Zhou Nianmei rolled her eyes at her, "Do I need to tell you if I'm going to my mother-in-law's house for dinner? I advise you to mind your own business. If you piss me off, believe me, I'll smash your stove."

Chen Chunfeng wanted to say something, but his eldest son, who had rushed over, pulled him back, apologizing to Xu Minghan as he did so.

Xu Minghan ignored them and went straight into the house.

Once inside, it was quiet; no one spoke.

Xu Panpan looked at her father, then at her grandmother, and asked softly, "Where's Mommy? Where did Mommy go?"

Although Zhou Nianmei disliked Zhang Xuemei before, she had no problem with her little niece; on the contrary, she quite liked her.

So he poured all the wild berries from the basket into a bowl, rinsed them with water, and said, “Take them and go play with your two older brothers.”

Xu Panpan, carrying her small stainless steel bowl, skipped and ran outside without asking her mother.

"Sister-in-law, Xuemei, she..."

Zhou Nianmei glanced at the open door, and Chen Fengjuan wisely stood guard at the door so that she could see anyone coming immediately.

"It's hidden in the field outside the road, the same place where Dingwen hid it before, do you remember?"

Xu Minghan remembered it as soon as his sister-in-law mentioned it, and quickly nodded and said, "I know, that's the place the kids love to go."

In the past, during busy farming seasons, no one had time to stay home and take care of their children. They would just take them directly to the fields and let them play on the side.

That one time, my nephew disappeared while playing, which worried my sister-in-law terribly. She thought he had fallen down!

So even after all these years, Xu Minghan still remembers that place.

"Good to know. Find some free time and go take Xue Mei away. Don't let her stay at home. That old woman from the Chen family is keeping an eye on the house!"

Zhou Nianmei was really annoyed by that old woman. She was a woman too, and she couldn't understand each other at all.

Moreover, if she does too many immoral things, retribution will come; let's see if she can escape it.

Xu Minghan nodded; that was exactly what he was thinking. He then looked at his mother and said, "Mom, I'll go find Xuemei later and leave immediately. I won't be back for the next few months. Panpan, please keep an eye on things for me!"

Granny Liu waved her hand, "Go on, go on. You don't need to worry about the family. Just take good care of Xue Mei and her son."

Xu Minghan didn't refute the claim that it was a mother and daughter. Anyway, once they were born, they would be raised outside the family. This time, he would never give them away.

"Where are you planning to go? You're not thinking of going to Xue Mei's parents' house, are you? Let me tell you, it's the same there. People often report you there. It's not safe."

Zhou Nianmei has a close friend who married into a family in Shilitou. She ran into her friend when she went back to her parents' home a while ago and heard a lot about her.

"We won't go ten miles away, we'll go somewhere farther away." Xu Minghan didn't specify where they were going.

Of course, Zhou Nianmei didn't intend to pry. She simply nodded and reminded him, "Then keep an eye on things later. Granny Chen is definitely watching from there!"

"Yes, thank you, sister-in-law and second sister-in-law. I'll give you both a red envelope after Xue Mei gives birth safely. We really owe you a lot today."

"I'm a pitiful child too, you should all leave now! You're just causing trouble for us at home."

Fearing he would be exposed, Xu Minghan made sure to have lunch at home before going out.

"You're not even taking your clothes?" Granny Liu called out to her third son as he prepared to leave empty-handed.

Xu Minghan shook his head. "If I bring this, people will immediately know I'm up to something. Forget it, I'll just buy it over there!"

After hearing this, Granny Liu didn't say anything more. She just put a few egg pancakes she had made herself into a plastic bag. "Take these with you. Xue Mei didn't eat lunch and she's pregnant. Don't let her go hungry."

Xu Minghan took the pancake and stuffed it into his pocket; it fit perfectly.

As soon as I stepped out, I saw Chen Chunfeng holding a bowl, squatting on the bridgehead, eating and looking at the Xu family.

The Xu family's old house is located right at the entrance to the village, and there is a small bridge outside.

Xu Minghan glanced at her, but didn't take it seriously and continued to walk out of the village.

Chen Chunfeng quickly stood up and called out, "Hey, Xu family's third son, where are you going?"

"Why should I tell you? You're not my mother, you're really nosy."

"Hmph, I'm going to see if you've gone to find your wife. Who knows where you've hidden her?"

Xu Minghan ignored her and walked out of the village on his own. If she had the guts, she could follow him. He was afraid of no one.

Seeing Xu Minghan walking away, Chen Chunfeng followed him a few steps, shouting as he went, "If you keep doing this, I'm going to make a phone call, you..."

"Oh dear, whose calf has run away? Come quick!"

Chen Chunfeng originally wanted to follow Xu Minghan, but when he heard that the calf had run away, he quickly turned around and ran back.

"Hey, is that my house? Which way did it run off to? Help me chase after it!"

Zhou Nianmei shrugged. "How would I know if it's yours? Look for yourself."

Chen Chunfeng glared at Zhou Nianmei, then hurriedly ran to his own cowshed. When he saw that the place where the calves were kept was indeed empty, he slapped his thigh and exclaimed, "Damn it! Who let my cows escape? They have no conscience at all!"

Then, turning her head, she saw Zhou Nianmei looking gloating, walking aggressively up to her and demanding in a gruff voice, "Did you open the door?"

Zhou Nianmei took a few steps back and waved her hand, "What does this have to do with me? Maybe you just didn't close your door properly!"

"Hurry up and go find the cow! I saw it run up the mountain over there; be careful it doesn't fall down!"

Having no other choice, Chen Chunfeng put down the bowl in his hand and immediately ran in the direction Zhou Nianmei pointed.

Zhou Nianmei spat in Chen Chunfeng's direction and muttered, "It was me who did it, what can you do about it? Humph, serves you right." Then she turned and walked towards the old house.

"You released the people and the cattle?" Granny Liu had already heard the commotion outside, and she knew who had done it as soon as she saw the scene.

"Yeah, who told her to stop the third son? She's utterly shameless." Zhou Nianmei didn't hide it from her mother-in-law, knowing her mother-in-law wouldn't go around telling others anyway.

"Alright, don't do this again. Let it go this time."

Granny Liu was also very angry about Granny Chen's actions. They were all from the same village, and this was truly immoral. She wondered who would dare to associate with them in the future.

"Then we have to be careful with our cows, in case Granny Liu tries something bad too!" Zhou Nianmei was also a little worried about her cows at this moment.

In the village, the cowsheds of families with cattle are all built together in one place, constructed of stones covered with mud, one next to the other, without any locks, just secured with wooden sticks.

"Now you're worried?" Granny Liu glanced at her, but then, remembering that she meant well, she reassured her, "Don't worry, I'll have your dad put a lock on it, it'll just be a little troublesome."

"Why lock it?" Xu Hongshan, who had just returned from working in the fields, walked barefoot into the house, leaving a trail of wet footprints on the muddy ground behind him.