"Exactly, the Chen family is really going too far. When Chen Lao Er was so sick, at least the villagers brought some eggs and cabbage to visit him. It seems like there's really been no response from the Chen family."
"It seems so. I live right next to his house. We even called out to them before, but they pretended to be crazy. I don't know what they were up to."
"Could it be that Chen Lao Er wasn't born to Chen Lao Tai? How could she be so cruel to her own son, but so good to her grandson now?"
"How could that be? I was the one who delivered the baby. I don't know what happened, but she's always been mean to Chen Lao Er. How could I know what her heart is made of?"
The villagers' words made the whole family feel ashamed, and Old Mrs. Chen kept staring at her feet, lost in thought.
"What are you all arguing about? Are you going to pay me back or not, Chen Lizhong? You tell me!" The debt collectors, seeing this scene, didn't care about anything else; all they cared about was finding Chen Lizhong.
"We'll pay, we'll pay, we'll definitely pay! Dad, Mom, hurry up and give us the money, or they'll really take one of my hands!" Chen Lizhong was also afraid of being beaten up by these people, so he quickly pulled his parents aside and said.
"We...we don't have any money! You brat, who told you to gamble? What am I supposed to do now? Waaah!" Madam Du didn't dare ask Chen Xichun for money anymore, but they really didn't have that much cash.
"Mom, why don't you give me the money? It's almost Chinese New Year, we can't just watch your eldest grandson get his hand chopped off, can we?" Old Master Chen pleaded with Old Lady Chen.
“Mother’s money is also our share. Mother, if you give it to my eldest brother’s family, then we should have a share too.” When Madam Ma saw this scene, she had already calculated that Old Mrs. Chen should have about twenty taels. If it was given to her eldest brother’s family, there wouldn’t be much left. Her family couldn’t afford to suffer a loss.
“Well, your eldest brother’s family is in trouble right now. Why don’t you pay off your eldest nephew’s debt first?” Old Mrs. Chen looked at her youngest son, hoping he would make the decision.
"Mother, if you give it to my eldest brother's family, then don't expect me to take care of you in your old age." Chen Laosan said in a matter-of-fact manner, as he had only done so on Madam Ma's advice.
"Mother, can you give us the money first, and we can talk about it when we divide the family property later? These people are already at home. If we don't pay them back, your grandson will be in danger." Du hated Madam Ma to the core, but she had to resolve this matter first.
"Yes, Grandma, please save your grandson. I'll take care of you in your old age." Chen Lizhong ran up to Grandma Chen and knelt down.
"With your gambling habits, you think you can support yourself in your old age? You'd be lucky if you could support yourself. Didn't you want to sell Xiyue? Wouldn't you get some money if you did?" Ma said contemptuously.
"Yes, why don't we sell Xiyue to that family in the city? I heard that being a maid is more comfortable than being at home. It's just serving people. When you make money in the future, you can redeem her." After hearing her youngest son's threatening words, Old Mrs. Chen didn't want to pay anymore and also suggested selling her granddaughter.
"Mother, please don't sell me! I can work for the family, I can earn money, and I can do business like her. Please don't sell me!" Chen Xiyue said anxiously upon hearing this.
"Little sister, you're just going to serve people, but if I don't have money, I'll lose a hand. Please help me out, for the sake of how good I've been to you before." Chen Lizhong panicked when he saw the axes those people were holding, and he knelt down to beg Chen Xiyue for help.
"Brother, I don't want to! I don't want to be sold! It's all your fault! It's all your fault for not paying back my brother's money! Otherwise, why would my parents have thought of selling me?" Chen Xiyue glared at Chen Xichun, who was watching the commotion, and blamed all the mistakes on her.
"Blame me? I think you're really stupid. It was your parents who wanted to sell you. They would rather keep the land they had to eat than keep you. They were willing to sacrifice you for your own brother. If you want to blame someone, you should blame them. At the very least, there's your aunt. She's the one who had someone sell you. What does it have to do with me? I didn't send him to gamble, and I didn't tell them to sell you. Please, get your head straight."
Xi Chun was speechless, realizing for the first time that she was also so clueless.
"Yes, this girl really doesn't know what's going on. She can't even figure out whose fault it is. Sigh, the Chen family is rotten to the core."
"Grandma, I'm your granddaughter too! Please don't sell me. My brother and I will take care of you in your old age. I can earn money, and I can get married and receive a dowry. Please don't sell me."
"Enough, Granny Chen. This isn't a famine year, and your family isn't so poor that you have to sell your children. Hurry up and give us the money. Do you want everyone to keep laughing at you? Our village can't tolerate families who sell their children. Also, Chen Lizhong, if you continue gambling and harming your family, I'll have no choice but to kick you all out of the village."
The village chief watched this farce unfold, finding it utterly ridiculous and unable to comprehend what was happening.
"Yes, stop pretending. It's the New Year, everyone has a lot to do. Give the money and send them off." An older person spoke up, and Old Mrs. Chen and the others dared not continue their act.
After Old Lady Chen returned the silver to those people, they all left.
"Sigh, the Chen family is getting more and more outrageous. I hope they can teach their children and grandchildren a good lesson after this incident, otherwise I'm afraid they might cause some more trouble." After everyone had left, the village chief sighed.
"Yes, I don't think Chen Lizhong is going to stop. I don't know if they can control him. The whole family is heartless." Aunt Zhang shook her head.
"Xichun, why don't you come to our house tomorrow? I'm worried about your safety if you're alone." Wang was also afraid something might happen and wanted to persuade Xichun.
"It's alright, I don't think they'll dare to come. I've been more vigilant these past few days." Xi Chun didn't want to rest at the Ma family's house, as it would remind her of the painful memories the original owner of her body had.
This incident did not dampen people's anticipation for the New Year. The children were still running and playing around the village, and Xichun delivered the New Year's gifts that he had originally planned to give out that morning to each household.
With everything prepared, the last day of the year arrived. Firecrackers were set off in every household, and laughter filled the air. Xi Chun, ever vigilant, also arrived at the second day of the Lunar New Year.
On the day of returning to her parents' home, Wang had no parents' home to return to, so she brought Xiaofeng to Xichun, while Uncle Ma took Ma Xiaobao to his maternal grandmother's house.
When Ma Xiaobao saw Xichun again that year, a seed of fear had been planted in his heart. He felt a sense of awe whenever he saw her. This time, he went to his maternal grandmother's house to arrange a marriage. Wang Shi did not interfere and left it to Ma's grandmother to worry about.
“Look at Xiaofeng, this guy smiles whenever he sees you. He’ll definitely follow you around calling you ‘sister’ every day from now on. You’ll have a brother to help you out in the future. When our Xiaofeng grows up, he can protect his sister too,” Wang said, holding Xiaofeng in her arms.
"Okay, when Xiaofeng grows up, he'll protect his sister, okay?" Xichun also had a good impression of this younger brother; at least he was well-behaved.
"Ah ah," Xiaofeng responded, making the two of them laugh.
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