The Stepmother’s Counterattack: Raising a Child in a Bygone Era
Chapter 154: The man is nearly driven crazy by his craving

Chapter 154: Chapter 154: The man is nearly driven crazy by his craving

Seeing that Shen Mingzhu’s expression seemed genuine, Pei Wenping didn’t press further and simply used the excuse of not having seen Pei Ziheng for a while to follow Shen Mingzhu back home.

Once home, Shen Mingzhu put away the business license, and then grabbed her purse to go grocery shopping, preparing to host a thank-you dinner that evening for Pei Wenping and the classmates who had helped make connections, as well as to celebrate a little.

When Shen Mingzhu had left, Pei Wenping took Pei Ziheng aside for a private chat.

"Xiaohuan, has your mom been in contact with Uncle Yan lately?"

Pei Ziheng shook his head, "No."

Pei Wenping eyed him, "Is it possible they’ve met outside and you don’t know about it?"

"Impossible, mom tells me everything, she never hides whom she meets from me."

Seeing her nephew’s firm answer, Pei Wenping knew she wouldn’t learn anything else and decided not to inquire further, but then Pei Ziheng began asking her questions in return.

"Auntie, why are you asking this? Did mom run into some trouble?"

In Pei Wenping’s eyes, her nephew was just a five-year-old child, ignorant of the complexities of adults. She simply said, "Xiaohuan, remember what I told you before, with your dad not at home, you have to take good care of your mom, okay?"

Pei Ziheng nodded obediently, but his mind was busy guessing the reason behind Pei Wenping’s sudden questions about Yan Yi.

When Shen Mingzhu came back from grocery shopping, she ran into Shen Baolan and a few women of her age gossiping at the entrance to the residential compound.

Seeing her carrying chicken, duck, and fish, Shen Baolan couldn’t help teasing, "Shen Mingzhu, have you struck it rich? Buying so much good food."

"None of your business."

Staring at Shen Mingzhu’s slim and graceful figure walking away, Shen Baolan then looked down at her own sturdy waist, feeling a surge of envy bubbling inside her.

If she had a figure like Shen Mingzhu’s, perhaps Zhou Shuhuan wouldn’t be reluctant to share her bed, right?

Not only Shen Baolan envied Shen Mingzhu’s figure; the women beside her felt the same—

"Those who haven’t had kids just look different; look at that slim waist, she looks good in anything."

"It’s strange, though, she’s always running around outside, why hasn’t she gotten tanned? Her face is so pale and soft, like tender tofu."

"What do you know? She rides in a car when she goes out, and once she’s indoors, she just draws the curtains and lies in bed; never even sees the sunlight, so naturally, she doesn’t get tanned."

After saying that, the women burst into knowing laughter.

Only Shen Baolan couldn’t bring herself to laugh; in fact, she was quite envious of Shen Mingzhu.

Shen Mingzhu’s man wasn’t at home, yet she still lived a comfortable life.

As for her, she slept in the same bed with a man every night, but lived like a nun in celibacy.

She used to constantly complain about Zhou Shuhuan’s uselessness, but now, ironically, she couldn’t make use of it even if she wanted to.

Had she known, she would rather have married Pei Yang instead.

Even if she became a widow, she could still go find a lover like Shen Mingzhu.

The more she thought about it, the more discontented Shen Baolan felt, and even the prospect of Zhou Shuhuan becoming successful in a few years, turning her into a rich wife, seemed less alluring.

Right now, she was like a dog that hadn’t eaten for three days and nights, desperately craving a man.

—

That evening, Shen Mingzhu cooked six dishes and one soup, knowing that Li Bing enjoyed a good drink, she even specially bought a bottle of red wine.

Li Bing was Pei Wenping’s high school classmate and the benefactor who had helped Shen Mingzhu make connections this time. The menu for tonight was prepared according to Li Bing’s preferences.

Li Bing herself was quite the foodie, and with Shen Mingzhu’s superb cooking skills, the meal was very satisfying. After drinking some wine and getting into high spirits, Li Bing engaged in a heart-to-heart with Shen Mingzhu, clearly wanting to become good sisters with her. Had it not been for Pei Wenping pulling her away forcibly, she probably could have chatted with Shen Mingzhu all night long.

