Liang Dong exclaimed in surprise, "You know? You know they are impostors pretending to be your mother?"

What does it mean to be an impostor pretending to be a mother? Although Sanwa didn't understand the meaning of this expression, the word "impostor" made him furrow his brows. He tugged at Ning Weiguo's hand and said, "Grandpa, I don't like them."

Liang Dong 's nose twisted in anger as he pointed at Ning Weiguo, saying, "You call him grandpa? Then what am I?"

In the northern regions, people usually call their grandparents "lao lao" and "lao ye," while in the southern regions, they are called "wai gong" and "wai po."

Strictly speaking, Liang Dong , who adopted Sanwa's biological mother as his own daughter, was also his grandfather in name, that is, "lao ye."

"You are a stranger," Sanwa said in a crisp voice. He tilted his head and carefully examined Liang Dong 's face, making sure he had never seen him before. "Hmm, a stranger."

Liang Dong was almost infuriated. Dawa and Sanwa were unyielding, and Erniu was a stubborn girl. He didn't want to bother with them.

His plan to play the emotional card and offer them money to settle the matter, appealing to Shen Lie's consideration for the face of his three children, seemed to have failed.

Bai Xiaofen took a deep breath and looked at Shen Lie. "Are you really going to cut ties with us and let Dawa, Erniu, and Sanwa accept this woman as their mother and those two old people as their grandparents?"

Shen Lie remained expressionless and said, "If that's what they decide, then I have no say in it. Whether they accept you or not, they have to decide for themselves."

Upon hearing this, Bai Xiaofen put on a smiling face and looked at the three children. "Dawa, Erniu, Sanwa, I am your grandmother. We have a blood relationship. Blood is thicker than water."

Seeing that the three children remained indifferent, Liang Dong turned his eyes and, since raising himself up didn't work, he decided to belittle others. He pointed at Ning Weiguo and Sun Aiju, saying, "These two have no blood relation to you. How could they genuinely care for you? Their kindness is all fake, like sugar-coated bullets. We are your true family."

Ning Tang clenched her fists tightly, wishing she could kick these shameless two out.

If possible, she really didn't want Dawa and the others to face these two disgusting and hypocritical relatives at such a young age.

Tearing off their hypocritical facade of family affection reveals a shameless and greedy face underneath.

She took a deep breath and suppressed her anger. "You claim to be Dawa and the others' grandparents. May I ask, in all these years, have you ever come to visit them even once?"

Liang Dong stammered, "We... We didn't have time."

"No time?" Ning Tang said, "Ha, even if you have work, you should have time during holidays, right? Let me calculate. How many festivals are there in a year? Chinese New Year, Lantern Festival, Qingming Festival, Labor Day..."

Dawa interjected, "National Day."

Erniu and Sanwa seemed to compete with Dawa and quickly added two more festivals, "Mid-Autumn Festival, Dragon Boat Festival."

With each festival they mentioned, Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen's heads lowered a little.

"There are countless festivals, and that's just for one year," Ning Tang said. "It only takes three days to travel by train from Shanghai. Let's say it takes you seven days for a round trip. As supposed grandparents, you couldn't spare seven days?"

Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen struggled to say a word, their faces blushing with embarrassment.

Ning Tang continued, "Fine, let's say you're busy with work and truly have no time. But couldn't you at least send a letter? Over all these years, you've only sent one letter. In that letter, you didn't ask a single question about Dawa and the others. You didn't ask if they've grown taller, how their grades are, if they're eating well, if they have enough money. The entire letter was just about asking for money, money, and more money."

She sneered, "And this is what you call being grandparents, claiming blood is thicker than water?"

Ning Tang suddenly thought of a possibility. "You probably don't even know what grades Dawa, Erniu, and Sanwa are in now, right?"

Seeing the embarrassed expressions on Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen's faces, she cursed them in her heart, took a deep breath, and told herself not to get angry, not to stoop to their level. "Dawa is in sixth grade this year and will be in junior high next year. Erniu is in fifth grade this year, and Sanwa is in third grade this year. Got it?" The last four words were emphasized one by one.

Bai Xiaofen muttered in a disapproving voice, "What does their grade level have to do with us?"

They didn't even know what grade level Liang Ying was in when she was in elementary school. Now, how could they possibly remember the grades of Dawa, Erniu, and Sanwa?

