Gao Hongfen’s words instantly changed everyone’s expression. Almost everyone understood what she was implying, including Mu Chengfeng’s stepmother, who was convinced Jiang Xiaoyu would soon get pregnant and then voluntarily send the three children away.
But nothing had actually happened yet. There was still a fifty percent chance it would never happen at all. Before Jiang Xiaoyu became pregnant, no one had the right to accuse her of deception. And even if she failed to do so, that would be a matter for the Mu family, not something outsiders could interfere in.
Over the years, Xiao Baoguo had always been tolerant of his wife’s competitive and outspoken nature, but today his face darkened, and he refused to let her continue.
“Even if what you’re saying is true, even if Jiang Xiaoyu really deceived Mu Chengfeng and his stepmother, would you dare ask Chunlan to sign such a guarantee?”
Gao Hongfen was immediately silenced. A guarantee like that, if signed, would bring endless trouble later on. Of course it couldn’t be written down. And since Jiang Xiaoyu had actually written it, it only showed she was reckless and lacked principle. In her view, Mu Chengfeng treating her like treasure was nothing but self-deception.
“Our family has proper upbringing. We would never sign something like that to deceive others,” she said stiffly.
Xiao Baoguo slammed his hand on the table. “No matter what you think, what gives you the right to interrogate and criticize someone else’s family like this? Just because you went through the dean to try and arrange a match for Xiao Mu and got rejected, you’re now embarrassed and taking it out on his wife? Is that appropriate?”
There were already people outside who had come to listen in on the commotion. Hearing such gossip, they quickly slipped away. Qian Chunmei immediately went out to stop them and sternly warned them not to spread anything.
Gao Hongfen’s face burned red with shame, and she turned to her husband in frustration. “How can you say that about me?”
This time, Mu Chengfeng didn’t allow Vice Director Xiao to continue deepening the conflict within the couple. Since they were speaking about his wife, it was only right that he stepped in.
“Vice Director Gao, you have no right to question my wife. Vice Director Xiao has already said everything that needed to be said. You are not a good leader or colleague. But you do have a good husband. I respect Vice Director Xiao, but you are not worthy of my respect.”
Gao Hongfen could no longer stay. She turned and left immediately. Qian Chunmei looked at Xiao Baoguo following behind and felt he had been dragged down badly by his wife.
“Vice Director Gao, think about Xiao Baoguo too,” she called after her. “After this kind of scene, how is he supposed to get along with colleagues at work? Do you think everyone will see things your way? No, they’ll only laugh at you, and laugh at him too. You should really reflect on this.”
Gao Hongfen turned back to look at her husband. Xiao Baoguo had always listened to her on small matters, but this time, he did not try to comfort her.
“If you don’t change your temperament, even Chunlan’s reputation will be dragged down by you. Think carefully whether your younger sister is really doing this for your sake, or just using you to vent her anger at Mu Chengfeng,” he said coldly.
Gao Hongfen still felt unconvinced. “Even if I was just speaking in anger, wouldn’t Mu Chengfeng still show you respect? You’re his leader after all. Does he not even need to respect his superior anymore?”
Xiao Baoguo was not the kind of person who used his position to make life difficult for colleagues over personal matters. Besides, Mu Chengfeng didn’t need to fear him.
“His maternal side may not be in close contact with his family, but the relatives on that side are all watching over him. My promotion to vice director was approved by his uncle’s father-in-law. And you think I would use my position against him? You really don’t understand the situation at all.”
Gao Hongfen was startled. She immediately dropped all her petty thoughts and asked several times, but Xiao Baoguo did not elaborate further.
“I don’t know the details of other people’s family affairs. In any case, you should stop interacting too much with your younger sister.”
Gao Hehua was waiting at the hospital entrance. Seeing her sister and brother-in-law coming off work, she quickly ran over.
“Brother-in-law, you got off early today.”
Xiao Baoguo was in no mood. “Whether I get off early or late has nothing to do with you. Mind your own business.”
Gao Hehua’s heart tightened. She hurriedly asked Gao Hongfen, “What’s wrong with him? Why is he angry at me?”
