Xiao Yunying slapped He Hua's face with an axe: "Have you forgotten what you went to the river for?"

"I……"

He Hua then remembered that the wooden basin containing her dirty clothes was still by the river and she hadn't brought it back.

After pushing Xiao Yunying into the river, she panicked and ran home, hiding inside the house. Her mother-in-law was cooking and didn't notice until she sat down at the table.

When her mother-in-law asked if she had finished washing the clothes, she realized she had left the basin by the river. She could only make up an excuse, saying it was too dark and the river had risen quite a bit, and she would wash them the next day.

It was already dark, and she was too scared to go to the river to get it, so she thought she would go earlier the next day to get it.

"You remember now?"

He Hua retorted stubbornly, "What are you saying? I don't understand."

"Let me be clearer. You went to the river to wash your clothes, right? You saw that I was alone there and there was no one else around, so you decided to kill me. After you pushed me into the river, you panicked and only cared about escaping the scene, so you forgot the basin by the river."

Aunt Lin said, "Didn't you say the dirty clothes were in your room?"

As he spoke, he tried to go into He Hua's room.

"No need to look for it anymore. It couldn't be in her room. I already told her she forgot it by the river and asked me to bring it. It's in the corner outside."

A young woman looked around at the doorway and said, "There really is a basin here."

She brought it in: "Auntie, please see if this is your clothing."

Aunt Lin picked up the clothes and examined them carefully. Her face immediately fell, and she threw the basin on the ground and slapped He Hua across the face.

"You vicious woman, it was you who pushed Yunying into the river."

He Hua covered her face: "Mom, you can't just listen to what she says."

"Then tell me, what's going on with this wooden basin? Why isn't it in your room, but outside?"

"I……"

There were always people at home, so it was impossible to steal it out. He Hua couldn't think of a good reason for a moment, and her face turned red and white with anxiety.

Her appearance clearly showed that she was guilty and had nothing to say. Everyone around her understood that Xiao Yunying was not lying; it was He Hua who pushed her into the river.

Aunt Lin said to Xiao Yunying, "Yunying, I know you've been wronged. He Hua was in the wrong. Put down the axe first, and we'll discuss how to compensate you and how to deal with her, okay?"

Aunt Lin didn't deny it, which calmed Xiao Yunying's anger a bit: "What did you say, Aunt?"

"How about this? Your aunt will compensate you with five taels of silver. You go back and change your clothes, then go to Uncle San's house to get your injuries treated. Tomorrow, I'll bring this stupid woman to your door to apologize in person, okay?"

Five taels of silver is a lot of money in the countryside, but did Xiao Yunying come for the money?

"Is an apology enough?"

He Hua shouted, "What else do you want? You're not dead. You just broke your head. Who knows if you got hurt in the river? Maybe you fell on the riverbank."

In fact, as soon as these words were spoken, anyone with a bit of sense could tell that He Hua was admitting that she was the one who pushed him.

Xiao Yunying's anger, which had been slightly calmed down by Aunt Lin, flared up again: "I'm lucky I didn't die, not because you didn't lay a hand on me. Shouting so loudly, do you think you're right to kill someone? Let me tell you what I want. I'm going to send you to the authorities. I hope you can still talk to me so confidently after the murder conviction is handed down."

He Hua frantically grabbed Aunt Lin's sleeve: "Mother, please save me, I don't want to go to the government office."

"Let go of me, you stupid and vicious thing! You even dared to kill someone. How could I have been so blind as to let you into my house?"

"Mom, you can't abandon me. Think of your two grandsons. They can't live without me."

Hearing He Hua mention her two grandsons, Aunt Lin became even angrier, but she couldn't really ignore her and let her go to jail, after all, she was her son's wife and her grandsons' mother.

“Yun Ying, how about this? I’ll compensate you with ten taels of silver. Don’t stoop to this stupid woman’s level. Just let her go this time, considering that your brother Lin saved you before.”

“Auntie, do you know that she has come to cause me trouble several times before? I have tolerated her a lot because of Brother Lin. This time, she wants to kill me. I will not tolerate it anymore.”

Seeing that Xiao Yunying wouldn't budge, He Hua simply started throwing a tantrum: "Don't push your luck. Ten taels of silver can buy a person. Is your life worth ten taels? It's just a wooden basin. So what if I forgot it by the river? What kind of evidence is that? Did anyone see me push you? Don't try to scare people. The county magistrate needs witnesses and physical evidence to judge a case. He can't convict me just by listening to a few words from you."

Xiao Yunying was surprised that He Hua, a mere village woman, knew so much: "You've reminded me. To be honest, I'm not really confident that I can convince the magistrate that you are guilty. In that case, let's not go to the government office."

He Hua thought Xiao Yunying had given in and secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Just as Aunt Lin was about to say that she was going back to the house to get the silver, she saw Xiao Yunying raise the axe high.

“You killed me once, I’ll return the favor once. I’m lucky I survived. As for whether you can live, that depends on whether your skull is as hard as my axe. How about that, fair?”