Chapter 38: The Evil Stepmother of the 1970s 5 New Story VIP “Mom I…

Chapter 38: The Evil Stepmother of the 1970s (5) – New VIP Chapter Release "Mom, I..."

Xu Ziyan returned to the village with the two children, the bicycle handlebars loaded with bags. Someone deliberately asked the kids, "What did you do today?"

Fang Bei shouted excitedly, "We went to the park! Took photos! Ate ice cream and bought snacks!"

The nosy neighbor gasped—"Wow, that must've cost a fortune!" They couldn’t help but ask, "What’s the special occasion? You’re so happy!"

Xu Ziyan showed them what she had bought and whispered, "Auntie Lin, my grandma’s birthday is in a couple of days. I bought her some gifts and took the kids out to play. Don’t tell anyone, or else she’ll know what I got her in advance, and it won’t be a surprise."

Auntie Lin nodded repeatedly, her eyes glued to the gifts—malted milk powder, pastries, canned goods—all expensive items. Who said Xu Ziyan was unfilial and always angered Granny Xu? For the old lady’s birthday, Xu Ziyan was so generous. How could that be called unfilial? What more could she do to prove her filial piety?

Xu Ziyan took the children home. That evening, they had braised chicken with mushrooms. Mother Fang, whose family were cooks, had inherited the skill and cooked exceptionally well. The whole family dug in happily. Even if there was an occasional small stone in the rice, it didn’t dampen Xu Ziyan’s good mood—it felt like experiencing life at a farmstay, quite amusing.

"Delicious! My mother-in-law’s cooking is as good as Aunt Chen’s in my past life. I’m so lucky! Otherwise, in this era with its lack of oil and salt, cooking without enough seasoning would be miserable."

Mother Fang paused mid-bite. What? Past life? The goddess had already been reincarnated once, with memories intact? How impressive!

001: "Host, Xu Xiuyun next door is crying to Song Dongbo."

Xu Ziyan didn’t care. "Song Dongbo just has a good business mind, catching the wave of the times to get rich. That’s his strength in commerce—what else can he do? Hit me? Forget them. Xu Xiuyun will definitely twist the truth, play the victim, and win Song Dongbo’s sympathy so they can stay devoted. Honestly, she’s overdoing it. Song Dongbo wouldn’t hold it against her anyway. He’s busy with business and just wants a wife who treats his daughter well and takes care of the home. Xu Xiuyun does that, so the rest doesn’t matter. If he truly loved her, why didn’t he speak up when the original host and Xu Xiuyun clashed?"

001: "Good point. This is a story about a virtuous female lead living a happy life. Song Dongbo barely counts as the male lead—more like a background figure. Seems he’s just average, but at least he won’t secretly harm you, unlike the male lead from your past life. By the way, host, what about Fang Lihai? Will you become real husband and wife with him?"

Xu Ziyan instinctively replied, "Depends on whether he’s handsome. Hmm, he is quite good-looking. I’ve never courted a soldier before."

Now Father Fang also froze. What? The goddess wanted a real marriage with his son???

The two children grew more convinced that the Xu Ziyan before them wasn’t the same harsh stepmother from before. Today had been too wonderful—they didn’t want her to change back at all. They only wished she would stay forever. Summoning their courage, they each picked up a piece of chicken for her. "Auntie, eat!"

Xu Ziyan snapped out of her thoughts and smiled. "Good kids, you eat too. From now on, just call me Mom, not Auntie."

The children’s eyes lit up. "R-Really?"

"Of course! From now on, you’re my sons. Remember, if anyone bullies you outside, tell me, and I’ll stand up for you."

"Okay!"

They answered loudly, faces glowing with excitement. Having lost their parents young and endured daily chores and scolding under the original host, other kids had mocked them as unwanted orphans. They’d learned early what it meant to live under someone else’s roof and face the world’s cruelty. Being forced to call their uncle and aunt "Second Uncle" and "Second Aunt" had been painful. Now they could finally say "Mom" and "Dad"—they weren’t orphans anymore, and no one could laugh at them. Their new mom even promised to protect them!

Xu Ziyan gave each a chicken drumstick and smiled. "Eat up, grow strong. Then if anyone bullies me, you can stand up for me too."

They nodded eagerly. They would work hard to grow up and become useful people.

After dinner, Xu Ziyan hesitated. "001, should I wash the dishes? I was a spoiled miss for decades in my past life—never washed a single bowl. I might break them. But in this era, daughters-in-law are supposed to do these things. Would it be bad if I didn’t? But I really don’t want to."

Mother Fang and Father Fang quickly cleared the table. Meeting Xu Ziyan’s gaze, Mother Fang smiled. "You must be tired today. Go rest—I’ll handle this."

Father Fang nodded. "You young people have your own things to do. Don’t worry about household chores. Didn’t you say you wanted to figure out how to make money? You focus on that instead."

Fang Nan dutifully swept the floor. Xu Ziyan stretched contentedly, walking around the yard to work off her meal. As dusk fell and she prepared to sleep, she noticed a candle lit in the neighboring house. Through the window, she saw Xu Xiuyun sewing by candlelight—likely making a gift for Granny Xu’s birthday.

