Xia Tian was no longer dripping, so the battlefield moved to the living room, where the noise from the hair dryers chased Qin Xi away from her game.

After ten minutes of drying, the thick fur was finally half dry, and Wen Yi’s hands were stiff and numb.

“Why is it so much trouble to bathe a dog?”

Qin Nanshan chuckled. “Bathing is the easy part. You also have to deworm them, give them shots, take them for walks, and prepare their food. Xia Tian has a sensitive stomach, so he can’t eat a lot of things. If he eats something bad, he has to go to the pet hospital.”

“Huh?” This sounded just like taking care of a child…

“Don’t worry, I’ll handle it. You don’t have to.”

Wen Yi muttered, “I never said I would.”

Once Xia Tian was dry, Qin Nanshan patted him. “Alright, go play.”

But Xia Tian didn’t leave, wagging his tail at Wen Yi.

Wen Yi looked confused, glancing between the dog and the man.

A smile played at the corner of Qin Nanshan’s eyes. “He likes you. Go ahead, pet him.”

Wen Yi wasn’t as scared as she had been the previous day. She patted Xia Tian on the head, and when the dog seemed to enjoy it, he finally bounced away happily.

Qin Nanshan said, “He really likes you.”

“…” Wen Yi’s tone hardened, just like Wen Hongyu’s, “Don’t even think about tricking me into cleaning up after him or bathing him!”

…

After the New Year’s Eve dinner, the family watched the Spring Festival Gala for a while. Later, after her bath, Wen Yi lay in bed, replying to New Year’s greetings and sending out red envelopes, while Qin Nanshan was once again kicked out of the room.

The next morning, as expected, she woke up with no one beside her. Wen Yi felt completely refreshed. She was starting to think that this arrangement was very effective. It not only kept others and the baby from suspecting anything, but also allowed her to sleep soundly—a win-win situation.

After breakfast, they headed to their uncle’s house.

Qin Xi rode in the same car as Wen Yi and Qin Nanshan, with the two women sitting in the back, chatting.

Wen Yi asked if Qin Xi was planning to look for a job. The mention of work made Qin Xi groan. “I’m not sure yet. It’s so hard to find a job these days. I’m worried I won’t find anything.”

Qin Xi’s personality took after Xuan Ying and Qin Heng, but her intelligence wasn’t on the same level as Qin Nanshan’s. In her own words, just being able to graduate from A University’s undergraduate program was the result of half a lifetime’s worth of luck.

Curious, Wen Yi asked, “Doesn’t your uncle own a company?”

Qin Xi replied, “I can’t work there.”

“Why not?”

Qin Xi, not bothering to hold back, said, “When Grandpa passed away, there was an agreement made about the inheritance. Our family can never be involved in the company’s business. Otherwise, with my aunt’s personality, she would never have agreed to share so much of the company’s stock with my parents.”

Wen Yi felt like she had figured something out. It seemed the good relations in the family were just for show.

As they were going to have a meal together, Wen Yi asked more questions about their uncle’s family to avoid saying something wrong later.

When she asked, Wen Yi was shocked by what she heard. Qin Xi whispered, “My aunt has trouble conceiving and finally got pregnant through IVF when she was almost forty. But then she found out that my uncle had been cheating on her. They fought for years, and eventually, the other woman left, but not without leaving behind a child. That’s my little cousin now, just three months younger than my male cousin. My mom says it’s lucky she’s a girl; otherwise, Aunt would never have let her into the house.”

“My uncle’s house is always a mess. I don’t like going there, and you don’t have to worry either, Sister-in-law. We’ll just have dinner and come back.”

The man driving the car didn’t comment or deny anything, suggesting that the situation was pretty accurate.

Wen Yi nodded, taking it all in.

Their uncle didn’t live far away. He also had a villa, even larger than Qin Nanshan’s, with yards in both the front and back, and the interior was lavishly decorated. Just the round marble slab at the entrance probably cost over a hundred thousand yuan.

