Chapter 284 Protecting the Baby
"What are your intentions, those who said this? A martyr's child, an orphan who risked her life to protect you. How could you have the heart to stab her in the heart?"
Everyone around was speechless looking at Xiao Taozi.
This little girl is the orphan of a martyr. How could they discuss Xiao Taozi behind her back?
Aunt Wang was actually very scared, but when people are scared, they tend to talk nonsense.
"If you didn't treat this child as your own, why didn't you change her name? Why just call her Little Peach?"
He Wanyi stared intently at Aunt Wang's dodging eyes, and spoke each word with a resounding voice: "Our little peach, her full name is Lu Youwei! She is a legitimate and honorable Lu family child, registered in the household registration book and in our Lu family tree!"
"She's the orphan of a martyr who was adopted by my son Lu Liangchen and daughter-in-law Jiang Haitang! She's the daughter they hold dear to their hearts and cherish as their own! She's also the treasure that He Wanyi and my father cherish deeply! From now on, I don't want to hear about these despicable tactics of sowing discord!"
She became more and more excited as she spoke, her chest heaving violently, and her fingers trembling slightly with anger.
"In our Lu family, even if Xiao Taozi isn't our biological daughter, she's closer than any of them! She's the pride of our entire family! She's the most precious bloodline left in this world by the revolutionary martyr Comrade Tian Liangcheng! She helps Grandma with work, out of filial piety! She loves Grandma and is close to her! How come it becomes so vile in your mouth? What's the intention behind those who say these things?!"
He Wanyi's voice was like a loud bell, attracting passers-by from farther away to stop and look.
She looked around at the women around her who were silent and ashamed, and knew that even if these women didn't gossip about her in front of Xiao Taozi, they probably talked behind her back.
"Today, I, He Wanyi, am making this clear! Anyone who dares to speak such stale and vicious words again, saying a single word against my granddaughter, and trying to sow discord between us, the flesh and blood relationships of grandparents and grandchildren, fathers and daughters, or mothers and daughters, is destroying the stability of the socialist family. Don't blame me, He Wanyi, for being ruthless! We, the Lu family, are loyal to our country and our consciences, and we will not tolerate any villains stirring up trouble here and harming our children!"
Every word in these words was weighty, filled with the raging anger of a grandmother protecting her child, creating a powerful deterrent effect.
Aunt Wang's face turned from red to white, and then from white to blue. Her lips trembled and she couldn't utter a word.
She felt the gazes of those around her piercing her like needles, making her feel ashamed.
She really didn't expect that the Lu family would recognize Xiao Taozi...
The women who had just been chatting with each other were now panicked and hurried to smooth things over:
"Oh, Sister He, please calm down, calm down! Sister Wang is just outspoken, uneducated, and has no control over her words. She really has no bad intentions..."
"Yes, yes, Xiao Taozi is such a good child, sensible and pretty, we all love her so much!"
"Sister Wang, stop talking and apologize to Sister He! Say something nice to Xiao Taozi. Look how scared you made the child..."
Under the condemning gazes of the crowd and the overwhelming pressure of He Wanyi, how could Aunt Wang dare to be tough at all?
Thinking of He Wanyi's family background and her husband's future, she regretted it to the core.
She bent down in panic, her voice filled with tears: "It's my broken mouth, I'm confused! I deserve to die! I'm talking nonsense! Comrade He, please be magnanimous and don't hold it against me! Please forgive me this time..."
In the end, Aunt Wang didn't even wash her clothes and turned around and ran away.
Only then did He Wanyi take a long, deep breath to calm the anger surging in her chest.
She turned around and saw Xiao Taozi still standing there, her big eyes filled with tears, crystal tears hanging on her long eyelashes, and her body trembling slightly with fear and grievance.
She looked at her grandmother timidly, her eyes, like a frightened deer, full of helplessness and fear.
He Wanyi's heart felt like it was being gripped by an invisible hand, and the pain was so severe that she could hardly breathe.
She walked back quickly, completely ignoring the water stains on the ground, squatted down, and carefully and gently wiped away the tears from her granddaughter's face.
Then she opened her arms and gathered the tiny, trembling body tightly and tightly into her embrace.
"Don't be afraid, Little Peach. Grandma is here. Don't take anything that bad grandma said to heart! Remember what grandma said. You are the darling of our Lu family, the lifeblood of mom and dad, and grandma's only 'Little Peach Flower'! No one can bully you! If anyone dares to talk nonsense again, grandma will fight him to the death! Grandma means what she says!"
No one expected that this gentle and graceful woman could be so aggressive. For a moment, apart from smiling apologetically, no one said much.
Little Taozi hugged her grandmother's neck tightly and buried her little face deeply in the crook of her neck.
Although she was young, she could tell that her grandmother was protecting her.
Grandma said she is her treasure and her sweetheart, so she must be!
She nodded with all her strength, her voice muffled and tearful but incredibly clear: "Yes! Grandma, Xiao Taozi remembers! Xiao Taozi is grandma's flower, and mom and dad's baby!"
The grandparents and grandchildren didn't even wash the vegetables. He Wanyi walked away holding Xiao Taozi in one hand and holding the basin in the other.
When she returned home, there was still some lingering anger in He Wanyi's eyes, but her tone had softened.
"Mom, what's wrong?" Jiang Haitang asked puzzledly.
