Li Jin'e pushed forward, looking at her with her eyelids, "What? Am I wrong?"

"Yes!!!" A loud "Yes!" echoed in unison from the courtyard.

Zhou Pan could only glare at him helplessly.

As soon as Grandma Wu stepped outside the courtyard gate, she heard a commotion inside and wondered what was going on.

Turning her head, she saw Hao Ren, who had entered right after her. The two exchanged a glance, and Old Lady Wu clearly saw a hint of apology in his eyes.

Why apologize for nothing?

As Hao Ren passed by her, he nodded, then strode in, pushing through the crowd. Just as Old Lady Wu followed him in, Zhou Pandi's wailing rang out.

"Hao Ren! I really have nothing to do with him. Don't listen to these people's jeers. Are you even neighbors? No outsiders would do something like adding fuel to the fire!"

While wailing, Zhou Pandi explained to Hao Ren, "I meant well today. Yes, I'm sorry to Wu Mingxia, so I couldn't bear to see her son jump into a fire pit and marry a used woman, so I came to give her son a word of advice."

“That’s all. I talked to their family while standing in the yard, without even stepping on the threshold.”

The intense gazes from those around him made Hao Ren's face flush red with embarrassment. "Stop talking nonsense! What did you promise me before you went home? What are you doing now?"

Old Mrs. Wu glanced around the room past Zhou Pandi at the door, her gaze lingering on Li Jin'e for a moment.

He then turned around and slapped the incessantly chattering Zhou Pandi, before having Wang Huijun bring three steamed buns from the kitchen and hand them to Zhou Pandi.

"These three steamed buns are to thank you for coming all this way to tell us those rotten things that my son has no idea about."

Zhou Pandi covered her face, broke free from Hao Ren's grasp, and angrily said, "What about that slap just now!"

Old Mrs. Wu sneered, "It's to teach you a lesson for causing trouble at my doorstep!"

"I meant well...!"

Grandma Wu seemed to understand something, then slowly raised the hand that had just slapped her face. "Well, I noticed your face is asymmetrical, so I'm just trying to help you out, okay?"

Zhou Pandi snatched the steamed bun from Wang Huijun's bowl and darted behind Hao Ren, shouting, "You dare!"

Old Mrs. Wu's lips twitched, and she quickly waved for Wang Huijun and Li Jin'e to close the door. This stupid thing of hers still dared to come and provoke people. She couldn't even understand how to provoke them.

Hao Ren blushed and immediately dragged Zhou Pandi home.

Seeing his parents return home, Hao Fugui, who had been hiding in the crowd, lowered his head and slipped along the wall to go home as well.

As soon as Old Lady Wu turned around, Huang Xiaofu's eyes were red and he looked at her expectantly, "Mom..."

Grandma Wu reached out and pushed him away with one finger. "Alright, I'm hungry. Hurry up and prepare the meal."

Huang Mancang immediately responded, "The food was prepared a long time ago, I'll go get it right away."

......

Grandma Wu patted her round belly, her face beaming with joy. It felt so good to be full and satisfied. She knew she would have to cook for herself when she went to the countryside.

She can cook, but she can't cook it this well.

He opened his eyes and glanced at the brothers Huang Xiaofu and Huang Xiaoqiang, who were wolfing down their food, then smiled with narrowed eyes.

The Huang brothers were startled and looked up to see Old Lady Wu looking at them with a kind expression.

Zhou Pandi's little incident did not cause any ripples in the Huang family. Huang Xiaofu initially felt angry, sad, and incredulous, but all his emotions disappeared the moment he saw Old Lady Wu standing in front of him.

He felt at ease when his mother was around.

On the other side, at the Hao family's house, Hao Fugui looked at the three white steamed buns on the table and couldn't help but swallow his saliva. A moment later, Zhou Pandi brought in the stir-fried dishes.

Hao Fugui snatched it away, first scooping most of the plate into his own bowl, then grabbing two steamed buns and wolfing them down.

Zhou Pan looked at Hao Fugui, whose face was swollen on one side, and said with heartache, "Eat slowly, eat slowly, no one is going to take it from you."

Looking at the white steamed buns on the table, I felt it was unfair. These three big white steamed buns were taken out by Old Mrs. Wu without any hesitation. It was obvious that she was used to eating the best food.

Who else in the whole compound is as extravagant as them? They're always cooking stewed meat or dumplings, eating all sorts of different things. They're going to eat their family out of house and home!

Hao Fugui quickly stuffed two steamed buns into his mouth, then noticed the half-eaten bun left on the table. He glanced up at Zhou Pandi, his eyes darting around.

"Mom, you're not going to eat it, are you? Then I'll eat it."

Zhou Pan exclaimed "Ah!" and then looked again to see that the remaining half of the steamed bun had already gone into Hao Fugui's mouth. She was about to open her mouth and say, "Mom isn't hungry, you eat it."

The next second, my stomach started rumbling.

Hao Ren finished off the remaining half-steamed bun and half-plate of stir-fried vegetables.

Zhou Pan stared at the empty plates and bowls on the table, swallowing hard. Just as her mind was starting to wander, Hao Fugui clutched his stomach and said, "Dad, Mom, how's it going with my trip to the countryside? Can I not go?"

Hao Ren paused in wiping his mouth, then said, "I've inquired about it; it's a nationwide issue. There's no way to avoid it."

What! This means he has to go?

But he heard it would be very tough. With his small frame, would he be able to come back alive?

Hao Fugui's face turned pale, and he said in a trembling voice, "Dad, Mom, I can't go. If I go to the countryside, will I be able to come back alive?"

Hao Ren waved his hand, "What kind of talk is that? Dad also came from the countryside, how hard could it have been?"

"As long as you bring enough money and food stamps, and don't starve yourself, you can still manage."

As soon as he finished speaking, he saw Hao Fugui staring at him expectantly.

Hao Renqing cleared his throat. "Your mother manages all the money in the house. Ask her."

Zhou Pandi froze, opened her mouth, but couldn't utter a word for a long time.

Hao Fugui looked at Zhou Pandi expectantly, but when she remained silent for a long time, he became dissatisfied. "Mom, I'm your only son. You won't be reluctant to part with me, will you?"

Although Hao Ren has been mostly dissatisfied with Zhou Pandi lately, she cherishes her son Hao Fugui dearly.

"How can you say that about your mother? Don't you realize how your mother treats you?"

After saying that, he turned to look at Zhou Pandi and said, "Alright, over the years, my salary and the twenty-five yuan you earned a month at the textile factory have accumulated quite a bit. Keep it for our food expenses, and give the rest to him."

Hearing that this was a lot of money, Hao Fugui's eyes lit up as he stared at Zhou Pan, whose face was stiff.

Gradually, the father and son realized something was wrong. Hao Ren nudged Zhou Pan to look at him, his brows furrowed. "Where's the money?"

Zhou Pandi seemed to lose her voice for a moment, unable to utter a single word for a long time.

Hao Fugui, who was standing nearby, was also anxious. "Mom, please speak up! Where's the money? How can I go to the countryside without money!"

Seeing Hao Ren's clenched fists, Zhou Pandi's heart skipped a beat, and she slowly opened her mouth, "You two, listen to me..."

Hao Ren hadn't noticed before, but now that he was looking at Zhou Pan, he saw her eyes darting around and her guilty expression, and his heart sank.