Lin Qing bewilderedly pulled her mother, Wu Qiuyun, by the hand, and followed behind the brigade expressionlessly.

No one knew just how unsettled her heart was.

Time had passed in a blink of an eye ever since she arrived at this place, so she was convinced that she understood the order of operations in this family.

It consisted of an extremely biased grandmother, a pair of annoying twins who were her aunt and uncle, her hardworking yet meek country bumpkin of a father, and the oldest uncle’s family. When she saw that her young cousins worked several times longer in the field than her aunt Xinghua, she secretly came up with a plan to grab her foolish father and run away from the family.

But before she could finish planning, the variables came piling one after another.

First, it was her easily bullied oldest uncle. The man, who had no complaints when his son and daughter were being ordered around like slaves and was severely lacking in survival instincts, had mysteriously decided to sell smuggled goods and died outside their village. During that time, she was determined to leave the Lin family as soon as possible.

Based on her understanding of Sun Jinhua, that person would never have a change of heart just because her eldest uncle suddenly died.

After all, prior to her transmigration, the original character of this body had lost her life because Sun Jinhua refused to spend money to treat her illness.

If her assessment of Sun Jinhua was correct, then what’s going on around here?

Her despicable and undeserving grandmother is now kneeling in the simple funeral hall and crying her eyes out. Wasn’t she exerting way too much effort for an act?

Ever since Lin Qing heard the news of her eldest uncle’s passing and rushed back home, Sun Jinhua has had to wash her tear-stricken face almost every day and would randomly breakdown and cry out her oldest son’s name. The amount of suffering she displayed made Lin Qing almost believe that Sun Jinhua was possessed by a transmigrated soul or was somehow reborn. However, after some subtle observations, she realized that it was just her own wishful thinking.

After all, a transmigrator would not go around asking Lin Qing where she stole her apples and demand for some after she innocently said that apples were fun… Luckily, Lin Qing was able to pretend that she was too young to understand what Sun Jinhua was talking about and brushed the incident aside.

As for Sun Jinhua, the last few days were extremely unfavorable. She finally understood what it means to swallow your blood after getting your teeth knocked out.

Because that was literally her!

Last night, that useless and untactful husband of hers had the gall to ask her why her personality suddenly changed, and if the change came about because she had finally grown a heart. Just thinking about it made her hopping mad!

But even though she was angry to the point that steam was coming out of her ears, she had to hold it in.

All because that damn widowed daughter-in-law’s personality suddenly changed! Not only was Dan Jingqiu missing her previously weak nature, she even pretended to be filial in front of outsiders. Sun Jinhua almost threw up in her mouth, just thinking about it.

However, Sun Jinhua was too scared to continue bullying this daughter-in-law because she had figured out her ploys. If Dan Jingqiu were to alert the authorities, her youngest son would definitely suffer! She would just have to bear with it for now and teach her a lesson later!

While Sun Jinhua was making her plans, Dan Jingqiu had long finished her preparations.

Dan Jingqiu’s brain did some mental gymnastics as she watched the “kindly mother-in-law” of hers kneel in front of her.

Perhaps it was because she came from another world, but she was unfamiliar with the fear that plagued this era. When she laid eyes on the two children left behind by the original host, she felt the urge to fight.

Lin Xiong and Lin Yu were starved to the point of emaciation. Their arms looked as thick as their legs, and their hands were filled with calluses from years of hard labor. Their skins were so tanned from the blazing sun that they were almost the color of charcoal. Even if she wanted to convince herself that all children in this era looked like that, when she saw Sun Jinhua’s fair complexion and chubby figure, as well as the pampered and well-maintained appearance of Xinghua, Dan Jingqiu was unable to endure it.

With her past experience in the last world, Dan Jingqiu was able to adapt faster to the role of a mother. Equipped with the original host’s memories, she was deeply aware that aside from being foolishly kind, her children have never done anything wrong.

It was inconceivable. How could Sun Jinhua abuse her own flesh and blood over mere superstition?

Her first instinct was to take her children away from this family, but after analyzing the original host’s memories, she was shocked to find that this was a special era where everything relied on work points. She would even need a recommendation if she wanted to leave for a long trip. So taking her children and leaving was nothing more than a pipe dream.

On top of that, after living with Lin Xiong and Lin Yu for the past few days, Dan Jingqiu had become anxious for them.

