Chapter 376 - 329: Watch Me
Chapter 376: Chapter 329: Watch Me
Fang Qinglan instructed her eldest daughter-in-law, "Take a couple of these to your father while they’re still warm. He was just talking about them; he’s dying to try some!"
"Yes, I’ll go right now."
Ai Wenli turned to leave, but Lin Aizhen called out to her with a smile, "Child, did Manman make these cakes? They’re absolutely delicious! Manman’s grandfather and I just love this kind of sweet. As it happens, we didn’t have breakfast this morning. I’ll have another piece!"
Ai Wenli paused for a moment, then said tactfully, "These pastries are quite good, but are you sure you want more? It’ll be time for lunch soon."
Lin Aizhen: "..."
Wu Xiaowen: "..."
’My face feels so hot. Mother is being so strange today,’ Wu Xiaowen thought. ’Isn’t she just making a fool of herself in front of Ai Wenli?’
Lin Aizhen glanced at the grandfather clock against the wall. ’It really is almost Noon. With the mistress of the Tang family present today, they’ll surely have to invite us relatives to stay for lunch. Manman should be back by then, too.’
She smiled. "Are you starting to prepare lunch now? Then I won’t have any more for now. Child, pack up a few pounds of each of these two pastries for me. Manman’s grandfather and I can savor them when we get home!"
"Ah? Ah... alright!" Ai Wenli nearly tripped over her own feet. ’After marrying Tang Qingshan, I learned a fair bit about the Tang family’s affairs. Manman’s past experiences, in particular, made me want to spoil the girl rotten. But now that I’ve finally met the Wu Family in person, I feel my imagination was far too limited. They really are... Ugh! No wonder my father-in-law and mother-in-law can’t stand them!’
Wu Xiaowen gently pushed away the honey cake in front of her, stood up, and said to Fang Qinglan in a humble and gentle tone, "Mom, then I’ll go to the kitchen to help... help make lunch?"
Fang Qinglan lightly dabbed the corner of her mouth with a handkerchief and told Hao Hao to go to the study to see his grandfather. Once Hao Hao had gone upstairs, she said coolly, "I’m so sorry, but you’ve come at an inconvenient time. The Gu family’s eldest daughter-in-law called last night and made plans: our two families are getting together today at noon. At twelve sharp, our whole family is going to the Gu Mansion. Therefore, we won’t be able to host you for lunch. Seeing as it’s getting late and there’s nothing more to say, you should be heading back now!"
"..." Wu Xiaowen wrung her hands, desperately trying to control her trembling body. Her eyes reddened, instantly filling with tears.
Hao Hao went upstairs and didn’t come back down. Fang Qinglan had told her guests to leave but didn’t escort them out. Instead, she stood up and headed for the side hall—the Wu Family’s arrival had wasted several hours of her time, and she still had things to do.
The three members of the Wu Family walked out of the Tang Mansion’s main gate, dejected and humiliated.
Having lost face once again, unable to meet his granddaughter or see the jade carving, Wu Yu Xuan sighed in disappointment. He refused to wander around with Lin Aizhen and her daughter and boarded a public bus to go home himself. He did, however, remember to tightly grip the cloth bag in his hand: the one with the pastries.
Ai Wenli hadn’t actually packed "a few pounds" of each. She only gave them ten of each kind—not many had been made this time, and she still had to take some to the Gu Mansion later.
The cloth bag was heavy, because it contained not only the pastries but also several glass jars and other things.
While Lin Aizhen went to wash her hands, she slipped into the kitchen for a look around. She saw Ai Wenli preparing a satchel for Hao Hao, taking two glass jars from a cabinet and putting them inside. ’Those must be the pickled vegetables Hao Hao wanted,’ she thought. She remembered Wu Xiaowen saying that Hao Hao was a very picky eater and wouldn’t touch pickled foods, but he ate these. That meant the Tang family’s pickles must be something special. While Fang Qinglan wasn’t looking, Lin Aizhen had Wu Xiaowen go into the kitchen and grab two jars. It wasn’t that she was desperate for pickles; she was just curious to taste what Fang Qinglan ate.
Wu Xiaowen, however, was far more brazen. She grabbed four jars and, while she was at it, took a bag of dried fish and a bag of dried mushrooms from the cabinet. By the time Ai Wenli noticed, they had already stuffed everything into the cloth bag and left with it.
Ai Wenli’s heart sank. ’This is my mother-in-law’s house! Those dried fish and mushrooms are supposedly hard to come by. My father-in-law loves them, and my mother-in-law does too. Now they’ve been taken... Haven’t I been derelict in my duty? Should I chase after them and get the items back? What if they refuse and we make a scene? What if Hao Hao hears? He would be so hurt. I have to at least protect the child’s feelings, right?’
Ai Wenli thought that if she were ever home alone, she would never dare to casually receive the Wu Family, Wu Xiaowen included, even if they were standing right at the front gate.
On the street, a listless Wu Xiaowen followed Lin Aizhen for about twenty minutes before spotting a bench under a tree by the road. She went over, plopped down, and refused to walk any further.
She was exhausted, sleepy, miserable, and wanted to cry!
Last night, she’d come home to a total mess and gotten an earful from Sister He at work. She had been holding in a bellyful of anger, ready to explode, but instead, Wu Xiaorui had attacked and cursed her out, even extorting five hundred yuan from her! The frustration and resentment had kept her up all night. Just now at the Tang Mansion, she had seen Ai Wenli and thought she was nothing special. Who would have thought that at such a young age, she was not only talented but also had social standing—a truly formidable woman! It was an undeniable blow, and on top of that, she’d been infuriated by Fang Qinglan... Wu Xiaowen felt like she was completely falling apart. A silent rage churned inside her with no outlet. Her mind was a muddled mess, unable to form a coherent thought. She felt like a wooden marionette with all its strings cut, save for the one held by Lin Aizhen. But even so, she didn’t want to move!
