The Stepmother’s Counterattack: Raising a Child in a Bygone Era
Chapter 603 - 602: Suing Shen Baolan and her daughter

Chapter 603: Chapter 602: Suing Shen Baolan and her daughter

Upon learning that Elder Sister Yu wanted to introduce her cousin into the Zhou family as a nanny, Shen Mingzhu spoke up to dissuade her from the idea.

"Shen Baolan is a pushy and troublesome person, once you get involved with her, she sticks to you like dogskin plaster that you just can’t shake off. Her mother-in-law isn’t easy to get along with either."

Hearing Shen Mingzhu say this, Elder Sister Yu immediately had second thoughts.

She had been a nanny for half her life and knew all too well how wearing it could be to serve a difficult employer.

"Alright then, I’ll look for something else for my cousin."

After Elder Sister Yu left, Shen Mingzhu went home and picked up the phone to call Li Bing.

During the New Year, she had heard from Li Bing about an incident; their hospital’s inpatient department had a Mrs. Zhang who was paralyzed from a stroke and was looking for a caregiver.

Mrs. Zhang had a bad temper and had driven several caregivers away, but her children were all quite accomplished and were willing to pay a high price for a caregiver who could take good care of her.

Shen Mingzhu thought it might be a good idea for Elder Sister Yu’s cousin to give it a try.

Since she had been able to take care of her paralyzed husband for over a decade, she must have experience and patience in this area.

The reason Shen Mingzhu was so concerned about this cousin was not solely because of Elder Sister Yu.

She had heard Elder Sister Yu mention her cousin a few times before, and out of sympathy, Shen had sent some money to help her out. Surprisingly, the cousin turned out to be very conscientious, regularly sending her chicken and duck eggs as well as homegrown fruits and vegetables, all delivered through Elder Sister Yu. This indirect approach showed that she was a person who understood boundaries and wouldn’t impose herself uninvited.

Shen was more than willing to give a hand to a hardworking woman who knew how to show gratitude and kept proper limits.

As Shen Mingzhu had hoped, Yu Feiyan passed the assessment of Mrs. Zhang’s family and secured the job as a caregiver.

Yu Feiyan was the real name of Elder Sister Yu’s cousin.

"... The Zhang family is really generous, they’re paying Yanzi one hundred and fifty a month. It is a tiring job though, needing 24-hour attention, but Yanzi is very happy. She said she’ll come to thank you in person when she gets the chance," Elder Sister Yu proudly told Shen Mingzhu.

Having worked for the Pei family for so many years, Elder Sister Yu herself only earned one hundred, so one hundred and fifty was considered a high salary in the nanny industry.

Shen Mingzhu genuinely shared in Yu Feiyan’s joy, "There’s no need to thank me, she got the job on her own merit. I didn’t really help much, just tell her to take good care of Mrs. Zhang, and she’ll surely benefit from it in the future."

Elder Sister Yu understood Shen Mingzhu’s hint and eagerly agreed on behalf of her cousin.

Old folks with a temper, men or women, usually favor certain people. As long as Yu Feiyan could win Mrs. Zhang’s approval, once Mrs. Zhang recovered, it was very likely that she would continue to have Yu Feiyan in her household, ensuring long-term employment.

After several busy days, Shen Baolan finally faced reality: the dream of hiring the best nanny for the least amount of money was folly.

In her eagerness to go to Fucheng to be with Zhou Shuhuan, she had no choice but to bite the bullet and hire an experienced nanny for ninety a month.

As soon as the nanny started, Shen Baolan immediately began preparing to depart for Fucheng.

Buying train tickets, packing luggage, she was bustling about with excitement.

"Baolan of the Zhou family, I hear you’re going to Fucheng to find Yuanbao’s dad, when are you leaving?"

"Tomorrow morning, at eight o’clock," Shen Baolan said with a smile that showed all her teeth.

This provoked everyone to tease her, "Going off to Fucheng to enjoy the good life, you must be over the moon?"

Shen Baolan was indeed thrilled, but she modestly replied, "Enjoy what good life? It’s all the same, just being a mother in a different place."

"When do you plan to move into the big villa?"

