If the eldest daughter-in-law doesn’t repay it, so be it.

She can use her son’s marriage and childbirth as an excuse.

The family is tight on money now, so they can just delay the repayment until next year.

Next year will have its own issues, and the year after?

It could drag on indefinitely.

So Old Lady Xie wasn’t as flustered or embarrassed as Oldest Daughter-in-law.

Xie Jinqiu and Xie Jinlan didn’t mind either; the family matriarch would handle it, and they just needed to enjoy their lives.

Lin Shu wasn’t expecting to get the money back immediately.

Honestly, the Xie family was different from Zhao Meifeng’s family.

Zhao Meifeng was her subordinate and the younger generation of her in-laws, so she had many ways to deal with her.

Old Lady Xie, however, was the original host’s Grandmother and Lin Mu’s biological mother.

If she tried to deal with Old Lady Xie, it would be problematic for Lin Shu’s mother due to public opinion and family ties.

She could cut ties with the Xie family, but Lin Shu’s mother couldn’t.

Even if Lin’s mother felt cold towards Old Lady Xie, she could not sever ties; after all, she was her biological mother.

Otherwise, how could the mediators…

Without sparing any effort to speak up for the old scoundrel, trying to persuade the children to forgive him?

In the eyes of the public, especially government officials, familial piety and filial duty are still important measures of social ethics.

For the sake of Lin’s Mother and Lin Yue’s work, Lin Shu could not treat Old Lady Xie poorly.

Lin Shu’s goal was to make it clear to Old Lady Xie that they were not her own children and were not so easily manipulated.

If Old Lady Xie wanted something, she should be patient and not try to exploit them like she did with Second Uncle and Second Aunt!

“If you continue to pretend to be sick on the second day of the New Year, believe it or not, I can send you to the hospital for ten days of injections!”

Feeling that the time was right, Lin Shu decided to take her leave.

After the commotion caused by the children, Old Lady Xie was too embarrassed to ask for money.

Lin Mu wouldn’t suffer too much loss or trouble in the future, so the visit wasn’t in vain.

At that moment, the village secretary and the brigade leader from the Xie family’s official village heard that the “Most Beautiful Military Wife” from the Fendou Commune was visiting relatives.

They sent their wives or daughters-in-law who hadn’t gone back to their own families to visit.

As a result, Lin Shu’s farewell was interrupted, and she sat back down.

The secretary’s wife looked to be in her early fifties, while the brigade leader’s daughter-in-law was about the same age as Lin Shu.

The secretary’s wife greeted warmly, “Girl, it’s been a few years since we last saw each other. How is your mother-in-law?”

Lin Shu was quite surprised.

“Do you know my mother-in-law, Auntie?”

The secretary’s wife replied, “Yes, my husband and your father-in-law are also acquainted.”

Back then, the Lu family was a landlord, while the secretary’s family were poor peasants.

The landlord of Xie’s official village was unkind and harsh towards tenants.

Renting land from them meant working for nothing and not having enough to eat, so tenants had to find extra work.

The secretary had worked short-term jobs at the Lu family’s place to earn some food and support his elderly mother.

In those days, being a poor peasant was honorable, so the secretary’s wife wasn’t afraid of people knowing.

Which family in the village hadn’t worked for a landlord?

The big landlord from the Xie family and his son had been executed.

The brigade leader’s daughter-in-law also spoke warmly to Lin Xia and Lin Shu, “My father-in-law says that you sisters have set an example for women in our village. One works as an electrician in the city. It takes skill for a man to be an electrician, let alone a woman. Lin Shu, you’re impressive too. You’ve been praised in the newspapers, and we know you as the Most Beautiful Military Wife.”

Hearing this, Old Lady Xie, Aunt Xie, Big Uncle Xie, and others felt uneasy.

They had previously thought Panpan and Tiantian were just boasting, taught to show off by Fang Dihua, but now it seemed they were genuinely successful?

These two children were so accomplished?

Old Lady Xie’s gaze toward them changed once again.

Although she doesn’t expect her two granddaughters to support her in her old age, they can still bring her some face and glory.

For Old Lady Xie, children are either precious to her or not, and the same goes for grandchildren.

She doesn’t expect them to support her, so there’s no need to be kind to those who don’t enhance her reputation.

She’ll cozy up to those who do and ignore the rest, keeping them at a distance.

She couldn’t be bothered with her eldest daughter’s useless children.

The second daughter’s family was even worse.

No one expected that the children of the fourth daughter’s family would be the most promising.

Not that they were exceptionally outstanding, but mainly because Lin Mu (Mother Lin) had married off her three granddaughters well, though Old Lady Xie couldn’t benefit from it.

