Knowing she was in the wrong, Madam Lu admitted she had accepted the three taels of silver. She said, "Things were tough back then, there was no other way!"
"Ha, there's nothing I can do. You're asking for the moon; there's nothing you wouldn't dare to dream of!"
"Back then, you let my sister choose between your second and third sons. If it weren't for my mother-in-law seeing how much my younger sister really liked the sea..."
"With your asking price of three taels of silver, who would dare to buy it!"
"If you want your son back, you'll have to pay to buy him! Your son's indenture is still in my little sister's hands!"
As soon as Lu opened his mouth, he revealed the secrets he had kept hidden in his heart for many years.
Lu Dahai went from disappointment to shock, then from shock to despair. Finally, he closed his eyes and said, "You can leave now. Don't come looking for me again. I am a member of the Li family, and I have nothing to do with your Lu family anymore!"
Madam Lu never expected that her usually filial third son would want to sever ties with her. She immediately grabbed Lu Dahai by the collar and punched him in the chest, saying, "You heartless and unfilial son! I carried you for ten months and went through so much hardship to give birth to you. Now your mother can't even get enough to eat, and you still want to kick me out of the house."
Although Madam Lu was old and had difficulty walking, she was surprisingly strong, and Lu Dahai's chest ached from her punches.
"That's enough!" Lu Dahai pushed Lu Shi hard, and Lu Shi stumbled and fell to the ground.
"You unfilial son has hit his own mother!" After being pushed to the ground by Lu Dahai, Madam Lu sat down and cried out loudly.
Villagers who were building factories nearby heard the commotion and gathered around.
As more and more people gathered, Lu saw that the cries and shouts were getting louder and louder.
Lu Dahai no longer cared about saving face; his filial piety was gradually devoured by Lu Shi's actions.
The thought that she had been sold to the Li family made her feel that she had been a complete sucker for the Lu family all these years, sending them food and clothing from time to time.
Thinking back to when my second brother and I were at home, working from dawn till dusk every day, only to be sold off from among the two of us, my heart ached as if it had been ripped out of my body.
Lu Dahai gritted his teeth and said, "My second brother and I are so filial to you two, why are we always the ones who get abandoned!"
"Why is it that just because my second brother and I are sensible and filial, we deserve to be bullied by you, and sold off at will? Are we just some Tom, Dick, or Harry?"
"Even cats and dogs, living together, would develop a bit of affection and a sense of attachment, right? But do you have that?!"
"If you want your eldest brother to take care of you in your old age and see you off in your final days, I'll accept that!"
"But why do you all cherish even your fourth brother, that good-for-nothing who only knows how to eat, drink, gamble, and whore? Is it just because he can cry, make a fuss, and make you happy?!"
Stunned by Lu Dahai's words, Madam Lu dared not cry or make a fuss anymore. She murmured, "Dahai."
"Don't call me that. You're not my mother. No one would sell their own son!" Lu Dahai said, wiping his face with his right hand.
Lu Qiqi originally thought that by driving the eldest branch of the Lu family out of the veterans' village, she would become estranged from Lu Dahai.
But she never expected things to turn out this way; Lu Dahai was actually sold to the Li family by the Lu family.
Thinking of the Lu family, such a despicable family, and the awful things they did, Lu Qiqi felt that Lu Dahai and her father were both pathetic and pitiful.
Such extreme favoritism is truly unique.
Lu Qiqi said to the Zhou brothers, "Throw them out of here! If they dare to come to the veterans' village again, break their legs!"
"Dahai, I am your mother! How could you let this brat kick us out!" Madam Lu tried to use her last shred of morality to coerce Lu Dahai.
Lu Dahai, already disheartened, snapped, "Get out!"
The eldest branch of the Lu family trembled at Lu Dahai's shout of "Get out!"
Ignoring his headache, Lu Dazhuang stumbled to his feet, helped Lu Shi up from the ground, and led her outside.
Lu Dazhuang was also afraid of his third brother getting angry. You see, when Lu Dahai was young, he was the kind of person who killed a wild boar with his bare hands.
If Lu Dahai got really angry, even he and his son Lu Changhu combined wouldn't be a match for him.
Lu Dazhuang helped Lu Shi out of the house. Jin Shi and Lu Changhu dared not cause any more trouble. The four of them tidied up the things scattered all over the outside of the house and left the old soldier village in a dejected manner.
The sweet potato on the table, I haven't even had a chance to eat a single bite!
After the eldest son of the Lu family left, Madam Lu took the sweet potatoes back to the kitchen.
Lu Dahai sat in the chair, head down, seemingly lost in thought.
Lu Qiqi knew that Lu Dahai must be feeling terrible right now, having been held hostage by his mother's filial piety for many years.
How could one not be heartbroken and discouraged upon learning that the supposed maternal love and filial piety were all a lie?
Seeing Lu Dahai like this, Li felt sad. She felt sorry for Lu Dahai, otherwise she wouldn't have kept the truth hidden in her heart for so many years.
Li stepped forward, took Lu Dahai's hand, and said, "You still have me, Changlong, and Xibao."
Lu Dahai looked up at Li Shi, his eyes misty with tears, and said gratefully, "Thank you."
With just one look, Li knew that all her efforts over the years had not been in vain.
Only the couple themselves truly understand their dynamic. Lu Dahai's resentment was soothed by a single sentence from Li Shi.
......
Left with no other choice, Lu Dazhuang and his family packed their bags and returned to Heping Village.
Upon returning to Heping Village, I saw that my front door was open.
The four men looked at each other in bewilderment. As they entered the house, they saw several men sharpening knives on a whetstone.
Lu Changhu was furious with Lu Qiqi. When he got home and saw several strangers loitering around his house, he mustered up his courage and asked, "What are you doing in my house?"
"Your house?" a man with a scar on his face said disdainfully. "The houses in Heping Village have always belonged to whoever lives there. You've all moved out, and you still want to come back and take over?"
"Do you want to taste this knife?" the scarred man said with a forced smile.
Seeing the gleaming blade in the scarred man's hand, Lu Changhu dared not act rashly for a moment.
Seeing this, Lu Dazhuang knew they couldn't go back home, so he quickly pulled Lu Changhu and left through the door.
The whole family was like drowning dogs, constantly being herded around by others.
Lu Changhu hadn't eaten all day and was so hungry he could barely walk. He asked, "Dad, where are we going now?"
Lu Dazhuang glared at his son, who was more likely to cause trouble than to accomplish anything.
If it weren't for him, his family wouldn't have packed their bags and gone to seek refuge with Lu Dahai.
Not only were they driven out of the veterans' village, but now they can't even go back to their homes, and their houses have been occupied by others.
Thinking of this, Lu Dazhuang wanted to stuff Lu Changhu, that brainless bastard, into Jin's belly and re-educate him!
There was no point in saying more, so Lu Dazhuang finally sighed and said, "There are still some thatched houses north of Heping Village that no one wants to live in. Let's settle down there first and then figure out a solution later."
Having been exposed to the cold wind all day, the family had no other choice but to follow Lu Dazhuang's advice and move into a thatched hut.
Lu Dazhuang's family never dreamed that in a single day they would go from a leaky tile-roofed house to a drafty thatched hut, and they immediately regretted their decision.
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