Chapter 824 - 283: Qin Mei Confronts Jie Jingwei

She didn’t outright curse them for being unfilial, but every word she spoke was an accusation of exactly that.

Were they unfilial? It was her mother-in-law who had forced her to get rid of the daughter in her womb. If they hadn’t moved back to her maiden home, were they supposed to just let her mother-in-law harm the unborn child?

"Okay." Wu Yingxiong nodded.

"Yingxiong, Hero’s wife, wait just a little longer. Fourth Wife of Jing will be back any minute," Wen Xingnan urged, trying to make them stay.

"Sister Xingnan, this is the Jie family’s home, not the Wen family’s," Su Kexin couldn’t help but remind her.

Wen Xingnan’s face stiffened, and her gaze toward Su Kexin sharpened. There was a reason why Granny Guo disliked Su Kexin.

Granny Guo used to be perfectly satisfied with Su Kexin as a daughter-in-law. Her change in attitude was solely because Su Kexin hadn’t borne a son for the Wu Family.

"Sister Xingnan, back then you abandoned Jing San and stole Third Wife of Jing’s partner. What? Do you want to snatch Jing San back now? Just how deep is your grudge against Third Wife of Jing?

"First, you stole her partner, and now you’re back to steal her husband. Let me remind you, Sister Xingnan, Jing San and Third Wife of Jing are the model couple of our alley. If you really do this, Granny Ning from the neighborhood committee will definitely come looking to re-educate you," Su Kexin said mercilessly.

A dark cloud settled over Wen Xingnan’s delicate face, her eyes turning ruthless. Her hand clenched tightly against the armrest of the rattan chair as she said coldly, "Hero’s wife, a meddlesome daughter-in-law won’t win any favor with her mother-in-law."

"You were the one meddling first, Sister Xingnan." Su Kexin showed her absolutely no face. She had married into the Wu Family and didn’t share any childhood bond with Wen Xingnan. There were certain things Wu Yingxiong couldn’t bring himself to say, but she had no such reservations.

"I was just reminding you out of the goodness of my heart!" Wen Xingnan said, her emotions flaring.

"And I was reminding you out of the goodness of my heart, too," Su Kexin shot back.

"You..." Wen Xingnan glared angrily at Su Kexin and cursed, "You don’t know what’s good for you."

"Yingxiong, let’s go." Su Kexin didn’t want to waste another breath on Wen Xingnan.

"Okay." Wu Yingxiong nodded with a smile, standing up to help his wife, who was holding their daughter, to her feet.

"Sister Xingnan, this is the Jie family’s home," Su Kexin said. "The owners aren’t here. If you just sit around in their house, people who don’t know better might mistake you for a thief. If the Jie Family loses anything, you’ll be the prime suspect, and you won’t be able to talk your way out of it."

A thief? This was a blatant insult. Wen Xingnan was boiling with rage.

As Wu Yingxiong and Su Kexin turned around, they froze—Qin Mei was standing right outside the courtyard gate.

"Fourth Wife of Jing," Su Kexin called out, shooting a meaningful glance at Wu Yingxiong beside her.

Catching on immediately, Wu Yingxiong strode over to Qin Mei and helped her carry her bicycle into the courtyard. "Thank you," Qin Mei said gratefully.

"Fourth Wife of Jing, we’re the ones who should be saying thank you. If it wasn’t for you, my daugh—" Wu Yingxiong cut himself off, unable to finish the sentence.

Qin Mei offered an understanding smile and walked over to Su Kexin. She glanced at the soundly sleeping infant in her arms and smiled. "Sister Ke Xin, have a seat. I’ll go pour you some water."

"Fourth Wife of Jing, there’s no need. I’m not thirsty." Su Kexin grabbed Qin Mei’s hand, her eyes overflowing with gratitude.

Qin Mei smiled and gently pulled her hand back. Since Su Kexin was holding the baby, she let go easily the moment Qin Mei pulled away. Now that Qin Mei had returned, Wen Xingnan tactfully took her leave. No matter how thick-skinned she was, she didn’t have the nerve to stick around; doing so would only humiliate her further.

Qin Mei brought out two enamel mugs. She had brewed tea for Wu Yingxiong and prepared brown sugar water for Su Kexin.

The three of them sat around the stone table. "Brother Yingxiong, Sister Ke Xin, when did you guys get back?" Qin Mei asked with a smile.

"Yesterday," Su Kexin replied.

"Are you going to leave again after coming back this time?" Qin Mei asked.

Su Kexin glanced at her sleeping daughter and answered, "We’ll stay for a few days first."

Qin Mei smiled and didn’t press the matter.

