The wicked mother-in-law doesn't try to whitewash herself; she only abuses her awful children.

Chapter 83 Birthday Cake
"Reporting to the old lady, this is a birthday cake," Tong Huaqiong said.

"Birthday cake? This is the first time I've ever heard of such a novel thing."

Who could argue with that? Not only were all the guests hearing about it for the first time, but they had never even seen a pastry with such a design before.

Those brightly colored decorations are even more eye-catching than longevity peaches.

Tong Huaqiong explained with a smile, "My youngest son loves reading. He often reads storybooks and local chronicles. He said that in some places, birthday cakes are served, and he even copied a recipe from a book for me. I mentioned it to Mr. Huang last time, and he told me to make a birthday cake for you according to the recipe in the book. I said I was afraid I wouldn't be able to do it well, but Mr. Huang told me to just do it without worry. It seems that even Heaven was moved by Mr. Huang's filial piety, because I actually managed to make it."

Tong Huaqiong witnessed the undercurrents between Old Madam Huang and the county magistrate's two best friends, and couldn't help but add a chip to Old Madam Huang's betting pool, praising Huang Yuanwai's filial piety like crazy.

Sure enough, Grandma Huang was beaming with joy.

My goodness, this birthday cake is one of a kind in Yanguan Town!

My old friend is right; her son is more willing to put in the effort than the county magistrate.

"Hahaha, Mother, are you satisfied with your son's filial piety?"

Master Huang came to his mother's side, fanning himself. He hadn't expected Tong Huaqiong to put together such a dessert table. The longevity peaches, the koi fish, and the lotus flower pastries had already made his mother beam with joy.

Tong Huaqiong also unexpectedly created a birthday cake.

Of course, Tong Huaqiong had never discussed this cake with him before; it was the first time he had ever heard of it or seen it.

This widow Tong is interesting; she even puts all the credit on him.

Now the whole town of Yanguan knows the effort that Master Huang put into his mother's birthday banquet, and his filial piety shines even brighter.

"Satisfied, satisfied." Grandma Huang was beaming from ear to ear.

"As long as Mother is happy, that's all that matters. After dinner, your son will dress up and sing a play for you," said Master Huang.

Tong Huaqiong sighed, "Master Huang did this all for his mother's entertainment!"

She wanted to go home and tell Gu Dashu and Gu Jingzhe about what happened today, so that if these two brothers could be as filial to their old mother as Master Huang, then all the effort she had put into correcting them would not have been in vain.

"Grandma, this cake needs to be cut and distributed to everyone by you, the birthday girl."

Tong Huaqiong stepped forward and helped Grandma Huang to the cake, handing her a knife. Grandma Huang made a token gesture and cut it open.

Then, Master Huang personally took a knife and cut the cake into pieces for the guests.

This new idea struck everyone as quite novel, and the aroma of the cake further whetted their taste buds.

"Oh dear, I told you so, your son is definitely more filial and thoughtful than mine," the magistrate's mother said after Old Madam Huang sat down.

She was genuinely envious.

Regardless of how difficult the pastries are to make, no one can match this exquisite thought.

Besides, this cake is really delicious; it melts in your mouth and tastes better than any cake she's ever had.

She would tell the magistrate's son when she got back that she wanted the cake too.

"Master Huang really puts a lot of thought into this. Look, those longevity peaches and koi fish are already quite elaborate, and then there's that cake too."

"With a son like that, it would be worth it for the man to die young and become a widow."

"Who says otherwise? The old lady is indeed a blessed person."

"I must say, this cake is really delicious."

Tong Huaqiong became famous overnight, and many people have decided to wait until their own birthdays to have her do the same thing for them. Isn't that so cool?

"Reward! Reward!"

Hearing the guests' chatter, Old Mrs. Huang was overjoyed and turned to Yuqin to offer her a reward.

At the opportune moment, Man'er cupped her hands in a gesture of blessing and said, "Wishing the venerable elder good fortune, wealth, health, boundless blessings, and eternal youth."

These words were all taught to her by Gu Jingzhe in advance.

The cunning Gu Jingzhe had already anticipated this; children's birthday wishes were more effective than those of his own mother and sister. Man'er, dressed in a floral dress with two little buns on her head, had big eyes and a round face, looking like a lucky baby offering birthday greetings to the birthday celebrant, spewing auspicious words taught by Gu Jingzhe as if they were free.

It was so fitting for the occasion that Grandma Huang was so happy she felt like she could fly away.

"Good child, come to me." Old Mrs. Huang learned from Yuqin that this cheerful child was Tong Huaqiong's granddaughter, and she repeatedly urged Man'er to come to her side.

