She went back inside and took out the silk scarf that He Hongmei had bought for her yesterday, but when she went outside, she found He Hongmei handing a velvet box to Lin Qingyan.

A gift that can be wrapped in that kind of box must be very valuable, and a watch was the first thing that came to her mind.

He Hongmei is going to give Lin Qingyan a watch? That's not what she initially told me.

What should I do if He Hongmei really gives Lin Qingyan a watch?

All I had was a silk scarf.

On the one hand, she felt that giving a watch as a gift was too expensive and beyond her means.

Secondly, He Hongmei gave Lin Qingyan a watch without permission, while she only gave him a silk scarf, which clearly shows that the second branch of the family was inferior to the first branch.

Lin Qingyan would probably look down on the second branch of the family.

Whether people look down on her or not is one thing, but the key point is that with so many people present, compared to He Hongmei's watch, her silk scarf really doesn't look presentable.

Lin Qingyan has already given him a gift, so it would be even worse if she didn't give Lin Qingyan anything in return.

She was incredibly conflicted and furious that He Hongmei was two-faced and went back on her word.

"Sister-in-law, this gift is too valuable, I can't accept it." Lin Qingyan politely declined the watch offered by He Hongmei.

"What can't be said? It's the first time your sister-in-law met you, and she bought you a gift. You absolutely can't refuse it. Otherwise, you'll be saying that you think the gift your sister-in-law bought is bad."

"But, sister-in-law, I..." Lin Qingyan genuinely felt the gift was too expensive and didn't want Lu Zhengming and his wife to spend so much money.

But since they've already bought it, if I insist on not accepting it, I'd be disrespecting He Hongmei.

"Alright then, sister-in-law, I'll..."

"Wait a minute." Suddenly someone interrupted them. Jiang Xiaoyan was watching as Lin Qingyan was about to accept He Hongmei's gift. If Lin Qingyan accepted it, she would be embarrassed today.

She walked over and looked at He Hongmei angrily: "Sister-in-law, what do you mean? Are you deliberately lying to me to show off in front of your third sister-in-law?"

The day before yesterday, I discussed with you what gift to give my third brother's wife. You said a silk scarf would be fine, but I felt that a silk scarf was too light. However, you insisted that a silk scarf would be okay, so I bought the same silk scarf as you.

But who knew you would secretly buy another watch? You did this just to show off and embarrass us, didn't you?

"Compare your gift to mine, showing off how generous your eldest branch of the family is, how good you are to your third brother and sister-in-law, while making our second branch look stingy. Do you want your third brother and sister-in-law to look down on us and distance themselves from me?"

"No, no, that's not what I meant. Xiaoyan, I originally wanted to give her a silk scarf, but then I realized we have a watch at home, so I thought I'd give it to my third sister-in-law."

"Alright, stop talking nonsense. If you had a watch at home, wouldn't you know? You must have just bought it, He Hongmei, you're so insidious."

"Xiaoyan, it's not like that."

He Hongmei began to secretly blame herself for taking out the watch on a whim.

She should give Jiang Xiaoyan the same gift first, and then give the watch to Lin Qingyan privately.

How could I, who have been so shrewd all my life, have made such a foolish mistake?

She actually wanted her in-laws to see that she had given Lin Qingyan a generous gift, so that they could put in a good word for her with Lin Qingyan in the future.

"Xiaoyan, listen to me, please don't misunderstand your sister-in-law."

"How could I possibly misunderstand you? He Hongmei, you were the one who acted ruthlessly first. If you want to embarrass me, I have to expose your true colors and let my third sister-in-law see that you are an extremely hypocritical person."

Lin Qingyan was speechless. Luckily, she hadn't accepted the watch box. Otherwise, who knows what kind of uproar these two sisters-in-law would have caused.

She secretly rubbed her forehead. She had long heard that having many sisters-in-law meant more trouble. Luckily, he and Lu Zhengting lived in the military area and only came to her house occasionally. If they lived here all the time, there would be chaos every day, and she couldn't stand it.

Lu Zhengming and Lu Zhengqing watched from the side, their expressions not good, especially Lu Zhengming, whose face was as black as the bottom of a pot.

It wasn't because he resented Jiang Xiaoyan, but because he was angry with He Hongmei.

She was outwardly compliant but inwardly defiant, saying one thing to her sister-in-law in public and another behind her back. She was too cunning and disrupted the harmony of the family.

He pulled He Hongmei aside, saying, "You go back inside and stay there."

"Zhengming, I really didn't mean it, you have to believe me."

"Whether it was intentional or not, you have to go back to your room and stay there." So you don't continue to embarrass yourself in public.

Mr. and Mrs. Lu also came out of the kitchen, with Mrs. Lu wielding a spatula.

"Look at all of you! This is Qingyan's first time visiting our home, can't you all just behave yourselves?"

Jiang Xiaoyan immediately protested her innocence: "Mom, this isn't my fault, I'm a victim too. The day before yesterday, my sister-in-law said she wanted to buy the same gift as me to give to my third brother's wife. We agreed that she would give her a silk scarf, but she secretly bought a watch for her instead. Mom, do you think she was deliberately showing off? Was she trying to embarrass our second branch of the family?"

As she spoke, she even started to cry, feeling wronged. "It was something we had agreed on beforehand, but she acted like she was being unreasonable. It makes me seem petty, like I don't like my third sister-in-law."

Lin Qingyan knew that this matter was caused by her, but she didn't know how to persuade Jiang Xiaoyan.

She smiled and said, "Actually, I think silk scarves are great. I really like wearing them, and I buy several every year."

Jiang Xiaoyan's eyes lit up immediately when she heard her words.

"Third sister-in-law, you said you like silk scarves?"

"Yes, and I also like to wear different colored scarves in rotation."

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!