CHAPTER 456: CHAPTER 456: PLEASING YOUR GRANDFATHER

"Alright, make sure to come back early! I’ll have your sister-in-law make sweet potato cakes tonight; she makes them so authentically, and Chengguang loves them. He’s been craving them for days!" Mrs. Song reluctantly watched Xu Xiuxiu get into the car.

"Don’t worry! We’ll be home by evening." Xu Xiuxiu, sitting in the car and seeing that all three children were seated quietly, then started the car and headed to Xu Village.

Mrs. Song, unable to hide her reluctance, stood on the flat ground outside the courtyard gate, watching the black car drive away until it was out of sight before she slowly walked back to the house.

Meanwhile, in the car Xu Xiuxiu was driving, the three children were having a lively discussion, "Mom, why do you only have a dad and no mom? Shouldn’t your mom and dad be two people just like you and dad? Why is there only Grandpa? Where is Grandma?" When Mrs. Xu suddenly passed away, it was an unexpected tragedy. The twins were too young at the time to remember anything, but now they were at an age filled with curiosity, so such questions weren’t surprising.

Yet, their roundabout questioning almost overwhelmed Xu Xiuxiu.

"Mom also had a mom! But your grandma, my mom, has turned into a star in the sky. Haven’t you often seen stars in the sky at night? The brightest one is your grandma! She is watching over us from up there!" Xu Xiuxiu had always scoffed at the idea of telling children that people who passed away turned into stars, finding it ridiculous how many people believed it. However, hearing Little Baby’s question, and wanting to preserve his innocent curiosity while helping him understand, she found the star metaphor to be perfect.

"Really, wow! Grandma is so amazing!" Little Baby said, eyes wide with admiration.

Speaking of which, my girl, that’s not why your grandma is amazing! Do you really need to sound so excited about it? Xu Xiuxiu thought, feeling a bit embarrassed.

Xu Village was very close to Song Family Village, and driving there only took a few minutes, greatly shortening the journey. However, as Xu Xiuxiu drove near the Xu Family home, she noticed a green three-wheeled truck with a canvas cover parked at the entrance. She had previously heard from her second sister, Xu Qingqing, that Xu Fangfang’s family had been doing well recently and had even bought a small green three-wheeled truck. If Xu Xiuxiu was not mistaken, that truck would undoubtedly belong to Xu Fangfang’s house. Reluctantly, Xu Xiuxiu parked her car not far from the Xu Family home and then walked with the three children to the front door.

"Remember to be polite when you see Grandpa. Grandpa likes peace and quiet, so you can’t be too noisy, understand?" Mr. Xu’s health was deteriorating, and with all three children being lively, especially Little Baby who was incredibly spirited, Xu Xiuxiu hoped to avoid disturbing Mr. Xu’s restful recuperation.

"I know, Mommy. Little Baby promises not to talk loudly." Little Baby nodded in assurance, covering his tiny mouth with a hand, his face full of caution.

Xu Xiuxiu saw this and smiled approvingly, taking Little Baby and Little Moon by the hand, ready to enter the Xu family home. However, she suddenly stopped at the doorway.

"Doudou, in the next few days, your third aunt and youngest aunt are coming back to the old house. You need to get along well with your brothers and sisters, but you can’t just let them steal your spotlight. You must work hard to make your grandfather like you. His health isn’t very good now, and who knows how long he can hold on? But after all, he is still an official of the Xu Village, earning a considerable salary every month. Surely he must have saved a good amount of money! Your mom has been taking care of him diligently for years, and this service can’t be in vain. Work hard to gain his affection, and once he passes, he will surely leave all his savings to you." From a corner of the Xu family yard, Xu Fangfang’s voice gradually reached out, coaching her son Doudou.

Standing outside the door, Xu Xiuxiu heard Xu Fangfang’s intentions and couldn’t help but clench her teeth in anger. Truly, a leopard never changes its spots; she had thought Xu Fangfang had finally seen the light over these years! Unexpectedly, Xu Fangfang was scheming for Mr. Xu’s savings—a truly cunning plan.

"Mom!" Doudou’s tone and voice carried a hint of impatience as he called out to Xu Fangfang, disappointment saturating his voice, "Why are you always thinking about taking Grandma and Grandpa’s money? Why do you have to be like this?" His tone carried clear disapproval.

Despite his young age, Doudou hadn’t inherited his mother Xu Fangfang’s complexity. In fact, he even found what Xu Fangfang said and did shameful, hence he openly questioned why she would do such things.

"Shush!" Little Baby and Little Moon also heard the voices inside the Xu house. They looked up puzzledly at Xu Xiuxiu. If it weren’t for Xu Xiuxiu’s quick reaction to press a finger to her lips, the two children would have likely interrupted Xu Fangfang. Although eavesdropping like this seemed somewhat inappropriate, from the few things Xu Fangfang had just said, Xu Xiuxiu once again found herself glimpsing the new depths of Xu Fangfang’s shamelessness, and she instinctively wanted to hear more about to what extent Xu Fangfang could actually stoop.

"Mmm." Seeing Xu Xiuxiu signaling them to be quiet, Little Moon and Little Baby quietly nodded in agreement, hand in hand, while Song Chengguang stood by without speaking.

Seeing this, Xu Xiuxiu again perked up her ears to continue listening to the conversation from around the corner.

"What do you mean ’why’? Always thinking about taking their money—what do you know, you child? Do you think I want to be the villain? I’m scheming for this money for whom? It’s all for you, you little debt collector. Look at how comfortable your aunts are living, and then look at what kind of life your mom has with your useless father! I am also a daughter of the Xu family. Why should they all live comfortably while only I suffer with your father? Besides, they are well off; they don’t need your grandfather’s money, so it should naturally be left to me!" Xu Fangfang sharply scolded Doudou, her words filled with the narrow-mindedness and selfishness typical of old rural women.

Doudou, with a headache, looked at his mom, "Mom! We are doing just fine without money. Isn’t it enough that we can eat our fill and stay warm? Why do you have to scheme so much? Moreover, there are many poorer than us, like Lamei’s family in the village, they can’t even get enough to eat. And I haven’t seen Lamei’s mother asking Grandma and Grandpa for money. Also, if it wasn’t for you asking Grandma for money that time, she wouldn’t have gotten sick from the stress. Dad has said he will work hard to earn money. Can you please stop scheming for Grandpa’s money? You say it’s for my good, but can’t you see that I want none of Grandpa’s money?"