Chapter 167: Fury

Li Guifen stared blankly at Chu Peipei’s suddenly icy expression, still unaware she had touched the other woman’s deepest nerve.

She stiffened her neck, wanting to say more, but Chu Peipei ruthlessly shook off her hand.

“Li Guifen! I only call you ‘Mom’ out of respect for Jiadong. Don’t push your luck with me!”

Li Guifen looked utterly incredulous. “You dare call me by my full name?!”

She immediately took the moral high ground. “I knew it! All that respect and filial piety you showed me in front of Jiadong was just an act! He’s barely gone, and now you—”

Before she could finish, Chu Peipei grabbed her collar and slammed her against the wall.

She spoke, word by word, “Li Guifen, I’m warning you—if you or your useless son dare lay a finger on Nannan, I won’t let you off!”

Li Guifen felt as if her body was about to be pressed into the wall. She gasped for breath, almost unable to breathe.

Her vision blurred inexplicably.

She couldn’t help but wonder if this fierce, murderous woman in front of her was really the daughter-in-law she knew.

Chu Peipei had always been a gentle, considerate daughter-in-law, never raising her voice even when Li Guifen made things difficult for her.

But now, for the first time, she was showing such a ruthless expression—even resorting to violence!

And all this for a neighbor who wasn’t even family?

While Li Guifen was still in shock, Chu Peipei had already slammed the door and gone back inside.

She stared at the door that had just been slammed in her face, unable to recover for a long time.

It was a while before she wandered home in a daze.

Suddenly, it hit her: she didn’t really have any leverage over this daughter-in-law. If Chu Peipei decided not to acknowledge her as “Mom” anymore, there was nothing she could do…

“Sigh, if only Jiadong were still alive.”

Zhang Xiaobao, lying on the sofa, glanced at her sideways. “What are you muttering about? Did you get it done or not?”

For once, Li Guifen ignored him, frowning as she walked to her room.

She had never pinned her hopes for survival on Zhang Xiaobao. In her eyes, her younger son was just a baby who needed her care.

If she couldn’t rely on her daughter-in-law, then the burden of survival would fall on her shoulders.

How could that be?

She lay on the bed, sighing and groaning.

And so, the days passed one after another.

Almost every day, Li Guifen tried to talk to Chu Peipei, but each time she was turned away at the door.

Watching the family’s supply of biscuits dwindle, and with Chu Peipei refusing to budge no matter what, Li Guifen finally realized how serious things had become.

That day, Zhang Xiaobao pestered her again:

“So, where’s the supplies? Why haven’t you gotten them yet? When can I go propose to that pretty girl?”

Li Guifen lost her patience. “Propose? We’re both about to starve to death!”

Zhang Xiaobao frowned. “What are you talking about? Starve to death?”

Li Guifen snapped, “All you know is eating! Don’t you see the biscuits are almost gone?”

Zhang Xiaobao shouted, “If we’re out of biscuits, just go ask Chu Peipei for more! Why are you yelling at me? I’m not a woman—I can’t be expected to watch over the pantry every day!”

Li Guifen, feeling wronged and helpless, said, “You think I haven’t tried? She won’t even open the door for me!”

Zhang Xiaobao’s eyes widened. “This is outrageous!”

With that, he stormed out in a rage.

Afraid he’d get the worst of it, Li Guifen hurried after him.

Mother and son arrived at the 14th floor one after the other. This time, Zhang Xiaobao took the lead and pounded on the door.

“Chu Peipei! Get out here right now!”

“Who gave you the nerve to disrespect your elders? How dare you shut your mother-in-law out?!”

After a while, the door finally opened.

Just as he was about to start yelling, he saw that it wasn’t Chu Peipei, but the beautiful woman he’d glimpsed the other day.

He quickly straightened his sweat-soaked clothes and forced what he thought was a charming smile.

“Hehe, hey there, beautiful! What a coincidence, we meet again!”

“Coincidence?” An Nan raised an eyebrow. “You’re pounding on my door and you call that a coincidence?”

Zhang Xiaobao waved his hands frantically. “No, no, you’ve got it wrong! I’m not here to bother you—I’m looking for my sister-in-law. She lives across the hall from you. We… have some family business to settle.”

An Nan raised the triangular bayonet in her hand. “I don’t care what family business you have. If you make any more noise, don’t blame me for what happens next!”

Seeing her point a weapon at her precious son, Li Guifen panicked.

“You little brat, what kind of upbringing do you have? Pointing a weapon at my son?!”

She started to sit down on the floor, ready to make a scene. “Everyone, come see—”

But An Nan cut her off. “Save your village drama for someone else. You’ve screamed enough times—has anyone ever dared open their door to meddle in your business?”

An Nan pointed the blade at her. “I hate noise the most. And my way of dealing with noise is… to eliminate the source.”

Looking at the blade so close, and the cold, emotionless eyes behind it, Li Guifen suddenly felt a bit scared.

But then she thought, That mad dog isn’t here now. She’s just a young girl—would she really dare kill someone?

So she started cursing to bolster her courage. “You little slut, don’t try to scare me!”

But before she could finish, her own son cut her off.

Zhang Xiaobao glared at her. “Watch your mouth! Who are you calling a slut?!”

Li Guifen was so choked up she couldn’t say a word.

It felt like she was fighting on the front lines, only to be stabbed in the back by her own comrade.

Before she could say anything else, Zhang Xiaobao was already grinning, showing his yellow teeth as he apologized to An Nan.

“Sorry, miss! We disturbed you—we’ll leave right away. Please don’t be angry.”

An Nan raised an eyebrow at the scene before her.

This mother and son really were a joke.

She put away her knife and warned, “If you make noise again, I’ll cut out your tongues!”

Chu Peipei only said to leave them alive—she never said they couldn’t be crippled.

Zhang Xiaobao quickly agreed, “Yes, yes, of course! You go rest, miss, it’s hot out here!”

An Nan rolled her eyes at him and slammed the door shut.

Li Guifen was already fuming.

She curses me and you ignore it, but when I curse her, you go ballistic!

She pinched the bridge of her nose, barely keeping herself from fainting. In her heart, she cursed: Now that you’ve got your eye on a wife, you’ve forgotten your own mother!

No, wait—she hasn’t even agreed to marry you yet, and you’re already turning on your own mother!

Thinking of this, Li Guifen found it even harder to breathe.

If this is how it is before the proposal, what will happen if that little witch actually marries in? Would her son light firecrackers to celebrate getting rid of his old mother?

The more she thought about it, the angrier she got, wishing she could kick her unfilial son down the stairs."