It wasn't until the gleaming gold bracelet was revealed to others that Madam Hu spoke.
"Xiao Tianshui, don't try to scare us. Do you think we don't know? As long as you're still alive, the government will allow us to settle this with compensation."
He then raised the hand adorned with the gold bracelet and addressed the onlookers.
"See this? This is what my Jiu Jiu bought for me. Let's see if you, Xiao Tianshui, are worth this bracelet in the eyes of the yamen. At worst, I'll trade this for one of your arms."
Hu had never spoken to anyone like this before. When she uttered the words "old mother," Lin's mother subconsciously twitched her lips, but said nothing.
After all, her daughter-in-law rushed out at this time entirely to protect her; she's not the kind of unreasonable mother-in-law.
Xiao Tianshui never expected that the people in the Lin family who he thought were the easiest to bully would have such a tough side.
He's not even a student yet, so if he were to be injured by Madam Hu, that gold bracelet would definitely be enough to compensate him.
But if he gets injured, he will truly be forever barred from taking the imperial examinations.
Even if he knew he wasn't cut out for studying, so what? Nobody else in his family knew.
His mother was still waiting for him to pass the imperial examination so she could enjoy a comfortable life. As long as he said he wanted to buy books or bribe someone, he could get money from her and wouldn't have to work in the fields with his other brothers.
He didn't want to ruin the good life he had worked so hard for over the years just because of a moment of anger.
Xiao Changhe, however, looked at the gleaming kitchen knife and wished that Madam Hu could kill Xiao Tianshui with a single blow.
Ever since he was crippled, his mind has become more and more twisted, and his family no longer dares to let him work in the fields.
But he started to find fault with everyone in the family.
Especially Xiao Tianshui, who was always pampered by his parents and always had to have the best things.
He always thought, "Why should we, Xiao Tianshui, be better off than them, even though we're all their parents' children?"
If he had been the one sent to school back then, would he be able to do nothing and be pampered by his family with good food and drink, just like his older brother?
He discovered that since that night, not only had his very being as a man been destroyed.
Even his voice, which had been masculine at first, gradually became softer and more feminine, and the stubble that used to cover his face if he didn't shave for a day stopped growing.
Anyone with eyes can see that he is no longer a man.
Xiao Changhe harbored hatred, but after witnessing Lin Jiujiu's ruthlessness that night, he dared not entertain thoughts of revenge, and could only vent his resentment on the people around him.
He dared not touch Sun Shi. Although the Sun family would not allow Sun Shi to divorce him, the fists of his brothers-in-law were not easy to withstand.
As a result, it has become increasingly dark and twisted.
Seeing that Xiao Tianshui had retreated into the Xiao family's crowd and dared not go forward again, Madam Hu pointed her knife around again.
"Come on, anyone who's not afraid of death."
Xiao Changhe looked at the cold light on the knife, and then thought of what Madam Hu had just said: at worst, he would just have to compensate them with the gold bracelet.
A cold glint flashed in his eyes. After he was injured, his family had taken him to see a doctor in the village. The doctor shook his head and said that his medical skills were too limited to do anything. He told them to go to the county town to have someone look for him.
However, his parents refused to pay, citing that his older brother still had an exam to take and that it would cost a lot of money.
But if he could really get his hands on that gold bracelet from Madam Hu, then he would have money to treat his injuries.
Maybe...maybe...he might have a chance to stand up again.
As Xiao Changhe thought this, his heart also became excited.
Watching Xiao Tianshui's retreating figure, a sudden evil thought arose within him. He quietly crept up behind Xiao Changhe and shoved him out.
His thinking was simple: his older brother was useless except for spending money, so he might as well get him a few taels of silver to spend.
Xiao Tianshui had already retreated to the background. He never expected that his family, who had always held him in high esteem, would suddenly turn against him.
Caught completely off guard, he lunged straight at the kitchen knife in Hu's hand.
Madam Hu was clearly not prepared for this sudden turn of events, and for a moment she was stunned, just watching Xiao Tianshui suddenly pounce on her.
Seeing that the person was about to pounce on the blade she had raised, Hu was so frightened that her legs were shaking.
Despite her assertive demeanor just now, it was mostly an act.
Just as she was about to close her eyes and wait for Xiao Tianshui to be splattered with blood, a gentle force suddenly enveloped her, and before she could react, she was already being carried away from where she stood.
Seeing that she was so frightened that her eyes were tightly closed and her eyelids were trembling, Lin Jiujiu gently patted her shoulder and said.
"Sister-in-law, it's alright now."
When Hu heard Lin Jiujiu's voice, she knew who had just hugged her and gotten away from Xiao Tianshui. She breathed a sigh of relief and slowly opened her eyes.
To her surprise, Xiao Tianshui didn't run into her trap, but the Xiao family members ended up fighting each other.
When Xiao Tianshui realized that he had almost died at Hu Shi's hands, and that the person who pushed him was his own younger brother, he slapped him across the face.
Not satisfied with just one slap, he raised his fist to strike Xiao Changhe again.
Xiao Changhe already disliked him and felt no remorse for pushing him earlier, so he naturally raised his fist to meet him.
Before the Xiao family could react, the two were already exchanging punches and kicks.
When Sun saw her husband being beaten, even though he could no longer give her happiness, he was still the father of her child.
Coupled with years of instinct, it charged forward with a roar.
Seeing that her sister-in-law had already taken action, Xiao Zhao naturally rushed up to help her husband as well.
Moreover, Xiao Changhe was in the wrong in this matter. While she was arguing with Sun, she didn't forget to complain to her mother-in-law.
"Mother, look! Second Uncle just pushed my husband out, and he almost ran into the kitchen knife in Hu's hand. He's trying to kill my husband!"
All these years, my husband has been studying hard and trying to pass the imperial examinations, just to make things better for our family, hasn't he?
What did we do wrong? My second uncle actually pushed him into the line of fire.
Xiao Zhao's questions were heart-wrenching, and they also swayed Zhao's heart.
But upon hearing her words, Madam Sun reacted as if a cat had its tail stepped on.
Ignoring the presence of outsiders, he directly tore off Xiao Tianshui's mask.
"He still wants to take the imperial examinations? Only fools like you would listen to his nonsense. He's been taking them for almost twenty years, and his own son is about to get married, but he still hasn't even passed the preliminary examination."
Hoping he'll pass the exam and bring wealth to the whole family is wishful thinking; I think it's easier to wait for him to be reborn into a better family in the next life.
When Xiao Zhao heard this, she also objected.
"You dare to curse my husband? I'll fight you to the death!"
He made a move as if he was about to charge at Sun.
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