Su Kexin and Wu Yingxiong exchanged a look. Suddenly, both of them stood up and dropped to their knees. Startled, Qin Mei quickly got up to help Su Kexin. "What are you doing?"

"Fourth Wife of Jing, the main reason we came back this time was to thank you. Without you, my daughter wouldn’t have even had the chance to be born." Su Kexin looked at Qin Mei with profound gratitude.

"Also, if it wasn’t for you, my mom might have..." Wu Yingxiong swallowed the final word.

"It was just a small effort, nothing worth mentioning." Qin Mei felt a sense of relief; this couple knew how to be grateful, meaning good karma awaited them in the future. Bearing a son preserves the family name, but bearing a daughter preserves one’s life. They might not realize it now, but in the years to come, they would truly understand the meaning of those words.

"It might have been a small effort to you, but to us, it was a life-saving grace," Su Kexin said.

"Get up first. It won’t look good if someone sees this," Qin Mei urged.

But Wu Yingxiong and Su Kexin stubbornly kowtowed three times before they were finally willing to get up, leaving Qin Mei completely exasperated by the dramatic display.

"Fourth Wife of Jing, you are my daughter’s savior. I’d like her to formally acknowledge you as her godmother," Su Kexin said.

Qin Mei fell silent.

"I know we’re aiming high by asking this, but aside from having her become your goddaughter, my husband and I truly can’t think of any other way to repay your kindness," Su Kexin explained.

Offer money? The Jie Family wasn’t lacking any. Offer gifts? They didn’t have anything presentable enough.

"This..." Qin Mei was caught in a difficult position. Since Su Kexin had already put it that way, rejecting her would be too hurtful. But accepting? Honestly, she really didn’t want to be a godmother. However, she already had two godsons. Adding a goddaughter to the mix didn’t seem like that big of a deal.

"All right." Qin Mei agreed. People in this era were earnest and sincere, and this couple’s intentions were pure. She couldn’t find a reason to say no.

Su Kexin and Wu Yingxiong were overjoyed. Holding her daughter, Su Kexin knelt back down. "Nannan, hurry and kowtow to your godmother."

The little one was fast asleep. Su Kexin held her and kowtowed three more times, but the baby showed absolutely no signs of waking up. Such high-quality sleep—what a trouble-free child.

Qin Mei helped Su Kexin up and guided her back into her seat. She then handed her the cup of brown sugar water. "Drink up."

Qin Mei turned around and headed inside the house. Since the couple had shown such great sincerity, she needed to show hers as well. A short while later, Qin Mei emerged with an exquisite box and handed it to Su Kexin. "This is a gift for my goddaughter."

Su Kexin didn’t take it. With a box this exquisite, whatever was inside had to be valuable. They were grateful to Qin Mei and wanted their daughter to acknowledge her as a godmother as a form of repayment, not as an excuse to take advantage of her.

"Nannan’s Godmother, this is too precious. We can’t accept it," Su Kexin politely refused.

"I’m giving this to my goddaughter, not to you," Qin Mei said, directly shoving the box into Su Kexin’s hands.

Holding the baby, Su Kexin didn’t dare to push back too hard against Qin Mei.

Wu Yingxiong took the box and opened it, his eyes widening in shock. It was actually a golden bracelet. Seeing the golden bracelet, Su Kexin gasped.

"It’s too precious. We really can’t take it," Su Kexin said urgently.

Looking at Su Kexin, Qin Mei said with utmost seriousness, "This is a token of my sincerity."

"It’s far too expensive." Su Kexin didn’t dare accept it. If it had been a silver bracelet, she might have, but this was a golden bracelet.

"No matter how expensive it is, it’s just a worldly possession," Qin Mei said.

"This..." Su Kexin didn’t know what to say. She glanced at the daughter in her arms, then at Wu Yingxiong. After a moment of thought, she didn’t refuse again. "Then I will thank Nannan’s Godmother on behalf of our Nannan."

Wu Yingxiong packed up the box and slipped it into the pocket of Su Kexin’s coat.

"Yingxiong, you go home first. I’ll chat with Nannan’s Godmother a bit longer," Su Kexin told Wu Yingxiong. They had been out for quite a while, and she was worried her mother-in-law would come looking for them if they didn’t head back soon.

"Okay." Wu Yingxiong nodded. He gave Qin Mei a slight nod of acknowledgment, then turned and strode away.

"Nannan’s Godmother, I heard about what happened with Jing Si," Su Kexin whispered.

"Huh?" Qin Mei didn’t process it for a second. Looking into Su Kexin’s complicated, sympathetic eyes, realization suddenly dawned on her. Su Kexin was talking about the rumor that Jie Jingchen was infertile. "Sister Ke Xin, you shouldn’t believe in rumors."