In the afternoon, the two children were about to go out to play.
Shen Lu took out two straw hats, which she had woven while the children were napping at noon.
With these hats, they could shield themselves from the sun on sunny days and stay dry in the rain. In any case, it was better than having nothing on their heads.
After receiving the hats, Xiao Ze and Xiao Yu were overjoyed. Shen Lu's craftsmanship was excellent; the hats were even more beautiful than those sold in department stores.
The two children eagerly took their hats and went out to play with their little friends.
Shen Lu was not in a hurry to translate. During her free time, she wanted to make a few clothes for the two children.
Shen Lu didn't have this skill, but she quickly thought of someone: the children's aunt.
Gu Xiaohua, who was a tailor.
For these years, one reason the two children had been able to live well was thanks to Gu Xiaohua's care.
She would occasionally come to cook and do laundry for the children, ensuring they wouldn't starve to death when Gu Xiao was away.
She did this without any ulterior motives, so Shen Lu was grateful.
Thus, Shen Lu walked towards Gu Xiaohua's mother-in-law's house.
Gu Xiaohua lived with her mother-in-law and husband.
From the original owner's memories, Gu Xiaohua was skilled at making clothes, and she had altered the old clothes the two little ones wore.
However, considering how quickly children grow, Gu Xiaohua had intentionally altered the clothes to be a bit larger.
Shen Lu carried the cloth and a basket of eggs, then knocked on Gu Xiaohua's door.
When Gu Xiaohua opened the door, her mental state was not very good.
In just a few days of not seeing her, she seemed to have lost even more weight than Shen Lu remembered from the original owner's impression. Her face was bruised, and there was some dried blood at the corner of her mouth.
Seeing that it was Shen Lu, Gu Xiaohua immediately lowered her head, trying to cover the scars on her face with her hair.
Shen Lu only knew that Gu Xiaohua's life was difficult, thinking it was just because her husband and mother-in-law were difficult. She never expected that Gu Xiaohua's problems had escalated to domestic violence.
Shen Lu closed the door and walked in, "What happened to you?"
"Second Sister-in-law, I'm fine. Da Ya's father was drunk and acted foolishly."
Seeing the scene before her, Shen Lu became furious. She had been beaten to this extent, yet Gu Xiaohua was still speaking up for that man.
"You're pregnant!"
Afraid that Shen Lu would go to her husband's trouble, Gu Xiaohua quickly spoke up.
"I'm fine. Da Ya's father already knows he was wrong and knelt down to apologize to me. I'm really fine, Sister-in-law."
It was someone else's business, and no matter how angry Shen Lu was, she couldn't interfere too much.
She could only go along with Gu Xiaohua's wishes.
"If you have any problems, you must tell me. Don't suffer in silence, understand?"
Gu Xiaohua nodded, "Don't worry, Sister-in-law, I'm fine."
To comfort Shen Lu, Gu Xiaohua forced herself to put on a smile that looked like comfort, but the smile was filled with bitterness.
"Sister-in-law, why are you here to see me?"
Gu Xiaohua asked. Ever since Shen Lu married her brother, she had never sought her out alone.
"The weather is getting warmer, so I thought I'd make two outfits for the children. I measured them this morning, but I realized how difficult it is once I started."
Gu Xiaohua was surprised, then understood and led Shen Lu to the inner room.
Gu Xiaohua's house was not large, but it was clear that Gu Xiaohua was someone who loved life.
The house was tidily organized, with many decorations made from scraps of cloth.
"Second Sister-in-law, what kind of clothes are you planning to make? I have patterns here. After cutting the fabric according to the pattern, you can just finish the edges with a sewing machine."
Shen Lu explained that she planned to make a pair of pants first today.
Gu Xiaohua nodded and went to find the pattern for pants.
Gu Xiaohua's craftsmanship was excellent, her movements clean and efficient. The fabric seemed to come alive in her hands.
In comparison, Shen Lu was much less skilled.
In the end, if it weren't for Gu Xiaohua's help, this batch of fabric might have been ruined.
Shen Lu gave the remaining fabric to Gu Xiaohua, asking her to make two new outfits for the baby in her belly, as a gesture of goodwill from her as the aunt.
Gu Xiaohua couldn't refuse and accepted.
Just as the two were chatting and preparing to say goodbye, a quarrel erupted outside the door.
A noisy commotion came from outside the door.
"Pah, you little bastard, born without a mother, what are you going to do about it if I bully you?" a half-grown child yelled.
Immediately after, Gu Xingyu's angry voice rang out.
"You, you wait until my dad gets back, and he'll beat you until your butt is bruised!"
The other side seemed to be intimidated by Gu Xiao, and retorted with a stammer, "Someone who always runs to their dad when there's trouble is a coward!"
Hearing the escalating noise outside and worried about the two children, Shen Lu couldn't bother with what she was doing and rushed out of Gu Xiaohua's house.
"Who says our Xiao Yu and Xiao Ze were born without a mother!"
Upon hearing the adult's voice, the children stopped their actions and all looked towards Shen Lu.
When Shen Lu reached her doorstep, she saw the twins glaring fiercely at three boys around seven or eight years old, like two little cats with their fur on end.
Shen Lu saw the varying degrees of injuries on the twins, and their new clothes were torn from the fight.
Shen Lu quickly ran over, squatted down, and tenderly examined the two children.
"Xiao Yu, Xiao Ze, how are you?"
Gu Xingyu continued to glare fiercely at the other children.
Gu Xingze gently shook his head at Shen Lu.
Confirming that the two little ones only had minor scratches, Shen Lu softly comforted them.
"Don't be afraid, Mom is here."
Gu Xingyu froze upon hearing his mother's gentle voice.
Right, Mom would protect her children like other mothers.
The leader of the three children was Xiao Long, the son of the Captain of the Guard. He was tall and chubby, looking at the twins with schadenfreude.
Shen Lu observed carefully; the three older children seemed to be more seriously injured than the twins.
The moment he saw Shen Lu, the expression on the Captain of the Guard's son's face changed instantly, from arrogant and overbearing to pitiful.
He displayed his wounds.
"It's your children! Look how they beat us up!"
As he spoke, he secretly chuckled.
Er Niu had told them before that the twins' mother had mental problems, and if they acted pitiful, she would surely punish the twins severely.
He also recalled the neighbor aunt and his mother constantly gossiping about how this woman abused the twins.
If he reported this, wouldn't this woman beat the twins to death when she got home?
Hearing Xiao Long say that, Gu Xingyu rushed forward, ready to fight the three again.
It was Gu Xingze who stopped him at the critical moment.
"Brother, they're talking nonsense! I'm going to beat them!"
Gu Xingyu shouted.
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