Chapter 37 - 13: "Lin Heling

Chapter 37: Chapter 13: "Lin Heling

There were plenty of sharp people in the crowd.

A woman in a blue shirt chuckled. "Chenghuai’s allowance gets higher every year. Now that he’s married, he hands over less and less money, which means there’s less and less for Xing’er to take advantage of. Of course she’s resentful."

"Tsk! But Chenghuai can’t just not get married, right? He has to start his own family. That temper of Xing’er’s... it’s a bit too domineering."

They were all perceptive. With just a moment’s thought, they all knew what Gu Xing’er was thinking.

Unbeknownst to Gu Xing’er, her reputation had taken a hit from all the scenes she’d caused time and time again.

The effects weren’t obvious in the short term, but once she was a little older, she’d have her day of tears.

「The Gu Family’s Third Branch」

Lin Zhao finished sewing two sets of clothes and called out to Da Zai and Er Zai in the yard, "Da Zai, Er Zai, come in and try on your new outfits."

The two little boys came pattering into the house.

Seeing the two identical short shirts and black pants, they broke into wide, happy grins.

"Thank you, Mom." Da Zai’s voice was light, his eyes bright.

Er Zai was grinning from ear to ear. He started taking off his clothes right away, eager to try the new set on.

Seeing this, Da Zai quickly undressed as well.

With such good-looking parents, none of the Gu Family’s children were ugly. Da Zai and Er Zai spent all day running through the mountains and by the river, so they were both tanned dark, but one look at their features showed they were quite handsome.

They had clean, fine features, high-bridged noses identical to their father’s, and perfectly shaped lips that were neither too thick nor too thin. Even the shape of their heads was much nicer than the other village children’s.

Even with shaved heads, they were still handsome and bright-eyed.

They were just a little dark.

It wasn’t as noticeable when they wore their usual tattered clothes, but in their new outfits, they looked like completely different people.

Da Zai smoothed the hem of his shirt and looked up at Lin Zhao, his eyes twinkling with faint expectation. "Mom?"

Lin Zhao met his clear, bright eyes. She pulled him closer by the hand, looking him up and down with a smile and a nod. "You look great. Really great. Just as handsome as your dad."

As she praised him, Da Zai’s face grew redder and redder. He was shy, but his heart was bubbling with joy.

Er Zai, a boy who couldn’t stay still for a second, came closer too.

"Mom, what about me?" he asked, blinking his big eyes and shamelessly fishing for a compliment.

"You look great too," Lin Zhao said, amused by his expression.

Er Zai: "..." ’That’s it?’

He asked anxiously, "Am I as handsome as Dad too?"

Da Zai thought his little brother was being silly. "Er Zai, you look just like me. I’m as handsome as Dad, so you must be as handsome as Dad too."

Er Zai giggled. "I forgot."

"Mom, can my brother and I go outside?" he asked.

Lin Zhao glanced at Er Zai. She knew exactly what he was thinking. "You want to go show off, don’t you?"

"Mooom~" Er Zai whined in a singsong voice.

"Not yet. The clothes need to be washed before you can wear them," Lin Zhao explained gently. "You two take them off for now. Mom will wash them for you in a bit. The weather is warm, so they’ll be dry by tomorrow morning. You can show them off tomorrow."

Da Zai felt that his mom had worked hard making their clothes. As he took his off, he said, "Mom, we’ll wash them ourselves. Right, Er Zai?"

What else could Er Zai say? Of course he agreed.

"Right, we’ll wash them ourselves."

Lin Zhao stood up, stretching her stiff body. "Alright then. I’ll watch you wash them. Da Zai, go get the laundry soap. You know which one it is, right?"

"I know." Da Zai went back into the house to get the soap.

It wasn’t as hot now, and the sky was still light. Lin Zhao took the children to the riverbank.

It was cool by the river, and there were many people. Some were washing clothes, mischievous little boys had their pants rolled up to catch fish, and others were chatting and enjoying the cool air...

Yuanbao’s mother was also washing clothes. She was surprised to see Lin Zhao and greeted her warmly, "Chenghuai’s wife, you’re here too."

Lin Zhao smiled. "Just out for a stroll."

Da Zai and Er Zai found a sloping stone slab, squatted down side by side, and soaked their shirts. They lathered them with laundry soap, then rubbed and scrubbed. Their practiced movements showed this was clearly not their first time washing clothes.

"Da Zai, Er Zai, use a bit more soap," Lin Zhao said, holding back the Third and Fourth Child, who wanted to splash in the water, not letting the two little ones get too close.

Yuanbao’s mother and the other women washing clothes were dumbfounded.

"Da Zai’s mother, you don’t even wash your children’s clothes for them?" an elderly auntie asked, her face full of disapproval.

Before Lin Zhao could speak, Da Zai said with a serious expression, "Er Zai and I can wash them ourselves. Our mom worked hard making the clothes."

"...?" ’What’s so hard about making clothes?!’

"Is making clothes harder than earning work points?" Changsheng’s mother couldn’t help but chime in. Speaking to the boys right in front of Lin Zhao, she said, "Your mother is just lazy."