Gao Hongfen was already in emotional turmoil. She truly should not have acted impulsively today.
“Stop mentioning Chunlan, you, or Mu Chengfeng anymore,” she said tiredly. “Forget Chunlan entirely. And honestly, you’re not a good match for him. Don’t stir up trouble for his children. If something really happens, I won’t be able to help you.”
Gao Hehua gritted her teeth. “Sister, just wait and see. In less than three months, Jiang Xiaoyu will definitely be pregnant. The humiliation you suffered today will be returned to Mu Chengfeng tenfold.”
“Enough,” Gao Hongfen snapped. “Whether she gives birth or not is their family’s business. What are you even thinking? Stop embarrassing yourself. Since you’re already divorced, you should settle down and find someone else to remarry. A man with children won’t care whether you can have children of your own. Isn’t that a good life too?”
But after seeing Mu Chengfeng’s conditions, Gao Hehua couldn’t accept any of the men suitable for remarriage. Either they were too old, with stepchildren nearly her age, or their looks and jobs couldn’t compare to Mu Chengfeng at all. She was unwilling to settle.
She was only a year older than Mu Chengfeng. In her mind, she wasn’t unworthy—he was simply choosing someone younger and prettier. The more she thought about it, the more resentful she became. She just wanted to see that little woman turn his household upside down. She would wait and see.
……
Meanwhile, Jiang Xiaoyu had no idea she was being gossiped about. She was almost done preparing the seafood.
The small bucket contained a mix of fish of different sizes. She planned to make a mixed fish stew.
While the fish simmered, she cleaned two lobsters, split them in half, and prepared them for millet porridge. Rice porridge would have tasted better, but grain rations were limited these days. Each month there were only a few jin of rice and flour quotas, the rest were coarse grains. At home, there was only a bit of flour and no rice at all.
Millet would have to do it. Modern people in her past life even ate coarse grains for health.
One pot was stewing fish, the other was cooking lobster millet porridge. While waiting, she prepared sea urchins. Having worked on food videos before, she had cleaned them a few times already. It was quite satisfying work—cutting a third open and carefully removing the messy innards with tweezers.
She didn’t have tweezers now, so she sharpened a pair of bamboo chopsticks instead, which worked just as well.
The second sister watched for a while and became interested. “Mom, can I clean the remaining three?”
Jiang Xiaoyu smiled and handed her the chopsticks. “Go ahead.”
She also let the salted boiled water cool before adding a spoon of salt to adjust the taste. After checking, it matched seawater salinity. She poured in clams to soak overnight so they could spit out sand before cooking the next day.
Damei curiously asked why she used cooled boiled water instead of plain cold water.
She couldn’t explain that boiling removed chlorine and helped keep the clams alive longer. That kind of explanation might expose too much.
So Jiang Xiaoyu simply said, “I don’t know either. It’s something the older generation passed down. They say clams prepared this way don’t die as easily. I tested it myself, and it does seem better than just salt water.”
Damei was impressed. No wonder the previous stepmother often had clams die off. Dead ones wouldn’t open when cooked, so she was forced to pick them out and have her pry them open to eat. Now their mother threw away any dead ones instead, and she was very happy about it.
The large pot of fish stew was finally done. The ceramic bowl they had just bought wasn’t big enough, so there was still an extra portion left, perfect for sending to the neighbors as thanks for helping watch the children.
“Aunt Hua, Sister Ke, I made fish stew. I brought you a bowl to try.”
Since the gate was open, Jiang Xiaoyu called out and walked in. Inside the neighbor’s yard, there was a man about Mu Chengfeng’s age, sitting closely with Ke Xiu. The intimacy between them made it clear he was Aunt Hua’s son, Wei Mancang.
Earlier, when the fish was cooking, Aunt Hua had already praised the aroma, saying Mu Chengfeng had married well.
Now seeing Jiang Xiaoyu in person, she felt even more certain. The girl was thoughtful and knew how to build relationships with neighbors, even remembering to send food over. In the future, if she needed to step out, she could even leave the children with them.
“This is my son Mancang. He works in the same department as Mu Chengfeng,” Aunt Hua introduced.
