Chapter 42: The Evil Stepmother of the 1970s 9 New Story Started “Mom I…

Chapter 42: The Evil Stepmother of the 1970s 9

New story "Mom, I..." is now live.

Fang Nan spoke clearly and quickly explained the whole story. By the time Xu Xiuyun realized something was wrong and rushed out to stop him, it was already too late.

Song Jiao immediately turned to her for support, "Mom, tell them! Didn’t you see it? Xu Ziyan deliberately made them pick out stones while washing rice—she was bullying them! And now they’re saying I lied and framed them, but I didn’t!"

Everyone turned to Xu Xiuyun, who took a deep breath and put on a surprised expression, "I just said, ‘So they’re this meticulous about their food.’ Maybe Jiao misunderstood and thought my sister was... well, being harsh with them again. After all, Jiao usually just plays and doesn’t do chores.

It’s normal for kids not to understand. Don’t take it to heart."

She then smiled at the children, "Nan, Bei, don’t be upset. Auntie's got candy for you."

Fang Nan and Fang Bei shook their heads, "We already have candy from our mom."

Song Jiao, however, pushed Xu Xiuyun away angrily, "How could you take their side? I’ll never talk to you again!" She then ran back into the house, crying.

Xu Xiuyun gave everyone an awkward smile, "She's just a kid. I’ll go comfort her."

"Stop right there." Xu Ziyan stepped out of the house, smirking. "What, start rumors then try to slink away? Using a child to spread lies—have you no shame? You keep implying that I’m an abusive stepmother, but aren’t you the one who’s actually bad to kids? What kind of caring adult uses a child to gossip, turning her into a little gossip? You’ve already ruined my reputation—now you want to ruin Song Jiao’s too?"

Xu Xiuyun went pale. If the matter had been brushed off, people would’ve just dismissed it as kids being kids. But with Xu Ziyan calling her out publicly, things had gotten serious. If she couldn’t explain herself, Song Dongbo would surely be furious.

Xu Xiuyun choked up, "Does one mistake mean I’ll be held against me forever? Last time, I was just worried about the kids and acted rashly by taking them to the clinic. I apologized, didn’t I? I really have no reason to cause trouble for you—what good would that do me? I..."

"Oh, there’s plenty of good. It makes everyone see me as the evil stepmother while you’re the perfect one—just like how you’ve always painted yourself as kind, virtuous, hardworking, and gentle. Naturally, people prefer you, making your life easier and feeding that vanity of yours."

Xu Ziyan cut her off mercilessly. "Quit meddling in my family's business. Did I eat your rice? What's it to you if we pick out stones? Even if I only ate stones and threw the rice away, it’s none of your business. We have neighbors on the other side too—why isn’t Auntie Lin up in our business like you? And we’re even relatives.

Judge by results, not words. Every bad rumor about me traces back to you—you’re not innocent. Everyone here is smart. You might fool them for a year or two, but not forever. Am I right?"

"Exactly! Folks around here aren't blind! We’ve seen it all—why is it always you and your kid calling her a bad stepmother? How convenient!"

"Seriously, why are you so meddlesome? What’s with always snooping around their yard? If I saw the kids washing rice, I’d think they were just playing. How’d you know they were picking out stones so meticulously? That means you were watching for a long time. Mind your own business!"

Xu Ziyan added, "And what was that dig you made earlier? ‘Song Jiao thought I was... again’? You wanted everyone to think I’ve always bullied the kids, didn’t you? If you have proof, show it. If you have witnesses, bring them. Today, you’d better explain—when exactly did you see me mistreat the kids?"

The villagers chimed in, "Fang Nan and Fang Bei know who’s good to them. Fang Bei’s only five, yet he sticks up for his mom like that—that proves Xu Ziyan treats him well. Xu Xiuyun, have you ever actually seen her abuse them? Speak up!"

Fang Bei lowered his head slightly, guilty. He wasn’t defending his original stepmom but his magical mom. But since the neighbor was bad, he didn’t need to explain. Helping his magical mom was good—maybe she’d reward him with sweet candy.

The thought made Fang Bei run to Xu Ziyan and grab her hand. Fang Nan, seeing this, also stood by her side, though he was too old to hold her hand.

The crowd grew more convinced. "Look how much the kids adore Xu Ziyan! Meanwhile, Song Jiao doesn’t seem close to you at all—she just said she’d never talk to you again."

Cornered, Xu Xiuyun’s face twisted. With everyone demanding an answer, she burst into tears, "I never said my sister bullied the kids. I never said any such thing."

Xu Ziyan retorted, "Right, you just dropped vague hints, letting others assume the worst. And when confronted, you’d just deny ever saying anything. How clever."

Auntie Liu stepped forward angrily, "Exactly! That day Xu Xiuyun took the kids to the clinic, I asked what happened. She said they had heatstroke from washing too many clothes, and Xu Ziyan made them stand under the scorching sun as punishment for not cleaning them well enough.

She didn’t outright say Xu Ziyan abused them, but come on—isn’t that what she meant? I misunderstood and even cursed Xu Ziyan for being cruel, tormenting kids like that. I said, ‘They’re sisters, yet so different!’

