Time flies, and it was already late July. Ye Qingqing had been back for more than half a month.

As the weather gets hotter, the cicadas outside the window chirp incessantly, almost unbearably. When I'm in a good mood, it sounds like beautiful music, but when I'm in a bad mood, it's just annoying noise.

"It hurts...it hurts so much...tell them to stop crying..."

Ye Hua lay on the bed shouting and yelling, her upper body naked. The wound on her back did not seem to be getting better; in fact, it had become more serious, with the wounds starting to fester and ooze pus.

Shen Yanhong didn't go to work today. Like Ye Zhiguo, she works in logistics support, which means she doesn't have weekends and can only take time off in lieu of work.

"Mom will fan you, and the pain will go away when it cools down!"

Shen Yanhong felt as if her heart was being torn apart. She couldn't understand why it hadn't healed yet; surely it should have scabbed over by now!

But now, it seems to be more serious. She took Ye Hua to the factory hospital, where the doctor prescribed medicine, but it didn't seem to be very effective. Ye Hua was in pain from morning till night and couldn't sleep well.

"It hurts... Mom... It hurts so much..."

Shen Yanhong fanned Ye Tong a few times with a palm-leaf fan, but it did nothing to relieve Ye Tong's pain. The wound on his back was excruciatingly painful. Ye Tong had never suffered such torment in his life, and he was in so much pain that he just wanted to give up on life.

"Mom...it hurts so much...I'm going to die..."

"Nonsense...Pah, pah, pah, good luck...Don't talk nonsense. Mom will make you your favorite shrimp later. Your second sister bought it this morning. It's very fresh."

Shen Yanhong was suspicious. During this period, Ye Qingqing often bought groceries to bring home. She would buy chickens, shrimp, and sometimes eels, all of which were very nutritious foods. When she ate them, she would intentionally give them to Ye Hua, and the brat didn't say anything.

Unlike before, when her nose and face didn't look like noses or faces.

Shen Yanhong guessed that the brat probably felt bad because Xiao Hua was so badly injured!

Even if that brat buys ginseng and abalone, she will never forgive her for beating her son so badly; she'll remember that debt!

Sooner or later, this brat will be reduced to begging!

Upon hearing that there were prawns, Ye Hua's eyes lit up instantly, and she forgot her pain. "I want to eat them... They're all mine, I won't let that idiot eat them!"

"Keep your voice down, don't let your second sister hear you, or you'll get another beating, won't you?"

Shen Yanhong was startled and quickly covered her son's mouth. Ye Qingqing was still at home. They had finally had a few days of peace and quiet, and they couldn't afford to provoke that brat again!

Ye Hua shuddered and shut his mouth in a huff. He was terrified of Ye Qingqing and wouldn't dare to provoke her!

At lunchtime, Ye Zhiguo rode his bike home. Shen Yanhong had already prepared the meal: salt and pepper shrimp, winter melon and pork rib soup, stir-fried shredded pork with green peppers, garlic eggplant with garlic sauce, stir-fried snails, and a bowl of steamed stinky tofu with stinky amaranth stems.

This soup is famous for its stench. Stinky tofu is already incredibly smelly, but stinky amaranth stems are even more so. When the two are steamed together, the stench is overwhelming, filling the entire house with a foul odor.

When the weather gets hot, Shen Yanhong would go to the countryside to buy several large bundles of amaranth stalks, chop them into sections, soak them in water for a few days, and then put them in a jar to ferment and become smelly. This is the infamous stinky amaranth stalks, which are even smellier than stinky tofu.

This dish is Ye Zhiguo's favorite, and he eats it every summer. Ye Lan and her brother also love it, and even Ye Tong likes it. Only Ye Qingqing can't stand the smell of it; it makes her feel nauseous.

"It stinks! Dad, can you please stop eating this? This kind of pickled vegetable is bad for your health!" Ye Qingqing covered her nose and complained.