Lu Haici immediately retorted, “My mom is better than your mom. My mom is the best!”

Jiyang didn’t back down. “No, my mom is the best!”

Lu Haici took a big bite of his egg fried rice and said, “Well, can your mom make this egg fried rice? Can she turn plain white rice into golden yellow rice?”

Jiyang paused. “But my mom can make braised pork and meat buns.”

Lu Haici hesitated because he didn’t know if his mom could make braised pork or meat buns.

But he didn’t want to lose, so he confidently declared, “My mom can make braised pork and meat buns too!”

After saying that, he felt his face flush with embarrassment and nervously glanced at Lin Qingqing.

Seeing that she wasn’t upset, he secretly let out a sigh of relief.

Jiyang quickly added, “My mom is the prettiest mom.”

Lu Haici replied, “No, my mom is the prettiest!”

Jiyang shot back, “That’s not true! Last night, before bed, I heard my dad say, ‘Comrade Xu Huijuan, you’re the most beautiful woman in the world.’ My dad is in the military, and he says that soldiers never lie.”

Lin Qingqing, quietly eating her meal, almost choked on her food, feeling she was overhearing something rather… surprising.

But Lu Haici didn’t miss a beat, “Well, that’s only because your dad hasn’t met my mom. If he met my mom, he’d definitely say she’s the most beautiful woman in the world—twice as beautiful! My uncle said that ‘double’ means the best.”

Lin Qingqing sighed…

Haici, if only you had a preschool diploma, you wouldn’t say something that sounds like you’re putting your dad at risk of… trouble.

Jiyang thought it over. “Then I’ll ask my dad tonight.”

Lin Qingqing nearly spit out her rice. Jiyang, are you planning to cause a commotion?

“Excuse me, is there a family member of Lu Haici here?” a woman’s voice suddenly called from the doorway.

“It’s my mom,” Jiyang said.

Then a woman with a gentle face entered the room, holding a vegetable basket.

Lin Qingqing quickly stood up and greeted her, “Yes, I’m here. Comrade, welcome, welcome.”

Jiyang’s mom, Xu Huijuan, had been given a second chance at life.

In her previous life, Xu Huijuan had also married Jiyang’s father, Ji Changfeng, and had a son and daughter with him.

Though she hadn’t always been able to treat Jiyang, her stepson, completely equally, she still treated him fairly.

But at forty, Ji Changfeng went on a mission, and she was diagnosed with a serious illness.

The doctors said her illness need a large amount of money and doesn’t guarantee a good outcome—it depends on luck.

In the end, her beloved children were unwilling to spend money on her medical treatment, while only her stepson, Ji Yang, ran around trying to help her get treatment.

Lying on the operating table, Xu Huijuan shed tears of regret.

But when she opened her eyes again, she found herself twenty years in the past.

At that moment, Xu Huijuan vowed that in this lifetime, she would consider Ji Yang her only son and completely ignore the two ungrateful children she had once loved so deeply.

Xu Huijuan originally didn’t want to have anything to do with Lin Qingqing, because in this new life, she knew what fate awaited her.

Lin Qingqing was lazy, constantly scolding or even beating Lu Haici, and was a spendthrift who wasted money.

Five years after marrying Lu Cheng, he would divorce her, but during those five years, Lin Qingqing would develop a poor reputation in the community.

In her previous life, Xu Huijuan and Lin Qingqing got along fairly well since they were both stepmothers.

She had tried to advise Lin Qingqing, telling her not to be so harsh on Lu Haici, even if she couldn’t treat him as her own son.

But Lin Qingqing didn’t listen.

Later, when the story of Lin Qingqing’s abuse of Lu Haici spread, she was shunned by the community, which also damaged Xu Huijuan’s own reputation.

In this life, Xu Huijuan was determined to be a good wife who brought honor to her husband and a good mother who brought pride to her son.

She wanted to avoid being associated with Lin Qingqing and didn’t want to be dragged down by her.

Because of this, she hadn’t visited the home of the regiment leader’s wife next door, who had arrived half a month ago, to avoid giving others a reason to associate her with Lin Qingqing.

But today, her son ran to the Lu family’s home for dinner, forcing Xu Huijuan to come over.

She brought some vegetables with her, so if anyone asked, it would show her as a generous person.

Xu Huijuan understood well that being a good military spouse would reflect positively on her husband, and she was determined to become the best military spouse in the community.

Xu Huijuan handed the vegetable basket to Lin Qingqing. “Hello, comrade. I’m Ji Yang’s mother, Xu Huijuan. I’m very sorry for my son’s lack of manners in disturbing your meal. These are some vegetables from my garden, just a small token.” As she spoke, she sized up Lin Qingqing.

In her youth, Lin Qingqing was indeed beautiful, with fair, delicate skin and large, bright eyes.

But who would have guessed that behind such an exterior lay a wicked heart?

Lin Qingqing was very sensitive to the way others looked at her, largely due to her past experiences.

As a “left-behind child,” though her grandmother treated her well, people often made remarks around her.

She was born in the early 20s, a time when many rural communities still held traditional, closed-minded views.

Because of her background as a left-behind child, some malicious people would say things like she was a child without parents.

From a young age, Lin Qingqing had become highly attuned to the way others looked at her.

Fortunately, Lin Qingqing didn’t develop an introverted or extreme personality, thanks to her grandmother’s kindness.

