Lin Shu, while passing by a certain intersection, felt two sticky gazes on her.

She frowned and glared in that direction, recognizing a somewhat familiar man.

If she wasn’t mistaken, it was the same man she had seen during the ration distribution.

The man, noticing her gaze, gave a friendly smile, appearing to be an honest and simple man without any hint of creepiness.

He even seemed a bit shy, lowering his head and turning to walk away.

However, Lin Shu trusted her instincts more than her eyes.

Whether it was in her previous life or during her childhood as the original character, she had experienced being ogled by lecherous men.

That feeling was akin to being touched by something slimy, with every hair on her body standing on end—a clear warning from her instincts.

Not recognizing the man, she quietly asked Xu Xiaoyou.

Xu Xiaoyou replied, “That’s Xu Ermao from the back alley. He’s a good person, never mean to kids, and he even gives us blackberries and wild jujubes to eat.”

Lin Shu cautioned, “Even if he’s a good person, Xiaoyou, don’t play with him alone, okay?”

Xu Xiaoyou nodded, “Okay.”

Pan Pan, grinning, said, “Mom, Youyou-jie is always working. Her grandma wouldn’t let her play anyway.”

He mimicked the tone of a sharp-tongued woman from the street, placing his hands on his hips and pointing at Xu Xiaoyou as he scolded, “You little lazybones, always slacking off! You can’t eat without leaving anything behind, and you’re useless at everything! Still lazing around? Get over here and feed the pigs!”

The kids burst into laughter, doubling over with amusement.

As they were laughing, Xu’s mother came out of the house holding Xu Yaoyao and caught sight of the scene.

Her face immediately darkened.

That Lin Shu! Was she trying to drive her mad?

When had she ever been so fierce in scolding someone?

This was clearly slandering her!

Lin Shu let the smile fade from her lips and addressed Xu’s mother, “Auntie, are you taking the child to the infirmary to get his bandages changed? Is he feeling better now?”

Burn wounds hurt, but the itching was the worst part.

Xu’s mother had been up all night because her grandson had been restless from the itch, leaving her with dark circles under her eyes.

She was angry, thinking to herself: Better? How could he be better?

She could have brought back more ointment to apply herself, but that old man insisted on going to the infirmary for dressing changes, just to get more money out of them!

Yesterday, she hadn’t planned on giving any money, but that toady Zhang Peijin had gone and asked Shihua for it directly.

Xu’s mother glared at her granddaughter, tempted to scold her.

However, recalling Pan Pan mimicking her scolding (which she assumed was directed at her), she swallowed her anger and said, “So you still know how to come back? If you had been home making dinner, would Yaoyao have gotten burned?”

Xu Xiaoyou bit her lip and softly explained, “Aunt said that Grandma was too busy at home alone, so she asked me to come back and help.”

Xu’s mother, still fuming, was about to respond when she was interrupted by the persistent cries of Xu Yaoyao, who was now squirming in her arms, making her annoyance even more pronounced.

Unbelieving, Fang Dihua and Lin Shu were so kind.

She was convinced that Xu Xiaoyou was either lazy or foolish, driven out by the Lu family.

At home, Xu Xiaoyou was disliked for being slow and lazy.

When Xu Xiaoyou went to the Lu family, she was suspected of being driven away because the Lu family found her useful for work. Now that she was back, they still found her lazy and foolish.

To her, Xu Xiaoyou was always at fault.

She snorted, “Go home and feed the pig.”

Because Lin Shu didn’t buy her pity act, she unconsciously stopped complaining and started to straighten her back and lift her head, as if to prove something to Lin Shu.

Lin Shu watched Xu Xiaoyou go home and walked with Xu’s mother, casually scolding the old lady, “Aunt, does Xu Shihua make so much money and still not feed you well? If he continues like this, I’ll report it to the team…”

“He’s your brother-in-law. How can you say such things? Don’t try to tarnish our Shihua’s reputation,” Xu’s mother was agitated. “Our Shihua is dutiful.”

Lin Shu replied, “What about my little sister? Does Xu Shihua still not feed her properly every day? Xu Shihua is really something, isn’t he? He tricks my little sister into swapping jobs with him and still doesn’t feed her well…”

“What are you talking about?” Xu’s mother, suddenly no longer meek, bristled like a thorny bush. “Did Lu Hehuan say she wasn’t fed enough?”

