"Are you jealous that my mother has money to spend?"

“Almost ready. Go wake up Erzai and the others,” Lin Zhao instructed.

Dazai wiped the sweat from his forehead and was about to rush out of the kitchen to call his younger siblings when Erzai came rushing in.

Seeing his brother, Erzai complained unhappily, “Brother, you got up but didn’t call me! We always woke up together before!”

Dazai felt deeply guilty.

He had been so happy chatting and helping mother that he had completely forgotten about Erzai.

Seeing Dazai’s helpless expression, Lin Zhao intervened, “Erzai, your brother saw you sleeping like a little pig and couldn’t get up for a long time. He wanted you to sleep a bit more on purpose. Why are you so harsh?”

Her words pierced through Erzai’s anger, and he smiled with a look of appeasement, saying to his brother, “Brother, I wasn’t harsh with you.”

Dazai was magnanimous and held no grudge against his brother. “Where are Sanzi and Sizi?”

Erzai replied, “Still asleep. Should I wake them?”

“Go ahead. Mother steamed us some egg custard,” Dazai said.

Erzai’s eyes widened in shock, his voice rising, “Egg custard?”

“Mm-hmm.” Dazai leaned close to his brother’s ear and whispered, “Mother broke four eggs.”

“Wow!” Erzai cried out and rushed into the room to wake the twins. He couldn’t wait to eat the egg custard.

Sanzi and Sizi were forcibly awakened. The two little babies almost cried, grumbling under their breath, yet they obediently followed Erzai’s lead.

Seeing this, Lin Zhao felt truly at ease with her children.

Sizi clung to her leg, pointing at Erzai with a babyish voice, “Bad, Guoguo.”

Lin Zhao kissed her fair little face and teased, “Then I’ll punish you, Erzai, by not letting you eat egg custard. How about that?”

Dazai and Erzai looked at their younger sister with envy.

Sizi quickly added, “Guoguo, fanfan.”

She meant she wanted to feed her brother.

Lin Zhao gently brushed her daughter’s nose, smiling, “Alright, alright, you can feed your second brother.”

Sizi grinned, revealing four tiny teeth.

Her second brother was touched and so delighted he wanted to nibble his sister. How could she be so kind?

“Dazai, you lead your siblings to eat the egg custard. I’m going next door,” Lin Zhao said, picking up the gift she had prepared this morning, and went next door.

Entrusted with the important task, Dazai and Erzai solemnly agreed and first took their younger siblings to wash their faces.

“Erzai, Sanzi, Sizi, wash your faces and brush your teeth first. I’ll teach you,” Dazai said, squeezing toothpaste for them.

Erzai stuck out his tongue and licked it lightly. “Brother, it’s sweet.”

The twins imitated him after seeing his action.

Dazai hurriedly stopped them, saying, “Don’t eat the toothpaste.”

Turning his head, he scolded Erzai, “Erzai, don’t put everything in your mouth. You’ll set a bad example for Sanzi and Sizi.”

Erzai obeyed his brother’s words immediately. When Dazai scolded, he behaved and brushed his teeth obediently. He even refrained from smelling the face soap.

After washing their faces clean, Dazai took out some children’s cream from the house and applied it to Erzai and the twins.

“Smells good,” Sizi said simply.

Sanzi rarely cried or fussed even as a baby and spoke little after learning to talk, only nodding in approval.

“Brother, I’m hungry. Can we eat now? If we wait longer, it’ll get cold,” Erzai said, not caring about the cream and only thinking about the egg custard.

“It won’t get cold,” Dazai said as he put the cream away, then said they could eat.

Erzai had rarely eaten egg custard before, especially such a large amount. His face was full of joy.

“Getting egg custard as soon as we get up—this is too lucky,” he said.

Dazai agreed.

As for the twins, their faces were already immersed in their little bowls, their chubby legs kicking happily, with sweet smiles.

Lin Zhao took half a bag of brown sugar and some hard candies and knocked on the neighbor’s door.

“Who’s there? Just come in. No need to knock,” came a cheerful female voice from inside.

Lin Zhao pushed the door open. Wang Chunhua was startled when she saw her. “Dazai’s mother?”

They had been neighbors for a long time but never saw Dazai’s mother come over.

Being a guest, Wang Chunhua quickly recovered her composure and asked her granddaughter to bring a stool and pour water for the guest.

Wang Chunhua looked at Lin Zhao’s forehead, noticing the swelling had reduced significantly. She smiled and asked, “Is your head still hurting? If it’s painful, you should go to the county hospital. Head injuries aren’t something to take lightly.”

“Much better now, thanks to your help,” Lin Zhao replied with a smile.

She then told the Wang family child pouring water, “No need to pour water. It’s just a short distance. I came to deliver something and will be heading back soon. The kids are all home.”

As she spoke, she placed the gift on the table.

