Doctor Zheng and the yamen officials arrived one after the other. As soon as Doctor Zheng saw Yan Qingqing, he glared at her and said, "Why do you keep bringing up your family's troubles? Did I open my clinic just for your family?"
"Let me tell you, it's very expensive for me to come in person."
Yan Qingqing was delighted when she heard this. It was good that it was expensive, since she wasn't the one paying for it anyway.
Although Dr. Zheng said that, he was very efficient in his work. He first examined Old Master Li and, seeing that he was alright, still applied medicine to promote blood circulation and remove blood stasis.
Grandpa Li is getting old, so he doesn't feel anything now, but he'll feel sore all over once he recovers.
Then they bandaged up Li Xiangbao and Li Sanniu, and it looked quite convincing.
Looking at her son lying on the ground groaning, Old Mrs. Zhao rolled her eyes and said, "Doctor, please take a look at my son too, he was injured as well."
Dr. Zheng glanced at the seven or eight men lying on the ground and thought to himself that this old woman was really good at giving birth. Then, remembering what Li Xiangping had told him, he decisively refused, saying, "No way, I was invited by the Li family."
Before Old Mrs. Zhao could argue, the government officials entered the house. One of the officials shouted, "Who has broken into this house and committed murder?"
Yan Qingqing was somewhat surprised. The person who reported this to the authorities was quite capable. Look at the reason for breaking into a house and committing murder. Does Canghe Village actually have such talent?
Upon seeing the officers, Old Madam Zhao immediately lost her temper and stepped forward, saying, "Sir, it's not a case of breaking into a house to commit violence, but rather a minor conflict between the two families."
The officer glanced at Li Sanniu and Li Xiangbao and sneered, "You beat someone to death over a little conflict? Is this your son-in-law?"
Old Mrs. Zhao opened her mouth, but finally said under the watchful eyes of the officials, "No."
Upon hearing this, the official immediately flew into a rage and said, "You audacious scoundrel, how dare you try to deceive us! Guards, take these troublemakers away!"
The Zhao family members were all taken away by the officials, which saved them the trouble of kidnapping them.
Then he said to Li Sanniu, "Since you are the victims, come with us too."
Old Master Li was too old and had difficulty moving around, so he naturally didn't go. Li Sanniu and Li Xiangbao went to the yamen accompanied by the village chief.
Because both Li Sanniu and Li Xiangbao were injured, and the village chief was not young, Yan Qingqing secretly slipped some silver to the official when she spoke to him, hoping that Li Xiangping could drive the oxcart to take them to the county government.
This wasn't an unreasonable request, and the officials readily agreed after receiving the money.
After the noisy group left, the Li family became quiet. Old Master Li walked up to Yan Qingqing and said, "I'm old and useless now. I'm so grateful to you today. I know I shouldn't say this, but I'm still swallowing my pride to beg you. I hope you can help me out of respect for the fact that these children in the family are all Erniu's blood relatives."
After looking around, Yan Qingqing said, "If they are truly good children with upright character, I will help them if necessary, even if they are not blood relatives. But if they are people with malicious intentions and no sense of responsibility, I'm afraid I don't have the time to spare."
Although Yan Qingqing respected Old Master Li to some extent, it didn't mean he could boss her around. She, Yan Qingqing, wasn't some saintly white lotus who would pity just anyone.
After Yan Qingqing finished speaking, she went back to her home before Old Master Li could react. Li Xiangjian quickly followed Yan Qingqing.
When Yan Qingqing got home, she felt completely exhausted. She had used all her strength to save the person.
Grandma Yan looked at Yan Qingqing with heartache and said, "Why do you bother with those troublesome things? You're still in your postpartum period, you must rest well, otherwise you'll suffer when you get old."
Yan Qingqing naturally understood Old Madam Yan's loving motherly heart, and she planned to take good care of herself in the days to come.
