Good Man Operation Guide

The eldest daughter-in-law was unwilling and observed for a few more days, but everything seemed calm and peaceful in the third son’s household. Lin Shiheng and Li Lanlan openly displayed their affection for each other.

She couldn’t believe it. She sought approval from her younger sister-in-law, but the second daughter-in-law thought that life was difficult and she must be confused in her mind. She wanted to talk to her husband, but he, with the mentality of ‘If she hadn’t instigated the separation, the eldest son’s household could also have benefited from the third son’s household,’ responded with a cold face and impatience towards his wife.

Days passed like this, and life in the third household became better and better. Father Lin’s health gradually improved, and Mother Lin became cheerful whenever good things happened. She appeared younger than before. Now that she didn’t have to work in the fields anymore and had become a mother of a scholar, there was no need for her to go out. She spent her days at home doing embroidery and taking care of Father Lin, enjoying a comfortable and leisurely life.

Li Lanlan had started learning to read with her husband again. Previously, when Lin Shiheng was busy studying for the examinations, she had to do household chores and could only spare time to learn a few characters. Now that they had money and Lin Shiheng had more free time, the young couple spent their days together, admiring each other’s writings and reading books. They lived a leisurely life.

The Lin family lived in peace, while the Li family was in chaos, completely opposite.

It all started with Father Li falling ill. He was the kind of person who, to put it nicely, was kind-hearted, but to put it bluntly, was a mindless pushover. Even though they couldn’t even make ends meet at home, whenever someone unfamiliar came crying and begging, he couldn’t help but give away their own food supply.

As for the rest of the family suffering from hunger, what did it matter? Others were so pitiful, so what if their own family members went hungry?

Before marrying into the family, Widow Zhang didn’t think much of it. On the contrary, she thought Father Li was just right. After all, before, she was the one who could get a laborer like Father Li or money and food just by crying and begging.

It was precisely because of Father Li’s attentiveness and his enthusiasm that Widow Zhang was confident that she could control him and married him with full confidence.

In addition, with her scholar son-in-law, Widow Zhang initially believed that she hadn’t married the wrong person.

As a result, within two days, Father Li revealed his true colors.

First, he asked Lin Shiheng for money, but not only did he fail to get any, he even used his own money instead. The second time he went, it was even worse. When he came back, he claimed that the wedding was disrupted because of Zhou Yuan, and his son-in-law vented his anger on Li Lanlan, telling them not to visit the Lin family in the future.

Wanting to take advantage, but ended up being taken advantage of, Widow Zhang was furious. But Father Li was stubborn. No matter how much she tried to coax and persuade him, he refused to go to the Lin family again.

She could have tolerated this. After all, they were relatives, and there would be plenty of time in the future to mend the relationship. Widow Zhang could endure it.

However, she soon realized that she couldn’t bear it anymore.

Father Li actually took the money intended for their son’s schooling, which was for a teacher, and gave it to an old woman he encountered on the road for medical treatment.

They were complete strangers!! They had no relationship whatsoever!!

And because the old woman took the medicine and left, she couldn’t even retrieve the money.

Widow Zhang almost went mad.

That was the money for her son’s education. How could Father Li do such a thing!!

She angrily questioned the man, who used to give her everything when she shed a tear, now wearing a bewildered expression saying, “Why are you so angry? Isn’t this a good deed?”

“That old woman is truly pitiful. Her husband passed away early, her children are unfilial, and they kicked her out of the house when she fell ill. She has to beg for a living. Now she’s sick again. Zhou Yuan is still young. It’s not necessary for him to go to school so early. We should lend a hand if we can...”

Widow Zhang almost burst out laughing in anger. She stood with her hands on her hips, no longer as gentle as when she first got married, and scolded her newlywed husband, “It’s easy for you to say. Where would we get the money to help them? That’s all Yuan’er’s money!! If you’re willing to degrade yourself, go ahead, but if my Yuan’er can’t go to school because of this, I won’t let it go!!"

Her late husband had left early, and as a widow, if she didn’t become fierce, she couldn’t live the peaceful life she had before. She had only acted weak before to win over Father Li. But now, with such a sudden change, Father Li stood there dumbfounded, almost thinking he was dreaming.

His daughter, who married a successful scholar, clearly had no affection for him. He himself was just a simple peasant who worked in the fields, without any special skills. Widow Zhang was now angry and felt that she didn’t need to cater to him anymore. She glared at him fiercely, slammed the door, and entered the house.

Father Li stood still, unsure of what to do. However, he noticed that Zhou Yuan, who was playing in the courtyard, was looking at him coldly with a malicious gaze. Despite being small, his eyes were filled with hatred, just like his mother.

Father Li was kind-hearted and didn’t mind that his stepson wasn’t his own. He approached and called out, “Zhou Yuan...”

But Zhou Yuan glared at him fiercely and ran out of the door.

From that day on, Father Li’s life became difficult. While Mother Li and Li Lanlan had affection for him, even if they got angry when he gave away the family’s money for charitable acts, they would still eat together as a family when there was food.

Widow Zhang, on the other hand, was difficult to get along with. If Father Li dared to give away the family’s money to others, she would let her husband go hungry. She and her son would eat their fill in the kitchen and not cook for Father Li. If he asked her for food when he was hungry, she would sneer and tell him to ask those people whom he had given charity to.

