Nine o'clock in the morning.

Ling Huanwu stared at the flames leaping high in the stove, her beautiful eyebrows furrowing into a knot.

Chu Mei stood on the threshold with her arms crossed, slowly cracking sunflower seeds as she spoke, "I heard you used to be a capitalist's daughter? Young ladies like you are so precious, you treat starting a fire like burning money. If that half-bundle of firewood could talk, it would be crying and protesting its innocence!"

Ling Huanwu had no interest in listening to her sarcastic remarks and hurriedly stuffed firewood into the stove.

Unexpectedly, a spark suddenly flew out, scalding her so much that she jumped back three feet, and the blue cloth trousers she had just bought in Hong Kong were stained with a black stain.

"Aunt Chu, I really have something urgent..." Before she could finish speaking, the clay pot that was being stewed in the large iron pot suddenly started to bubble up, and the soup foam dripped down the edge of the pot into the large iron pot. The bottom of the large iron pot, which was almost dry, sizzled.

Chu Mei jumped up with a "whoosh," spitting sunflower seed shells onto the ground. "Are you trying to stew a duck or fry the stove? Low heat! I told you to use low heat! Do you think this is a Western restaurant making coffee?"

Ling Huanwu quickly moved the small stool next to the stove, intending to squat down and adjust the air damper. Unexpectedly, her ankle hooked onto the pile of firewood, and she fell forward, landing right on the handle of the spatula on the stove.

This press had a significant effect; the spatula was placed right on the plate of pancakes that Zhou Jiuzhen had fried that morning.

With a loud crash, the plate was pried off the spot and flew into the air. It spun around on the stove, and several pieces of flatbread landed squarely on Chu Mei's head.

Chu Mei stared upwards at the fried dough cake covering her head, pointing at her for a long time without saying a word, "You, you little brat! I think you didn't come here to make soup, but to amuse yourself by making me angry, right?"

Ling Huanwu was also getting anxious. She remembered that the boat that usually takes one trip a month from the island to the inland shore departs at 10 o'clock, and it was almost 9 o'clock now. She simply couldn't afford to wait any longer.

If she misses the boat, she'll have to spend money to hire a fishing boat.

She hurriedly rolled up her sleeves and started tidying up: "Don't be angry, I'll tidy it up right away, I'll keep an eye on the heat!"

As he spoke, he ran into the crowd outside the family compound. Not noticing the soup stains under his feet, he slipped and fell on his bottom with a "plop." The enamel basin in his hand flew out and landed right on Chu Mei's head, who was still furious.

Chu Mei flapped her wings and screamed like an angry old hen.

Looking at the mess on the ground, and then at Chu Mei, who was grimacing with an enamel basin on her head, Ling Huanwu felt guilty but couldn't help but laugh at her appearance. She comforted her, saying, "Aunt Chu, I really have something urgent. I'll make that duck soup later, and I'll definitely make it for you and Jiuzhen next time!"

After she finished speaking, she grabbed her canvas bag, turned around and ran away, afraid that she would be dragged back and scolded for not serving her husband water to wash his feet.

Chu Mei flung aside the enamel basin and flatbread on her head, her face contorted with rage, all traces of her former elegance gone.

This hideous face was seen by Zhou Shuyao, who happened to be there to settle scores with Chu Mei. He was so frightened that he cried out "Oh my god!" and took several steps back.

"Isn't this the commander's wife, who's supposedly from a scholarly family but is actually the simple-minded daughter of a landlord? Why does she look so fierce! Tsk tsk, so she's the face of a wicked mother-in-law who mistreats her daughter-in-law!"

Zhou Shuyao immediately confronted her without any politeness.

Chu Mei was already so angry with Ling Huanwu that she could hardly breathe, and when she heard the mockery from the young man with the pointed mouth and monkey cheeks in front of her, she was so angry that she almost fainted.

"Who are you calling a wicked mother-in-law? Explain yourself!"