Ning Weiguo was infuriated. "Not your business? You don't even know how old your own grandchildren are, what grades they are in, and you call yourselves human?"

Liang Dong sneered, "What's it to you, fake goods?"

To insult Ning Weiguo was like poking Ning Tang's sore spot. "You call my parents fake goods, then I ask you, you two so-called genuine goods, what have you done for Dawa, Erniu, and Sanwa all these years?"

Liang Dong opened his mouth slightly, his lips moving a few times, but he couldn't utter a word. His mind went blank.

Seeing him like that, Ning Tang smiled and patted the three children. "You tell him."

Dawa said, "Grandma and Grandpa give us red envelopes with New Year's money every year. They write us letters and send us delicious food."

Even if they couldn't come to Hailang or if Ning Tang and Shen Lie couldn't bring the three little ones back to Shangan Village for Chinese New Year due to military arrangements, Ning Weiguo and Sun Aiju's red envelopes always arrived without fail, sent every year.

Erniu said crisply, "Grandma would tie little braids for me and weave little flower hats." She blinked her big eyes and looked at Bai Xiaofen. "Fake grandma, can you tie little braids and weave little flower hats?"

Without waiting for Bai Xiaofen to answer, Erniu shook her head. "You can't, you don't even know what grade level I'm in."

Sun Aiju arrived at Hailang in less than half a month and already knitted a pair of woolen gloves and two pairs of woolen socks for Dawa, Erniu, and Sanwa. If it weren't for Ning Tang stopping her, she would have also arranged for the three little ones to have cotton shoes and woolen sweaters because she said the winter in Hailang wasn't that cold.

Bai Xiaofen hesitated and said, "Even if I haven't tied braids for you or knitted any woolen hats, I am still your relative by blood, right?"

Anyway, they couldn't come up with a single word about what they had done for the three little ones, but when it came to blood relations, it was a whole different story.

"Hmph." Shen Lie suddenly laughed, a sudden laughter that didn't seem abrupt at all. He coldly said, "Just say it, how much money do you want this time?"

Since they had already torn their faces apart, Liang Dong no longer bothered to hide. He raised four fingers and said, "Four hundred." Then he quickly added another finger, "No, five hundred."

Shen Lie was now a battalion commander, and his years of service increased his salary year by year. The military benefits were getting better each year, and as a naval officer, he received seafaring allowances every time he went out to sea. He definitely earned a good amount.

Thinking of this, Liang Dong put down the three fingers in the middle. "Five hundred is not enough, it should be six hundred."

Before Shen Lie could say anything, he interrupted, "Don't say you don't have money." He pointed to the washing machine and electric fan in the corner of the room. "Can't afford these appliances?"

Bai Xiaofen quickly added, "If you don't give money, we can use these appliances as collateral."

Ruijie had grown up too, it was time for him to get married and start a family. The city girls were all interested in him. If they brought back the washing machine, electric fan, bicycle, and radio from the Shen family, they would be able to marry a wife!

Ning Tang was almost laughing out of anger. They really didn't know the length of their faces or the bend of their horns.

If they were asked for money, would they give money? If they were asked to use appliances as collateral, would they use appliances as collateral?

The audacity of these two!

Seeing Shen Lie's silence, Liang Dong stared at him and added, "My daughter, Liang Ying, gave birth to three children for you."

Bai Xiaofen chimed in, "And it's two sons and one daughter, listen carefully, two sons, two!"

Hearing this, Ning Tang scoffed, "You've said it too. Liang Ying gave birth to three children for Shen Lie. For those who don't know, they might think that you two gave birth to three children for Shen Lie."

Bai Xiaofen glared at her, "Do you have a say? You're like a hen that doesn't lay eggs."

After talking for a while and realizing that there were no other children in the house and no sounds of a baby crying, Bai Xiaofen probably guessed that Ning Tang hadn't given birth to a child and that there were only these three children, Dawa, Erniu, and Sanwa, in the house.

It was very likely that Shen Lie would only have these three children in his lifetime.

Thinking of this, Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen became even more determined to ask for money.

Liang Dong said, "Don't waste your breath with her." He looked at Shen Lie and continued, "Considering the children, you should give us seven hundred yuan."

In just a moment, they added another hundred yuan, making it seven hundred yuan from the initial six hundred yuan.