He Wanyi recounted what had just happened.
Jiang Haitang was also very angry. He Wanyi was afraid that she would get too angry, so she said, "With what I did today, I guess no one will say anything later."
"Mom, you are destroying your own image."
"They love Xiao Taozi for our sake, so what does their image matter? The next time I hear them, I'll rip their mouths off. As long as I'm around, I won't allow anyone to hurt a child's heart with such filthy words!"
The disturbance that occurred at the faucet was like a huge rock thrown into the calm water of the family compound, and the ripples it caused quickly spread out.
He Wanyi's fiercely protective and unyielding attitude, as well as her righteous and weighty declaration, spread throughout the entire family quarters like legs, in less than half a day.
What surprised everyone in particular was that Xiao Taozi was actually a child recognized by the Lu family.
The focus of people's discussion was no longer the content of the gossip itself, but He Wanyi's thunderous anger and her unquestionable protection of her adopted granddaughter Lu Xiaotaozi.
Everyone realized anew that the Lu family's love and attention to this adopted daughter transcended blood ties and was ingrained in their bones, and would not tolerate any questioning or desecration!
Little Peach, whose real name is Lu Youwei, is the Lu family's legitimate and precious treasure!
Aunt Wang even claimed to be sick and stayed at home, not daring to show up for several days.
Under her grandmother's strong and warm love, Xiao Taozi becomes more cheerful and more attached to her grandmother.
The little girl could feel that with her grandma around, she was safe and loved.
After dinner, the family sat together under the dim light.
Little Taozi lay on He Wanyi's knees, watching her grandmother's nimble fingers flying as the yellow wool gradually turned into a small piece of soft fabric.
Xiao Taozi looked for a while, then suddenly raised her head and looked at He Wanyi with her big, bright eyes.
"Grandma, when the baby comes out, can you take me and the baby to Beijing to play? Let's go see Tiananmen Square and watch the flag-raising ceremony! Daddy said it's so big!"
He Wanyi's heart was instantly filled with anticipation for her granddaughter, and she couldn't help but kiss the little one.
The next afternoon, Director Mao came to the door in person.
The head of the machinery factory, wearing a washed-out Zhongshan suit, was carrying a net bag of rare Guoguang apples and had a smile on his face.
"This must be Sister He, right? I'm Mao Dali, the director of the machinery factory! I heard that you were here, so I came to see you today." Director Mao's voice was loud and friendly.
He Wanyi didn't know Director Mao, and was a little surprised after hearing his self-introduction.
My son is the director of a textile factory. Although he is at the same level as the guy from the machinery factory, they probably don't have much dealings with each other, right?
Although she didn't understand why this person was so polite, He Wanyi still greeted him with a smooth smile, "Director Mao, you're so polite! I just came to see my son, daughter-in-law, and granddaughter. Thank you for your visit. Please come in! It's cold, come inside and sit for a while."
Director Mao entered the room and placed the apple on the table. "Of course you should! Comrade Haitang is our machinery factory's treasure and a key technical figure! Her family is here, and I have to come and see them on behalf of the factory. ... Comrade He, you don't know how many major problems she has solved for our machinery factory over the past year..."
Director Mao talked a lot, which surprised He Wanyi.
Isn’t Jiang Haitang an engineer at a textile factory?
How is it related to the machinery factory?
She looked at Jiang Hai Tangguo inquiringly.
"Mom, I have two jobs, one is in our textile factory, and the other is in a machinery factory..." Jiang Haitang said a little embarrassedly, his voice getting lower and lower.
"Comrade He, Comrade Haitang is so outstanding, and it has a lot to do with the support of your family."
He Wanyi quickly waved her hands, her attitude humble but her stance clear: "Director Mao, you're really embarrassing me. I didn't do anything. It's all Haitang's hard work, and it's also because you, as leaders, value her."
"It is only with leaders like you that women comrades have the opportunity to be as outstanding as men. I work in women's affairs and have always supported women's participation in national development."
"However, I don't mean to discriminate against housewives. 'Women hold up half the sky,' the Chairman's teachings must always be remembered! Staying home to take care of your husband and children is cultivating the next generation for the country, and working hard in the factory is contributing to socialist construction. Both are glorious!"
These words not only affirmed the work of the factory, but also implicitly expressed support for the daughter-in-law's career. They were more in line with the spirit of the times, and Director Mao nodded repeatedly.
"You're absolutely right! You're truly a leader from the capital, and you possess a high level of ideological awareness! With the support of elders like you, Comrade Haitang will surely make even greater contributions!"
After seeing off the satisfied Director Mao, He Wanyi washed the apples, picked out the biggest and reddest one, and handed it to the eagerly watching Little Taozi: "Here, let's reward our most sensible Little Taozi!"
Little Taozi happily took it, but immediately ran to Jiang Haitang, tiptoed and held the apple high: "Mom, you eat it! Give it to the baby! Grandma said that eating more apples will make the baby have good skin and white skin!"
Jiang Haitang looked at her daughter's earnest eyes and felt a warm feeling in her heart.
She took a small bite, and the sweetness seemed to penetrate her heart. "So sweet! Thank you, little peach! Little baby thanks sister too!"
Little Peach then contentedly held the big apple, sat on the small stool, and nibbled on it in small bites like a little squirrel, her little face filled with pure happiness and a sense of accomplishment.
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