Shen Meng gave most of the dinner Zhou Jiaojiao brought to the children. She divided the two eggs among the kids so each got half, without showing favoritism. For herself, she had half a bowl of cornmeal dumpling soup.

This thoughtful gesture made Lu Mingkai and Lu Mingfang feel deeply touched. Lu Mingfang even pushed her half of the egg toward Shen Meng.

“Mom, you can eat mine. I’m not really hungry.”

“I’ll give mine to Mom too. Xiao Kai isn’t hungry either.”

“You’re such a good boy, Xiao Kai. Mingfang, you both should eat. I had green bean soup earlier, so I’m not hungry at all. Your Fourth Uncle has heated water; tonight, you can all have baths. Later, I’ll ask a carpenter to make a bigger basin just for Mingfang.”

Girls needed pay attention to hygiene from a young age, Shen Meng thought. It doesn’t matter if she hasn’t developed the habit before but now that she was here, she’d make sure Mingfang was well taken care of. If she didn’t take care of herself now, she’d suffer later as a young woman.

“Mom, I don’t want a bath,” Lu Mingliang chimed in, trying to act tough. “You don’t get it—this is a man’s smell. If I wash it away, I won’t have it anymore.”

“No way. How can you sleep without a bath in this heat? Take a good sniff—that’s not a ‘man’s smell’; it’s sweat.”

“Hehe, second brother is stinky!” Xiao Kai teased.

Lu Mingliang shot a glare at Mingkai but didn’t back down. He had heard the other men in the fields say this was what a real man smelled like, and he didn’t think it was stinky at all.

Shen Meng gave him an amused look and turned to Lu Mingyang, who hadn’t spoken.

“Mingyang, you can bathe yourself later. I’ll help Mingfang and Mingkai. And as for this little man with his ‘real man smell,’ it’s up to you whether you want to bathe or not.”

Just as Lu Mingliang was about to proudly announce that he wouldn’t bathe, Mingyang stomped on his foot. Mingyang shot him a stern glare, reminding him not to get cocky after just one peaceful day.

“Of course, he’ll bathe, Mom,” Mingyang answered, cutting him off.

After this, Mingliang dared not argue. Mingyang decided to go along with whatever Shen Meng said for now. He had to find out what her true intentions were; if she really planned to sell his younger siblings, he’d be ready.

Lu Jiaxuan, who had heated the water, left without saying goodbye. Shen Meng wasn’t bothered. She mixed some warm water for Mingyang and Mingliang, even giving them a fresh towel and some soap.

As soon as she left, the two boys hurriedly took their baths. They splashed around a bit, quickly rinsing off without actually scrubbing. Then, they refilled the water for the other kids before hiding in the west room, unwilling to risk more washing.

Shen Meng let it go; at their age, they’d probably be embarrassed if she washed them herself.

Mingfang and Mingkai, however, couldn’t escape her scrubbing and whimpered as she vigorously washed them. Even in the dim light of the kerosene lamp, Shen Meng could see how much dirt was coming off them. The bottom of the tub was practically lined with grime.

“Brother, listen to them cry,” Mingliang whispered nervously. “They’re getting it bad—Mom’s beating them! They’ve never cried this much before. What should we do?”

Mingliang’s heart pounded with regret; he should have known better than to trust Shen Meng’s small gestures of kindness.

Mingyang’s face darkened. He should have known better too—this was her true nature. Of course, she wouldn’t changed overnight.

The two of them dashed to the kitchen and flung the door open, only to find a surprising scene. Mingfang was standing there in oversized shoes and an old patched floral shirt, her wet hair wrapped in a towel. Mingkai sat in the tub, clutching the rim with big, watery eyes, his eyelashes damp with leftover tears.

“Big brother, second brother, wuwuwu, Mom’s scrubbing hurt; Xiao kai is covered in mud and is so dirty.”

Lu Mingyang and Lu Mingliang blinked in confusion, not quite understanding what was happening. Shen Meng gave them a tired smile.

“Close the door quickly. The breeze is cold, and I don’t want them catching a chill.”

“Mom, you were just giving Mingkai and Mingfang a bath?” Lu Mingyang asked, still in shock.

“Of course. I told you two to wash properly, but you didn’t want to. Mingfang and Mingkai are younger, so I bathed them myself. Since you’re here, why don’t you help empty the water? Then you can warm up a bit more water for a final rinse.”

The two kids let out a relieved “Ah!” before helping to carry the basin outside. Under the bright moonlight, Mingliang spotted the dirty water in the basin, thick with mud, and felt a bit queasy.

“This… all came off Mingkai and Mingfang?” he stammered. “Oh wow, they were filthy! Big brother, tomorrow night, I want a real scrub too.”

“What about your ‘real man smell’?”

“Forget it! No wonder I’ve been so itchy. It was all that dirt—gross!”

After their baths, Shen Meng wrapped Mingfang and Mingkai in towels and carried them to her room, drying them off thoroughly. She took out a bottle of children’s floral water and gently rubbed it on them.

“I bought this a while ago and have been saving it. Tonight, you both smell clean and fresh, and this will help you sleep even better.”

Mingfang hesitated, not wanting to waste such a nice product, but Shen Meng pulled her close.

“Don’t worry. It’s a big bottle! I’ll help you apply it. And remember to dry your hair thoroughly, or you’ll get a headache. Your Fourth Aunt will wash your clothes, so you don’t need to worry about those.”

Mingfang, drying her hair, felt warmth and care in the soft touch of her mother’s hand. Her eyes grew misty.

“Mom, you’re so nice now.”

“Silly girl,” Shen Meng said, smiling. It had only been a day, and the girl already thought things were better. Such a soft heart.

After settling the younger kids in bed, Shen Meng went to the kitchen, locked the door, and entered her storage space, where she freshened up. Meanwhile, Lu Mingyang and Lu Mingliang came to the east room to fetch their siblings for bed.

To their surprise, Mingfang and Mingkai refused to leave. They even complained that they did not take a good shower, which left Mingliang feeling defeated in his “real man smell” pride.

Early the next morning, Zhou Jiaojiao and Lu Jiaxuan came by with breakfast and took the family’s dirty laundry back to the main house. This time, they left the courtyard gate wide open. A few neighbors who were about to gossip stopped short when they noticed Shen Meng stagger out of the house, looking frail and tired.

Seeing her unsteady walk and pale face, people clammed up. They had thought she might be exaggerating her injuries, but she still looked as weak as ever.