"Guifen, where's Shuiqing? Go and call out, we have guests!" Aunt Zhang shouted with a beaming smile.

Wang Guifen hadn't even realized what was happening yet—a guest?

Li Dani reacted first, turned around and ran into the courtyard gate to call for help.

Wang Guifen walked quickly towards Aunt Zhang. When she got closer and saw the magnificent three-horse carriage in front of her, her eyes widened. She exclaimed, "What a magnificent carriage!"

When the old lady of the Bai family came before, she only traveled in a two-horse carriage. The carriage was exquisite, but no matter how you looked at it, it was not as luxurious and grand as the one in front of you.

However, the Bai family is a very wealthy family, so is the person in front of us also from the Bai family?

She looked at Aunt Zhang and asked casually, "Is it the old lady of the Bai family who has arrived?"

It definitely wouldn't be Master Bai and Madam Bai. Master Bai is low-key and always travels light, while Madam Bai, being a martial artist, is straightforward and efficient, and would rather ride directly on horseback than have a carriage.

The ostentatious carriage before us could only belong to the old lady of the Bai family.

Aunt Zhang, all smiles, shouted in her loud voice, "If the Bai family comes, shouldn't we look for Bai Ziqian first? Look around this crowd, isn't Bai Ziqian there?"

Wang Guifen indeed didn't see Bai Ziqian, only villagers. She became even more curious: "Who is that?"

Which of Shui Qing's relatives and friends could have such a grand style?

Aunt Zhang's smile widened, and she proudly announced, "It's Ling Ran's mother who's here!"

After saying that, he looked around and lowered his voice to say, "Think about it, Shui Qing saved Ling Ran. Before, Ling Ran's father not only saved the lives of our whole village, but also gave so many gifts!"

His mother came over today and said she wants to properly thank Shuiqing. How many gifts do you think we should give Shuiqing?

Aunt Li also came over, her face full of gossip as she guessed, "There's another carriage following behind, could it be full of thank-you gifts?"

They had never seen such a magnificent carriage before. Jade stones hung from the four corners of the carriage, and the top of the carriage was sparkling. Were they gemstones? Good heavens, the governor was different. He was not only rich but also noble!

Wang Guifen was completely bewildered after hearing this, and stammered, "Didn't Ling Ran's mother pass away? Where is her mother now?"

Aunt Zhang and Aunt Li were stunned for a moment before saying, "That's a stepmother? A stepmother is still a mother. Her father was such a high-ranking official; it's common for him to remarry, isn't it?"

Wang Guifen nodded. Unless it's an old widower with no money, he'll marry anyone as long as he has a little bit of money! In the village ahead, the wife is seriously ill and bedridden, and before she even dies, her husband can't wait to bring a widow into the house, just waiting for her to die so he can marry her.

Ling Ran's father is a high-ranking official, so he has even more women he can marry.

However, she couldn't believe it at all: "Would a stepmother treat Ling Ran so well? And even come to thank Shui Qing?"

Aunt Zhang hesitated. She thought, if it were really that good, why would Ling Ran run away?

He's not stupid, but the key is that even if he is stupid, he knows who treats him well and who doesn't! If life is easy, who would want to come out and live a hard life?

Aunt Li opened her mouth, then asked blankly, "Surely not? Ling Ran's father is a high-ranking official, after all. His stepmother has to dote on him. What father doesn't care about his own son?"

Aunt Zhang felt that the old saying "If there's a stepmother, there's a stepfather" was still true, as she had heard and seen several such cases.

Wang Guifen didn't want to think too badly of people. As the carriage walked towards Shuiqing's house, she said, "Let's take a look first. She's probably a young girl. If she's not much different from Ling Ran, I really don't know how she'll act as a stepmother."

Poor old men and women who have lost their wives and have sons can only find old widows with children. But rich and powerful old men are highly sought after, with young and beautiful women readily available. They would never marry an old widow with children.