This is why Tian Meihua didn’t dare provoke Mother Zhang at all—because in this household, Mother Zhang had the final say. Ever since she married into the Zhang family, neither Father Zhang nor Grandma Zhang had ever contradicted her once.  

No matter how unruly Tian Meihua was, she still understood her place as a junior. Making a scene with the elders would only make her look bad.  

Zhang Yaozu, that brat, had no sense of the situation either and kept crying. Zhang Zhonghai, having just been reprimanded by his father, felt humiliated. He immediately picked up Zhang Yaozu and muttered, “Dad, Mom, Grandma, you all eat. I won’t disturb you anymore.”  

Seeing this, Tian Meihua glanced at the dishes on the table and quickly followed Zhang Zhonghai. “What, you’re not eating?”  

Zhang Zhonghai grumbled, “After what Dad said, how could I still have the face to eat?”  

Once inside their room, Tian Meihua didn’t hold back. She curled her lip and said, “You know what? As an outsider, I see things the clearest. Your parents dote on the eldest, dote on the youngest—especially the youngest—but not on you. There’s a saying, isn’t there? The eldest is the family’s first child, the youngest is the family’s last, so parents cherish them both. But the one in the middle? Like an extra.”  

Zhang Zhonghai snapped, “What nonsense are you spouting?”  

Tian Meihua wasn’t afraid of him at all. She pretended to wipe away tears. “Zhang Zhonghai, what do you mean by that? Am I lying? Who am I saying this for? Who am I feeling sorry for? I’m feeling sorry for you, for our Yaozu! You’re no worse than the eldest or the youngest, so why are your parents so biased toward them? Forget about us, but even Yaozu has to suffer because of it.”  

Right on cue, Zhang Yaozu let out an even louder wail.  

Tian Meihua wiped his tears with feigned distress. “Look at this. We worked all day, didn’t even get a bite to eat, and your parents didn’t even come to check on us—just left us to starve. Tell me, do they even care about you?”  

Zhang Zhonghai was instantly speechless. He felt Tian Meihua made sense, but—”They’re my parents. What can I do?”  

Tian Meihua said, “If they don’t care about you, your wife does. Luckily, I still have some of the pastries I brought back from my parents’ place last time and didn’t give to them. We can snack on those for now. Later, I’ll go to the kitchen and make us something to eat.”  

The “pastries” she mentioned were actually just crumbs from broken sweets. Whole pastries were expensive, but the crumbs were much cheaper—still a rare treat, though. A single bite was sweet and delicious, far better than the bland meals they usually had.  

Tian Meihua first fed a bite to Zhang Yaozu. The moment the crying child tasted it, he smacked his lips and immediately demanded, “I want more!”  

Tian Meihua smiled. “Keep your voice down. Don’t let your greedy sisters hear you.”  

Outside, the eldest daughter-in-law, Liu Chunfang, noticed that the second son’s family had left without taking anything. She couldn’t help saying, “They didn’t eat anything…”  

Mother Zhang replied, “They won’t starve.”  

She knew exactly what was going on.  

Liu Chunfang didn’t dare say another word and quietly ate her meal.  

Mother Zhang sighed. The family had been perfectly fine before—why did they have to bring in such a troublemaker for the second son?

After dinner, Mother Zhang, still concerned about her son, left some food for them in the kitchen.  

She returned to her room and, thinking of the sponge cake Jiang Weihong had given her, couldn’t help but feel a little happier. In this family, Weihong was the only one who didn’t give her trouble. Honestly, with a daughter-in-law like her, how could anyone not favor her?  

“Old man, come see what this is,” Mother Zhang beckoned to Father Zhang, who was squatting by the door.  

Father Zhang stood up, hands behind his back, and walked over. “What is it? So mysterious.”  

“Look.” Mother Zhang showed him the sponge cake.  

“Wow, where did this come from?” Father Zhang’s eyes locked onto the cake, his mouth involuntarily watering.  

“Look at you, so shameless. Good thing the kids aren’t around,” Mother Zhang chuckled. “Weihong brought it from her family. Said her youngest brother gave it to her…”  

Father Zhang sighed after hearing this. “Weihong’s family is truly good-hearted.”  