"Not so soon, it’s not furnished yet. Maybe by the end of the year..."

As the chatter continued taking flight with vigor, a voice called out from the family compound’s gatehouse: "Shen Baolan, registered mail!"

"Baolan of the Zhou family, they’re calling you to pick up a letter."

"Could it be that Shuhuan is sending you money?"

Shen Baolan was puzzled, her social circle was confined to this small patch of Fengcheng. Who would have sent her a registered letter?

Upon hearing the speculation of the compound residents, she immediately trotted off to the gatehouse, giddy with excitement.

That damn ghost, didn’t even make a phone call to tell her.

Who knows how much money he sent her this time.

Shen Baolan took the letter with great anticipation and intentionally opened it in front of her neighbors to show off.

"Fengcheng City People’s Court Summons... infringement of someone else’s privacy and reputation rights dispute..."

Shen Baolan looked at the summons in confusion, "What the heck is this?"

"Wow, from the Zhou family, you’ve been sued!"

It was like a bolt from the blue, Shen Baolan’s head buzzed with shock.

Who sued her? Who?

"It’s Shen Mingzhu, you’ve been sued by Shen Mingzhu!"

"You were doing just fine, why go and provoke her again?"

"You too, aren’t you tired of the good days, and just have to find trouble for yourself to feel content?"

Over the years, Shen Baolan had suffered quite a bit at the hands of Shen Mingzhu, but it was always Shen Baolan who started trouble, so when everyone saw the summons, their first reaction was to assume Shen Baolan’s old habits had flared up, making trouble out of nothing.

In fact, everyone wasn’t wrong; Shen Baolan had indeed brought it upon herself.

Shen Baolan didn’t care about the mockery and scolding from the others and clutched the summons, intending to confront Shen Mingzhu.

She had just left the housing complex when she ran into a frantic Liu Cuihua.

As it turned out, Liu Cuihua had also received a summons from the court.

Shen Mingzhu had sued both mother and daughter together!

...

"Shen Mingzhu! Shen Mingzhu! Come out, you coward, daring to do but not to stand by your actions, if you have the guts, don’t hide, come out!"

Hearing the yelling of Shen Baolan and her daughter outside the factory gate, Shen Hongmei couldn’t help but say indignantly, "They have such thick skins, they did something wrong and still have the nerve to come knocking."

Shen Mingzhu responded indifferently, "Haven’t you heard the saying, ’Without a face, one is invincible under heaven’?"

Shen Hongmei laughed, "When it comes to shamelessness, indeed no one can beat them. But it’s not okay for them to keep making a fuss like this."

"If this happened to you, how would you handle it?"

Shen Hongmei knew Shen Mingzhu was testing her and after thinking seriously, she replied, "Call the police, their behavior can already be considered as picking quarrels and provoking trouble."

Having been through so much, Shen Hongmei had learned to defend her rights with the law.

Shen Mingzhu, however, shook her head, "That’s only a temporary solution, not a cure, like flies that can be chased away for a moment’s peace, but will fly back again after a while, never-ending."

"The reason they are so frustrated is that I sued them, and they want to force me to withdraw the lawsuit with these tactics, but I will not do as they wish."

...

"Where is Shen Mingzhu? Let her come out! She knows she’s done dirty deeds; no wonder she’s too ashamed to see people, right?"

Watching Liu Cuihua and her daughter being stopped outside the iron gate, Shen Hongmei snorted coldly, "Mingzhu is busy and has no time to deal with idlers like you. She asked me to tell you that she had her lawyer double the compensation for emotional damages. If you keep this up, she’ll continue to have her lawyer raise it."

With that, she gave the mother and daughter a taunting smile, "Anyway, Zhou Shuhuan has plenty of money now, if you can’t afford to pay, let Zhou Shuhuan pay."

"I’m really envious of you guys, you can cause trouble and mess around without fear, because you’ve got a good son-in-law like Zhou Shuhuan to back you up."

Shen Baolan ignored Shen Hongmei’s sarcasm, she hurriedly opened the lawsuit in her hand.

She had been so angry at the sight of the summons that she hadn’t read anything else in detail, let alone knew that Shen Mingzhu was not just suing her but also demanding money.