Seeing the two children's terrified expressions, Li Yue Shu's smile froze.
She had lived for over twenty years, always immersed in her laboratory, and had never interacted with children before. She felt a bit awkward.
Noticing Li Yue Shu's expression darkening, the boy Shen Ting Wen's heart skipped a beat. He quickly smiled and said, "Stepmother, you must be tired from being out all day! I'll go make you something to eat!"
Looking at the thin, pitiable child offering such a fawning smile, Li Yue Shu, the adult, felt an urge to tremble.
Among the four children, the second child, Shen Ting Wen, was the best at pleasing the original owner. Yet, even with his efforts, he was still mistreated, deepening his hatred for the original owner.
In the original book, Shen Ting Wen grew up to become a notorious and wealthy merchant, whom everyone secretly called the Smiling Fox.
He didn't physically torment the original owner, but at her moments of greatest despair, he would offer a sliver of hope, only to push her into an even darker abyss.
Such torment was the greatest revenge.
Li Yue Shu found life difficult and wished for some peace.
Glancing at the still-sleeping fourth child, Shen Zhi Yu, she said, "No need, I'll do it."
With her medical skills, she could see that Shen Zhi Yu was out of danger. If she insisted on getting involved now, the second and third children would likely fight her to the death.
Li Yue Shu turned and went straight to the kitchen, leaving the stunned twins behind.
However, upon reaching the kitchen, she was stumped.
She knew the family was poor, but she hadn't expected them to be this poor!
An empty stove, broken old bowls, let alone seasonings, there wasn't even basic salt.
In a corner lay a cloth bag filled with chaff used to feed pigs; this was the sustenance for the four children.
The original owner had a habit of hiding steamed buns and white flour, but her provisions were long gone. She had been abducted by two men today precisely because she had intended to go to town to buy food.
Li Yue Shu sighed, suddenly missing the small kitchen her best friend had set up in her laboratory cubicle.
The next moment, Li Yue Shu's vision suddenly shifted, and she found herself in the familiar small kitchen.
With a thought, she quickly opened the small kitchen door and, as expected, saw the laboratory that had accompanied her for over a decade.
Li Yue Shu suddenly had a bold guess.
"Get out!"
The next moment, her figure reappeared in that dilapidated, rustic kitchen.
After several repetitions, Li Yue Shu confirmed a fact: her lab and small kitchen, which had been destroyed in an explosion, had also transmigrated!
This discovery suddenly gave Li Yue Shu a sense of security.
She quickly tended to her minor abrasions in the lab and then took some rice from the small kitchen.
She couldn't reveal the secret of her spatial ability, so she didn't take much, even mixing in some chaff.
She brought the porridge to the table, only to see the two children standing in the corner with their heads bowed.
Li Yue Shu then realized that the original owner never allowed the children to sit at the table. They would only eat after she had finished, and sometimes there was nothing left.
Li Yue Shu cursed the original owner's wicked deeds and beckoned to them, "Come, eat."
The two didn't move, lowering their heads even further.
This woman had also spoken gently to them before, inviting them to eat, but when they actually approached, they were subjected to her cruel scolding.
Li Yue Shu also remembered the original owner's transgressions and felt a bit speechless.
She intensified her tone, "Come here, don't make me say it a third time."
The twins clenched their fists and, mustering their courage, walked over.
Shen Ting Wen voluntarily sat next to Li Yue Shu, so that if she decided to lash out, his third sister would be spared some of the pain.
Li Yue Shu saw his subtle intention but didn't expose it. She divided chopsticks between them, saying, "Ah Yu's porridge is warming in the pot. He can eat when he wakes up."
The twins dared not reply, always suspecting that the now gentle and virtuous Li Yue Shu was plotting something more sinister.
Shen Ting Wen was distracted. Suddenly, he heard his third sister, Shen Ting Yi, exclaim in shock, "Where did you get rice?"
