After cleaning up the house that afternoon, Qiao Zhenzhu framed the medal and certificate and hung them prominently on the wall of the main reception room.
Anyone who stepped into the house would immediately see them.
The country itself had rewarded and commended her. She wanted to see who would still dare use her background against her now!
Originally, Qiao Zhenzhu had planned to invite people over for a meal someday so they would see the medal and certificate and spread the news for her.
But this old woman causing trouble today had actually helped her instead.
Lu Huai was tall with long legs. Before long, he came back out carrying the large frame.
The certificate inside bore a bright red official seal.
Beside it was the medal—made of brass, but still shining golden.
Things like this couldn’t be faked.
Anyone daring to forge one would get shot if caught.
Not to mention Qiao Zhenzhu, with Lu Huai’s status alone, there was no way they would fabricate something like this.
Which meant—
It was real.
Qiao Zhenzhu really had donated all of her family assets!
Even if she was still a capitalist’s daughter, she was now a red one!
Everyone looked at the medal and certificate, then back at Qiao Zhenzhu. Their gazes completely changed.
None of them had expected such a young girl to possess this much courage and such high political awareness.
Their prejudice against her before had truly been too deep!
The old lady who had been calling her “capitalist miss” nonstop just moments ago now looked like an old hen with its neck grabbed.
Clucking sounds kept coming from her throat, but she couldn’t force out a complete sentence.
Among everyone present, Huang Qiuying was the happiest.
She had still been blaming herself moments ago because her three brats had dragged Qiao Zhenzhu into trouble. Now, seeing how quickly Qiao Zhenzhu had turned the situation around, she immediately stepped forward to explain.
“When you get down to it, this was all because of my three rotten boys. At noon, I invited Lu Huai and Zhenzhu over for hand-pulled noodles. Zhenzhu felt embarrassed going empty-handed, so she brought some pastries and a few White Rabbit candies for the boys.
“But who knew those three little troublemakers would run outside to eat them and make the other kids jealous enough to cry? That’s how this whole thing started. Honestly, it’s kind of funny when you think about it. It’s just children’s nonsense—there’s no need for us adults to blow it out of proportion!”
Hearing Huang Qiuying’s explanation, everyone finally understood what had happened.
“I’m telling you, Old Madam Wei, this was just a matter between children. Coming here to make trouble for Lu Huai’s wife is too much, don’t you think?”
“Exactly! There’s a saying—don’t hit people in the face and don’t insult their sore spots. What you said earlier was really out of line! Especially since she donated all her family property!”
“She’s already been officially commended. You’d better not talk about her like that anymore, or the Public Security Bureau might arrest you!”
Listening to the crowd pointing fingers at her, Old Madam Wei’s face burned hot with embarrassment.
She truly hadn’t expected Qiao Zhenzhu to donate her entire fortune!
Pretty face aside, who would’ve thought she’d be so stupid?
So much family wealth, all traded for one certificate and one medal—what use were those?
Wasn’t that just foolish?
Just as Old Madam Wei was thinking this, her little grandson suddenly burst into tears again.
“Grandma, I want meat pastries too! I want White Rabbit candy too!”
The boy was already seven or eight years old—old enough to know better—but all he did was cry for food. It was obvious his family hadn’t raised him properly.
Old Madam Wei looked at Qiao Zhenzhu. Her tone softened somewhat, though she still sounded unwilling to give in.
“You’re an adult. Can you really bear to watch a child cry like this? What’s wrong with giving him a couple pastries and some candy?”
Qiao Zhenzhu had bought plenty of pastries and candy.
But she simply didn’t want to give them any.
She glanced at Old Madam Wei, then placed one hand against her lower back and the other over her stomach.
In an instant, her face turned pale. Sweat poured down her forehead, and her body began to sway weakly.
“Old Lu! Husband! My stomach hurts so much!”
“When I was in Shanghai, the doctor already said my body was weak and that getting pregnant wouldn’t be easy. Now that I finally have this child, I need to take very good care of myself and avoid getting upset, or something could easily go wrong!”
“My stomach hurts this badly… the baby isn’t really in danger, is it? I’m so scared!”
Lu Huai immediately handed the frame to Huang Qiuying and wrapped an arm tightly around Qiao Zhenzhu, his eyes reddening.
“Zhenzhu! Stop talking. I’ll carry you inside to rest. If anything really happens to you, I swear I’ll settle accounts with whoever caused it—even if it costs me my life!”
The moment Old Madam Wei heard their conversation, she no longer dared continue sitting on the ground. She scrambled to her feet, grabbed her grandson, and ran.
“This has nothing to do with me!”
“She’s the one with a weak body!”
“I didn’t even touch her!”
“Don’t think you can scam me! And don’t even think about asking me for money!”
Not only did Old Madam Wei flee with her grandson, many of the bystanders scattered too.
Qiao Zhenzhu’s belly was huge, and her face had suddenly turned deathly pale, sweat dripping down in big drops. If something really happened, none of them could afford the responsibility!
Not only were they running today—they’d better stay far away from Qiao Zhenzhu from now on too.
Otherwise, if anything happened to her or the baby, what if she blamed them?
Lu Huai ignored everyone else. He swept Qiao Zhenzhu into his arms bridal-style and carefully carried her back into the house, gently placing her onto the kang bed.
Huang Qiuying followed close behind carrying the frame. After setting it down nearby, she hurried over anxiously.
“Zhenzhu, does your stomach hurt badly? Shouldn’t we go to the hospital?”
The hospital here was pretty far away, but this concerned human life—they couldn’t be careless!
Qiao Zhenzhu had already found a comfortable position lying down. She smiled at Huang Qiuying.
“It’s okay, Sister-in-law. The pain just comes in waves. I got emotional, that’s all. Look, I’m already feeling much better now.”
Huang Qiuying examined her carefully and indeed saw that Qiao Zhenzhu’s complexion had improved considerably. Only then did she finally relax.
“You really don’t need to go to the hospital?”
“Really! I’ll be fine after resting a little.”
“All right then…”
As Huang Qiuying spoke, guilt appeared on her face.
“Zhenzhu, I’m really sorry. Today’s mess was caused by my three brats. I’ll deal with them properly once I get home!”
“No need! Sister-in-law, children don’t have bad intentions. They just wanted to show off a little after getting something tasty. We all went through that age before—we understand.”
Those words made Huang Qiuying feel much better.
Although she had already decided to discipline her sons, she also didn’t think they were malicious.
Still, they definitely needed a good talking-to.
Something like this absolutely couldn’t happen again in the future!
After confirming that Qiao Zhenzhu was truly fine, Huang Qiuying finally felt relieved enough to leave.
As she passed by the kitchen, she suddenly paused.
“Lu Huai, what are you cooking? Why does it smell so sweet?”