The second aunt believed that it was through her efforts that Yun Shenghua softened his heart and let her go. At that moment, she didn't even give Yun Ling a good look and wished she could return the grievances she had suffered at Yun Shenghua's hands.

Unexpectedly, Yun Shenghua continued:

“Ling’er, I think it would be better to go directly to your parents’ house and bring your mother over as well. We can clear things up in front of everyone, so that when your second brother and sister-in-law go back, they won’t turn white into black, which would damage the relationship between our two families.”

Yunling couldn't suppress the smile that was playing on her lips. She knew her father was a man of principle, and her mother truly had good judgment.

“Father is absolutely right. Please stay here and search for my sister’s whereabouts. I will hurry back to fetch my mother. Let’s settle our differences face to face.”

Yun Shenghua nodded in agreement, then jumped down from the carriage. After Yun Ling left, he walked forward while calling out:

"Chu-jie? Chu-jie, where are you? Father is here, Chu-jie."

When the second aunt heard that the accounts were to be settled, her face turned green. She hurriedly told Fang Li to run home, and then she and her second uncle, without even caring about the donkey cart, followed Yun Shenghua to find Yun Chu.

Yun Chu is different from Yun Ling, who doesn't care about family ties, and she's not as eloquent as Yun Ling. If she can get away with it, there might be a chance for things to turn around.

With this belief, the second aunt also pulled her second uncle along, following behind Yun Shenghua and shouting.

"Sister Chu, Sister Chu, come out quickly! We've all been looking for you."

"Chu'er, your father and mother are here, come out quickly."

Yun Chu first heard Yun Shenghua calling, then her second aunt and second uncle, but she couldn't hear Yun Ling's voice. She felt a little flustered and didn't know whether she should get off the bus.

She had experienced her second aunt's sharp tongue before, and her father, unaware of the full story, might be deceived by her second aunt's clever words.

However, it's not a long-term solution for her to stay on Shen Changliu's donkey cart indefinitely.

"Senior brother, I..."

How do your family members treat you?

"Very well, why do you ask that, senior brother?"

"Since it's so good, then you don't need to worry, go ahead."

For some reason, Yun Chu was willing to believe anything Shen Changliu said. So she returned the old clothes to him, secretly got off the donkey cart, and ran in small steps to the direction where Yun Shenghua was calling out, calling out:

"Father, I'm here."

Yun Shenghua excitedly ran towards Yun Chu's direction. Seeing that Yun Chu was alright, he was finally able to relax.

"Oh, so this is where Sister Chu is! We've been looking for her for ages."

When Yun Chu saw that her second aunt and uncle had also arrived, she felt a mix of emotions. Although it was the height of summer and her clothes would dry quickly, and it was dark at night, making it difficult to see her clothes, she still hesitated about whether she should tell Yun Shenghua about falling into the pond.

"Chu-jie, Ling-jie has already made everything clear. Now go home and bring your mother over. We can talk things out face to face then."

When Yun Chu heard that Yun Ling had just come over and had already said everything, she was no longer so afraid. At the same time, she didn't say anything to avoid saying too much and making a mistake. She just quietly waited beside Yun Shenghua, and her second aunt couldn't get a word in edgewise.

Yun Shenghua led Yun Chu to Old Man Zhang's house. As soon as they entered, his aunt, who was holding a bowl of rice, looked on in astonishment upon seeing them.

"Why are Brother Hua and Sister Chu here?"

Yun Shenghua remained silent, and Yun Chu naturally kept quiet as well.

The eldest aunt was somewhat embarrassed, but seeing the robust-looking second aunt and uncle behind them, she sensed something was amiss and asked again:

"Would you like to have dinner together? Today..."

Old Man Zhang and Old Woman Zhang also came out of the house. Seeing this scene, they looked at each other and were about to ask questions when Yun Shenghua spoke first:

"Father-in-law, mother-in-law, I have come today to tell you something, but it is a rather serious matter. Let's wait for Chunniang to arrive before we talk about it together."

The word "serious" was like an invisible nail, piercing the hearts of the second aunt and uncle. They were so uncomfortable that they couldn't stand or sit still. Their scalps tingled, and their hearts were filled with panic. They really wished they could dig the deepest hole and bury themselves in it.

Before long, Yunling arrived with Zhang Shi. Seeing Zhang Shi's red and wet eyes, it seemed that she already knew the reason for what happened and had cried about it.

She hugged Yun Chu, looked her over from left to right, and touched her slightly damp clothes. She felt incredibly sorry for her until Yun Chu said she was alright, at which point she managed to calm herself down a little.

“Sister, please tell me everything that just happened, one by one, and don’t leave anything out.”

Yun Chu responded with a "okay" and began to speak:

“I was just staying at Ren'an Hall when my second aunt and uncle suddenly came to find me, saying that my eldest cousin was getting married today… Luckily, I can swim, so I escaped a disaster.”

"That so-called admirer is my second aunt's nephew."

With Yunling's addition, Old Man Zhang's face turned red with anger. He immediately slammed his fist on the table, stood up, and angrily pointed at his second uncle, cursing:

"You unfilial son! You've lost your mind! This is your own niece, how could you do such a thing?!"

My second uncle was the most easily frightened; upon hearing that shout, his legs went weak, and he immediately knelt down.

"Father, I...I...I..."

"You also have a daughter. If someone schemed against your daughter like this, how would you feel?"

"Father, I was wrong, Father, I..."

Old Man Zhang immediately went to the woodshed, picked out the thickest stick, and, filled with rage, slammed it down on his second uncle. The second uncle cried out in pain, the sound so loud that his second aunt's heart clenched instantly.

Second Aunt knew that the old man wouldn't let this go unpunished. She knew her son's temperament all too well; he would never do such a thing. So she must have guessed that it was all her doing.

She couldn't hit her, so she vented her anger on her own husband.

But this stick is really powerful. One or two blows are fine, but if it keeps hitting you, you'll lose your life.

"Your third sister has always treated our family so well, and this is how you repay her?"

As Old Man Zhang spoke, he struck again with the stick. Second Uncle, unable to withstand the blow, collapsed to the ground. Old Man Zhang raised the stick to strike again, but Second Uncle's wife quickly caught it.

"Dad, are you going to beat him to death? He's your own son!"

"Chu-jie is Chun-niang's biological daughter."

Old Man Zhang was ruthless when he got angry. He lifted the stick up and then brought it down from another angle...