The neighbors were astounded. This was quite the news!

Usually, the Xie family appeared to be respectable. Who would have thought they were extorting relatives?

It was one thing for the old lady to squeeze her children; that was her usual way, and people accepted it as her prerogative.

But squeezing her granddaughter’s family was a different matter.

They weren’t as closely related, and such behavior was seen as inappropriate.

The old lady, who was used to pushing boundaries, was now faced with an unexpected backlash.

Her forehead was so swollen with anger.

She exclaimed, “Why am I feeling so unwell again?”

Xie Jinlan hurriedly expressed concern, “Grandma, do you need to get an IV drip? You had one until midnight yesterday. Today, to visit my cousins, you insisted on not having it because it looks bad.”

She turned to Xie Jinkui, “Big Brother, should we go find a barefoot doctor to give Grandma an IV?”

Lin Shu stepped forward, “No need to make such a fuss. Grandma, my father-in-law is a barefoot doctor. The county hospital even recognized him as the most advanced barefoot doctor. He’s well-regarded. I’ve learned a bit from him. I don’t see anything seriously wrong with you. I can help you with some needles and bloodletting.”

No matter what discomforts you have, be it headaches or fevers, just needling a few acupoints and letting out some blood will definitely help.

No one doubted her words.

But Xie Laotai(Grandma Xie) did not dare to!

She was sharp-eyed and clear-headed, with no issues!

Panpan and Tiantian immediately seized the opportunity and put on a show, turning the collective recognition meeting of the commune into a vivid scene.

“Oh, it’s you?”

“I heard about it too! Your commune is really lively. Our commune didn’t have such a meeting.”

Panpan: “My mother is the most beautiful military wife!”

Tiantian: “Our whole family received certificates! We got so many items like warm bottles, basins, and big tea mugs that we can’t use them all. Every room got a new warm bottle, and we’ve given away the old ones and the old tea mugs.”

People were touched.

You have so much surplus, and you gave it away?

Why didn’t you bring it to give to us?

Especially Xie Laotai and Aunt Xie, who were actual relatives.

Why didn’t they bring any to us?

Aunt Xie felt the sting in her heart.

Having been squeezed out by Fang Dihua, she hadn’t visited the Lu family for two years and missed out on many good things.

For her, not taking advantage of a bargain felt like losing something, a significant loss.

It was painful.

Lin Yue, being rather straightforward, couldn’t see what was going on.

He thought it was just ordinary family gossip and children showing off, adding his own bits to the conversation.

Lin Xia was holding back laughter, feeling like she might burst.

She really wanted to find a place to laugh out loud.

She quietly pinched Lin Shu, wondering, “Are these two children really yours? You were so timid when you were young, and now you’ve raised such wonderful and talkative children?”

Because Panpan and Tiantian spoke vividly and interestingly, the Xie family quickly became their stage.

Neighbors invited more neighbors, and soon the Xie household was overflowing with people, with the main room and courtyard packed.

Panpan and Tiantian started talking about other characters like the “blacksmith”, “Xu Ermao”, and “the bald thief”…

The neighbors were increasingly shocked as they listened to the children recount the story.

The details were so vivid and engaging that the room was buzzing with astonishment.

“Wow, so that’s what happened?”

“These kidnappers are terrible!”

“You kids are really impressive for your age!”

As Panpan and Tiantian shared their story, the neighbors’ reactions grew more animated.

Panpan chimed in, “Grandma-Aunt, don’t forget about the thirty-odd bucks you borrowed from our house, plus the fabric, cotton, and shoes. We’re not a wealthy family. We have to stretch every penny. Mom’s been criticized because she didn’t have money to give to Grandma and Great-Grandma this year. My aunts and uncles all got bonuses, but we didn’t. If people say Mom isn’t filial, it’s really unfair to her. Right, everyone?”

The neighbors all nodded in agreement, “Yes!”

One of them turned to Grandma Aunt and said, “Jie’s wife, hurry up and pay back the money. Didn’t you get a lot of bonus this year?”

“Yes, and look at how distressed these children are. Such good kids, and they’re suffering because their mother’s relatives haven’t repaid their debt. They’re getting scolded because of it.”

“Oh, it’s so pitiful.”

Some of the more empathetic women were already dabbing at their eyes, and a few even offered boiled eggs to Panpan and Tiantian.

“Good children, here, eat this. You look so thin. It’s really sad.”

Xie Jinlan and Grandma Aunt were fuming, thinking, “Are you blind? Look at them, they’re plump and healthy! Where’s the thinness?”

However, the sympathetic onlookers felt they were right.

In their view, these well-behaved children deserved to be chubby and rosy-cheeked, their little arms like lotus roots.

Under the intense scrutiny from the neighbors, Grandma Aunt hurriedly made egg noodles for Panpan and Tiantian.

She cooked six eggs and rolled out a whole lot of dough to make the noodles.

“Oh, my back is aching!” she thought, feeling the strain.

The noodles were served first to the guests, as per tradition, with the family waiting their turn.

Grandma Aunt placed the steaming egg noodles in front of the elderly woman, encouraging Panpan and Tiantian to eat first.

Panpan gently pushed the food towards Great-Grandma, “Great-Grandma, you’re the eldest, you should eat first. Mom really wants to honor you, but there’s nothing she can do without the money. Grandma-Aunt’s money…”

The children’s polite and tactful words seemed to have a considerable effect.

