Chapter 4 Don’t you want to go out?

Second Aunt, who was helping in the kitchen, heard the commotion and hurried out. Seeing Lin Qingyue’s disheveled appearance, she asked, “What happened?”

“I don’t know who put a bucket of water on the door frame. It was clearly intentional,” Lu Siyi frowned, his face cold and hard.

“It must have been that stinky brat Lu Yicheng!” Second Aunt slapped her thigh, about to go complain to the old man.

Lin Qingyue quickly stopped her, “Second Aunt, it’s just a childish prank. There’s no need to make a big fuss. Maybe the child was just playing a joke on me.”

“Even if it’s a joke, he shouldn’t pull this kind of prank on your first visit,” Second Aunt insisted on supporting Lin Qingyue.

“Second Aunt, really, it’s fine. I’ll just change into a clean set of clothes,” Lin Qingyue said magnanimously. She wanted to leave a kind motherly image on the children and not leave a bad impression on them.

Lu Siyi watched her silently, his thin lips pressed into a straight line. “There are clean clothes in my room upstairs. I’ll take you to change.”

In a hurry, there was no better way.

Lu Siyi took her upstairs. The room was simply furnished: a steel-wire bed, a small bookshelf, and a small handmade wooden cabinet—as simple as it could be.

Lin Qingyue looked around, thinking to herself, “It seems that Lu Siyi lives a simple life, without any particular hobbies or desires. Generally, such people are easier to get along with.”

Seeing her standing motionless at the door, Lu Siyi gestured for her to come in and took out two of his own clothes from the closet: “These are the clothes I wore when I was in school. I haven’t worn them for years, but they’re better than your wet dress.”

A simple cotton white T-shirt and a pair of faded jeans. Lin Qingyue took the clothes and smiled slightly, “Thank you.”

“…” Lu Siyi sat on the stool in front of the desk, showing no intention of leaving.

Her face flushed. “That… aren’t you going to leave?”

Lu Siyi’s eyes flickered, and he coughed unnaturally. He stood up, strode towards the door, and walked out.

At the door, he awkwardly said, “Didn’t we see everything last night? Why are you still shy?”

The door opened and closed.

Lin Qingyue felt her whole body burning up. Even if they had already… last night, it still took some getting used to changing clothes in front of him, didn’t it?

Wasn’t it said that people of this era were more conservative? Was Lu Siyi’s way of thinking considered conservative?

Lin Qingyue twitched her lips, feeling that her previous understanding of people of this era was inaccurate.

She took off her clothes, revealing her fair skin. The door suddenly opened, and Second Aunt walked in with a warm smile, startling Lin Qingyue, who quickly covered herself.

Second Aunt also looked embarrassed. “Qingyue, I didn’t expect you hadn’t changed your clothes yet after all this time.”

She glanced at Lin Qingyue and saw the mottled red marks on her body. Her face flushed. “I came to get your wet clothes to wash them for you. The weather is hot these days, they’ll dry quickly if hung in the yard.”

Lin Qingyue quickly put on her clothes. Lu Siyi’s clothes were too big for her, hanging loosely on her body. She had to tuck the edges of the T-shirt into her pants.

She handed her wet clothes to Second Aunt and said thank you.

Second Aunt looked at the well-behaved and obedient new daughter-in-law and sighed, “You’re a good girl. It’s a shame you married our Lu Siyi.”

“Second Aunt, what do you mean?”

“Which good girl would accept her husband with three stepchildren?” Second Aunt put on a worried expression. “What happened today was all Lu Yicheng’s fault. If those three ever give you a hard time, the old man and I will support you.”

Lin Qingyue’s expression was calm, her mind racing. Before anything had even happened, Second Aunt was already belittling the three children, making it seem as if she was trying to turn her against them.

“It’s nothing. It’s normal for children to be mischievous,” she replied indifferently.

Second Aunt was surprised and immediately became serious. “This can’t be let go. Today it’s a bucket of water, what about tomorrow? The younger the children, the easier they are to discipline. We need to set rules for them from a young age.”

“You’re their stepmother now. You decide how to discipline them.”

“Second Aunt, you just said I’m their stepmother, and they’re not familiar with me yet. Let’s leave the disciplining to Lu Siyi for now,” Lin Qingyue didn’t want to be the bad guy.

From just this bucket of water, Lin Qingyue could guess that the three children had objections to her and might not accept her as their mother.

Second Aunt opened her mouth to say something, but seeing Lin Qingyue’s unconcerned attitude, as if she really didn’t intend to hold a grudge against the children, she wisely shut her mouth.

It wasn’t that she had any objections to Lu Siyi’s three adopted sons, it was just that this kind of thing happened on the new daughter-in-law’s first visit, she wanted to give her a way out.

Besides, that brat Lu Yicheng was mischievous and had played pranks on her before. She wanted to take this opportunity to establish her authority in front of Lu Yicheng.

Thinking this, Second Aunt followed Lin Qingyue downstairs. “Children should be disciplined in front of their elders. Our Lu family has never had such a child…”

Before she finished speaking, she saw Lu Yicheng standing at attention in the yard with tears on his face. When he saw Lin Qingyue, he lifted his small face and snorted arrogantly, as if he looked down on Lin Qingyue.

Lin Qingyue blinked. They didn’t get along from the very first meeting?

She had just lifted her foot when Second Aunt grabbed her. “Look at me, this is how you discipline a child!”

Second Aunt put her hands on her hips, put on a fierce expression, walked to Lu Yicheng, and twisted his ear. “You brat, dare you play pranks again? If you cause trouble in front of your stepmother, watch out for her punishment!”

Lu Yicheng cried out, flailing his arms and legs at Second Aunt. “You’re a bad person, a bad guy! You’re in cahoots with my dad’s new wife! You’re all bullying me!”

Lin Qingyue saw the child’s ear turning red and swollen at a visible speed, and her eyes narrowed. “Second Aunt, he’s still a child. Why are you so harsh?”

“Qingyue, see? This child needs discipline,” Second Aunt said unconcernedly.

People of this era believed in the saying, “Spare the rod and spoil the child.”

Lin Qingyue could see Second Aunt’s nature – stirring up trouble and twisting facts to her advantage.

“It’s just a child’s prank. Why are we adults making such a fuss?” Lin Qingyue felt sorry for the child and went to pull Second Aunt away, wanting to protect the pitiful child.

Unexpectedly, Lu Yicheng pushed her, causing her to stumble.

“Don’t pretend to be nice. You’re a stepmother, and stepmothers are not good to their children!” After saying that, Lu Yicheng cried loudly.

This child’s prejudice was too deep. She hadn’t even done anything yet.

“Qingyue, are you alright?” Second Aunt asked with concern, and poked Lu Yicheng. “What’s wrong with you, child?”

Lu Yicheng’s eyes were filled with tears, looking pitiful.