Reasoning It Out (3)

Coincidentally, Auntie Wang couldn't help but chime in, intentionally shouting loudly to the others, "That's indeed the case! Raising a child is a delicate matter. It's not enough just to feed and clothe them; you have to discipline them. When my daughter was young, she didn't listen either. Her father and I beat her plenty. One beating and she learned to behave. After she started school, we began to care about her grades. Not to brag, but my daughter being able to get into university is half due to her father's and my efforts."

"Li Xiao is also a pity. That boy is very smart. If he had gone to school properly, he would have passed the college entrance exam long ago."

The onlookers standing not far away heard this, and several of them nodded in agreement: "That's so true. When my kid was in the third grade, he also hung out with hoodlums for a while. I had to carry a stick to find him every day. Now he's always in the top ten in every exam."

"Isn't that right? Didn't the ancients say that a child's lack of education is the father's fault? Lin Meiru just neglected him, so it's no wonder he went astray as he grew up. Fortunately, I see that boy has improved a lot lately. He even knows to go out and make money to support his family, so he's not considered too bad. It must have been because he was young and ignorant. If someone had disciplined him when he was a child, he would have been a good kid too."

Someone else spoke to Lin Meiru with dissatisfaction: "Your daughter-in-law's belly is already so big, yet you still cause trouble for her. It's one thing if you don't help the young couple, but now that Li Xiao is out making money, you take the opportunity to come to her door and bully her instead. Are you even human?"

"Yeah, I've wanted to say this for a long time. You didn't want your own biological son, yet you went to be a stepmother to someone else's child. Are you really that desperate for a man? You ignored him before, and now that the couple is living a good life, you come to stir up trouble. I really don't know what to say about you. Do you just hate to see your son live well?"

"What's the point of acting up after remarrying? Aren't you embarrassed? Your daughter-in-law is more sensible than you."

Lin Meiru found it hard to believe. These old neighbors who used to sympathize with her so much—why did they suddenly change their tune after hearing Jiang Ru speak a few words?

She had once only needed to mention how Li Xiao's father beat her and how useless Li Xiao was, and they would comfort her and tell her to look on the bright side. But now, they blamed all the faults on her.

But clearly, she hadn't done anything.

How could they blame her for Li Xiao learning bad habits? It was clearly his father's fault.

She admitted she was a bit biased toward He Wenhua, but that was because her stepson was sensible, remembered her kindness, and knew how to be grateful.

So what if Li Xiao was her biological son? When she grew old, the only one she could rely on was her stepson.

The more Lin Meiru thought about it, the more aggrieved she felt, feeling that these onlookers were just looking for entertainment and didn't understand what she had been through. Finally, with red eyes, she said angrily to Jiang Ru, "Fine, I can't outtalk you. I won't ever come here to be despised again. I'll just act as if I don't have a daughter-in-law like you."

Jiang Ru held her belly, her face calm: "Suit yourself."

"..."

Lin Meiru gave her a resentful look, then slunk away quickly in embarrassment.

Once she left, the other onlookers also gradually returned home.

Before leaving, several people came over to comfort Jiang Ru, telling her not to be too sad and to live a good life with Li Xiao. As for other matters, they didn't pry too much.

Auntie Wang was the last to leave. Looking at Jiang Ru, she couldn't help but say, "Why don't you cook at my house? It'll save you from others' prying eyes."

Jiang Ru looked at her and said nothing.

Embarrassment showed on Auntie Wang's face: "Don't overthink it, I didn't mean anything else. Alright, I'll head back first. Be careful at home by yourself. If anything happens, just come find me."

Only then did Jiang Ru smile.

She spoke: "Take care, Auntie."

Once they were far away, Uncle Wang, who came to pick up Auntie Wang, couldn't help but say, "You really have no tact. She holds the recipe and can partner with anyone she wants, but don't push it too far. Giving it to outsiders does us no good. It's only because she has a good temper; if it were Li Xiao, do you think he wouldn't have pulled a dark face?"

Auntie Wang's expression became a bit unnatural at his words: "I didn't mean anything else. Wasn't I just afraid she'd be deceived by her mother-in-law?"

Business at their stall had been very good these past few days. It wasn't that no one tried to copy their braised pork intestines, but the taste was just never right.

After all, Jiang Ru and Lin Meiru were family. No matter how fierce the clash, they wouldn't truly cut ties in the future.

If she did the cooking at their house, she would also be able to know how it was made.