Because it hadn't rained for several days in a row, the sky was cloudless, and the weather was hot.

Even the bamboo forest, which had been growing for countless years, showed signs of dying in some of the bamboo. The children stopped playing outside and instead hid in the shade of the trees and bamboo.

Lin Zhongyuan then took his younger siblings to a spot under the bamboo grove and taught them to write and recite.

"Little sister, can you take a look at my forehead? Do you have any dark marks on it?" Lin Zihan asked, holding a bamboo stick as a pen, looking dejected.

Normally, he and his younger brother would chase each other while writing, which was quite fun. But now, with his older brother watching him, he would get glared at several times for every word he wrote wrong.

Lin Zihan also found it very difficult to get through.

Last night he was in high spirits, thinking he could pass the imperial examination and become a high-ranking official. Today he's already thinking that he might as well become a general, at least then he won't have to be watched by his brother to write and recite.

“No ducks.” Lin Wanyue shook her head.

Lin Zihan sighed heavily, feeling that his fate was full of twists and turns.

"Ahem, you could have written several words in the time it takes to talk!" Lin Zhongyuan glanced at him, and he quickly picked up a small stick and started drawing on the ground.

Lin Ziqiu was much more cunning than her third brother. He moved to squat next to Lin Wanyue and said in a low voice, "Little sister, tell your eldest brother that your fourth brother will take you to find an ant nest... The ant eggs are sour, you can eat them all."

Lin Wanyue had no interest in eating the sour ant eggs, but she could clearly see that the two boys no longer wanted to practice calligraphy.

Moreover, her third and fourth brothers usually treated her well, so Lin Wanyue nodded obediently.

"Big Brother, let's go catch some ants to play with." She walked up to Lin Zhongyuan and tugged at his sleeve.

Lin Zhongyuan had also seen his two younger brothers' plot against Lin Wanyue. He could only nod helplessly: "You two have to take good care of your sister this time. If you do it again like last time, Grandma won't let you off the hook."

"Alright!" The three brothers quickly tossed aside their bamboo sticks and replied in unison, "Big brother, don't worry, we'll definitely keep a close eye on our sister!"

"Second brother, come back here! Your handwriting is so ugly, how dare you go out and play? Third and fourth brothers are young, so it's fine, but look how old you are! Even a dog writes better than you. Rewrite this ten times!" Lin Zhongyuan grabbed Lin Zheyun, who wanted to run off with him to wreak havoc on the ant nest.

The two younger brothers and Lin Wanyue all said they were unable to help.

The second brother was probably the least bright of the four brothers. He was good at catching birds in trees and catching fish in water. When he went to work in the fields with his father and grandmother, he was even more efficient than the eldest brother.

However, he really had no talent when it came to reading and calligraphy. His handwriting was ugly, and he found memorizing texts a headache.

But Lin Zhongyuan was an extremely responsible older brother who insisted on making him practice his handwriting until it was neat.

Lin Zihan and Lin Ziqiu led their younger sister to wreak havoc on the ant nest, placing various small leaves on the ants and watching them cut the leaves into tiny pieces and carry them into the ant nest, having a great time.

…

Just then, Grandma Du walked by carrying a basket.

The news that Du Fan had broken his leg last night had already spread throughout the entire village overnight.

Moreover, those who were originally envious of the Lin family eating meat have all given up now.

What if he wasn't as lucky as Lin Weiming and managed to hunt such a large rabbit as soon as he went up the mountain? Instead, he might break his leg like Du Fan, which would be a huge loss.

Nowadays, when villagers mention the Du family, they all shake their heads, feeling that their family is probably going to have a tough time this time.

Originally, Du Fan's family was considered one of the poorest families in the village.

The family of four consisted of only Du Fan, who was the only able-bodied man. Old Mrs. Du had never been able to help much. Her daughter-in-law was sickly, and their only son was only five years old, too young.

Now that Du Fan has broken his leg, he has no money to take him to the city for a doctor. He will probably starve to death if he doesn't die from the illness.

With no other option, in order to avoid starving herself, Old Lady Du had no choice but to reluctantly pick up a basket and begin gathering wild vegetables.

But as soon as she stepped outside, she heard the villagers gossiping all at once. Old Mrs. Du was furious. When she saw Lin Wanyue smiling by the bamboo grove, her anger flared even more.

Old Mrs. Du spat in Lin Wanyue's direction.

"You jinx! I don't know which jinx descended to earth, you bastard, you cursed my son and you're happy about it, bah!" Old Mrs. Du cursed through gritted teeth.

Lin Zhongyuan threw the bamboo stick in his hand to the ground and said coldly, "Grandma Du, what nonsense are you spouting?"

"I'm talking nonsense? I think your whole family is talking nonsense! I really don't know whose eyes were blind to pick up such a jinx. If it weren't for her, would my son have broken his leg?" The more Old Lady Du thought about it, the more she felt that this was the case.

Wolf, tiger and leopard have always roamed the western mountains, so few people go up there. But when the villagers are forced to, they have no choice but to go up the mountain to hunt to supplement their income.

But apart from Du Fan, I haven't heard of anyone else suffering such a serious injury in recent years.

Grandma Du felt that the only unexpected thing was what that brat Lin Wanyue said.

The thought of her son breaking his leg, leaving no one to work at home and causing her to go hungry even more, made Old Mrs. Du look at Lin Wanyue with a venomous gaze, as if she were looking at her enemy, filled with hatred for her to the point of wanting to die!

"Second brother, someone is bullying our sister, what do you think we should do?" Lin Zhongyuan looked at Old Lady Du. Her handsome, thin face still had a touch of childishness, but it already showed a hint of ruthlessness and felt cold.

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