The person who came was Li Juan.

"Oh! It's Juanzi! I haven't seen you in so long! How are you doing in the village?"

Lin Qingyu, holding the child, looked at Li Juan standing at the door with some surprise.

The two were very close friends when they were young.

However, since she got married, she has rarely seen Li Juan, and she hasn't even heard any news about her.

Li Juan smiled brightly as she walked towards the main room of Lin Qingyu's house.

"I haven't seen you in so long!"

"Oh, Juanzi, wait a minute! I brought my child back to pay respects to our ancestors today, I'll talk to you later."

The two spoke at the same time. Before Li Juan could even step in, Lin Qingyu quickly went over to her, not letting her find a place to stand.

On this day, families typically do not receive guests, and no one will voluntarily visit another's home.

Li Juan simply smiled and left.

The whole process is quick: burn some paper, offer some food, light three incense sticks, and that's it.

Gu Shi knew someone had arrived, but he ignored them. As he got up from the ground, he asked Lin Qingyu.

"Let's take Xiaoyuyu to see my parents!"

Lin Qingyu nodded; it was only right.

She's been there a few times and still remembers the way.

Gu Shi left the main room and then turned to the kitchen, intending to find a knife to clear away the weeds.

Lin Qingyu, holding Gu Jue, stood in the courtyard talking to Li Juan.

She thought Li Juan had already left, but she didn't expect Li Juan to have waited for so long.

"You look pretty good. Are you still in the village?"

Lin Qingyu took the initiative to start a conversation with her, recalling the days when the two of them played together, which felt like it was just yesterday.

Li Juan leaned closer to look at the child in her arms. "They don't live in the village anymore. They've gone to do business with my husband's family outside, but I still come home often."

She reached out and teased Gu Jue, but Gu Jue just looked at Li Juan curiously and didn't react in any special way.

"Hey Juanzi, you've been married for so long, why haven't you had any news about a new relationship?"

Lin Qingyu asked her about the child, but she had heard that Li Juan had married into the family to bring good luck, and her husband's health might not be very good.

Li Juan seemed a little uncomfortable. She waved her hand and said, "Something came up at home, so I've been..."

Just then, Gu Shi came out of the kitchen, carrying a wood-chopping knife.

Li Juan glanced at him, then said goodbye to Lin Qingyu: "Qingyu, I'm going home now. I'll come find you again tomorrow!"

"Okay, I have something to do today and I really can't get away, but I'll definitely have a good talk with you tomorrow."

Lin Qingyu escorted the person to the door and then stood there watching them leave.

Gu Shi followed from behind. He glanced at Gu Jue and noticed that the child was a little drowsy.

"Why don't you take the child home to sleep first, and I'll come back to pick you up after I've packed up?"

Lin Qingyu thought about it and decided that Gu Jue should probably go to sleep, so she agreed.

As soon as the two arrived home, they heard voices coming from the main room, and it was quite noisy.

"Mother! I knew it was them..."

The two people went inside, and the sounds in the room stopped abruptly.

The whole family turned around, some cracking sunflower seeds, some watching the show with their arms crossed, and some pretending to be silly with smiles.

Where is Li Xiuhua?

Lin Qingyu looked around, but she couldn't find her in the main room.

She immediately sensed something was wrong, so she turned around and walked out without looking back, heading straight to the kitchen.

If Zhao Hongxia is going to bully someone, she'll usually send them to the kitchen.

Even if she cries, she still has to cook for her family. As she used to say, "There are no idlers in the family."

As expected, Lin Qingyu saw Li Xiuhua sitting in the corner as soon as she entered the kitchen.

She wasn't cooking, nor was she particularly upset; she just sat blankly on a small stool, her hair disheveled and her clothes slightly rumpled.

Lin Qingyu handed the child in her arms to Gu Shi, not letting him go inside, so Gu Shi obediently stood at the kitchen door.

The people who came out of the main room dared not speak again when they saw Gu Shi.

Lin Juanjuan and the others were whispering something in Zhao Hongxia's ear with their heads down.

The two people inside didn't stay long before coming out.

Lin Qingyu tidied up Li Xiuhua, and she looked much more energetic.

Li Xiuhua kept her eyes straight ahead, walked straight through the crowd, and returned to her house.

Then she came out carrying a package, which was something she had brought home.

At the same time, Lin Qingyu also came out of her small house with her luggage.

No one spoke throughout the entire process. Now that the family sees that the three people are really leaving, even though they've reached the front door, no one says a word.

Zhao Hongxia rushed over anxiously, trying to pull Li Xiuhua along.

"You good-for-nothing, you're living comfortably in the city, aren't you? Don't you want to come home?"

Although Li Xiuhua shook her off, it didn't stop Zhao Hongxia from speaking loudly.

Lin Qingyu couldn't stand the old woman's unreasonable behavior any longer, and she wanted to stand up and start cursing her out.

Gu Shi pulled her aside, shook his head at her, and whispered, "Don't be angry, calm down first!"

At this point, no matter what Lin Qingyu says or does anything impulsively, it will be unreasonable.

So Lin Qingyu paused for a moment.

"Say something! Are you mute? Or have you lost your voice from having affairs in the city?"

Lin Qingyu couldn't stand it. Her mother was so old, yet Zhao Hongxia was saying such hurtful things to her.

Moreover, the neighbors have already started to come out to watch the commotion. Regardless of whether this matter is true or not, if Li Xiuhua appears in Lihua Village in the future, all that will accompany her will be the affair.

People won't care whether your rumors are true or not; they'll just spread them everywhere and care only about their own happiness.

She sighed heavily, crossed her arms, and looked at her relatives with a forced smile.

"My grandfather died young. I don't know how you've managed all these years. Do you understand this deeply, which is why you say such things about my mother?"

Zhao Hongxia didn't react at first, but Lin Juanjuan pointed at Lin Qingyu and cursed at her.

"How dare you talk like that? She's your grandma! How can you act like a granddaughter? Accusing your grandma of having an affair."

Lin Qingyu scoffed, "So what? Does being a mother-in-law give you the right to accuse your daughter-in-law of having an affair? Third Aunt, does your mother-in-law often say things like that to you?"

"You, you!"

Lin Juanjuan was furious, and Zhao Hongxia was even more so; she was about to unleash her trump card.

Seeing that the person was about to sit on the ground, Lin Qingyu quickly pointed to the cement ground and shouted.

"Oh dear, who's so inconsiderate as to spill nails on the ground?"

The noise from the group was unbearable for Gu Jue, and it was only after Gu Shi held and rocked the child that he finally managed to fall asleep.

Upon hearing the sound, Zhao Hongxia immediately stopped sitting down. She even looked back, but due to her poor eyesight, she couldn't see anything.