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

"Aunt Song, why don't you two act as matchmakers?"

The curtain to the main room was suddenly lifted. Xiaoxia stood by the door, her eyes slightly red.

The four women in the room all stopped eating.

Xiaoxia walked over quickly and took Widow Wang's hand without any hesitation. "Mom, you've worked so hard all these years. I hope you can have a good life of your own."

Widow Wang quickly pulled her hand back, glancing towards the courtyard.

"Why are you meddling in what the adults are saying? Go back to your room and eat your meal."

"Mom, I'm all grown up and earning money now." Xiaoxia didn't back down, looking at her earnestly. "I support you finding Uncle Zhao to live with."

Widow Wang's lips moved.

He was speechless for a moment.

Xiaoxia knew how difficult it was for her mother.

Years ago, after my father passed away, there wasn't a single adult man in the family.

At night, those ill-intentioned old bachelors would often loiter outside the courtyard wall.

Some, emboldened by alcohol, would lean against the window and utter obscene and vulgar remarks.

Back then, all my mother could do was hold the stick blocking the door and yell at people outside through the window.

The gossips in the village are even worse.

They say there's always trouble around a widow's door.

Even if a mother wears a piece of clothing without patches, they can interpret it as her trying to seduce a man.

Those men all seemed to have become victims forced into this situation.

Every time she argues with the villagers, they immediately bring up the noise she made at night to insult her.

It wasn't until Liu Dahua and Liu Yidao moved next door that those bastards finally calmed down. They took their knives and went out to fight.

"Mom," Xiaoxia's voice was hoarse, "you don't need to worry about us."

I already have a job, and I can earn money to support myself and take care of my younger siblings.

Besides, Uncle Zhao is an honest man; I believe he can be a good stepfather.

Song Xianglan looked at Xiaoxia and nodded inwardly.

"Ju Hong, even Xiao Xia has agreed. What are you still hesitating about?"

"If you don't care about Zhao Shengli, then we won't force you to do it."

Liu Dahua took a bite of the pickled cucumber, chewing it with a crunching sound. "Zhao Shengli is an honest and down-to-earth person. If you miss out on him, where will you find someone as good as him again?"

Although he has difficulty walking, he is more of a man than many men with all their legs.

Let the villagers say what they want. I've been talked about for years; who dares to say it to my face?

"Look at me. If I had been concerned about saving face and hadn't married Liu Yidao, wouldn't I have died of shame and indignation when that bastard Huang Guoping came back and spewed filth at me?"

I doubt I even have the courage to live, let alone sit here eating meat and chatting with you all.

That's very true.

The group of people spoke one after another, and every word they said struck a chord with Widow Wang.

The awkwardness on Widow Wang's face slowly faded, replaced by a hint of anticipation. "We're just talking about this here. Who knows what Brother Zhao is really thinking?"

The way he was addressed changed from Zhao Shengli to Brother Zhao.

"Don't worry about what he thinks," the ugly woman said, her spirits high. "I've noticed that Zhao Shengli's eyes are never leaving you. Once this is done, he shouldn't forget the matchmaking gifts I gave to Lanlan and Dahua."

Widow Wang smiled slightly, pursing her lips.

He did not refute it further.

Xiaoxia breathed a sigh of relief.

He turned and left the main room, heading towards the kitchen.

Inside the kitchen, the three children were eating around a low table.

The second son, Ah Jin, held his bowl, his brows furrowed.

"Big sister, what are you laughing at?" Ah Jin asked.

Xiaoxia walked over and sat down.

She glanced at her three younger siblings and lowered her voice to speak. "Aunt Song and Aunt Liu are currently arranging a marriage for our mother."

Ah Jin's hand holding the chopsticks trembled.

"What?"

"It's Zhao Yuan's father, Zhao Shengli," Xiaoxia continued.

"I knew that old man wasn't a good person," Ah Jin gritted his teeth. "He always pretended to be honest and kind, but he's always been after Mom. What is Mom thinking? How can she do this to Dad after he died?"

Xiaoxia was startled and looked up at him.

"What nonsense are you talking about?"

Ah Jin's chest heaved violently. "Dad is dead, but we're still alive. What will Grandpa and Grandma think when they find out?"

She can disregard our reputation and go looking for men, how could you agree to that, sister? If this were in the past…”

Xia looked at her younger brother in surprise.

I can't believe those words came out of his mouth.

She raised her hand and slapped Ah Jin.

"Ah Jin, do you know how your mother has survived all these years?" Xiaoxia's hand was still trembling after slapping him, and Tongtong and the youngest Ah Yang didn't dare to make a sound.

