Chapter 38

Shen Yiyi ignored Li Tiezhu’s resentful glare and pulled Three Baos along as they headed home.  

Lin Daniao walked beside her, supporting her waist with one hand and holding her belly with the other. She had initially wanted to help Shen Yiyi carry the bucket of fish.  

But she was pregnant, and the disproportion between her belly and limbs made Shen Yiyi nervous just looking at her. How could she dare let her help carry anything?  

That being said, the fish were indeed quite heavy. Although she hadn’t dared to catch too many, she still ended up with thirteen fish. Most of them weighed around three to four jin, with a few reaching five or six jin. Altogether, they weighed more than fifty jin.  

After giving three fish to He Weidong and his companions, she was still left with about forty jin.  

Seeing their Mom struggling with the weight, Three Baos and his siblings swarmed around to help carry the load.  

Lin Daniao felt grateful but also a bit uneasy.  

She glanced back at the Li brothers, who were still standing in place, then at the fish in He Weidong’s hands. After hesitating for a moment, she decided to remind Shen Yiyi.  

“Yiyi, are you really not going to give them any fish?”  

Afraid that Shen Yiyi would think she was meddling, she quickly added: “I just mean, Tiezhu and Goudan are Brother Chen’s nephews. If they go back and complain, won’t the Li family think badly of you for giving fish to He Weidong and the others but not to the two nephews?”  

Shen Yiyi understood that Lin Daniao was looking out for her. What she mentioned was a real possibility—given Jiang Ailing’s nature, it was highly likely to happen. But—  

“People who already have a problem with me will continue to have a problem with me, no matter what I do.” So why should she change her actions just to cater to their opinions?  

Besides, she had already given Li Tiezhu a chance. But he insisted on playing petty tricks, even calculating his apology down to the last detail, his selfishness knowing no bounds. If she gave in now, who knew if he would push even further next time?  

Lin Daniao hesitated. “But… wouldn’t this put Brother Chen in a difficult position?”

“He will stand by my side.” Shen Yiyi said naturally, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.  

Lin Daniao, who had initially wanted to persuade her further, was left speechless.  

As the wife of Li Chen’s close brother, she naturally knew how Li Chen felt about Shen Yiyi.  

She suddenly felt a bit emotional—having a man who loved and protected her was truly a woman’s greatest strength in her husband’s family.  

Shen Yiyi didn’t even need to weigh the importance of herself, Three Baos, and their family against the third branch of the Li family in Li Chen’s heart. She already knew the answer.  

Otherwise, she wouldn’t have come back at all.  

As for Father Li and Mother Li, Shen Yiyi could only hope that they had enough sense to understand the situation.  

If not… she had always believed that loving others should come only after loving oneself.  

Even though she didn’t want Li Chen to be caught in the middle, she would never compromise herself just to avoid conflict!  

When they arrived at the Chen household, Shen Yiyi set the bucket down and began taking out fish for Lin Daniao.  

But Lin Daniao refused no matter what, insisting that she hadn’t helped in any way and that Shen Yiyi should keep them for her own family.  

“There’s so much of it—how long would we take to finish all this?” Shen Yiyi reasoned. “Hurry up and take some. Even if you don’t eat them, Comrade Qiang and Wangcai will, won’t they? Your baby and your Mother-in-law also need some extra nutrition. Besides, Wangcai caught one of these himself. Wangcai, go home and bring a bucket.”  

Seeing no way to refuse, Lin Daniao finally accepted the fish with a slightly embarrassed expression, repeatedly thanking Shen Yiyi.  

Shen Yiyi gave her three fish, plus the one Wangcai had caught himself. That left her with seven fish.  

Since they were all still alive, she placed them in an old water tank, where they could be kept for another ten days or so.  

Three Baos and his siblings were overjoyed, eagerly leaning over the tank and watching the fish with curiosity.

Everyone was covered in mud. Shen Yiyi fetched some cold water and carried it into the kitchen, where she boiled a pot of hot water and, while at it, set the rice to steam.  

