The Female Cannon Fodder With Boundless Merits
Chapter 551 - 555 My Grandson is the Antagonist (Part 2)

Chapter 551: Chapter 555 My Grandson is the Antagonist (Part 2)

The original owner’s two daughters-in-law were both fancied by her own sons, who claimed it was "true love," acquired through tears, tantrums, and threats of suicide.

Their looks were not bad, but could good looks be eaten as food?

Moreover, when it came to marriage, both daughters-in-law’s families opened their mouths as wide as lions, almost stopping short of saying they were selling their daughters.

The original owner disapproved of these two girls, but her sons were utterly bewitched by them.

Although she favored her youngest son the most, it didn’t mean she cared any less for her eldest and second sons.

They were all flesh from her own body, how could she bear to see them suffer? Thus, the original owner could only grit her teeth and accept it.

She scrambled to gather a hefty dowry, only to receive a thin blanket so insubstantial it could barely be called a blanket... this infuriated the original owner.

But seeing her sons’ joyful and delighted demeanor, the original owner could only swallow her grievances in silence.

She made it clear to her sons and their brides, if she were to agree to these marriages, there was one requirement they absolutely had to fulfill.

That was to treat the daughters-in-law’s families as just ordinary relatives, not becoming overly involved unless absolutely necessary.

The original owner still resented these two in-laws for their tasteless behavior of essentially selling their daughters.

What angered her even more was that right after she provided the dowry, the daughters-in-law’s families immediately bought extravagant items for their sons.

Her sons and daughters-in-law had agreed readily, but quickly cast her words to the wind.

These past few years, the family’s coffers were drained, and they had accrued a heavy debt due to the marriages.

Hence, the daughters-in-law were relatively restrained, only sneaking some food to their families behind the original owner’s back.

It took over a decade to pay off the debt, and as the family began to breathe a little easier, the daughters-in-law started to act out.

Firstly, they blatantly took food from the house to support their own parents and siblings, then they pocketed money that was supposed to be submitted to the public fund.

The year’s harvest was poor, and food prices outside soared exponentially, as much as three or four times the usual price, and there was still a shortage of supply.

The original owner had spent all her money on house repairs and was now waiting for a substantial payment from a wealthy family in town for the last bit of labor, which would be used to buy food.

But...

The wage was supposed to be collected by her eldest son, Luo Rujiang, but due to being preoccupied with the house affairs, the original owner inquired a couple of days late, only to find it all gone.

The money had been pilfered by the eldest daughter-in-law, Tang Yilan, and lent to her own family.

It was alleged to be a loan, but where was the repayment to come from?

This matter so infuriated the original owner that she fainted outright and had yet to recover, a tight ball of frustration still stuck in Su Li’s chest.

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"Big brother, what happened to mom? Did you and sister-in-law anger her?"

Su Li faintly heard the voice of the second daughter-in-law, Yuan Ling, outside the door.

"Don’t spout nonsense. Yilan and I are too busy showing filial respect to mom to ever make her angry... Mom is just exhausted by the family affairs recently. You, as a daughter-in-law, should take more initiative and not be lazy..."

The moment Yuan Ling heard this, she became utterly indignant, "Look at what you’re saying, big brother. Haven’t I been filial enough to mom? Better than certain people who pilfer from within and give to outsiders. I never took things from the house to support people outside the family..."

Yuan Ling’s words made Luo Rujiang uncomfortable and guilty, but he quickly masked his discomfort, not letting his younger brother and sister-in-law catch on.

"Don’t talk nonsense, who’s been deceitful..." Luo Rujiang scrutinized his younger sister’s complexion and immediately felt relieved.

He thought that the second sister might have learned about what his wife had done.

It made sense; if she really knew, then it would be the same as the younger brother knowing. The house would have turned upside down—there is no way she could talk to him so calmly and peacefully.

Luo Rujiang breathed a temporary sigh of relief and said, "I won’t talk with you any longer, I still have to go in and check on Mom."

Yuan Ling lost interest in talking too, her mind calculating how much her sister-in-law had wheedled out of her family, wishing to secure some for her own parents.

A few days ago, her brother had specifically cornered her on the road, saying that the family was running out of food, her nieces and nephews crying out in hunger, making it imperative for her to think of a solution.

Eh, sometimes she really detested these family matters, but she couldn’t truly ignore them.

As Yuan Ling thought about these matters, she turned around and was bumped into by a small figure, stumbling as a result.

Looking down, she saw a young boy, several years old, pressing his lips together, looking at her with an expressionless face.

Anger rising from within, Yuan Ling, frustrated, ignored the slender young boy’s struggle and fiercely grabbed his ear, giving it a violent tug, "You little brat, what’s with that look? You scourge, staring like that—if it wasn’t for you bleeding our family dry, we wouldn’t be in such dire straits."

To say such cruel words to a child not even five years old was enough to show her malice.

The little boy, seeing that his short limbs were ineffective in resisting, could only endure the pain, resigning himself to any beatings or scolding.

Obviously, such incidents had occurred frequently enough that he had figured out how best to suffer through them.

Luo Rujiang, who was just behind, also heard the sound of the second sister beating and scolding the bastard child, furrowing his brows and stopping her displeased, "Sister, you’re an adult—why stoop to quarrel with a child? It’s beneath you..."

Luo Rujiang’s interjection wasn’t out of pity for his orphaned little nephew but rather a retaliation for Yuan Ling’s previous irritating words.

Upon hearing this, Yuan Ling let out a cold laugh, her grip tightening even more.

Soon enough, the young boy let out a pained cry that was difficult to bear.

Yuan Ling’s bold challenge to him made Luo Rujiang very unsatisfied. His lips twitched several times, and although he initially intended to scold her, he swallowed his words.

All he managed was a dry remark, "Do you want Mom to know you’re bullying a child?"

"Do you think Mom doesn’t already know our attitude towards this brat?" Yuan Ling responded, though her actions gradually relaxed as her eyes unconsciously glanced in the direction of her mother-in-law’s room.

While Mom was somewhat aware, it was only because they hadn’t brought matters to light.

If they truly exposed this issue in front of her, they might not be able to handle the consequences.

Yuan Ling was also aware that her recent behavior with her sister-in-law had greatly displeased the old lady, who was just waiting to catch them out.

As Yuan Ling’s grip loosened, the little boy slipped away like a loach, provoking another round of curses from her.

What happened outside the door was clear as day to Su Li inside her room.

After the noise outside had died down, the curtain of her room was lifted, and there was her adoptive eldest son, with a smug smile on his face, appearing before her.

Seeing his elderly mother staring at him with a pair of old, expressionless eyes, for a moment, Luo Rujiang actually felt a bit intimidated.

He stuttered out, "Mom... are you... feeling any better?"