Song Xiaoqi's bad temper was all due to the indulgence of others. Now that he has lost his status as a general, he remains unchanged in this poor and remote place, which is really annoying.
"This is our family matter, please don't interfere."
Upon hearing his words, Zhang Xiu'e's anger flared even more. She immediately shielded Qin Xiaoniang behind her and retorted, "I only address you as 'elder brother' out of respect for Song Xiaoyu (Zhang Xiu'e's husband). But there's something I must say: you've gone too far these past years! How long are you going to continue doing such immoral things? Huan'er is still so young. You, as his father, only have this one son. When you arrive, you don't even care about the child's safety; all you think about is that poisonous woman. Let me tell you, your wife is probably already dead on the way!"
Song Xiaoqi was so angry with Zhang Xiue that his face turned ashen and his temples throbbed.
"What did you say? Say it again!"
Zhang Xiue mustered her courage and repeated, "I said you don't deserve to be a father!"
A sharp slap echoed among the group.
Song Xiaoqi actually hit a woman!
But Zhang Xiue was no pushover either; she raised her hand and slapped him across the face.
Although Song Xiaoqi was a great general who fought in battles for many years, his body had long since deteriorated from the inside out due to the hardships of living outdoors. He was no match for Zhang Xiu'e.
With a single slap, she sent Song Xiaoqi staggering back three steps...
Seeing that he had nowhere to vent his anger, Song Xiaoqi turned his anger on Qin Xiaoniang, "You slut, I'm going to divorce you!"
Qin Xiaoniang stared at him blankly, her eyes filled with resentment and indifference. "Song Xiaoqi, you have truly portrayed a mean and arrogant man to the fullest extent... If you want to divorce, then divorce. I find it disgusting to even look at someone like you!"
As soon as he finished speaking, several men of similar height to Song Xiao ran up from the side...
After looking closely, I realized that one of them was Li Qiang, and the other was Nian Jie'er's father, Song Xiaoyu.
"Third Uncle? Uncle Li?" Song He'er thought she was seeing things.
Zhang Xiue was stunned for a long time, unable to recover her senses.
It wasn't until Song Xiaoyu spoke his first words that Zhang Xiue ran over, hugged him tightly, and tears streamed down her face.
"You bastard, you're still alive! I thought you were dead! I thought... someone as stupid as you couldn't bear even the slightest hardship..."
Song Xiaoyu was also a real fat man, and his size was similar to Zhang Xiue's. They were a perfectly matched couple.
"Alright, stop crying. Where's Nian'er? Let me see her!"
Zhang Xiue sobbed twice more, then pointed inside, "Still inside the tent!"
Upon hearing this, Song Xiaoyu rushed into the tent.
Seeing this scene, Song He'er felt even more ridiculous about her situation.
A father who is as eager as Song Xiaoyu to know about his child's condition is a normal father, right?
They were born of the same mother, so why are they so different?
After looking at Nianjie'er, Song Xiaoyu walked over to Song Xiaoqi's side, sighed as she looked at his furious expression...
"Brother, what are you arguing about again? Our whole family is finally reunited, so what are you upset about?"
Song Xiaoqi turned his head and replied irritably, "What do you think? Your sister-in-law is missing, and I'm starting to suspect that these people are responsible for her disappearance!"
Upon hearing this, Song Xiaoyu's face instantly darkened. "Big brother, what did you say? You're saying they harmed my sister-in-law, who's like a 'mountain tiger'?"
Upon hearing this, Li Qiang almost burst out laughing, but in order to clear himself of any involvement, he immediately picked up his daughter Huahua and walked aside to hide.
"What...what nonsense are you spouting?" Song Xiaoqi's hand trembled as he pointed directly at Song Xiaoyu.
“Brother, you’re over fifty years old. You need to use your brain and think things through calmly when you encounter problems. As the saying goes, those involved are often confused, while bystanders see things clearly. Over the years, I’ve seen it all clearly. My sister-in-law is a wolf in sheep’s clothing. She’s been causing trouble for your family behind your back. If she disappeared halfway, who knows what kind of trouble she caused and ran away. These people are only good at being bullied by your wife, not the other way around!”
Seeing that everyone dared to contradict him, Song Xiaoqi felt he had lost face, so without saying a word, he turned and left.
As Song He'er watched his hunched back as he left, she felt nothing but heartbreak.
She would rather the corpse found at the foot of the snow-capped mountain was Song Xiaoqi, so that she and her mother would never have to see his heartless side again.
Zhang Xiu'e walked to Qin Xiaoniang's side and wiped away her tears. "Don't be sad. We're not in the General's Mansion anymore. Who would want to be his concubine in such a miserable life? Let him divorce us! Even if he doesn't divorce us today, we'll still go and get a divorce! What a scoundrel! From today onwards, Huan-ge'er will not be allowed to see him even once!"
Song Xiaoyu glanced at their attire and immediately became suspicious.
"Your clothes don't seem to be from the Central Plains. Why are you changing clothes on the way? Where did you get the money?"
Zhang Xiu'e didn't want him to pry, so she went up and pulled him aside, saying, "Why are you, a grown man, bothering with this? Hurry up and help us pack our things, then find a place to stay. We need a place to survive, right?"
With just a few words, Zhang Xiue brushed the matter off.
Song Xiaoyu obediently stopped asking questions and instead helped everyone pack their things before heading into Xinzhou.
Along the way, Song He'er saw many exiled prisoners.
Some of them were wearing shackles, some were dressed in tattered clothes, and a few were even dead on the ground, surrounded by a group of wild cats.
Song He'er felt nauseous and uncomfortable at the sight.
I had thought Xinzhou was just a desolate place with scarce food and clothing, but now I see it's far more terrifying than I imagined—corpses litter the ground, rotting flesh infested with maggots...
If you were walking alone at night, you would be terrified!
"He'er, stop looking around and let's go!" Qin Xiaoniang said.
"There are so many dead bodies here, don't the soldiers care? Don't they come in to patrol?"
Song Xiaoyu shook her head, "We haven't seen them once since we came in!"
......
My darlings, only one chapter today! I have other things to do, so I can't update with a second chapter. (I actually finished writing this chapter a while ago, but just remembered to post it!) Hahaha~ Thank you for your kind words! See you tomorrow~
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