"Considering the children?" Shen Lie laughed. "Or is it considering Dawa, Erniu, and Sanwa? If I see you on the street, I'll give all three of you a big slap."

Shen Lie was tall and sturdy, his words carried a strong deterrent.

Liang Dong , who was thin and frail, couldn't help but shrink back, but for the sake of money, he gathered his courage and insisted, "I swear, this will be the last time we come to ask for money. Considering the children, give us seven hundred yuan, and I promise we will never come to bother you again."

Seven hundred yuan? He didn't even want to give them seven cents.

"You want money, right?" Ning Tang said.

Bai Xiaofen's eyes lit up, "Right."

"Why should we give you?" Ning Tang retorted. "Don't talk about the children, Dawa, Erniu, and Sanwa don't even recognize you."

Bai Xiaofen opened her mouth to refute, but Ning Tang immediately continued, "In all these years, have you ever bought a single piece of clothing or a snack for Dawa, Erniu, or Sanwa? If you want to play the family card, sure, first make up for all the things you owe from these many years."

The Liang family was so poor that they couldn't make ends meet. They had borrowed money for the ticket to come to Hailang Island.

Moreover, their purpose in coming was to ask for money. If they couldn't get the money, they would at least leave with a sum. It definitely didn't align with Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen's style.

Bai Xiaofen turned her head. Ning Tang had a sharp tongue, and she couldn't argue back, so she decided to dig into Shen Lie's past, "Shen Lie, my daughter gave birth to three children for you, three of them. It was because of giving birth to your children that she became weak and died. Each son is worth three hundred yuan, and the daughter doesn't need much, just a hundred yuan. A total of seven hundred yuan. So, will you give it or not?"

Liang Ying died of illness. During the month before her passing, she looked haggard, with sunken cheeks and wrists as thin as reed sticks. The three children surrounded her bed, but she didn't pay any attention to them. She kept repeating why Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen hadn't come to see her.

Shen Lie's letters were sent one after another, but Liang Ying didn't receive a visit from her adoptive father and mother until she closed her eyes.

"Give it." Shen Lie's expressionless face suddenly exploded with profanity. "Give my ass!"

When Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen heard Shen Lie say "give," a trace of joy flashed in their eyes, but they were also startled by his sudden outburst of profanity, their faces turning pale with fright.

Shen Lie pointed to the ground, "You said it yourselves, Liang Ying gave birth to three children for me. If you want money, fine, let her come and ask me herself. Don't even mention seven hundred yuan, I'll give her seven thousand."

No matter how capable Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen were, they couldn't bring the dead back to life.

Bai Xiaofen said, "You, you're being unreasonable!"

"Heh, aren't you saying that it was Liang Ying who risked her life to give birth to three children for me? Then this seven hundred yuan should be given to her, not to you," Shen Lie said.

Ning Tang nodded. "In a few days, I'll convert this seven hundred yuan into paper money and burn it for her." She looked at Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen. "If you want money, you can go ahead and ask Liang Ying." She pointed to the ground. "Whether she gives it to you or not, it's entirely up to her."

What did it mean to ask Liang Ying for money? Wasn't it just a disguised curse for them to die!

Liang Dong 's face first turned pale, then rapidly flushed red. He pointed at Ning Tang but couldn't utter a word.

Ning Tang chuckled. Not to mention that she didn't respect her elders, even Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen's actions didn't qualify them to be called elders. Calling them scum wouldn't be an exaggeration.

Shen Lie glanced at the sky. It was already midday, and his stomach was growling from hunger. He didn't have the energy to continue entangling with these shameless individuals. He urged them, "Just leave."

Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen were about to stubbornly sit on the ground, but Shen Lie suddenly stood up. "If you don't leave, I'll call someone. I'm a squadron leader now, and the army has assigned me a guard."

Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen had never seen Shen Lie's guard, Xiao Zhao, but it didn't stop them from picturing an image of a strong young man in their minds.

Bai Xiaofen stubbornly said, "If you don't give us the money, we won't recognize Dawa and the others. They won't have a grandfather and grandmother."

Shen Lie laughed. "If you don't recognize them, then don't. Don't think that they don't want to recognize you either." He asked the three children, "Do you recognize these grandparents?"

The three children exchanged glances and simultaneously said in a monotone voice, "Don't recognize." Their tone didn't even fluctuate.

