“Xue’er, let’s go.
I’m taking you to your grandmother’s house so you’ll know the way.”
After finishing the household chores, Jiang Baozhen took Lin Yingxue by the hand and headed to her maiden home.
The patriarch of the Jiang family, Jiang ManCang, and his wife, Mrs.
Yao, used to dote on Chen Ruixue endlessly.
When she went missing, Jiang ManCang’s hair had turned white overnight from grief.
Every year when Jiang Baozhen went out searching for her daughter, Jiang ManCang would have his youngest son, Jiang Shouzheng, accompany her.
Not only that, but he even paid for their travel expenses out of his own pocket.
As for Mrs.
Yao, she would shed tears whenever her granddaughter was mentioned.
Now that her daughter was finally back, it was time to share the good news with her family.
At the same time, she needed to tell her mother and her eldest brother that she was going to divorce Chen Huaiyuan.
“Okay!” Guessing Jiang Baozhen’s intentions, Lin Yingxue agreed readily.
The Jiang family lived at the easternmost end of Jiangya Village, meaning they had to cross through more than half the village to get there.
As Jiang Baozhen walked along arm-in-arm with Lin Yingxue, the villagers they passed couldn’t hide their surprise.
Groups of two or three began whispering to one another before the mother and daughter were even out of earshot.
“Since when has Granny Jiang treated her fourth daughter-in-law so well?”
“It’s like seeing a ghost in broad daylight.”
“If you ask me, her kindness towards Yingxue is completely fake.
She’s just putting on a show for her other daughters-in-law because she’s annoyed they didn’t take her side during the land division.”
Hearing their gossip, Jiang Baozhen wasn’t the least bit annoyed.
Instead, she pulled Lin Yingxue right up to the crowd and scolded them with a laugh, “Keep wagging those tongues and see if you don’t bite them off!
I know you’re all just jealous that I have such a wonderful daughter.”
Without waiting for anyone to reply, she pulled Lin Yingxue closer to show her off.
“Just look at her!
My daughter has such fair skin and big, beautiful eyes.
She’s even prettier than the young ladies from those wealthy families in the city.
One look, and you know she’s destined for a life of fortune!”
Even Lin Yingxue felt a bit embarrassed by the sheer boasting.
Seeing this notoriously fierce woman speaking so cheerfully for once, the villagers felt as if the sun had risen in the west.
One brave woman finally piped up and asked, “Isn’t Yingxue your fourth daughter-in-law?
How did she become your daughter?”
Jiang Baozhen smiled brightly and said, “My husband claims that our fourth son will be studying from now on, so he has other plans for his marriage.
He really handled the whole thing poorly.
Yingxue has been living with our family for so long, so how could we just kick her out?
I decided to just adopt her as my own daughter instead.”
In just a few words, she not only explained the situation but also managed to drag Chen Huaiyuan’s name through the mud.
“My father wanted to kick me out.
Thank goodness my mother was willing to let me stay by her side.” Feigning a look of utmost gratitude, Lin Yingxue easily kept up with Jiang Baozhen’s rhythm, firmly dragging Chen Huaiyuan into the center of a brewing scandal.
The crowd instantly erupted in disbelief.
How could the usually amiable Chen Huaiyuan do such a callous thing?
The mother and daughter didn’t linger, heading straight for the Jiang family’s home.
The Jiang family had been deeply rooted in Jiangya Village for generations, and before the chaos of the war, they had been the wealthiest household in the village.
Even after enduring the ravages of war, the large, grey-brick, tiled-roof house built while Jiang ManCang was still alive retained an air of grandeur unmatched by anyone else in the village.
“Mother, I’ve brought Xue’er to see you.”
Following Jiang Baozhen into the main house, Lin Yingxue saw Mrs.
Yao sitting cross-legged on the heated brick bed, diligently stitching a cloth shoe sole.
Seeing her beloved youngest daughter arrive, the wrinkles on Mrs.
Yao’s face smoothed out into a wide smile.
“I was just thinking about you, and here you are!
I was just telling myself that if you didn’t visit soon, I’d have to march over to your house and check on you.”
To keep her from worrying, the Jiang family had hidden the fact that Jiang Baozhen had recently fainted.
Thus, the old woman was completely unaware of the recent turmoil.
“It’s only been a few days, but this girl looks even more radiant.” Mrs.
Yao motioned for the two of them to sit down.
She took Lin Yingxue’s hand, praising her continuously, though she was secretly quite surprised.
Why had her daughter brought Lin Yingxue along?
Jiang Baozhen had always disliked the girl.
Mrs.
Yao had once tried to persuade her to adopt Lin Yingxue, suggesting that welcoming this little ‘snowflake’ into the family might just help guide their own lost Xue’er back home.
