"If we wanted to be polite, then we wouldn't have asked for your help, Uncle Fu," said Shen Li with a smile as he fed candy to little Zhuang, who happily giggled. Shen Li felt his paternal instinct go mushy when he saw little Zhuang smile and laugh while flailing his lotus root-like arms. If he got pregnant, his child would look just as pretty as Zhuang or even cuter. With Yu Dong's aesthetics, their child should be beautiful as well.

  "Is this the last of everything?" asked Aunt Wang once she was done loading the bride price on the ox cart. Though Yu Dong and Lang did most of the work, Aunt Wang, with her old waist, thought that she packed the entire package of gifts all on her own. She arched her back, her poor waist creaking as she did so. "If there is any more than this, then I will leave it to you two."

  Yu Dong, who did the most work "……"??

  Lang, who did the remaining work "……"?!

  When did you even work?

  Yu Dong finished loading the last gift in the cart and moved out of the way as Aunt Wang walked towards the front. Because Aunt Wang was fulfilling the role that belonged to her mother, the two of them should deliver this bride price. They were just getting ready to leave when, unexpectedly, they heard a mocking leer from a distance. "Oh, Yu Dong? What are you doing so early in the morning?"

  Who can it be but the old man of Madam Zhang? Though Yu Dong made sure that the entire village knew she held the marriage between her and Fang Chi in high importance. Some people were still not happy with what was happening. One of these people was Old man Han, the daddy of Madam Zhang. He incited all the trouble under the instigation of Qiu Bai.

  Originally, they were waiting for Fang Chi and Yu Dong to become a joke. Still, Yu Dong pulled out her wicked money and made this joke of a marriage a serious fanfare.

  "Old Man Zhang, don't act like you have no idea? Didn't your daughter tell you what kind of trouble she incited the evening before yesterday?" Aunt Wang had no good feelings left for the Zhang family. But because the two families were neighbors, Aunt Wang was willing to have cordial relations with the Zhang family on the surface. However, after the incident at the reef, she has shed all formality with the Zhang family. Thus, her voice was rather rude when she spoke, and her glare was nowhere near friendly.

  "Sister Wang, you really wrong me!" Old Man Han put on a pitiful expression as he looked down at the ground like they scolded him for absolutely no reason. "Don't you know how that girl is? She is only close to her mommy and doesn't care about this old daddy. I work in the fields all day, and no one tells me a thing at home! How will I know what's going on?"

  "Like hell, you don't know what is going on!" Aunt Wang was like a firecracker every time she saw someone from the Zhang family. If not for their genders, Aunt Wang would have fought with Old man Han. If this famous gossip mongrel didn't know what was happening, then she would step on shit and eat it!

  "It's alright, Aunt Wang," Yu Dong knew that the matter was slightly embarrassing. Even if she and Fang Chi were innocent, to the villagers, it was like they were caught having an affair and then forced to marry each other. Naturally, everyone would try to poke fun at her now and then. It didn't matter to them that this could severely harm her and Fang Chi; they just wanted to gloat. "I'm going to the Fang house to ask for marriage. Aunt Wang is helping me. Thanks to Aunt Zhang's misunderstanding, Fang Chi and I were questioned despite being innocent. I couldn't bear it and took responsibility under the excessive criticism. Is there anything else that Grandpa Zhang would like to say?"

  Yu Dong wasn't overbearing, but she didn't like it when someone tried to poke their nose in her business. Madam Zhang's insensitive comments forced her and Fang Chi into a corner, but that wasn't enough. Now someone from the Zhang family came to poke fun at her. She would not be kind either.

  Old Man Han's lips twitched. No wonder his daughter complained about Yu Dong, saying that she had no filter and insulted people with no reservation. Though his skin was thick as well, he easily ignored the jab and put on an anxious expression. "Yu Dong, it's not that I want to scold you, but don't you think you are being unfilial to your parents?"

  "I am just going to marry Fang Chi. When did it become such a huge event, such as being unfilial to my parents?"

  "Is this not being unfilial to your parents?" commented Old man Han, as he crossed his arms and put his tilted face in his hand. "You might not know because nobody was there to teach you. The weaker the color of a cinnamon bar, the lesser the chances of getting pregnant. Your two husbands have proved themselves to be completely barren, married to you for four and six years but yet no movement in their stomach. The third one gave birth to a mer; who knows if he will get pregnant again with his physique. Now you are adding another chicken that cannot lay eggs in your family. Do you not want to give birth to a daughter to carry on your family line? If this isn't being unfilial, you tell me what is?"

  "You old man, shut your mouth for me!" Uncle Fu, who was listening silently by the side, could no longer stand still after seeing how pale Shen Li and Ye Liu had gotten when Old man Han called them barren. It was like poking a hot needle into their sore spots. Which mer didn't want to get pregnant? It was like slapping their face with a hot poker by questioning their fertility! "What are you so happy about? At least they didn't give birth to bastards like that Zhang! That child of yours only knows how to marry this mer and that mer and knows nothing other than spreading her useless essence here and there! You better put a stop to it, or else your daughter and her useless children might destroy this world!"

  "You old Fu! You dare to insult my family's Zhang'er! I am not finished with you !"

  "Like I am finished with you! Come here and let me slap that dog face of yours! It's so early in the morning, and you came to shit here like a mutt! What are you, if not a dog who pees here and pees there? Pie! Even my family's Wang thinks twice before offending me. Who are you to bark in front of me?"

  Uncle Fu was not to be underestimated. He could control Aunt Wang and suppress her until she only had him in her household. His fighting ability was on par with Aunt Wang, who didn't dare to open her mouth once he became angry.

  Aunt Wang "……" it feels like she was being humiliated, but… Go Dear Husband! No matter what, she needed to support her husband!

  "YOU-"

  "Are you done, Grandpa Zhang?" before he could say anything, Yu Dong interrupted him. Her eyes chilling as she smiled at him. Old Man Han wanted to say something, but a sense of danger crawled up his spine, and he turned mute, not answering Yu Dong. When he said nothing, Yu Dong grinned. However, her grin was like that of a demon…… "It's good that you are done. Now you need to understand that no one would dare to call me unfilial or question my mers' fertility, because the next time someone says something like this," she paused and stopped smiling, "I will rip their tongue out!"