Upon returning to the Zeng family home and entering, Zeng Xiaofeng bumped into the eldest daughter of the main branch of the Zeng family, who was just about to go out to meet a friend.

Miss Zeng wore an expensive purple mink cloak, which made her skin look as white as snow and gave her an air of elegance and nobility.

The maid helped her forward. Miss Zeng covered her mouth with a handkerchief. Although she was incredibly beautiful, her words were sharp and sarcastic.

"Where did this down-and-out come from? They're just as lowly as those vagrants, running around in public all day, how shameless!"

Zeng Xiaofeng was so ashamed by the scolding that she tried her best to defend herself.

"I, I didn't. I just went outside the city to distribute porridge."

Miss Zeng was even more disgusted upon hearing this, "The Deng family has already demolished the soup kitchen, and your father is also clueless, throwing the Zeng family's money into the mud. If it weren't for your father's incompetence, how could the Zeng family's paper business have been snatched away by others!"

Sensing the anger in her words, Zeng Xiaofeng didn't want to escalate the situation further, so she lowered her head and said meekly, "Miss is absolutely right. I was rude. I'll go back and have my father and brothers dismantle the soup kitchen."

After saying that, Zeng Xiaofeng coughed twice.

Miss Zeng was so frightened that she quickly backed away, her eyes full of disgust. "You didn't come back with a sexually transmitted disease, did you? If you have nothing to do, get back to your rat's nest and don't dirty everyone's place. You're bad luck!"

Zeng Xiaofeng slunk away with her maid.

Turning into the alleyway home, the maid said with great dissatisfaction, "Miss, if it weren't for Master supporting the Zeng family's reputation, their eldest branch would have been ruined long ago. Master and Young Master's earnings have to support the whole family. Look at the clothes she's wearing; they must be brand new. Their eldest branch is sucking Master and Young Master dry..."

"Stop talking, let's go back!"

Zeng Xiaofeng interrupted the maid's words, and after speaking, she coughed twice unconsciously.

Her lowered eyes were filled with resentment; she hated that fate was so unfair!

After several days of snow, the snow gradually stopped.

Sunlight shone on a thin layer of white snow, gradually revealing the earth covered by fine snow. In an instant, the snow melted and seeped into the ground, becoming muddy from the footsteps of people coming and going.

Lin Yinan had officially started her vacation and originally planned to sleep in, but her daughter dragged her out of bed early.

It turned out that the day before, she had gone to her mother, her eldest sister-in-law, and her second sister-in-law to make a lot of New Year's goods. Taking advantage of Lin Yinan's vacation, she asked Yun Shijiu to wake her up and deliver some to Old Madam Zhao, Li Shulan, and Dao Fuzi.

Qianwu came back from outside, washed her hands, and quickly came over to help pack the New Year's goods into the basket.

"Did you send it to Qianxia?" Yunmu asked her with a smile.

"I sent it over. My sister told me to thank the old lady; it's all her favorite food."

"Her due date is approaching, I wonder if she'll give birth so soon."

Qianxia and Yunying became pregnant around the same time, so their delivery dates should be around the same.

Qianwu said carelessly, "I see she can eat and drink well, she's fine, Madam, you don't need to worry."

Since Qianxia became pregnant, Yun Shiyi was worried that she would have a hard time, so he hired a woman to help with laundry and cooking. Now that he is not at home, she has someone to keep her company.

Unable to get any information out of her, Yunmu glanced at Lin Yinan.

Lin Yinan patted her hand and comforted her, "I'll go see her after I deliver the New Year's gifts."

Today is a rare sunny day.

Lin Yinan held Yun Shijiu's small hand and carried the basket back to her parents' home.

Grandma Zhao led Li Shulan and Zhang Shi to make pastries and twist small dough sticks in the living room, while Lin Yirong, Lin Yichun, and Liu Yu were in charge of frying them in the kitchen.

Grandma Zhao was still in good health, and she couldn't stop smiling when she saw the mother and daughter arrive.

Once inside, she pulled Yun Shijiu into her arms and kissed her fluffy little head repeatedly.

"Let Great-Grandma see our little darling, has he eaten breakfast?"

Yun Shijiu, though young, was quite precocious. As soon as he entered the room, his eyes were drawn to the several bowls of pastries on the table.

She first shook her head, then patted her stomach, and then gestured with her finger to indicate a tiny bit.

"You only ate a little? That won't do."

Grandma Zhao immediately understood, and then stuffed the candied fruit and dragon beard candy on the table into the small pocket of her outer garment.

Li Shulan picked up a piece of cloud cake from the table and put it in her hand, saying, "Eat quickly, your mother must have slept in late and didn't feed you enough."

Lin Yinan felt ashamed upon hearing this. In front of Shijiu, her mother always distorted the truth. Ever since she was two years old, this girl had been so stubborn that she wouldn't let anyone feed her and always ate by herself.

Yun Shijiu squinted and stuffed pieces of cloud cake and hawthorn cake into her mouth one after another.

"Nineteen, don't eat so much, or you'll get cavities!" Lin Yinan tried to snatch the food from her hand.

The little guy was unhappy and twisted his body to hide behind Grandma Zhao.

“My darling is still so young. If she likes to eat it, let her eat it. What kind of mother are you?” Old Mrs. Zhao said protectively, her tone leaving no room for doubt.

Li Shulan chimed in, "We only celebrate the New Year once a year."

Both her great-grandmother and maternal grandmother protected her, and Yun Shijiu peeked out, looking at her mother triumphantly.

Lin Yinan was at a loss for what to do, so she thought of going back and brewing some cooling herbal tea for her.

As the group was chatting and laughing, Wu Yao came out of the house.

She was newly pregnant and this was the time when her symptoms were at their worst.

"Anan is here!"

Wu Yao greeted Lin Yinan with a smile, but the smell of cooking oil wafting from the kitchen made her stomach churn again, and her face turned pale.

"Sister-in-law, if you're not feeling well, please rest more." Lin Yinan saw that she was enduring a lot of hardship.

Wu Yao nodded somewhat shyly, her hand unconsciously resting on her flat stomach. This was the child she had longed for, and she couldn't afford any mishaps.

Li Shulan has been through it all; when she was pregnant with her third child, she couldn't stand even the slightest smell of cooking oil.

"Go and rest. The kitchen will be frying all day. I'll bring you the food when it's ready," she said softly.

Wu Yao was well-educated and reasonable, and she was extremely satisfied with this daughter-in-law.

"Go back inside," even Old Mrs. Zhao said.

Unable to bear the smell in the whole house, Wu Yao apologized to Grandma Zhao and went back inside.

Watching Wu Yao's departing figure, Zhang's eyes gleamed with envy.

Lin Yinan knew exactly what she was thinking.

"Second Aunt, my cousin will be twenty next year. Has he found a girl he likes?"

Hearing her talk about her capable eldest son, Zhang's eyes crinkled, and a bright smile immediately appeared on her face.

"Now that life is better, and with our family's reputation in Longtan, families with daughters all want to arrange marriages with us."

"This way, my cousin will have more options."

Nevertheless, Zhang and Old Mrs. Zhao could not make decisions on their own, because Lin Yizhang had already declared that he wanted to marry a girl he liked.

"In the past two years, your second aunt and I have met quite a few girls. We've told him about all the ones we thought were good, but Zhang'er always hesitates and says there's no rush," said Old Mrs. Zhao, exchanging a glance with Zhang Shi.

Zhang: "Absolutely, it's driving me crazy with worry."