No matter how unwilling she was, Shu Yao still carried the baby and stepped out through the Shen Family main door.
The doors to Shen Jianghai and Shen Zhongheng's rooms were tightly shut. Shu Yao also did not see Shen Zhongyue leave his room. Once she reached the living room, she secretly stored the money in her Storage Space.
"Older Brother, someone came out. It's that granddaughter from the Shu Family."
The two men hid beneath the wall and stared fixedly at the child in Shu Yao's arms.
"It looks like there's only one child and nothing else."
Shu Yao deliberately changed her posture several times, displaying from every angle that she truly had only one child in her arms.
Sometimes, avoiding one trouble was better than inviting another. Even with Elder Shu, she might not be completely protected.
Things were extremely chaotic at this time. For money and power, some people had gone completely mad and dared to do anything.
As she fumbled around, she thought:
She did not know whether anyone was really watching her. She could not make herself look like she had some serious illness, fussing over a baby here in the middle of the night.
Fortunately, Shen Huaiyu was very well-behaved. Even when Shu Yao's improper way of holding him woke him, he did not cry, merely staring at her with his round, bright eyes.
That Older Brother narrowed his eyes and watched for a long while. He indeed saw nothing else.
It was summer now, so adults wore thin clothes, and children did too. If she were hiding something, she certainly would not dare make such large movements.
"Slap!"
"Slap, slap!"
"What are you doing? Keep it down!"
Older Brother withdrew his gaze and scolded them in a low voice.
"There are too many mosquitoes, Older Brother. When will the Shen Family's forced relocation documents come through? We've been watching them for so many days."
"Shut up. Compared with the money we'll get after suffering for these few days, this is nothing!"
Older Brother had participated in several property confiscation operations. Although most of the proceeds had been offered up, even the scraps divided among people like them amounted to huge sums and valuable goods they had never seen before.
These capitalist descendants lived so comfortably. They truly were the poison of socialism!
"Soon."
Older Brother thought of the Shu Family granddaughter, who had hurried out carrying a child just now.
With the Shu Family no longer obstructing them, it would happen soon.
The moon was exceptionally bright in this era, making the road clearly visible. Following the Old Madam's memories, Shu Yao successfully found the Shu Family home.
The Shu Family's eldest daughter had already married, and all four sons were already working. The second, third, and fourth were in the Military Unit, while Old Fifth, twenty-one this year, had become an apprentice at the Machinery Factory after graduating. None of them were at home.
Only Elder Shu, Wen Xia, Shu Minghui, the wife of Second Son Shu Mingqi, Qiu Li, and two children remained in the Shu Family home.
"Yaoyao, you're back?"
Qiu Li had just finished wiping down her Younger son and sent him back to his room. As she splashed water around the courtyard, she heard knocking at the door.
When she looked over, it was unexpectedly Shu Yao.
Ever since this Grand Niece had married, she had never once set foot through the Shu Family main door.
"Second Aunt."
Shu Yao gave Qiu Li a faint nod.
The Shu Family had six children. Apart from the youngest, who was close in age to Shu Yao and naturally hostile toward her because of their same-sex rivalry, the others were all fairly decent. At least, they maintained appearances.
"Are you here to see dad? He's in the study."
They all lived in the same compound, so everyone knew what had happened to the Shen Family.
Seeing Shu Yao return carrying a child, Qiu Li could roughly guess what she intended to do.
"Oh, the big burden has brought the little burden back?"
"After doing something so disgraceful, you still dare come back?"
Shu Minghui walked out of the room with her arms crossed and a look of disdain. She had a round face, loose hair, and wore a fashionable nightgown bought from the department store.
Most people nowadays did not bother with pajamas. Even when they had them, they usually made them by cutting and sewing their own cloth. All of Shu Minghui's clothes, however, were bought from the department store, showing how much Wen Xia doted on her youngest daughter.
When "Shu Yao" was at the Shu Family home, Wen Xia did not dare go too far on the surface. Whenever she bought clothes for Shu Minghui, she would bring Shu Yao one as well, but never from the department store—only from the Supply and Marketing Cooperative. Needless to say, she never carefully selected the style or fabric.
Yet "Shu Yao" was exceptionally beautiful. Clothes enhanced her appearance, and even wrapped in a burlap sack, she would still look good.
Men were generally careless and failed to notice the difference in fabric quality. Women, however, were observant enough to see it clearly. But who would offend Wen Xia over a mere burden?
"Shu Yao" had been deceived and manipulated without realizing it. Perhaps she had noticed something was wrong, but ten years of suppression had already made her afraid to argue with Wen Xia and her daughter. She could only vent her anger on Shen Zhongyue.
Shu Yao might fear trouble, but she was not so cowardly as to let people trample all over her.
She strode forward, extended her elbow, and viciously jabbed Shu Minghui.
Shu Minghui staggered several steps and nearly fell. After steadying herself, she was just about to lose her temper.
Then she saw Shu Yao lean in with a beaming smile and say something. Her pupils instantly dilated, her lips trembled for a long while, and she could not utter a single word.
