Old Mrs. Song is reborn; get out of here, you scumbag husband and illegitimate child!

The food on the table was steaming hot. Erbao hadn't even swallowed the meat in his mouth when his eyes, like radar, scanned Zhou Fang and An Xiyang.

Seeing that An Xiyang had eaten the meat he had picked up, the little guy immediately put down his chopsticks.

In a childish voice, she asked, "Mommy, does the meat smell good?"

"It smells so good, so very good." Anxi Yang's eyes were red, but her face was full of smiles.

"Then Mommy will put some on Daddy's plate." The second child pointed with his little hand, his attitude firm, "Daddy's hungry too."

A silence fell over the dinner table.

Zhou Fang's hand holding the bowl froze, and she subconsciously looked at An Xiyang.

An Xiyang was also stunned, her face turning red all the way to the roots of her neck.

She felt a little embarrassed in front of such a large family.

Looking down, I met Erbao's bright, dark eyes, which held a mixture of caution and anticipation.

The child is scared.

They were afraid their mother wouldn't want them anymore, afraid they would never see their mother again.

An Xiyang felt a pang of sadness, and all her embarrassment vanished.

She picked up the fattest and most tender piece of steamed fish, even carefully removing the bones, and put it into Zhou Fang's bowl.

"You should eat more too; you've lost weight recently."

Zhou Fang stared at the piece of fish in the bowl, his Adam's apple bobbing. Without saying a word, he picked up a soup spoon and ladled a full bowl of sour bamboo shoot and old duck soup for An Xiyang, placing it beside her: "This soup is good for your lungs. Your throat isn't feeling well, so drink more."

The second child sat in the middle, looking to the left and then to the right, until he saw his father eat fish and his mother drink soup.

The little guy let out a long breath, looking as if he had just completed a difficult task.

"That's more like it." Erbao grabbed the chicken leg again and took a big bite. "A family should eat meat together as a whole."

Everyone at the table was amused.

Seeing this scene, Song Xianglan felt relieved.

Halfway through the meal.

Shen Huijun got up to go outside for some fresh air and also checked the counter to see if there was any olive juice to aid digestion.

I just walked up to the front counter.

I ran into two acquaintances.

Yu Guobin was wearing a polyester shirt, his hair was slicked back and shiny, and he was with a round-faced girl next to him. She looked young and had very innocent eyes.

Eyes facing each other.

A hint of surprise flashed in Yu Guobin's eyes, then he straightened his back and a meaningful smile appeared on his lips.

"Huijun, what a coincidence!"

Yu Guobin deliberately raised his voice and pulled the round-faced girl closer to him. "This is my girlfriend, Xiao Zhou. We plan to get married as soon as we graduate."

That gesture looked like a demonstration.

Shen Huijun didn't stop walking, her gaze sweeping over the two of them indifferently.

"Oh, congratulations then."

She turned to get the olive juice, not even giving him a second glance.

Yu Guobin's smile froze.

He hadn't anticipated any regret or jealousy from Shen Huijun.

She was as calm as if she were watching a stray cat on the street.

"Guobin, who is that?" The round-faced girl was attracted by Shen Huijun's calm and beautiful temperament and asked curiously with her eyes wide open.

As Yu Guobin watched Shen Huijun's graceful figure swaying back, a surge of lust rose within him.

Back then, his pursuit of Shen Huijun was known throughout the entire school.

As a result, Shen Huijun warned him in front of everyone that he wanted to ruin a military marriage, making him a laughing stock.

He suppressed the gloom in his eyes and put on a helpless yet magnanimous expression.

"She's also from Haishi, and we took the entrance exam together. She studied political economy, and I studied chemical engineering. When we first arrived, she always followed me around. You know, not many people from Haishi come to the new city to study."

"Then why was she acting that way just now?"

"Sigh, some things are hard to say."

Yu Guobin sighed, looking regretful. "Back then, she insisted on being with me and would wait for me downstairs at the dormitory every day."

But as you know, I don't like that kind of domineering woman.

Later, I kept refusing, and in a fit of anger, she just married a soldier. I guess she's unhappy seeing me doing well now.

After saying that, he spread his hands and said, "My family is better off than hers."

Upon hearing this, the round-faced girl's eyes immediately welled up with tears, and she gripped Yu Guobin's hand tightly. "So that's how it is... How can she be so extreme?"

Guobin, you're not wrong. If you don't like someone, you should refuse. You can't give in to her just because she's a female classmate.

Yu Guobin patted the girl's head.

That little bit of vanity in my heart was greatly satisfied.

"Forget it, I'll try to avoid people like that in the future. I'm just too soft-hearted and don't want to say anything too harsh."

