"When you take the child back later, be careful. Neither you nor Ji Zhou came back last night. Your mother-in-law was throwing things and yelling in the yard. She's probably still angry. When you get back, speak less and let Ji Zhou handle everything."
At this point, Aunt Wang realized she hadn't seen Zhang Jizhou. She looked around and asked, "Did Jizhou go home first?"
"He was temporarily recalled to the army." Although Fang Yan was not an active-duty personnel, she knew the principle of confidentiality and did not dare to say that Zhang Jizhou had gone to carry out an emergency mission.
The older folks in the countryside don't really have any sense of secrecy. If the word gets around, it might spread to ten people, then a hundred, and eventually, it might run into someone with ulterior motives.
Based on this statement, it was discovered that Zhang Jizhou had gone on a mission that caused him trouble.
"Ah! Didn't you just get back? Why were you called back already?" Aunt Wang asked in surprise.
"I don't know, maybe she's busy," Fang Yan said with a smile.
"Being a soldier isn't easy; they're always so busy they're practically invisible," Aunt Wang remarked, having witnessed firsthand how rarely Zhang Jizhou had returned since joining the army.
She quietly took Fang Yan's hand, lowered her voice, and whispered to her, "When you go back later, if your mother-in-law only scolds you a few times, just pretend you didn't hear it and let her scold. If she hits you, just shout loudly. I'll be at home and will come to help you if I hear you."
Fang Yan sighed inwardly once again, feeling deeply moved by the simplicity and honesty of the people around her.
No matter how much they hated the original owner in the past, as long as she takes the initiative to be friendly and shows a little kindness, they will forgive her and care for her.
“Okay, I’ll listen to you, Auntie,” Fang Yan replied with a smile. “And thank you, Auntie.”
“Hey, kid… don’t be so polite. We’ve been neighbors for so many years, no need to be so formal.”
Watching Fang Yan carry a bucket of water in one hand and hold her child in the other as she went back home, Aunt Wang sighed to her husband, "What's wrong with Ji Zhou's family? They never used to visit each other or chat with us. They just stayed in their house all day, either playing with dog eggs or acting like wooden figures, being ordered around by Old Lady Zhang to do chores. There wasn't a single smile on their faces. It was frightening to look at them."
She just went to the hospital yesterday, and today she's like a completely different person. She speaks so politely and warmly, and the way she held Gou Dan just now—oh my, like she was holding a precious baby! It's so different from before.
"Do you think Ji Zhou took her to see a psychiatrist yesterday?" Aunt Wang said, pointing to her own head.
"It's good that she's become a better person. If you can get along with her, then go ahead and be with her. If you can't, then forget it. Why are you thinking so much about it?" Her husband said casually, not wanting to get involved in these women's affairs.
Meanwhile, Fang Yan walked to the corner, put down the bucket, and gently woke the child, "We're home, wake up, you little sleepyhead."
Judging from what Aunt Wang just said, it's not hard to guess that a "hard battle" is likely to begin as soon as you enter the door.
The Zhang family members all have loud voices; when they shout, their voices can be heard for miles around. Worried that the child might be frightened awake in his sleep, she woke him up in advance.
The baby groggily opened his eyes, wrapped his arms around Fang Yan's neck, and called out in a soft, babyish voice, "Mama~"
Fang Yan's heart was almost melted by the cuteness. "We've arrived at Grandma's house. If Grandma shouts loudly later, baby, cover your ears. Don't be afraid, Mommy's here."
"Huh?" Upon hearing the words "Grandma's house," the baby straightened up, saw the yard in front of her, and asked with a pout, "Mommy, can we go back... back to the room we're in tomorrow?"
The child disliked it very much.
My mother is here. Sometimes she's very nice, and sometimes she's very mean and even hits him.
His grandparents wouldn't let him eat, his uncle always bullied him, and his grandmother would hit him when no one was around.
He didn't want to go back here; he was afraid that if his mother came back, she would become the same as before.
He loves that his mother is always like this.
The fear in the child's eyes pierced Fang Yan's heart. She was powerless to change what had happened, but she would do her best to heal the child's wounded soul in the future.
“It was yesterday,” she corrected the baby. “Last night, we had to pay extra to stay in that room, and we didn’t have that much money, so we couldn’t stay there indefinitely.”
Seeing the fear in her child's eyes, part of it was the fear that she would become like before. Fang Yan hugged him tightly and promised, "Mommy promises, it won't be like before anymore. Mommy will protect you, baby. Please believe Mommy, okay?"
The baby stared intently at Fang Yan, nodded his little head seriously, and made the promise in a sweet, childish voice, "Baby believes in Mommy, and baby will protect Mommy too!"
"Okay, then Mommy thanks you in advance, baby."
With Fang Yan's reassurance, the child finally stopped resisting so much, and she took another step towards the Zhang family's courtyard...
"Hehe..." Suddenly, a big, fat man appeared out of nowhere, giving Fang Yan a sinister laugh. "You little bitch! You're finished!"
After saying that, the chubby boy ran into the yard, shouting, "Mom! That little slut is back with her bastard!"
Da Pangdun is Zhang Jizhou's youngest brother, whose full name is Zhang Baocai, and he is nine years old this year.
The Zhang family is a blended family.
Old Zhang's real name is Zhang Mushuan. He and his current wife, Huang Hongmei, are a newly formed family after their respective partners passed away, raising their children together.
Old Man Zhang was with Zhang Jizhou, while Huang Hongmei had a son and two daughters with the man in front of her. After she got together with Old Man Zhang, she had another son, Zhang Baocai, who is the big fat boy in front of us.
The five children of the Zhang family, from oldest to youngest, are: eldest son Gao Dashu, second daughter Gao Meiying, third son Zhang Jizhou, fourth daughter Gao Meijiao, and fifth son Zhang Baocai.
With the tip-off from the chubby boy, as soon as Fang Yan stepped through the gate, her sister-in-law Li Ermei's sarcastic voice arrived as expected: "Sister-in-law, you're so lucky. Your second uncle dotes on you. Yesterday, he even took you and Gou Dan to the county town for a good meal. Are you still staying at the county town's guesthouse?"
"I heard the guesthouse rooms are very clean, is that true?"
"Sigh, but I'm not trying to be mean, we'll let it go, but Mom and Dad have never enjoyed anything in their lives. Why didn't you invite them along when you went?"
"My second uncle is really something. Mom and Dad are still suffering at home, and he's taking you all to the city to enjoy yourselves. Doesn't he care about what people say about him?"
Li Ermei is Gao Dashu's wife. She's not particularly bright, but she loves to sow discord between Huang Hongmei and the original owner of this body.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
