Chapter 13: Beginning to Complain

“Old Su, help me carry this crucian carp tofu soup out!” Mother Su called loudly from the kitchen.

Ever since the two of them had confirmed earlier today that their precious daughter had recovered, they had been unable to sit still—buying groceries, cooking, preparing their daughter’s favorite snacks, tidying up the clothes and jewelry they had accumulated for her over the years.

They were only waiting for Su Sanxian to come home.

Fortunately, they did not have to wait long. Just as Su Guoqiang placed the crucian carp tofu soup on the table, the butler came in to announce that Sanxian had returned.

Su Guoqiang instantly lit up with joy, grinning as he followed his wife out to greet their daughter.

At first glance, he saw the tall figure and the three little ones following behind his daughter. Who else could they be but the Lin family father and sons?

That sight wiped the grin off his face. However, for his daughter’s sake, he forced himself to pretend not to notice and managed a faint smile.

“Dad, Mom!” Su Sanxian felt amazed. She had been an orphan and had expected to feel awkward coming here, but when she saw the elderly couple, she couldn’t help but feel excited.

“Sanxian!” After four long years, seeing their lively and healthy daughter again nearly brought the couple to tears.

But it was such a happy day—how could they cry now?

Noticing her parents’ reddened eyes, Su Sanxian quickly stepped forward and hugged them both.

It was impossible not to feel deeply moved.

Lin Shen, leading the three children behind her, also felt emotional.

After all, Su Sanxian truly had been mentally ill for four whole years.

By the time the three finished exchanging greetings, it was nearly time for dinner.

Before Su Sanxian had arrived, Mother Su had personally prepared three dishes: crucian carp tofu soup, sweet and sour spare ribs, and fish-flavored shredded pork. The remaining seven dishes had been made by the servants.

They included shrimp with scrambled eggs, stir-fried beef with Hangzhou peppers, braised lion’s head meatballs, stir-fried bean curd sheets with chili peppers, glass noodles with baby cabbage, pickled cabbage fish, and garlic broccoli.

They were all dishes that Su Sanxian loved. Once they were all placed on the table, their rich aromas filled the air. The three adults chatted endlessly until they finally realized how hungry they were and reluctantly stopped talking to eat.

Seeing that their mom and grandparents had finished catching up and were ready to start eating, the three children decided this was their moment to shine.

At the very least, they had to get their grandparents talking with them, too.

“Mom, have some food! Grandma, have some food! Grandpa, have some food!” The three children smiled sweetly as they served dishes to each adult.

Only then did Su Sanxian realize that she had been neglecting the three children and Lin Shen.

Although Su Guoqiang and Mother Su were not particularly fond of the children, they kept their feelings to themselves because they were, after all, just kids.

Their real displeasure was reserved for Lin Shen!

Of course, Lin Shen was fully aware that he was the one they liked the least, so while the couple and Su Sanxian had been catching up, he had stayed silent, practically invisible.

But now that the children had started acting cute, he couldn’t just keep sitting there like a salted fish.

So he began serving dishes, too. “Sanxian, have some food. Dad, Mom, have some food.” Naturally, he made sure to flatter his wife first.

Su Guoqiang shot him a look and snorted. “Hmph, I’m not your dad. And Ruirui isn’t your mom.”

Under the table, Mother Su, Tang Rui, gave Su Guoqiang a discreet tap, signaling him not to embarrass Lin Shen like that.

At the very least, he could wait until their daughter had left the room or gone upstairs before making things difficult for Lin Shen.

Su Guoqiang suddenly remembered that point and sneaked a glance at his daughter. Seeing only a look of surprise on her face, he recalled that she had mentioned suffering from partial memory loss and not remembering things clearly.

That emboldened him.

He began to complain: “Daughter, you have no idea. Back then, I wanted to bring you home and have you divorce him, but this guy absolutely refused, doing everything he could to stop me…”

“Let her eat first.” Tang Rui interrupted, noticing that Su Sanxian was so absorbed in listening that she wasn’t even eating.

