If this were in City B, even if Jiang Moli knew that Old Mrs. Zheng was faking it, she would still comfort her, because it's not easy for a widow and her child.

This time was different. Holding her injured daughter in her arms, she was extremely anxious and asked Zheng's mother directly, "Mom, do you know about the wound on Zhenzhen's head?"

She had just figured out what was smeared on Zhenzhen's wound—it was cow dung!

Jiang Moli had seen Zheng's mother use such supposedly effective folk remedies at home and on herself and Zhenzhen more than once. Logically speaking, since the folk remedies were as effective as she claimed, they should have been used on her most beloved son, Zheng Heping, but she didn't.

When Zheng Heping caught a cold, she would cook ginger soup for him and advise him to avoid taking medicine or getting an IV drip, saying that medicine is three parts poison and it's best to avoid taking medicine.

Let's not even talk about how they treat Jiang Moli, since her daughter-in-law is from another family. Let's talk about Zhenzhen. She's still Old Madam Zheng's own granddaughter. As soon as she coughs, they immediately force her to drink cough medicine. If the child complains about the taste of the medicine, they will force it down her throat.

Later, Zheng Heping discovered this forced medication and spoke to Old Mrs. Zheng, which stopped her from continuing.

Jiang Moli was unaware of Zheng's mother's actions until Zheng Heping accidentally let it slip.

Zheng's mother showed no remorse for Jiang Moli's question. She rolled her eyes at Jiang Moli and said dismissively, "Why are you making such a fuss? A little girl has just scraped her skin. Is it worth making such a big deal out of it?"

Jiang Moli had known for a long time that Zheng's mother disliked Zhenzhen, but she never expected that she not only disliked her, but also hated her.

She sniffed, stopped arguing with Zheng's mother, and ran towards the village hospital with Zhenzhen in her arms.

The so-called village hospital was actually just a very small building with a barefoot doctor inside. He couldn't worry about the immediate situation; he had to prevent Zhenzhen's wound from getting infected so that it wouldn't leave a scar.

The barefoot doctor did not make things difficult for Zhenzhen just because she was Old Mrs. Zheng's daughter-in-law, and treated her wounds very carefully.

After the cow dung was removed, the wound was exposed to the air and came into Jasmine's view. She saw the deep wound on Zhenzhen's forehead, so deep that the bone was almost visible. Tears that she had been holding back for a long time finally became uncontrollable and streamed down her face.

The barefoot doctor looked a few years older than Mrs. Zheng and was a native of the village. When he was disinfecting Zhenzhen's wound, he looked up at Jiang Moli and asked her, "Do you feel uncomfortable being a daughter-in-law of the Zheng family?"

Jiang Moli hugged Zhenzhen tightly and answered the barefoot doctor's question with silence.

The barefoot doctor didn't say anything more, sighed, and started working.

He felt sorry for her and Zhenzhen and used all the available materials. Because they were delivered late and the cow dung had caused inflammation, Zhenzhen would definitely have a scar on her forehead. The only thing he could do was to stitch up the wound and try to make the scar as small as possible.

By the time Jiang Moli carried Zhenzhen back to the Zheng family's old house, it was already past 8 p.m.

There was only one street lamp in the village, and the light wasn't very bright, making it look a bit scary, especially for Zhenzhen, who had grown up in the city. She clung to Jiang Moli's back and whispered, "Mommy, I'm so scared. Why did we come here for the New Year?"

Why spend the Chinese New Year in this unfamiliar place?

Jiang Moli knew very well that she didn't want to ruin the child's impression of her grandmother, considering how Zheng's mother treated Zhenzhen. "Zhenzhen, the reason we came here for the New Year is because your father grew up here. Your grandfather passed away early, and it wasn't easy for your grandmother to raise your father alone. Sometimes, your grandmother has a bad temper. In the future, if we see your grandmother in a bad mood, we should quickly hide or stay away from her."

Although Zhenzhen is only three years old, because of Zheng's mother's perpetually grumpy face, Zheng Heping has gradually stopped playing with her as much as before. She nodded sensibly and told Jiang Moli, "Mom, I understand."

As if remembering something, she pressed her little face against Jiang Moli's back and asked in a soft, childish voice, "Mommy, are you cold? Why don't you get down and walk?"

Jiang Moli faced the night wind and silently shed two lines of tears. "Zhenzhen, Mommy isn't cold. Don't go to sleep, or you'll catch a cold. Doesn't Mommy's good baby love listening to Mommy tell stories? Be good and don't go to sleep. Mommy will tell you a story."

The mother and daughter slowly walked towards the Zheng family's house at the westernmost end of the village. Their two figures, one big and one small, appeared indescribably desolate and lonely to onlookers.

Soon, Jiang Moli was very glad that Zhenzhen had fallen asleep on her back and that she had taken her into her arms, because there was a loud noise coming from the village chief's house.

Don't underestimate the village chief just because he's only the head of a village. Compared to district heads or mayors, he's a tiny official. But in a village, the village chief is the absolute power holder. Even as the economy develops and more and more villagers become wealthy, the village chief's words still carry considerable authority.

The noise coming from the village chief's house was alarming. The villagers, who had been sleeping with their lights off, turned on their lights and rushed to the village chief's house, still wearing their clothes.

Jiang Moli didn't want to go, but her neighbor who lived next door to Zheng Heping called out to her, "Zheng's daughter-in-law, come over here quickly!"

Jiang Moli wasn't one to join in the fun; she only went because her neighbor had invited her, and she felt obliged to go out of politeness.

As soon as she reached the village chief's house, several people came out. She didn't even need to look closely; with her years of experience living under the same roof, she could easily spot Zheng's mother in a glance.

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