If these words got out, Lin Wanqiu's life would be ruined. She was instantly furious and pointed at Zhang Lan's nose, yelling, "Zhang Lan! Stop talking nonsense! I, Lin Wanqiu, have always been upright and honest. When have I ever hooked up with some wild man? If you dare to say another word, I'll tear your mouth apart!"
Zhang Lan was startled by her fierce appearance, but quickly regained her composure—she was the eldest sister-in-law of the Shen family, and Lin Wanqiu was just a widow; what could she really do to her? She retorted, "I'm talking nonsense? If you didn't seduce some random man, where did you get the money to buy meat? Tell me!"
Just then, the pot on the stove suddenly made a "bubbling" sound, the lid wobbling slightly from the steam, and an even stronger aroma of meat wafted out—even a fool could smell it now. Zhang Lan's eyes lit up, and she pointed at the pot, shouting, "Look! This is the smell of meat! Lin Wanqiu, do you still dare to say you didn't hide any meat?"
Lin Wanqiu inwardly knew something was wrong. The dried meat wasn't even cooked yet, and the aroma was already overwhelming. She knew that if this matter wasn't resolved today, Zhang Lan definitely wouldn't let it go, and might even tell Old Madam Shen, which would cause another lot of trouble.
She took a deep breath and suddenly laughed: "Sister-in-law, since you can smell it, I won't hide it from you anymore. I did buy this meat, but it wasn't a gift from some random man. I sold the silver bracelet that my mother left me and used the money to buy it."
That silver bracelet was part of Lin Wanqiu's dowry and the only keepsake her mother left her. She treasured it dearly and never took it out. Zhang Lan knew about the bracelet, and upon hearing this, she was stunned: "You sold the silver bracelet?"
“That’s right,” Lin Wanqiu sighed, her eyes slightly red. “An’an is too thin. It breaks my heart to see him like this, so I wanted to buy him some meat to help him get better. Although that bracelet was my mother’s keepsake, it’s nothing compared to An’an.”
She spoke with such sincerity that even Shen Nian'an looked up at her with a pained expression, her little face tilted upwards: "Mother, the bracelet..."
Lin Wanqiu patted his head, signaling him to be quiet. Zhang Lan looked at her like this and her heart wavered a little—Lin Wanqiu usually cherished that silver bracelet like her life, and she definitely wouldn't have been willing to sell it if it weren't for the child.
But she was also a little unwilling. She had finally caught Lin Wanqiu red-handed, and she was just going to let it go like this? Her eyes darted around, and she said, "Even if you sell the bracelet and buy meat, you should share some with us. We're all family. If An'an eats the meat, Hu Zi should eat some too. Otherwise, it's not fair."
"Fair?" Lin Wanqiu sneered. "Sister-in-law, back then, Old Mrs. Shen hid all the grain in the house to feed your family and Second Sister-in-law's children, while An'an and I could only drink porridge so thin you could see your reflection in it. Why didn't you talk about fairness then? Now that I've sold my bracelet to buy meat for An'an, you're talking about fairness?"
Zhang Lan was speechless, her face flushing red and then pale. Just then, Old Mrs. Shen's voice suddenly came from outside the courtyard gate: "Zhang Lan! What are you arguing about with Wanqiu in there? Come out quickly, there's still chores to do!"
Upon hearing that Old Lady Shen had arrived, Zhang Lan felt as if she had found a savior and quickly replied, "Mother, come quickly! Lin Wanqiu has hidden some meat and won't give it to us!"
Upon hearing that there was meat, Old Mrs. Shen quickened her pace and soon entered the yard. As soon as she entered, she stared at the stove, sniffed the air, and her eyes lit up: "Wanqiu, you bought meat? Why didn't you tell me? There are so many people in the family, we should all eat meat together."
Lin Wanqiu rolled her eyes inwardly. Old Mrs. Shen spoke with even more self-righteousness than Zhang Lan, as if she had bought the meat herself. Too lazy to waste words with Old Mrs. Shen, she said directly, "Mother, I bought this meat by selling the silver bracelet that my mother left me. There's only a little bit, enough for An'an and me to eat for two meals. I can't share it with the rest of the family."
When Old Mrs. Shen heard that she had sold the silver bracelet, her eyes widened immediately: "You sold that silver bracelet? Are you crazy? That bracelet is so valuable, how could you just sell it like that?" She didn't care at all whether Shen Nian'an needed nutritional supplements; her mind was completely occupied by that silver bracelet.
“An’an is more important than the bracelet,” Lin Wanqiu said firmly. “As long as An’an is alright, I’d be willing to sell anything, let alone the bracelet.”
Old Mrs. Shen was speechless, but she was even angrier—Lin Wanqiu was becoming more and more disobedient, daring to talk back to her. Her eyes darted around, and she added, "Even if you sold the bracelet and bought the meat, it was bought with our Shen family's money! You are a daughter-in-law of the Shen family, your things belong to the Shen family, and this meat naturally belongs to the Shen family too!"
“Mother, you’re wrong,” Lin Wanqiu frowned. “That silver bracelet was part of my dowry, given to me by my family. It has nothing to do with the Shen family. The meat I exchanged with my own things is naturally mine and has nothing to do with the Shen family.”
"You!" Old Mrs. Shen trembled with rage, pointing at Lin Wanqiu, unable to utter a word. Zhang Lan fanned the flames from the side: "Mother, look how arrogant she is! She doesn't respect you at all! We can't let this go, or who knows how she'll bully us in the future!"
Old Mrs. Shen took a deep breath, plotting how to snatch the meat. She glanced at the stove, then at Lin Wanqiu, and suddenly stepped forward to lift the pot lid: "I don't care about anything else, I have to share this meat today! If you don't give it to me, I'll go to the team leader and tell him you're hoarding it and don't respect the Shen family!"
Lin Wanqiu quickly stopped her: "Mom, stop arguing! There really isn't much meat, not enough to go around! If the team leader finds out, he might say we're wasting food, and then none of us will get away with it!"
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