Step by step, a gentle breeze leads to a smooth path

As the saying goes, "Parents who love their children plan far ahead for them." Back then, considering that Song Wanxing was a gentle and refined man who did not want to do farm work, they found him Zhao Xiaojuan, who was hardworking and had a pretty face.

In those days of communal dining and work points, if a refined person like him had spent his days reading and pedantic, he would have brought trouble to his family, or even struggled to fill his stomach and survive.

Song Wanxing only saw that Zhao Xiaojuan was illiterate, but forgot that she was skillful and capable of doing all kinds of work. She helped him with so much farm work and earned so many work points for the family. Otherwise, how could he have the leisure to read books?

Song Wanxing, you only complain that your woman is illiterate, why didn't you think of teaching her? Even if she only learned one or two words a day, after so many years of sharing a bed, Zhao Xiaojuan would know quite a few words by now, wouldn't she?

Always blaming others for all problems, without ever trying to change anything himself—is this the scholar Song Wanxing? How pathetic and lamentable!

"Wanli, have you heard any gossip outside?" Qian Shuzhen asked her eldest son, hoping things hadn't gotten that bad.

"Mother, are you referring to Wanxing?" Song Wanli asked, forcing himself to speak.

"Yes, is that so?" Qian Shuzhen asked, clinging to a sliver of hope.

"Mother, yes... a little bit." Seeing Qian Shuzhen's disappointed look, Song Wanli continued, "Mother, no one in the village has said anything, but I've seen Wanxing at school a few times. He's getting close to that female teacher, Wan Ruyi, and there's some gossip at school."

"Hehehe... No wonder he looks down on Xiaojuan. He's finally found a cultured man of his dreams. If he's so capable, why didn't he resolutely refuse the marriage with Xiaojuan in the first place? Your father and I wouldn't have forced him. Now he has three children, and this whole thing is utterly disgraceful!" Qian Shuzhen sneered.

"Mother, why are you suddenly asking about these things?" In fact, Song Wanli had been hesitating about whether to tell his mother these days, because he didn't want her to be sad or upset.

"Teacher Dai reminded me that when Tingnan came back, she asked me if I was familiar with Teacher Wan?" Qian Shuzhen was furious, but then she laughed as she thought of Tingnan's behavior that day. "That girl Tingnan thinks that my family and the teachers at her school are all connected."

“Mother, Wan Ruyi is far inferior to Jin Yue. I heard that she imitates Jin Yue’s mannerisms all day long, and speaks ill of Jin Yue in private. She forbids the students from talking about Jin Yue, and the students don’t like her. They say she’s so fake.” Song Wanli said indignantly.

"Don't worry about her, she's just imitating others. The kids can see through it, but your silly brother is taking it too seriously. He'll run into trouble sooner or later!" Qian Shuzhen sighed.

Song Wanli also thought his sister-in-law, Zhao Xiaojuan, was a good person. She was honest and hardworking, sensible, and respectful to her mother-in-law. In the past, when they didn't have children to support them, she always helped them whenever she could. If…

"Mom, what should we do?" He was also a little anxious. People should know what's good for them, right? Besides, could they just reject the good ones and replace them with troublemakers to mess things up in their family?

"This is... difficult! You can't force a cow to drink water when it comes to matters of the heart!" Qian Shuzhen was also at a loss.

"How about... we talk to Tingnan!" Song Wanli has really gotten into the habit of asking Tingnan for help these days.

"You're silly, you're asking Tingnan about this adult pickling business?" Qian Shuzhen looked at her eldest son, not knowing whether to laugh or cry, but she couldn't think of a solution either!

"It's been two days, and your brother Song Wanxing still hasn't come home?" Qian Shuzhen asked Song Wanli.

"Mother, yes, he didn't come back. I heard he's with that Wan Ruyi, but I don't know if they're living together or not." Song Wanli told the truth. It was a family scandal. Wasn't his younger brother the most well-mannered and knowledgeable?

"How about... how about we ask Tingnan for advice? She's got a lot of clever ideas." Qian Shuzhen was really at her wit's end; she couldn't just leave her son to fend for himself.