Male Lead's Canon Fodder Wife-Chapter 1413: Selling Pity

At sunset, the villagers finally finished their work for the day and walked back to their homes.

When Chen Gang and his family returned, Chen Xiang walked over and asked, "Second Brother, are you going to let those people from the city stay at your house?"

Hearing this, Chen Gang sighed and said, "I don't know either. Even if I'm unwilling, they have already arrived. Someone has to open their doors and let them stay."

As soon as he said this, Yi Jiao chimed in, "Second Brother, I will tell you this first—my family doesn't have any free rooms for them. So, you'd better not shove them into our house."

The moment she said this, Wu Yahui frowned and said, "Third Sister-in-law, how can you say that?

"No matter what, they are still Eldest Brother-in-law's family. Even if we can ignore the woman, we can't ignore the children. The Chen family's blood is flowing in their veins."

When Yi Jiao heard this, she rolled her eyes and retorted, "Second Sister-in-law, it's easy for you to say that. After all, your sons know how to butter up Li Chenmo and his family, unlike my son."

"Even if you have trouble feeding your family, you can still go find Lu Jueyu and borrow some grain. But my family is different. We only have ourselves to rely on. We don't want to invite trouble."

After saying this, she pulled her husband and son along and hastened her steps.

Watching their backs, Chen Gang shook his head and said, "Wife, don't take their words to heart. Their family has it hard, and you know how your third sister-in-law is—always overthinking and overly cautious."

Wu Yahui sighed and nodded as she replied, "Husband, I know what you mean. But even if we have already separated, it's still not right for her to act this way as a family."

Patting his wife's back, Chen Gang said, "Alright, don't think too much. If they don't want to get involved, we won't force them. Let's go back and talk about this at home."

When they arrived home, they headed to the backyard to wash off the dirt and saw Chen Mingze chopping firewood.

His posture was rigid and awkward. His thin arms trembled with each swing of the ax. Besides him, there was a pile of chopped firewood.

Seeing this, Chen Gang quickly walked over and took the ax from him while saying, "Child, you can't play with this. The nearest hospital is several hours away. If you get injured, it will be dangerous."

Chen Mingze was startled by his sudden action and felt embarrassed by his words. Lowering his head, he said, "I'm sorry, Second Uncle. I just wanted to help. I didn't know I'd make trouble for you."

As soon as those words left his mouth, Chen Jianmin raised an eyebrow. For a moment, he saw a reflection of himself in the boy's actions and tone.

'Is he trying to win sympathy by selling pity and weakness?' he thought.

That fleeting thought made the corner of his lips lift slightly. If this boy is clever, that's not a bad thing. At least smart people are easier to deal with. If he were as stupid as Gou Dan, now that would be a problem as one cannot predict what an idiot would do next.

Unaware that he was potentially inviting in a wolf in sheep's clothing, Chen Gang felt a pang of sympathy for the boy.

He put down the ax and said, "You have never done this kind of work, so it's normal if you are not good at it. Alright, leave this kind of work to your uncle and cousin. Look how thin you are—if people didn't know better, they would think you were eight instead of ten."

Hearing this, Chen Mingze raised his head and replied obediently, "I will listen to you, Second Uncle."

At first, Wu Yahui had been worried about the nephews from the city. Most children raised in wealthy families were arrogant and spoiled. Given who their father was—Chen Bo—and their eldest brother—Gou Dan—she assumed they would be the same.

Unexpectedly, the boy was not only polite, but also hard working and obedient. Seeing him blame himself, her heart softened. "So, this is Mingze?" she asked.

Chen Mingze turned to her and bowed as he greeted her, "Hello, Second Aunt. My name is Chen Mingze."

No one dislikes a good-looking and well-mannered child. When she saw how polite he was, her impression of the capital relatives instantly improved.

Smiling from ear to ear, Wu Yahui waved to her children, then pointed at them as she introduced them to their cousin. After she was done, she asked her children, "Why don't you all greet your third brother?"

Chen Jianmin and Chen Jianguo exchanged glances at her words. It looked like the hierarchy at home might be shifting.

As the sky darkened, Chen Gang said, "Wife, let's save the small talk for later. Let the children wash up first."

"Okay, okay," Wu Yahui agreed readily.

After the family finished bathing, Chen Jianmin and Chen Jianguo helped their mother cook. Dinner was simple compared to lunch. They had rice soup, flower buns, pickled vegetables, and meat sauce given by Lu Jueyu.

Sitting around the table, Wei Zhiying looked thoughtfully at her second brother-in-law and his family.

After a moment of silence, she finally said, "Second Brother, Second Sister-in-law, I apologize for coming without informing you in advance. It was rude of me."

Thanks to Chen Mingze, Wu Yahui no longer held any prejudice toward Chen Bo's second wife.

She waved her hand and said, "Eldest Sister-in-law, what are you saying? We are family. For you to come so far to visit us—we are happy. Stay here in peace. There is no need to be overly polite."

Hearing this, Chen Jianmin lowered his head to hide his helpless expression. His mother often scolded his father for being soft-hearted and foolish, but in truth, she was the same.

After a few more polite exchanges, he finally said, "Mother, can we eat now? I'm starving."