Shen’s family, Mu Er Pang watched as Mrs. Chen angrily walked away, feeling a bit uneasy, he asked, “Grandma, did I do something wrong?”

Zheng immediately shook her head and said, “How could you say that? What could you have done wrong? It’s that old woman who feels embarrassed and can’t take losing!”

Mu Er Pang thought about this and went to see Mrs. Li.

Mrs. Li was the most fair-minded person. Just now, Mu Er Pang hadn’t done anything wrong, so she immediately smiled at him and even gave him a thumbs up.

Later, several men from Shen’s family returned from work outside, and the family had a lively meal.

Knowing that Mu Er Pang would come in the afternoon, Zheng had prepared several main dishes in advance: braised pork, stewed ribs, chicken stew with mushrooms… The table was filled with meat dishes!

Although Shen’s family was not as well-off as before, they still didn’t have a strong foothold in the city, so they couldn’t often eat such good food. The children in the family were so happy that they felt like it was New Year’s Day!

At the dinner table, Zheng exaggerated Mu Er Pang’s glorious deed of surpassing Chen Da Niu, almost portraying him as a genius.

Old Master Shen and Shen Da and Shen Er were also very fond of Mu Er Pang. Hearing this, each of them laughed heartily and even brought out the family’s rice wine to drink.

Just as Mrs. Chen thought, no one asked Mu Er Pang who taught him to read, assuming subconsciously that it was his older brother.

After dinner, Old Master Shen took Mu Er Pang to bathe.

In the past, Mu Er Pang would always bathe with his grandma.

Grandpa usually helped him bathe, but this time he didn’t let him, saying he could do it himself.

After bathing, Zheng powdered him with fragrant powder before letting him go to sleep.

Shen’s family’s house was not very big, and Mu Er Pang slept with his two younger cousins.

Usually, he was someone who could fall asleep as soon as he lay down, but today, after lying down, he didn’t fall asleep immediately. Instead, he thought of many things.

The mocking looks from the neighbors at the alley entrance, the undisguised disdain from his aunt, and the fact that he had agreed to the competition because he was afraid his aunt would be unhappy, but after winning, she was the one who left in anger.

Clearly, she herself had suggested the competition for fun with the children at home, so why was she angry?

He was already several years older than Da Niu, so winning a few recited passages was normal, right?

Is it really such a shameful thing to lose to him?

And then there was the mention of his brother by his grandma, their looks became even more contemptuous, as if saying he didn’t deserve to be his older brother’s younger brother.

These people’s dislike for him must not have appeared out of thin air today, but why didn’t he notice it before?

The feeling of being disliked is not pleasant. At least now, Mu Er Pang was having trouble digesting these emotions.

Strange emotions surged in his chest, and he was at a loss. He tossed and turned on the kang for a long, long time, still unable to sleep.

Just then, Mu Er Pang heard a light “thud” from the window frame.

Then there were two more “thuds”. Mu Er Pang knew he hadn’t misheard, so he put on his clothes and went downstairs to see.

As soon as he stepped out, Mu Er Pang saw his own mother squatting under the wall, throwing small stones at the window.

“Mom, why are you here?” It was late at night, and Mu Er Pang instinctively lowered his voice.

How did she come? Of course, she saw her silly son’s mood fluctuating wildly at home late at night and rushed over because she was worried.

It’s fortunate that there’s no curfew in the city during the New Year festival, otherwise, she wouldn’t even be able to enter the city gate.

Shen Cui threw the handful of stones she had picked up on the ground, saying nonchalantly, “Mom couldn’t sleep at night, so I came for a walk.”

Walking around the village and ending up in the city? Even with the mentality of a nine-year-old child, Mu Er Pang didn’t believe it.

Shen Cui still had her aura open, watching his mood value rise rapidly, finally feeling relieved.

“Then, Mom, are you coming in?”

Shen Cui shook her head and said, “I just came to see you. If you’re tired, go back to sleep.”

“I’m not tired. I have something for Mom.”

Mu Er Pang reached into his pocket and pulled out a round thing to give to her.

Shen Cui took it and examined it carefully, only to find it was a warm salted duck egg.