She preferred her precious sons and grandsons to stay close and flatter her, supporting her in her old age.

Of course, having promising grandchildren was also good, as they could provide her with money!

She certainly wouldn’t mind having more money!

Her mind was full of calculations, trying to figure out how to have Lin Shu and Jinlan make an appearance, so Jinlan could find a good match.

She asked Lin Shu, “Is your husband coming to pick you up later?”

Panpan and Tiantian had mentioned that her father would come to pick up her mother.

Old Lady Xie appeared not to pay attention, but she remembered all useful information.

Lu Shaotang was definitely going to be promoted this time.

He must have some unmarried comrades, and it would be perfect to introduce them to Jinlan.

Lin Shu replied, “Probably. But it’s not certain.”

She hadn’t agreed with Lu Shaotang, and if he had something to do, he might not come back.

The old lady of the village smiled upon hearing that Lu Shaotang was coming and said, “Then come to my house for dinner tonight. My old man was an old Eight Route Army soldier, and our eldest son also served in the army before being discharged.”

Generally, if someone was an officer, they would be called a demobilized officer, while ordinary soldiers would be called demobilized and retired.

Though her eldest son served in the army, he didn’t have connections or special abilities, so he didn’t get promoted and was only a squad leader before retiring.

Now he works as a security director in their brigade.

Panpan said to Grandma Aunt, “Grandma Aunt, hurry up and give my mother the money so we can visit this aunt’s house.”

Previously, Eldest Aunt Xie had used the excuse of her son’s wedding and childbirth expenses to borrow money in front of the neighbors.

Only borrowed money, not refusing to pay it back, so it’s just a matter of brushing it off.

Old Lady Xie preferred to act as if she didn’t know about such matters involving juniors.

Now, with the brigade secretary and brigade leader’s family present, they were losing face.

They often praised others to curry favor, whether it was to get some good work assignments or high points for light labor, not to mention the social status.

Old Lady Xie feared that they might reveal something, so she quickly said with a smile, “Your Second Uncle won’t forget.”

She turned to scold Aunt Xie, “Hurry up! You were just talking about giving money to the children, and now you haven’t done anything yet.”

Aunt Xie didn’t want to move, but with everyone watching, she had no choice but to act.

Most of the family’s money was with Old Lady Xie, and although Aunt Xie had a bit, it wasn’t much, but it was enough to pay back the thirty.

After all, the Xie family was used to relying on the whole family to support a few, unlike other families that bought things for everyone, so money was naturally saved.

Aunt Xie, while feeling heartache, handed the money to Lin Shu.

She didn’t realize Lin Shu wasn’t there just to collect money; she thought Fang Dihua had already taken out all the small accounts.

So, she returned the full amount of 34.5 without a cent missing.

Lin Shu was astonished!

She wasn’t afraid to deal with a scoundrel over debts but was wary of asking relatives like this because it might lead to a broken relationship and still not get the money.

Who would want to push an old woman to her death?

Little did she know, the two children had managed to get the money back!

Tiantian sighed.

The secretary’s wife and the brigade leader’s daughter-in-law looked at Aunt Xie, knowing a bit about the matter.

Previously, Aunt Xie had shown off the things she took from Lin Shu.

Old Lady Xie glared at Aunt Xie.

The fabric and cotton didn’t belong to her anyway; they had been taken from Aunt Xie’s place, gathered together by the family.

At that moment, cheerful voices from the neighbors came from outside, “Is that the Xie family’s son-in-law arriving? Oh, such a tall and handsome man! It’s the first time we’ve seen him.”

Aunt Xie immediately went to get the fabric and cotton.

The cotton was saved up to make a quilt for Xie Jinlan’s dowry, and the fabric was for making a quilt for Xie Jinlan.

Xie Jinlan’s face, which had just darkened, brightened again as she hurried out to welcome Lu Shaotang.

He had gone to Fangshi to get something and, accompanied by his mother-in-law and big uncle, spoke with the brigade leaders.

After making a good impression on his mother-in-law’s family, he declined the invitation to stay for dinner and rushed over to pick up his wife.

Although he was aware that his wife hadn’t lacked anything while he was away, he didn’t feel comfortable leaving her with difficult relatives.

Even though he didn’t know the full extent of Lin Shu and the Xie family’s issues, seeing his wife’s situation yesterday…

The attitude of the children towards the Xie family siblings and the whispers between the sisters at night made him aware that something was up.

Xie Jinlan walked towards him, almost smiling in a charming manner.

Lu Shaotang finally looked at her properly, but Xie Jinlan was so startled that her legs went weak, and she instinctively stepped aside.

Lu Shaotang then entered the house.