Chapter 176 Going Home

Zhao Qian was beaten black and blue, and his legs were also weak, so he walked away with a limp.

Several times, Cuicui wanted to chase after him and help him home.

But the thought of being beaten when she got back made her stand beside her mother, clutching her sleeve tightly and weeping.

When the Song siblings arrived at the north room, they immediately saw blood on the floor.

"What bad luck! I'll go get a shovel and scrape it up." Song Chunmei turned around and went to the woodshed in the yard, got a shovel, scooped up the blood on the ground, and swept it into a dustpan.

The ground is made of compacted loess, but the soil wears down and becomes pitted and uneven when it gets wet.

There was a pit under the threshold, and a lot of dirt had been rubbed off where Song Chunmei and her husband had fought. If you looked closely, you could even see the marks left by their clothes.

Song Chunmei took a broom and gently swept the floor.

"Waaah, I've never felt so relieved in my life," Song Chunmei said, wiping away tears as she swept. "I'm so pathetic, I'm such a coward. I've been a coward for twenty years, but today I finally stood up for myself. Waaah, I didn't bring shame to the Song family."

"..." Song Chunxue covered her face, she really couldn't bear to look.

"Alright, stop crying. If you can be like this when you return to the Zhao family, then I will respect you as a real man." Song Zhizhu comforted her, "The Taoist priest helped you, remember to repay his kindness in the future."

As he spoke, he took out several lucky charms from his pocket, "These were left by the Taoist priest yesterday, one for each of you three."

Song Chunxue also accepted one.

She took out the two notes that the Taoist priest had given her from the package and gave them to her third and fourth sisters.

“I still have some of those my senior brother gave me last time. I heard they’re even more effective,” Song Chunxue said solemnly. “Keep them close to your body and don’t lose them. They should work.”

"Okay, I'll use this one first."

"Fifth brother, you love picking up money because of this lucky charm, right? How could you bear to give it to us?" Song Chunmei said, choking back tears. "If it weren't for you, Third sister would have been treated like an animal by Zhao Qian for the rest of her life."

As she spoke, she hugged Song Chunxue and burst into tears, "Fifth brother, thank you so much. I will definitely bring a rooster to your house next time."

"Okay, okay, I'll wait for you." Song Chunxue patted her back. "Now, I've fulfilled my biggest wish during this time."

As she spoke, she suddenly remembered something and took out a small silver brick from her bundle. “Second brother, this is for you and second sister. You two get the least, and the three of us each get two.”

Song Zhizhu picked it up and looked at it, then his eyes widened. "Damn it, this is silver?"

"Well, please keep this a secret, Second Brother, Third Sister, and Fourth Sister. These were dug up by the Taoist priest, and I shared some with you. But I promise I will never do such a thing again. It's better to just pick them up from the river."

"I originally planned to stay for seven or eight days before going back, but now that everything is done and I've seen my third sister beat Zhao Qian, it was a worthwhile trip."

Song Chunxue smiled slightly and said, "I still have two little rascals at home. Although they won't starve, I'm worried about them. Third Sister, please stay a few more days. I'll go back tomorrow."

The others held the things Song Chunxue had given them, their hearts filled with mixed feelings.

"Since you've made up your mind, I won't keep you any longer," Song Chunlian said. "You've picked up some good stuff, so it's best to go back and put it away as soon as possible."

"Then I'll kill a rooster tonight, eat you, and then go back?"

Song Chunxue smiled, her eyes narrowing. "Okay, I want chicken blood noodles."

“I’ll knead the dough,” Song Chunmei said with a smile. “My chicken blood noodles are really chewy.”

Song Zhizhu weighed the silver in his hand. "Then I... thank you, Fifth Brother. You gave me so much silver so readily. It seems that Second Brother will have to rely on you from now on."

He sighed, "Fifth brother has suffered the most among you, but now God has been kind to you and your luck has turned around, allowing you to live a good life. From now on, you should live well and not get carried away just because you have money. You should live a down-to-earth life."

"Don't flaunt your wealth. Never let outsiders know you've made a fortune. If anything happens, just send someone to tell me, and I'll definitely come."

He stood up and said, "I won't eat the chicken. Your sister-in-law is waiting for me. I'll visit you all one by one during the New Year."

"Oh, by the way, if Zhao Qian hits you next time, or if the Zhao family bullies you, have Cuicui come and call me. I'll definitely back you up, understand?"

"I understand, Second Brother." Song Chunmei grabbed his arm, her eyes a little moist. "I'll definitely cause you trouble in the future."

The three sisters laughed and saw him out of the courtyard.

The Song sisters couldn't help but chuckle as they watched their second brother take out small silver bricks to examine them closely.

Song Chunlian took a basket, preparing to gather firewood and boil water, "Let's kill the chicken and eat meat early, and have chicken blood noodles for dinner."

"Alright, I'll kill this chicken today. I've always been afraid to kill chickens; I lacked courage and didn't dare to resist," Song Chunmei said through gritted teeth. "Today, I'll start with the rooster from my fourth sister's house!"

...

In the evening, the three sisters, having eaten and drunk their fill, sat on the heated kang (a traditional heated brick bed), leaning against the quilts, each picking their teeth with a bamboo strip they had broken off from under the wool felt or bamboo mat on the kang.

Ah Lai had already gone to sleep.

Cui Cui was already asleep, snoring softly.

They stared at the white candle on the table, lost in thought.

Song Chunmei spoke first, "I see there's no moon tonight, and only a few stars. It's gloomy. I reckon it'll snow tomorrow."

"If it snows, we'll stay a few more days. Anyway, the fifth brother's kids can cook, unlike the Zhao father and son who are good for nothing."

Song Chunxue smiled and said, "Even if it snows, I have to go back."

"Oh, by the way, the story of you almost slitting someone's throat with a knife at Chen Guangcai's house has been all over the place in our villages. Did you really fall out with the Chen family?"

"Well, it would be unreasonable not to turn against them."

Song Chunxue recounted in detail to her two older sisters how her senior brother discovered that Chen Feng had buried talismans in his home.

“In the future, if Chen Feng instigates the eldest brother to come and ask for money, I will have to see the eldest brother’s attitude. If he sides with Chen Feng, I will not give him any of the family’s money or land. If he is sensible, I may share some with him, but not much.”

Song Chunmei looked surprised. "Your in-laws are such scoundrels, but didn't you used to dote on the eldest son the most?"

"Now it's the other way around. It's my fault for spoiling him too much, making him think that I was born to treat him the best."

“That’s true. Even if some children are spoiled, they still know how to be grateful,” Song Chunlian asked curiously. “Now that you have gold and silver, will you still support your three children’s education? Who will you live with in your old age?”

Song Chunxue seemed to be deep in thought. "I will buy a courtyard house for Sanwa in the city so that he can study until he doesn't want to anymore. As for retirement," she smiled faintly, "I will try my best to take good care of my health and die without illness or disaster, so I will cultivate myself well in this life."

“You’re a woman alone, life will definitely be tough for you in the future. You’re still young, and you’ll encounter all sorts of scoundrels with ulterior motives. If you don’t have any skills, you’ll definitely suffer,” Song Chunlian advised her. “If all else fails, you can find someone to rely on in the city. As your older sister, I don’t have any skills and can’t help you much.”

Song Chunxue didn't take it to heart.

The next day, she rode a donkey home.

As soon as she arrived at her doorstep, she was so angry at the scene before her that she clenched her fists, gritted her teeth, and rushed over!