Wei Mancang took a deep breath at the smell. It was strange. Fish like this was cheap, and they often bought it, but somehow Jiang Xiaoyu’s cooking smelled far more appetizing.
He joked, “You’re lucky today. Getting off work without overtime is rare, and now you even get an extra dish. By the way, is Mu Chengfeng coming back for dinner?”
He and Mu Chengfeng had originally left work together. Just as they were about to head home after changing out of their white coats, Vice Director Gao’s wife had blocked them in anger. But the director and vice director were both present, and Mu Chengfeng wasn’t someone who would suffer losses easily, so he should be back soon after a few words.
“A few interns just started and kept asking him questions. He’ll be back soon,” Wei Mancang added.
Aunt Hua frowned. “Male or female? Why not ask during work hours instead of after work?”
Wei Mancang immediately regretted speaking. Mu Chengfeng’s young wife was still here.
He quickly said, “Mother, you know his personality. The young female interns don’t even dare to approach him. Anyone who asks stupid questions gets scolded on the spot.”
Aunt Hua laughed and turned to Jiang Xiaoyu. “You can relax then. Your husband is very proper and doesn’t mess around.”
Jiang Xiaoyu just smiled. She wasn’t interested in her “boss’s” private life anyway. What did that have to do with her? Instead, she noticed the lush green vegetables in the corner of the yard.
“Auntie, can I take some of your greens? I’ll plant them myself once I get seeds.”
The island climate was warm, and vegetables grew well. They often had more than they could eat. Ke Xiu immediately pulled a handful and told her to come take more anytime. Not long after, Jiang Xiaoyu also sent over a bowl of lobster millet vegetable porridge.
Ke Xiu served half to her mother-in-law, and she and her husband shared the rest.
“My goodness,” Ke Xiu exclaimed. “How did she make millet porridge taste like meat and seafood? It’s incredible.”
Wei Mancang teased, “Mu Chengfeng is really lucky.”
Ke Xiu pouted. “So you think my cooking is bad now?”
Wei Mancang quickly explained, “We can’t compare everything. Her cooking really is outstanding. Honestly, not just our family, probably no one in the whole compound cooks as well as she does. But that doesn’t mean you’re not good. In my eyes, you’re the best.”
Ke Xiu felt warmth in her heart. Life had finally turned for the better. Her husband and mother-in-law were both good people. She just hoped they could live peacefully and raise their child safely as a family of four.
She asked, “What you said earlier about Mu Chengfeng, was that just nonsense?”
Wei Mancang told the truth. “Director Qian brought Jiang Xiaoyu and the three children to the compound. She reported back to Mu Chengfeng. He was worried about the situation and was originally coming back with me. But he got stopped by Vice Director Gao’s wife. It’s fine though. The director and vice director were both there. Mu Chengfeng won’t suffer any loss. He’ll be back soon after saying a few words.”
……
Jiang Xiaoyu, hearing that Mu Chengfeng would be back for dinner, kept the stove fire going so the food would stay warm. That way, when he returned, they could eat immediately.
While cooking, the children had all tasted the food and were already impatient. Damei, though sensible from her difficult circumstances, could still hold back. The Second Sister kept glancing toward the gate, waiting for her father. The youngest, only three years old, acted purely on instinct. Surrounded by such delicious smells, he couldn’t resist climbing onto the stove edge trying to lift the lid.
Jiang Xiaoyu held him back. “Be good, we’ll eat when Dad comes back.”
The little one immediately settled down in her arms.
She was also hungry, but since the neighbor said Mu Chengfeng would be back soon, she didn’t eat first. This first meal together had to leave a good impression.
Thankfully, they didn’t wait long before Mu Chengfeng finally returned.
Jiang Xiaoyu smiled brightly, her eyes curved with warmth. “Hubby, you’re back. We’ve all been waiting for you. Damei, Second Sister, set the bowls and chopsticks, let’s eat.”
That single word—“hubby”—softened Mu Chengfeng’s heart instantly. The affectionate tone from his young wife made him almost lose focus, his thoughts drifting in a direction he hadn’t expected.