Of course, Shen Nian recognized the two new faces in the house. After all, she had spent some time in this home in her previous life.
"Dad, Xinyue, you're back!"
Shen Nian said with a smile as she walked in, addressing her father-in-law, Lu Shaoping, and her sister-in-law, Lu Xinyue.
When she and Lu Cheng had gotten home earlier, Father Lu was still at work, and Lu Xinyue hadn't returned from school yet. They had eaten dinner early because Lu Cheng needed to get back to his company.
She had gone out to see Lu Cheng off and was then held up for a while by Qin Xueling and Shen Xiangnan. By the time she returned, two more people had naturally arrived at the house.
Before Shen Nian got back, Sun Yufeng had already told her husband and daughter about the change in her. So, when they saw Shen Nian walk in, both Lu Shaoping and Lu Xinyue watched her with scrutinizing eyes.
Being stared at so intensely was naturally uncomfortable for Shen Nian, but she knew it was unavoidable. 'After all, who can I blame? My past self was just too awful!'
She was already grateful just to have a chance to make things right.
"Yes, you're back."
Father Lu was more accepting. As an elder, his greatest wish was for the family to be harmonious. Although he had been disappointed in Shen Nian before, he was naturally happy that his daughter-in-law had changed for the better.
He was aware of his wife's bias against their daughter-in-law. 'Since Sun Yufeng herself says Shen Nian has improved, then she must have really improved!'
That being the case, he was certainly willing to offer his daughter-in-law an olive branch.
Lu Xinyue, however, was a different story. In this family, the person she admired most was her older brother. She had been thrilled for a long time when she found out he was getting married.
But as it turned out, the wife her brother brought home had such an awful character. Not only did she look down on him, but she even dared to yell at their parents, utterly disgracing the family in front of their relatives!
'A sister-in-law like that? I refuse to acknowledge her! I don't care if Mom says she's changed for the better; I don't believe it.'
'How could someone with such a terrible personality just change overnight? Besides, so what if she really has changed? For the simple fact that she looks down on my brother, I, Lu Xinyue, will never like Shen Nian!'
"Hmph. Coming back this late... do you even care about this family at all?"
Seething with anger, Lu Xinyue snapped at Shen Nian without a second thought.
"Xinyue, is that any way to speak to your sister-in-law?"
Sun Yufeng pulled Lu Xinyue back and shot her a glare. 'This girl doesn't think before she speaks. Our daughter-in-law has finally started to change for the better. I hope Xinyue's yelling doesn't make her revert to her old self!'
If Shen Nian knew what her mother-in-law was thinking, she would probably feel helpless enough to cry. 'So my mother-in-law doesn't truly believe I've changed for the better!'
However, looking at Lu Xinyue, who was still glaring at her angrily even while being placated by Sun Yufeng, Shen Nian's heart filled with bitterness.
She knew, of course, why Lu Xinyue treated her this way.
Lu Xinyue's adoration for her older brother was matched only by her loathing for the sister-in-law who looked down on him.
In her past life, the person she had the most conflict with in this family wasn't Father Lu or Mrs. Lu; it was Lu Cheng's sister, Lu Xinyue.
'And now, even though the worst things haven't happened yet, my behavior back when I was a newlywed has probably already deeply hurt my sister-in-law.'
'Given my sister-in-law's personality, getting her to let go of her resentment toward me is probably not going to be an easy task at all.'
But no matter how difficult, these were things Shen Nian had to do.
'After all, this was a debt she owed them.'
"Mom, it's okay. It's my fault. I should have come back earlier. I just ran into my brother outside and we talked for a bit."
Hearing Shen Nian's words, Lu Xinyue looked over at her in disbelief. 'I thought for sure she would start a fight with me. I never expected that not only would she not curse me out, but she'd actually take all the blame so calmly.'
'How is that possible? How could my annoying sister-in-law ever do something like that?'
'Hmph, she must be putting on an act. She'll probably show her true colors in a couple of days. I won't be fooled!'