Pei Wenping first dropped Li Bing off at her home before turning her motorcycle to head back to her own place.

By the time she got home, it was nearly 12 o’clock, and Chen Yi hadn’t slept either, lying sprawled on the desk, writing and waiting for her.

Smelling the alcohol on her, Chen Yi cut her a small plate of watermelon from the fridge.

As Pei Wenping ate the watermelon, she talked to Chen Yi about the bank loan from the afternoon.

"...I just have a feeling that there’s more to it than it seems. You didn’t see how enthusiastic that bank guy was toward Mingzhu. I’ve been dealing with banks for so long, I know exactly how these people suck up to those above them and trample those below."

Chen Yi looked at her with a half-smile, "So, you suspect that Mr. Yan is helping Mingzhu behind the scenes?"

Biting into the watermelon, Pei Wenping continued as she ate, "Mingzhu hasn’t been in the city long and doesn’t know many people. Apart from him, I can’t think of anyone else who could do this."

"So what if that’s the case?"

Pei Wenping glared at her husband, "What do you think? That man is up to no good! What is he trying to do?"

Perhaps due to the difference in gender, or a divergence in thought, Chen Yi didn’t agree with his wife’s perspective.

"Even if Shen Mingzhu is in contact with Yan Yi, what’s the issue? She’s an adult, not a slave to the Pei Family. She has the freedom and right to socialize."

"To take ten thousand steps back, even if there really is an emotional entanglement with Yan Yi, half of the responsibility lies on Pei Yang. It’s been barely a year since Mingzhu and Pei Yang got married, and the time they’ve lived together barely adds up to two months. A relationship with so much separation is naturally prone to problems."

Pei Wenping wasn’t convinced, "Then my mom has been with my dad her whole life, and they’ve always had a good relationship."

Chen Yi looked at her, "You can’t expect every woman to be like your mother, willing to endure loneliness. Besides, times have changed. People used to worry about filling their stomachs every day. Now, they’re not struggling for food or clothing, and they pay more attention to their emotional needs and satisfaction."

"Wenping, think about what you were doing and wanted to do when you were 21."

Brought back to her memories by her husband’s words, Pei Wenping had just gotten married back then, living a blissfully sweet life with Chen Yi, wishing to never be apart even for a moment.

Thinking of this, Pei Wenping looked at her husband with a touch of gloom, "So should I just do nothing?"

"Handle what you should, leave alone what you shouldn’t."

"And what should be handled? What should be left alone?"

"Where she needs you, her big sister-in-law, for help, or if she’s being bullied, you should step in. Try not to interfere in other matters. Being too meddlesome usually leads to a lot of effort for no gratitude."

Pei Wenping bit into the watermelon, her thoughts involuntarily turning to her brother Pei Yang, hoping he could come home soon, so she wouldn’t have to worry herself sick over their family.

At this moment, Pei Yang was on the Pacific Ocean, thousands of miles away.

It was afternoon there, and the intense sunlight shone on the ocean surface, making the entire sea area glint with a blinding golden light.

Pei Yang stood on the deck of a small search and rescue vessel, holding a pair of binoculars, silently scanning every part of the sea.

Suddenly, after a violent shake, the ship beneath his feet stopped.

Thrown off balance due to inertia, Pei Yang was flung from the deck. The safety rope tied around his waist prevented him from falling into the water, but his body slammed heavily against the side of the ship, making a dull sound upon impact.

With the assistance of two members of the search and rescue team, Pei Yang managed to climb back onto the deck.

Although uninjured, the collision left him feeling mildly uncomfortable.

He sat on the deck, resting while he instructed the team members, "Go to the cockpit and find out what’s going on. Why has the ship stopped?"

They quickly returned, "Captain Pei, there’s a malfunction; the engine won’t start."

Hearing this, Pei Yang gave orders without hesitation to check the main engine and to send out a distress signal.

This area of the ocean was unknown and dangerous; each additional moment they remained was an extra threat to the lives of everyone on board.