“Let’s split one piece among the three of us elders. Later, I’ll call the kids over and give them two pieces to share,” Mother Zhang planned meticulously. After this division, there would still be two pieces left.  

“Why should we eat it? We’re old,” Father Zhang said, though his mouth watered.  

Mother Zhang replied, “Weihong specifically said this cake is soft and light, made just for us elders. If you don’t want it, fine—Mother and I will eat it. How many chances does an old woman like her have to taste something this good in her lifetime?”  

Mother Zhang had finally realized—once children grew up, they all had their own thoughts. What was the point of skimping on herself to give to them? Better to enjoy it herself.  

Hearing this, Father Zhang immediately fell silent. He and Mother Zhang divided one piece of cake into three portions, giving one to Grandma Zhang. The old woman’s eyes crinkled with delight as she tasted the soft, fluffy cake. When she heard it was from Jiang Weihong, she kept murmuring, “Weihong is good, Weihong is so good…”  

She was old now and couldn’t do much work. None of the younger ones wanted to spend time with her—except Weihong, who often chatted with her and never complained about her being hard of hearing. She didn’t say much, but she noticed everything in her heart.  

After eating, Mother Zhang opened the door and saw the third son’s two children playing in the yard. She smiled and called, “Pipi, Doudou, go tell your brothers and sisters to come over. Grandma has something good for you.”  

The moment they heard this, Pipi and Doudou happily ran off to gather the others. Soon, all the little ones crowded into Mother Zhang’s room.  

She distributed the cake, reminding them, “This is from your Third Aunt. Remember her kindness.”  

The children all praised Third Aunt, saying she was the best. It was their first time tasting something so delicious. Though each got only a small piece, they savored every bite.  

Mother Zhang divided it fairly, giving each child an equal portion. Zhang Yaozu glanced at his sisters’ shares and frowned. Usually, he got the biggest piece, but Grandma wasn’t like his parents—he was a little afraid of her and didn’t dare speak up.  

In his heart, he thought, I’ll just take theirs after we leave.

But Mother Zhang said, “You’ll eat it here before leaving.”  

At these words, the children—who had been reluctant to eat such a precious treat—immediately started nibbling on the sponge cake.  

The aroma alone was intoxicatingly sweet, and the taste was even more delightful. The other kids savored it calmly, but Zhaodi and Pandi, who hadn’t eaten anything this delicious in ages, practically licked their fingers clean.  

When they returned, they excitedly told their parents about the cake and how Grandma had said it was from Third Aunt.  

Zhang Zhongyi patted the kids’ heads and said to Liu Chunfang, “Hear that? Third Sister-in-law is generous. Don’t just believe whatever Second Sister-in-law says—when has she ever done anything good for you?”  

Liu Chunfang had no rebuttal. Over the years, she had started sensing something was off—hadn’t she stayed quiet at dinner today?  

She grumbled, “You all say I’m stupid. Fine, I won’t listen to anyone anymore, how about that?”  

Zhang Zhongyi sighed. “Just listen to Mom. Can’t you see she’s the one who runs this household?”  

Even someone as slow as Liu Chunfang had noticed that by now. She nodded. “Got it. From now on, I won’t pay attention to whatever Tian Meihua says.”  

…

In the third son’s room, Zhang Zhongxin was surprised to hear that the sponge cake their mother had given out came from his wife. “Weihong, your family isn’t well-off. Don’t spend money on things like this next time.”  

In the original storyline, Jiang Weihong’s long-term support of her family eventually caused tension between the eldest and second sons’ families. Zhang Zhongxin, ashamed in front of his brothers, grew resentful toward her over time.  

But for now, he didn’t feel that way.  

Jiang Weihong said, “It was given by my youngest brother. He handed me a bag, and I just brought it back without thinking much of it. I’ll scold him later—he shouldn’t be wasting money like this.”  

Though she said this, she was smiling. “That boy’s got some skills now. He even has a friend who drives big trucks—maybe someday he’ll have his own connections to drive one too?”  

