Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
The farce at the village chief's house spiraled out of control. No one expected Li Long to want to divorce Zhang Shuitao and marry Song Sanniang instead. The villagers thought he had gone mad. The village chief and his wife were stunned until Zhang Shuitao let out a loud wail, which snapped them back to reality. The village chief's daughter-in-law hurried to pull the distraught Zhang Shuitao away, while the village chief picked up a stick to hit Li Long.
Li Xing rushed to persuade the village chief; he couldn't let his father kill his brother.
Yang Cao, who usually had a poor relationship with Zhang Shuitao, felt some sympathy for her as a fellow first wife. Seeing her in such distress, she went over to comfort Dog Egg, who was crying heavily.
The sounds of crying, cursing, and wailing echoed in the yard, creating a chaotic scene that left onlookers dizzy. Many wanted to intervene and persuade the village chief but feared getting hit by his stick. Moreover, the men who wanted to help were held back by their own wives. Zhang Shuitao had a decent reputation in the village, while Li Long's reputation plummeted after this incident. Everyone wanted to kick him while he was down; women especially looked down on him for wanting to marry another woman after cheating. They wished for him to be beaten even more severely by the village chief, hoping it would serve as a lesson for their own men about the consequences of infidelity.
Li Xing tried hard to stop the village chief but was shoved aside. The village chief was furious and only wanted to knock some sense into his foolish son. He had previously held back his strength but now swung with full force. As Li Long stood before him, he raised his stick and struck.
"Stop hitting him! If you must hit someone, hit me!" Song Sanniang, who had been kneeling on the ground, suddenly jumped up and rushed behind Li Long. The village chief's stick struck her raised arm instead, causing her to scream in pain and collapse to the ground, rolling in agony before losing consciousness.
The village chief was taken aback. He had wished for Song Sanniang to die but never intended to hurt a woman. Seeing her fall before him made him drop his stick.
Li Long turned at the noise and rushed back upon seeing Song Sanniang on the ground. His heart raced; he never expected her to take a beating for him. Fear mixed with gratitude surged within him—he felt that their relationship had not been in vain. Although he had previously resented her for ruining his reputation, all that resentment vanished in an instant. He called out for Song Sanniang repeatedly and, seeing she did not respond, raised his head to ask someone to fetch a physician.
Li Xing immediately sent someone to call for the physician but stayed close by, fearing that if he left, something else might happen without anyone there to intervene.
Before long, the physician arrived and examined Song Sanniang. He reported that she had broken bones in a difficult area; due to the force of the blow, even if they healed, they might not function properly—she could end up disabled.
The village chief's family was devastated by this news; what would happen if Song Sanniang became disabled?
Li Long declared that he would marry Song Sanniang since she had suffered for him. No matter how much Zhang Shuitao protested or how much Dog Egg cried, he would not back down. The village chief's daughter-in-law wiped her tears and tried to persuade him otherwise, but the village chief fell silent. Today he had lost control; even if Song Sanniang's reputation was ruined today, it was not right for him to break her arm. As village chief, he had lost face and committed a grave mistake.
Song Sanniang was temporarily placed in a side room of the village chief's house while onlookers were persuaded by Li Xing and Yang Cao to leave. As they walked away, they discussed the day's events—some cursed Li Long and Song Sanniang while others criticized Zhang Shuitao for thinking about another man after marrying someone else, forcing Li Long into seeking another woman as an outlet for his frustrations. Many speculated about who Zhang Shuitao's secret lover might be while others sympathized with the village chief. In short, there were countless opinions flying around; it was clear this incident would become a popular topic of gossip for some time.
Xie Youshun and Xiao Lihua called their two children into their home and checked them for injuries after hearing about the commotion. Although they claimed not to be hurt anymore, they still needed inspection. They found that Mu Tou had a large bruise on his bottom while Shi Tou had several bruises on his arms—no doubt from falling and being grabbed by Li Long.
"Li Long really has no restraint! He deserves this outcome!" Xiao Lihua said with concern as she looked at her sons' injuries while Xie Youshun brought out ointment to apply on them.
Xie Youshun reassured Xiao Lihua; he felt boys would inevitably get some minor injuries so although he felt sorry for them, he wasn't overly worried. However, he was angry at Li Long for being so heavy-handed and resolved that he would find an opportunity to settle the score later.
Shi Tou noticed his mother's worried expression and softly said, "Mom, I'm not hurt at all. Please don't be sad; if you're sad then I'll hurt."
Xiao Lihua stroked his head and replied, "Alright, Mom won't be sad if Little Shi Tou isn't hurt."
Shi Tou nodded earnestly and said, "Really not hurt."
Xiao Lihua asked if the wood still hurt.
The wood lay on the kang like a little frog, lifting its small head and said, "Mom, if you promise to tell me another Ikkyu story, I won't hurt anymore."
Xie Youshun poked his little bottom and said, "You little rascal, daring to bargain with your mother! If she doesn't tell you a story, won't that make her feel heartbroken and miserable?"
The wood let out a small cry, its chubby little bottom wiggling.
Xiao Lihua slapped his hand and said, "Don't poke him, he's still hurting there!" However, looking at that soft, round little bottom made Xiao Lihua unable to resist wanting to poke it.
