Chapter 6 One sentence offends people

“Mom~ I…”

“This is money that Second Brother and his wife worked hard to earn! And you tricked it away with just a few words? Over two thousand yuan!” Qian Xiuying was so anxious she looked like she was about to hit someone. She truly hadn’t expected to end up with a daughter-in-law like this!

“You took advantage of Qiyue because she’s easy to bully. She has no father or mother in this world, and you dared to treat her like this?” The more she spoke, the more ashamed Qian Xiuying felt. She had received the kindness of others, yet treated their daughter like this—how could she ever face Lin Qiyue’s deceased parents?

Shen Qingmiao didn’t dare say much in front of her mother-in-law. Ever since she had gotten her hands on Lin Qiyue’s money, she’d been spending recklessly, never imagining she’d have to pay it back. She had already spent it all—on clothes, fabric, and her child. Now, where was she supposed to get such a large amount of money?

Lin Qiyue sighed to herself—at least this mother-in-law seemed somewhat reasonable, though how long that would last was uncertain.

Lan Yuchu coldly observed everything. The fire in his heart wasn’t easy to vent, but since the person in question was his sister-in-law, there were things he couldn’t say outright. Still, the money had to be returned—this was money Lin Qiyue had earned herself.

“Qiyue is easy to bully, so she gave you all her money and got this thin as a result? If I’d come back a year or two later, would she already be dead by now?” Lan Yuchu’s tone was cold. Lin Qiyue listened and felt every word hit the mark.

Qian Xiuying looked at Lin Qiyue with eyes full of guilt and shame.

Lan Yusui turned to look at Lin Qiyue, as if to say: “With someone to protect you, you’re something. Without that, you’re nothing.”
She was an outsider, which made her see things more clearly.

In this house, when the others were at work, it was usually just the three women at home. Every time she came back, it was Lin Qiyue cooking in the kitchen. All the family’s laundry was done by her.

Although Lan Yusui didn’t particularly like this woman as her sister-in-law, she had never forced her to work. Sometimes, when she wasn’t paying attention, Lin Qiyue would even take her clothes and wash them.

Shen Qingmiao didn’t dare say a word.

Lin Qiyue noticed how awkward the atmosphere had become and wondered if she should say something.

Then Lan Yusui sighed dramatically and said sarcastically, “Second Brother, take it easy! It’s usually just us three women at home. Mom and Dad are often away working and might not come back for several days or even half a month. I can’t protect your wife by myself!”

“What’s that supposed to mean? Are you saying I bullied her?”

Shen Qingmiao had been suppressing her anger, planning to settle scores with Lin Qiyue after Lan Yuchu returned to duty. But Lan Yusui brought it up directly, and her temper exploded.

“I’ve spent plenty on this house—on food and fabric! It’s not like I’m the only one benefiting!” she shouted as she stood up.

“Yelling? How much have you really paid for this household? Mom and Dad leave living expenses and food every month, and you never say a word about that. So it’s all for you? What have you ever paid out of pocket? You even went and supported your whole maiden family—I’m not blind, you know! I didn’t know before that you took Second Brother’s family’s money, but now? I honestly think you’re shameless!”

Slamming the table? Lan Yusui wasn’t afraid of that—she wasn’t one to back down. She had disliked this so-called elder sister-in-law for a long time.

“You…”

“You what? Am I not telling the truth? Even outsiders know you took Second Brother’s money. You really outdid yourself, Sister-in-law!” Lan Yusui was completely unafraid.

“Enough!” Qian Xiuying shouted, furious, cutting them off.

The room finally quieted down.

Shen Qingmiao was panicking, already trying to figure out how she could gather the two thousand-plus yuan—she had already spent it all.

Lin Qiyue looked at Lan Yusui, then at Shen Qingmiao’s expression. She could tell—this woman was definitely plotting revenge. Likely by dragging in some older man to help her suppress Qiyue.

Well, Lin Qiyue wasn’t going to let that happen. Before the divorce, she planned to make sure everyone saw Shen Qingmiao’s true face.

Qian Xiuying felt a headache coming on. She looked at Shen Qingmiao and gave her a final ultimatum:

“Three days. If you can’t come up with the money, I’ll go to your maiden family and have a word with them. I want to know exactly how they raised a daughter like you—calculating enough to steal someone else’s money like this. Is this how you plan to raise your own children too?”

She didn’t have any better option. She’d ended up with such a daughter-in-law, who was also pregnant—she couldn’t say anything too harsh.

