Heh, at this moment, Song Wei didn’t mind playing along with the old lady.
She glanced at the five yuan in old lady Lin’s hand and chuckled.
“Your grandson has grown so much, and he’s only giving you five yuan? How much food can five yuan even buy?”
Old lady Lin choked on her words. “What do you know? My grandson gave me his first earnings! He’ll give me even more money in the future because he’s filial to his grandmother. Unlike some people…”
There was no need to name names; everyone knew who she was talking about.
Song Wei didn’t bother arguing. There was no point in reasoning with someone who never admitted she was wrong.
Instead, she pulled out two crisp ten-yuan bills from her pocket and laid them right in front of old lady Lin.
“See these? Ten yuan, two of them, all given to me by Lin Zhen~”
“We’re not even married yet, and Lin Zhen already entrusts me to manage his money. Honestly, I feel a bit embarrassed about it.”
Song Wei’s tone suddenly turned saccharine, deliberately provoking old lady Lin, who was instantly infuriated.
The old lady’s eyes turned green with envy as they fixated on the two ten-yuan bills in Song Wei’s hand.
“That money belongs to my grandson! It should be given to his grandmother as a sign of respect!”
Song Wei stared at her. “Go ahead, try taking it if you dare. From now on, all of Lin Zhen’s money is mine, and it has nothing to do with you, not even half a cent.”
With that, she rolled her eyes dramatically and walked away with Lin Zhen, her head held high.
Behind them, old lady Lin was so enraged that she began hurling curses.
Song Wei turned back. “Watch your mouth! The fields are full of manure right now. If you make me mad, I might just scoop some up and throw it at you. Your mouth will be even filthier then.”
Old lady Lin quickly covered her mouth, genuinely believing that Song Wei would do such a thing.
Lin Zhen stood silently beside her, not stopping Song Wei. Instead, he affectionately patted her head in support, his eyes brimming with indulgence.
Old lady Lin stomped her feet in fury but didn’t dare to say another word.
Although the other elderly women in the area thought Song Wei’s actions were a bit excessive, they couldn’t deny how satisfying it was to witness.
When they were younger, they too had been bullied by their mothers-in-law. If they had had Song Wei’s sharp wit and boldness back then, they wouldn’t have suffered so much.
The more they thought about it, the more cathartic it felt.
Besides, old lady Lin had been flaunting her five yuan for days. They were long tired of her antics.
After dealing with old lady Lin, Song Wei happily linked arms with Lin Zhen and skipped off to the fields. By the end of the afternoon, they had finished their work.
On their way home, carrying their hoes, they spotted Widow Hu bringing tea to Wang Shu and his father.
Song Wei’s eyes suddenly widened in shock.
She grabbed Lin Zhen’s sleeve. “Oh my god, oh my god…!”
Lin Zhen quickly covered her mouth. “Ahem… Don’t shout. People will hear you.”
Song Wei blinked and nodded. Once Lin Zhen removed his hand, she excitedly exclaimed, “Guess what I just saw! I saw Wang Shu’s father touching Widow Hu’s hand. And that look in his eyes—I’m sure I didn’t misread it!”
Song Wei was utterly stunned, so much so that she couldn’t snap out of it.
Widow Hu—what a bold move!
Lin Zhen squinted and glanced in their direction. Everything seemed normal now, but he trusted that Song Wei hadn’t seen wrong.
Song Wei clung to his arm, still buzzing with disbelief.
“Widow Hu is fearless. What is she thinking? She’s planning to marry Wang Shu—that’s her future father-in-law!”
Lin Zhen’s attention was momentarily distracted by her hand on his arm.
Warm and soft.
His fiancée even smelled faintly sweet.
When were they getting married?
“What are you thinking about?”
Seeing Lin Zhen spacing out with a blank expression, Song Wei rolled her eyes in exasperation.
Lin Zhen snapped out of it, feeling his ears grow warm.
“She’s likely doing this for two reasons: one, to remove any obstacles to marrying Wang Shu; and two, to get more information about what they’re investigating.”
Widow Hu must have asked Wang Shu. But since she couldn’t get any useful information from him, she turned to his father instead.
Song Wei gasped softly, tempted to give Widow Hu a thumbs-up for her audacity.
The two didn’t linger and quickly walked away. Song Wei dragged Lin Zhen along, afraid she might keep sneaking glances if they stayed any longer.
What a juicy scandal!
At this point, Song Wei couldn’t help but feel a little sorry for Wang Shu. Talk about bringing a wolf into the house.
To confirm that she hadn’t misunderstood, Song Wei dressed in black that evening and snuck over to Wang Shu’s house to observe.
She happened to catch Wang Shu serving medicine to his mother while Widow Hu flirted with his father.
Song Wei: Ew~~~
So gross! So gross! She quickly retreated.
I wasn’t wrong after all.
Just as she was about to head back to the Educated Youth residence, another scandal practically smacked her in the face.
She heard footsteps and hid to avoid being seen, planning to leave once the coast was clear.
But to her surprise, she spotted Xu Laidi!
This time, Xu Laidi had cleaned herself up and didn’t look as filthy. She was talking to someone.
“Like we agreed, 100 yuan per child. Don’t you dare go back on your word.”
“Relax. Once you lure the kids to the mountain, our people will be waiting to take them.”
Xu Laidi scowled. “But those kids have two dogs guarding them. It’s not easy to get close.”
“It’s just two dogs. That’s easy. Smear some drugged meat and feed it to them.”
Xu Laidi rolled her eyes. “I can’t even afford meat for myself, and you expect me to feed it to those mutts? What are you thinking?”
The man frowned. “I’ll prepare it for you. Strike tomorrow while the adults are busy and can’t watch the kids. Meet me at the usual spot.”
After discussing the plan further, the two parted ways stealthily.
The location wasn’t far from where Xu Laidi lived with her in-laws. Song Wei stepped out of the shadows, coldly watching Xu Laidi’s retreating figure.
“Heh…”
Xu Laidi sure had guts.
Song Wei smirked coldly, relieved she’d decided to go out tonight. If she hadn’t overheard their plan, who knows how many kids might have gone missing tomorrow?
She wasn’t worried about Black Egg—the two wolves wouldn’t eat food from strangers and always stayed by his side.
But the other children in the village weren’t as fortunate.
Tsk… Why did she always stumble upon sneaky conversations? What a strange gift.
Not that she minded—it came with some juicy scandals.
Instead of returning to the Educated Youth residence, she went straight to Lin Zhen’s house.
Late at night, she didn’t bother asking Lin Zhen to open the door and simply climbed over the wall.
As she turned, she saw Lin Zhen standing behind her, holding a stick.
Song Wei: …
“What are you doing?”
Lin Zhen tossed the stick aside, his expression calm. “Nothing.”
Song Wei hadn’t exactly been quiet, so Lin Zhen must have heard the commotion and climbed out through the window with the stick.
She didn’t hold it against him. Pulling him inside, she told him about Xu Laidi’s plan to abduct children with the traffickers.
Lin Zhen’s gaze turned icy.
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