With the matter resolved, people dispersed in groups of twos and threes. Han Yan, however, found herself stuck in an awkward position—leaving felt humiliating, but staying was equally unbearable. Her face flushed red with embarrassment.

“Han Yan, Ah Heng is married now, and Ah Ming is of age too. For your own good, if there’s nothing important, you shouldn’t come to our house anymore.” Zhang Xiaofeng looked at her and spoke in a gentle tone, yet her words were the most humiliating of all.

Han Yan seethed with resentment at the embarrassment Zhang Xiaofeng had caused her, but she didn’t dare to argue. She mumbled a stiff “Got it,” and then left in a flustered hurry.

“Ah, what a mess this all is!” Grandma Lu sighed as she watched Han Yan’s retreating figure.

“Grandma, are you actually feeling sorry for her?” Lu Yuan asked unhappily.

Grandma Lu looked at her granddaughter, who was bristling like a little leopard, and chuckled. “Of course not. I’m just sighing over how a perfectly fine girl could turn out like this.”

They weren’t fools. They had always been aware of Han Yan’s true intentions.

Back then, they had rejected her precisely because they felt she was too scheming and unsuitable for Ah Heng. They never expected her to be so shameless, but now, at least, they had a clearer view of the Han family’s true colors.

“She’s rotten to the core,” Lu Yuan said angrily. “When Big Brother was doing well, she was all over him, constantly trying to cozy up and hinting that she wanted to marry him. But the moment he had an accident, she acted like we were trying to cling to her, making it clear she had no intention of marrying. Now that Big Brother is married, she suddenly has bad intentions again…”

Lu Yuan was truly furious, which was why she blurted everything out without thinking. Zhang Xiaofeng’s expression changed slightly at her words. She quickly held Lin Nannan’s hand and reassured her, “Nannan, don’t overthink it. Back then, we rejected Han Yan because she had too many ulterior motives, and we felt she wasn’t right for Ah Heng.”

Lin Nannan, who hadn’t been overthinking at all, saw her mother-in-law’s unease and was about to say something when Grandma Lu spoke first.

“Ah Heng’s wife is only Nannan. All of you remember this—if anyone dares to bully her, don’t blame me for being ruthless!” she declared firmly.

“That’s right! If anyone dares to bully my sister-in-law, I’ll fight them!” Lu Yuan immediately chimed in.

She couldn’t believe how blind the villagers were. How was her sister-in-law even remotely foolish? Her sister-in-law was clearly intelligent.

Not only did she not look down on her big brother, but she also protected him so fiercely. Of course, she liked her! She only recognized this sister-in-law—no one else would do.

The others couldn’t help but laugh at Lu Yuan’s outburst. Lu Ming reached out and ruffled Lu Yuan’s hair, teasing, “You talk like you’re really tough. If it weren’t for Sister-in-law today, you’d have been left crying.”

Lu Yuan gave an embarrassed laugh. Her cousin was right—aside from stomping her feet in anger, all she could do was cry.

“I’ll stick with my sister-in-law from now on and learn from her!” she declared proudly.

Lin Nannan was amused and playfully promised, “Alright, stick with me, and I’ll make sure you get to eat meat.”

No one took her words seriously, thinking she was just joking.

It wasn’t until later, when they saw Lu Yuan grow stronger and more capable under Lin Nannan’s guidance—becoming a person who could hold her own against anyone—that they realized how right she had been.

…

The commotion had taken up the whole morning, wasting a good portion of their work time. Seeing that it was already getting late, Grandma Lu simply told everyone to rest at home for a bit and eat lunch before heading back to the fields.

As the hero of the day, Lin Nannan was completely excluded from doing any chores. Everyone insisted she take a break, and in the end, she had no choice but to go back inside the house.

What she didn’t know was that as she stepped into the house, Grandma Lu and the others watched her with eyes full of amusement.

Inside, Lu Heng had been lying quietly, waiting for someone to come in and give him an update. When he saw Lin Nannan enter, he immediately asked, “How did it go?”

There had been too many people outside, and the noise was overwhelming. He hadn’t caught all the details, but he did know that someone had been taken away.