Shen Baisu shook her head repeatedly.
“No, no, but last night they kicked me out and had a private meeting.”
“I’m sure they’re plotting against you. Later, when Dad falls asleep, bother Mom and ask her what they discussed!”
Shen Baisu patted her head and raised an eyebrow, asking:
“Did she tell you?”
“Yes, she said to be careful yourself. In a few days, once Grandpa’s health improves a bit, they’re going to Lin’s house to report you. They even want to bring you back to punish you.”
Shen Baizhi felt a flicker of complexity in her heart. Logically, her grandfather would have definitely issued a gag order, yet her mother still passed on this information. Really… just when she had completely given up hope in maternal love, they’d throw her a tiny scrap.
It made it impossible to leave her completely unattended.
Pulling her hand away from Baisu’s head, Shen Baizhi sighed and said:
“Alright, don’t tell anyone else about this. Let them go to Lin’s if they want.”
“I’m going to stay in the county for a couple of days. Be smart, don’t get taken advantage of. If anything happens, just endure it until I get back, and I’ll set things right for you.”
Baisu nodded vigorously. Her sister was really something now—she wanted to learn from her.
Shen Baizhi walked out of the village and stared at the road ahead, suddenly remembering something very important.
Her bicycle?
Where was her brand-new bicycle, which she had only ridden once?
She dashed forward in large strides, reaching the roadside where she had last hidden it. After searching in thigh-high weeds for twenty minutes, she reluctantly gave up.
It seemed someone had really taken her bicycle!
Her heart ached!
A bicycle cost not only the rare bicycle ticket but also more than one hundred and thirty yuan!
And now it was just gone!
She blamed herself for being so busy these past two days that she forgot. If only she had stored the bicycle in her space after dragging Jiang Yanli back to the cave.
Now, not only had she suffered a heavy loss, she could only walk to the commune—and even then, there might not be a cart to the county.
The Hongqu Commune still had no passenger service to the county. To get there, one had to either ride a bicycle or take a bullock cart.
Rushing along, Shen Baizhi finally arrived at the commune twenty minutes later. A bullock cart carrying seven or eight people was just about to depart from its usual stop.
She ran up to block the driver, paid a dime, and climbed aboard.
Several elder ladies were already on the cart, animatedly gossiping about the latest news. Shen Baizhi listened with great interest, so much so that the bumpy ride didn’t bother her at all.
After an hour’s journey, she felt a bit reluctant as she got off the cart in the county. The place where she got off wasn’t far from the Lin family’s house—just a ten-minute walk.
When Shen Baizhi returned to the Lin household, no one was home. She skillfully pulled the key from above the doorframe and unlocked the door. Having lived in this house for almost twenty years in her previous life, she knew it extremely well.
It was nearly noon. She went to the kitchen, searched around, and found some cured meat and a small bag of fine rice.
She tossed them, along with the cooking pot normally used for steaming rice, into her space. Soon after, she brought out a pot of fragrant cured meat rice.
After eating by herself, she threw the pot and bowls into the sink, grabbed the leftover rice, and went to Elder Zhao’s house downstairs.
This was the same Elder Zhao she had met in the hallway two days ago—the one most skilled at gossip.
Elder Zhao was startled when she opened the door, only gradually recognizing Shen Baizhi. Her eyes scanned the greasy cured meat rice in Shen Baizhi’s hands, and she swallowed before warmly inviting her in.
“Well, if it isn’t the Lin family’s new daughter-in-law! Back from your parents’ home? Come in, have a seat!”
Shen Baizhi didn’t bother with formalities and followed her inside, placing the rice on the dining table. She smiled and said:
“Elder, this is cured meat rice I made myself. I’m alone at home for lunch today, so I couldn’t finish it all. I remembered seeing your pretty little granddaughter when I came here the day before yesterday, so I brought some for her.”
Elder Zhao clapped her hands, her smile widening.
“Oh, you mean Lingling? That little girl really is adorable—even an aunt who’s only met her once can’t stop thinking about her! But she just ate and fell asleep. I’ll heat it up for her tonight.”
“If you like her, come visit my home more often!”
In this day and age, there was hardly any leftover food—especially a dish with meat and rice. But no matter what her motives were, the young daughter-in-law was polite and willing to help where she could.
“Elder, to be honest, I have a little sister at my parents’ home too. So when I see a pretty girl like Lingling, I can’t help but take a liking to her!”
This little girl was one of Shen Baizhi’s targets during this county visit. In her previous life, on the fifth day after her wedding—tomorrow—this girl, Lingling, had choked on a bun and died.
Back then, only she and Elder Zhao were home. Elder Zhao noticed in time that Lingling was choking but had no professional first-aid knowledge. In the end, she could only watch helplessly as her beloved granddaughter passed away.
This time, she decided to build a good relationship with Elder Zhao first, and then save Lingling tomorrow. Doing so would earn her a merit point.
Two people who had met only twice quickly became familiar with each other, each motivated by their own little agendas.
Seeing that the food was nearly ready, Elder Zhao suddenly lowered her voice and said mysteriously:
“Girl, do you know why your husband is in the hospital?”
Shen Baizhi feigned ignorance, curious to see how the rumor had spread.
“Ah, I don’t know… He’s sick and in the hospital? After talking to you that day, I went back to my parents’ home. I originally thought Lin Cheng would come to pick me up on the return visit, but he didn’t.”
“I wasn’t planning to come back, but my parents said I’m with Lin Cheng, not my little sister, and his conditions are really good. So I came to see, to talk, to check if life here could really work out.”
Elder Zhao’s gaze softened with sympathy. She shared the information she had gathered:
“Ah girl, to be honest, the Lin family’s conditions are good, but life here after marriage isn’t necessarily easy. Lin Ranran, that little girl, isn’t a problem. Anyway, she’ll be married off in a couple of years.”
Leaning closer to Shen Baizhi’s ear, she added:
“But I heard that Lin Cheng really… isn’t capable in that area! After you left, Director Qian took them to the hospital. My old friend’s daughter is a nurse at the county hospital—she said Lin Cheng is in the male ward! The male ward, you know, is for treating men’s… issues!”