And Xu Xiuyun didn’t deny it—wasn’t that silent approval? What else was I supposed to think? Of course I’d believe Xu Ziyan was evil, always bullying the kids."

Everyone knew about the incident, but these details were new. The crowd went wild.

"Xu Xiuyun, you’re such a hypocrite! Playing us for fools? We’re neighbors—how low can you get?"

"She's too scheming, we can't keep up with her. We should steer clear of her from now on."

"Looking at it this way, who knows how many times she's tricked us like this before. Everyone, remember this—from now on, we can't trust anything Xu Xiuyun says. Be careful not to get cheated while doing her favors."

Aunt Liu said, still shaken, "Isn't that exactly what happened to me? That day, I almost got into an argument with Xu Ziyan. Thank heavens the truth surfaced, or I would’ve wronged an innocent person and made an enemy for no reason."

She was genuinely shaken. Originally, the villagers all thought Xu Ziyan had forced herself on Battalion Commander Fang, and since he left on their wedding day, it was clear he didn’t like her. So they’d always scorned Xu Ziyan. Plus, with her terrible reputation, they’d never minced words about her, convinced they were protecting the Fang children and standing up for what's right.

But Xu Ziyan wasn’t that kind of villain. She was on good terms with the Fang family, young and old. When Battalion Commander Fang returned and saw how close his parents and children were with Xu Ziyan, would he still dwell on the past? Of course not—he’d surely live happily with her, making Xu Ziyan the battalion commander’s wife, an officer's wife.

Offending Xu Ziyan would mean offending Battalion Commander Fang—the most accomplished man in the village. Even if they couldn’t curry favor with him, they certainly shouldn’t make an enemy of him. It was all Xu Xiuyun’s fault for misleading her—she’d nearly gotten her in trouble. Aunt Liu shot daggers at Xu Xiuyun with her eyes.

Xu Xiuyun never expected that a petty, impulsive trick would spiral into this. It was like throwing a stick that missed its target only to have a blade come swinging back at her.

Truly, she’d tried to steal a chicken only to lose the rice—losing the bait along with the fish.

What else could Xu Xiuyun say? She could only sob, "I didn’t do it. I’m just timid and sometimes don’t know how to respond, so I stay quiet. I really didn’t mean to hurt anyone."

With that, she ran back into the house, wailing as if terribly wronged.

The villagers scoffed and said to Xu Ziyan, "Don’t worry, we all believe you now. We won’t listen to her nonsense anymore. But you—why didn’t you explain things sooner? If you’d just told us the truth, you could’ve exposed her long ago."

Xu Ziyan smiled. "The innocent need no defense. Back then, if I was the only one defending myself, who would’ve believed me? There was no one to back me up. Now, at least the children are willing to stand by me."

Thinking about it, they realized she was right. Before, all the rumors were about how Xu Ziyan had behaved in her parents’ home—and the Xu Family played favorites. If Xu Ziyan had tried to explain, who knows what the Xu Family would’ve said about her? Last time, when Xu Xiuyun was clearly in the wrong, hadn’t they still sided with her and told Xu Ziyan to get lost? It got so bad they split the family—that’s how unfair they were.

The villagers comforted Xu Ziyan, and she said, "I’d like to ask for a favor—could you help me raise the courtyard walls? High enough so no one can see inside. I can't stand her constant snooping."

Few in the village built high walls—most just used fences since walls were expensive. But the Fang family had an officer, so they were better off. They’d built walls years ago, and now, to keep the neighbors from peering in, raising them a bit higher wasn’t a big deal—special circumstances, after all.

Several strong laborers immediately agreed to help, and the matter was settled. They chatted a while longer at the gate before dispersing.

"Congratulations, Host, for completing the plot: driving a wedge between Xu Xiuyun and her stepdaughter, damaging Xu Xiuyun and Song Dongbo’s relationship, ruining Xu Xiuyun’s reputation in the village, deceiving the villagers with pretenses, and raising the courtyard walls. A total of five plot points completed—reward: five skill points."

Xu Ziyan felt slightly awkward. These bad deeds were all committed by the original host—after all, she was the villainess. Though the original host hadn’t known Xu Xiuyun’s true nature, growing up under the shadow of being the "contrast character," she’d resented Xu Xiuyun from the bottom of her heart and couldn’t stand to see her happy.

So, intentionally or not, the original host had set traps for Xu Xiuyun. Of course, in the original plot, Xu Xiuyun had turned things around, revealing the truth and making everyone despise the original host even more.

Xu Ziyan kept a straight face, thinking that to complete missions, one had to be thick-skinned. Since those events hadn’t happened yet, she’d just pretend they didn’t exist. After all, she was Xu Ziyan now, and she wouldn’t do those cruel things. Even her confrontation with Xu Xiuyun was just speaking the truth.

As for deceiving the villagers—the original host had later pretended to urgently borrow money in secret after Fang’s parents fell ill, swindled a few people, then fled with the family’s savings. But she? Of course, she’d clear her name. The past wasn’t her doing, and since she planned to keep living here, reputation mattered. So she shamelessly whitewashed her image while advancing the plot.

Look—five plot points completed in one go. She was quite the clever one.

Indeed, after boosting her intelligence, completing missions had become much smoother.