Mrs. Sheng hadn’t achieved her goal of avoiding the divorce. There was no way she was going home!

’How could this be? Not a single person has spoken up for me today!’

’It shouldn’t be like this!’

’In the past, whenever I argued with Ren Xiaofang, everyone always took my side, no questions asked!’

She had been married to her husband for over twenty years; she knew him all too well. As long as Gu Jiaojiao stepped in and pleaded for her, he would definitely not divorce her.

Jiaojiao used to be completely obedient to her. She had assumed that forcing Gu Jiaojiao would get her what she wanted.

She never in her wildest dreams imagined that Jiaojiao would refuse to play by her rules, catching her completely off guard.

’If I’d known it would turn out like this, I would have just begged this adopted daughter of mine nicely from the start.’

But with so many people watching now, she couldn’t bring herself to swallow her pride and beg the adopted daughter she had cast aside.

’If I don’t beg Gu Jiaojiao, Old Sheng will drag me to the Civil Affairs Bureau for a divorce tomorrow morning!’

There were so many onlookers. First Aunt Song and Second Aunt Song were both there, but her own daughter, Yueyue, was the only one who hadn’t come. ’I wonder if she’s too ashamed to show her face,’ she thought.

Ren Cuiping had always seen herself as one of heaven’s favored daughters. Her life had been smooth sailing for the most part, yet now she was faced with the embarrassing prospect of a divorce.

’Beg Gu Jiaojiao? I can’t stand to lose face. But if I don’t beg her, I’ll definitely be divorced.’

’This is all Gu Jiaojiao’s fault, that damn jinx! But if I curse at her, I can’t get the upper hand. If I don’t, I can’t vent my anger.’

’I might as well just die right here in front of the Su’s house! I’d rather die with my pride intact than grovel and beg her.’

"Gu Jiaojiao, I never knew you could be so vicious! After how you’ve insulted me today, I’ll never forgive you, not even in death."

Mrs. Sheng wailed relentlessly. She truly wanted to bash her own head in and die right there in front of the Su’s house, but unfortunately, her arms were held in a vice-like grip by Xie Zhuoyu and Song Zijie. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

’I can’t accept this! I just can’t!’

’The image I spent so many years carefully building has been completely destroyed by Gu Jiaojiao.’

"You won’t forgive me? Fine. If you’re not going to forgive me, then go home. Why are you still hanging around here?"

’You think I give a damn about your forgiveness?’ Gu Jiaojiao thought, but she didn’t say it out loud. She had her pride, too.

"You bitch, you cursed at me! You actually dare to curse at me! I might as well just die in front of you."

Mrs. Sheng roared, struggling to break free from Xie Zhuoyu’s grasp. She really did want to just bash her head in and end it all.

Having been a captain for many years, Xie Zhuoyu could tell that Mrs. Sheng was genuinely planning to die on Gu Jiaojiao’s doorstep. Her intentions were truly sinister.

Furious, Xie Zhuoyu leaned close to Mrs. Sheng’s ear and whispered, "You don’t deserve to live in this world, but I won’t let you die in front of the Su’s house."

Then, he casually stuffed a rag into Mrs. Sheng’s mouth. Instantly, Mrs. Sheng fell silent.

Gu Jiaojiao saw it too. Mrs. Sheng genuinely intended to die on her doorstep. ’Could Mr. Sheng really be serious about the divorce?’ she wondered.

’In that case, I shouldn’t provoke my former adoptive mother any further. Let the wicked deal with the wicked.’

"Xie, Song Zijie, please help me take Captain Ren to her daughter’s house. The Sheng family is probably all at the hospital with Sheng Shiwen right now."

Gu Jiaojiao said it casually, but she was right. Mr. Sheng and Sheng Shiwu were indeed at the hospital at that moment.

Otherwise, the father and son duo would have definitely come to drag Mrs. Sheng away.

At her words, Xie Zhuoyu glanced up at Gu Jiaojiao. She had an oval face, long and slender eyebrows, large eyes, and a small mouth. Her figure was graceful, her face radiant.

He truly admired a woman like Gu Jiaojiao—beautiful, medically skilled, and emotionally intelligent.

Even when she was toying with her adoptive mother, her words never crossed the line into true humiliation.