Although her parents left her in the countryside, they visited every New Year, bringing new clothes and treats.

Lin Qingqing noticed Xu Huijuan’s curious gaze upon her, but she didn’t think much of it.

To her, it was natural for strangers to give a few extra glances.

She waved off Xu Huijuan’s vegetable basket, saying, “No need, no need, Comrade Xu, you’re too kind.”

Jokingly, she added, “Before I came, I’m sure you took good care of our Haici. If you’re so polite, I might have to bring a basket full of vegetables to your place too!”

Xu Huijuan raised her eyebrows, surprised that Lin Qingqing, who usually didn’t have much to say, could come up with such a response.

She thought about it and remembered that, in her previous life, Lin Qingqing had always put on an act in front of Lu Cheng.

Now that she’d just arrived in the compound, it made sense she’d put on a good front.

Smiling, Xu Huijuan replied, “Well, since you’ve put it that way, I won’t be shy.”

She didn’t want to keep any connection with Lin Qingqing and wasn’t willing to give away the vegetables anyway. “Dinner’s not quite ready at home, so I’ll head back now.”

Then Xu Huijuan called out to Jiyang, “Jiyang, I made braised pork today. If you don’t come back for dinner, your dad will eat it all.”

Knowing how much Jiyang loved meat, Xu Huijuan figured he wouldn’t be able to resist.

Sure enough, Jiyang hesitated, looking at her with a conflicted expression.

He loved the egg fried rice in his bowl but couldn’t bear to miss the braised pork at home.

What to do?

Suddenly, a bright idea popped into his head, and he turned to Lu Haici. “Haici, can I take the egg fried rice home to eat? I’ll bring the bowl back afterward.”

This way, he could have both the fried rice and the braised pork—a clever solution!

Just as Lu Haici was about to respond, Xu Huijuan shook her head with an affectionate smile, “You little rascal, taking food to go too?”

“It’s no problem at all,” Lin Qingqing said. “It’s just a bowl, and you can return it whenever.”

She’d only skimmed the book’s summary, which described the male lead’s stepmother Xu Huijuan as someone who treated him like her own son, while the original protagonist treated her stepson like a burden.

Xu Huijuan left meat for the male lead, whereas the protagonist would take the stepson’s meat for herself.

Seeing Xu Huijuan’s genuine affection for Jiyang only made Lin Qingqing have a good impression of her.

“Thank you, Auntie!” Jiyang, hearing this, jumped off the stool, picked up his rice bowl, and eagerly said, “Mom, let’s go home and eat the meat!”

His eagerness showed how much he didn’t want to miss out.

Taking his hand, Xu Huijuan smiled, “Alright then.”

“We’ll head back now. Sorry to have disturbed you,” said Xu Huijuan.

“I’ll see you out,” Lin Qingqing offered.

“No need, no need; we’re just next door, only a few steps away,” Xu Huijuan replied politely.

Still, Lin Qingqing escorted them to the door.

After all, Ji Yang and Lu Haici were now good friends, so naturally, she wanted to build a good relationship with Ji Yang’s mother.

Even if they weren’t friends, it would be courteous to see a guest out.

After she returned from the door, Lin Qingqing saw Lu Haici let out a long sigh.

She chuckled, “Are you sad that your little friend had to leave?”

Unexpectedly, Lu Haici replied, “No way! I was just worried that Ji Yang might eat up all of our fried rice. Ji Yang can really eat!”

Lin Qingqing… Well, so much for their friendship!

After dinner, Lin Qingqing took some hot water and soaked the dishes before washing them.

She wasn’t sure if dish soap was available in the ‘60s, but in the absence of it, hot water worked well to remove grease from dishes.

Once the dishes were clean, Lin Qingqing pulled out a large round basin.

This basin was wooden, about sixty to seventy centimeters in diameter, perfect for bathing children or soaking clothes.

“Xiao Haici, time for a bath.” The little guy hadn’t had a proper bath in half a month, and there wasn’t a single clean spot on him.

“Yes!” Lu Haici, standing in the courtyard, quickly stripped off his clothes without a trace of shame.

Without clothes, his small, bony frame looked as thin as a little rack of ribs.

Lin Qingqing didn’t comment on his appearance.

She had him sit in the big basin and used soap to scrub him from head to toe.

Meanwhile, little Lu Haici turned beet-red with embarrassment upon seeing the bits of grime being scrubbed off.

As he bathed, Ji Yang called out from his courtyard, “Lu Haici, I’m here to return the bowl!”

He wanted to jump over the one-meter-high wall but didn’t have the skill, so he went around and came in from outside.

Ji Yang returned the bowl and watched as Lin Qingqing gave Lu Haici a bath.

He wanted to chat more but heard Xu Huijuan calling him, “Ji Yang, time for a bath. Today, you get to wear your little yellow chick pants!”

Upon hearing this, Ji Yang immediately ran back home, forgetting to chat with his friend.

He loved his little yellow chick pants the most.

Lu Haici knew about Ji Yang’s yellow chick pants and whispered, “Mom, Ji Yang’s mom sewed a little yellow chick on his underwear. I think little yellow chicks aren’t as cool as little dogs. I bet I could eat two little yellow chicks in one bite!”

Pfft… Lin Qingqing couldn’t hold back her laughter.

This little guy was seriously talking about eating two little yellow chicks in one bite—it seemed he had quite the imagination.