These two were about the same age as the grandchildren in her last life, so their existences were already deeply rooted in her heart.

Although Lin Xiong’s a boy, perhaps due to his father’s influences, he was utterly honest to a fault and refused to voice any of his desires. Yesterday, after Dan Jingqiu made some egg drop soup for him, he even anxiously asked if she stole eggs from his grandmother and was too scared to swallow his food.

What about Lin Yu? It was different for her. Since she was small, she hated the unjust treatment and held resentment towards her cowardly parents.

Dan Jingqiu was not angry at her children, because she was also countlessly frustrated by the timid nature of the original host.

Not to mention, these children had been suffering since infancy.

Deciding to continue her life here, Dan Jingqiu had carefully browsed through the expanded list in the System Shop with her accumulated points and began selecting the best skills within her means.

Holding the small and feeble hands of Lin Xiong and Lin Yu, who were kneeling next to her, Dan Jingqiu felt an overwhelming sense of responsibility. Her eyes squinted at the pretentious Sun Jinhua and inwardly chuckled, wondering if the hag could handle being tormented by others.

Though Datong village still retained its feudalistic customs, for the last few years, the commune began organizing daily meetings. The captain of the squadron, Li Qiang, had clearly announced that no large funerals were allowed, not to mention that Li Jianguo’s unpleasant cause of death was traditionally inauspicious.

Besides, every household was suffering from hardships. Even those who had a few years to plan could not even provide salted preservatives to cater to their guests.

Forget about gift money. Even a few eggs need to be registered and then returned back to the guests after the funeral.

To lose a workday is to lose a day’s worth of work points. This was also an issue for everyone in Datong village.

Which was why the topic of Lin Jianguo’s funeral ended with his coffin in the dirt.

But in the Lin family, this issue was far from over.

As of late, the family’s rations were divided equally, according to Dan Jingqiu’s request. Her experience as a chef in her last life gave her the ability to split any portion size evenly, down to a single sprout, with a scoop of a ladle, and thereby presenting the ultimate ideal of egalitarianism.

In the last few days, the previously malnourished members of Dan Jingqiu and Lin Jianguo’s families were visibly and quickly recovering their body mass.

Only Sun Jinhua, Lin Yaoxi, and Lin Xinghua were sullen about this fact.

As the main three people in the family who were used to enjoying greater privileges, they were dissatisfied with the sudden equality, and they refused to understand how their previous indulgences were wrong.

Sun Jinhua finally reached her limit with her insensitive youngest daughter’s and husband’s daily badgering, asking her why she changed her attitude and was now supportive towards the eldest daughter-in-law, so much so that it affected their meals.

Did they think she was doing this willingly? She was also eating less! Watching Lin Yu and Lin Qing brazenly eat eggs in their house when they are just useless girls who deplete money from the family infuriated her.

She was determined to have a chat with Dan Jingqiu. Who cares if she threatened to report her? Sun Jinhua had seen Dan Jingqiu sacrifice her own food for her children and even for her second son’s daughter. That woman would never bring herself to report to the authorities and cause the downfall of this family.

Thinking she regained the upper hand once more, Sun Jinhua became cocky and was determined to stop Dan Jingqiu from doing whatever she wanted.

She hastily made her way to the kitchen. That failure of a daughter-in-law was once again roasting sweet potatoes for the children of the family. Sun Jinhua’s brows twitched in annoyance. How could you waste food on those useless bums?!

Sun Jinhua made a beeline towards the group and snatched the small sweet potatoes that Dan Jingqiu was about to hand over to the children and glared menacingly.

Seeing the blatant look of displeasure in Ling Yu and Ling Qing’s eyes made her realize just how brazen these little miscreants had become in the last few days. If this were allowed to continue, the painstaking hierarchy and rules she had established in this house would be all but destroyed!

“What are you looking at? You dare to revolt? You don’t get to eat!” Sun Jinhua propped her hand on her hip and glared aggressively.

Dan Jingqiu sensed Lin Xiong’s cowering and Lin Yu’s anger, and could roughly guess what Sun Jinhua was trying to do.

With a quick thought, Dan Jingqiu quietly turned to the three children and said: “Ah Xiong, go outside and play with your sister and cousin for a while. Your grandma and I have something to discuss.” It was a hint to get her trembling son out of harm’s way.

