Chapter 13: Conflict, She Must Be the Cause

Chapter 13: She Must Be the One Causing the Conflict

Song Fenglan's aunt's maiden name was Yu, and her husband's family name was Jiang. The cousin who spoke was named Jiang Yufei.

Jiang Yufei was two or three years older than Song Fenglan. She had disliked Song Fenglan since childhood. Song Fenglan's family had been well-off when she was young, while the Yu family's circumstances were poor, and they had many children. Jiang Yufei's life was far less privileged than Song Fenglan's. She resented seeing Song Fenglan wear pretty little dresses and red leather boots while she herself had to wear hand-me-downs.

Later, when the Song family fell into hardship, Song Fenglan's mother entrusted her daughter to her younger sister, and Song Fenglan moved into the Jiang household. Jiang Yufei's attitude toward her cousin worsened. She believed Song Fenglan was mooching off her family and thought her own mother was foolish for bringing such a "misfortune" into their home. Given Song Fenglan's unfavorable background, Jiang Yufei feared her cousin would bring trouble upon them.

Aunt Yu ignored her daughter's objections and insisted on letting Song Fenglan stay.

"Fenglan has already moved out. What more do you want?" Aunt Yu scowled, suspecting that her niece's hasty departure was due to Jiang Yufei's hostility.

Jiang Yufei was always the one complaining, while Aunt Yu's daughter-in-law rarely spoke up.

"She should have moved out long ago. She's already registered her marriage—how could she have the nerve to keep living here!" Jiang Yufei rolled her eyes. "You're my mother, not hers. You should be on my side. Did she ever contribute anything while living here?"

"You—" Aunt Yu was so angry she almost refused to speak, but she forced herself to reply, "Fenglan paid her way."

Before the Song family's downfall, Song Fenglan's mother had secretly given Aunt Yu a good amount of money to ensure her daughter's care. Aunt Yu's husband knew about this, but her children did not. In those difficult times, such matters were best kept quiet to avoid accusations of hoarding illicit wealth.

Had Song Fenglan's mother not prepared in advance, Aunt Yu's in-laws would never have allowed Song Fenglan to stay. Song Fenglan's mother never told her daughter much, fearing the girl might grow complacent or accidentally reveal the arrangement.

"She only started paying after she got a job," Jiang Yufei sneered. "Pfft! After covering food and rent, how much could be left?"

Aunt Yu's daughter-in-law saw them arguing but stayed silent, retreating to her room. She didn't harbor strong resentment toward Song Fenglan—especially compared to Jiang Yufei. In her eyes, Song Fenglan was much better behaved.

Song Fenglan wasn't a blood relative, yet she contributed enough to cover her and her son's expenses, even paying extra for rent. Jiang Yufei, on the other hand, frequently brought her children back to mooch, never offering a single coin.

Naturally, Jiang Yufei's sister-in-law was fed up with this. Aunt Yu's daughter-in-law wasn't stupid—she knew there had to be a reason why the notoriously strict Yu grandmother tolerated Song Fenglan's long stay.

As the sister-in-law, she steered clear of confronting Jiang Yufei directly, not wanting to provoke a fight. With Song Fenglan as a buffer, tensions between her and Jiang Yufei remained low.

Song Fenglan was unaware of the argument between Aunt Yu and Jiang Yufei. Her decision to join her husband in the military camp wasn't just due to recovering memories of her past life—she had also realized she was living inside a novel. In the story, she was nothing more than a cold, standoffish minor character. The original plot had her divorcing Qin Yizhou, with Qin Zihang changing his surname to Song, Qin Yizhou remaining unhappily single, and Song Zihang developing a resentful attitude from his broken home.

Being just a supporting character or plot device herself was one thing, but Song Fenglan refused to let her son become someone else's contrast. She didn't believe her child would turn bad just because of a divorce, but if she could give him a happier family life, why not?

If not for reading that novel, Song Fenglan would never have known Qin Yizhou would stay single his whole life for her sake. She had always assumed he married her out of obligation after being trapped. Though she knew a man like him wouldn't be easily manipulated, that suspicion had always bothered her.

Of course, staying single his whole life didn't necessarily mean Qin Yizhou deeply loved her. Song Fenglan simply wanted to give him—and herself—a chance for her own happiness.

Her decision wasn't solely based on the novel's plot or for her son's sake, but for her own peace of mind. If she didn't try, she knew she would forever regret it.

When Qin Yizhou asked about their son eating under the table, Song Fenglan explained.

"Aunt Yu had a tough time. I wasn't her daughter, just a niece," Song Fenglan said. "Some things are best left unsaid. Making a fuss about them would only make things difficult for her."

She had considered the possibility that her aunt might have kept some of their family's things. In those harsh times, Aunt Yu could have easily denied everything. Yet she had still taken Song Fenglan in, helped raise Zi Hang after he was born—that was already more than they could ask for.

She wasn't her mother, just an aunt. One shouldn't demand too much from others.

"When I was working, Aunt Yu was the one looking after Zi Hang," Song Fenglan said. "But relying on her for too long wasn't fair—she had her own grandchildren to care for."

As for the Qin family, they pretty much ignored Song Fenglan and her son, despite living in the same city. Since they showed no concern, Song Fenglan wasn't about to go begging for their attention. If they disliked her, she could dislike them right back—she didn't need them to survive.

Song Fenglan didn't bring up the Qin family, but Qin Yizhou was already thinking about them.

