“Sister Zhihuan, the stuff…” Zhu Xiaoxiu finally regained her senses when the courtyard gate slammed shut in her face.

“Tell your brother that I’m still a child myself and can’t be a stepmother to three kids. Also, I don’t like older men—we’re not compatible. Let him give up on this idea!” Shen Zhihuan stated directly.

Zhu Xiaoxiu knocked on the door. “Even though my brother is a bit older and looks big and rough, he’s actually really attentive and loves his wife. When my late sister-in-law was pregnant with my nephew, she wanted eggs late at night. There weren’t any at home, so my brother got up in the middle of the night to knock on a neighbor’s door…”

Zhu Xiaoxiu genuinely liked her future sister-in-law—not just because she was beautiful, but because she spoke sensibly, unlike the gossipy women in the village who endlessly criticized daughters-in-law and mothers-in-law.

“Would you want your future husband to still have someone else in his heart?” Shen Zhihuan asked, pulling the door open to look at Zhu Xiaoxiu.

“No, I wouldn’t!” Zhu Xiaoxiu shook her head.

“Well, neither would I. How coincidental.” Shen Zhihuan smiled.

“My brother genuinely likes you,” Zhu Xiaoxiu said, unwilling to give up.

“Marriage is a matter for two people. One person liking the other isn’t enough. Hurry home; it’s too sunny outside—you don’t want to get heatstroke,” Shen Zhihuan said, closing the door to end the conversation.

Marriage wasn’t even on her radar.

Zhu Xiaoxiu sighed as the gate closed again. She carried the large bundles back home.

Hearing the commotion, Boss Zhu quickly put down her cleaver and came out to the courtyard.

Seeing her daughter return with all the items untouched, she sighed.

“No one home again?”

“There was someone there,” Zhu Xiaoxiu replied, placing the items on the table. She took a large scoop of cool water from the vat and drank it in big gulps.

The distance between the two villages wasn’t far, but the round trip still took over an hour.

Old lady Zhu frowned. “Then why did you bring everything back? Did Zhihuan’s mother cause trouble again?”

After finishing her drink, Zhu Xiaoxiu poured water into a basin, dampened a towel, and wiped her face.

“No! Sister Zhihuan told me to bring everything back. She said she’s still a child and can’t be a stepmother to my three nephews. She also said she doesn’t like older men or men with someone else in their hearts…”

“Someone else in my heart? What nonsense is that?”

Before Zhu Xiaoxiu could finish, Boss Zhu stormed into the courtyard, visibly angry. He had hurried back after making sure the slaughterhouse was in order, unable to stop thinking about the matter at home.

Seeing the items still on the table, his anger flared.

“I didn’t say anything like that!” Zhu Xiaoxiu retorted instinctively.

“If you didn’t, then why would she say she doesn’t like men with someone else in their hearts?” Boss Zhu’s face turned ashen.

He could accept her not wanting to be a stepmother. He could accept her disliking the age gap—after all, he was more than ten years her age.

But to say he had someone else in his heart? That was something he could never admit.

If he truly had someone else in his heart, would he shamelessly ask his sister to repeatedly deliver gifts, even at the risk of rejection?

“I just said you’re good to your wife and mentioned how, when my late sister-in-law was pregnant, you went out late at night to get her eggs from a neighbor…” Zhu Xiaoxiu’s voice trailed off into a whisper.

“I’m going to beat that foolishness out of you!” Boss Zhu raised his hand, making Zhu Xiaoxiu shrink into herself.

Old lady Zhu jumped in to shield her daughter. “Why are you taking your frustration out on her? If you’ve got guts, go talk to the girl yourself!”

After a moment, Bods Zhu’s raised hand slowly lowered. He slapped his thigh in frustration.

How could he have been so foolish as to send his simple-minded sister on this errand?

Zhu Xiaoxiu, still trembling, mumbled, “Brother, if Sister Zhihuan doesn’t agree, it’s her loss…”

Boss Zhu shot her a fierce glare before storming into his room, slamming the door behind him.

The loud bang startled the mother and daughter in the kitchen.

“Of all times to act stupid, it had to be now,” old lady Zhu scolded, poking Zhu Xiaoxiu’s forehead.

“Brother has three kids and is much older than Sister Zhihuan. If she’s unwilling, what can I do?” Zhu Xiaoxiu pouted.

Sister Zhihuan was so beautiful; it’d be a miracle if she agreed to be someone’s stepmother.

“Your brother may be older, but have you seen their family’s conditions? Do you think your brother would even consider her if he were still a young bachelor?” old lady Zhu grumbled, filled with resentment.

A frail, sickly girl dared to reject her son?

Did she even understand her own worth? With her family’s situation, how many would be willing to marry into it?

Her son was doing her a favor, and she had the nerve to act choosy?

There were plenty of sturdy, hardworking young women dying to marry into their family, yet they couldn’t even get through the door!

“Mom, if a widower with three kids, over ten years older than me, wanted to marry me, would you agree?” Zhu Xiaoxiu asked seriously.

“In his dreams! Why would a young, unmarried girl like you ever become a stepmother?” old lady Zhu snorted indignantly.

“That’s exactly what Sister Zhihuan and her mother think,” Zhu Xiaoxiu said softly.

“…Whose side are you on?” old lady Zhu glared at her daughter in exasperation.

How did she end up with such an ungrateful child?

After sending Zhu Xiaoxiu off, Shen Zhihuan, feeling cheerful, took Xiao Weidong to the western back mountain near their home. This time, they stayed near the base, digging up some wild vegetables before heading back.

From a distance, she spotted a group of educated youth carrying hoes and chatting as they walked toward her.

“Third Sister, look! The educated youth!” Xiao Weidong pointed excitedly.

“It’s rude to point at people,” Shen Zhihuan said gently, patting his hand.

“Third Sister, can I become an educated youth when I grow up?” Xiao Weidong withdrew his hand, looking up at her expectantly.

“Why would you want to be an educated youth?” Shen Zhihuan asked, suppressing a laugh.

She’d heard of kids wanting to be scientists, doctors, or policemen, but this was the first time she’d heard someone aspire to be an educated youth.

“Because they know everything! Last time the village tractor broke, it was Educated Youth Chu who fixed it!” Xiao Weidong said, his face full of admiration.

“If you study hard and listen in class, you’ll know just as much someday,” Shen Zhihuan replied, smiling as she tousled his soft cheeks.

The rice porridge, buns, and rolls hadn’t been wasted—his cheeks were noticeably softer than before.