“Mother, little sister, Weidong, why are you here?” Shen Zhimei’s face showed unease.

Li Qiuhua stood with a cold expression.

“Grandma! Auntie! Uncle!”

The two little girls timidly looked at the three people standing at the courtyard gate.

“Ah, the in-laws are here, come on in,” Old lady Qian said warmly, her sharp eyes immediately spotting the two cotton quilts on Li Qiuhua’s back.

Looking at Old Mrs. Qian who was walking towards her with a smile, Li Qiuhua took the cotton quilts off her back and shoved them into Shen Zhimei’s arms.

Shen Zhimei frowned. “Mother, this…”

“One quilt is for you, and one is for Da Ya and Er Ya. The remaining cotton, you can use to sew two jackets for them. The fabric is inside.” Li Qiuhua’s tone was cold and direct.

Shen Zhimei was meek by nature, and Li Qiuhua knew that, but she never expected that she would be bullied to this extent.

“Mother, I already have quilts at home. You should keep these for Little Sister’s future use,” Shen Zhimei quickly declined, shaking her head.

“I’ll prepare new ones for her when she needs them. Do you think I can’t afford quilts for my daughters?” Li Qiuhua’s voice remained icy.

Old lady Qian’s expression turned sour in an instant.

“Mother…” Shen Zhimei glanced nervously at Old lady Qian and hesitantly called out.

“No matter how good someone else’s things are, they belong to others. These quilts may not be the best, but they are a gift from me as your mother. Take them.” Li Qiuhua’s words were sharp and left no room for argument.

She was just short of pointing a finger at Old lady Qian and telling her to have some self-respect.

It wasn’t unwarranted; whenever Shen Zhimei brought something home, Old lady Qian would always take it for herself.

Shen Zhimei timidly nodded, carrying the quilts into the house.

Meanwhile, Shen Zhihuan handed a bag to Xiao Weidong and pulled the two little girls over to the courtyard well. She took a handkerchief from her pocket, dipped it in water, and wiped the sweat from their foreheads.

“Why are you so naughty? Playing under the blazing sun like that, aren’t you afraid of getting heatstroke?”

As she spoke, she washed the girls’ hands.

Seeing Shen Zhimei take the quilts into the house, Old lady Qian’s attention shifted to the net bag in Xiao Weidong’s hands.

Before she could reach for it, Xiao Weidong took out a small oil-paper package.

“Here, this is for you,” he said, opening the package and handing the pork ribs Shen Zhihuan had saved for the two girls.

Qian Da Bao, who was sitting at the main hall’s doorway eating an egg cake, immediately threw a tantrum.

“Worthless brats, give me the pork ribs!” He tossed his egg cake aside and charged at Da Ya and Er Ya to snatch the ribs.

Shen Zhihuan instinctively moved to block him.

To her surprise, the seemingly small child had quite a lot of strength. Like a cannonball, he barreled into her, making her stumble. If not for Li Qiuhua’s quick reflexes, she would have fallen.

When his first attempt failed, Qian Da Bao snarled and lunged again.

Shen Zhihuan quickly gave Da Ya and Er Ya a look.

The two little girls immediately understood, clutching the ribs tightly as they dashed into the house.

Bang!

The door slammed shut.

Qian Da Bao, who was a second too late, pounded furiously on the tightly closed wooden door.

“Worthless brats, open the door! If you don’t open up, just wait until my dad gets back. I’ll have him beat you two to death!”

“You money-loser, if you dare eat those pork ribs, you’re dead!” he shouted, kicking the wooden door with all his might.

“Grandma, make them give me the pork ribs!” Seeing no response from inside, Qian Da Bao tugged urgently at Old lady Qian.

Old lady Qian’s eyes narrowed dangerously at the closed door. Then she cooed sweetly, “Be good, darling.

When your father comes back, I’ll have him buy you two pounds of pork ribs at the supply store. You’ll have your fill.”

“No! No! I want them now! I want them now!” Qian Da Bao cried, throwing himself onto the ground and wailing.

Inside, the two little girls quickened their chewing.

Seeing her precious grandson in tears, Old lady Qian’s heart ached terribly.

If it weren’t for Shen Zhihuan and her family being present, she would have smashed the door with a hoe.

“Don’t cry! It’s just a lousy piece of pork rib. What’s so great about it? I’ll take you to buy some nice fatty meat,” Qian Zhizhi scoffed, glancing disdainfully at Shen Zhimei.

“No! I want their pork ribs! Auntie, go beat up those money-losers!” Qian Da Bao wailed.

“Don’t you have any pride?” Qian Zhizhi snapped, poking Qian Da Bao on the forehead.

Qian Da Bao’s cries only grew louder.

Old ly Qian shot Shen Zhimei a glare before pulling Qian Da Bao into her arms. “There, there, darling. Don’t cry. Grandma will take you to the store right now for some ribs.”

“No! I want to beat up those worthless brats first! Grandma, go beat them up for me!” Qian Da Bao screamed.

“Worthless brats?” Shen Zhihuan chuckled. “What’s a worthless brat?”

“Girls are worthless brats!” Qian Da Bao snapped, wiping his eyes furiously.

“Then what about your mother, your aunt, and your grandmother? Aren’t they girls?” Shen Zhihuan asked with a smile.

Old lady Qian and Qian Zhizhi’s faces darkened instantly.

“Are you calling my mom a worthless brat?” Qian Da Bao’s fists clenched tightly.

“You’ve been saying it all along, haven’t you?” Shen Zhihuan replied nonchalantly.

“You called my mom a worthless brat! I’ll beat you to death, you little wretch!” Qian Da Bao lunged at her.

Just as Shen Zhimei moved to intervene, Xiao Weidong pulled a pastry from his net bag and hurled it at Qian Da Bao.

Thud!

The pastry hit its mark, sending Qian Da Bao sprawling on his back.

His wails of anguish echoed through the Qian household.

Old lady Qian rushed over, cradling her bawling grandson and cooing over him.

At that moment, Qian Da Bao’s mother, Xie Xiaofen, entered the courtyard carrying large bags from the hospital.

Seeing her son sprawled on the ground, she dropped everything and charged at Xiao Weidong.

Sensing danger, Xiao Weidong dodged swiftly.

When Qian Dabao saw his mother, he got down from Old Lady Qian’s arms and jumped up and down, clapping his hands and cheering for his mother.

Just as Xie Xiaofen lunged again, Shen Zhihuan subtly stuck out her foot.

Thud!

Another blood-curdling scream pierced the air.

Qian Da Bao shrank back into Old lady Qian’s arms.

Even Qian Xingcheng and Qian Xingwang, who had just arrived, were startled by the scene.

As Qian Xingcheng moved to help Xie Xiaofen up, he accidentally locked eyes with her bloodied face. His heart skipped a beat in terror, and his hand faltered.

“Ahhh!”

Xie Xiaofen let out another scream.

This time, even Xiao Weidong was so scared that he hid in Shen Zhihuan’s arms.

Meanwhile, the two little girls, having finished their pork ribs, peeked curiously through a crack in the door.