Chapter 26: Lin Siyan Gets Snubbed

"Mumu!"

Seeing her daughter cry, Gu Yuru's heart broke. She could not understand why her daughter would choose not to stay with her.

Li Mumu saw her mother's sorrow and felt terrible, but how could she simply let the scumbag father and the mistress off the hook?

"Mother, we aren't coming over either; we are going to stick with Father," Li Jue said, offering a small smile.

"You... why?" Gu Yuru asked softly.

Of course, she couldn't say it was to make life difficult for their scumbag father.

Li Mumu giggled and said, "Mother, if we don't go with you, does that mean we can't hide from the rain?"

"Of course you can!" Grandmother Gu said.

"Grandmother is the best! Mumu loves Grandmother the most!" With that, Li Mumu took her brothers' hands and went inside the shelter.

Zhang Yi rolled her eyes, as if she had realized something. "Sister, if the children don't want to come, don't force them. We are right here, after all, and can look after them at any time."

Song Qiang didn't think too much about it, but she also advised, "That's right. Even if you are divorced, you will always be the children's mother."

With the kind advice of her two sisters-in-law, Gu Yuru could only nod.

However, this meant that Old Madam Li and Lin Siyan no longer had an excuse to come in and take shelter from the rain.

Seeing that Gu Yuru was still feeling somewhat dejected, Zhang Yi gave her a wink. "Have you figured it out yet?"

Gu Yuru looked at the Li family, who were soaked to the bone and staring at them with resentment. "Sister-in-law, what do you mean..."

Zhang Yi held up a finger. "Shh." Then she smiled.

Li Mumu was overjoyed to see Li Yuan grinding his teeth in frustration, unable to protect Lin Siyan. Just watching wasn't enough to satisfy her; she pulled up a small stone to sit on, held a bowl, and drank the warm, boiled goat's milk.

This milk came from a goat raised on spiritual spring water, and the yield was top-tier.

She deliberately slurped it loudly, and immediately heard the sound of people swallowing saliva under the small tree opposite.

"Mumu, Grandma's good granddaughter, tell your mother quickly—Grandma is old and can't take it anymore." As she spoke, Old Madam Li stared at the warm goat's milk in Li Mumu's bowl, licking her cracked lips.

"Mumu is Grandmother's granddaughter. What are you to Grandmother?"

"I..." Old Madam Li was at a loss for words. "In-law, there's no reason to stand by and watch us die, is there?"

Grandmother Gu let out a cold snort and shoved half a piece of fruit into Li Mumu's hand. "Reason? You want to talk to me about reason now? Where was your reason when you hid medicine to harm my grandson? Where was your reason when you broke your promises and failed my daughter? Where was your reason when you snatched away all of our food?"

Old Madam Li wanted to smile, but at this moment, her smile looked worse than crying. When the wind blew, she shivered with cold.

Lin Siyan wasn't doing much better. Even though she was leaning against Li Yuan, she was still cold from being soaked, yet she still didn't let Gu Yuru off the hook.

"Sister, I know you hate me, but Mother is getting on in years. You are such a kind person—can you really be so heartless?"

Li Mumu quickly changed the subject. "Aunt Lin, are you very cold?"

Lin Siyan lowered her head, acting aggrieved. "It's alright."

"Oh, it's alright? Then you aren't cold. Never mind, then."

Lin Siyan gritted her teeth.

Li Mumu asked again, "Aunt Lin, are you hungry?"

Having learned her lesson, Lin Siyan didn't dare to feign modesty. "Naturally, I am hungry. I am carrying your little brother in my womb, and he is hungry, too."

"Oh, then stay hungry. Mumu is going to drink her goat's milk now." Li Mumu grinned.

Lin Siyan was so angry she almost fainted.

Li Mumu was not intimidated by Li Yuan's threatening glare; if Li Yuan dared to approach, her three uncles wouldn't just stand by and watch. Li Yuan, of course, didn't dare to make a move.

"Li Mumu, shut up."

Li Mumu nodded. "Actually, Mumu was going to ask if Aunt Lin wanted some fruit, but I guess I won't ask anymore."

Li Yuan was about to lose his mind.

The rain came quickly and stopped just as fast, but even after it stopped, the Li family remained freezing cold, and several people had already started sneezing.

By the time the Li family finally managed to get a fire going, the yamen runners were already preparing to leave. Li Rong didn't dare to beg for mercy again, fearing she would truly incur Zhang Xiang's disgust.

The muddy road after the rain was difficult to traverse and slippery. The Li family fell down constantly, and the weather was muggy and hot. The humidity intensified; while their clothes had dried, their skin itched terribly.

If they hadn't lost their belongings, the Li family might have been able to apply some medicine, but now, to say nothing of what they had taken back from the Gu family, even most of their original clothes, basins, and bowls had vanished.

The Li family cursed the thief who had stolen their things as they walked. Stealing the valuables was one thing, but why steal the broken bowls?

Lin Siyan was itching so badly she couldn't stop scratching.

Zhang Xiang, with malice in his eyes, suddenly reached out. "Let me help you."

"Ah!" Lin Siyan was so frightened she leaned into Li Yuan, but accidentally stumbled into the mud, covering herself in yellow sludge. Zhang Xiang curled his lip, his interest mostly gone.

The road was truly difficult to walk, and the yamen runners were uncomfortable as well, so before dark, Zhang Xiang ordered everyone to stop and set up camp.

Because they had been delayed by the rain, they were forced to sleep in the wilderness again that night.

Old Madam Li snorted coldly; this time, the Gu family would surely be drooling over their food. After all, they weren't given rations for dinner, and they hadn't eaten at noon.

"Eldest daughter-in-law, go cook!" Old Madam Li commanded.

Zhao shook her head. "Mother, I think I have a fever. My whole body is burning, and I can't do anything. I need to rest for a while."

"Second daughter-in-law." Sun remained dazed and confused, ignoring her daughter and only occasionally calling her son's name.

"You—what are you looking at? Since you are a daughter-in-law of our Li family, you have to cook." Old Madam Li turned her attention to Lin Siyan.

Lin Siyan looked on in disbelief, but there was no one else left besides the two sisters-in-law, as Li Rong had once again taken Li Fengzhu to the yamen runners' tents to trade their bodies for food.

"Me? Mother... I don't feel well either."

Li Yuan felt deeply pained. "Mother, Siyan is pregnant."

"So what? Who hasn't been pregnant? Either you cook, or you do what Rongrong and the others are doing and bring back some food. Otherwise, why does our Li family keep a useless person like you? You eat the good food but don't do a lick of work. Third son, say something! Do you expect your mother to wait on you at her age?"

In the face of life and death, even the most favored daughter-in-law had become a jinx.

Gu Yuru clenched her hands upon hearing this. She didn't dare to imagine if she had stayed in the Li family, whether the old woman would have forced her to trade her body for food as well.

Lin Siyan had originally expected Li Yuan to stand up for her again, but Li Yuan did not.

Lin Siyan naturally didn't want to go, but in the end, she had no choice. Cooking was not difficult for her, as she had come from a poor family, though she hadn't done it in a long time.

As soon as the food was ready, Li Yunchao and his younger siblings exchanged a look and rushed over. The show was about to begin.