On the way back, Lin Shu happened to meet Lin Yue and his friends returning.

They were each carrying two peaches, with a cigarette tucked behind each ear, and their pant cuffs rolled up, showing their bare feet.

They were chatting and laughing along the road.

When Lin Shu saw them, Zhou Weimin’s face turned red with embarrassment.

She too had rolled up her pant cuffs, revealing her slender, white calves, and her delicate feet were covered by straw sandals.

Despite the coarse cloth clothing and straw sandals, her vibrant charm couldn’t be hidden.

Lin Shu didn’t pay much attention to them.

Instead, she pulled Lin Yue aside, urging him to return with her first and come back to work in the fields when it was time.

This way, it wouldn’t interfere with earning work points.

Lin Yue, who had been caught off guard by Lin Shu’s demand for the sewing machine, hadn’t had a chance to think much.

Now that his sister’s crisis seemed to be under control, he was facing another potential trouble with Sun Xiaohong.

He was quite apprehensive about Sun Xiaohong’s antics.

Whenever she caused a fuss, she would take it out on him, preventing him from entering the house to sleep, and threatening to involve her brother and make life difficult for the Lin family.

He felt overwhelmed.

Lin Yue was the type who would shrink back when faced with difficulties.

If there was a temporary solution, he would definitely take it.

He was afraid of Sun Xiaohong, so if Lin Shu told him to stay away for a few days, he would.

He smoothly agreed to help with the tree cutting as Lin Shu had suggested, and asked Zhou Weimin to go back and inform their parents.

As Lin Shu and her companions returned to the village, the elderly women at the entrance saw them and sighed with admiration.

“What a good daughter-in-law, becoming more capable by the day.”

“Just recently, her brother brought a sewing machine. The siblings seem to have a good relationship.”

Lin Yue felt a swell of pride upon hearing these comments.

Fang Dihua was preparing dinner at home and wondered when she saw Lin Yue returning, “What’s going on?”

Lin Shu explained, “Mom, my father wanted my younger brother to cut some trees. Since my brother is free these days, he’s here to help.”

The family had many trees, some of which were twenty to thirty years old, with large crowns and dense branches. Some needed to be cut down.

Lin Yue immediately nodded, “Yes, Aunt, I’m here to help with the tree cutting.”

He couldn’t admit he was hiding from his wife. Previously, Aunt had praised him for bringing the sewing machine, so he was eager to help.

Aside from Lu Er, everyone was quite pleased with Lin Yue’s arrival.

After all, Lin Yue was a handsome young man, polite, and pleasant to talk to.

Who wouldn’t like him?

Lu Ping and Lu An invited him to go with them to look for cicada larvae.

Rainy days or the time right after rain was the best for finding cicada larvae, as they would come out of the ground to breathe, making them easy to find.

The elder brother Lu Dage was also happy. With guests coming over, shouldn’t they have a drink or two?

Unfortunately, Lin Yue didn’t drink.

Despite being 22 years old, Lin Yue and Lin Shu were twins and still looked quite childish, almost like they were 17 or 18, with a naive demeanor.

Lin Yue admired and was surprised that Old Man Lu had really become a barefoot doctor.

He kept praising him, “Uncle, you’re really amazing, you’re incredible.”

Old Man Lu modestly replied, “It’s nothing special; it’s just that I started learning early. Your father also studied; he’s much better than I am.”

Lin Yue laughed, “Uncle, you’re not boasting, which is much better than my dad. Haha.”

Fang Dihua liked this straightforward and sincere child. She kept urging him to eat more steamed eggs.

On the way, Lin Yue heard Lin Shu mention Fang Dihua’s eye condition and was very concerned, hoping her eyes would recover soon.

A few days ago, Old Man Lu went to the county hospital to prepare medicine for patients and also to discuss medical skills with Doctor Yan.

Lin Shu asked him to take Fang Dihua for a follow-up eye examination.

Now that Old Man Lu was making money as a barefoot doctor, and since the third son had nothing to do, Fang Dihua didn’t mind spending a few dollars and naturally cooperated well.

Old Man Lu was very attentive to his old wife, accompanying Fang Dihua throughout the eye examination.

The eye doctor said that with some more treatment, a minor surgery could be done.

Fang Dihua had been injured by her brother’s finger when she was young, leaving a foreign object in her eye socket, which had caused chronic inflammation and pus.

The doctor said the foreign object must be removed to allow healthy tissue to grow back completely.

Otherwise, if left untreated for too long, it might cause the eye to rot and lead to blindness.

Hearing this, Old Man Lu was quite frightened.

He was even more diligent in supervising Fang Dihua, ensuring she didn’t become careless.

Fang Dihua also cooperated fully with the treatment.

Seeing them so obedient, Lin Shu felt relieved. As long as they paid extra attention, her mother-in-law’s eyes wouldn’t go blind.