As soon as Wen Yi entered, she saw a well-behaved girl following behind her aunt, Zhong Lan. Her name was Qin Tan, about eighteen or nineteen years old, with a smile on her face.

Wen Yi didn’t want to get into any conflicts with Zhong Lan. The words spoken at her engagement party and wedding day still lingered in her mind, but they were all adults. Zhong Lan, to her, was just a person she’d see once or twice a year, a mere acquaintance. There was no need to let someone else’s words punish herself.

She treated Zhong Lan like a client and smiled brightly. “Happy New Year, Uncle, Aunt!”

They also kept up appearances, warmly welcoming the new daughter-in-law.

Wen Yi personally handed over the gifts she had brought and also gave one to Qin Tan. The girl thanked her and was holding another gift. Wen Yi asked, “Where’s your brother? Isn’t he home?”

Zhong Lan smiled and replied, “Don’t mind him. That rascal is probably off somewhere again. I’ll call him when it’s time to eat.”

Wen Yi nodded and then turned to the girl standing quietly beside them. “Are you in university now?”

The girl responded, “Yes, I’m a freshman at A University.”

Wen Yi complimented her, “That’s impressive.”

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Zhong Lan’s face change before she turned and walked away.

No one wanted to stir up trouble during the New Year, so both families got along peacefully until dinner.

Her cousin, Qin Kan, came home late, and Zhong Lan scolded him, pulling his ear. Qin Kan, being rebellious, talked back, which only made Zhong Lan angrier. Xuan Ying tried to calm her down.

The food at her uncle’s house was delicious, so Wen Yi focused on eating, ignoring the commotion at the table.

Suddenly, she heard, “You can’t even get into college. What an accomplishment.”

Wen Yi looked up at the tense scene at the table and finally understood why Zhong Lan’s face had changed earlier. Her biological son hadn’t gotten into college, while the illegitimate daughter had, and she probably felt ashamed.

Zhong Lan couldn’t hold back her temper any longer and snapped, “If you keep this up, what kind of wife do you think you’ll find? Let me tell you, I will never agree to that shady girlfriend of yours. You can’t even date her!”

Wen Yi hadn’t thought much of it, but Zhong Lan glanced at her with a strange look, and suddenly, she understood—it was a veiled insult aimed at her.

Qin Yong wasn’t happy. “It’s New Year’s. What’s all this noise? Can you stop?”

Zhong Lan retorted, “Am I the one making noise? You’re never home and don’t care about your son, and now you blame me? I swear, our son’s going to end up just like you.”

Qin Yong slammed his chopsticks down and stormed off.

Wen Yi glanced around. Qin Heng and his wife shook their heads. Qin Xi and her brother seemed unfazed, while Qin Tan shrank into the background, trying not to be noticed. Qin Kan, meanwhile, kept eating nonchalantly.

How amusing.

But Wen Yi didn’t expect the drama to extend to her.

She overheard a conversation after dinner.

Xuan Ying went to the kitchen to console someone, and Zhong Lan, putting on a show, sobbed for a bit before saying, “Guess who I ran into on the street yesterday?”

“Who?”

“Wen Yi’s mother!” Zhong Lan’s tone was mocking. “She looked about our age but was all dressed up like some floozy. No wonder she raised such a daughter. And there was a man with her, looked to be about forty. Didn’t you say Nanshan doesn’t have a father-in-law? Well, it looks like he’s about to get one soon.”

“And at her age, isn’t it shameful to be doing such things? Don’t be surprised if Nanshan ends up drinking at her mother’s wedding. And who knows, maybe they’ll bring in a new brother or sister for him to support.”

Xuan Ying spoke up, “Sister-in-law, you shouldn’t say things that aren’t true.”

Zhong Lan insisted, “I saw it with my own eyes…”

Wen Yi didn’t want to listen anymore, nor did she feel like staying silent. It was one thing to talk about her, but not her mother. She made a deliberate noise as she entered, causing the conversation to halt abruptly.