But after being rebuffed multiple times, she had eventually dropped the subject.
Meeting Mrs.
Yao’s kindly gaze, Lin Yingxue offered a sweet, “Grandmother.”
Delighted, Mrs.
Yao brought out some honey glaze pastries—a filial gift from her eldest son—and pressed them into the hands of Lin Yingxue and Jiang Baozhen.
Lin Yingxue took the treat, thanked her sweetly, and began to nibble on it in small, delicate bites.
It was absolutely delicious!
Back in her original world, she wouldn’t have dared to eat such a traditional, old-fashioned pastry out of concern for her blood sugar and figure.
But in this era, where sugar and oil were scarce commodities, having a piece of honey pastry was a true luxury.
Jiang Baozhen pushed her own portion over to Lin Yingxue as well, turning to ask Mrs.
Yao, “Where are my brother and his wife?”
“I haven’t seen you in a few days, how did you lose so much weight?” Mrs.
Yao reached out and gently smoothed Jiang Baozhen’s hair, her face full of heartache.
“Did that husband of yours upset you again?
Stay for lunch today.
I still have a whole jar of eggs, so let your mother nourish you properly.”
Only after fretting over her daughter did she answer her question.
“Village Chief Song is planning to promote your eldest brother to village chief, so he’s gone into town to discuss matters.
Everyone else is busy working in the fields.”
Lin Yingxue couldn’t help but marvel inwardly.
No wonder the original novel stated that the Jiang family fiercely doted on Jiang Baozhen.
Just looking at Mrs.
Yao’s attitude alone, they cherished her even more than the book had described.
“Xue’er, I’m going to stay here and help your grandmother twist some thread.” Jiang Baozhen casually rummaged through Mrs.
Yao’s sewing basket and pulled out a spool of thread.
Looking up at Lin Yingxue, she smiled and said, “I’m afraid you’ll get bored just sitting here with us.
Why don’t you head over to the other room and play with Sister Qinghe?”
Knowing that Jiang Baozhen was planning to tell Mrs.
Yao about her impending divorce, Lin Yingxue understood it wouldn’t be appropriate for her to stay.
She stood up and headed over to Jiang Qinghe’s room in the west wing.
“Yingxue, you’re here?” Jiang Qinghe greeted her enthusiastically as the door curtain lifted to reveal Lin Yingxue’s face.
She linked arms with her and guided her to a seat, affectionately pinching Lin Yingxue’s cheek as she spoke.
“Did you sneak out?”
Jiang Qinghe was the youngest daughter of Jiang Shouren, Jiang Baozhen’s eldest brother.
With two older brothers above her, she was the most doted-upon young girl of her generation in the Jiang family, much like Jiang Baozhen had been in hers.
When they had taken refuge on the mountain during the war, Jiang Qinghe had often sought Lin Yingxue out to play.
It was only in front of Jiang Qinghe that Lin Yingxue ever revealed the lively, carefree nature typical of a young girl.
“Well, since you’re already here, just relax and hang out with me.
I’ll walk you back after lunch.
With me there, my aunt won’t dare scold you.” Knowing how difficult it was for Lin Yingxue to slip away, Jiang Qinghe tried to comfort her with a gentle tone.
Lin Yingxue laughed and said, “Sister Qinghe, I didn’t come behind my mother’s back.
She brought me here herself.”
“My aunt changed her tune?” Jiang Qinghe asked, her face full of utter disbelief.
Defending Jiang Baozhen, Lin Yingxue explained, “I’m not lying to you, Sister Qinghe.
My mother is in the other room talking to Grandmother right now.
She’s been really good to me lately.
She even praised my filial piety and promised to raise me as her own daughter from now on…”
She then went on to detail everything that had happened in the Chen family over the past few days.
When her father had told her a few days ago that her aunt had beaten her uncle, Jiang Qinghe hadn’t believed it.
But after hearing Lin Yingxue’s firsthand account, she finally did.
Jiang Qinghe sighed, “It seems your suffering has finally paid off.
My aunt might have a fiery temper, but once she decides to be good to someone, she gives them her whole heart.”
Lin Yingxue smiled and nodded in agreement.
Catching sight of some red silk draped over the table, she asked, “Sister Qinghe, are you embroidering?”
Jiang Qinghe possessed exceptional embroidery skills.
Even at the tender age of seven or eight, her stitching patterns had won endless praise from the embroidery girls at the finest embroidery workshop in town.
Because of this, she always had to take meticulous care of her hands.
While her exquisite craftsmanship had been rendered useless during the chaos of the war, now that the world was largely at peace, a skilled embroidery girl like her could easily support an entire family.
Jiang Qinghe blushed and answered in a soft voice, “I’m embroidering my wedding dress.”
Lin Yingxue’s heart sank.