Lin Zhao disliked refusing or being refused.

“Sorry for troubling you yesterday. These candies are for the children to sweeten their mouths,” she said.

The Wang children’s faces lit up with joy, their eyes fixed eagerly on the candies, swallowing saliva but not demanding to eat, clearly well-behaved under family guidance.

“No need to be so polite,” Wang Chunhua hurried to take the gift from Lin Zhao, but Lin Zhao stopped her hand.

“This is a token of thanks. Auntie, please accept it. You’ve taken good care of Dazai and the others; this is nothing,” Lin Zhao said firmly.

Her delicate face was solemn.

When she smiled, she was sweet as honey; when serious, she was like a white plum blossom hanging in winter—cold and unapproachable.

Wang Chunhua was momentarily stunned, about to say something, but saw Lin Zhao quickly walk away.

“Dazai’s mother…” she called out.

Hearing her voice, Lin Zhao quickened her pace.

Wang Chunhua laughed and cried at the same time.

How was the Cheng Huai family always so mysterious in their ways?

There was no other like them in the whole brigade.

“Grandma, I want candy,” Wang’s little grandson tugged at her clothes.

Wang Chunhua brushed his hand away, “Careful, careful, you’ll tear your clothes. You little rascal, if you tear your clothes, I’ll give you a beating.”

The mischievous boy quickly let go. His grandma’s threats were real.

“Grandma, candy,” the boy pleaded pitifully.

Wang Chunhua hesitated—candy was rare and precious, better saved for the New Year.

“Go away, what good is it to eat candy now?” she scolded.

The boy clung to her leg, crying, “Grandma, I want candy.”

The other children didn’t move but stared intently at the candy, their eyes full of longing.

Wang Chunhua was helpless and took out a candy for her eldest grandson. “Dissolve it in water and share it.”

She said this quickly, afraid of more begging, and hurried inside to hide the candy.

News of Lin Zhao bringing gifts to the Wang family spread quickly across the village.

A group of gossiping women gathered again, chattering away.

“Did you hear? Cheng Huai’s family brought something to the Wang family. Do you know what it was?” the village’s most gossip-loving woman whispered.

“No one knows. Chunhua didn’t show off, and no one dared ask Dazai’s mother,” another gossiper said.

At that moment, Changsheng Niang snorted disdainfully and said, “Who doesn’t know she’s stingy? She won’t even make clothes for her own kids. What good things could she have brought the Wangs? Probably some rotten sweet potatoes.”

Yuanbao Niang looked at her in surprise, “Haven’t you heard?”

“Heard what?” Changsheng Niang asked in confusion.

“That Lin Zhao bought meat buns for Dazai and Erzai and made dumplings for them yesterday. Oh, and Tiechui also ate at the third Gu family household,” Yuanbao Niang said.

Changsheng Niang rolled her eyes and sneered, “Who knows what she’s pretending? She probably goes back to her old ways in a couple of days. You can’t change a dog’s nature. I don’t believe a selfish person will suddenly become good.”

Yuanbao Niang wanted to say more but saw Dazai, Erzai, and the twins approaching.

The two older boys didn’t run around as usual but walked slowly and gracefully.

Yuanbao Niang immediately noticed the new shoes on Dazai and Erzai’s feet and stood up in shock. “Dazai, Erzai, did your mother buy you shoes?”

Dazai smiled shyly. Erzai proudly said loudly, “Yes! My mother said these are Warrior shoes!”

The bystanders glanced at Changsheng Niang, who now had a face flushed with embarrassment, just as they had hoped to see.

Everyone smiled with anticipation and walked over to Dazai and Erzai to look at their shoes.

“The shoes are different and look fancy,” Yuanbao Niang complimented, “Dazai, Erzai, those shoes must have cost quite a few yuan, right?”

Dazai blushed shyly, his ears almost burning under the crowd’s attention.

Erzai lifted his right leg, turning his foot from side to side so everyone could see his shoes from all angles, happily saying, “Aren’t they pretty? My mother didn’t say how much they cost, but she’s so good to us.”

Yuanbao Niang laughed at Erzai’s lively demeanor, “Yes, your mother is good to you.”

Buying two pairs of shoes worth several yuan each—how could that not be nice?

Changsheng Niang grumbled sourly, “She really doesn’t know how to manage money. Buying shoes for the kids like she has money to burn. What a prodigal woman.”

The thrifty women nodded in agreement.

Yes, she was a spendthrift.

But some were more reasonable.

“The third son of the Gu family gets a monthly allowance. In recent years, Lin Zhao hasn’t splurged on anything. She must have saved quite a bit. What’s wrong with buying shoes for her kids? If I had money, I’d buy shoes for my kids too,” Yuanbao Niang countered.

She was envious but not bitter.

The women who got along well with Yuanbao Niang joined in, “Yes, if you have money, who wouldn’t want to buy nice things?”