Xie Youshun laughed and said, "I know how to be gentle; I didn't touch the bruised part. I poked here; go ahead and try it yourself. It's as soft as freshly steamed buns."
The wood immediately tried to prop himself up to protect his bottom, glaring at Xie Youshun and said, "Dad is bad! It's not a bun!"
Xiao Lihua took the opportunity to poke him; she had touched her son's bottom before when bathing and changing his clothes, but this kind of sneak attack was quite amusing. Watching her son frown and pout was really funny, and her previously troubled mood lightened up a bit as she laughed out loud.
Seeing her smile, Xie Youshun thought to himself that he finally made her laugh.
Shitou also reached out and poked Wood's bottom, saying, "Wood, just let Mom poke you; look how happy she is laughing, and your bottom really does look like a bun."
Little Wood pouted into Xiao Lihua's arms and said, "Mom, I won't listen to Ikkyu's story anymore; it doesn't hurt. Just let Mom touch it; I won't let Dad or Brother touch it; they're bad."
Xie Youshun and Shitou both reached out their fingers again to poke him. The wood's cries rang out along with the laughter of Xiao Lihua and the three of them.
The family of four laughed for a while. After applying the medicine, Shitou's stomach growled, reminding them that they hadn't eaten yet. Xiao Lihua said she would go cook. Xie Youshun then remembered that the basket was still outside and went to get it while Xiao Lihua started kneading the dough. Despite everything that happened, they decided to make dumplings.
During this time, Xie Qingfeng and his wife came over. Yumiang could now walk around. Li Xing and his wife hurriedly left without following them. They were here to find out what had happened.
Xiao Lihua invited them to stay for dinner. Xie Youshun told them about today's events. The couple was astonished; they never expected Li Long would do such a thing. They all agreed that knowing someone’s face doesn’t mean knowing their heart.
Xie Qingfeng said, "It seems Li Long can't be village chief anymore."
Xie Youshun replied, "He definitely can't be. How could the villagers allow someone like him to be village chief? Even if the villagers agreed, I wouldn't. He has no sense of restraint; he left bruises all over Shitou's arms and hurt Wood too. If we hadn't arrived in time, he would have hit Shitou. To be so cruel to such small children shows he has a wicked heart."
Yumiang loved children even more now that she was pregnant; hearing about Stone and Wood being hit made her immediately ask about them in detail. Xie Qingfeng was also angry that Li Long dared to lay hands on his two nephews and scolded him a few times but quickly became worried about Li Xing and his wife.
Xie Youshun said, "Li Brother is fine; I think this is actually good for him. The village chief has always favored Li Long; although Li Brother's life wasn't bad, he must have had some thoughts about it but never expressed them because he's a decent person. Now that this incident has occurred, the village chief will surely see his worth; in the future, that family will rely on him. Who knows? Maybe even the position of village chief will be his one day. If he becomes village chief, our village will be blessed."
Xie Qingfeng thought it sounded good. They had a good relationship with Li Xing, and naturally, they hoped he would do well. Speaking of which, their families got along well because they were not favored by their parents. Now, he and Xie Youshun and Wang Dashan were all separated from their parents, whether they had passed away or were still alive; they could not live with their parents. If Li Xing could live with his parents and regain their favor, it would be a comfort.
Making dumplings was actually the least troublesome. Xie Youshun and Xiao Lihua worked together—one rolled the dough while the other filled it—and soon they had made quite a few. They boiled some and ate as they went along. The four adults and two children quickly filled up.
Xie Qingfeng helped Yumiang back home as night fell.
A lot happened today, and the whole family of Xie Youshun was exhausted. The two children fell asleep early. Xie Youshun and Xiao Lihua sat by the kang table. Xiao Lihua hesitated for a moment but finally asked about Xie Youshun and Zhang Shuitao. Although it was common for couples to have their own secrets, sometimes honesty was also necessary.
Xie Youshun explained that he had only saved Zhang Shuitao once. It happened when he was returning from a market trip; Zhang Shuitao had quarreled with someone from her village and was heading back alone. Unfortunately, she ran into some bad people, but fortunately, she encountered Xie Youshun instead. At that time, Zhang Shuitao's clothes had been torn open, and she felt embarrassed, angry, and grateful all at once. Once they reached the main road, she ran away.
"Later she came looking for me, wanting to marry me, but I didn't agree. I really didn't see her body; she had already tightened her clothes again. She thought I saw," Xie Youshun said as he immediately clarified his innocence to his wife.
Xiao Lihua shot him a glare and said, "What? You really wanted to see?"
"No, no! I didn't want to see at all! I have no feelings for her whatsoever; if I did, wouldn't I have married her?"
"Weren't you saying back then that you didn't have money to marry? With someone like her coming to you, why didn't you take it? Zhang Shuitao is quite good-looking and seems to have a decent reputation. You dared to marry me when my reputation was so bad; why not her?"
The author has something to say: I really finished writing this around seven o'clock but couldn't upload it. However, my procrastination has improved a little bit; I give myself a flower^-^ (so thick-skinned).
Comment 0 Comment Count