Xu Ziyan suddenly laughed, realizing something interesting about this world’s plot. On the surface, Xu Xiuyun was kind and perfect, destined for a happy ending, while the original host was the evil counterpart with a tragic fate.

But Xu Xiuyun had suffered since childhood—taking blame for the original host, swallowing grievances, working hard for the family. Her fiancé’s death left her with a faint "jinxed" reputation. She married into a stepmother role, carefully tending her stepdaughter’s reputation, never losing her temper even when the girl misbehaved.

Her husband was always out chasing business deals, so she handled all chores and farm work. She met every slight with kindness, spending money and effort on others as if she had no temper. She studied day and night to enter university, got pregnant during her studies—extremely inconvenient—then became a housewife after graduation, raising her child and her difficult teenage stepdaughter, dealing with petty household matters.

When her husband came home drunk from business dinners, she patiently cared for him. Her whole life was this endless toil. Then, because her husband grew rich, she became the enviable "admired heroine"—yet in reality, she’d swallowed every bitterness without ever living for herself.

The original host, meanwhile, had indulged freely since childhood—taking what she wanted, stealing money from her grandma, running from beatings and framing her cousin, shirking work, growing up carefree. Married into her husband’s home, she ignored her stepsons and did no work. Her husband rarely came home but sent money monthly. Her mother-in-law cooked delicious meals. Though her reputation was terrible, she lived in comfort.

Later, the original host ran away to live as she pleased. Though she ultimately failed, every step was her own choice. Her methods were wrong, but she’d lived exactly as she pleased—never suffering, never yielding.

Given the choice, Xu Ziyan would never pick Xu Xiuyun’s life—outwardly perfect and enviable, but swallowing every drop of bitterness in private.

Xu Ziyan shook her head and went to bed, drowsily thinking: Must get rich. This hard brick bed (kang) is unbearable. I’m here to complete a mission, not suffer. I need to move to the city!

Neighbors passing by had noticed the aroma of the Fang family’s meaty dinner, and the busybody Auntie Lin had spread word of Xu Ziyan’s gifts. Gossip began circulating, though discreetly—since Xu Ziyan had asked for secrecy about the gifts, people only whispered to close friends.

News of Mother Fang cooking meat for Xu Ziyan also spread. The more people thought about it, the more they believed Xu Ziyan must get along well with the Fang family. If the elders and children liked her, she couldn’t be bad—wasn’t that more convincing than rumors? Meanwhile, suspicion toward Xu Xiuyun grew. People decided to watch her closely—was she truly good to her stepdaughter? If she was just putting on a show while mistreating the girl, that wouldn’t do.

Amid these quiet discussions, Granny Xu’s birthday arrived. The Xu family prepared early—a sixtieth birthday called for festivity and good food. But as villagers, they weren’t overly formal, so it was just a family gathering.

Since the Xu household hadn’t divided, only Xu Ziyan and Xu Xiuyun’s families needed to attend. Xu Xiuyun arrived early with Song Dongbo and her daughter, offering birthday wishes before hurrying to the kitchen to help cook. Her mother tried to shoo her out. "Married daughters shouldn’t labor when visiting home. Go keep your husband company."

Xu Xiuyun smiled. "I just want to spare you the work. Let me help. Dongbo is chatting with Grandpa and Dad."

Her mother whispered, "Did your husband quarrel with you? What really happened that day? How did you let Xu Ziyan scold you?"

Xu Xiuyun’s eyes reddened. "Mom, I don’t want to talk about it. It’s over."

"Alright, alright." Her mother said no more, but seeing her daughter like this convinced her Xu Xiuyun had suffered greatly—undoubtedly bullied by Xu Ziyan again, that troublemaker since childhood.

Talk of Cao Cao and Cao Cao arrives—Xu Ziyan arrived with the children, loaded down with packages. Villagers had "coincidentally" crossed paths just to see her gifts, and they were impressed. She was truly generous. Granny Xu was lucky—so biased, yet her granddaughter was so filial.

Xu Ziyan handed over the gifts to Granny Xu with a smile. "Grandma, these are from me and Lihai for your longevity celebration." She glanced at the children. "What do we say?"

Fang Nan said, "Wish Great-Granny happiness as vast as the eastern sea!"

Fang Bei added, "And longevity as enduring as the southern mountains."

Granny Xu managed a tight smile. "Good, good children." She grudgingly handed each child twenty fen. Why bring kids? Now she had to give money!

Once the children were sent to play outside, Father Xu and Mother Xu watched her worriedly. Xu Ziyan could tell Granny Xu had spent the past two days berating her—the old lady’s face was already scowling.

Then Xu Xiuyun came over with a smile. "Granny, my gift is a hand-sewn dress. It’s not as fancy as my sister’s presents, but I hope you like it."

Granny Xu’s face brightened, and she immediately tried it on. "Wonderful! The fit is just right and it looks lovely. Such filial piety!"

Xu Ziyan said with a sly smile. "And what about me? Am I not filial?"