And so, the vast crowd followed Mrs. Sheng toward the Song Family’s home. It was already nine o’clock at night, a time when many people would normally be asleep.

But with such a spectacle to watch, losing a little sleep was no big deal. Along the way, Mrs. Sheng cursed nonstop.

After they left the Su’s house, Xie Zhuoyu pulled the rag from Mrs. Sheng’s mouth and let her curse.

Mrs. Sheng would hurl a curse, Second Aunt Song would occasionally add one of her own, and First Aunt Song would throw in two more.

Because they were all cursing back and forth like this, it attracted everyone to follow along and watch the show.

Xie Zhuoyu didn’t really understand Gu Jiaojiao’s intentions, but both he and Song Zijie were determined to do as she said.

So the two of them, without a second thought, dragged Mrs. Sheng all the way toward the Song Family’s home.

"Sister-in-law, can we go watch the commotion too?" Su Qinchun’s curiosity was stirring.

"I still have to take care of your brother. You can go if you want."

"Mom, let’s go together," Su Qinchun said, then went to pull on Su’s mother’s arm.

"Jiaojiao, Chun Ni and I will go take a look. You two get some sleep. Don’t wait up for us."

But it seemed Gu Jiaojiao was not destined to sleep early. Old Sir Xie had already arrived at the Su’s house with an old comrade-in-arms.

They hadn’t come inside because of Mrs. Sheng’s tantrum, too embarrassed to show themselves. Old Sir Xie’s comrade was none other than Ren Cuiping’s father.

He and Old Sir Xie both suffered from chronic leg pain that flared up in the cold, a malady dating back to their time on the twenty-five-thousand-li Long March.

They had braved wind and rain together, slept in frost and snow, and endured days of starvation and bitter cold.

Old Sir Xie and Mr. Ren had suffered too much in their youth, leaving them with many lasting health problems.

A few years ago, they could still stand up and walk a bit, but now they couldn’t even stand. It was even harder to bear in the winter, suffering sleepless night after sleepless night.

The elderly already lack the vitality of the young, and being tormented by this chronic leg pain drained their spirits even further.

Mr. Xie had already been cured by Gu Jiaojiao, so he invited Elder Ren to also come find Gu Jiaojiao for treatment.

Gu Jiaojiao had been at the front lines before. When Mr. Xie learned she was back, he immediately went to get his old partner, Elder Ren, to come over.

When Elder Ren saw his own daughter making an unreasonable scene in front of the Su’s house, he was too ashamed to face Gu Jiaojiao.

He wanted to quietly slip away, but Mr. Xie had to forcefully hold him back. And so, the two old sirs were pulling and tugging at each other in a corner.

"Grandpa Xie, what are you two doing?" Gu Jiaojiao hadn’t wanted to meddle.

But she remembered that Elder Ren was her original body’s adoptive maternal grandfather, who had doted on her since childhood. He must have some ailment he wanted her help with.

Elder Ren must have seen his daughter’s tantrum, which was why he was too ashamed to come in.

"This old fellow Ren also has those old cold legs. We wanted to ask Jiaojiao to take a look, but who knew we’d have the bad luck to run into Ren Cuiping throwing a fit, so now he’s too ashamed to come in."

Mr. Xie was genuinely concerned for his old partner. After all, they were elderly brothers who had been through life and death together.

"Elder Ren, please come in. Your daughter didn’t do anything to me. You don’t need to be embarrassed."

Gu Jiaojiao knew all too well the pain of chronic cold-weather leg problems, and she happened to know exactly how to treat them.

She would just treat him while she was at it, give Elder Ren a happy retirement, and repay the kindness he had shown to this body’s previous owner.

When Elder Ren heard Gu Jiaojiao call him "Elder Ren," he froze, unable to react for a good while.

The little girl who used to curl up in his arms and call him "Grandpa" was no longer willing to call him that.

Elder Ren looked up at the moon in the sky, his eyes filling with tears that he refused to let fall.

Gu Jiaojiao saw the two old sirs standing motionless, also looking up at the night sky.

She also looked up at the starry sky. "The summer night sky is beautiful. The stars are so bright, and the night breeze is pleasant."

"Haha..." Elder Ren glanced at Gu Jiaojiao and suddenly laughed.