Chapter 756 - 389: Madam Yang Felled by Anger (Part 2)

Chapter 756: Chapter 389: Madam Yang Felled by Anger (Part 2)

It wasn’t that they couldn’t come up with the money, but being forced to pay like this was galling. To be squeezed by someone they had once helped was even more disheartening. Their family had always been good to the villagers—so much so that bringing one child to attend the school was nothing. They could have brought two or three and it still would have been reasonable.

Mrs. Wang was already wiping away her tears, calculating that if it came to it, she would have to go back and sell her land.

’At least fifty taels of silver... where would she get that kind of money? No matter how wealthy her daughter’s family and eldest son’s family were, they had earned it themselves. They each had their own grandchildren and large families to support—how could she bring herself to ask? And then there’s that good-for-nothing second daughter-in-law. If she were a bit more virtuous and less detestable, things might be different. But she’s so obnoxious that everyone despises her, and none of the siblings can stand her. Isn’t this just what she deserves?’

Seeing her grandmother’s distress, Juhua comforted her. "Grandma, don’t worry. This isn’t set in stone. No matter what, Laishou is going to continue his studies."

A lump of anger lodged in Yang Family’s chest, making it hard to breathe. She shot to her feet and raged, "I’m going to her house and I’ll curse her ancestors back eight generations! If she won’t let us live in peace, then we’ll drag all her dirty laundry into the open and see who’s the one to lose face!"

"Mother, you can’t do that," Qingmu and Juhua said at the same time, trying to stop her.

Qingmu reasoned with her, "Mother, calm down first. This afternoon, Huai Zi and I will go check things out. Tonight, we can visit Scholar Zhou’s home and speak with him in private. You can trust me and Juhua to handle this, can’t you?"

Juhua added, "This isn’t the time to pick a fight with her. We need to secure Laishou’s place in school first. If you go storming over there to curse her out, even if you win the shouting match, it won’t solve anything, will it? It will just make Scholar Zhou look down on us and say we country folk are crude and uncivilized. My brother is an educated man; we can’t let people say such things."

Persuaded, Yang Family had no comeback. She only felt the suffocating tightness in her chest, followed by a wave of dizziness. Her vision blurred, and she began to sway, but everyone was so busy discussing the plan to visit the school that afternoon that no one noticed.

Liu Yunlan, having just finished cooking, came out of the kitchen to call everyone for the meal. The first thing she saw was her mother-in-law swaying unsteadily, one hand pressed to her forehead. Crying out in alarm, Liu Yunlan rushed forward and caught her. "Mother, what’s wrong?"

Everyone turned and finally saw that Yang Family’s face was deathly pale, her lips trembling. Terrified, they all swarmed around her, asking what was wrong.

Zheng Changhe was the most frantic of all. He grabbed Yang Family’s arm, asking in a rush, "What is it? What’s wrong? Don’t be angry. Once we get Laishou’s schooling sorted out, I swear I’ll make Sun Jinshan pay—" Before he could finish, Yang Family shoved his hand away, turned her head, and vomited all over the ground with a wretched sound.

Juhua was terribly worried. "Brother, get a chair, quickly!" she shouted. "Let Mother sit and catch her breath. Don’t move her yet." She knew her mother had been pushed past her limit by sheer anger, and her own heart ached to see it.

Just then, Laishou returned. Mrs. Wang pulled him into her arms and sobbed, "Oh, this is a sin! It’s all my fault. This useless old woman has caused all this trouble for your great-aunt. She was living peacefully, and if I hadn’t brought you here for school, this wouldn’t have happened. Sob... Laishou, let’s just forget about school. We can’t let your great-aunt be subjected to criticism. Look how they’ve angered her..."

Laishou didn’t say a word, but tears welled up in his eyes.

Liu Yunlan quickly cut in, "Grandma, you can’t say that. If Laishou goes back now, it means he was forced out. Wouldn’t that make Mother even angrier?"

Juhua was helping Yang Family drink some water while Qingmu patted her back to soothe her breathing. Zheng Changhe held one of his wife’s hands, his own eyes red. Zhang Dashuan had already bolted off to fetch He and Huai Zi.

Agreeing with her sister-in-law, Juhua said to Mrs. Wang, "Grandma, Mother is already suffering. Please don’t add to her worries. Father and my brother will handle this, and my Huai Zi won’t just stand by and watch. Don’t worry. It would probably help more if you said a few comforting words to her."

Realizing she had lost her composure, Mrs. Wang wiped her tears and went to check on Yang Family.

After rinsing her mouth, Yang Family felt a bit better, though still weak. Leaning back in the chair, she spoke softly to the others. "Don’t worry, I’m fine. It’s just... my heart feels heavy. Yunlan, I have a bitter taste in my mouth. Could you get me some pickled bamboo shoots?"

Liu Yunlan readily agreed and hurried to the kitchen to get them.

A moment later, He and Zhang Huai arrived. After a flurry of questions, He began cursing nonstop while Zhang Huai spoke quietly with Qingmu. Liu Yunlan and Juhua stayed by Yang Family’s side, comforting her and feeding her pickled bamboo shoots and sips of water. Mrs. Wang also offered gentle words of solace. Meanwhile, Zheng Changhe went to the stove, scooped up some ash, and cleaned up the mess his wife had made.

Little Hulu squeezed his way to stand before his grandmother. He patted her hand and declared, "Grandma, don’t be mad! Hulu will hit her for you!"

He only said this because he had just heard his mother and aunt telling his grandmother not to be angry.

Yang Family’s heart softened at his words. Taking his small hand, she said, "Alright, Grandma will listen to Hulu. I won’t be angry. It’s not worth getting upset over that woman. She’ll get what’s coming to her sooner or later."

Mrs. Wang nodded in agreement, stroking Laishou’s head. "Laishou, when you grow up, you must be good to your great-aunt. Look at what she’s gone through for the sake of your education. If you manage to become a Scholar..."

Her words trailed off as she suddenly noticed a large bruise on one of Laishou’s cheeks and two bloody scratches by his ear. "What’s this?" she asked, her voice sharp. "Who hit you? Laishou, did you get into a fight at school?"

At her cry, all eyes turned to Laishou.

Laishou, only seven years old, was the complete opposite of his brother Laicai. He was a quiet, gentle boy. At the question, he covered his face with one hand, turning away to avoid his great-grandmother’s scrutiny. "I didn’t fight," he mumbled. "I just bumped into something." 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

But as he lifted his arm, Yang Family and the others saw a dark, purple ring of bruises circling his wrist.