Xiaoyue couldn't help but become curious and went into Old Man Ge's courtyard.

Then they heard Ge Dalin shouting, "The ox is lost, and you think you can just let it go like this? No, absolutely not!" He clenched his fists, giving the impression that he was extremely angry.

Xiaoyue entered the courtyard. The entire Ge family's attention was focused on Ge Dalin; no one noticed Xiaoyue.

Upon hearing that it was about Ge Dalin's missing cow, Xiaoyue quietly walked over to her sister-in-law, Li, and whispered, "What exactly happened? Wasn't the cow always in your cowshed? Who took it away last night?"

As soon as Grandma Ge saw it was Xiaoyue, she stormed over to her, pointing her finger at Xiaoyue's nose and saying, "Get out of here! You're not welcome in my house. Get out!"

Xiaoyue winked at Grandma Ge and said, "I just saw that something happened to your family. I was thinking about whether or not to submit a complaint. Grandma Ge, since you're kicking me out, I'll submit the complaint tomorrow."

Upon hearing Xiaoyue's words, Grandma Ge immediately wilted, like a frostbitten eggplant.

Sister-in-law Li glanced at the noisy old lady Ge, then turned to look at Xiaoyue and said softly, "That day when the whole family came back, some were injured, and some jumped into the well. Dalin thought he would take people to the town clinic the next morning to get checked out."

"The oxcart was all harnessed, but Ge Erlin decided not to go. He said there were too many carts and people at the market, so it would be better to wait a day. Anyway, we've already had Doctor Hu examine Xiao Sunshi, and Ge Erlin said his injuries could hold out, so your brother agreed."

"Well, we skipped the market today. After we hitched up the cart, Ge Erlin insisted on taking Xiao Sunshi and her husband to the clinic. Da Lin wanted to come along, but Erlin refused. In the end, Ge Erlin drove the oxcart to town by himself. When he came back tonight, he said he had stolen the oxcart."

Xiaoyue glanced at Ge Erlin, who was squatting on the ground, covering his head and looking down, and reminded her sister-in-law, "Does your car have any markings? Is the cow marked?"

Hearing Xiaoyue's question, Ge Dalin quickly replied, "There are small flowers carved from willow leaves on the cart shaft. The ox's tail was swung onto the fire this winter, and the tip of the tail is bald, but you can't see it unless you look closely."

Xiaoyue glanced at everyone's expressions. Old Man Ge was still puffing on his pipe, completely indifferent to the matter, as if it wasn't something that had gone missing from his eldest son's house, but rather something that had happened to someone he didn't care about.

Looking at Grandma Ge's expression, it was hard to tell. She seemed very relieved, as if she had solved a big problem, and showed no signs of being upset.

Ge Erping was still sitting in the courtyard, looking dazed. Xiaoyue felt a sudden tightness in her heart for no apparent reason, but she quickly looked away and immediately saw Xiao Sunshi.

Sun Shi now acts as if nothing happened, sitting in the courtyard, holding Ge Daming in her arms, stroking his hair repeatedly, and occasionally whispering something to him.

From the moment Ge Sanlin heard Old Madam Ge telling Xiaoyue to leave, he couldn't take his eyes off her. Xiaoyue gave him a disgusted look and then turned her head to Lu Xiaomei.

Lu Xiaomei, holding the little boy tightly, met Xiaoyue's gaze. Her eyes were filled with disgust and jealousy. She then gripped the little boy tightly, preventing him from touching Xiaoyue.

Xiaoyue was puzzled. How had she offended Lu Xiaomei? Was she having a bad time at home? Xiaoyue smiled bitterly. Human hearts are unpredictable.

Seeing the expressions on everyone's faces, Xiaoyue smiled and comforted her sister-in-law, Li, then whispered something in her ear.

He shouted, "Since there are such obvious characteristics, why don't you and your elder brother go to the county government to file a complaint? Ge Erlin's oxcart has been to the town, so let's look for him there."

It's not dark yet. Hurry up and get to town to submit the petition. Have the yamen runners search the area within a fifteen-mile radius of Hejia Town for oxcarts. Oxcarts aren't small items; they can't be hidden. If we go now, we guarantee they'll have the carts back by tonight.

Ge Dalin's eyes flashed with a light, and he hurriedly called Liu Ye over, saying, "Go to the Gao family next door and see if Gao Lei has returned. If Gao Lei isn't here, Gao Yu will do. Have him write me a complaint."

Then he went to his sister-in-law and said, "Don't worry, we'll find the oxcart soon. We'll take the cart from Dad's family to town, pick up Ge Erlin, and have him explain what happened."

Ge Dalin went into the cowshed behind the courtyard and was about to lead the ox out to hitch up the cart when Old Man Ge stepped forward and stopped him, scolding, "Don't even think about it. The county government has so many things to do, they don't have time to bother with your business."

Old Man Ge stepped forward and stopped Ge Dalin, who was about to lead the ox. Ge Dalin got a little angry at this point, shook off Old Man Ge's hand, turned around and went back to the yard, pulling his sister-in-law: "Come on, let's hire a cart. I don't believe that the oxcart can be stolen in broad daylight."

Grandma Ge rushed forward and grabbed her eldest son's clothes with both hands. Fearing he might pull her over, Ge Dalin stopped and quietly watched her with calm, expressionless eyes.

Grandma Ge breathed a sigh of relief and said hurriedly, "Ge Erlin didn't do it on purpose. Don't blame your second brother. Listen to your mother and don't go. That lawsuit isn't so easy to win. If you can't find the ox and the oxcart, and the villagers find out that your second brother lost the oxcart while driving it, how ridiculous would that be?"

Xiaoyue seized the opportunity to smile and say to Grandma Ge, "What if we can find it?"

After hearing Xiaoyue's words, Ge Dalin no longer hesitated. Compared to the car theft, the matter of Ge Erlin being laughed at was insignificant. He then pulled his sister-in-law, Li, to leave the courtyard.

At this moment, Ge Erlin suddenly knelt down and shouted hoarsely, "Brother, don't go. The oxcart isn't lost. I lost money gambling recently and have to pay off my gambling debts."

Upon hearing Ge Erlin's words, Ge Dalin strode angrily to Ge Erlin and slapped him across the face, causing Ge Erlin, who was squatting there, to stumble and fall to the ground.

Ge Dalin was about to kick her a couple more times when Old Mrs. Ge lay on top of Ge Erlin. The kick almost missed her before Ge Dalin reacted, turning around sharply and shouting:

"Father, do you and Mother know about Ge Erlin?"

Old Man Ge nodded silently. Old Woman Ge, lying on top of Ge Erlin, rolled over and glared at Ge Dalin angrily, saying, "He's your second brother, how could you hit him?"

Ge Dalin roared, "I'm severing ties with you all! You only care about your second son's family, and you think we're doing whatever we want? I'm not going to be a good son anymore. Don't come to me if your family ever has any problems."