Sanwa added, "Without grandparents, we still have Grandma and Grandpa."

Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen, these two blood-related relatives, had completely been absent from the early years of Dawa and the others' lives. For the three children, they were strangers.

To strangers, especially strangers they didn't like, how would they react? They didn't have any reaction at all.

Even if their true intentions were exposed, they were only using the guise of recognizing family ties to ask for money. However, the indifference in the hearts of the three children remained unaffected.

Because they didn't care, they didn't bother, and because it didn't matter, they remained indifferent.

Erniu nestled into Sun Aiju's embrace, and when she saw Sun Aiju looking at her, she smiled and revealed her pearly white teeth.

While Heaven had given her grandparents who despised and didn't like her, it also provided her with grandparents who loved and cherished her.

In reality, Heaven was quite fair.

Dawa and the other two were Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen's last resort.

Seeing that their last resort had also been "captivated," the two of them were helpless.

Liang Dong played his final card. "If you dare, aren't you afraid that I will tarnish the reputation of Dawa and the others outside? I'll say they are unfilial and don't support their elders."

Ning Tang almost burst into laughter. "You really underestimate us. How much is face worth?"

If she cared about reputation, she would have just gone to work after giving birth to ten or eight children for Shen Lie.

Ning Tang paused for a moment. "If you dare to do that, I'll take the paper money I exchanged for seven hundred yuan and burn it at your doorstep. When the neighbors ask, hehe."

Shen Lie added, "Just say it was what you wanted. Raising a daughter and giving birth to three children can earn seven hundred yuan. Oh, not just seven hundred yuan. If we also count the money Liang Ying used to support you before, plus the two hundred yuan you asked for at the funeral, it's definitely one thousand five hundred yuan. Then let the neighbors judge and see if you can hold that one thousand five hundred without getting burned."

Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen turned pale. If Shen Lie and Ning Tang really did that, then they would lose all face! Would they still be able to stay in the neighborhood?

Liang Dong tried to hold on. "You... you wouldn't dare."

He gambled on Shen Lie and Ning Tang's demeanor, thinking that they wouldn't actually go and burn paper money at someone else's doorstep.

Ning Tang smirked, "Dare? What is there not to dare?" She continued, "Forgot to tell you, I don't have a job, and I'm not afraid of you exposing it to my workplace. I have plenty of time to waste with you. There should be a lot of paper money that can be exchanged for seven hundred yuan. If I can't finish burning it in one day, then I'll burn it for seven days, fifteen days, or even a month. There will come a time when it's all burned."

"At that time, the entire building will be filled with white smoke, and someone will definitely ask," she smacked her lips, "I'm not one to hold my tongue. I'll say whatever is not pleasant to hear. Don't blame me."

Bai Xiaofen was furious. She never expected there to be someone even more shameless than her in this world. She trembled with anger but couldn't utter a word while pointing at Ning Tang.

Shen Lie spoke coldly, "If you don't leave now, I'll really call someone."

He suddenly stood up, startling Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen. They quickly stood up as well and hurriedly left with their bags.

Ning Tang stood at the door and watched for a while until she no longer saw their figures on the small road. Only then did she enter the house. "Finally, they're gone."

Shen Lie glanced at the window and sighed, "They're gone this time, but those two shameless individuals might come again next time."

Ning Tang laughed, "Let them come. I thought they left too quickly. I didn't even get to use my broomstick magic."

What she said to Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen just now was the truth, not a single word of it was a lie.

She was capable of burning paper money for real.

Even if Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen were to return and ask for money again, Ning Tang might be one step ahead and burn paper money at their house before they could even do so.

As for whether there would be outsiders gossiping, anyone who dared to gossip, she would dare to go to their house and make them pay the seven hundred yuan that Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen wanted.

Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen walked for a while, and the more they thought about it, the angrier they became.

Bai Xiaofen said, "Are we just letting them off so easily? That was seven hundred yuan, and we didn't get a single penny." They even wasted money on round-trip bus tickets.

Liang Dong snorted coldly, "Otherwise, what do you suggest? If you're capable, go ask that couple for money, go win over Dawa, Erniu, and Sanwa."

Shen Lie and Ning Tang, one was more eloquent than the other. Dawa and the others were simply unresponsive.

They wouldn't even call him Grandfather and Grandmother. No, Dawa did say it once, but it was a sarcastic remark when they mistook him for Dahu.