Qin Yizhou's mother was in poor health, and his father had suffered many injuries on the battlefield in his early years, having already retired due to illness. Qin Yizhou never pushed for Song Fenglan and their son to move in with the Qins, but he also knew his parents’ attitude toward her was problematic.

When Auntie Yu bought treats, she would share a little with Qin Zihang—even if it was way less than her own grandkids got. Still, Qin Zihang was satisfied. Something is better than nothing.

"Auntie shares food with me. The others don’t," Qin Zihang said. "Auntie is very nice. Very, very nice."

He emphasized that he had no issues with his auntie. "Auntie gives me food. Others don’t."

"Now that you’re here, eat as much as you like," Qin Yizhou couldn’t help but say.

"Eating too much will make me a chubby pig," Qin Zihang replied. "Gotta stay healthy."

"You’re raising him well," Qin Yizhou said, looking at Song Fenglan. He didn’t see any pessimism in their son—the boy was optimistic and resilient.

"He’s my son," Song Fenglan said. "If I don’t raise him well, he might grow up saying I was a bad mother, and it’d come back to bite me."

It was true that Song Fenglan didn’t have much affection for Qin Yizhou, but their son was her own flesh and blood. She wouldn’t take it out on the child just because she’d been trapped in this marriage. Of course, if the father had been a terrible person, she wouldn’t have kept the child, let alone spoken to him like this.

People say children are innocent, but Song Fenglan didn’t believe that. She only knew that mothers were also innocent, pitiable women who had the right to choose their own lives. She didn’t care if people called her cold-hearted—that was just who she was.

"I’ll be nice to Mom," Qin Zihang raised his hand. "I swear."

"Why swear when you’re so little?" Song Fenglan chuckled. "Don’t make too many oaths, or people won’t believe you."

"Okay, then I won’t swear," Qin Zihang said.

"Swearing occasionally is fine, especially when you grow up and need to sweet-talk someone," Song Fenglan said. "Some people aren’t too sharp—they believe in that sort of thing."

Especially women in love, who would believe whatever a man said, thinking his promises would last forever.

Qin Yizhou had initially wanted to swear an oath himself—that he really did love her—but after hearing her words, he hesitated. He loved her deeply.

After breakfast, Qin Yizhou got some wood. When Song Fenglan saw this, she thought he was making a toy for Qin Zihang. But when she noticed the pieces were cut longer than usual, she figured he might be making a bigger toy or perhaps a small chair for their son.

When Qin Yizhou carried the wood to their bedroom to measure, Zihang tagged along excitedly, eager to see what his father was making.

"Is this a railing?" Song Fenglan guessed.

"Yes," Qin Yizhou nodded. "Since I’m on leave, I might as well make it now. Zihang will have to sleep alone eventually. In case he rolls off, at least the railing can stop him."

"Not a big boat? One that can float?" Qin Zihang widened his eyes, staring at his father in disbelief.

"No playing in the water—it’s dangerous," Qin Yizhou said.

"But—" Before Qin Zihang could finish, a commotion broke out outside.

"Ah!"

"Oh god, oh god! Quick, take him to the hospital!"

"Hurry, help him!"

"Get a doctor! Where’s the doctor?"

...

Qin Yizhou heard the commotion and hurried outside to see what was going on. Song Fenglan scooped up Qin Zihang, worried he might get scared.

A neighbor was screaming, their forehead slick with sweat, clutching a child less than a year old in their arms. The baby looked pale, and an elderly woman was running while carrying the child.

Song Fenglan didn’t take Qin Zihang outside. Qin Yizhou could handle checking things out.

"Mom," Qin Zihang buried his head in his mother’s arms, his voice muffled. "Aren’t we going out?"

"No," Song Fenglan said. "You’re too little. If something happens, don’t rush out. Protect yourself first, understand? When others are in trouble, don’t panic or charge in recklessly. If you can’t help, charging in just makes you a useless bystander—it won’t change a thing. It’s like handing someone two bucks and getting nothing back—just a waste."

"I won’t go out," Qin Zihang, who had initially wanted to go, changed his mind after hearing his mother’s words.

Song Fenglan didn’t want her son to be some big hero. She only wished for him to stay safe and prioritize his own well-being.

A short while later, Qin Yizhou returned.

"What happened? What’s going on?" Song Fenglan asked.

"A baby toppled into a bucket and nearly drowned. They’re rushing the child to the hospital now," Qin Yizhou said.

"How old was the child?" Song Fenglan frowned. "Why didn’t the bucket tip?"

"It’s a wooden bucket, a bit heavy," Qin Yizhou replied. "The child was less than a year old."

"Did you hear that?" Song Fenglan said to her son. "Not only should you never play by the river, but even at home, don’t mess around with water. If something happens, you’ll never see Mom again. Mom might have another baby instead, got it?"

"I won’t play, I won’t!" Qin Zihang whimpered, clinging tightly to his mother, unwilling to let go. He couldn’t bear the thought of losing his mom to some other kid. He still wanted to be her baby.

Seeing his son like this, Qin Yizhou didn’t tell him not to be afraid. With life-and-death stuff, it was best not to sugarcoat things.

The baby was rushed to the hospital. When Shi Guilan heard about the incident, she told others, "I’ll bet Qin’s wife cursed them! Nothing like this happened till she showed up! The moment she arrived, trouble followed!"