Lin's mother sat anxiously on the living room sofa, glancing at the door every now and then, silently praying for something. Time passed by, and the sky outside the window gradually darkened, but Lin's father still hadn't returned home.

Lin's mother grew increasingly anxious. She paced restlessly around the room, her mind filled with ominous thoughts, fearing that Lin's father had encountered another accident. Unable to bear the torment any longer, she decided to go out and search for him herself.

Just as Lin's mother was hurriedly packing her things, preparing to step out of the house, she suddenly heard the familiar sound of a key turning in the lock. Her heart leaped with joy, and she quickly stopped what she was doing and hurried towards the door.

The door opened, and Lin's father walked wearily into the house. His steps were heavy, fine beads of sweat clung to his forehead, and his clothes were slightly disheveled. Seeing this, Lin's mother felt a pang of heartache and rushed to greet him, asking with concern, "Old Lin, what's wrong? What happened to Fei'er?"

Lin's father's face was so dark it seemed to drip water, a grim, oppressive like the sky after a storm. He sat upright in his chair, his body ramrod straight, motionless like a statue. At this moment, he was like a silent volcano; though his surface was calm, a raging fire was likely brewing within him.

Standing to the side, Lin's mother, seeing her husband's state, couldn't help but feel annoyed. She raised her voice, her tone sharp and loud as she questioned, "I'm asking you, what's wrong with Fei'er?" Her question echoed in the room, seemingly about to pierce the roof and reach the heavens. However, faced with his wife's questioning, Lin's father remained silent, his lips tightly pressed together, as if he had shut out the entire world from himself.

Suddenly, Lin's father turned around, his eyes as cold and vicious as a venomous snake hidden in the darkness, staring intently at Lin's mother. He stood up abruptly, like a raging beast, and without hesitation, slapped Lin's mother hard across the face.

The slap was incredibly fast and powerful; a sharp "crack" resounded, like a thunderclap exploding in the air. Lin's mother had no time to react before the force of the blow sent her sprawling to the ground. Her cheek instantly swelled and turned red, blood trickled from the corner of her mouth, and two teeth were spit out along with the blood.

Lin's mother was completely stunned by this sudden turn of events. Her eyes widened, her face filled with disbelief as she stared at the man who had once shared her joys and sorrows, her heart brimming with doubt and fear. What had happened? Why was her husband treating her so cruelly?

However, before Lin's mother could recover from the shock, more misfortunes followed. Earlier that day, her daughter had been beaten so badly by her vicious mother-in-law that she miscarried; the unborn child died in the womb. And now, her only son had been arrested by the police for unknown reasons. These successive blows left Lin's mother feeling dizzy and disoriented, as if her entire world had collapsed.

Now her husband has knocked out two of her teeth! Her emotions surged instantly. She burst into loud, hysterical sobs. Mr. Lin tried to hit her again, but Mrs. Lin, terrified, scrambled to her feet and yelled at him!

"Lin Jianhua, if you have the guts, just kill me today. Anyway, my son is in jail, so there's no point in me living."

Mr. Lin stared wide-eyed at Mrs. Lin, who was throwing a tantrum and acting completely out of character, his heart filled with anger and helplessness. He deflated like a punctured balloon, his body limp, and slowly walked to a chair behind him. He slumped down heavily, let out a long sigh, and then spoke with reproach and resentment: "Look what you've spoiled our son into! It's all your fault that he's ended up like this! You've been secretly paying off his gambling debts behind my back—you kept it a secret so well! And that time he went to the steel mill to steal steel to resell, and instead of scolding him, you praised him for being capable! Do you have any sense of right and wrong?! Now look at him, getting bolder and bolder, he even dared to rob someone in the street! Luckily, no one was hurt, otherwise our family would be completely ruined! The police said that because his attitude towards admitting his guilt was relatively good, he only got ten years. Humph! A whole ten years! Tell me, what hope will he have for life when he gets out of jail?"

Lin's mother, who had been crying and making a scene on the ground, was stunned as if struck by lightning after hearing Lin's father's words. After a long while, she finally came to her senses, her mouth trembling as she asked, her voice shaking, "Fei'er... is he really going to be sentenced to ten years? What are we going to do? No, we can't just watch him go to jail. We have to find a way to save him. Maybe we should pay more compensation, or try to find connections, or maybe we should go to Beijing..." However, before she could finish, Lin's father rudely interrupted her, "Enough! Stop daydreaming! No one can save him this time. Even if we run ourselves ragged and exhaust all our savings, it won't help! You should honestly think about where to borrow money to pay off his debts! Also, from now on, I don't want to hear the words 'Beijing' from your mouth again!"

Upon hearing this, Lin's mother's face turned deathly pale, and she swayed involuntarily. Enduring the burning pain on her cheeks, she gritted her teeth, turned, and went into the kitchen, silently reheating the now-cold food. A heavy, oppressive atmosphere filled the entire house, making it feel suffocating.