Willingness to spend was one thing; having money was another.

Changsheng Niang curled her lip disdainfully.

Everyone can say, “Where does the money come from? Why buy things?”

Because of those two pairs of shoes, Dazai and Erzai ran around the village, instantly becoming the most fashionable kids in the whole village.

The two boys even went to the old Gu family house.

Approaching Gu father, Erzai proudly showed off, “Grandpa, look at my new shoes. My mother bought these for me and my brother. Are they pretty?”

Gu father smiled and nodded, “Very pretty.”

Dazai also wandered over to his grandfather and was satisfied after receiving a compliment.

The Gu children heard Erzai’s loud voice talking about new shoes and came out one after another.

Seeing Dazai and Erzai’s shoes, they didn’t envy but rather admired.

“Dazai, Erzai, those shoes are what the educated youth call ‘Warrior shoes,’ right?” Gu family’s eldest grandson Bangbang squatted down and touched Erzai’s shoes, his expression full of envy.

Erzai nodded enthusiastically, his eyes sparkling.

“My mother bought these for me and my brother.”

Bangbang, now in school, understood how rare a pair of Warrior shoes was, and his envy nearly overflowed, “Third Aunt is really generous to you.”

Lin Zhao had only bought shoes for the kids, but their impression of her changed completely.

Erzai grinned, “My mother is the most generous and best mother in the whole brigade!”

He leaned forward and said, “Bangbang brother, smell my face. Does it smell nice?”

Bangbang inhaled and caught a sticky fragrance. “Nice. What is it? Snow cream?”

“No, it’s children’s cream my mother bought especially for me, my brother, Sanzi, and Sizi. It’s made for kids,” Erzai emphasized.

Bangbang said softly, “Third Aunt really spoils you.”

“My mother never spares anything to buy for me,” the eleven-year-old boy almost cried with envy.

“Erzai, can I touch your shoes?” Bangbang asked.

Erzai immediately took off one shoe and said, “Sure, you can touch it.”

Bangbang patted his pants and took the shoe, exclaiming, “They’re really different. They feel so comfortable. How do they feel to wear? Tell me.”

Eight-year-old Laimei imitated her brother and touched the shoes. “They’re different. Dazai and Erzai, you’re really lucky to wear these. If they were mine, I wouldn’t dare wear them.”

Dazai remembered what Lin Zhao said and smiled brightly, “I said the same, but my mother said… shoes are made to be worn.”

“My mother also said that when these wear out, she’ll buy us new ones!” Erzai added.

Bangbang and Laimei’s eyes were red with envy.

Erzai had a good relationship with Tiechui. Seeing him eyeing the shoes eagerly, Erzai waved, “Tiechui, do you want to try them on?”

Tiechui was overwhelmed and shyly smiled, “…Can I?”

“Of course. We’re good brothers.”

As he spoke, Erzai took off his shoes and put his bare feet on the ground.

Dazai frowned, “Erzai, your feet are dirty. You’ll need to wash them before putting the shoes back on.”

“Got it, Brother,” Erzai waved dismissively, unconcerned.

They were his new shoes, of course he’d be careful.

Tiechui slipped on Erzai’s new shoes, feeling light and unsure how to place his feet, his hands and feet floating.

Huang Xiulan watched her son’s smiling face and felt a pang of sadness.

She wanted to buy new shoes for her son too, but with the Gu family not divided yet, she had no money.

At that moment, Huang Xiulan deeply envied Lin Zhao from her heart.

Being a bit feisty and lively wasn’t necessarily a bad thing.

Gu Ersao Zhao Liuniang felt similarly.

What division of property?

Because of the Warrior shoes on Dazai and Erzai’s feet, Gu Dasao and Gu Ersao’s hearts stirred, unsettled for a long time.

Gu Xing’er came home carrying a bundle of firewood and saw Dazai and Erzai. Her gaze darkened.

Her eyes caught sight of the new shoes on their feet, and she sneered, “Using my third brother’s money to live lavishly and coming here to show off. Is this how your mother taught you?”

Her words instantly chilled the atmosphere.

Erzai sat on a wooden stool, looking up at Gu Xing’er with a serious face. “Your third brother is also my father. My brother and I are his sons. It’s his duty to raise us. Why is my aunt so angry? Is it because she’s jealous that my mother has money to spend?”

Gu Xing’er was speechless, her chest tight with anger.

“Bang!”

She dropped the bundle of firewood and threw it toward Dazai and Erzai.

“Damn it!” Lin Erge, who had just entered the Gu household to find his nephews, saw the firewood flying toward them and dashed forward, leaping to kick the firewood back.

It landed right where Gu Xing’er was.

“Ah—” she screamed in pain.

Everyone looked again to see Gu Xing’er lying awkwardly on the ground, the bundle of firewood pinning her waist and legs.