"Do you think Mom's whole life was just about living a miserable life guarding Dad's memorial tablet?"

Ah Jin sneered. "Which widow doesn't live like this?"

Ah Jin didn't care about being slapped by his sister. For the first time, he realized the advantage of having a son: the unwavering commitment to upholding the family's honor. Girls, being more outgoing, didn't understand how important the family's honor was.

"You two, tell me, do you think Mom should marry that cripple?"

Tongtong shrank back in fright and whispered a reply:

"As long as Mom is happy, I think Uncle Zhao is a good choice to be our new dad."

The youngest son, A-Yang, looked up at A-Jin. "If my eldest sister says it's good for Mom to remarry, then it must be good. Anyway, Mom did nothing wrong, and my eldest sister did nothing wrong either."

"You..." Ah Jin pointed at them angrily, "You are not worthy of being a father's children, you spineless wretches."

Ah Yang's face turned bright red, and he retorted without any hesitation.

"You don't deserve to be my child. I only know how tired Mom is from working every day to support us. I can't even remember what Dad is like. If he were that good, he would agree to Mom being happy."

"Good, very good." Ah Jin's eyes were red; he was the only one who remembered his father.

He kicked the wooden stool on the ground, turned around and rushed out of the kitchen, running out of the yard without looking back.

"Ah Jin." Xiaoxia chased after him to the door, but couldn't stop him.

The commotion in the kitchen was so loud that the loud thud of the stool being slammed and Ah Jin's shouts echoed into the main room.

The atmosphere in the main room instantly turned icy cold.

Widow Wang sat there, her face deathly pale.

The rice bowl I had just picked up froze in mid-air; my hands were shaking violently.

Liu Dahua, however, acted as if nothing had happened, reaching into Widow Wang's bowl and placing a piece of fish in it with her chopsticks. "Eat yours. It's no big deal."

"Ah Jin, he..." Widow Wang's voice trembled.

"The more ungrateful a son is, the less we should indulge him," Liu Dahua scoffed, her eyes full of disdain. "Isn't my son, Zhuzi, a perfect example?"

They absolutely refused to let me marry Liu Yidao back then. They said that we women should prioritize ourselves first, and then become wives and mothers.

You've poured your heart and soul into them, but once they're married, who will remember the hardships you endured?

Liu Chounv sighed, deeply agreeing:

"No wonder I was so happy when they were born, but now I'm so worried about them. It's much more worrying than raising a daughter."

Look at my Lin Manhao, it's actually because Tang Juhua is a good woman. As for those two brothers, Lin Gang and Lin Mu, well, it's a long story. Their children are all a burden.

Song Xianglan looked at the bewildered Widow Wang.

"Juhong, we're getting on in years. Even if you're younger than us, you're still in your early forties."

Life is for yourself; you don't need to worry about what your child thinks. If Ah Jin has any conscience, he'll figure it out and support you.

Widow Wang kept her head down.

Tears streamed down my face.

"Isn't he taking the college entrance exam next year?"

Song Xianglan continued.

"If you have no conscience, just give him the basic tuition and book fees to support his studies. If he fails the exam, send him out to work and earn money. Don't let him stay at home and retake the exam year after year."

Widow Wang wiped her eyes.

Ah Jin's academic performance has consistently hovered in the middle to lower ranks.

He had already planned it out: if he failed the exam, he would repeat a year.

Anyway, both Xiaoxia and she are making money.

The ugly woman interjected, "At least you have three caring people. Xiaoxia is sensible, and the other two are on your side. You're in a good situation."

Liu Dahua nudged her with her elbow.

"You should be content. I have two children, one of whom is crooked, but I'm still living a happy life."

Listening to the three men's words of comfort, the chill in Widow Wang's heart slowly dissipated.

After a long silence, Widow Wang raised her head.

"I'll leave this matter to you. Please ask Brother Zhao what he thinks."

The ugly woman agreed to leave a bite.

"That's right, leave it to us."

As soon as she finished speaking, Liu Chounu turned to look at Song Xianglan.

"Lanlan, you'll have to ask Zhao Shengli about this."

Song Xianglan nodded. "Okay. I'm going to Xincheng tomorrow. I might as well go to the Zhao family after dinner tonight and ask for their opinion."

"Go tonight?" Widow Wang blushed again.

"Now that we have an idea, let's not delay. It'll be good for you to start living a shameless life sooner." Song Xianglan stood up and neatly cleared the empty bowls off the table.