The Stepmother’s Counterattack: Raising a Child in a Bygone Era
Chapter 84: Smell if There Is the Scent of Another Man on You

Chapter 84: Chapter 84: Smell if There Is the Scent of Another Man on You

"Oh, let me see... Yikes, why is this report card in your hands?"

The inquiry teacher looked at the young woman with a puzzled expression.

Among this batch of self-study exam candidates, there was only one student named Shen Mingzhu who had full marks in two subjects. Therefore, when Shen Mingzhu came to collect her report card, he took an especially close look and remembered her face.

The young woman made up an excuse on the fly.

The teacher didn’t care too much, as the student’s actual results had already been entered into the archives, and it was no big deal if the report card was lost.

"This report card is genuine, this student Shen is very outstanding; among nearly two hundred candidates in this batch, she is the only one with full marks in two subjects."

Wow—

Outside the office, over a dozen pairs of eyes uniformly turned to Shen Mingzhu, filled with shock, admiration, and some with shame.

The ones who laughed the loudest just now had the most painful expressions on their faces.

When the young woman came out of the office, Shen Mingzhu directly pulled the report card out of her hand, "Now, apologize."

The young woman looked at her with a complex gaze, "You don’t just have a junior high school diploma, do you?"

Damn it, is there no end to this?

Shen Mingzhu shot back, "What diploma I have is none of your damn business, apologize, right now, immediately!"

The scoffing man was bold enough to take responsibility and immediately apologized to Shen Mingzhu, admitting he looked down on someone wrongly, which provoked continuous laughter from the surrounding people.

When it was the young woman’s turn, under everyone’s watchful eyes, she had no face to get out of it and had to apologize with a red face and ears.

"Classmate, Shen, wait a moment—"

Not far from the self-study center, she heard someone chasing after her.

Although she had successfully shown off, Shen Mingzhu was still fuming, so she didn’t show a welcoming face to the person chasing after her.

"What do you want?"

The person was a refined and handsome young man, no more than twenty-five years old, and about one meter seventy-eight in height. He had a gentle temperament, dressed appropriately, and clearly came from a good background.

The young man didn’t take offense at Shen Mingzhu’s attitude, his face bearing a gentle smile, "Classmate Shen, please forgive my intrusion, my surname is Yan..."

"Stop!"

Shen Mingzhu impatiently interrupted him, "Spit it out if you have something to say."

The young man still smiled, "I am part of the same batch of self-study exam candidates as you are. I’ve organized a small self-study group, currently with seven members. I would like to invite you to join this study group. I was wondering if you might be interested, Classmate Shen?"

Shen Mingzhu thought for a moment, then asked about the majors within the study group. Upon learning that three members were studying the same Chinese Language and Literature as she was, she immediately agreed to join the group.

Studying was not difficult for her, but being at home alone was too boring. It would be nice to exchange knowledge and interact with others in the same major. It would also be an opportunity to broaden her social network.

Since she had been transported into this book, the only friends she had made so far were mothers and kids from the family housing compound, their conversations always revolving around children or gossip. Her circle was too narrow.

Shen Mingzhu cheerfully exchanged contact information with him and learned that his name was Yan Yi.

When Shen Mingzhu got home, she smelled the fragrance of food coming from the kitchen as soon as she entered, and it suddenly dawned on her that it was almost 12 o’clock.

She dropped her bag, took off her coat, and walked into the kitchen.

"Do you need any help?"

Pei Yang looked back at her, a touch of joy crossed his face, and said, "No need, it’s all done. Just wash your hands and bring out the dishes."

"Oh."

Shen Mingzhu rolled up her sweater sleeves, ready to turn on the faucet to wash her hands, when the man suddenly leaned in close to her and sniffed like a dog.

Shen Mingzhu was baffled, "What are you doing?"

Pei Yang teased, "Checking if you have the scent of any other men on you."

"..."

"It’s at most an hour’s round trip, yet you took all morning. I thought you went to meet some secret lover," he said with a sour tone.

Shen Mingzhu rolled her eyes, thought for a moment, then explained to Pei Yang about checking her exam results at the self-study center, including the part about being questioned, and casually complained about not checking the almanac before going out.

When Pei Yang learned that she had actually scored full marks on two subjects, he was stunned.

The next second, he picked Shen Mingzhu up and spun her around twice on the spot, scaring her so much that she clutched his hair and didn’t dare let go.

"Wife, how can you be so amazing?"

After spinning, Pei Yang looked up at her with his handsome face, his eyes sparkling brightly, clearly reflecting her face in their depths.

In that moment, she could feel the man’s intense and pure emotions.

Shen Mingzhu pretended to be annoyed and slapped his head lightly, "Put me down!"

Pei Yang obediently set her down, but the smile on his face couldn’t be suppressed, and he was hopping around like a child, even more excited than Shen Mingzhu herself.

"No way, we need to add dishes for lunch today. I’ll go check downstairs."

"We’ve already eaten, what’s there to add? Let’s talk about it tonight."

This reminded Pei Yang, "Let’s just have a big dinner party, invite Shuhuan and the sisters over to get together and celebrate for you."

Pei Yang had a strong domineering streak of male chauvinism in his bones, and said this decisively, not giving Shen Mingzhu any room to discuss.

Shen Mingzhu let him have his way anyway, since it was time to treat Pei Wenping to a meal.

Her successful registration for the self-study exam was inseparable from Pei Wenping’s support and help.

Pei Wenping and Zhou Shuhuan both had to work during the day, so the banquet was set for the evening.

In addition to Pei Wenping’s family of four and Zhou Shuhuan, they also invited a few of Pei Yang’s good buddies. Coupled with Pei Yang’s family of three, there were a total of fifteen or sixteen people, spread over two tables.

The men sat at one table while the women and children sat at another.

Pei Yang took care of everything from the table and chair arrangements, to the food and drinks, down to deciding the dishes, not letting Shen Mingzhu worry about a thing. He didn’t even let her deal with minor tasks like choosing and washing vegetables, instead asking a buddy who was off work to come over and help.

Pei Wenping finished work early, and by the time she arrived, it was still light out. After sending the twins to play in Pei Ziheng’s room, the sisters-in-law sat in the living room, cracking sunflower seeds, drinking tea, and chatting idly.

Despite Pei Wenping’s straightforward personality and her status as an educated person, she gossiped with as much zest as any housewife in the family compound, and Shen Mingzhu listened with great interest.

As the evening darkened, guests began to arrive one after another. Shen Mingzhu, busy greeting guests, had no time to pay attention to Pei Wenping, who then went to her nephew’s room, thinking of checking on her nephew’s recent situation.

Not long after entering the room, Pei Wenping noticed something was amiss.

The presence of two pillows on the bed was one thing, but the bedside table and desk were cluttered with her brother’s belongings. Upon opening the wardrobe, she saw that half of it was filled with her brother’s clothes, including personal items like socks and underwear.

Pei Wenping quietly checked the master bedroom next door.

After a thorough search, she didn’t find any of her brother’s belongings. Although the closet contained some of his clothes, they were out-of-season and old.

Most importantly, there was only one pillow on the master bed.

In the next room, the twin siblings were playing checkers, Pei Ziheng collected Pei Yang’s personal items into the drawer unhurriedly.

Pei Yang had put these items away in the drawer early in the morning, precisely to avoid Pei Wenping catching on to anything. Unfortunately, his elder child had inadvertently exposed everything without a trace.