Right after that, they heard Li Youqing, gritting his teeth, say through clenched teeth, "Your mouth just runs and runs from morning till night, offending everyone everywhere. Are you satisfied now? If the Lin family decides to let this go, fine; if they don't, you had better wash your neck and wait to be beheaded."
As soon as the danger passed, Mother-in-law got cocky all over again. Sticking out her neck with zero fear of death, she snapped right back, "For what? That scumbag Lin Dequan hurt me like this—was he trying to kill me? I'm going to the police to have him eat a bullet. Don't think for a second an old lady like me doesn't know the law. What he did is a crime, he's a murderer! How dare he talk about his son? Does he even have the right? Bah! An unformed fetus—what kind of human life is that? Years ago, which woman didn't get bullied by her husband's family and lose a pregnancy? What's there to make such a big fuss about? If you count it that way, every in-law's family is a criminal and should be locked up."
Just listen to that—what kind of talk was that? At that moment, Li Youqing bitterly regretted being cheap and taking in a disaster like Jiang Hongdou. A vicious wife brings endless trouble to her husband. The mere thought of the contemptuous, mocking, and distant looks from neighbors, friends, and relatives made him want to dig a hole and crawl into it.
Watching Jiang Hongdou still running her mouth incessantly, Li Youqing breathed heavily, his face turning ashen. Veins bulged on his forehead, his gaze was as sharp as a knife, and every single word seemed squeezed out from between his teeth.
"Jiang Hongdou, if you have the guts, say that to me again!"
Having lived together for decades, a single glance was enough to tell her the other's attitude. It was obvious Li Youqing was burning with fury right now, and she knew better than to pull whiskers on a tiger.
Jiang Hongdou curled her lips, lowered her head, and pretended to be silent. Still, she remained profoundly defiant. It was the truth—what was wrong with saying it? No matter how she looked at it, she was the one who had suffered the most in this mess. Why on earth should she apologize? She had done nothing wrong. At worst—at worst, they were even, and neither owed the other anything. Wanting her to pay money or offer an apology was out of the question—not a single fraction of a percent. She would never give in unless someone walked all over her dead body.
Squatting in the corner and witnessing the whole scene, Ke Xiaohong was nearly amused to the point of hysteria by her mother-in-law's childish and ridiculous antics. Was the woman trying to dig up the graves of the Li family's ancestors? She was certain that today's shocking outbursts from her mother-in-law would spread all over their neighborhood and even further away before long. The unmarried sons and grandsons of the Li family were utterly doomed this time.
She hadn't expected her sister-in-law's combat prowess to be off the charts. She loved it. No, she had to fan the flames and add some firewood to make this fire burn even hotter and fiercer. Only by completely muddying the waters could she fish in troubled streams. She would use their own momentum against them and bring the entire Li family crashing down.
With such a fantastic setup, how could the two elders of the Lin family not come here to demand justice for their son and grandson? She had to go notify them so they wouldn't fall behind the news and end up at a disadvantage.
No sooner thought than done. She slipped away quietly and dashed toward the home of her uncle-in-law. Because she wasn't familiar with the area, she took a few wrong turns along the way, but in the end, she managed to find it.
"Knock, knock, knock."
"Who is it?" a weathered, elderly man's voice came from inside.
The moment the door opened a tiny crack, Ke Xiaohong gasped for breath and blurted out, "Grandpa Lin, I'm Jianshe's wife. Little Sister had a miscarriage and is at the hospital, and Little Sister's husband took bamboo strips to skewer my mother-in-law and tried to kill her. Right now he's tied up, so please come with me and take a look. If you're any later, Little Sister's husband might get sent to the police station."
"Good child, what's this all about? Tell me properly."
With that, Old Man Lin locked his door, followed Ke Xiaohong's pace, and the two of them hurried toward the Li residence.
All the way there, Ke Xiaohong recounted everything that had happened today, leaving out not a single detail. The more he heard, the darker Old Man Lin's face grew. His teeth ground together loudly, and rage surged uncontrollably in his heart.
