Zhang Cuihua was quite angry with Madam Lu, but she didn't dare to confront Madam Lu directly, so she pinched Li Yuantian's thigh hard.

Li Yuantian winced in pain but made no sound. This wasn't the first time he'd known his mother favored his second brother.

But to his utter surprise, when Erwa got into trouble, instead of looking for help, she was causing trouble on the sidelines. The more he thought about it, the colder he felt.

The villagers weren't unaware of Zhang Cuihua's character, but they didn't hold it against her because Li Yuantian and Erwa's mother were usually kind and gentle.

Seeing that Li Yuantian remained unmoved, Zhang Cuihua pinched Li Yuantian's thigh flesh hard again.

Li Yuantian couldn't help but hiss softly, breaking free from his mother's embrace, and said, "Erwa is in trouble. Why didn't my second brother come up the mountain to help search for him?"

Zhang Cuihua didn't expect Li Yuantian to ask such a question. She stammered, "He's weak and has never done heavy work, so I let him study at home."

Li Yuantian never expected that his mother and second brother would be like this. While the whole village was helping to find Erwa, his second brother was actually studying at home.

For the sake of passing the imperial examination for five consecutive years, Li Yuantian was not only heartbroken, he was utterly devastated!

Li Yuantian closed his eyes and said, "I often tell Erwa's mother to be filial to her, but I never expected that she would still be so intolerant of her."

"When Erwa got into trouble, all I wanted to do was skin her alive. She poured your foot bath water every day, don't you feel guilty?"

Zhang Cuihua opened her mouth but couldn't speak. She felt as if her eldest son was possessed by a ghost, and she couldn't understand a single word he said.

“From today onwards, let’s separate the family. Anyway, I’m married and have children, and I have my own little family to support. There’s no need to support my ungrateful brother.”

"If you want to live with me, then you should treat Erwa's mother better from now on. If you don't want to live with me, I will still give you money every month and take care of you in your old age and when you die."

After saying that, Li Yuantian turned around and continued looking for Erwa, not giving Zhang Cuihua a single extra glance.

Zhang Cuihua didn't know why things had turned out this way. She knelt on the ground, crying with snot and tears streaming down her face, calling out Li Yuantian's name.

After watching the farce, Lu Qiqi was pulled aside by Madam Li to check for any injuries.

"Third Aunt, I'm not hurt. She didn't even touch me before Zhou Yi pushed me down."

Li was still worried and ignored Lu Qiqi's words, checking on her herself until she was sure that Lu Qiqi was not injured before she breathed a sigh of relief.

Li said, "I was terrified when I heard that you were almost pushed off the mountain. Forget about Erwa and Sanwa, the most important thing is to protect yourself."

"Okay, Auntie, I'll make sure I'm safe next time," Lu Qiqi said obediently.

“There will be no next time!” said Mrs. Lu.

Fearing that Madam Lu would turn her anger on her, Lu Qiqi quickly praised Madam Lu, "Auntie is so powerful! I never expected that old woman to treat her son and daughter-in-law so harshly."

Madam Lu glanced at Lu Qiqi and said irritably, "Who says otherwise? It's a good thing that Erwa's mother can tolerate it. If it were anyone else, they would have already made a fuss about separating the family. Why would they still support that useless younger brother-in-law?"

"It's just a pity for Erwa. It's so cold in the mountains. If he can't be found by night, even if he's not carried off by wolves, he'll freeze to death in this weather."

Lu Qiqi recalled her earlier interrupted speculation and said to Lu Dahai, "Third Uncle, when I was examining the bloodstains just now, I saw that the hillside next to us was bottomless."

"I suspect that Erwa slipped and fell by accident."

"Would someone who fell down the hillside survive?" Li asked.

Lu Dahai said in a deep voice, "Whether they exist or not, we must go and find them. We must find them alive or dead."

"I'll go tell the villagers to look for someone down the hillside. It's not safe up the mountain, so you should all go back first."

“Third Uncle, Wangcai and I will go with you,” Lu Qiqi said. “Wangcai has a keen sense of smell, so having it find people will definitely be twice as effective.”

Lu Dahai nodded, and Li and Lu went down the mountain.

Lu Qiqi led Wangcai to the bottom of the hillside. The bottom of the hillside was covered with withered branches and leaves, and it felt soft and spongy underfoot.

Lu Qiqi thought this was a good thing. In a place like this, as long as Erwa didn't fall and hit a vital spot, he would basically be safe from death.

Previously, Lu Qiqi had Wangcai smell Erwa's bloodstains, hoping that Wangcai, which had drunk a lot of spiritual spring water, would be able to use its sense of smell.

The ground beneath the dead leaves was covered with twigs that crunched underfoot, and there were often deep holes where one step could bury half of your calf in leaves.

Therefore, the villagers walked very carefully, while Wangcai, with some natural animal instincts, walked on the ground as if it were flat ground.

After Wangcai walked away, Lu Qiqi carefully patted the path before continuing.

Finally, Lu Qiqi picked up a stick and, like a blind person exploring the way, poked and prodded her way forward, but she was still much faster than before.

"Awoo~ Awoo~ Awoo~," Wangcai stopped and barked three times.

"Erwa!"

"Erwa is over there!"

A sharp-eyed villager spotted Erwa lying on the ground, and everyone's hearts, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled down.

Lu Qiqi also breathed a sigh of relief. She hoped that Erwa would be safe and sound, otherwise Li Yuantian and his wife would spend the rest of their lives in regret.

However, their hearts were not at ease for long before they were immediately on edge again!

"Snake! There's a snake!"

As Lu Qiqi walked ahead and took a closer look, she saw a black and white snake, about the size of a wrist and nearly two meters long, slithering towards Erwa.

It's a poisonous snake!

Lu Qiqi immediately swung the stick in her hand at the venomous snake, hoping to attract its attention and make it attack her instead.

Unexpectedly, the venomous snake was not disturbed by Lu Qiqi at all and continued to twist and move towards Erwa, as if it had a clear goal, like there was some treasure ahead.

Lu Qiqi didn't have time to think it over. She pulled out a dagger and rushed towards the poisonous snake.

"Seven Seven!"

"Seventh Girl!"

Lu Dahai and Li Changlong watched as Lu Qiqi rushed forward fearlessly, and they shouted urgently.

That's a venomous snake up ahead! If you get bitten by one, there's absolutely no chance of survival!

Li Yuantian never expected that Lu Qiqi would disregard her own safety and rush forward with a knife just for the sake of his second child.

He had no way to repay such a great kindness! If given the chance, he would do anything for Lu Qiqi!

The venomous snake seemed to sense the gleaming blade in Lu Qiqi's hand. It suddenly twisted its body, curled its tail together, and prepared to strike Lu Qiqi with a fatal blow.

Lu Qiqi wasn't stupid either. As the saying goes, "strike the snake at its seven-inch spot," she was also looking for the right moment to kill the venomous snake with one blow.

Just as Lu Qiqi and the poisonous snake were facing off, Erwa was awakened by the noise around him.

He slowly sat up, rubbed his eyes, and when he opened them again, he saw a big dog standing next to him.

The big dog stuck out its tongue and drooled a drop. Erwa was immediately terrified, his face turned pale, and he burst into tears.

Just then, the venomous snake suddenly opened its mouth wide, raised its fangs, and launched a fierce attack on Lu Qiqi!