In her eyes, her younger brother could do no wrong, though the highest achievement she could imagine for him was becoming a truck driver.  

Zhang Zhongxin was skeptical. “You didn’t secretly buy it yourself and say it was from him, did you?” He found it hard to believe—if she’d said it was from her parents, he might’ve accepted it, but from *that* little brother?  

Jiang Weihong glared at him. “Why would I lie? And where would I even get that kind of money?”  

She pulled out the malted milk powder and White Rabbit candies. “See this? All from him. Mom said you can’t even buy this candy at the supply store. If not for his truck-driver friend, you’d probably never see this stuff in your life!”  

Zhang Zhongxin’s eyes nearly popped out of his head at the sight. Though stunned, he had to accept that Jiang Le really did know someone influential.

Come to think of it, Jiang Le was always running around outside—it wasn’t impossible for him to have made a friend or two.  

“Let’s keep the malted milk powder here for now. Later, I’ll prepare some for Mom, Dad, and Grandma, and let Pipi and Doudou have a taste too.” Jiang Weihong gently touched the can of malted milk, then added with determination, “This was given by my brother—our family should also try some.”  

After deciding on the malted milk, she moved on to the candies. “What about these? We should at least share some with the kids from the eldest and second brother’s families, right?”  

Jiang Weihong simply couldn’t bring herself to hoard everything. “I counted—there are forty candies here. Giving each child five would be just right.”  

Zhang Zhongxin was once again stunned by his wife’s generosity. “Why share so much? Just give two to each of their kids. These were given by Pipi and Doudou’s own uncle—why should the others get the same amount?”  

Jiang Weihong smiled. “Alright, I’ll listen to you.”  

So the couple called all the children over and handed out two candies to each. Even in front of the other kids, Pipi and Doudou only received two each.  

First, they didn’t want to give their own children too many, fearing they’d gobble them up without restraint. Second, with the other kids watching, it wouldn’t be fair to give theirs more.  

The children, overjoyed to receive candies—especially ones they’d never seen before—could smell the rich milky sweetness even through the wrappers. Today felt as happy as New Year’s!  

One by one, they thanked Third Aunt cheerfully.  

Doudou hesitated for a moment, then reluctantly held out one of her candies to Jiang Weihong. “Mom, you have one too.”  

Jiang Weihong’s heart melted as she stroked her daughter’s hair. “I really didn’t spoil you for nothing.”  

Not to be outdone, Pipi quickly added, “Then… then I’ll give one to Dad!”  

Zhang Zhongxin glanced at Zhang Yaozu, who was already shoving his candies into his mouth, and couldn’t help but feel his own children were truly wonderful.  

Of course, they wouldn’t actually take candy from their kids, but the gesture touched them deeply.  

“Mom won’t eat it—Mom still has some here. Later, I’ll share with your dad,” Jiang Weihong said, patting her daughter’s little face. “Go on, go play with your brothers and sisters.”  

The children cheered and ran off to the yard, some too reluctant to eat theirs right away, saving them to show off to their friends tomorrow.  

Once the kids were gone, Jiang Weihong took out two White Rabbit candies from the bag and handed one to Zhang Zhongxin. “Here, since the kids offered, we’ll have some too. I’ve never tasted such good candy before.”  

The moment it touched her tongue, a rich, creamy sweetness filled her mouth. Jiang Weihong savored it slowly. “Good thing we didn’t give all of them away.”  

Seeing this, Zhang Zhongxin, though initially reluctant, unwrapped his candy and took a bite.  

Instantly, he wholeheartedly agreed with his wife—this candy was delicious. They should save the rest to enjoy slowly.  

Just as the couple was blissfully savoring the candies, the sound of a child crying came from the yard. Jiang Weihong recognized it immediately—it was Doudou.  

Her heart leaped, and she rushed out without another thought. There, she found Doudou sitting on the ground, Pipi wrestling with Zhang Yaozu, who was clutching two candies in his hand—even though he’d already eaten his two inside the house!  

The moment Doudou saw her parents, her face crumpled with aggrieved grievance. “Waaah—Mom, Yaozu stole my candy! Waaah…”