As they neared the doorway, Ke Xiaohong sidestepped and quickly darted aside to hide. Given her father-in-law's usual tricks, he would definitely want to have a private, one-on-one chat with Little Sister's husband to turn a major crisis into a minor issue and sweep it all under the rug. He might even try to threaten Little Sister's husband, and once Little Sister's husband gave in, they'd scheme to avoid paying compensation later. She needed to make these waters even muddier so she would have her chance. Furthermore, there was no one in the Li family of a higher generation than the elderly Lin couple. As long as they showed up, the Li family wouldn't just bleed money—they might even have a chunk of flesh bitten right out of them.
The plan was solid, though not quite perfect. Old Mrs. Lin—the undisputed queen of cursing across ten miles and eight streets—wasn't around today, which Ke Xiaohong felt was a huge pity, though it wouldn't affect things much.
She hurriedly and quietly followed behind Old Man Lin. Everything was ready, and since the other side might pull the trigger at any moment, she needed to rush over, seize the front-row seat, and get firsthand news.
"Where is my son? Dequan! Dequan! Li Youqing, Li Youqing, you turtle's egg, get your ass out here right now! If my son Dequan has so much as a hair on his head harmed, I'll take your life!"
Inside the house, Li Youqing heard Old Man Lin's roaring voice at the entrance and couldn't help starting with a jolt. He cursed inwardly: Who brought this stubborn old man over here? He greeted the man's eighteen generations of ancestors.
Lin Dequan, who had just been talking with Li Youqing, sprang up from his chair the instant he heard his father's voice and bolted toward the door.
"Dad! I'm right here! Here!"
Before Li Youqing even realized that a single moment of distraction had allowed Lin Dequan to bolt out of his grasp, he cursed Jiang Hongdou all over again in his heart.
"Li Youqing, what do you take yourself for? Locking up my son and running a torture session—who gave you the guts?"
The moment Lin Dequan laid eyes on his father, he instantly found his backbone. The timid, cowering look he'd worn just a moment before vanished, replaced by an arrogant posture as he stood behind Old Man Lin like a victorious rooster.
Li Youqing wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and said awkwardly, "Uncle Lin, it's a misunderstanding! It's all a misunderstanding! Weren't we just discussing things, Dequan and I? Truly, we were just talking! Look at him—he's moving freely, I really wasn't running any torture session. Besides, ordinary folk like us, poor peasants for eight generations, how could we ever pull something like that? If you don't believe me, ask Dequan yourself and see if I wasn't just talking things over nicely."
They had been in-laws for over a dozen years; who didn't know who? Old Man Lin couldn't be bothered to look at Li Youqing's hypocritical face. He turned, pulled his son over, and asked, "Son! Did he lean on you? What did he say to you? Tell your dad, Dad will back you up."
Hearing those words, the tension that had gripped Lin Dequan all day long suddenly snapped.
He wept as he said, "Dad! It's gone—it's gone! My son is gone! Sob, sob... The roots of our Lin family are completely severed. My son is gone, and the Li family doesn't feel an ounce of remorse. Just now in the room, Li Youqing even threatened me, saying that if we couldn't make this a big issue small and a small issue nothing, he'd send me to the public security bureau and make me eat a bullet! Sob, sob..."
When Old Man Lin heard this, his face flushed red, fire shot from his eyes, and he strode angrily toward Li Youqing.
Nearby, Li Youqing heard those words, and his mind filled entirely with thoughts of *It's over! I'm finished! Even if I don't die, I'll be crippled.*
Still, he tried to plead for mercy. "Uncle Lin, no, I really didn't—Dequan misunderstood, I truly didn't mean it like that. I mostly just wanted both families to sit down and talk it over together. I really didn't mean anything else, I..."
Before he could finish his sentence—*Bam!*
A fist smashed directly into Li Youqing's face.
Unable to dodge in time, Li Youqing took the blow square on. His nasal bone collapsed, and a stream of blood instantly gushed from his nose.
Jiang Li: "Dad!"
Li Jianguo: "Dad!"
Second Aunt: "Ah!"
Squatting off to the side, Ke Xiaohong covered her mouth in shock, her eyes bright and sparkling as she watched.
"Grandpa Lin is truly fierce."