Three days later, Magistrate Ling delivered his verdict: Zhao Yumei had committed violence and injured Li Daniu, rendering him impotent. However, because Li Daniu had a history of moral problems, he was sentenced to thirty strokes of the cane and ordered to pay five taels of silver in compensation, and the two were granted a divorce.
Old Mrs. Zhao brought her sons to the house and committed a violent crime, injuring innocent people. However, considering her advanced age, she was exempted from punishment but had to pay the Li family father and sons a total of fifteen taels of silver for medical expenses. Old Mrs. Zhao's sons were each given thirty lashes and imprisoned for three months.
When Madam Xu told Yan Qingqing the verdict, she excitedly said, "Second sister-in-law, now I know why you insisted on having a doctor called. Otherwise, how could we have paid so much money?"
That idiot San Niu even told me this was much better than carrying heavy loads, and that if anyone had this kind of good opportunity, he'd call them next time.
Of the fifteen taels of silver that the Yan family compensated, five taels were given to Old Master Li, leaving Li San Niu with ten taels remaining.
Yan Qingqing thought Li Sanniu's thought process was unusually clear; perhaps the beating had caused him some kind of mental problem. If that were the case, ten taels of silver would be too little.
Since Yan Qingqing took to bed and Xu Shi began taking care of her, the relationship between the two sisters-in-law has rapidly warmed up.
Whenever Xu was unsure about something, she would come to Yan Qingqing for advice. Even Old Madam Yan said in private that Xu was a good person.
After observing for this period of time, Yan Qingqing naturally had a clear understanding of the situation, but even if she wanted to use Xu's products, there was no rush.
Because Grandma Yan was watching over us, apart from being more lenient with our diet, everything else was done according to the most traditional postpartum care.
After a month of confinement, Yan Qingqing felt like she smelled terrible and her hair was rotten. Just when she was about to become depressed, she finally finished her confinement period.
The first thing Yan Qingqing did after finishing her postpartum confinement was to take a bath and wash her hair. She washed herself thoroughly from head to toe, several times in a row, and only after she was completely clean did she feel much better.
As she dried her hair, Grandma Yan said, "Why are you so disobedient? It would have been better to wait until after the full moon to wash it."
The "full moon" that Old Mrs. Yan was referring to meant a full 100-day postpartum period. If Yan Qingqing really had to wait until then, she probably would go crazy.
Yan Qingqing simply smiled at Old Madam Yan without saying a word.
Grandma Yan sighed. She knew Yan Qingqing was very busy and couldn't possibly have such a long postpartum period.
Yuan Huiniang handed the newly made clothes to Yan Qingqing and said, "Grandma is here, which is a real treat for me. I can't help with anything usually. These are new clothes I made for Mom. Try them on and see if they fit."
Yan Qingqing's clothes from when she was pregnant no longer fit, and her old clothes were too worn out. Besides, her family wasn't short of money these days.
Yan Qingqing immediately put it on. Yuan Huiniang was indeed skillful; not only was the fabric comfortable to wear, but the workmanship was also exquisite.
Grandma Yan also praised, "This child is really skillful. Look at this dress on your mother-in-law, she looks like a noblewoman. Her overall demeanor is no less than that of the mistress of a wealthy family."
Yuan Huiniang chuckled upon hearing Old Madam Yan's words and then said, "Grandma, you're praising me, but anyone who didn't know better would think you were praising my mother."
Yuan Huiniang knew her mother-in-law's position in Old Madam Yan's heart.
When Grandma Yan saw Yuan Huiniang teasing her, she laughed and said, "Alright, stop teasing this old woman. Your mother has finished her confinement period, and I should pack my things and go home in the next couple of days."
These days, Old Mrs. Yan has taken meticulous care of Yan Qingqing. Yan Qingqing is really reluctant to part with her, but she also knows that Old Mrs. Yan will have to go back sooner or later. Yan Qingqing's eyes darted between Yuan Huiniang and Old Mrs. Yan and then she smiled.
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