“Sister-in-law, have some water,” Lin Qingqing said as she entered with a bowl.

“I’m really thirsty,” Yu Xiuyao replied, taking the bowl and drinking without hesitation.

To her surprise, the water was sweet.

Wasn’t it just sugar water?

No wonder it took her some time to pour it; she must have waited for the sugar to dissolve before bringing it in.

Yu Xiuyao didn’t mind at all and appreciated Lin Qingqing’s generosity, finishing the whole bowl in one go. “This sugar water is refreshing and delicious.”

Lin Qingqing asked, “Should I get you another bowl?” She started to rise.

“No, no, I’m eager to know what happened between Haici and Qin Ming. Why did they end up fighting? I heard a lot of other kids joined in too?” Yu Xiuyao pressed her hand down.

At the mention of this, Lin Qingqing sighed, looking helpless. “It’s my fault.”

Hearing her self-blame, Yu Xiuyao was even more confused. “How is it your fault?”

“Here’s what happened. This morning, Haici was probably in a good mood, so when he got to kindergarten, he told his close friends that today was the day his mom took him to school.

This made Qin Ming unhappy, and he said things like I’m not his mom but a stepmom, and stepmoms aren’t good moms…

As a result, Haici defended me and ended up fighting with Qin Ming.

At that time, several of Haici’s close friends were around, and Qin Ming also had his friends with him, so it turned into a big brawl among the kids. It’s all because I became a stepmom, and also because Haici is too filial.”

As a social media influencer, Lin Qingqing was somewhat of a public figure, and she had very few haters because she knew how to talk.

After all, her emotional intelligence was quite high.

What she just said sounded self-blaming, lamenting her role as a stepmother and Haici being too filial.

But in reality, who could blame her for being a stepmother?

Her being a stepmother had nothing to do with Qin Ming’s family.

Although Lu Haici hurt Qin Ming, the kid was just being filial; is being filial wrong?

Thus, Lin Qingqing’s words were well thought out.

She made it clear that Lu Haici acted out of filial piety, and who could then criticize him?

Yu Xiuyao, though impatient, was also a clever person.

As soon as she heard Lin Qingqing’s words, she couldn’t help but say, “What’s there to blame you for? You married Lu Cheng because it was your choice, and Haici acknowledges you as his mother because he likes you and you treat him well.

What does it have to do with anyone else? Besides, what’s wrong with being filial? If my son fought with someone to defend me, I’d be nothing but proud.”

Lin Qingqing wanted to say that the original owner and Lu Cheng were not in a mutual agreement.

However, she replied, “Sister-in-law, you really are straightforward.” She liked such frank and bold people.

Yu Xiuyao waved her hand:

I have a straightforward personality, and you’ll get to know that as we spend more time together.

However, this matter isn’t your fault.

If we were dealing with someone reasonable, it would be easy to resolve.

The problem is that the person from the Qin family isn’t reasonable.

Lin Qingqing asked, “What do you mean by not being reasonable?”

She was a bit puzzled. According to the novel’s synopsis, Lu Haici was “bullied” by the original protagonist until he became dark.

However, Xue Huijuan next door is a person of good character, and Yu Xiuyou is also a good person.

Even if Lu Cheng was on a mission and didn’t know about the original protagonist “bullying” Lu Haici, shouldn’t they have noticed? Didn’t they inform Lu Cheng?

In fact, what Lin Qingqing didn’t know was that in the novel, both Xue Huijuan and Yu Xiuyou indeed informed Lu Cheng about the original protagonist’s actions.

Compared to Xue Huijuan’s subtle hints, Yu Xiuyou was more direct.

However, this all couldn’t compete with Lu Haici’s defense of the original owner.

Lu Haici is a very stubborn person; he is very attached to the existence of his mother.

No matter how many shortcomings the original owner had, in Lu Haici’s heart, she was his mother.

It can be said that this was Lu Haici’s first mother, and the first mother is always special.

Lu Haici didn’t have a mother since childhood.

When he became a child with a mother, he was very happy, even if the original protagonist’s kindness to him was only during those few days at his aunt’s house.

That kindness was enough for him to remember and cherish in the days to come.

He didn’t want to go back to being a child without a mother.

Because of Lu Haici’s protection and determination, Lu Cheng had no choice but to think that the original owner didn’t treat Lu Haici as badly as everyone said, and maybe they hadn’t seen her kindness toward him.

Yu Xiuyou said, “The person from the Qin family is called Zhang Hongping. Because her husband is a commander and she has three sons, she has quite the high spirits. However, of her three sons, the first two have six granddaughters and not a single grandson, which has humbled her a bit.

For a time, she specifically sought advice from military wives on how to have sons.

Later, there was a military wife named Yang Mailian; her husband was a battalion commander.

Not only did she have three sons and one daughter, but she also came from a family that was known for producing sons.

So, Zhang Hongping arranged for her youngest son to marry Yang Mailian’s daughter.

Yang Mailian’s daughter, Qian Yuelan, also lived up to expectations; the second year after marrying, she gave Zhang Hongping a grandson, who is Qin Ming.

Qin Ming is the grandson that Zhang Hongping had been eagerly waiting for after having six granddaughters.

How could she not treasure him?

Additionally, in the second half of last year, Qian Yuelan’s father, Major Qian, and Lu Cheng were both evaluated for the position of deputy regiment leader.

As a result, Lu Cheng was selected, while the much older Major Qian was not chosen. This also led to…

“About this matter, Yang Mailian has certainly been saying some sour words. So, this issue with Qin Ming is not that simple.”

