“Goodbye, Uncle Li, Uncle Li, I’ll come to play with you tomorrow!” Ee Bao waved goodbye at the courtyard gate, reluctant to part with Uncle Li.

He really liked Uncle Li because he was the first and only person he had seen with a car, so he had a special affection for him.

If Uncle Li knew his thoughts, he would surely thank him. “Er Bao, Uncle Li will be busy tomorrow. When I have time, I’ll come to play with you, alright?”

Er Bao was a sensible kid.

He understood that adults had things to do, so he wouldn’t disturb him. “Okay, when you’re not busy, come find me, and we’ll go fishing together.”

“Sure, when I’m free, I’ll come find you and take you fishing in Haikou,” Uncle Li promised with a smile.

Watching Li Zao leave, Ning Shu felt a sense of relief.

She was becoming increasingly convinced that Li Zao was well-suited to be Er Bao’s friend.

If this were ancient times, the two of them might have become sworn brothers.

As Ning Shu prepared to turn back into the house, she saw Ning Qin approaching with a tall and handsome man.

Ning Shu ignored them and was about to continue walking when she heard Ning Qin say, “Sister-in-law, is Captain Lin here? This is my husband, Zhang Xian.”

Ning Shu felt uncomfortable being called “sister-in-law” by someone older than herself, even if it was polite.

As a modern woman, who didn’t have a youthful heart? Even at 40, she wanted to be a young middle-aged woman.

“Comrade Lin Guodong, Comrade Zhang is looking for you,” Ning Shu called out to Lin Guodong, who was tidying up the dining table inside.

“Coming.” Lin Guodong finished clearing the table and placed all the dishes and chopsticks into a wooden basin, preparing to wash them by the well.

It was inconvenient to wash dishes with buckets of water at home.

As Lin Guodong came out of the dining room, he saw Zhang Xianyi and Ning Qin. “Captain Zhang, is there something you need?”

Zhang Xianyi was a little surprised to see Lin Guodong carrying a basin of dishes, but he didn’t think much of it.

He didn’t mind men doing housework.

In his first marriage, he hadn’t done any housework, but after marrying Ning Qin, who was delicate and didn’t know how to do many things, he was willing to help out with chores.

Especially now that Ning Qin was pregnant, he didn’t want her to overwork.

Therefore, seeing Lin Guodong doing these chores made him feel better.

It was as if, since Captain Lin, who was more capable than him, would do housework, what problem could there be if he did it too?

“Lin Squad Leader, it’s like this. I want to ask your children about my daughter’s matter,” Mr. Zhang politely said, without any hint of complaint in his tone.

He really just wanted to inquire, and even if the kids had quarreled, he didn’t think much of it.

After all, he had been a kid once too, and who hadn’t argued with other kids during their childhood?

If Lin Guodong knew, he would have to say, “I really don’t know.”

Ning Shu was about to go in.

She didn’t want to be in the same frame as Ning Qin, feeling like even the air wasn’t fresh. But upon hearing Mr. Zhang’s words, she stopped.

Lin Guodong asked, “What are you inquiring about?”

Mr. Zhang said to Ning Qin, “You know about it, you explain.” He was afraid he might not convey it clearly.

Ning Qin nodded. “Squad Leader Lin, it’s like this…” She explained the situation, “Later, Xiao Qian cried when she got home. She wouldn’t say what happened, and we’re worried she’s keeping it to herself, so we wanted to ask your kids if they know anything about it.”

Mr. Zhang smiled and explained again, “This girl doesn’t know what’s going on, she just won’t talk, making people worried.”

Lin Guodong nodded in understanding, empathizing with Mr. Zhang’s concern.

So, he looked at his three kids near the door and asked two of them, “Yi Bao, Er Bao, do you know why that little girl was crying?”

Er Bao blinked innocently, “Dad, I really don’t know.”

Judging from his innocent expression, he truly didn’t know.

Yi Bao thought for a moment, “After that aunt left, the girl wanted to play with us. We told her we don’t play with tattletales, and then she ran back home. She wasn’t crying then, but we don’t know if she cried later.”

Lin Guodong glanced at Mr. Zhang, “My kids don’t lie. If your daughter cried because of this, then I can’t do anything about it. I can’t force my kids to play with anyone.”

Mr. Zhang said, “Of course, I suppose the little girl is sensitive. Being rejected might have hurt her feelings a bit.” Mr. Zhang didn’t blame the two kids either.

He couldn’t force anyone to play with someone else. Plus, kids play with different friends every day; it’s not a big deal.

Ning Qin listened to their conversation with resignation.

She thought the reason for Zhang Qian’s tears wasn’t here but when the little boy called her a tattletale.