Since it concerned his daughter, Su Guoqiang immediately shut his mouth. Nothing mattered more than his wife and daughter.

They finally settled down quietly and began eating.

That meal, leaving everything else aside, truly made Su Sanxian feel deeply content.

The entire table was filled with her favorite dishes. Even the subtle seasoning of each dish had been prepared exactly according to her preferences.

With every dish being something she loved, how could she not enjoy herself?

After the meal, the three children abandoned their mother and instead followed closely behind Su Guoqiang and Tang Rui, chattering endlessly and sweetly calling them “Grandma” and “Grandpa” over and over again.

The sight made Su Sanxian laugh aloud.

“Wife, aren’t you going to comfort me a little?” Lin Shen leaned toward Su Sanxian.

Comfort him? For what?

Lin Shen knew Su Sanxian so well that he could read her mind at a glance. The moment she furrowed her brow, he immediately explained: “Wife, didn’t you notice I didn’t eat well at lunch? You and the kids were eating so happily while I was timid, helpless, and utterly alone!”

What???

She thought he was making up baseless accusations out of thin air.

“Weren’t you the one who ate three bowls of rice at lunch?”

Lin Shen was momentarily speechless. “I normally eat five bowls.”

Go on, keep pretending.

“Then I’ll cook for you tomorrow and see if you really eat five bowls.”

That was absolutely unnecessary. Lin Shen opened his mouth to speak, hesitated, then closed it again, only to falter under his wife’s piercing gaze, shrinking back little by little.

Su Sanxian stifled her laughter.

“What are you two whispering about? No whispering at the table.” Su Guoqiang interjected sternly, not allowing Lin Shen to have private conversations with his daughter.

This timely interruption relieved Lin Shen’s awkwardness. Father-in-law to the rescue!

“Mom! Grandma said you used to cry all the time while practicing the violin.” Sanzai, the mischievous one, shouted gleefully.

“So what if I cried? Careful, or I’ll make you cry too.” Su Sanxian narrowed her eyes and raised a large hand in mock threat.

Little Erzai, always tender-hearted, spoke up in defense of his mother: “Mom, Grandma said you worked so hard practicing violin back then, your fingers would often get blisters.”

Oh, her little sweetheart. Su Sanxian reached out to pat his head, but her hand was caught by Dazai.

Recently, Su Sanxian had been practicing diligently for an upcoming competition, and the marks on her left-hand fingers from pressing the strings were clearly visible.

Because of her delicate, fair skin, the marks looked even more alarming.

Dazai’s tears instantly welled up and spilled over. “I’m not Mom’s best baby anymore! I didn’t even notice Mom was hurt—and it’s so serious!”

Erzai and Sanzai also noticed their mother’s fingers and were both startled and worried.

Lin Shen, too, was surprised. He knew that playing violin could injure fingers until calluses formed, but he hadn’t paid close attention to her hands, not expecting the injuries to be this severe.

The situation was a bit tricky: his wife was hurt because of something she loved.

“Be good, all of you are Mom’s best babies. Mom just hadn’t played for a long time, so it looks worse than it is. It doesn’t hurt at all.” Su Sanxian reassured them.

Of course, that was a lie. Her fingers only hurt for a while after playing, but otherwise, she barely noticed the pain.

“Mom, Erzai will blow on it for you.” Erzai said, cupping her hand tenderly, his cheeks puffing as he blew gently over her fingers, his eyes full of heartache.

Dazai and Sanzai quickly joined in, blowing on her hand together with Erzai.

The three children were obedient and adorable.

Su Sanxian felt her heart melt completely. How could her babies be such little angels?

Father Su and Mother Su, having known their daughter’s constitution from when she had practiced violin as a child, were far less anxious than The Three Cubs and Lin Shen.

The couple stood side by side, quietly witnessing this heartwarming moment of their daughter’s family of five.

They were deeply moved. After all, at the very least, their daughter’s perseverance back then had not been in vain.