Tasks rained down on Wang Yurou one after another from Luo Erfen.
Wang Yurou was so furious she felt lightheaded.
“Why do I have to do all the housework and all the farm work too?”
“There’s so much of it… how am I supposed to get it all done by myself…”
Luo Erfen had already started to leave, but now she turned back with a displeased frown.
“If you can’t even handle this much work, how am I ever going to trust you to take good care of Shixuan later?”
“Stop pretending to be weak. When you first got here, you could chop firewood, work the fields, and carry buckets of water all by yourself, didn’t you?”
Wang Yurou was struck speechless.
Back then, she’d just arrived in the countryside, didn’t know how things worked, and had just wanted to prove herself so life would be easier.
“I… I was pushing myself to the limit back then… and I even got sick afterwards…”
Luo Erfen scoffed. Sick, my foot.
This girl had deliberately starved herself to look diligent, and ended up fainting from hunger the very next day.
“You know perfectly well why you got sick!”
“Enough nonsense! Get to work right now!”
“But there’s really just too much…”
Seeing her struggling, Fu Shixuan stepped forward voluntarily.
“It’s alright, Aunt Luo. I’ll help her.”
Wang Yurou’s eyes glistened as she looked at him, touched.
Fu Shixuan really does care for me, she thought. I’ve definitely picked the right man.
He was exactly as everyone said – upright, kind, decent, and thoughtful.
If she married him, she was sure to live a good life.
Lost in her rosy visions of the future, Wang Yurou didn’t notice Luo Erfen turning purple with rage, yanking Fu Shixuan aside.
“No way!”
“How could you do such rough work? Let her do it herself!”
“She was bold enough to climb into your bed, wasn’t she? Is she suddenly too delicate for a little work now?”
“I think she’s faking it – just trying to make you feel sorry for her so she can slack off!”
“Let me tell you – if you don’t set her straight now, once you’re married she’ll just lie around spending your money and ruining everything. What’s the point of marrying a useless wife like that?”
Luo Erfen spoke loudly, clearly meaning for Wang Yurou to hear every word.
Wang Yurou bit down hard, her teeth grinding in anger. She’s not even Fu Shixuan’s real mother! Who does she think she is, meddling this much? Why doesn’t she mind her own business instead of fussing over someone else’s son?!
In the west room, Shen Zhaozhao was just as puzzled.
What is wrong with Gu Guanghui and Luo Erfen?
From what she remembered, the couple had always treated Fu Shixuan decently enough, often looking out for him. They’d even gotten him appointed as the propaganda officer – a respectable, easy post.
At first she’d thought they were just currying favor because he came from a prominent family, hoping to benefit when he returned to the city later. But things didn’t add up anymore.
Luo Erfen acted like a mother hen protecting her chick, terrified Fu Shixuan would suffer even the slightest hardship – already planning for his future life, even though he’d be leaving for the city soon enough, and they might never hear from him again. Why would she care this much?
And that morning, after Wang Yurou had deliberately spread rumors about what happened, Luo Erfen and Gu Guanghui had led a crowd of neighbors to bang on Gu Shichuan’s door – acting like they wanted everyone in the village to know about his trouble, and never mentioning Fu Shixuan at all.
Yet when it came to asking Fu Shixuan and Wang Yurou about the incident, they’d chased all the gawking villagers away, shutting the door before saying a word.
Any normal parent, when their own son was caught up in such a scandal and the whole village found out, would have sent outsiders away first to draw attention off their child, then sorted things out privately, wouldn’t they?
Why were the Gu couple doing the exact opposite?
Shen Zhaozhao looked over at Gu Shichuan, uncertain.
“Did your parents have it out for you? Did you burn their house down when you were little? Did your mother almost die giving birth to you? Or did you… dig up their family grave when you were too young to know better?”
Gu Shichuan pulled his gaze back from the crack in the door, turning to face her with that same impassive expression.
“No.”
Truth be told, he’d long since gotten used to it.
Ever since he was small, this was how his parents had always been. No special affection, no concern for anything that mattered to him.
Before he’d joined the army, every dirty, tiring, heavy chore had fallen only to him. Other than barking orders, Luo Erfen barely spared him a glance – let alone a word of praise.
No matter how well he did anything, his parents acted as if it was nothing more than his duty. To them, every other child in the world was better than him.
A cousin who’d once stayed with them could lie and steal, yet they’d still praise him for being talkative and charming.
As for Fu Shixuan – ever since he’d come to stay in their home as a sent-down youth, Luo Erfen and Gu Guanghui had done nothing but sing his praises to everyone they met, acting as if having him there was their greatest honor.
Meanwhile, in their eyes, Gu Shichuan had never been anything but a bundle of flaws – something they’d rather not speak of at all, rolling their eyes whenever his name came up.
He’d long since grown numb to it all. He’d stopped expecting anything from them years ago – he’d seen it all too many times growing up.
But Shen Zhaozhao… she was different.
Gu Shichuan’s thoughts shifted, his gaze sharpening – the instincts of a trained scout kicking in. He watched her quietly, studying her.
Something was very different about her today. Everything she said, every small habit she showed – nothing matched the woman he’d known.
The old Shen Zhaozhao had been slow-witted, easily confused, and quick to react. When she lied, she’d always twist the hem of her clothes without thinking, or bite her lip when thinking things through.
But this woman before him was sharp, quick-witted, full of clever ideas, and spoke with confidence. None of those old little tics were there. Even her eyes seemed brighter, clearer than before. When she blinked up at him, it felt like soft feathers brushing against his heart – a feeling he’d never known before.
When Shen Zhaozhao finished speaking, she stared at him for a long moment with no reply. Frowning in confusion, she waved a hand in front of his face.
“It’s very rude to zone out when someone’s talking to you, you know. What are you thinking about?”
Gu Shichuan held her gaze steadily, and spoke softly.
“You’ve changed.”
Shen Zhaozhao’s heart lurched – she almost bit her tongue, and drew a sharp breath she hoped he wouldn’t notice. Does he know?
Wasn’t Gu Shichuan just some good-for-nothing loafer who wandered around all day? she thought frantically. From what I remember, he only served two years before getting injured and coming home – no great achievements in the army or anything. If he’d earned any medals or honors, the whole village would have been celebrating it publicly by now. Regular soldiers only learn basic combat drills and such – how could he possibly be so sharp at reading people?