“Enough!” Grandma-Aunt cut in, clearly agitated. “It’s not that your Grandma-Aunt doesn’t want to repay you. It’s just that with your uncle’s wedding…”

“Have another baby?”

Alright, as long as you admit to borrowing money, that’s fine.

Lin Shu thought that if she didn’t admit it, she’d have to come up with a way to make her admit it.

It seemed that the potential benefits of the Lu family were far greater than the thirty bucks for the Xie family; otherwise, Aunt Xie wouldn’t have admitted it directly despite being unwilling to.

For close relatives like parents, siblings, or children, breaking off relations isn’t something that happens lightly.

These connections are deeply rooted.

But to be honest, a niece and an uncle, especially when the niece is married and has children, aren’t as close.

Many families drift apart after the grandparents pass away, and once parents and uncles or aunts are gone, the distance grows even more.

Families have limited energy and resources.

With many relatives, only the closest ones are kept in touch with.

Once a niece gets married and has children, and those children marry and have their own families, the connections with the maternal grandparents’ side often weaken over time.

The Xie family clearly believed Lin Shu’s story about being pressured by her mother-in-law and still hoped to get something out of her.

They pushed Lin Shu to separate from her husband, thinking, “Your husband hasn’t died. You must have a monthly income of around forty to fifty, right? Living in the countryside doesn’t cost much.”

“Surely you can save twenty to thirty bucks a month? Even if you give Grandma a five or ten bucks subsidy every month, it’s fine.”

Aunt Xie’s heart raced at the thought, much like Lu Shaotang’s excitement about his wife.

When the original owner had just married, Aunt Xie used the pretense of caring for her to take advantage of her.

Aunt Xie knew that the original owner was reluctant to marry Lu Shaotang and was definitely anxious and lonely in her new home.

So she would visit “on her way” every few days.

She had taken over thirty bucks in cash, two lengths of cloth, a pound of cotton, a big tea mug, and various other items from the original protagonist, not even bothering to remember the small things like needles and threads.

Every visit meant she had to take something away, as if she couldn’t leave empty-handed.

Once, when she came to find the original owner and there were no good items like cloth available, she took the original owner’s wedding scissors and a packet of needles, claiming that the original’s scissors were sharper.

Later, Fang Dihua fiercely confronted Aunt Xie behind the original owner’s back, stopping her from taking more money and good items.

Aunt Xie lost face and, seeing that Lin Shu was under her mother-in-law’s control and didn’t benefit her, she didn’t visit much anymore.

When the niece’s husband “sacrificed” himself, Aunt Xie didn’t even bother to visit for condolences.

Now that Lin Shu had actively come to her, Aunt Xie naturally wanted to draw her in.

She believed she had the ability to do so because Lin Shu listened to her.

Aunt Xie, with a forced smile, carefully served a large bowl of noodles to Lin Shu, loaded with several pieces of scrambled egg. “Niece Lin Shu, you know I’ve always had a soft spot for you. Enjoy.”

Lin Shu smiled as she accepted the bowl, “Thank you, Big Aunt.”

Looking around, Lin Shu noticed that Lin Xia had the least amount of noodles—just a bit of broth and a few noodles, while Lin Yue had half a bowl.

Lin Shu decided to split her portion with her sister, ensuring Lin Xia would have enough.

Aunt Xie was visibly annoyed.

It irked her to think that someone she considered a fool was eating her precious noodles!

Lin Xia didn’t hesitate to help eat, knowing Lin Shu’s appetite was modest.

Panpan continued to serve scrambled eggs to Great-Grandma with a look of reluctance, “Great-Grandma, you should eat. I’ve had enough at home.”

The younger children of the Xie family looked on, their eyes fixed on the food.

They were well aware of the family rules—good food was reserved for the elders first, then for the immediate family, while the rest had to make do with leftovers.

Xie Jinkui had his youngest son eat some noodles but sent the rest of his family outside to drink the noodle broth.

He was already calculating how to demand repayment for the fine noodles he had served.

Once the meal was over, Panpan continued to share stories with the remaining neighbors, who were still enthralled by their tales.

Great-Grandma wanted to send them away but hesitated, fearing gossip about her own household.

Maintaining a kindly facade, Great-Grandma gave the children slightly wrinkled apples, which they found unappealing.

They cheerfully insisted Great-Grandma should eat them instead, “Mom honors you, so we do too. Please have some.”

Full and energetic, the children excitedly recounted their adventures and the dramatic events they had witnessed.

They were animated, discussing everything from trips to the county town and city hospital to their father’s slapping of a thief.

Curiosity about the story of the kidnapper and the blacksmith was high among the neighbors.

Panpan, playing to the crowd, said, “That’s a long story. You’ll have to wait until next time when Mom comes back to visit Great-Grandma. We’ll tell you then.”

Panpan, with exaggerated sorrow, addressed Great-Grandma, “Great-Grandma, it’s such a shame you’re wearing such worn-out clothes. Mom, please give some of my cotton-padded pants and coat to Great-Grandma.”

Great-Grandma and her family were seething with frustration.

They had gone through the effort to put on old clothes for show, only to have Panpan use it as a pretext to highlight their supposed suffering.