She was convinced that Lu Hehuan must have gone home to complain, but she didn’t think the daughter-in-law would blame her son.

After all, the daughter-in-law treasured her son so much that she wouldn’t refuse if asked to bare her heart.

How could she bear to tarnish her son’s reputation?

It must have been about how she, the mother-in-law, didn’t provide enough food.

Lin Shu, however, only hinted at things half-truthfully, which made it more interesting.

Hadn’t Accountant already been scared into a bald patch?

Xu’s mother always played the martyr, hoping for praise for her hardships.

She avoided mentioning her own suffering, deliberately portraying herself as enduring unnecessary hardships.

Xu’s mother cared most about her son Xu Shihua’s success, filial piety, and good reputation.

Lin Shu insisted on calling Xu Shihua unfilial.

Lin Shu had thoroughly grasped Xu’s mother’s weaknesses.

Scolding and berating her was useless; claiming the harsh daughter-in-law and granddaughter didn’t get enough to eat was ineffective.

Xu’s mother was an old woman, ready to sacrifice herself for her son and grandson.

Mistreating her daughter-in-law and granddaughter seemed only natural to her.

Who could criticize her?

So, Lin Shu didn’t criticize her directly but focused on blackening Xu Shihua’s name.

That was Xu’s mother’s Achilles’ heel.

Sure enough, Xu’s mother’s stubbornness instantly crumbled, and she started to wipe away tears. “She’s your brother-in-law. You can’t be like this. Our Shihua is a good person; he has it hard.”

Lin Shu said blandly, “Aunt, as long as he feeds my little sister and Xiaoyou properly, As for the rest, I don’t care much.

After all, if my little sister-in-law doesn’t get enough to eat, and something bad happens to her or the child if she got pregnant, wouldn’t my in-laws be heartbroken? If my in-laws are heartbroken, what if they fall ill?”

She glanced at Xu’s mother.

Though it wasn’t explicitly said, her gaze was filled with the message: “If you dare mistreat my little sister-in-law and Xu Xiaoyou, I will ruin your son.”

Xu’s mother actually shuddered.

Xu Yaoyao started crying again.

Unlike Bao’er, who was gentle and obedient, Xu Yaoyao was upset and began to flail around, kicking and waving his arms, crying, “It hurts! It itches!”

He didn’t speak much and couldn’t express his needs and intentions well through words, so he started throwing a tantrum.

He slapped Xu’s mother several times, making her face turn red.

Lin Shu quickly moved away to avoid getting hit herself.

She wasn’t concerned about Xu Yaoyao’s situation at all.

She wasn’t someone overwhelmed by sympathy; Xu Yaoyao wasn’t an important person.

He was just a spoiled and useless younger brother of the protagonist, who was insatiable.

Why should she care?

She wasn’t an idiot.

Panpan and Tiantian were also a bit scared. This kid dared to hit his grandmother; he was asking for a beating!

Huahua almost stepped in to hit him but was stopped by Panpan.

Panpan whispered, “If you hit him, his grandmother will hit you.”

Huahua replied, “But he’s hitting his grandmother, that’s not right.”

Panpan said, “But his grandmother is also willing.”

Lin Shu took the children and left, letting Xu’s mother handle her grandson and take him to the clinic.

Lin Shu spent three days making the top for Zhang Si’s aunt but waited a whole week before giving it to Zhao Meifeng.

Zhao Meifeng was very displeased.

Wang Shouke rejected the proposal to meet Lu Jinling and instead inquired about Lin Shu’s situation, saying if Lin Shu wasn’t interested in Wu Xuan, he could be considered.

“Considered my foot!”

She only wanted to find a middle-aged man with real power for Lin Shu, not some young, inexperienced fellow.

She accepted the clothes with a bad attitude and reminded Lin Shu that she still owed her fabric and money.

Lin Shu didn’t take her seriously at all.

A couple of days later, Sister-in-law Lu, Lin’s father, and Lin Yue returned home.

Lin’s father and Lin Yue came back, and upon hearing from Aunt Lin that Lin’s mother was at her daughter’s house, they hurriedly bought a non-laying hen from the village and brought it over to fetch Lin’s mother.

Fang Dihua invited them to a meal.

Lin Shu cooked the hen into a large pot of mushroom, potato, and knife beans stew for the whole family to enjoy.