Qin Huairu didn't notice anything unusual about Sha Zhu, assuming he was just annoyed with her. She and Sha Zhu weren't related, and he was already being very kind by helping her.
Let alone ordinary neighbors, even close relatives would probably feel somewhat uncomfortable. With the end of the year approaching, Qin Huairu wanted to make a new outfit for her child.
She could bear the hardship herself, but Qin Huairu didn't want her child to suffer. Seeing Wei Hua drying his thick cotton-padded coat at home, Qin Huairu's eyes turned red.
Qin Huairu didn't even have a proper cotton-padded coat for her own child, yet Wei Hua's family had three extra. They were a bit old, but the linings were all good quality cotton. But thinking about what had happened recently, Qin Huairu didn't know how to bring it up with Wei Hua.
Yi Zhonghai and his family have started trying to seize his house. If it weren't for the intervention of the neighborhood committee and the military, the Wei family's house would probably be owned by the Jia family by now. Even if Qin Huairu had the thick skin, she wouldn't have the face to bring it up.
Seeing Sha Zhu busy at home, Qin Huairu suddenly had an idea. The Jia family and Wei Hua didn't have a good relationship, but Sha Zhu and Wei Hua had a decent relationship; at least they hadn't had any open conflicts.
To avoid misunderstandings with her husband and mother-in-law, Qin Huairu specifically returned to the Jia family and explained her thoughts to them. Jia Dongxu was somewhat resistant to this idea, but he was also a mama's boy. After Jia Zhangshi agreed, Jia Dongxu didn't say anything more.
Full of confidence, Qin Huairu arrived at Sha Zhu's house, her eyes brimming with tears as she looked at him. Sha Zhu, preoccupied with finding a wife, completely failed to notice Qin Huairu's unusual behavior.
Qin Huairu was somewhat surprised to see that Sha Zhu wasn't looking at her. Since Sha Zhu wasn't initiating conversation, she would have to find something to talk about herself.
“Zhu Zi, whichever girl marries you in the future will be very lucky. Unlike your brother Dong Xu, who lies at home all day and never does any of this.”
"Sister Qin, you're joking. I don't have Brother Dongxu's luck. It's almost New Year's, and I saw the house was a mess, so I was going to clean it up with Yushui. Since the house is dirty, I won't invite you to sit down. I'll invite you in after I'm done cleaning."
Having come to her senses, He Yushui didn't want her brother's marriage to fall through, nor did she want the Jia family to take advantage of her.
"Sister Qin, you'd better go back quickly. If you don't go back soon, your mother-in-law will start nagging you again. She was already talking about you half an hour ago. If you don't go back soon, she might start scolding you."
“Our house is only so big, my brother and I can manage. We don’t need you to help us here.”
Hearing He Yushui's words, Qin Huairu was caught in a dilemma: should she leave or stay? If she left, who would help her with the cotton? If she stayed, He Yushui had already gone to such lengths; if she didn't help with the work, she had no reason to remain.
At this time, Qin Huairu had not yet fully evolved, and she still had some sense of shame.
"Zhu Zi, since my mother-in-law is looking for me there, I won't stay at your house any longer. You and your sister can take your time cleaning! It's almost Chinese New Year, so it really needs to look like it's New Year's."
After speaking, Qin Huairu went straight back to the Jia family home. When Jia Zhangshi saw her daughter-in-law return, she immediately went over to her. Qin Huairu knew what her mother-in-law meant, so she shook her head at her.
"Grandma, Sha Zhu and his sister are tidying up the room. Before I could even say anything, He Yushui interrupted me."
“Without Shazhu, does that mean my grandson won’t wear a cotton-padded coat? When no one’s around, put the coat in your pocket. When you get it back, quickly take the scissors and disassemble it. Take out the cotton wadding, and then cut the fabric off the coat into pieces to make diapers for my granddaughter.”
"As long as you don't get caught red-handed, nobody can do anything to you. I'm going to cause some trouble in the front yard later. You can secretly steal a cotton-padded coat while I'm there."
Hearing her mother-in-law's words, Qin Huairu felt somewhat embarrassed. Not everyone is born wanting to do these things. The reason things have turned out this way is mainly due to the pressures of the situation.
Thinking of her children, Qin Huairu nodded. Jia Dongxu, lying in bed, didn't offer any opinion. He was already used to this kind of thing.
