After hearing the children's descriptions, Mingli knew it was his uncle visiting again. He felt endlessly annoyed and contemplated teaching him a lesson.
When Nan Jingyu returned from work and saw his daughter and grandson, his back immediately straightened—his waist no longer ached, his legs no longer hurt, and his face was all smiles.
Noticing the dumplings and sliced meat on the table, he knew his daughter had gone out of her way to care for him.
Not wanting to dampen the mood, he washed up quickly and took his seat, urging everyone to start dinner.
Nan Sheng first handed him a small cup of dark, murky medicinal liquid. Nan Jingyu frowned in confusion—was this some new kind of alcoholic drink?
Why did it smell like herbal medicine?!
Seeing her husband sniffing it hesitantly, Zhong Yanyan pinched his arm. "Our daughter bought this herbal medicine for us—it’s supposed to relieve summer heat. Drink it now."
At worst, he’d just have an upset stomach for a couple of days.
No way was he going to waste their daughter’s thoughtful gesture.
Nan Jingyu closed his eyes, gulped the medicine down without even tasting it, then immediately stuffed a dumpling into his mouth to mask the bitterness.
The refreshing taste of cabbage mixed with the rich aroma of fried pork filled his mouth, making him squint with satisfaction.
Now, if only he had a sip of liquor to top it off!
The Nan family enjoyed a lively dinner, while Lin Xue was once again met with a closed door. She couldn’t understand—why did her sister-in-law, already married, keep running back to her parents’ home?
Returning to the old house, her parents didn’t even bother asking why their daughter looked so sour.
Lin Xue grew angrier the more she thought about it and finally vented to them, "Mom, Dad! Does Second Sister-in-law always skip coming home? Is she sneaking more gifts to her family again?"
Lin Guozheng ignored her, and Fan Shuting refused to take the bait. "If she wants to buy things, let her. Even I don’t interfere—what’s it to you?"
The elderly Lins were open-minded—they split households as soon as each son married, unlike other families who crammed all their sons together, constantly bickering over trivial matters.
Fan Shuting had already planned for her eldest son to take care of them in their old age, while the youngest would just contribute a yearly grain allowance. As for the second son—he’d already started sending them pension money.
Lin Xue only grew more resentful after Fan Shuting’s sharp retort. Why couldn’t she have such a reasonable mother-in-law? Her sisters-in-law must’ve burned incense in their past lives to marry into the Lin family!
But she also held a grudge against her parents. If she hadn’t come back to stay, she wouldn’t have known how well-off they were—her parents and brothers had already stockpiled enough grain for the entire year!
They had money to spare, yet refused to lend her any to buy a job. How could she not feel bitter?
After breakfast at her parents’ house, Nan Sheng left, planning to wash the bedding at home. Sizhe, meanwhile, was eager to catch fish and shrimp in the river.
Hearing that his sister liked them, Mingli also decided to gather more from the village stream, clean them, and deliver them to Nan Sheng.
Zhong Yanyan wanted to send half the meat home with her daughter, but Nan Sheng refused, insisting they keep it. Instead, Zhong Yanyan focused on sewing faster so she could mail the clothes to her son-in-law sooner.
Back home, Sizhe grabbed a bucket and left, with Siqi trailing behind like a little shadow, curious to see the fun.
Nan Sheng first stripped the bedding in her own room, then moved to her son’s. After removing the covers, she made sure to lock the door.
When Lin Xue entered the courtyard, Nan Sheng was already washing clothes, half the clothesline already occupied. Lin Xue curled her lips into a fake smile.
"Second Sister-in-law, you’re home. Were you at your parents’ place yesterday?"
Nan Sheng glanced up, baffled—how could such a young girl be so insufferable?
Her words dripped with venom. "Yes, but I didn’t stay long. After all, once you’re married, it’s not right to keep eating your parents’ grain, don’t you think?"
As if!
Lin Xue wasn’t stupid—she knew Nan Sheng was targeting her.
"That’s not fair. We’re all our parents’ children. Does marriage mean we can’t go home anymore?"
Nan Sheng kept scrubbing clothes while chatting, both women’s smiles painfully forced.
"Well, it depends on how thick-skinned you are. If I stayed long at my parents’, I’d bring my own rations. Otherwise, people would laugh at your second brother for being useless—unable to feed his own wife and kids."
Lin Xue’s smile vanished. "Who’s useless?! My husband’s a full-time worker in the county, earning twenty-five yuan a month!"
"Oh, how impressive! With such a wealthy husband, you must’ve brought your parents so many gifts, right? Funny, I haven’t heard a word about it from Da Wa!"
Lin Xue couldn’t stand her sister-in-law’s sarcasm any longer. Fuming, she stormed off, forgetting why she’d even come.
Nan Sheng chuckled at her retreating figure. You really thought you could outwit me?
Lin Xue wasn’t evil—just foolish and blindly devoted to her in-laws. As long as she didn’t meddle in Nan Sheng’s affairs, Nan Sheng couldn’t be bothered with her.
With so many people fishing in the river, Sizhe could only gather shrimp. The villagers teased him, asking why he’d take the unwanted shrimp instead of fish.
"My mom cooks them really well. Besides, fish have too many bones—Siqi could choke."
The others were happy to have one less competitor for fish, even tossing him extra shrimp they caught. By noon, Sizhe’s bucket was nearly overflowing—at least ten pounds’ worth.
"Da Wa, just how many shrimp are in this river? You caught so much in one morning!"
Even Sizhe was surprised. The village had plenty of fish and shrimp, but lately, they seemed to be fleeing the water, with many even drying up and dying on the banks.
"Fish are plentiful too, but everyone else goes for them. I just focus on shrimp—no competition."
Nan Sheng decided: dinner would be shrimp-stuffed wontons, and the rest would be dried for later.
Around one in the afternoon, Sizhong and Sicheng delivered a cartload of firewood—all dry timber.
The two boys were heading back to the mountains to gather more, and though Nan Sheng tried to stop them, she eventually let Sizhe join.
She couldn’t let them work for free, so dinner had to be hearty—she used nearly three pounds of shrimp for the filling alone.
With three growing boys eating, portions had to be generous—no half-empty stomachs going home.
Nan Sheng prepared two fillings: shrimp with three delicacies, and pork with celery. By the time the second cart arrived, she still hadn’t finished wrapping the wontons.
She stepped outside to call out, "Sizhong, Sicheng! Tell your parents you’re eating here tonight. I’ve made enough for everyone—no leaving!"
Sizhong exchanged a glance with his brother. Though a little embarrassed, they agreed.
Sicheng ran back to inform their parents, while Sizhong stayed to help Sizhe chop firewood. During a break, he quietly asked, "Da Wa… has Second Aunt been treating you better lately?"
Sizhe smiled and nodded. "She’s been good to us. It wasn’t all her fault before—I wasn’t exactly well-behaved either."
Soon, Sicheng returned, carrying an axe, and joined the work.
By the time Nan Sheng had the wontons boiling, she called the boys in to wash up.
The villagers had a habit of stockpiling supplies, and firewood was no exception. Sizhong and his brothers discussed plans to head up the mountain the next day to haul back several cartloads of firewood, aiming to stack their woodpile sky-high.