Lin Qingqing understood: “So, according to you, Zhang Hongping and her mother-in-law Yang Mailian might come to stir trouble.”

Yu Xiuyao replied, “Exactly, these two are related by marriage and have always been like one and the same. But don’t worry too much; in the end, it’s just a few women having a spat. They won’t come up with anything serious, though it might be a bit embarrassing during the argument.”

Lin Qingqing shook her head: “The one who will be embarrassed is not me, but Lu Cheng. But in this matter, we haven’t done anything wrong, and Hai Ci hasn’t either. There’s no reason for our family to be embarrassed.”

Yu Xiuyao thought for a moment: “So, what are you planning to do?”

She couldn’t come up with any ideas herself.

After all, since Zhang Hongping and Yang Mailian were related, they usually acted together, and many in the neighborhood were afraid to provoke them.

Lin Qingqing said, “I’ll keep my plans under wraps for now. If they come to make a scene, I’d like to ask you for a little help. It’s not a big deal; I just need you to pass a letter to Lu Cheng. If they don’t come, then I won’t need your help.”

A letter?

Hand it to Lu Cheng?

This left Yu Xiuyao confused.

However, seeing Lin Qingqing so confident, she felt a bit less worried and more curious.

To her, Lu Cheng’s wife seemed delicate and charming, not the kind of person who could argue with Zhang Hongping or Yang Mailian.

How could she handle them?

Oh dear, the more she thought about it, the itchier her heart felt, like it was being tickled by ants. “Since you have a plan, I won’t say much more. If you need anything, just come to me. Worst case, I’ll argue with them alongside you,” Yu Xiuyao said as she stood up.

Hearing this, Lin Qingqing felt somewhat touched: “Thank you, sister-in-law. Once this matter is resolved, I’ll invite you to dinner and also include those who took me to the hospital that day.”

Yu Xiuyao replied, “That sounds good… I’ll go back to cook now.”

Lin Qingqing said, “Let me walk you out.”

After Yu Xiuyao left, Lu Haici, who had been hiding in the room listening to their conversation, came out.

His dark, bright eyes were fixed on Lin Qingqing’s back, his little face tense.

When Lin Qingqing walked Yu Xiuyao to the door and turned back, she saw Lu Haici standing at the entrance.

She waved to him: “Are you hungry? I’ll start cooking soon; will you help me?”

Suddenly, Lu Haici rushed into Lin Qingqing’s arms, his voice choked with emotion: “Mom, I’ll go apologize to them. It’s all my fault; I hit Qin Ming.”

Hearing his words, Lin Qingqing felt a pang in her heart.

Only a child with extreme insecurity could feel this way.

Only then would she say such a compromising thing.

She patted the little one’s head and said, “How about this: if an adult from the Qin family comes, I’ll handle this matter because I’m an adult. Adult issues should be resolved by adults. If Qin Ming comes, then it’s up to you to solve it because Qin Ming is a child. As an adult, I shouldn’t bully a child. So, you kids should sort it out yourselves, okay?”

Even though Lu Haici was clever, he was still just a little one.

He thought what his mother said made sense, so he obediently nodded and said, “Okay.”

Lin Qingqing took his hand and walked into the kitchen, saying, “But today, I want to teach you a little lesson about being a friend: hitting people is wrong.”

Lu Haici pouted and couldn’t help but say, “I knew hitting people was wrong when I was three! But Qin Ming is bad; he said you are a bad mom and that you’re not my mom.”

Thinking of this made him feel wronged.

Dad said that Mom was his Mom.

For some reason, hearing his pitiful defense made Lin Qingqing feel like laughing and crying at the same time. “So, hitting people is wrong, and saying bad things about others is also wrong. Since both are wrong, you shouldn’t do either. Next time if you see Qin Ming making a mistake, you should tell the teacher at kindergarten or come and tell me.

If a child makes a mistake, the teacher or adults will teach him, but you can’t correct his mistake by making a mistake yourself.

If you do that, then when he makes a mistake, you also make a mistake. But if you tell the teacher or a parent, then it’s just him making a mistake, and you don’t make a mistake. Don’t you think?”

Lu Haici, who didn’t understand, looked at his mother with a confused expression.

The idea of punishing others for their mistakes was too profound for a little kindergarten kid like him to grasp.

Lin Qingqing didn’t expect him to understand everything and continued, “Just remember a simple lesson that every child understands: hitting people is wrong. If you see someone making a mistake, tell a teacher or a parent.”

She didn’t ask him to understand too much.

He was still a child, and he only needed to know what other kids understood.

Besides, reporting to an adult was a child’s right in kindergarten, right? “I’ll quiz you tomorrow. If you remember this, I’ll grant you a wish. If not, then I’ll punish you by not reading you a bedtime story tomorrow.”

Lu Haici’s eyes lit up: “Is Mom going to tell me a bedtime story?”

He heard that some mothers would read bedtime stories to their children, so he could also be one of those kids who got to hear bedtime stories, right?

Lin Qingqing replied, “Well, that depends on whether you remember this lesson.”

Lu Haici exclaimed, “I remember!”

Although he thought that if Qin Ming talked bad about Mom again, he would definitely hit him, but Mom said that was wrong.

What to do?

Lu Haici felt very conflicted.

However, he soon thought of a solution: when Dad came back, he would ask Dad if he could hit Qin Ming if he talked bad about Mom again.