Seeing Zhou Shuhua's cautious and timid manner, as if afraid of upsetting her, Zhou Qiqi felt a lump in her throat, a mix of sourness and inexplicable...irritation.

She took a deep breath, suppressing her inner turmoil, and tried to speak in a calm tone:

"Thank you for today."

She said it somewhat dryly, but it was truly from the bottom of her heart.

Regardless, Zhou Shuhua did indeed help a lot just now, even though she ended up in a mess.

Zhou Shuhua was flattered and quickly waved her hand, saying, "No need to thank me, no need to thank me, it's nothing..."

Zhou Qiqi paused, looked away, and added a sentence, trying to make the conversation less awkward:

"Also... you took them out to relax for the past few days, thank you for that too."

The day before, Zhou Qiqi had asked Lei Yuhua if there were any tickets for a performance by a cultural troupe, hoping to find a way to take the Shen family elders out for a relaxing trip.

But to my surprise, Zhou Shuhua arrived early the next day.

Not only on that day, but in the days that followed, Zhou Shuhua arranged most of the elderly couple's activities.

She was busy at the factory, and she felt quite at ease leaving her parents in Zhou Shuhua's care, which really saved her a lot of trouble.

"It's not hard at all! Not hard at all!"

Zhou Shuhua quickly responded, her tone urgent and sincere.

"I'm retired and don't have much to do at home, so I'm happy to be able to accompany Sister Peilan and Brother Shen around! Really!"

"Besides, the first time I saw He Wanrou, she kept calling me 'Brother Huaichuan,' and I immediately felt she wasn't a decent person. I won't let her ruin your relationship with Huaichuan..."

Zhou Shuhua talked for a long time, but Zhou Qiqi only responded with a simple, "Really? Thank you..."

That's really strange.

Previously, when the two were at odds and clashing, Zhou Qiqi could handle the situation with a cold face and didn't feel embarrassed at all.

But now, with the atmosphere showing even the slightest sign of easing, she felt incredibly uncomfortable, unsure of what to do with her hands and feet.

She can speak fluently in front of strangers, but when facing this aunt with whom she has a special relationship, her only living relative, she doesn't know how to start a conversation.

Human emotions are sometimes the strangest and most unpredictable things.

Zhou Qiqi didn't know how to deal with this situation, so she didn't say anything more, just nodded hurriedly and turned to go back into the house.

She had assumed that inside the house, Shen Huaichuan would be explaining the whole story of the farce that had just happened to his parents.

But as soon as I stepped inside, I found the main room to be quiet.

Shen Huaichuan sat to one side, blowing on the steam rising from his teacup.

Shen Zhenbang held his teacup, gazing out the window in a daze.

Qin Peilan was somewhat distracted as she tidied up the two boxes of pastries on the coffee table.

Clearly, without her mediation, this family, bound by blood, didn't know how to get along naturally.

Their interactions seem to be mostly silent.

Zhou Qiqi's appearance instantly broke the silence.

She quickly stepped forward, naturally sat down next to Qin Peilan, gently patted her back, and asked with concern:

"Mom, how are you feeling? You weren't upset about what happened earlier, were you? What's done is done, don't take it to heart or overthink it. Your health is the most important thing."

She knew that Qin Peilan had a heart condition and was most afraid of emotional excitement.

Feeling her daughter-in-law's concern, Qin Peilan immediately snapped out of her daze, a relieved smile appearing on her face. She patted Zhou Qiqi's hand in return and said:

"It's okay, it's okay! Qiqi, don't worry! I was angry for a moment, but strangely enough, my chest doesn't feel as tight and suffocating as it used to. It just felt... a little stuffy and then it passed. I feel much better now!"

Shen Zhenbang, who was standing next to him, put down his teacup and chimed in, his tone carrying a rare hint of ease:

"I think it's because you've been in a good mood lately, always cheerful, unlike before when you were always worrying about your illness. When you're in a good mood, all your ailments naturally disappear, and your body isn't so delicate anymore."

"Yes, yes, yes! Old Shen, you're right!"

Qin Peilan nodded repeatedly, smiling as she looked at Zhou Qiqi, her eyes filled with love and gratitude.

"Oh, it's all thanks to Qiqi! Ever since Qiqi came, life at home has become more and more enjoyable, and my heart is filled with joy every day!"

As she spoke, as if remembering something, her tone softened, tinged with a hint of apology:

"Qiqi, just now... Mom has to thank you. Thank you for considering the bigger picture and understanding your parents' difficulties. You didn't insist on going to extremes. But your aunt is right, this matter... made you feel wronged."

Zhou Qiqi was taken aback by her mother-in-law's words.

She wasn't being considerate at all; she clearly had ulterior motives, wanting to play the long game and catch a big fish.

However, she couldn't reveal the truth about the investigation into the drugs at the moment, so she could only give a vague smile and brush the matter aside.

Fortunately, the family members were all in sync and, seeing that Zhou Qiqi seemed unwilling to talk about the topic, they didn't delve into it further.

That unpleasant farce seemed to have been put on hold.

Shen Huaichuan then stood up, tugged at Zhou Qiqi's arm, and whispered:

"Let's go, the bathroom is still a mess, we need to clean it up."

Shen Huaichuan pulled Zhou Qiqi into the bathroom and quickly closed the door behind them.

The anger and nausea he had been suppressing outside suddenly surged up all at once. His brows furrowed tightly as he asked:

"Qiqi, what exactly happened? Tell me clearly right now!"

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