Pan Pan and Tian Tian also served Fang Dihua and Old Man Lu food, saying, “Grandpa works hard, and Grandma works hard in the fields, so you both need to eat more good things.”

Hearing the sweet and crisp voices of the two children, the elderly couple felt very content.

Sister-in-law Lu Er lowered her head and gave Lu Cuicui a fierce glare, hoping she would also be sweet-mouthed and flatter her elders.

Lu Cuicui avoided her gaze, and Lu Ping and Lu An didn’t do this either, so why should she?

Not everyone behaves that way.

In the evening, Lu Da-ge and Lu Er-ge discussed with Lin Yue how to cut down the trees early the next morning.

Although the yard was large, they needed to avoid damaging the house, fruit trees, and vegetable garden.

Lin Yue had an idea, “We should first climb up and saw off the branches, Later cut the tree bunks”

Brother Lu looked up at the tall locust tree, which reached into the clouds with many branches.

It was indeed difficult to handle.

Lu Ping and his brother also said they would help.

While the men discussed the tree cutting, Fang Dihua called her daughter-in-law back into the house to ask if there were any matters to attend to at her natal home. If there were, she should say so.

Sister-in-law Lu Er had a sullen face, not very happy, but she said there was no issue.

She had originally wanted to confront Lin Shu about the shoes, but when Lin Yue arrived, she couldn’t bring herself to speak up in front of others.

Elder Sister Lu Da said, “Mother, my parents are well. They also asked about you and father. If you need cloth, just let her know. If there’s cotton, she’ll spin it into thread and weave the cloth.”

Fang Dihua showed a hint of a smile, “The in-laws are very industrious.”

She then looked at Lin Shu.

Lin Shu pursed her lips, glanced at her elder sister-in-law, and whispered, “Mother, I might have caused trouble again.”

Fang Dihua thought to herself: I knew it. If I don’t stir up trouble, I won’t get the sewing machine back.

Elder Sister Lu Da remembered her own glory days in Lin’s village and laughed heartily, feeling quite proud.

Fang Dihua shot her a glance, “And what about your own matter?”

Elder Sister Lu Da briefly mentioned what she knew, “Mother, it turns out hitting people is quite satisfying.”

She clenched her fists.

Sister-in-law Lu Er instinctively moved away a bit.

Fang Dihua asked Lin Shu about the sewing machine.

Lin Shu smiled, “My parents and younger brother think the sewing machine is mine. They’ve borrowed it long enough, so they took the initiative to return it to me.”

Fang Dihua asked, “Does your sister-in-law agree?”

Lin Shu replied, “She… went back to her natal home.”

Fang Dihua: “…”

Oh great, she still had to deal with the old Sun family?

Well, compared to the Lin family, dealing with the old Sun family was better.

She hadn’t gone to the Lin family for the sewing machine before because she didn’t want to cause trouble with them.

The Sun family, however, didn’t mind.

Fang Dihua said, “Alright, it was originally yours, so keep it yourself.”

Lin Shu asked Fang Dihua to arrange things for Lin Yue.

Outside, Lu Ping had already invited Lin Yue to sleep in their small northern room.

Lin Yue was as carefree as a tiger cub; if he wasn’t around, he didn’t worry.

He didn’t care at all about how chaotic things at home might become and was happily looking for cicada larvae with Lu Ping and Panpan.

Lin Shu didn’t intervene much.

The original parents needed to be pushed; if they weren’t, they would just keep lying down.

She saw Old Lu reading under the lamp and went over to ask, “Father, what book did you and mother buy?”

Lin Shu had previously reminded Fang Dihua to finish her eyes’ work before going to the bookstore with Old Lu.

Buying medical books is important because learning medicine is a never-ending process.

Since her father loves to study, it’s always beneficial to read more books.

Fang Dihua is indifferent about her own matters but is very attentive to Old Man Lu’s.

Therefore, she naturally wanted to go.

Old Man Lu showed her the cover of an old medical book, saying, “This is a book Dr. Yan lent me. Your mother and I went to the bookstore, but we didn’t find any.”

Since he didn’t have time to read during the day, he read at night.

Lin Shu said, “Dad, don’t read at night; it’s bad for your eyes. I’ll copy it for you so you can read it slowly later.”

Old Man Lu agreed and gave her another book. Dr. Yan had lent him two books.

Lin Shu continued, “Dad, old medical books are becoming rarer. We should look into it more. If we find any old medical books or case files, we should buy them. If they aren’t for sale, we can borrow or rent them and make copies.”

Old Man Lu had been hesitant to spend money on medical books before, but hearing his daughter-in-law’s suggestion made him feel much better.

He also thought that his daughter-in-law was really different from before; her knowledge was exceptional.

He thought Ma’s teachings were really good. Recently, he felt his mind was clearer.