Raising a child is no easy task for a widow. Jia Zhangshi had done this many times before.
Jia Dongxu had acted as a lookout for his mother outside the Jia family's gate, and he even sat at the gate collecting money. This is why Jia Dongxu was so obedient to Jia Zhangshi.
Seeing that her son had no objections, Jia Zhangshi got out of bed and went straight to the front yard. To attract attention, she specifically sought out Yan Bugui.
Why did Yan Bugui stay at the courtyard gate all day long? When Jia Zhangshi went out, she deliberately bumped into Yan Bugui.
"Yan Bugui, what do you mean? Why did you bump into me on such a wide road? If you don't give me an explanation today, I'll report you to the neighborhood committee for deliberately being a hooligan."
"Everyone come and see. Don't let Yan Bugui's usual upright demeanor fool you; he's actually trying to take advantage of me today."
While talking, she dragged Yan Bugui outside. As soon as they arrived outside the courtyard, Jia Zhangshi burst into tears. In order to avoid completely offending the Yan family, Jia Zhangshi did not dare to talk about what had just happened outside, and just kept making a scene.
Those unaware of the situation thought something had happened and everyone gathered around. Wei Hua, seeing that the Jia family was up to their old tricks again, also came out of his house.
Seeing Jia Zhangshi throwing a tantrum without saying anything else, they were curious. Yan Bugui's wife, Sun Chuanfang, also rushed out. As long-time residents of the courtyard house, they were all seasoned veterans. Those who were too shy would have long since given up on living in the courtyard house.
As soon as Sun Chuanfang rushed out, she went straight to Jia Zhangshi, and the two started fighting. In this era, throwing tantrums was commonplace. Although they were pulling at each other, they didn't actually do anything. Both of them kept cursing and swearing, and before long, they were dredging up all their ancestors. One pointed to the sky, and the other to the ground. This was the first time Wei Hua had ever seen such a shrew in this world.
Wei Hua, who had never seen anything like this before, squatted down to the side and quietly watched the spectacle. Just as Wei Hua was enjoying the show, the system's voice appeared in his mind.
"Cause and effect settlement in progress. Congratulations to the host for obtaining 50 jin of cotton, 5 Zhongshan suits, 2 down jackets, and 3 new cotton quilts. Congratulations to the host for additionally obtaining 10 points of physique, a small amount of money, and a property."
Wei Hua was also puzzled by these inexplicable words. It wasn't until a few minutes later, when a loud bang came from the courtyard, that Wei Hua realized what had happened.
At first, Wei Hua didn't understand why the system was giving him a reward. But after running with the others to the backyard, he learned that an explosion had occurred at the Jia family's house. The explosion had set the house ablaze.
And this time, the victim was Qin Huairu. After stealing the cotton-padded coat, Qin Huairu returned to the Jia family. After taking the coat apart, Qin Huairu prepared to shake out the impurities from the cotton.
But just as she entered the kitchen, she tripped and fell. The cotton ball in her hand was flung away by Qin Huairu. The cotton ball knocked down the firecrackers hanging on the wall. Both the firecrackers and the cotton fell directly into the stove, and then the Jia family's kitchen exploded. Both the firecrackers and the cotton were explosives.
When the explosion occurred, Qin Huairu was nestled by the kitchen doorway. The immense force of the blast sent her flying into the yard.
Fortunately, aside from the initial shockwave, Qin Huairu was unharmed. Even so, however, her injuries were severe. By the time everyone reached the backyard, Qin Huairu was already vomiting blood.
The first thing Jia Zhangshi did upon running back to the backyard wasn't to save Qin Huairu, but to quickly grab the bucket and fetch water from the central courtyard to fight the fire. Others, fearing the fire at the Jia family's house would spread, also joined the firefighting efforts.
Fortunately, the fire had only just started, and with everyone's efforts, it was extinguished in just a few minutes. However, a large hole appeared in the Jia family's house. Moreover, the entire kitchen was completely destroyed by the fire.
Looking at Qin Huairu lying on the ground, Wei Hua knew that Qin Huairu must have done something again. Otherwise, the system would not punish Qin Huairu for no reason.
I initially thought Qin Huairu had gradually become like that because of life's hardships. But I never expected that she would start turning bad at this point.
Looking at the pitiful Qin Huairu, Wei Hua couldn't be more eager for her to take advantage of him. That way, Qin Huairu might die even faster.
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