When she came back out, she saw that Three Baos and his siblings were still watching the fish with great enthusiasm.  

She told them to take a bath first, and only then did they reluctantly leave.  

The new clothes had already been washed and dried. Shen Yiyi took them down and placed them on a small stool nearby. “Once you finish bathing, change into your new clothes. But make sure to wash off all the mud properly!”  

Hearing this, Three Baos immediately stopped playing with the water and began supervising each other, making sure to scrub thoroughly.  

Shen Yiyi brought out the cutting board and knife, preparing to clean the fish when Li Chen returned.  

He was strong and efficient at his work, so he finished his tasks earlier than most and came home sooner.  

As soon as he stepped through the door, he was met with the sight of his three naked sons sitting in a large basin in the courtyard, while his wife stood nearby, her clothes and hair covered in mud. He paused for a moment, taking it all in.  

The moment Three Baos saw their Dad, they became excited, all talking at once, eagerly boasting about their accomplishments for the day. Their faces were filled with pride as they praised their Mom’s incredible skills.  

Listening to them, Li Chen stepped further inside and noticed the fish in the old water tank. When he turned to look at Shen Yiyi, his eyes held undisguised pride.  

Shen Yiyi’s lips curled up slightly, and she looked away, feeling a little embarrassed. “Help Three Baos scrub the mud off them.” she said.  

“We can do it ourselves!” Er Bao immediately declared loudly. “We already scrubbed ourselves clean!”  

They were clearly just eager to put on their new clothes.  

But to Li Chen, it sounded like his second son was expressing disdain for his help. He cast a cold glance at Er Bao and said: “If you don’t wash properly, I’ll deal with you later.”  

Er Bao huffed in protest but didn’t dare argue further.  

Li Chen, however, took the knife from Shen Yiyi’s hands. “They wouldn’t dare leave any dirt behind. Don’t worry about them. Are we cleaning the fish? Which one first?”

Shen Yiyi: “…”

“Kill two grass carp. Let’s make boiled fish fillets today.” Shen Yiyi said. “Later, we’ll call Dad and Mom over to eat.”  

Li Chen had no objections. He grabbed two relatively smaller grass carp.  

Shen Yiyi stood beside him, explaining how to slice the fish fillets and the ideal thickness for them.  

Li Chen understood immediately and skillfully got to work.  

Since there was nothing left for her to do, Shen Yiyi should have gone off to handle other tasks. But after a quick glance around, she crouched beside Li Chen and started chatting casually, recounting the events of the day. Finally, she said:  

“…Some of them only apologized because they wanted to eat fish, but at least their attitude was sincere. They’re just kids—I didn’t want to hold it against them.  

“But Tiezhu is too scheming. He wanted the fish but refused to apologize. He tried to use Goudan, and when he saw that I didn’t give any to Goudan either, he panicked and apologized at the last minute. He’s both calculating and selfish.”  

As she spoke, she got more and more annoyed. “Besides, this isn’t the first time he’s bullied our Three Baos.”  

Li Chen looked up at her.  

He rarely saw her this animated and expressive, so he couldn’t help but admire her for a moment longer than usual.  

Noticing his stare but hearing no response, Shen Yiyi bit her lip and looked at him. “Do you think I was wrong to handle it this way?”  

Li Chen snapped out of his thoughts and let out a low chuckle. “If I had known Li Tiezhu dared to gang up on my son, I’d have beaten his ass swollen.”  

As if Shen Yiyi’s punishment had been too lenient.  

Shen Yiyi: “…”  

Suppressing the smile threatening to curl her lips, she continued: “I caught so many fish and even shared some with He Weidong and the others, but I didn’t give any to Tiezhu. If Third Brother and his family are unhappy about it, will that put you in a difficult position?”  

Li Chen scoffed coldly, his protective nature practically radiating from him. “His son hit my son—I’m the one who’s unhappy.”  

Shen Yiyi’s eyes sparkled. “Then, what about Dad and Mom…?”