Lin Aizhen turned back and sat down beside Wu Xiaowen. "Xiao Xiao, what’s wrong? You’ve looked terrible all morning. Didn’t you sleep well last night?"
Wu Xiaowen looked at Lin Aizhen, her eyes welling with tears. "Mom, I’m sorry! I’ve embarrassed you and Dad again. That old hag is just too much! But right now, I really don’t know how to deal with her!"
"Sigh. We already knew what kind of person she is. Your father and I don’t mind." Lin Aizhen reached out to smooth the wavy hair at Wu Xiaowen’s temples and sighed. "It’s you who has been wronged. Even though you gave Qingyun a son and a daughter, you’re ultimately from the second branch. Now that Tang Qingshan has married, if he has a son in the future, your situation will become even more difficult. A large portion of Hao Hao’s inheritance will be taken away..."
"I don’t get it. Tang Qingshan has been single for so many years, why get married at his age—it must have been that old hag’s idea!"
"Fang Qinglan has a terrible temper and a domineering personality. She’s the type who loves to stir up trouble. The less you fight back, the more she’ll bury you! See? She kicked you out of the Tang family to dote on and pamper that newcomer. And Qingyun is too soft to be of any use. Manman has been completely fooled by them, thinking they truly dote on her. So young and naive. By the time Tang Qingshan has his own biological children, it’ll be too late for regrets! Manman will be a bit better off since she’ll eventually be married off. The real difficulty will be for Hao Hao, you, and Qingyun!"
Wu Xiaowen closed her eyes and covered her face. "Mom, what should I do?"
"What else can you do? Fang Qinglan is tyrannical and vicious. You couldn’t beat her before, so you’ve already lost the upper hand. She’s coaxed your children away from you and suppressed Qingyun. You have to work harder, find a way to win your children back, or you’ll end up losing even more in the end!"
"With that wretched attitude of hers, how am I supposed to win Manman back? Now even Hao Hao is influenced by her and won’t listen to me!"
"You know, we cultivated you carefully since you were a child. Your etiquette and upbringing are excellent; you’re the very model of a high-society lady. But you just can’t seem to control your temper. You mess things up whenever you get anxious and irritable. So you can’t be impatient. You have to be patient, more patient! You were doing so well before... That’s right, you’ve changed a lot ever since this business with Manman started!"
Wu Xiaowen bit her lip and said hatefully, "If I could, I’d wish that girl was never born to me!"
Lin Aizhen patted her lightly. "Nonsense. She is your daughter! No matter how deep the misunderstanding between mother and child, you need to pull yourself together and coax Manman back! Can’t you see how special Manman is? Why do you think the Tang family treats her so well? A mere slip of a girl, more treasured and doted on than even Hao Hao? It’s because Manman has learned superb medical skills, and she can make such delicious food! I guarantee you, there’s a special recipe in the pastries Manman makes! You didn’t eat any earlier, so your father and I finished them for you. Look at me, a sick woman, and I have the energy to talk with you right now. I even feel like taking a walk! I had no energy at all this morning. It was only after eating those few pastries that I felt so much better. The tightness in my chest is gone, and I can breathe so much more easily!"
Wu Xiaowen was stunned. "Mom, it’s just a piece of cake. It can’t be that magical, can it? She’s only learned a little bit of traditional Chinese medicine. There are plenty of famous TCM doctors in Beijing’s major hospitals. Their age, experience, and medical skills—aren’t they all superior to hers?"
"I don’t know if the pastries are magical, but don’t I know my own body? You say Manman has only learned a little bit of traditional medicine. With just that ’little bit,’ she prescribed something that cured all of your father’s chronic old ailments, brought a dying Fang Qinglan back to life, and even managed to rejuvenate Fang Qinglan and Tang Renqian’s bodies to make them look ten or twenty years younger? Xiao Xiao, you can afford to look down on Manman’s medical skills because you’re still young and have your looks. But have you ever thought about ten or twenty years from now? Will you still look the same? And right now, your parents are old. My heart could stop at any moment with this illness of mine; it’s very dangerous! Don’t you want your mother to be like Fang Qinglan, to have her illness completely cured and become young and strong again? If I die, who else will be there to stay by your side, watch over you, worry about you, and be proud of you like I am now?"
Wu Xiaowen quickly grasped Lin Aizhen’s hand. "Mom, you and Dad have doted on me the most since I was little, letting me be spoiled and dependent. Of course I want you and Dad to live a long life and be with me forever! But that girl, Manman... her temper is so foul and stubborn, she’s impossible to deal with. Every time, I just want to..."
"Don’t be rash, don’t be rash. Relax! Manman is your daughter, not your enemy. Starting today, you need to change your mindset. Every moment of every day, you need to silently repeat to yourself that you must dote on her and love her! I told you a long time ago, as long as you are genuinely good to her, she will definitely repay you!"
"...Then I’ll... I’ll try."
"Good. Rested up? Let’s take a car back to the hospital. After lunch, you and I will go wait for Manman at her school gate. She has to go back to school today. As soon as you see her, you just start crying and don’t say a word. I have my ways to get her to check my pulse and write me a prescription!"
"Will that really work?"
"Whether it works or not, just watch me!"