Chapter 442: Deliberately

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Ah Zhuang watched as Gu Zi hurriedly walked away, his face growing even more sullen. He recalled the strange incident that had happened earlier in the boiler room. Why was it that everyone had drunk the water, yet he was the only one who had suffered from severe diarrhea?

Why had Gu Zi insisted on thanking him with a drink of water? Could it be that it was done intentionally, and the water everyone else drank wasn’t the one he had tampered with?

But that seemed impossible. If Gu Zi had seen him tampering with the water, wouldn’t there have been some reaction? Ah Zhuang decided it was best not to scare himself with his own thoughts. He turned and headed towards the boiler room, hoping to get some answers from Aunt Yang, but she was nowhere to be found.

The man who had taken over Aunt Yang’s duties said, “Aunt Yang wasn’t feeling well. Her friend came to fetch her earlier, told her to rest, and asked me to help with the afternoon chores.”

Ah Zhuang felt a sense of foreboding. He knocked over an empty bucket beside him and gave it a kick in frustration. “Damn it! What on earth is going on?” He had been smitten by Gu Zits beauty earlier that morning, but could she possibly reciprocate his feelings?

As noon approached, the braised pork was sold out. Aunt Yang helped Mother Lin and daughter-in-law pack up their stall. The three women pushed their cart toward Little Lin Village. Along the way, they encountered several women from the village, both young and old, from Little Lin Village and Daqing Village.

They noticed Aunt Yang, who had previously been in a state of despair, now looking radiant and carrying a bag full of meat and rice. Their faces revealed expressions of curiosity.

After exchanging greetings, the women went their separate ways. Only when Aunt Yang and the others were out of sight did they start to gossip. “Aunt Yang is really clever. On the surface, she was driven out by her daughter-in-law, but in reality, she’s enjoying her leisure time. She’s even managed to tarnish her daughter-in-law’s reputation.”

“Exactly, it’s not easy for a woman to raise a child. Aunt Yang has been there herself, yet she shows no empathy for her daughter-in-law. Just for her own comfort, she moved back to her old house, leaving her grandson for her daughter-in-law to raise alone. She’s such a stingy and wicked mother-in-law.”

“Indeed, she was scolded a few times by her daughter-in-law and she decided not to return. I don’t believe that at her age, she can always rely on outsiders. When she can’t move anymore, won’t she still need her son and daughter-in-law to take care of her?”

The women continued their chatter on the road, and even made a special trip to Mrs. Wang’s house to gossip. Aunt Yang had been living a miserable life, and although everyone pitied and sympathized with her, they were not pleased to see her showing signs of turning her life around.

Certainly, there were those who harbored ulterior motives, secretly urging Mrs. Wang to stir up trouble with Aunt Yang. Their hope was for a scandal to break out, forcing Aunt Yang to quit her job at the pig farm. Wouldn’t that leave a vacancy? It was a golden opportunity to increase their income.

“Your mother-in-law is living the high life now, working at the pig farm,” they would say. “An Yun, Gu Zi’s mother, is taking care of her. I bet she’s been given plenty of meat to eat. Just now, we saw her carrying a bag full of braised pork and white rice. It smelled delicious! ”

“Indeed,” another would chime in. “She’s comfortable on her own, but let’s be real, what kind of mother-in-law doesn’t help her daughter-in-law with her grandchild, but instead runs off to help others? She’s enriching others while impoverishing herself. It’s not worth it! ”

It’s such a shame,” they would lament. “Well, if you ever need help with the child, just bring him to our house. We’ll help you watch him.”

The women took turns painting Aunt Yang, a kind and honest woman, as a villain. At the same time, they made empty promises. A moment’s thought would reveal that they would never help Mrs. Wang with her child. Everyone knew Mrs. Wang’s reputation; she was hardly one to handle serious matters, often running off to meet with her illicit lovers.

But their words were enough to unsettle Mrs. Wang. She didn’t care whether their words were true or false. She was the one who had been working hard at home, taking care of the child, while that old hag was out there living it up! She had truly miscalculated this time.

This wasn’t the first time Mrs. Wang had driven Aunt Yang out. She had been waiting for Aunt Yang to return, hungry and begging for their help, just like before. Then she could order her to work even harder at home.

No matter how stubborn Aunt Yang was, it was the end of the year. When her son returned and coaxed her, and her grandson cried in her arms, she would surely come back.

But who could have predicted that Aunt Yang would find a job, and even get close to a wealthy family? She had meat to eat at every meal, and was living a better life than Mrs. Wang.. It was clear to her that Gu Zi and the Lin family were deliberately making her life difficult!