Chen Rou hurried forward while clutching the child tightly in her arms. Meng Qiufeng followed closely beside her, one arm hovering protectively near her elbow.
“Careful, there’s a dirt clod there…”
The village had a small clinic and a barefoot doctor.
Chen Hongjun was from the village. Because he had a middle school education and was also the cousin of production team leader Li Xiangqian, he had been sent to attend a medical training course.
After completing the training, Chen Hongjun became the village’s barefoot doctor. During busy farming seasons, he still had to work in the fields alongside everyone else. He was half farmer, half doctor, and earned the same work points as the rest of the villagers.
“Doctor, hurry and check my child!” Chen Rou rushed into the crude clinic and laid her daughter onto the bed.
Before Chen Hongjun could even react, Meng Qiufeng and Wang Cuilian dragged him toward the bedside.
Steadying himself, Chen Hongjun asked, “What happened to the child?”
Wang Cuilian and Chen Rou both began talking at once, describing how the child had fallen earlier.
He reached out to examine Meng Zhu. Before he had even finished checking her over, Meng Zhu slowly opened her eyes.
Chen Rou, Wang Cuilian, and Meng Qiufeng all let out sighs of relief simultaneously.
“My skills are limited,” Chen Hongjun said honestly. “I haven’t found any major problems for now. Since the child has already woken up, if you’re still worried, you can take her to the county hospital for a proper examination.”
Meng Zhu blinked blankly, her eyes gradually regaining clarity.
Then she called out crisply:
“Mom.”
Chen Rou froze.
Covering her mouth in shock and joy, she exclaimed, “Mom! Zhuzhu can say ‘Mom’ now!”
Wang Cuilian hurried over to Meng Zhu, her eyes full of expectation.
“Zhuzhu, call Grandma.”
Meng Zhu tilted her head slightly, sensing Wang Cuilian’s affection and kindness toward her. Stretching out her arms, she wrapped them around Wang Cuilian’s neck.
“Na…”
“My precious baby! My Zhuzhu can talk now!”
Wang Cuilian hugged her tightly, grinning so hard her eyes nearly disappeared.
Standing nearby, Meng Qiufeng rubbed his hands excitedly, almost blurting out for Zhuzhu to call him “Dad.”
He quickly pressed his lips together.
His gaze swept over Chen Rou’s gentle and quiet face before shifting away again, finally settling tenderly upon Meng Zhu.
Meng Zhu had originally been a pearl inside an immortal clam within a celestial pond.
For thousands of years, she had been trapped inside the immortal clam, unable to see daylight.
Until one day, she secretly escaped and arrived beside the Mortal Reincarnation Platform.
A passing fairy had warned her:
“If you jump into the mortal realm, you’ll forever remain human through every reincarnation.”
Lonely for millennia, she had leapt without hesitation.
Using the last traces of her weak spiritual power, she exchanged it for the ability to retain memories of her previous life during this first reincarnation.
Today, those memories had finally awakened.
Resting her chin against Wang Cuilian’s shoulder, Meng Zhu quietly looked at the people around her.
This was the grandmother who adored her deeply.
Her gaze shifted toward Chen Rou’s reddened eyes.
This was the mother who treasured her like life itself.
Being loved by family felt wonderful.
In this lifetime, she would protect the people who loved her—and the people she loved.
Wang Cuilian carried Meng Zhu outside.
“Thank heavens Zhuzhu’s alright. Otherwise I would’ve skinned those Zhao family bastards alive! Come on, let’s go back and settle the score with them!”
Back at the Meng household, the villagers were all still gathered there.
The Zhao family sat in the courtyard like intimidating door gods.
The moment she entered, Wang Cuilian glared fiercely at Madam Zhao and spat hard onto the ground beside her.
“You still have the nerve to sit here? Thank goodness my Zhuzhu is fine, otherwise I’d have taken your worthless life!”
Stuffing Meng Zhu into Chen Rou’s arms, Wang Cuilian aggressively lunged forward and grabbed Madam Zhao by the hair.
Li Xiaofang immediately stomped hard on Wang Cuilian’s toes.