But since Mr. Zhang didn’t mind, she wouldn’t say anything.

After all, she didn’t want to offend Lin Guodong and his wife.

So, Ning Qin smiled and pretended to be kind, saying to Mr. Zhang, “Brother Zhang, don’t worry. I’ll talk to Xiao Qian tonight. Kids forget things quickly; maybe she’ll forget by tomorrow.”

Then, she turned to the two kids, “Thank you for telling us the truth. I hope you and Xiao Qian can clear up the misunderstanding and play together in the future.”

Then, Ning Qin turned to Ning Shu, “By the way, sister-in-law, how old are these two kids? Are they going to school soon? If there’s anything they don’t understand about school, they can come and ask me. I used to be a teacher in a military school, but I found out I was pregnant yesterday, so I need to rest. I’m on maternity leave starting today. But I still know about school matters.”

Ning Shu looked at Ning Qin trying to please her and was truly astonished. “No need,” she coldly refused, then turned to Lin Guodong and said, “I’m going to boil water for a bath.”

Lin Guodong naturally understood that she didn’t like Ning Qin, so he just nodded, about to say something, when he saw Sun Li coming over from the opposite side. “Ning Shu, I was just looking for you,” she called out to Ning Shu, who was just about to go inside.

“Sis, what’s up?” Ning Shu turned around and smiled at her.

Ning Shu… Ning Shu… Ning Shu?

Ning Qin froze, her mind went blank for a moment, still not reacting.

She just followed Sun Li’s lead and subconsciously spoke, “Sister-in-law, your name is also Ning Shu? What a coincidence! I have a sister named Ning Shu too.”

She was trying to bond. But as soon as the words came out, she felt it was too coincidental.

Sun Li didn’t know the situation and continued with Ning Qin’s words, “Really? That seems like fate. Yesterday, when Ning Shu mentioned her name, I was surprised that you share the same surname, but having the same first name as Ning Shu’s sister, that’s even more rare.”

Sun Li naturally didn’t think that the Ning Shu Ning Qin mentioned was the same Ning Shu standing in front of her.

After all, what sister wouldn’t recognize her own sister?

Mr. Zhang, upon hearing Ning Qin’s words, was also somewhat surprised.

He knew about Ning Qin’s family situation; she had two sisters, one of whom she had mentioned being lazy and jealous of their parents’ affection, so she had written their names and sent them to the countryside.

However, he didn’t know the names of the two sisters.

Now, hearing Ning Qin say this, Mr. Zhang asked, “Is it the same name as your younger sister’s?”

Ning Qin shook her head. “It’s the same name as my second sister.” As she spoke, seeing everyone’s attention on her, she sighed before continuing, “I don’t know how my second sister is doing now. It’s been five years since she went to the countryside, and she hasn’t contacted us at all. We’re all worried about her.”

Sun Li also knew about the situation in the countryside. “It’s been five years without contacting the family after going to the countryside? Is someone that heartless, or did something happen after going to the countryside?”

Ning Qin shook her head. “I don’t know about that either. When she went to the countryside initially, she listed the names of all four of us siblings. At that time, each person who went to the countryside could get a subsidy of 50 yuan for their family, so she got 200 yuan but didn’t give it to us. Perhaps she felt embarrassed to contact home and was afraid we would blame her.”

“Really?” Sun Li widened her eyes, feeling like she had stumbled upon a big revelation.

“She listed the names of all four of you siblings and then took away 200 yuan? That’s too… too…”

How to describe it? Too cruel? But that doesn’t seem fair to describe a young girl like that.

Too cunning? But it sounds like praise.

“Is that so?” Ning Shu smirked. “I have a friend who told me a similar story. But… she wasn’t as lucky as your sister. After taking away 200 yuan, her parents and family still kept in touch with her. She… when she was born, her parents already had twin siblings, a brother and a sister, two years older than her. Because her parents needed to take care of the twins, they said they didn’t have time for her, so they sent her to her grandparents’ house in the countryside.

When she turned five and could do chores, her parents remembered her and brought her back home. Not only did she have to take care of the twins who were two years younger than her, but she also had to wash clothes for the whole family of six. She even had to do all the sweeping and dishwashing. If she resisted, she would face beatings from her parents and siblings.

At such a young age, she had to survive, so she had no choice but to run away from home. Because of this, the whole incident became widely known. So, her parents didn’t dare to openly treat her as a servant, but they wouldn’t give her food behind her back.

Later, when the twins grew up and went to school, they didn’t send her. She protested again, and fearing ridicule from others, her parents reluctantly sent her, but they didn’t give her any pocket money to buy study materials like pens and notebooks.”