"I'm talking about you! You heartless scorpion! I heard you didn't care about your daughter-in-law's life or death, but donated blood to your two sons, causing her to faint. Have you no shame?"

As the two of them talked, all the women in the residential compound who were at home started peeking out to gossip.

As more and more people gathered, Chu Mei's face turned bright red. She hadn't expected that anyone would know about this.

She subconsciously assumed that Ling Huanwu had told the truth, and in her heart she had already cursed Ling Huanwu to the core.

Although Chu Mei's family wasn't wealthy, both her parents were teachers. When she was little, she was the precious darling of her landlord grandfather, and she was no match for Zhou Shuyao in an argument.

Zhou Shuyao's outburst left the women in the family compound completely bewildered, and their gazes toward the commander's wife began to shift.

Finally, Chu Mei could no longer bear the stares of the crowd, covered her face, and ran away with small, quick steps.

*

In the city.

Ling Huanwu went to the supply and marketing cooperative that used to sell sewing machines to ask why they hadn't supplied any. However, the cooperative completely changed its attitude towards her, coldly saying that they had no stock and then refused to serve her anymore.

Confused, she went to several supply and marketing cooperatives but couldn't buy a single sewing machine belt.

Having no other option, she went to the city's only state-owned airport in hopes of buying some sewing machine parts.

To her surprise, she was kicked out as soon as she filled in her name at the security office.

After wandering around the city without getting the goods, she had no choice but to swallow her pride and ask Director He for help.

But just then, my colleagues in the office said that Director He wasn't at work today.

So she had no choice but to find a guesthouse she knew to stay at first.

Living in a cramped guesthouse, she was terrified when she went out to use the toilet in the middle of the night and was scared out of her wits by passing rats.

Thinking back, she realized that in her haste to leave, she hadn't left a note for Zhou Jiuzhen.

Thinking about how he went home and couldn't find her, and then went around asking about her whereabouts, she couldn't help but feel annoyed.

After tossing and turning all night, Ling Huanwu went to the supply and marketing cooperative office early in the morning to wait for Director He, hoping he could help her.

If she still doesn't realize that someone is deliberately targeting her at this point, she's a fool.

Moreover, the other party must be someone of great importance, otherwise so many people wouldn't deliberately target their small cooperative.

In the office, after learning the purpose of her visit, Director He closed the office door with a serious expression. "The day before yesterday afternoon, our supply and marketing cooperative staff went to the machine factory to get sewing machine parts, but they were kept behind for a meeting. It seems to be targeting you, deliberately refusing to sell to your cooperative."

Ling Huanwu's heart sank. "Who is this person? Could it be Zhao Jingxiang?"

Director He shook his head. "I'm afraid he doesn't have that much influence."

He then lowered his voice, "I heard she's a middle-aged woman in her forties or fifties. Think about whether you know anyone like that, someone powerful and influential, understand?"

"You can only solve this problem by dealing with this person..."

Upon hearing this, Ling Huanwu immediately pictured Chu Mei's face.

The more she recalled the disdainful looks Chu Mei occasionally gave her, the more certain she became of her suspicions.

The next day, when Ling Huanwu returned home, she saw Chu Mei serving duck soup to Zhou Jiuzhen as soon as she entered the door, muttering, "Don't always worry about Huanwu. She's a woman, always out in the public eye. How can she be as reliable as someone who stays home and takes care of you?"

Upon seeing Ling Huanwu enter, Chu Mei's eyes immediately reddened, and she said to Zhou Jiuzhen with a wronged expression, "Jiuzhen, look, today I wanted to teach her how to make soup, and she even threw an enamel basin at me. I was just thinking that when I'm not around, she could make you a hot bowl of soup..."

Ling Huanwu clenched her fists and looked at the calendar on the wall.

With only three days left until the order deadline, without the parts, the work of dozens of people would have to stop, and if the order fell through, the cooperative's reputation would be ruined.

Looking at his mother's aggrieved expression and then at Ling Huanwu's anxious look, Zhou Jiuzhen frowned deeply, clearly not understanding what was going on either.