Since everything had been given away, how could he have the audacity to ask for it back? As a result, Father Li had to go hungry.

But the fact remained that it was him, not the unwilling Widow Zhang, who earned money for the family. Even if Widow Zhang took all the money in the house, Father Li would still give it away to others without asking her.

As recipients of his charity, they naturally enjoyed it. But when Widow Zhang and Father Li became a family, she truly experienced the pain of having such a saintly father figure.

Father Li had always been seen as a kind person in the village. Families that were struggling had long been accustomed to him giving them money and food whenever he had some. They started with gratitude, then took it for granted, and eventually came to him every time they needed money or food.

Previously, because Li Lanlan refused to give and even stopped her own father from giving, these people didn’t hesitate to speak ill of her. Li Lanlan had never been wanted by anyone before, and these people played a significant role in creating that.

But now, the one stopping them was Widow Zhang.

She was much more dominant than Li Lanlan. Li Lanlan couldn’t bear to see her own father suffer, but Widow Zhang didn’t mind. Eventually, it became a guerrilla war between her and the group of people waiting for money.

At first, she managed to hold onto the money in Father Li’s hands. Those families who were used to receiving money out of thin air were unhappy. As a result, Widow Zhang became arrogant and malicious. Rumors about her starving her husband for money began to spread in the village.

Afterward, those people became clever. Widow Zhang couldn’t get the money, and her reputation became tarnished. Even though she had remarried, her life became more miserable than when she was a widow.

She didn’t care much about Father Li, so he went hungry, and Father Li couldn’t expect to eat well either. Within less than a month of their marriage, Father Li’s face became gaunt and his walk was unsteady.

Li Lanlan was well aware of her father’s appearance. When the Li family couldn’t even afford a meal, she took some stale grains and sent them to the Li family.

Although the grains weren’t abundant, they were enough for the family of three to eat for a few days. Father Li earned money from work, so he wouldn’t starve to death.

Because of Li Lanlan’s actions, the Lin family didn’t express any dissatisfaction. The village began to spread the word that this married-away daughter still had a conscience and provided food for her maiden family.

Widow Zhang was almost furious.

What do they mean she has a conscience? Li Lanlan enjoyed a luxurious life, with silver earrings and golden hairpins. She wore fine cotton clothes. She had that kind of wealth but sent some stole groins to her maiden family and now she was considered to hove o conscience?

But her words didn’t matter. Now everyone knew that Widow Zhang was wicked. She didn’t feed her husband, hid with her son every day to eat, and refused to do any work. If it weren’t for Father Li’s good temperament, anyone else would have divorced her long ago.

Anyway, the union of these two wasn’t a good thing for either of them.

Father Li was constantly scolded and went hungry, while Widow Zhang, who used to enjoy Father Li’s help without a care, now had to do embroidery work and hide the money she earned to prevent Father Li from taking it away for his ‘good deeds.’

As for Li Lanlan, this married-away daughter, as long as she provided some grains, she was praised by everyone as having a conscience. She no longer experienced the situation where she prevented Father Li from giving food to others and was called heartless, as she did when she was at home.

Widow Zhang’s reputation has now been tarnished, and she was a stepmother, making it difficult for her to enter the Lin family’s home. Father Li, with a single-minded belief that the Lin family wasn’t doing well, refused to visit them. Widow Zhang resented that and endured and endured until she couldn’t bear it anymore. She decided to put aside her dignity and go to the Lin family to ask Li Lanlan for money.

A stepmother was still a mother, and as long as she met Li Lanlan face-to-face, she could use filial piety to suppress her forcefully.

Once she succeeded in suppressing her once, it won’t be difficult to ask for money again in the future.

As for Li Lanlan being despised by her in-laws because of her troublesome natal family?

She’s not their biological daughter, so it was none of her business.

On the other hand, Lin Shiheng wanted to take the imperial examination, and theoretically, he still had 3 years of preparation time. However, things happened to be such a coincidence that while he was leisurely reading and teaching his young wife to read, news of the Emperor’s death came from the capital.

The Emperor had passed away.

Before his death, the ailing Emperor ordered the Crown Prince to succeed him, and the new Emperor ascended the throne, initiating the imperial examination.

In other words, Lin Shiheng, who was supposed to go to the capital to take the examination 3 years later, could now enter the stage ahead of schedule.

So when Widow Zhang went to the Lin family with the mentality of ‘If I don’t have any face, neither do you,’ intending to suppress Li Lanlan with her stepmother status, she was bewildered and lost when she discovered that the Lin household was empty and deserted.

According to the story of the Lin family members who helped them look for a house, Lin Shiheng took his whole family and went to the capital to take the imperial examination. If he was fortunate enough to pass, he was likely to follow the court’s arrangements and settle down in the appointed area, and they won’t be back for several years.

Without even seeing the person, who could she suppress?

Even the son-in-law who passed the imperial examination had left. What meaning did her marriage to Father Li have?

Despite all the calculations, she calculated herself into a trap.

While Widow Zhang was in a daze, Zhou Yuan ran over.

“Mother, he took your money again and gave it to the cripple in the neighboring village!”

Zhou Yuan resented Father Li for taking the money meant for his own schooling and refused to call him ‘father.’

Widow Zhang sat on the ground, holding her son, unable to hold back her tears.

From now on, she could only endure hardships and suffer with Father Li.