Inside the carriage, Wei Zimo lifted a corner of the curtain, his gaze fixed on the figure standing at the very back, as if trying to engrave her likeness into his memory.
But in the next moment, a figure suddenly blocked his view.
Shen Wei's tall frame completely obscured Li Yue Shu, not even a wisp of hair showing.
Their eyes met, and across the vast distance, the two men clearly saw the hostility in each other's gaze.
The carriage swayed twice and began to depart.
Only then did Wei Zimo retract his gaze and lower the curtain.
Shen Wei raised his chin, only to turn his head and find that Li Yue Shu had disappeared at some point, having gone to tease Shen Zhi Yu.
Shen Wei: ...
Why did he feel a hint of disappointment?
As he was lost in thought, Shen Ting Yi suddenly ran over, "Dad, I have something to tell you."
Shen Wei snapped back to attention and crouched down. "What is it?"
Shen Ting Yi cautiously looked around, then leaned close to his ear and whispered, "Dad, do you know when Mom's birthday is?"
Shen Wei froze, his gaze instinctively drifting to the person playing with Shen Zhi Yu.
Li Yue Shu's birthday?
Of course, he knew.
When he had suspected Li Yue Shu before, he had looked up her information numerous times.
Calculating the time, her birthday was approaching.
Seeing his silence, Shen Ting Yi appeared somewhat disappointed, "So Dad doesn't know either! I wanted to prepare a gift for Mom..."
Shen Wei turned back, looking at the little girl's crestfallen expression. He couldn't help but reach out and pinch her cheek. "Of course, I know. Her birthday is on the seventh day of the seventh month. But why are you suddenly asking about this, A'Yi?"
Hearing the answer she wanted, Shen Ting Yi's disappointment vanished instantly.
She quickly explained, "Aunt Liu said Mom was bought casually, and no one in the village knows her birthday. Mom has celebrated our birthdays, and we want to celebrate hers too."
Listening to the little girl's words, so obedient and sensible, Shen Wei suddenly felt a pang of guilt, and a trace of heartache.
Li Yue Shu remembered everyone's birthday, made birthday cakes for them personally, and paid attention to every detail, yet no one remembered hers.
A bitter feeling welled up in Shen Wei's heart. He couldn't help but mimic Shen Ting Yi's lowered voice, "Dad will join you all to plan a surprise birthday for her."
...
The departure of the Wei family had been quite an event, and everyone in the village knew about it.
In the dilapidated ruins of the Shen family home, Mother Shen heard the news and excitedly pulled Shen Wang, "That's great! Now that those people are gone, Li Yue Shu won't have anyone protecting her!"
"Without those men wielding weapons, we can go find Third Brother!" Shen Wang was also delighted. "Third Brother was always filial before. Now that he's back to his senses, Mother just needs to cry to him, and he'll surely get us a lot of benefits!"
Mother Shen strongly agreed with his words and, without delay, hurried out.
However, the shadow Li Yue Shu had cast on her was too deep. She even suspected that Li Yue Shu was behind her encountering bandits last time, so she naturally didn't dare to approach her directly.
She took two candies and asked a child from the village to call Shen Wei out.
When Shen Wei came out and saw that it was Mother Shen looking for him, his face instantly darkened.
He was about to turn and leave, but Mother Shen quickly ran over and grabbed his sleeve, "San'er, I... Ah!"
Before she could finish speaking, Mother Shen was flung away.
Her face contorted in pain, but she ignored it now. She looked at Shen Wei in shock, "You... you haven't recovered your memory?"
Why was he still treating her this way?
Shen Wei looked down at her, his gaze as if he were looking at a stranger. "What do you want from me?"
He wasn't a murderer. For the sake of "Shen Wei," he wouldn't drive this rustic woman to utter ruin. He could even let her enjoy wealth and prosperity for the rest of her life, but only if she knew how to behave herself.
And the current Mother Shen clearly didn't understand that.
Hearing Shen Wei's question, she immediately got up from the ground, her expression turning aggrieved, "San'er, since you've recovered your memory, do you still remember how much grievance I suffered at your wife's hands?"
Shen Wei's eyes deepened.
Suffered grievance?
She still had the audacity to say that!
Seeing his expressionless face, Mother Shen felt a little intimidated.
Although this son was her biological child, he had been given to a wandering Taoist priest when he was only a few months old. He only returned four years ago, but he only stayed home for two years before disappearing.
While Third Brother was filial and willing to give her money, she always felt there was a frightening aura about this son.
While Mother Shen was lost in thought, Shen Wei suddenly walked towards her.
Mother Shen instinctively retreated, her eyes revealing apprehension.
Finally, Shen Wei stopped about two meters away from her, his voice as cold as if it could materialize, "Do you remember the incident with the bandits last time?"
Mother Shen looked up blankly, not understanding his meaning.
Shen Wei spoke slowly, each word falling like a hammer. "I arranged for those bandits. On account of you being Shen Wei's birth mother, I arranged for the village head. If there's a next time, do you think I'll still arrange for someone to save you?"
"Boom!"
Mother Shen felt something in her head suddenly explode, and the color drained from her face.
Seeing her reaction, Shen Wei saw no need to say more and turned to leave.
Mother Shen's legs went weak, and she sat down on the ground.
...
Mother Shen didn't know how she got home. When she came to her senses, she saw Shen Wang's anxious expression. "How was it? What did Third Brother say?"
Mother Shen's face turned even paler. "Let's not provoke the third branch anymore. That family isn't good people!"
Shen Wang, who had been eagerly expecting good news, froze upon hearing this. "What are you talking about?!"
Mother Shen seemed unable to shake off Shen Wei's words. She grabbed Shen Wang's hand. "Didn't you say before that Third Brother had a frightening aura? We've suffered so much at Li Yue Shu's hands, and now that your Third Brother has recovered, dealing with them will be even harder!"
"Let's live our lives peacefully and not provoke them. We can't afford to!"
Mother Shen had lived for more than half her life. The encounter with the bandits last time was the most terrifying thing she had ever experienced. Now, to suddenly hear that her own son had arranged it, this fear had directly shifted to Shen Wei.
She and Shen Wei didn't have much of a mother-son relationship to begin with, and that Li Yue Shu was a ruthless person. If they really pushed them too far...
Mother Shen didn't dare to imagine what else they might do. She was truly afraid.
But Shen Wang didn't know Mother Shen's fear and didn't care.
Upon hearing Mother Shen's words, he felt only disappointment and anger.
"What nonsense are you spouting? We absolutely cannot let this go!" Shen Wang said with a look of disappointment that he couldn't turn into steel. "Mother, I remember before Third Brother got into trouble, didn't you arrange a marriage for him?"
His topic shift was rather abrupt, and Mother Shen couldn't react immediately. She nodded subconsciously.
It seemed there was indeed such a thing. At the time, when Shen Wei had an accident, she had regretted it for a long time.
Shen Wang's eyes were full of excitement. "That's great! This is our opportunity!"