"Auntie, you've got some nerve! Aren't you afraid Tang Wenzhi will come after you? Do you hate his child that much? What good will it do you to kick him out? He can't even tolerate that dilapidated house, what do you want?" Qin Xiaoyu trembled with anger, her voice rising higher and higher. Hearing the commotion outside, her cousin-in-law ran out, but seeing Qin Xiaoyu arguing with her mother-in-law, she didn't dare come over.

"What nonsense are you talking about? Get out of the way, you're blocking the way!" The old lady raised her hand and shoved Qin Xiaoyu, who was thin and weak, and was no match for her. She took two steps back and bumped into a bicycle in the aisle.

"Don't hit my mom!" Hanhan, who was playing in the yard, rushed over and stood in front of Qin Xiaoyu to protect her.

"Get out of here, you little brat!" The old woman kicked out, sending Hanhan tumbling to the side. The little girl, who had been watching blankly, saw her brother being hit and rushed over, swinging the lantern she was holding at the old woman. The lantern was made of glass and quite heavy; it was unclear where she got the strength, but the old woman winced as she hit her, snatched the lantern, and swung the handle at the little girl's head.

Qin Xiaoyu had just been hit quite hard, and her lower back was so sore she almost cried, not knowing where she had put the cushion. But seeing the two children being beaten, she couldn't care less. She rushed over, grabbed the old woman around the waist, and slammed her backward. There were all sorts of debris behind them, and the impact was quite severe; the old woman's legs gave way, and she fell to the ground. Qin Xiaoyu took the opportunity to straddle her, holding down her arms. Just as she was lamenting that she didn't have another hand to hit her, Hanhan and her younger sister rushed over, scratching and biting, and the three of them gave the old woman a good beating.

At first, my cousin-in-law was anxious about how to save the mother and her two children, but she couldn't directly fight her mother-in-law. When she saw that they had the upper hand, she stopped worrying and just cried out in pain, pretending to try to stop the fight, but she refused to take a step forward.

Grandma Hanhan was eating noodles in the main room, still angry, when she heard the commotion outside. When she came out, she saw that her aunt had already weakened. She had been bullied by her aunt ever since she married into the family, and had never seen such a humiliating scene before. She imitated her cousin-in-law and shouted nonsense, all bark and no bite.

The gate was open, and when neighbors heard the commotion, they all crowded over to see what was going on. The old lady was already unpopular, and now she was being pointed at and gossiped about even more.

"This is bullying a widow and her child. Even a rabbit will bite when cornered."

"That's right. You see, when the house was being repaired, she, as an old woman, didn't lift a finger and even made veiled criticisms."

"He's obviously no good, serves him right!"

Fortunately, Uncle Wenzhi came home from get off work and separated the four of them. The old woman's face was scratched all over, and she limped back to the main house.

Qin Xiaoyu got up, tied her hair up, picked up her little sister, and pulled Hanhan along as she strode into the house.

My cousin-in-law and Grandma Hanhan, each with their own thoughts, exchanged a glance, then hurriedly went to close the door and went back to their room, feeling guilty.

Sitting in the house, Qin Xiaoyu calmed down and realized that she had gone a bit too far today. Actually, her aunt had been targeting her all along, just trying to provoke her into moving out. Now, with her outburst, she had probably fallen right into the trap.

Hanhan fetched water for her little sister to wash up, then washed a hot towel and handed it to Qin Xiaoyu. Qin Xiaoyu looked at his face, which was covered in dirt and sweat, and couldn't help but smile knowingly. Although teaching children to fight wasn't a good thing, a person couldn't live too cowardly a life. Sometimes, one had to have the courage to fight to keep the situation under control. He was a man, and this was a lesson he needed to learn.

Bang! The door was kicked open, and there stood the madam, her face ashen, carrying a bag of mooncakes—the very same bag Qin Xiaoyu had delivered. Qin Xiaoyu was startled. Was she here to settle scores? To help the matriarch clean house?

"Madam," Qin Xiaoyu said timidly. Now she had to show weakness, maybe she could get through this.

"Open the mooncake package," the lady said, walking steadily in with her cane and placing the mooncake package on the table.

Qin Xiaoyu was puzzled, but she opened it anyway. She untied the string and was surprised to find a red envelope on top of the mooncake. She opened the envelope and found two ten-yuan bills inside.

"What is this?" Qin Xiaoyu was bewildered.

"How would I know? There was money inside the mooncakes you sent. You're asking me what it is?" The lady's face remained calm, but her tone softened.

"This, this mooncake was given to me by my apprentice's master..." Qin Xiaoyu said, then suddenly realized that it was given to her by Master Wang. It was agreed that she would not be paid during her apprenticeship, but she still secretly gave him a red envelope. If the mooncake had not been given to her mother, the red envelope would probably have been wasted.

"Hanhan, take your little sister to Tang Long's house to play." The lady spoke with great authority, and Hanhan obediently picked up her little sister and went out. Qin Xiaoyu knew that this was now a serious matter.

"Qin Xiaoyu, what do you think of the Tang family's reputation?" The lady sat on the kang and slowly began to speak.

"Not very good." Qin Xiaoyu frantically calculated in her mind. Now was the time to tell the truth; there was no point in hiding it anymore.

“Well said, it really isn’t very good, each generation is worse than the last. Sometimes I think, let it be, anyway, I’m halfway to the grave, once I close my eyes I won’t know anything anymore. But I’m also afraid, what if the ancestors of the Tang family ask me, how did you raise your children? How will I answer?” The lady spoke with heartache, tears welling up in her dry eyes. Qin Xiaoyu was also somewhat moved, feeling that she had gone a bit too far today. The fact that she and her three children had beaten her aunt today would probably become a disgrace to the Tang family, passed down by the neighbors and becoming a laughing stock.

"Your marriage was arranged by your grandfather, and at the time I didn't think it was a good thing. Looking back over the years, I also think your grandfather was senile, how could he bring back such a jinx? But after Wenzhi passed away, you were like a different person, your behavior and demeanor were truly admirable. As for selling the succession spot to Wenwen, at first I thought you were just after profit, but after Wenwen enlightened me, I think you did the right thing."

"So you gave Wenwen the money?" Qin Xiaoyu understood somewhat.

“Yes, I want to see what you do next. Your muddle-headed mother-in-law will only scold you for living off your savings, but I can see that you are planning a big game. You are not simple-minded.”

Qin Xiaoyu was expecting a scolding, but instead received a compliment, which made her feel quite pleased with herself. She quickly warned herself not to get carried away.

"But you've caused such a big commotion today, you have to give me an explanation." Sure enough, the wife was a formidable character, seemingly kind but actually ruthless; she had just finished praising me when she started to trip me up.

“Madam, I really went too far today, and I apologize in advance. But I don’t think it was my fault. You are the elder in the family. Even if the descendants are of different qualities, they are all of the Tang family bloodline. Can you bear to throw any of them out?”

"Of course, how could I have thrown it out? If I had such a heart, the Tang family wouldn't be in this state today." The lady sighed.

"The reason I risked my life was for my child. I'm not afraid of anyone targeting me, but I can't gamble with my child. If she loses my child, I'll make her pay with her life!" When Qin Xiaoyu said this, the smile on her face was gone, and her eyes revealed murderous intent.

"What do you mean?" The lady was clearly unaware of the situation, so Qin Xiaoyu recounted what the old lady had instructed Tang Hu to do. This surprised the lady somewhat, as the veins on her hand holding the cane bulged, clearly indicating that she was suppressing her anger.