But realizing that her own coldness had emboldened Shen Qingmiao to this extent, to the point of bullying her second daughter-in-law, made Qian Xiuying furious.

Shen Qingmiao was terrified, crying as she said, “Mom, I’m pregnant, and the money’s already spent! I really can’t come up with that much… I did spend some of it on the family too…”

She could only shamelessly look to Qian Xiuying for pity.

“If you can’t pay it back, then after the baby is born, divorce. Someone with such poor character can’t teach a child right anyway. I know exactly what my son thinks.”

Qian Xiuying was so angry she was seeing red. She even went as far as saying her son should divorce Shen Qingmiao.

After she said it, she did feel a little regret—after all, the woman was pregnant. If she did something foolish like jumping into a river, it would be a nightmare. Just thinking about it made her panic.

But the words were already out—she wasn’t going to take them back.

Shen Qingmiao was too scared to say anything now. Her face turned pale, and she stood there frozen. She knew what her husband thought of her. How could she dare say she wouldn’t return the money now?

Lin Qiyue couldn’t help but feel that something was off. This wasn’t how things played out in the original novel. In the book, she hadn’t gotten her money back like this, and it definitely hadn’t been Lan Yuchu who brought it up.

So, this whole scene was never supposed to happen. But somehow, it had.

And just like that, the whole mess came to an end.

Lin Qiyue and Lan Yusui were really dragged out by Lan Yuchu to go jogging for exercise.
The two of them looked like they’d lost the will to live.
After just two laps, they went back home, drenched in sweat and feeling utterly miserable.

Lin Qiyue hadn’t expected that this man would actually be so true to his word.

“I can’t do this anymore! I’m going to die!”
“Me too! I’m done, never running again!”

They collapsed onto a bench in the courtyard, panting heavily.

When Lan Yuchu came in and saw the two of them looking so weak after just two laps, he was clearly disappointed.

“You’re already like this after two laps? Starting tomorrow, we’re doing extra training. You must improve your physical condition! Little sister, your sister-in-law is thin and weak, it’s normal she can’t run. But with your build? No excuse!”

Boom—one sentence, and he managed to offend both of them.

Lan Yusui clenched her teeth, her expression dark. She was furious!
Calling her fat?! She jumped to her feet, stomped hard, and glared at Lan Yuchu.

“Oh, so you’re amazing, huh? Just a brute with no brains! Hmph!”
She snapped and stormed off to her room.

Lan Yuchu frowned. “Weird… what did I even say?”

Lin Qiyue couldn’t help but laugh.

Lan Yuchu turned and stared at her. Their eyes met—it felt like something electric was in the air between them.

Lin Qiyue quickly stood up, flustered. “I—I’m going to take a shower.”

Lan Yuchu followed her into the room and looked at the bed—it was definitely big enough for two people.

Even though they were married, they hadn’t shared a bed since their wedding. They didn’t have feelings for each other, but sleeping separately might make people suspicious.

Lin Qiyue grabbed her clothes and turned to go shower—only to bump right into Lan Yuchu.

“What… what are you doing?” she asked, seeing his fierce expression, and suddenly feeling a bit timid.

Seeing the fear in her eyes, Lan Yuchu also got a little nervous.
Maybe they were too close, but this was the first time he really looked at her like this.
Even though she was thin and frail, she was undeniably beautiful. Her delicate features, especially those large, clear eyes—when they sparkled under his gaze, they tugged at something inside him.

He nervously fidgeted with the hem of his shirt, swallowed, and said, “N–nothing…”

Lin Qiyue gave him a suspicious look but didn’t say anything. She took her clothes and went to the bathroom.

Lan Yuchu had originally just wanted to apologize to her—he felt guilty about how much she’d suffered. But when he tried to say it, the words just wouldn’t come.

In the bathroom, Lin Qiyue looked at the empty shelves—there was nothing there.

“Lin Qiyue, oh Lin Qiyue… You at least went to high school, how can you not know how to fight back? With your education, you’d be valuable anywhere!”

She grumbled to herself, but then remembered—she was only able to attend high school because of the help from Lan Yuchu’s parents.

After her own family collapsed, the Lan family had never shirked responsibility. Her tuition and living expenses were treated the same as their own daughter’s.

But ever since she’d been forced into marrying Lan Yuchu—and not long after, Shen Qingmiao also married into the family—everything started to change from that point on.