"Are you blind? Why are you running right into me on this wide road?" Li Zhong was already annoyed, and without even seeing the person, he started talking nonsense. Then, he was grabbed by the collar and punched hard.
The taste of rust in his mouth and the sight of the man's tall figure terrified Li Zhong. He instinctively begged for mercy, his cowardly appearance drawing gasps of amazement from those around him.
"I thought he was tough, but he's just a coward."
"Tsk tsk."
"Ahhhhhh!" Li Zhong's face contorted from holding back his sobs. Suddenly, he heard a familiar voice and was then hugged. A foul, sour smell filled his nostrils. At that moment, Li Zhong couldn't care less about anything else. The instant he saw Xu Juanzi, all his grievances welled up and the mother and son hugged each other and burst into tears.
"Mother, where have you been? Do you know how long I've been looking for you? I finally managed to get to Huichun, and I had just settled in when that bitch Lin Zhaozhao ruined everything. She framed me for stealing her purse and threw me in jail. Mother, we must not let her get away with this."
"Also, Lin Zhaozhao has become quite capable. She actually opened a shop in Huichun City. I heard that she can earn hundreds or thousands of taels of silver per order. We are her mother-in-law and brother-in-law, so we should go to her door or make a scene at her shop."
Li Zhong became more and more excited as he spoke, completely unaware that Xu Juanzi, who was initially overjoyed, suddenly turned pale, trembled all over, and grabbed Li Zhong's clothes tightly, pulling them away the moment she heard Lin Zhaozhao's name.
"Mother, why are you suddenly so scared? Is something wrong? And why aren't you saying anything?" Li Zhong was eager for Xu Juanzi to stand up for him, but when he saw Xu Juanzi kneeling on the ground without moving, he lost his patience and roughly pulled her up, only to find that she was lame in one leg.
"Mother? Are you mute?" Xu Juanzi kept whimpering, and Li Zhongcai realized the truth. He was filled with disappointment. When he thought that Xu Juanzi might become a burden to him, he had the idea of throwing Xu Juanzi to Lin Zhaozhao and running away if he couldn't get the better of Lin Zhaozhao.
Thinking this, Li Zhong helped Xu Juanzi walk to the side.
"Where are you thinking?" The burly man who had been bumped by Li Zhong grabbed Li Zhong, glanced at Xu Juanzi indifferently, and saw her kneeling on the ground, covering her head in terror.
"Mother, what's wrong with you?" Li Zhong felt completely unfamiliar with Xu Juanzi. Only a few months had passed, how could his powerful mother, who could argue with everyone in the village, have become like this? This was a revelation to him.
"What? Ha, she owes us money, and she'll never be able to pay it back, even if she works herself to death. Since you're her son, the son has to pay for the mother's debts, so you'll have to pay it back." The burly man grabbed Li Zhong, and the familiar feeling of being restrained came over him. Li Zhong struggled violently, "You dare? Believe me or not, I'll report you to the authorities."
"Go ahead and sue me. Paying back debts is a matter of course. Even if it goes to the authorities, I'm not afraid." The burly man said, pulling out a document. Looking at the amount and the signature on it, Li Zhong's face was filled with disbelief. "Mother..."
"Since you've accepted it, then come with us."
"No, I don't believe it. This document must be fake. My mother is just an ordinary person. How could she owe so much money?"
"Yes, yes, don't arrest me, my sister-in-law has money, she opened a shop in Huichun..." Before he could finish speaking, Li Zhong's mouth was gagged, and the burly man grabbed him by the hand, then disappeared through the crowd.
Li Zhong never imagined that one day he would end up in such a state because of Xu Juanzi. Endless regret welled up from the bottom of his heart. If he hadn't sold his wife and entered Huichun, would he have avoided this ordeal?
He was filled with regret and hatred.
Unfortunately, there are no "what ifs".
On the second floor of the teahouse, Lin Zhaozhao sipped her tea, watching the farce that had come to a halt. Her brows relaxed, and her thin lips curled into a smile.
The reunion of mother and son will likely be a daily spectacle, with each side torturing the other in order to make her painstaking efforts worthwhile.
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