue, but the latter didn’t even lift her head. So, Nan Sheng kept the candies in her pocket.
Pretty face, no manners.
"No, I haven’t. She didn’t come back for my wedding, did she?"
Lin Xue stiffened. She had gotten the news back then, but her mother-in-law had said there was no point in attending a second marriage, so she hadn’t returned. Now, her second sister-in-law was bringing it up in front of everyone, embarrassing her.
"That’s right. I had something going on at the time. This time, I came back to visit Mom and Dad, and also to meet you, second sister-in-law. I’ll make up for the wedding gift."
Mentioning this reminded Nan Sheng of the gift ledger. "Mother-in-law, was the ledger kept when Lin Han and I got married? We’ll need it for returning gifts later."
Fan Shuting replied, "It was recorded. I’ll find it for you before you leave. I’d forgotten about it earlier. Let’s eat first!"
After Zhou Wei was slapped by her husband, she had been subdued for a few days. She only dared to act tough with Sizhe and Siqi—facing Nan Sheng, she immediately backed down.
Sun Qian, whose face had been scratched by Nan Sheng last time (leaving a mark), also didn’t dare confront her directly and could only pin her hopes on Lin Xue.
The dishes on the table were decent: scrambled eggs, stir-fried wild greens, green beans with pork, stewed tofu, and thick corn porridge as the staple.
Lin Xue, still smarting from Nan Sheng’s earlier jab, felt deflated. No matter what, not attending her brother’s wedding showed a lack of regard. Though the atmosphere was awkward, no one dared to stir trouble.
After dinner, the older kids took charge of chores—Sizhe cleared the table, Sizhong swept the floor, and Sicheng, grimacing, washed the dishes (he hated the greasy feeling).
Siqi, exhausted from a day in the fields, had fallen asleep in Nan Sheng’s arms and was later moved to the kang. With Lin Xue’s return, no one had gone home yet, and Nan Sheng didn’t want to be the first to leave.
Lin Xue began gushing about how much she missed her family—her parents, eldest brother and his wife, second brother, third brother and his wife, and all her nieces and nephews. The only person she didn’t mention was Nan Sheng.
Then, she glanced at Nan Sheng, feigning embarrassment.
"Second sister-in-law, don’t take it personally. We only just met today. I’ll miss you too in the future."
Nan Sheng smiled. "I don’t mind. But Xue, even if you don’t miss me, you should at least miss Sizhe’s mother. You must’ve known that second sister-in-law for years, right?"
Lin Xue clenched her teeth. Of all the things to bring up! She’d probably never get along with anyone called "second sister-in-law." The previous one? She’d nearly cheered when that thief died.
A woman who stole from her husband’s family to give to her own? Good riddance—Lin Han’s household was better off without her.
"Ah, I just didn’t want to upset you by mentioning her."
Nan Sheng waved it off. "No need. If it bothered me, I wouldn’t have married into this family. She was Sizhe and Siqi’s mother. They’ll always pay respects to her."
Father Lin and Mother Lin sensed the tension and tried to defuse it. "It’s a busy season. Everyone should go rest. If you want to chat, come back tomorrow."
But Lin Xue wasn’t about to let this go. She’d been outmaneuvered twice now—she had to humiliate Nan Sheng.
"Wait, Mom! I want to go to town tomorrow to buy meat. I heard second sister-in-law bought a new bicycle—could I borrow it?"
Zhou Wei and Sun Qian both looked at Nan Sheng. The whole village knew Nan Sheng had lent her bicycle to her younger brother, sparking rumors that she was a "brother’s keeper" like Bai Xiu. Only her in-laws were in the dark.
Now that Lin Xue had brought it up, how would she respond?
Nan Sheng: "Since you’re so well-informed, didn’t you hear I already lent it to my family? Save your breath."
Lin Xue gasped dramatically.
"Mom, Dad, how could she just lend out something as precious as a bicycle? What if they don’t return it? Bai Xiu used to—"
"Don’t ask them. Ask me. I bought that bicycle. I paid for it."
Nan Sheng’s tone was icy. "Let me make this clear, Lin Xue. What’s mine is mine to lend. If my brother wants a new one, I’ll give him one. Satisfied?"
Lin Xue nearly choked on her rage, her sweet facade crumbling.
"You’re part of the Lin family now! How dare you funnel things back to your parents? I’ll write to Second Brother and tell him to divorce you!"
Nan Sheng studied Lin Xue’s scowling face—much more appealing than her fake smiles—and sighed.
"No wonder people say raising daughters is a waste. Look at you.
The Lin family raised you, gave you a dowry, and you repay them by acting like giving anything to your birth family is a crime?
Don’t bother visiting my house when you’re back. I don’t associate with ingrates. Keep your gift money too."
Divorce? As if.
The money was in her hands. Unless Lin Han was an idiot, he wouldn’t cross her. Besides, military marriages weren’t so easily dissolved.
"Sizhe, carry your sister. Let’s go. Since your aunt clearly didn’t respect your mother, you can treat her as dead if you want."
Lin Xue exploded. "How dare you curse me and turn my nephew against me! You vile—!"
Sizhe’s lips twitched—he almost laughed, but the room was too crowded.
Lin Guozheng, who doted on his daughter, couldn’t tolerate this. "Enough, Second Daughter-in-law. Go home!"
Nan Sheng glanced up at Father Lin with a mocking half-smile. "Oh, so you're alive? Were you just playing mute earlier? A young maiden like me marrying an old widower is already a raw deal. And now I have to take care of two kids every single day. If you're not happy with it, tell your son to divorce me—I’ll pack up and leave in a heartbeat. Ungrateful old fool."
Her outburst immediately stirred up the Lin children, though the eldest son, Lin Jianshe, kept a shred of composure.
"Sister-in-law, I won’t interfere with how you discipline the kids, but you can’t speak to our parents like that. Filial piety is non-negotiable."
Beside him, Lin Xue tensed, itching to throw a punch.