Bai Xiaofen pursed her lips. She was just talking. When it came to verbal skills, she couldn't match Ning Tang even if she had ten of herself.

Liang Dong said, "Since it's like this, let's not return empty-handed."

Bai Xiaofen was taken aback. "What do you mean?"

Liang Dong glanced at her. "Did you forget? When we first arrived at Hailang, didn't you say you wanted to pick some coconuts and fruits to take back? I think this idea works."

Fruits are valuable in Shanghai. Apples cost fifty cents per kilogram, while oranges and pears are a bit cheaper at twenty cents, but you still need fruit tickets for supply.

Usually, Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen are reluctant to buy them. They only buy the cheapest oranges during the New Year and festivals, but all of them end up in Liang Ruijie's stomach. They can't bear to eat a single bite.

But it's different in Hailang. The climate here is good, and the fruits grow well. Not to mention apples, oranges, and pears, even the rare fruits like custard apples, mangoes, and lychees are not considered valuable at all.

Especially the mango trees, they are everywhere.

When Liang Ying was still alive, she often sent fruits to Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen.

Back then, the Liang family never lacked fruits to eat, nor did they lack fruits to entertain guests. People came and went, and there was always plenty.

Suddenly, the two remembered Liang Ying's kindness and looked at each other, both seeing regret in each other's eyes.

Bai Xiaofen said, "You'll see, Shen Lie's tough days are still ahead. He married such a fierce second wife, and Dawa and the others have a stepmother with no character or virtue. The Shen family will fall sooner or later."

Liang Dong nodded, agreeing with Bai Xiaofen's words and deeply resonating with them.

After exchanging a few words, the two were ready to start picking coconuts.

Compared to other fruits, coconuts were obviously rarer. After all, there were still fruits available in Shanghai, but coconuts were extremely rare in the city because transportation wasn't well-developed.

Liang Dong had already planned it out. They would pick a bag of fruits and bring back four or five coconuts. They would sell the coconuts on the black market, claiming that they came from a mysterious island, and they would definitely fetch a high price.

The thought made a trace of greed flash in his eyes.

With the money from selling fruits and coconuts, they might not be able to make up for the pain of not getting the seven hundred yuan, but at least it could cover the cost of train tickets.

August was the season when coconuts were ripe.

Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen stood under the coconut tree, looking up at the golden coconuts hidden among the green coconut leaves. Their hearts stirred, but they faced a dilemma.

Bai Xiaofen asked, "Boss, how do we pick these coconuts?"

Liang Dong stared and said, "Who should I ask if not you? Here's the plan: you keep an eye out and see if anyone's coming, and I'll climb up and pick them."

"Are you sure?" Bai Xiaofen worried. After all, these coconut trees didn't look short, and Liang Dong was thin and weak. He didn't seem like someone who could climb trees.

"Don't waste time, hurry up," Liang Dong said. "If we don't hurry, someone will come."

After speaking, Liang Dong tied up his long robe and chose a relatively shorter coconut tree. He climbed up using both his hands and feet, sticking his butt out in a very unsightly posture.

Meanwhile, Bai Xiaofen nervously peeked from under the coconut tree.

It was midday, and there weren't many people on the road, but she still worried about being caught stealing coconuts with Liang Dong . It wouldn't be fun if they were caught.

As she reached the peak of her anxiety, a voice suddenly came from behind her, "Hey, what are you doing?"

That voice scared Bai Xiaofen out of her wits.

It also startled Liang Dong , causing him to fall from the coconut tree and land on the ground.

Both of them screamed in unison, "Comrade! We didn't do it on purpose. Since it's our first offense, please spare us!"

Without waiting for the reaction of the fisherman comrade who had called out to them, they immediately started running.

Of course, they ran too late. If caught, they would be taken to the police station.

These days, theft is punished particularly harshly. In earlier years, they would have been publicly humiliated.

Watching the two quickly turning into small black dots in the distance, the puzzled fisherman comrade scratched his head and muttered, "Why did they run so fast?"

He saw that Liang Dong and Bai Xiaofen were unfamiliar faces and probably didn't know that coconuts on the island could be picked freely. He had only wanted to ask if they needed help when he called out to them.

He didn't expect these two to run so quickly, wasting the enthusiastic help of the fisherman comrade.