"What is all this commotion?"
Wen Xia stood at the top of the stairs, looking down imperiously.
"Minghui, you are an elder. How can you quibble with Yaoyao?"
"Yaoyao, your Sister-in-Law is still young and has a childish temperament. Come upstairs quickly. Old Master is waiting for you."
The way she put it nearly made Shu Yao applaud.
She had simply been born in the wrong era. If she had lived eighty or a hundred years earlier, she would absolutely have been an expert at palace intrigue.
"So, stepmother-in-law, are you saying I do not respect my elders?"
"Even if my Sister-in-Law is young, she is still half a year older than me, isn't she? If she has a childish temperament, then I..."
"Am I not?"
Shu Yao met Wen Xia's eyes directly.
Wen Xia was startled at first, then tugged at the corner of her mouth.
"Yaoyao, you are already a mother. Of course you are different from a young girl like Huihui."
"Oh, your Sister-in-Law has been getting quite close to Li Weijun lately, hasn't she? Is a wedding coming soon? Am I about to have an Uncle-in-law?"
Shu Minghui's face grew even paler, while Wen Xia's expression completely fell.
Wen Xia hated that her daughter was so disappointing, insisting on fooling around with that useless Younger son of the Li Family. She hated even more the bastard child standing below and provoking her.
"Yaoyao..."
Wen Xia descended the steps one by one until she stood before Shu Yao. Then she spoke in a breathy voice only the two of them could hear:
"Have you forgotten what I told you before?"
"You committed such an act and disgraced the Shu Family's reputation, bringing shame upon your grandfather."
"Now that something has happened to the Shen Family, as the Shen Family's daughter-in-law, if you have any sense, you should know to take the initiative to draw a clear line with the Shu Family. Do not implicate the Shu Family and your grandfather."
Shu Yao gave a derisive snort inwardly.
Yes, "Shu Yao" had really been placated. Although they lived in the same compound, she had never returned to the Shu Family after getting married.
After the divorce, she did return to the Shu Family, but under Wen Xia's constant brainwashing, she believed herself to be a sinner and lived like a transparent person.
The Old Madam was truly a fool, blinded by the situation. Did she really think Hu Guozhang had sought her out for no reason?
After 1968, the movement intensified. The fact that Hu Guozhang had previously married a capitalist's daughter was also Reported to the Authorities. Yet Hu Yiming was thoughtless enough to flaunt the jade pendant left behind by his mother, practically handing people a handle to seize.
He had no choice. After someone pointed him in the right direction, he clung desperately to "Shu Yao," that lifesaving straw. The Old Madam was coaxed into a daze by him and married him.
Old Master Shu silently protected the Hu family from behind the scenes.
The Hu family's situation was serious, but also not especially serious. Zhou Huiru had divorced him early, and the entire family had fled to Hong Kong City. Hu Guozhang published a statement in the newspaper severing the mother-son relationship between Hu Yiming and Zhou Huiru, then surrendered the troublesome jade pendant. With the Old Master lending some support behind the scenes, the matter passed.
Just as this time, because his Granddaughter had not divorced, Shu Zhenzhong was also braving the pressure and working behind the scenes on behalf of the Shen Family.
"Grandmother, I know I shouldn't have come back, but I truly had no choice..."
"I'll leave right now. I won't bring shame upon Grandfather, and I won't drag down the Shu Family. I'll go..."
Large tears the size of soybeans rolled down Shu Yao's face. She looked hesitant and utterly wronged.
A livestreamer needed some talent, didn't they?
Shu Yao lowered her eyelids halfway and tilted her head slightly upward, doing her best to let the people above see the wronged expression on her face.
Unfortunately, when she met Shen Huaiyu's clear, bright black eyes and his bubble-blowing mouth, she nearly broke character.
Shen Huaiyu: "A-poo, a-poo, a-poo!"
Wen Xia was caught completely off guard by Shu Yao's performance. Before she could figure out what kind of act this bastard child was putting on, an enraged roar came from behind her:
"I am not dead yet! Who wants to drive my Granddaughter away?"
"Good, I was wondering why Yaoyao had not come home for so long. It turns out you were scheming behind my back!"
Shu Yao had indeed been putting on an act at first, but when she truly saw Shu Zhenzhong's face, she was genuinely unable to hold back.
He and her grandfather looked seventy to eighty percent alike.
He was younger and more imposing than her grandfather, but that face was truly identical.
One cry of "Yaoyao" sent a torrential rain streaming down her face.
That was exactly how her grandfather and grandmother used to call her.
『Yaoyao, come eat!』
『Yaoyao, are you back from school?』
『Oh my, my Yaoyao is so clever—she came third in the entire class!』
"Grandfather..."
Shu Zhenzhong had originally intended to scold them some more, but at this moment he could not spare even a thought for anything else.
He hurried down the stairs, calling out as he ran:
"Yes, yes, Grandfather is here. Our Yaoyao has been wronged. It's all Grandfather's fault."