Shen Ting Wen was startled. Only then did he notice that his bowl was no longer filled with clear broth but with soft, white rice.
The twins looked up in surprise, only to see Li Yue Shu leisurely sipping some porridge.
Facing their gazes, she looked at them calmly, "Don't worry, this rice wasn't stolen or bought with ill-gotten gains. Its origin is clean."
The twins naturally didn't believe her, even suspecting that if their scheme was discovered, she would make them take the blame.
But the outcome was already decided, so they might as well eat well first!
The twins reached a silent agreement and buried their heads in their porridge.
Li Yue Shu seemed completely oblivious to their subtle thoughts, and the meal was relatively peaceful.
After the meal, the twins proactively cleaned the table, which Li Yue Shu did not refuse.
Clearing the "vicious stepmother" persona would have to be a gradual process; she couldn't rush things.
Li Yue Shu returned to her room and began formulating a training plan for herself.
When she dealt with those two men today, she had clearly felt how poor this body was.
To regain her skills from her previous life, she had to start training as soon as possible.
That night, after finishing her training, Li Yue Shu was returning to her room. As she passed by the children's room, she suddenly paused.
This house was the old Shen family residence. Apart from the kitchen, there were only two rooms.
Li Yue Shu occupied the main house, while the three children lived in a leaky, rundown side room with a partially collapsed wall.
The nights were already cold this season, and the only quilt in the house was in Li Yue Shu's room. The children were using tattered cotton quilts they had found somewhere.
Li Yue Shu sighed and entered the side room through the collapsed half of the wall.
The children were already asleep. Li Yue Shu tiptoed to the bedside and picked up the slumbering Shen Zhi Yu.
She checked him and found that Shen Zhi Yu only had a common cold; he was already recovering but still a bit weak.
Just as Li Yue Shu relaxed, she suddenly heard a frightened voice, "What are you doing!"
Shen Ting Yi suddenly sat up in bed and lunged at Li Yue Shu.
Li Yue Shu instinctively dodged to the side, causing Shen Ting Yi to miss and nearly fall, but she was caught by the startled Shen Ting Wen, preventing her from tumbling.
Shen Ting Yi glared fiercely at Li Yue Shu, her eyes like venom, "I knew you wicked woman had no good intentions! Pretending to be good to us, all you want is to sell us!"
Shen Ting Wen's expression remained tense, but his gaze towards Li Yue Shu betrayed an undisguised hatred.
Li Yue Shu: "..."
"I wanted to have you sleep in the main house," she said, glancing at the collapsed wall. "The weather is getting colder, and you're still growing. You can't live in a place like this."
Her words, however, made the twins even more wary.
Shen Ting Wen forced a smile, "Thank you for your concern, stepmother. We have blankets, we'll be fine."
Li Yue Shu looked at the cotton quilts they were using, which were thinner than blankets, and sighed, "You'll be fine, but what about Ah Yu? Do you want him to get sick again?"
The twins fell silent.
The money they had painstakingly saved had been used to treat their fourth brother. If he fell ill again, this woman would certainly not hire a doctor.
Seeing this, Li Yue Shu directly carried Shen Zhi Yu away. "I'm taking Ah Yu to the main house first. You can come over if you want."
The twins naturally wouldn't let their fourth brother be alone with her. They quickly followed, only to see Li Yue Shu gently place Ah Yu on the bed and then take off her shoes before climbing onto the bed.
Seeing this, the twins also climbed onto the bed, holding Shen Zhi Yu tightly in their arms, afraid that Li Yue Shu would snatch him away again.
Li Yue Shu said nothing more and closed her eyes, sleeping her first night in this foreign world.
She slept restlessly. The unfamiliar environment and the hard bed made her miss her Simmons mattress from her previous life immensely.
Just as she finally drifted off to sleep, she was awakened by a "thump, thump, thump" of knocking on the door.
"Li Yue Shu, come out quickly! Shen Lao San is alive, your man is back alive!"