Yuqin took Man'er's hand and led her to Old Madam Huang's side.

The more Grandma Huang looked at it, the more she liked it, and she grabbed a handful of copper coins and stuffed them into Man'er's pocket.

Man'er thanked her sweetly.

Grandma Huang was pleased that Tong Huaqiong had put a lot of thought into her birthday banquet, so she had someone arrange for Tong Huaqiong to take Gu Taohua and Man'er to the table.

Gu Taohua and Man'er were favored by the old lady. One was a plump and rosy-cheeked young girl with good fortune, and the other was a cute and adorable little girl. Thinking of Tong Huaqiong, a widow, who was working alone with her daughter and granddaughter, it was not easy for her. As a widow herself, she recalled the hardships she had faced raising her own son when she was young, and couldn't help but praise Tong Huaqiong to everyone.

Yuqin arranged for Tong Huaqiong and her two grandchildren to live with several ladies in Yanguan Town.

"Auntie," Man'er called out to a woman beside her.

"Man'er is here." Gu Baishuang smiled at her niece, but her heart was filled with mixed feelings.

Tong Huaqiong felt a chill run down her spine when she ran into her stepdaughter, Gu Baishuang.

As the wife of the Nie family, Gu Baishuang was considered a member of the noble ladies' group in Yanguan Town, so she would definitely be invited to Old Madam Huang's birthday banquet.

From the moment Tong Huaqiong came in to offer her birthday greetings, she noticed that her stepmother was different from before.

She knew that peach blossom desserts were all the rage in Yanguan Town these days. She really didn't expect that her stepmother had such good pastry-making skills and had won the favor of Master Huang as a special guest to present birthday cakes to Old Madam Huang. She also never expected that she would be able to sit at the same table with her stepmother to eat at the banquet.

Seeing Man'er's chubby cheeks and new clothes, she believed what Chen Sufeng had said before: that the stepmother treated the first wife very well.

"Mother." Out of politeness, Gu Baishuang called out to Tong Huaqiong.

Tong Huaqiong's lips twitched. Gu Baishuang looked only a few years younger than her.

"Mm." Tong Huaqiong nodded reservedly, hoping that the banquet would start soon and the awkward situation would pass quickly.

However, Master Huang kept talking about his birthday wishes, and since the host didn't start eating, she couldn't very well start eating either.

"Oh, Madam Nie, is this your heartless stepmother?" Madam Yang, who was sitting opposite Tong Huaqiong, couldn't help but exclaim softly when she heard Gu Baishuang call Tong Huaqiong "mother".

The other ladies all looked at Tong Huaqiong.

The local ladies of Yanguan Town present were as familiar with the details of each inner quarter as if they were eavesdropping under someone's bed. They naturally knew that Gu Baishuang's marriage to an old widower nearly twenty years her senior as a second wife was inseparable from the instigation of her wicked stepmother.

The ruthless stepmother and stepdaughter sat together, embracing each other. How the story would unfold next was a matter of debate among the ladies present, each with a different expression, but all sharing a burning anticipation for gossip in their eyes.

“Yes, I am the legendary heartless stepmother,” Tong Huaqiong said.

She thought that rather than letting the atmosphere freeze awkwardly, she should take the initiative to defuse it, and simply admit it herself, rather than being ridiculed to her face.

"Ladies, I know you're all curious about heartless stepmothers, but I can't exactly lay bare my heart to show you if I'm truly heartless," Tong Huaqiong said self-deprecatingly.

Her words made the woman who wanted to stir up trouble feel a little embarrassed!
Wasn't this stepmother supposed to be lazy, greedy, and cruel? But the stepmother I met today is quite different from the rumors.

Every family has its own problems, and it's hard to say whether the stepmother's heart is truly black.

“Madam Yang, you’re exaggerating. Those rumors about being heartless are just that—rumors. Everyone has their ups and downs in life, let alone our family.”

Gu Baishuang didn't want her family's affairs to become gossip, so she took the initiative to help Tong Huaqiong refute the rumors.

Ever since Tong Huaqiong had Gu Dashu tell her that he promised to let her mother and father be buried together, she decided that if her stepmother didn't continue to cause trouble, she could let bygones be bygones for the past.

Tong Huaqiong gave Gu Baishuang a grateful look, which startled Gu Baishuang so much that she almost dropped her chopsticks.

This was the first time she had met her stepmother since her father's death, and on such an occasion no less.

Did she read that correctly?
She discovered that her stepmother was a complete transformation.

(End of this chapter)