A duck egg was already good, but a salted duck egg that required a lot of salt was even rarer.

Shen Cui raised her eyebrows in surprise.

Mu Er Pang quickly said again, “I took a bath today and changed into clean clothes. I’m all clean now.”

“What are you thinking? I don’t mind if you’re dirty. I’m just curious why you’re sleeping with a duck egg.”

“I wanted to secretly bring it back for you, but I was afraid Grandma would find out, so I’ve been carrying it with me.”

Under Mu Er Pang’s expectant gaze, Shen Cui peeled the duck egg and took a bite.

“Is it delicious?”

Shen Cui chuckled, “Did you eat it today? How can I tell if it’s delicious or not?”

Mu Er Pang scratched his head and said he hadn’t eaten it, “Grandma said it’s for the New Year, so she secretly gave me one at night.”

She also said that no one else at home had any.”

Shen Cui handed the duck egg to his lips and fed him a bite.

The salted duck eggs for the New Year were of top quality. The quality of the duck eggs was excellent, with thick egg whites and even thicker, creamy yolks, so rich that they oozed oil.

But the salt was also generously applied!

Mu Er Pang’s chubby face wrinkled, “It’s so salty!”

Shen Cui chuckled, “Indeed, it is salty!”

“Then don’t eat it empty-handed, take it home and eat it with porridge.”

“Okay, you don’t have to worry about it. Go back to sleep quickly.” Shen Cui saw that Mu Er Pang’s mood value was already full, so she waved her hand casually.

Mu Er Pang also waved to her and took a few steps back, then turned around and asked her, “By the way, Mom, how did you get in? Didn’t Grandma bolt the door?”

Shen Cui touched her nose and said, “So what if she bolted the door? I climbed over the wall.”

“Why is your clothes so dirty if you climbed over the wall? Shouldn’t only the hem of your clothes be dirty when climbing over a wall?”

“Go to sleep!”

……

In the main room of the Shen family, Old Master Shen and Zheng were still awake, talking about Mu Er Pang.

They were the ones who loved Mu Er Pang the most in the family, so naturally, they could see that Mu Er Pang had changed greatly and was almost like a different person from before.

Zheng had always thought that studying was too mysterious. Mu Yunchuan was famous for being a talented person in the surrounding area and even in the city’s academies. But after studying for so many years, he hadn’t gained anything practical and had spent who knows how much money.

Today, because of Mu Er Pang’s matter, she changed her mind.

It’s not that Zheng really believed, as she had joked before, that Mu Er Pang could achieve fame through studying.

But just the fact that studying could make Mu Er Pang smarter, she thought studying was a good thing.

Old Master Shen had gotten used to listening to his wife’s words over the years, so he also agreed, “Let Mu Er Pang study then. Anyway, we still have some extra money at home, and we can use it to support Cuihua. From what we’ve seen today, Cuilhua’s thinking was right. Mu Er Pang is becoming more and more promising. If she relies on Mu Er Pang in the future, she will also have a good life. There’s no need to go and be a stepmother again.”

When it came to his daughter, Zheng was still angry.

At this point, what made her angry was not the remarriage itself, but her daughter’s attitude—

How many days had mother and daughter been arguing? It’s almost New Year’s again, and she didn’t know how to soften up and admit her mistake?

So when Old Master Shen mentioned Shen Cui, she didn’t respond, she just said she was going to sleep.

The two of them weren’t yet at an age where they were deaf and blind, so they hadn’t been asleep for long when they heard noises outside.

At this time of year, there were a lot of thieves around. Not long ago, a nearby household was robbed, so Zheng said that there might be a thief in the house.

Old Master Shen was already half asleep and said unclearly that it couldn’t be, “It should be one of the kids in the house getting up. And there’s a dog tied up in our yard. If there really was a thief, wouldn’t the dog bark?”

Zheng was still worried, so she picked up the broom in the room and went out.

Not long after, Zheng came back quietly.

Old Master Shen grumbled, “I told you it couldn’t be a thief. You thought too much.”

Zheng came back with an air of irritation and joked, “Indeed, it’s not a thief. It’s a little dog that’s digging a hole!”