Chapter 94 - 32: A Carefully Selected Control Group

Chapter 94: Chapter 32: A Carefully Selected Control Group

"It means I don’t want anything to do with you," Lin Zhao said bluntly.

Her whole family were cannon fodder; she didn’t want to get too close to the female lead’s family.

Especially since the Lu Family had the demonic Lu Baozhen, whom she had to guard against.

Having a falling out with Su Yuxian was a necessary step.

As the two adults clashed, the children sensed something was wrong and fell silent. Da Zai and Er Zai stood behind Lin Zhao, while Lu Baozhen walked to her new mother’s side, took her hand, and stared at Lin Zhao with her dark, eerie eyes.

It was so hot the cicadas had been roasted into silence. A chill started from the soles of Lin Zhao’s feet and shot through her entire body.

She felt like she was being watched by something terrifying.

A mother’s first instinct was to shield her two sons.

Lin Zhao looked down at Lu Baozhen and was about to say something when Dahuang came in with Amber. Behind the two furry children were Mother Gu and the twins.

"WOOF WOOF—" Dahuang charged in and, without any warning, let out a low growl at Lu Baozhen.

It arched its back, its scrawny body as taut as a bowstring. Its sharp teeth gleamed coldly in the slanting sun, as if it were about to pounce and snap its prey’s neck in the next second.

Dahuang barked in the front, and Amber barked from behind.

The courtyard grew lively. Wang Chunhua’s rascally kid climbed the wooden ladder leaning against the wall and poked his head over to watch.

The moment Dahuang appeared, the chill on Lin Zhao’s body vanished instantly.

’He’s back at the perfect time!’

She looked at Dahuang, her affection for the big furball growing even deeper.

Terrified by the dog, Lu Baozhen burst out crying with a WAH, hiding behind Su Yuxian and trembling.

"Waaah... I want to go home! I don’t like dogs! It’s so scary! Take me home right now!" she shrieked, tugging on Su Yuxian’s clothes. Her eyes, red-rimmed and pitiful, had regained a child’s pure innocence.

Lin Zhao was usually tolerant of children, but after this first confrontation with the "little koi" from the original book, she couldn’t muster an ounce of affection. She only found the child incredibly strange.

If Dahuang hadn’t returned, she really didn’t know what would have happened next.

Mother Gu looked at Su Yuxian and Lu Baozhen in confusion, wondering why the two of them were here.

"So Baozhen is afraid of dogs, huh? I never noticed before. Little Su, you should take her home quickly. Comfort the child, don’t let her cry her little face off."

"Got it." Su Yuxian picked up her stepdaughter, took a few steps forward, then suddenly stopped and looked back at Lin Zhao. "From now on, let’s act like we don’t know each other."

"I never thought you were this kind of person. The moment you get a job, you disown your friends. I guess I was wrong about you."

Then she turned to leave.

Lin Zhao’s words reached her ears.

"You’re wrong. We’re not the same kind of people, and we were never friends."

Su Yuxian’s body stiffened. Her face darkened, and she strode away.

"Why did she come here?" Mother Gu frowned and gave Dahuang an appreciative pat. A dog really was useful—it could even solve major problems.

"I don’t know. She came but didn’t say what for." Lin Zhao guessed she was here to ask about her job.

Just then, the talkative Er Zai ran to his grandma to tattle.

"Grandma, that Little Su yelled at me and my brother!"

What?

Mother Gu’s thick, dark eyebrows knitted into an inverted V. "What did she say to you?"

Er Zai hung his head, constantly grinding a small pebble under the tip of his shoe. His cheeks puffed out. "She said my brother and I have no manners, and that we’ll never amount to anything in our lives."

"What kind of person is she, coming to someone else’s house to curse their children! Is this what Liao Hongjuan taught her?" Mother Gu was furious. "Don’t listen to her nonsense! *She’s* the one with no manners!"

"Grandma’s Da Zai and Er Zai are both polite little boys. You’ll definitely amount to something in the future." As a grandmother, she believed her grandsons were the smartest of all and would surely have bright futures.

Er Zai lifted his head. There wasn’t a trace of disappointment on his face; in fact, he was beaming like a flower.

"Hee hee, I think so too."

Lin Zhao facepalmed.

"Da Zai, go get your grandma two slices of watermelon."

"Okay!" Da Zai’s voice was clear and bright. He trotted into the kitchen and brought out two pre-cut slices of watermelon.

There were many mosquitoes and flies in the countryside, so Lin Zhao, being particular, had someone make several bamboo food covers. The sliced watermelon had been kept under one.

Mother Gu accepted the watermelon from Da Zai. With its green rind and red flesh, it looked both sweet and juicy.

"Oh, what a nice watermelon! Have you two eaten any yet?"

Da Zai nodded. "We have. Er Zai and I each had a slice, and Mom also made us watermelon lemonade. It was sweet and sour, with watermelon and lemon flavors. It was so good."

As he finished speaking, he lowered his head, his face full of shame. "I forgot to save some for Grandma."

Even though Mother Gu hadn’t drunk any of the juice he mentioned, her heart was already bubbling with warmth.

"There’s nothing to be embarrassed about. If you drank it, it’s the same as Grandma drinking it."