Chapter 290: 298: Difference as Great as between Cloud and Mud

Su Wenyue placed Brother Xing in Mrs. Yang’s arms, and Mrs. Yang maintained that pose, stiffening her body, daring not to move, her eyes wide with delight. Yet she didn’t utter a word, aware of her own loud voice and fearing that a too-loud sound might scare the little grandson in her embrace.

“Mother, what’s the matter with you?” Su Wenyue chuckled as she looked at her mother-in-law, not understanding her condition. After all, it couldn’t be that she didn’t know how to hold the child; her mother-in-law had given birth and raised four sons herself and had plenty of experience doing so.

“Fourth Daughter-in-law, you, you take the child first,” Mrs. Yang whispered, and only when Su Wenyue had taken the child away did she breathe a sigh of relief.

“Mother, what’s this about?” Han Yu too found his mother’s behavior strange. It couldn’t be that she didn’t like her grandson, but such a reaction was quite odd, and he asked somewhat puzzled.

“Fourth Child, Fourth Daughter-in-law, don’t get me wrong, it’s not that I don’t like the child, it’s just that you’ve dressed him up so exquisitely. At first glance, he looks like a little immortal from a painting. I was honestly a bit afraid to touch him, worried I might break this dream-like reality,” she said.

Mrs. Yang, while speaking, glanced at Brother Xing, and then at Brother Chen and Sister Yu, who were being held by the Nanny. Although they were triplets, Brother Xing did seem a bit different. Brother Chen and Sister Yu were more alike but both were exquisitely adorable; she found joy in each one she looked at.

“This little one here is Sister Yu, isn’t she? She resembles her mother. So cute even when so small, she’ll grow up to be fairy-like, endearing to all. No wonder the in-laws and their mother cherish Fourth Daughter-in-law like a treasure. She must have been just like this as a child, who wouldn’t love such a child?”

Mrs. Yang went to touch Little Si Yu’s smooth cheek but stopped midway and retracted her hand. Their farmer hands were rough from working in the field; she didn’t want to chafe the child’s face.

“Right, this is Sister Yu. Since she was the last-born, she’s a little smaller than her two brothers, but now she’s been fattened up a bit. Sister Yu, this is Grandma; give Grandma a smile,” Su Wenyue said with a smile, fully aware that the child couldn’t understand the words but saying it for Mrs. Yang’s sake, to make her feel happy. Little did she know Sister Yu would actually smile, delighting Mrs. Yang immensely as she kept praising Little Si Yu’s intelligence. In reality, it was just a coincidence; Su Wenyue knew her own child well. Brother Xing might really understand, but Brother Chen and Sister Yu were just normal babies, at most a bit smarter than others, crying along when they heard their brother cry.

“She really smiled! How smart this child is, not like Third Child’s daughter, older by over a month, who knows only to eat, sleep, and cry all day long. She isn’t nearly as charming as Sister Yu,” Mrs. Yang said, unable to hide her disdain when mentioning Mrs. Wang’s daughter.

Su Wenyue wasn’t surprised. With a mother like Mrs. Wang and Mrs. Yang’s preference for boys over girls, it would be strange if she liked the child. She didn’t have much to say about it; after all, it was just a baby. Even if she had grievances with Mrs. Wang, it wouldn’t extend to the child. Moreover, because she was a daughter, Mrs. Wang wasn’t attentive to the child who was being raised so skinny and small, truly pitiable.

In this aspect, Mrs. Wang was far from Mrs. Liu’s equal. Even though Mrs. Liu had given birth to two daughters and was somewhat dismissive of them verbally, she did take good care of them properly and didn’t neglect them. However, that was a matter from a previous life. In this life, Su Wenyue had just returned to the village and had not yet seen Mrs. Wang’s children; she didn’t know if it was the same as in her past life.

“Speaking of this, I haven’t seen Third Sister-in-law’s child yet. I don’t know what name they gave, or if the child looks alright?” Su Wenyue asked, a thought suddenly crossing her mind.

Mrs. Yang sighed at the mention, frowning deeply, “Don’t get me started. Mrs. Wang really is ruthless. Even I don’t know what to say. Although she gave birth to a girl, it’s still her own flesh and blood. Even if you’re biased, you should still raise the child well. And yet, Mrs. Wang…” She trailed off, shaking her head, “Better left unsaid. The child hasn’t even been named yet. With three older sisters, they just call her Si Ya, Si Ya all mixed up.”

Hearing Mrs. Yang’s words, Su Wenyue realized that things were likely much the same as in her past life. Mrs. Wang’s attitude toward the daughter she had given birth to hadn’t changed, and might have even worsened.

“We’ll have to trouble Mother to look after her more, after all, she’s also a child of the Han Family,” Su Wenyue said with a sigh, wondering if it was the softening of her own heart after having a child that made her want to help the skinny little girl she remembered.

“Of course. She’s still the granddaughter of the old Han family,” Mrs. Yang replied.

Mrs. Yang stayed in Su Wenyue’s room, playing with her grandsons and granddaughter for a long time before reluctantly leaving. She couldn’t leave all the outside matters to Mrs. Liu; she needed to oversee things herself, so as not to tarnish the old Han family’s reputation.

After a whirlwind of activity, it wasn’t until the afternoon that the family finally sat down together. It was then that Su Wenyue saw the small infant Mrs. Wang was holding in her arms, wrapped in a worn out old quilt with many stains on it. Despite being over a month older than Su Wenyue’s children, the baby seemed even smaller and cried with a faint voice, like a kitten, with a sticky, pasty substance on her face and dirty clothes, looking like a beggar compared to Su Wenyue’s children, who resembled little immortals.

At that moment, Mrs. Wang caught sight of Su Wenyue. She had not felt it before, but upon seeing Su Wenyue being assisted by servant girls, with the true carriage of a gentleman’s wife, and comparing herself, it was truly as different as could be—an earth and sky contrast. In that instant, jealousy and dissatisfaction burned like a fierce flame in Mrs. Wang’s heart, and her gaze at Su Wenyue was filled with venom.

Su Wenyue clearly felt Mrs. Wang’s malice toward her. Though her face showed no reaction, she became more wary inside and specifically instructed the Nanny and servant girls to take good care of the three children. She dared not underestimate any woman, especially since Mrs. Wang’s eyes held a touch of madness—no telling what crazy things she might do.

“Fourth younger sibling,” Mrs. Li came over with a beaming smile, and Su Wenyue rarely saw her usually quiet and reticent Second Sister-in-law act so light-hearted, indicating that her days were treating her well.

“Second Sister-in-law, haven’t seen you in a long time, and you do seem to be in good spirits,” Su Wenyue remarked.

“Not at all, what good spirits… It’s just that the children are sensible and obedient, which gives our days some direction, and that makes me happy,” Mrs. Li replied with a laugh. She had suffered under Mrs. Liu and Mrs. Wang when the family was still united, but now that they had separated, there was no mother-in-law to dominate over her, and she and her husband, both hardworking, were aided greatly by Fourth son and his wife, making their days increasingly better.

“Second Sister-in-law is so happy because there’s no mother-in-law looming over her since the family split. I used to think Second Sister-in-law was a simple person, but now it seems that’s not entirely the case,” Su Wenyue teased.