Brother Niu politely saw off Deputy Village Chief Ou, Branch Secretary Yang, and Zhou Chengbin.
Sister-in-law Niu, on the other hand, hurried her mother-in-law, brother-in-law, and sister-in-law away.
After the couple returned, in front of Tian Jing, Brother Niu picked up the broom again, ready to beat his son and grandson.
Tian Jing sighed, stopping Brother Niu: "Brother Niu, children and grandchildren have their own destinies. Don't exhaust yourself for them."
"Big Niu and Second Niu are both men in their thirties. No matter how unwilling you are, if they were meant to understand, they would have understood long ago."
"If they don't, they'll never grasp your intentions, even until death. Let it go, you're too tired."
Brother Niu froze, threw the broom down forcefully, and squatted by the wall, his figure sorrowful and lonely.
Tian Jing said to Sister-in-law Niu, "Sister-in-law Niu, keep Brother Niu company. Come to my place when you have time, there's something I want to tell you."
Sister-in-law Niu nodded, "Okay."
Tian Jing then walked out of the Niu family's house.
Big Niu looked at his father squatting by the wall, hesitated for a moment, then ran out of the house.
Second Niu shook off his brother's hand from his arm and also chased after him.
"Aunt Tian." Big Niu caught up to Tian Jing.
Tian Jing stopped and turned around, "Big Niu, calm yourself down and think back to before and after I came to Kushan. Think about your father's personality and actions. Think deeply about everything."
"I don't have the answers you two brothers are looking for. The answers are within yourselves."
With that, Tian Jing continued walking forward.
Second Niu had already caught up and also heard Tian Jing's words. He looked at his elder brother.
Big Niu shook his head, "Second Niu, let's each reflect and find the answers. Once we do, we'll go straight to ask Father."
...
In the evening, Sister-in-law Niu arrived at the courtyard house.
Tian Jing showed Sister-in-law Niu the two ultrasound reports: "These are the pregnancy check-up reports for Sister-in-law Niu, brought back by Yuan Man. She's carrying a girl."
Sister-in-law Niu froze, and immediately took the reports.
However, she turned the reports around in her hands, unable to understand them.
Tian Jing smiled, "I can't understand them either. Yuan Man said he'd go find the ultrasound doctor..."
"These reports can serve as evidence, as the health center won't archive them for too long. I suspect... I plan to..."
Hearing Tian Jing's words, Sister-in-law Niu's hands began to tremble, "She really dares to?"
Tian Jing said calmly, "Who knows? If the baby she gives birth to turns out to be a boy, it means she dared, and dared greatly."
Sister-in-law Niu took a deep breath and handed the reports back to Tian Jing, "Keep these reports for me. I need to go back and discuss it with Brother Niu."
Not long after Sister-in-law Niu returned, she brought Brother Niu with her.
Brother Niu took Sister-in-law Niu's hand and bowed to Tian Jing to thank her, which made Tian Jing both amused and exasperated.
"Brother Niu, Sister-in-law Niu, I just don't like Sister-in-law Niu. If she dares to provoke me, I'll play along and provoke her further."
"In my plan, your mother is also being retaliated against. Are you willing?"
"Of course we're willing!" Brother Niu said without hesitation, "My mother is two-faced. She deserves a lesson."
"I say I won't support her in old age, but if she becomes incapacitated and is abandoned by my second brother, can I truly refuse to support her?"
"Actually, my mother and my second brother's family both know this. The three of them ganged up on me, holding my temperament in check. I felt so wronged. I'm very happy to finally teach my mother a lesson this time."
Tian Jing nodded, "Then you'll have to be patient. This plan won't end until the child is over a year old. After all, Mother Niu won't believe a paternity test; she'll only trust appearance."
"It's fine," Brother Niu shook his head. "I was already tired and didn't want to compete anymore, so I never considered that my second brother's wife might use someone else's son to fight for the family inheritance."
"But no matter how tired I am, I can't let the share of profits that should belong to my Niu family fall into the hands of others."
"Based on my understanding of my second brother's wife, the boy she finds will definitely be a descendant from her own family."
"This way, someone will help her, and no one will trace the whereabouts of the boy. If it's truly her family helping her, you won't be able to get that girl back."
Tian Jing nodded, "Alright, quickly get me the addresses of all her maternal relatives, including her sisters and cousins' in-laws."
"I'll have people search for pregnant women whose due dates are close to hers."
"And Sister-in-law Niu will have to go and curry favor, see if she can find out which hospital she’s giving birth in."
"It's not a hardship," Sister-in-law Niu's previous weariness and coldness vanished. "As soon as I think about the future counterattack, my blood boils.
"At that time, let alone my mother-in-law, even my second brother and his wife, and my niece, won't forgive her. She wants me to be abandoned by everyone, and I want to see her downfall."
Brother Niu pondered, "The second brother's wife not only wants all the dividends, but she also wants the hot spring valley stores."
"I'll take this opportunity to teach Big Niu and Second Niu a lesson too. Let the second brother take the hot spring valley stores first. After the plan is over, the stores will come back to me."
"Haha." Tian Jing burst into laughter. "They say old ginger is the spiciest. No matter how much Big Niu and Second Niu struggle, they can't escape your grasp."
Brother Niu sighed, "My brothers still lack life experience. I truly can't rest assured about future matters."
"This opportunity was provided by you, and also by my second brother's wife. If I don't take this chance to let my brothers know how treacherous people can be and the harshness of society, wouldn't it be a wasted opportunity?"
Tian Jing smiled and shook her head, "Actually, they have some suspicions in their hearts. After this, I think they'll never forget how calculating their father is."
"Hehehe." Brother Niu chuckled somewhat sinisterly. "I've been acting for too long, I've almost forgotten my true nature."
Sister-in-law Niu raised her fist and playfully hit her husband. "Twenty years ago, I saw through your wolf in sheep's clothing."
Brother Niu grabbed his wife's fist. "Didn't I tell you?"
"Humph!" Sister-in-law Niu snorted heavily, then bid farewell to Tian Jing.
She needed to go back and rest well. Tomorrow, she would begin her acting. She also wanted to learn how her husband felt about deceiving others.
After seeing off Brother Niu and his wife, Tian Jing called Zeng Jingrong and asked for two team members to help her with some personal matters.
Early the next morning, two team members arrived at Kushan and knocked on the door of the courtyard house.
Li Zhengguo opened the door and looked at the two unfamiliar men, confused. "Who are you?"
The two team members smiled, "We're here to see Deputy Captain Tian."
"Come in." Li Zhengguo opened the door and led the two team members into the inner courtyard.
Tian Jing was making breakfast in the kitchen. She had officially entered the life her mother-in-law used to live, waking early and sleeping late, managing everything in the household.
Seeing the two team members from the kitchen window, she casually called out, "You're here? Come in and have breakfast."
The two team members were the ones who had competed against Li Weixin. They were Song Tianzhu, a second-level member of the superpower team, and Ding Zhaogui, a C-level member of the martial arts team.
The two, assigned by Captain Zeng, were somewhat apprehensive, as Deputy Captain Tian had left a powerful impression on them.
Now, seeing Deputy Captain Tian looking like a homemaker, casually inviting them to breakfast, this down-to-earth demeanor left them somewhat taken aback.
"Going in?" Li Zhengguo urged from behind them.
The two then stepped into the kitchen.
They saw their Deputy Captain Tian and Aunt Ouyang standing by the counter, pinching small buns, with steaming stoves behind them.