Chapter 267: Eye Drops – Daily Gossip in the Courtyard of the Sickly Young Aunt

Chapter 267: Stirring the Pot—The Sickly Little Aunt’s Daily Drama in the Compound

Granny Jiang was scolding her two granddaughters angrily when she suddenly remembered there had been a bottle of soda, which seemed to have gone to the eldest son’s wife.

She turned to Eldest Jiang Sister-in-Law and said in a slightly softer tone, "Eldest daughter-in-law, give the soda in your hand to your two nephews first."

Eldest Jiang Sister-in-Law promptly turned the soda bottle upside down in front of her while placing her other hand on her swollen belly. "It's not that I don’t want to give it to them, but this little one in my belly felt too hot just now. So, the soda was finished in one go, and I haven’t even cooled down yet! If only you, Granny, could buy two more bottles!"

Granny Jiang seethed with anger!

The scorching weather already made her irritable, and after being provoked repeatedly, she desperately wanted to vent. But seeing that round belly, she pursed her lips and swallowed back her curses.

Eldest Jiang Sister-in-Law had already achieved her goal and didn’t care how angry Granny Jiang was. Her motherly side came out for a moment, and while Granny Jiang wasn’t paying attention, she secretly waved her hand, signaling her two daughters to hurry back to their room.

Jiang Damei and Jiang Ermei caught the signal, glanced stealthily at Granny Jiang, and while she wasn’t looking, the two sisters clattered noisily back to their room.

Eldest Jiang Sister-in-Law knew Granny Jiang was stewing inside and had no intention of staying to bear the brunt of it, so she followed them back to the room.

"You did well today. Remember, you’re from the eldest son’s family—benefits should always go to our own people first. What you did today was right. Don’t go being dumb like last time, giving all the good stuff to those two boys from the second son’s family, understand?"

Jiang Damei nodded slowly, half-getting it but still a little confused.

Jiang Ermei, however, was quicker on the uptake than her sister. "I understand. From now on, any benefits should go to the baby in Mom’s belly." She knew her parents placed great importance on the baby, so she knew exactly what to say to please her mother.

"Mm, Ermei is right. Any benefits should go to your own brother first. Don’t be silly and give them away to others!"

"Uh-huh, uh-huh." Ermei also really wanted a brother. Before, Grandma always said their family had no boys, so in the future, they’d have to rely on Dahu and Erhu for support. That’s why they had to share any benefits with them.

But now they were going to have a brother, so they wouldn’t have to let Dahu and Erhu push them around anymore. Plus, their mother had been much nicer to them lately.

Granny Jiang watched as the three from the eldest son’s family just walked away, her anger making her breath hitch.

Jiang Dahu and Jiang Erhu were still throwing a tantrum on the ground. Having been spoiled for so many years, they never gave up until they got what they wanted.

Granny Jiang wouldn’t blame them—she’d only blame it all on Lin Shu and Eldest Jiang Sister-in-Law.

In the end, Granny Jiang gave Jiang Dahu and Jiang Erhu a lousy two cents to buy popsicles.

A slightly sweet popsicle cost one cent.

Though it was just a pittance, it still stung.

Especially when Jiang Li, the daughter-in-law of the Gu family across the way, returned just then carrying a bag of popsicles and soda.

No one knew why she was slower than the kids, but at least she’d brought them back.

Granny Gu deliberately held a popsicle in one hand and a soda in the other, showing them off in front of Granny Jiang.

"Ah, so refreshing! My daughter-in-law is such a good one. I didn’t even ask her to buy these for me, yet she still remembered me!"

The frosty mist off the popsicles was clearly visible under the sunlight, making it look even more refreshing.

The Lin family of three was also itching at the sight. They shot each other a look before turning away in unison, picking up the soda bottle on the table and each taking a sip from it.

"Aaah… that hits the spot!"

Their exclamations were a bit loud, drawing Granny Jiang’s attention. Seeing them chugging from the bottle, it set her off again.

Granny Gu also glanced over, though her mouth quirked slightly.

How had she never noticed Lin Qing being such an attention-seeker before?

Could it be because her parents moved in, making her more bubbly?

But if Lin Qing knew what Mother Gu was thinking, she’d probably answer seriously—maybe so! Around her parents, Lin Qing acted like a child who never grew up, and indeed, she became more spirited.

That settled it for now.

“The Jiang family—once the men come back, there’s bound to be another blow-up!” Mother Lin, who hadn’t been in this compound for long, could already see it.

“Mm-hmm, Mother Jiang isn’t one to take a loss easily. Since she came off worse against Lin Shu today, she’ll definitely go to her son for support,” Lin Qing nodded.

Father Lin didn’t quite understand and looked puzzled. Mother Lin took one glance at him and knew—this man simply didn’t get it.

“You fool, when a mother-in-law and daughter-in-law don’t get along, the mother-in-law will seize any chance to badmouth her to her son!”

Father Lin suddenly remembered his younger days when his own mother would occasionally nag in his ear. But since he and Mother Lin had a good relationship, he always let it go in one ear and out the other.

The thought made him shudder—if he’d listened more to his mother back then, wouldn’t that have caused friction between him and his wife?

Still, he felt what Lin Shu did today was a little wrong, so Mother Jiang complaining to her son seemed justified.

Ah, whatever—it's all too messy. Anyway, his mother had passed away years ago, and this wasn’t the time to dwell on it. There was no chance for her to dwell on it anymore, so no need to think about it.

The realization made him feel a little relieved. He looked at his daughter—relieved for himself, and for her too.

His daughter had married well. Having no mother-in-law living with them meant far fewer conflicts. If she’d married into a family like Lin Shu’s, he’d rather she stayed unmarried.

“Dad, why are you looking at me like that?”

“Luckily, you don’t have in-laws like that.”

Lin Qing had no idea what her father was imagining. “Wait, Dad, what are you thinking about?”

“No, I mean—fortunately, Lin Shu sabotaged things for you before. Otherwise, if you’d married into a family like that, it would’ve broken my heart.”

Mother Lin, reminded by Father Lin, couldn’t help clutching her chest. “Yes, yes! Fortunately, she sabotaged it for you.”

Call them double standards or whatever—if someone had to marry into such a family, they’d rather it be Lin Shu than their darling daughter.

A granddaughter was, after all, not as close. And though this granddaughter had grown up before their eyes, their bond wasn’t exactly warm.

“Alright, alright! Don’t dwell on it so much—it’s not me who married into that family, anyway.” Ever since that dream, she’d truly lost any desire to marry a remarrying divorced man.

So even without Cen Xi, she wouldn’t have casually chosen another divorced man to marry.

Lin Qing soothed her parents' worries, finally stopping them from harping on this.