"We are from the army. My name is Mr. Zhao. We came here to catch spies and rescue you. Can you tell us what's going on here?"
"I... I don't really know much. I haven't been here long. They thought I was ugly and skinny, so they made me do odd jobs and cook. Most of the time, I was locked up in the kitchen shed."
"Sister, I'm Brian's wife, Freya. Here, eat something first. We'll talk more when we get home."
Freya confirmed this was Brian's sister, so her attitude softened. After all, she was her husband's elder sister, so she needed to show some respect.
She took a boiled egg and a bun from her cloth bag and handed them to her.
Mr. Zhao had already sent someone back to call for reinforcements to help transport the supplies. They'd be leaving soon.
"Thank you, sister-in-law," Sister Biyun said as she took the food.
The food situation was terrible, and they were often left starving. Even worse, those beasts would publicly assault and rape women. It was terrifying.
After Sister Biyun finished eating, Freya spoke briefly with Mr. Zhao, then helped her down the mountain.
An hour later, Officer Duiz arrived with over fifty people to help Mr. Zhao transport the people and goods out of the mountain area.
"Yo, isn't this Biyun? What a rare visitor. Weren't you living comfortably in town? What made you come back to visit us poor relatives?
Tsk tsk... You hardly visit, and when you finally do, you didn't bring a thing. So stingy, and you still think you're a town person?
Tch, coming back to your mother's home empty-handed, aren't you ashamed?"
"You—uh, sister-in-law is back too. Come in, wow, so many rabbits? You must be tired.
Come, let me help you carry them. Sister-in-law, you're amazing."
Fang heard the knocking and thought it was Freya. She rushed ahead of Sister Lan to open the door. But when she saw it was Sister Biyun, her face instantly changed, and she began mocking her.
Then Freya walked out from behind Sister Biyun, and Fang immediately switched to a smile. Sister Biyun was left stunned by the sudden change.
"Fang, are you a dog?
You don't just bark at random, your face changes fast too." Freya casually tossed two wild rabbits she'd hunted on the way to Fang and teased her sharply.
"Big sister is home today, so we're having white rice, stir-fried rabbit, braised pork, and cold cucumber salad.
Go help in the kitchen and light the stove for sister-in-law." Freya pulled out three jin of pork belly from her cloth bag and handed it to Fang, coldly giving orders.
"Okay, okay. The food will be ready soon. Sister-in-law, you rest, I'll go help right now."
Fang forced a flattering smile and stared at the meat in her hands, swallowing repeatedly. It was a lot.
"Sister-in-law, you didn't need to go all out. I already had a bun and egg—I'm not hungry anymore.
Second sister-in-law might get upset and give you trouble."
Sister Biyun felt embarrassed seeing Freya preparing such a big meal and reminded her softly.
"What's the big deal? I was going to eat this anyway.
Besides, you're Brian's real sister. I have to treat you well. You better tell Brian how good I am.
As for Fang, ignore her. She's just a nasty, brainless barking dog." Freya said indifferently.
"Okay, I'll definitely praise you in front of Brian." Sister Biyun relaxed and laughed a little, playing along with Freya's teasing.
"Sis? Freya? You two came back together?" Brian heard the noise and asked Dan to push him out. He saw Sister Biyun, clothes torn and face dark and thin.
"Sis, what happened to you? Why do you look like this? Did your husband beat you?" Brian looked at the bruises on Sister Biyun's arms and legs, shocked and angry.
"Let's talk inside. Sister Biyun's too weak right now."
Freya gave Brian a meaningful glance.
"Okay, let's go to our room to talk. I was so busy during the New Year and didn't come back. I haven't seen you in so long."
Brian got the hint from his wife and suddenly felt uneasy, but agreed right away.
"Dan, help us pour some water. Here, this is your reward.
Hurry and find a place to secretly eat it. Don't let your vampire mother see it." Freya handed him two eggs and shot a cold glance at the sneaky-looking Fang.
Fang got scared and quickly shrank back into the kitchen.
"This Freya, really! I'm her second sister-in-law, but she doesn't show me any respect at all."
Fang noticed Sister Lan was focused on chopping vegetables and completely ignoring her, so she pouted and complained, pretending to be better than others.
"Sister-in-law, what do you think Biyun is back for this time? Look at those injuries on her… don't tell me her husband beat her?
What's so great about marrying into town? Look at her! She's living worse than us!
If you ask me, she deserves it. Can't even give birth to a son. Right, Sister-in-law?" Fang's words sounded like they were about Sister Biyun, but she was actually mocking Sister Lan for not having a son.
"You're wrong for saying that. Freya told me once, what grows in the field depends on what kind of seeds are sown!
If you ask me, not having a son is her husband's problem. What's it got to do with Sister Biyun?
Besides, having a son means you have to buy him a house and get him a wife later. That's a huge burden!
If he turns out like your little bully Zheni, I'd rather not have a son at all."
Sister Lan smiled calmly and countered her with ease. She no longer looked ashamed or troubled.
That was all thanks to Freya's constant "mindset training" whenever she had free time, and it seemed to be working well.
"What's wrong with my Zheni? You're just jealous that I have a son!" Fang jumped up angrily and looked like she was ready to charge at Sister Lan.
"It's almost 12:30. Freya said lunch has to be on time. If we're late, the one who gets scolded won't be me!"
Sister Lan stayed calm as she looked at Fang's large figure trying to charge at her. She smiled and handled her with ease.
"You... you rely on someone else's power! Shameless mutt!
Let's see how long you can act all proud!" Fang glared fiercely at Sister Lan, who had already turned around to wash cucumbers, then grudgingly went back to watch the stove.
Freya hits too hard. Fang had to come up with a way to deal with her and teach her a lesson. She couldn't stand how arrogant she was.
Her eyes kept shifting, and dark thoughts bubbled up in her mind.
Aha! Got it.
Let's see how long that brat can be smug!
Inside Freya's room.
"Sis, what happened to you?" Brian looked at Sister Biyun, full of concern.
"Don't panic. Let her drink some water and gather her thoughts." Freya patted Brian's head to comfort him.
Then she dramatically pulled out a bag of sunflower seeds, a packet of cookies, and some sponge cakes from the cabinet and laid them out on her custom folding table.
"Sis, let's eat a little, relax, and talk slowly." Freya grabbed a handful of sunflower seeds and stuffed them into Sister Biyun's hands. She gave Brian a sponge cake and then took some seeds for herself, sat beside Brian, and started cracking them loudly.
She definitely wasn't going to admit that she just wanted to hear the gossip.
Brian and Sister Biyun: "…"
Something felt off, but they couldn't quite say what it was.
For some reason, the sound of Freya cracking seeds made Brian feel a lot calmer, and Sister Biyun also relaxed.
She couldn't help but crack a seed herself, and slowly began to tell her story.