Scared by Sun Jinhua’s menacing glare, Lin Xiong pulled both Lin Qing and Lin Yu along with him and ran outside.

Lin Yu turned her head with a complicated look in her eyes that was mixed with worry and sadness. The thought of her brave mother, who had gone up against the evil grandmother for the past few days, reverting back to her old self… She could not tell if this feeling was hate or…?

Sun Jinhua’s voice had an arrogance to it because she believed she would be victorious. She creepily smirked as she imagined the look on Dan Jingqiu’s face after she put her back in her place.

Dan Jingqiu was cleaning up the kitchen stove area. Without turning her head, she could tell that Sun Jinhua had a smug look of a coward.

“Listen here, you jinx. Go ahead and report us. You’ll watch your son and daughter both suffer! Worse comes to worst; our entire family can meet its demise together. I’m not afraid of you!”

Sun Jinhua added cockily: “I’ll have you know that nothing bad would happen to me!”

Sure enough, Dan Jingqiu knew that Sun Jinhua had figured out that she had a soft spot for her children and her brother-in-law’s child, so the witch was trying to use them to threaten her.

However… She truly did not wish for mutual destruction, but that did not mean it was the only trick up her sleeve.

After spitting out her venomous words and noticing Dan Jingqiu’s lack of reaction, Sun Jinhua became anxious once more.

Dan Jingqiu turned around and looked at Sun Jinhua with a grin. Her voice was pleasant and gentle.

“Mom, did you know I’ve been strong ever since I was a child?”

“…Ah?” Sun Jinhua panicked and wondered what those words meant. She knew her daughter-in-law was strong, which was why they could depend on this woman to do a man’s labor.

Seeing Sun Jinhua’s bewildered look, Dan Jingqiu continued: “Mom, since we have so many children, I’ve never had the chance to eat my fill. For the last few days, I finally had enough to eat…”

Sun Jinhua still could not tell what her daughter-in-law was up to, but she knew this woman’s family was poor enough to be willing to do a marriage swap. After some considerations, she regained her composure and hollered viciously: “Don’t beat around the bush and change the subject!” Thinking she had seen through her daughter-in-law’s crafty tricks, she became haughty once more.

Dan Jingqiu reached over to the firewood pile by the stove and picked out several wood pieces that were as thick as her arm before turning around and staring at Sun Jinhua.

Sun Jinhua subconsciously took a step back, internally wondering if she had unwittingly forced Dan Jingqiu to resort to violence.

Dan Jingqiu smiled and said: “Mom, ever since I ate my fill, I realized my own strength seemed rather…incredible.” With that insightful description, Dan Jingqiu casually gave a light squeeze. The firewood snapped audibly and scattered on the ground. The middle parts of the firewood where the force was applied were completely squeezed flat.

Sun Jinhua’s face instantly paled, and she immediately fumbled her way outside. The kitchen was not large, but she almost tripped and fell as she scrambled out, pulling the door behind her and slamming it shut. The room once again regained its tranquil silence.

Dan Jingqiu retracted her surprised expression that almost gave her away.

To be honest, she never knew this so-called Martial Strength·Beginner’s Skill was this powerful. When she was giving that firewood a light pinch, it looked like they were just going to snap apart, but instead, they were so easily squashed…

Did she turn into Superwoman?

Without further thought, and somewhat amused, Dan Jingqiu was content that she had successfully used it to threaten Sun Jinhua. And so, she made her way outside with the intent to call the children back and eat their sweet potatoes.

As Dan Jingqiu slowly made her way out with those sweet potatoes, she suddenly stopped at the exit with a dumbfounded expression.

Instead of leaving as they were told, her two children and Lin Qing were secretly peeping from the side of the door. Seeing these three munchkins with duplicated shocked expressions had momentarily stunned her, and she was unsure of how to go about explaining things. (TL Note:Lol, the ‘shocked Pikachu expression’…)

After an abrupt staring contest, it was Lin Qing who reacted first.

Astonished by her aunt’s superhuman strength, she started clapping her hands in admiration: “Auntie, you are amazing…”

The confused Lin Xiong and Lin Yu also started clapping enthusiastically.

With both her hands full of sweet potatoes, Dan Jingqiu could only inwardly groan.

I’m not! I didn’t! Don’t spout nonsense!