Wang Cuilian yelped in pain and released her grip.
“Hmph. That child carries Zhao family blood,” Madam Zhao sneered as she hid behind her sons and fixed her messy hair. “If you want to remarry while taking our Zhao family granddaughter with you, then you’d better compensate us!”
“Your Zhao family is shameless!” Chen Rou shouted furiously.
Her arms tightened around Meng Zhu as her frail body trembled.
If she had known the Zhao family would be this difficult, she never would’ve rushed to snatch Zhao Ming away from Meng Qiucan in the first place.
But things had already reached this point.
Now Chen Rou could only blame her bad luck.
Madam Zhao remained utterly fearless.
“Our Mingzi is dead, and this child is his only bloodline. If I go ask the Public Security Bureau to uphold justice, who do you think they’ll award the child to?”
Meng Zhu tightened her grip around Chen Rou’s neck, glaring angrily at the Zhao family.
Though these people were connected to her by blood, they showed her not even the slightest affection or care.
Instead, they shamelessly wanted to separate her from her mother.
Meng Zhu pressed her lips together tightly.
As a mortal child, she was powerless.
Her only advantage was the knowledge she gained when her memories awakened—she now knew the general direction this world would take over the next thirty years.
Xu Chunhua and Meng Qiushi stood together, casually watching the spectacle unfold.
Meng Wei and Meng Qing had already been sent back into the room by Meng Qiushi to watch over their younger siblings.
With so many people around causing chaos, they didn’t feel safe leaving Meng Yu and Meng Che alone. What if someone took advantage of the confusion to steal a child?
Standing in a corner, Meng Wen quietly observed Meng Qiufeng’s expressions.
His fists clenched tightly.
His father truly cared about Chen Rou and her daughter.
Meng Hong hugged Meng Wen’s arm and whispered resentfully,
“I wish the Zhao family would just take Meng Zhu away.”
Everyone could see how much Wang Cuilian doted on Meng Zhu.
Meng Hong envied and resented it at the same time.
And thinking about her father marrying Chen Rou filled her with resistance.
Meng Zhu enjoyed treatment even the Meng family grandchildren never received.
Nobody liked her.
But under Wang Cuilian’s years of intimidation, no one dared voice those feelings aloud.
Say you disliked Meng Zhu?
Then wait to get beaten by Wang Cuilian.
Meng Wei sat at the desk doing homework while Meng Qing sat at the bedside swinging her legs and crunching crispy fried dough twists.
Her tiny hand cupped beneath the snack as crumbs sprinkled downward nonstop.
Meng Che lay on the bed staring eagerly at Meng Qing eating.
Meng Yu lay on the pillow with her eyes closed, ears perked up as she listened carefully to the commotion outside.
Chen Rou’s voice trembled with sobs as she looked utterly pitiful and wronged.
“What exactly do you people want?”
Seeing her fragile, sorrowful appearance, many people instinctively felt sympathy toward her.
Madam Zhao lifted her brows.
“Either we take the child away—or you pay us money!”
“Well now, what’s going on here? Why’s it so lively?”
A voice suddenly sounded out.
Meng Qiucan had finally arrived late, accompanied by the tall and sturdy Liu Hong.
Chen Rou turned her face away awkwardly, humiliation flashing through her eyes.
Originally she had imagined this first birthday banquet would be glorious and grand.
Who would’ve thought the Zhao family would come ruin everything and make her lose so much face?
Wang Cuilian pulled a long face and glared at Meng Qiucan.
“Shut your mouth!”
Even after being scolded, Meng Qiucan didn’t get angry.
Smiling brightly, she looked between the Zhao family and Chen Rou before bursting into laughter.
“What a fantastic show. Coming today was definitely worth it.”
After speaking, she dragged over a stool and sat beside Xu Chunhua. Casually reaching into Xu Chunhua’s pocket, she grabbed a handful of sunflower seeds and started cracking them open leisurely.
Meng Zhu could clearly sense the intense malice radiating from Meng Qiucan.
Why was she surrounded by so many awful people?