"Don't pay any attention to her anymore. Turns out she was just jealous." The round-faced girl held his hand. "Let's go inside quickly. My brother and the others are getting impatient."

Inside the private room, everyone had eaten and drunk their fill.

I have important business to attend to this afternoon.

Song Xianglan told Shen's mother and Sister Wu to take the children back for a nap, while she led Zhou Fang, An Xiyang, Chen Zui, and Shen Huijun straight to the wasteland near Hongcuo.

As far as the eye could see, there were only weeds and muddy ponds, and a few stray dogs were scavenging for food in the garbage heap.

A gust of wind blew, raising a cloud of sand.

"This is it?" Chen Zui kicked a clod of dirt on the ground, somewhat disgusted. "This godforsaken place, can it be the center?"

Zhou Fang ignored him, holding a map in her hand, standing on a small earthen mound.

Pointing to the faintly visible dirt road in the distance, he said, "This road will be widened in less than three years. The area of ​​Xincheng Island is not large, and nobody wants it now, but it will become a prime location in the future."

He radiates light when he talks about his profession.

That confidence and certainty left An Xiyang, who was standing to the side, somewhat stunned.

Song Xianglan stepped on the soil and nodded. "Zhou Fang, how much does it cost to register a company? What are the articles of association?"

Zhou Fang put away the blueprints, his expression serious.

"The initial land acquisition and start-up capital have left a significant shortfall. I'd like to ask my godmother if she'd be interested in investing in a stake?"

"Of course I'm interested." Before Song Xianglan could speak, Chen shouted, "If you don't include me in this good thing, I'll be furious with you guys."

Song Xianglan smiled.

"This old woman still has some savings, which I originally saved for my retirement. Since you've made a decision, I'll invest some and help you young people earn some money for your retirement."

Zhou felt a surge of warmth in his heart.

"Godmother, I've already calculated the shares. I also want to ask Liu Yukun, Wang Zhihe, and Huang Ronghua." Zhou Fang paused, "As for Xiang Dong... his identity is sensitive and he can't be listed as a shareholder, so let's not involve him in this matter for now."

"You've thought of everything." Song Xianglan nodded approvingly.

As they were chatting, Song Xianglan felt the effects of the large bowl of soup she had eaten at noon kicking in, and her stomach felt bloated and uncomfortable.

"You guys keep an eye on things, I'm going to find a place to relieve myself."

There wasn't a decent toilet around, so Song Xianglan walked several hundred meters before finally finding a dilapidated outhouse behind an abandoned brick factory.

He had just pulled up his pants and was fastening his belt.

Then I saw a woman squatting on the ground picking things up in the dilapidated shed of the brick factory next door.

Song Xianglan glanced at it and was about to leave when she suddenly felt that the figure looked familiar.

The woman seemed to sense the gaze, straightened up, tucked her disheveled hair behind her ear, and turned around.

Eyes facing each other.

Song Xianglan was stunned.

The woman was also stunned.

The woman before me wore clothes covered in patches, her face etched with the marks of time, and her eyes dull and lifeless.

But that outline, those eyebrows and eyes...

"You are... Xiaxia's mother, Zhang Shuting?" Song Xianglan called out tentatively.

The woman trembled, tears welled up instantly, her lips quivered, and she couldn't utter a complete sentence for a long time.

"Auntie...it really is you..."

Zhang Shuting wanted to take a few steps forward, but then she looked at herself covered in mud and water, and shrank back in shame.

Song Xianglan strode over and grabbed her cold hand.

"What happened to you? Where's Xiaxia? What are you all doing in Xincheng?"

Back when we met on the train, Xiaxia's mother wasn't dressed beautifully, but she was still neatly dressed. How come she looks more than ten years older after just a few years, and even more weathered than her aunt?

Xiaxia's mother could no longer hold back and burst into tears.

It was as if she wanted to pour out all the grievances she had held over the years.

"Auntie... I have such a hard life... I got divorced. I went to the island to find Xiaxia's dad because I was beaten and scolded by my mother-in-law. Later, my mother-in-law went there with her grandson."

That little beast hit Xiaxia; those two, grandfather and granddaughter, are utterly despicable. They hit me, and no matter how much I begged for mercy, they wouldn't stop. They knocked my child out of my body; a piece of flesh fell into my pants—my child!

I couldn't take it anymore, so I reported them and sent them to a labor camp. I divorced Xiaxia's father and took Xiaxia with me. Later, I begged my way to the new city...

Song Xianglan felt a lump in her throat and took out a handkerchief from her pocket to wipe away her tears.

"Don't cry. Since we've run into this, it's not a dead end. Come on, come back with me, we can talk things out slowly."

Xiaxia's mother cried so hard she could barely stand, collapsing onto Song Xianglan.

In this desperate situation in a foreign land, she finally grasped at a straw.