Qin Xiaoyu soon realized that bringing Miranda over was actually a mistake.
This woman isn't exactly lacking in emotional intelligence; she's deliberately picking a fight. No wonder Mrs. Fang dislikes her; she's simply hard to like.
Even someone as tolerant as Zhou Xing's mother was starting to have trouble, but she kept quiet for A Lei's sake.
Miranda went upstairs to check on the children as soon as she entered. With her gloved hand, she poked little Jiajia's face twice without any politeness and said dismissively, "A little thin."
“At first, Xiaoyu didn’t have enough milk, and the baby didn’t like formula. Now that I have milk, I’m not worried, and it will be easier to raise the baby.” Zhou Xing’s mother was afraid that she would hit her again, so she quickly pulled the baby into her arms.
"Still using outdated things like diapers? If I had known, I would have brought some disposable diapers. I thought your economy would have improved over the years, but who knew..." Miranda's words were a bit irritating.
“Xiaoyu said she wants to use diapers, but I don’t think it’s good to keep the baby covered up all the time. These are all made of the finest fine cotton, and I wash and sterilize them before using them on the baby,” Zhou Xing’s mother explained humbly.
“Outdated ideas, there’s nothing we can do about it.” Miranda was very unhappy with the rebuttal.
"My mom works so hard taking care of the kids, and she still manages to do everything perfectly. I'm already very grateful." Qin Xiaoyu's eyes were practically spitting fire. If it weren't for A Lei's sake, she would have started a fight.
If you don't like it, then come and take care of the child. Anyone can make sarcastic remarks without lifting a finger. What's remarkable is that Miranda has faced so many difficulties living abroad, yet she hasn't lost any of the difficult mother-in-law's attitude from back home. That's truly a racial talent.
"My dad said that babies who wear diapers will have bent legs. Also, my little brother isn't thin at all." The little sister, who had been listening intently to the adults, suddenly spoke up, making Qin Xiaoyu secretly chuckle and feel relieved.
"Oh, your father? What does he know? He's no match for children!" Miranda paused for a moment before realizing that her younger sister was referring to A Lei as her father.
“My dad knows a lot, and he takes very good care of us.” The younger sister’s expression was unusually serious; she was about to fight for her family.
"Come on, little sister, let's go downstairs and make some soup for Mom." Zhou Xing's mother felt the tension was too high and couldn't take it anymore, so she quickly pulled her little sister out.
"Why don't you stay at Grandma's place? It's too crowded and chaotic here." Qin Xiaoyu originally wanted to keep Miranda, and the guest room was already tidied up, but then she had a sudden idea. If she didn't let Madam Fang discipline her, she really wouldn't know her place.
"Oh." Miranda expressed her dissatisfaction, but there was nothing she could do. She wasn't going to insist on staying; she could just leave sooner rather than later.
After she left the room, A Lei suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
"You've learned your lesson, haven't you?" A Lei hugged Qin Xiaoyu tightly.
"Yes, she's really hard to get along with," Qin Xiaoyu said dejectedly.
“This isn’t your problem. Almost everyone who knows her says so. She’s a rose with thorns. When she was young, she was a flower with thorns all over her body. Now, even the flower is gone, and all that’s left are thorns.” A Lei’s comment was merciless, but very apt.
Qin Xiaoyu couldn't help but burst into laughter, waking Xiao Jiajia up. Xiao Jiajia babbled a few times, startling her so much that she stuck out her tongue.
A Lei had no choice but to let go of her to hug his son.
When Madam Fang arrived for dinner that evening, Qin Xiaoyu pulled her aside and told her to let Miranda stay there.
"You can't beat her, so you've come to ask me for help?" Madam Fang saw through Qin Xiaoyu's thoughts at a glance.
"Grandma," Qin Xiaoyu said, tugging at her arm affectionately.
"I can't do anything with you, as long as you're happy." Madam Fang was now powerless against Qin Xiaoyu. There was no point in saying more; a little coquetry in her arms was all it took to get things done.
Normally, the family would all squeeze into one large table for meals, but this time, fearing Miranda might find fault, they set up two tables, one in the dining room and one in the living room. Zhou Yue ate her meal in the dining room with a bunch of children.
“It’s crowded enough. To be honest, I don’t understand the strange habits of Chinese people. They all live together and have no privacy. Isn’t that uncomfortable?” Miranda spoke up again, this time targeting too many people and becoming a group attack.
"Chinese people value having many children and grandchildren; they just want to live a happy life," Commander Zhou couldn't hold back any longer.
“I disagree. Chinese people like to hold young people hostage, keeping their children close by. It’s called love, but it’s actually a form of restriction, a form of control.” Miranda’s educational philosophy is quite different.
"I don't think so. Parents can't be absent when children need companionship. They must fill their lives with love. When they can fly, let them go, don't restrict them, that's true freedom. Letting children run wild when they are young is not giving them true freedom, it's just making excuses for yourself." Qin Xiaoyu couldn't stand seeing Commander Zhou being criticized, so she directly fired back.
“Everyone has different perspectives. Maybe I’ve lived abroad for a long time and am not so narrow-minded.” Miranda’s expression turned somewhat unpleasant upon hearing the implication in Qin Xiaoyu’s words.
“Different opinions should be respected, and one should respect local customs. This is the most basic courtesy and respect.” With these words, Mrs. Fang put an end to the argument. The old fox was still the most cunning, and she extinguished Miranda’s offensive with a single, powerful move.
Mrs. Fang was very considerate; to give everyone some peace and quiet, she took Miranda away early on.
"Ah Lei, your mother, as the art director, is probably going to offend a lot of people," Zhou Yue couldn't help but complain.
"But she really is talented." Qin Xiaoyu still wanted to save face for A Lei.
"That's true. The magazines she edits are really good. Every issue has something that touches the heart and is amazing. Is she arrogant because of her talent?" Zhou Yue sighed.
"Actually, I've always been curious whether she's always been like this or if she changed later." Qin Xiaoyu turned to A Lei, then suddenly realized she had said the wrong thing. Although A Lei tried his best to hide it, there was still hurt in his eyes.
"I don't know, I'm not familiar with her." A Lei got up and went upstairs to check on the child.
After a moment of silence, everyone got up and dispersed.
“Xiaoyu, I know your intentions are good; you want Alei to spend more time with his mother. So you need to be patient. She's not your enemy, she's your friend. She's the mother of the person you love most.” Zhou Xing’s mother called out to Qin Xiaoyu, and her words were a wake-up call for Qin Xiaoyu. She realized that Miranda had inexplicably stirred up her fighting spirit, which was wrong.
They should be standing side by side, loving A Lei together. How did they become two opposing camps? Doesn't that just cause A Lei to get hurt for nothing?
The next day, Qin Xiaoyu went to intercept Miranda before she arrived. There were too many people around, and it could easily escalate into a fight; it was better to meet her alone.
"To your shop?" Miranda raised an eyebrow when she heard her purpose.
"Go ahead, there are many surprises at Xiaoyu's shop." Madam Fang's tone was unusually calm, though she looked a little old, it carried a touch of gentleness.
Miranda stopped finding fault and followed Qin Xiaoyu out the door.
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