Chapter 414

Chapter 414

Like a Sore Thumb

That was the hope of everyone on that distant planet, so she refused to show courtesy to this old woman.

"I'm not putting on airs. Whether it's a son or a daughter, they'll be the treasure of my family. After all, how well my in-laws and my husband treat me is clear as day—none of your damn business," she said, then fixed her gaze on the old woman before her and sneered, "What you should worry about is how you're going to account for yourself to your daughter-in-law later. Starting now, I won't be accepting any herbs she digs up."

"What?" Zhu Xiaojin exclaimed in shock, her voice shrill. "Since when?"

"I control the herb purchases. What do you mean, 'since when'?" Lin Nannan scoffed, then turned to Xiao Pei and said, "Peipei, help me wash down the stairs!"

"No need to ask! Even if it had nothing to do with you, we wouldn't just stand by and watch!" Xiao Pei replied while calling others to help.

On their side, some carried water, others grabbed brooms—the commotion made Zhu Xiaojin, standing alone, stand out like a sore thumb...

Since there were oil stains, plain water wouldn’t clean them, so they mixed soapy water to scrub thoroughly, then swept away all the dirty water, making sure the stairs were no longer slippery. Only then did they relax.

"Nan Nan, the stairs are still wet. Come wait at my place for a while before going up," Xiao Pei said, broom in hand.

Lin Nannan nodded.

Just as they finished, Niu Achun hurried back.

Worried about her child, she had run the whole way, sweat pouring down her face.

Even though her mind was entirely on her child, she could still sense something was wrong—her mother-in-law looked furious. She asked anxiously, "Mom, what’s wrong? Why are you out here?"

"Nothing!" Zhu Xiaojin replied guiltily, then urged, "The child’s crying! What are you standing around for? Go back and give them the medicine!"

"Oh!" Niu Achun found it strange, but too concerned about her child to push the matter further.

Once the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law had gone inside, Xiao Pei finally looked away and asked Lin Nannan, who was sitting on a stool, "Was A Chun’s mother-in-law doing it on purpose?"

Lin Nannan’s expression turned serious. "I don’t know, but the evidence speaks for itself. And even though A Hang asked you all to look after me, everyone’s busy. I’m out all day, eating all three meals in the cafeteria—I’ve never even taken a meal here. Why would she bring me soup? Was it her own idea, or did A Chun really tell her to...?"

"A Chun’s child is sick..." Xiao Pei hesitated before speaking.

This reminded Lin Nannan of something. She looked at Xiao Pei and asked, "If the child is sick, would A Chun even have the time to make soup?"

Xiao Pei drew a sharp breath, then frowned in confusion. "You’ve never had any conflict with her. Why would she target you?"

Lin Nannan was equally puzzled. "That's her secret to keep."

"What about A Chun...?" Xiao Pei thought of Lin Nannan’s earlier decision and asked uncertainly.

"Don’t say anything yet. Later, go check on her child and casually ask A Chun if she really told her mother-in-law to bring me soup. If she didn’t, tell her what her mother-in-law did—including my decision," Lin Nannan spoke calmly.

She wanted to understand the motive behind the targeting.

There’s no such thing as baseless hatred or hostility. They’d never had any conflict before, yet suddenly she was being targeted—even threatened her child. Without getting to the bottom of it, it would be like sitting on a ticking time bomb, ready to explode at any moment.

She wouldn't risk her child's life.

"Alright, I’ll take you upstairs first, then go over," Xiao Pei nodded in agreement.