"I went to my older brother's house to give him some money. What exactly happened to your father? He was perfectly fine when I left?"
"Father..." The little girl dared not remain silent, her eyes brimming with tears. She whimpered for a long time, knowing that if she spoke, her mother would surely beat her. "Father asked me who hit me, and I said... I said my older brother!"
Li was furious, ready to tear her apart. She started causing trouble again, "Can't you just say you fell? You little slut? Are you only happy when things are chaotic in our house? You can't stand a few days of peace, can you?"
"No, I'm not..."
"Shut up, Second Sister-in-law, stop arguing and get your illness treated first."
Zhao Dayong was getting a headache listening to this; now was the time to be arguing about these things, and the other person was practically spitting blood in anger. When did his second sister-in-law become so clueless?
Zhao Xiaoyu scrutinized her second aunt. Something seemed off about her. Her hysterical state looked like she was going through menopause.
It's normal to go through menopause at this age. It's just that my second aunt seems a bit crazy.
My second aunt needs a calming oral liquid!
Zhao Xiaoyu took a step back. Menopausal women are unreasonable and crazy; it's better to stay away from her and avoid getting into trouble.
"Doctor, how is my husband?"
"Anger attacks the heart, injures the liver, and stagnation in the heart causes qi to rise upwards." The doctor stopped, his face grave. "His health wasn't good to begin with; he's been overworked and worried excessively for years. This time, he suffered a great shock and caught a chill; his condition is serious. I'll give him acupuncture first to stabilize his heart pulse, then prescribe medicine. But..."
He paused, glanced at Li Shi, then at Zhao Dayong, and sighed, "But mental state is the most important. If you are stimulated again, medicine will be ineffective. Even if you recover this time, you will need to rest quietly for a long time and must not get angry or stressed again."
Upon hearing this, Li's face turned deathly pale, and she swayed.
The room quickly quieted down, with only the soft sounds of the doctor removing and inserting needles. The little girl huddled in the corner, her face stinging with pain, but her heart was filled with fear; she only dared to peek.
Li stood there, stunned, her mind a jumbled mess. The old man had vomited blood… He actually vomited blood from anger? What could have happened to make him vomit blood?
The older the old man gets, the more irritable he becomes.
When he wakes up, she will definitely nag him a lot. He's getting old and his health isn't good. He shouldn't get angry. She's just a girl. If she hits him, she hits him. Why take it so seriously?
Zhao Dashu was speechless. His second brother was almost furious because Dazhu had hit a girl, or something else.
Looking at the little girl's unbearable face, I sighed twice in despair.
"Doctor, when will the old man wake up?"
"In a little while."
Mrs. Li was relieved; as long as he woke up, everything would be alright.
"Let her see it too."
Zhao Xiaoyu pulled the little girl over and spoke to the doctor.
Old Mrs. Li's mouth twitched twice but she didn't say anything. Since it wasn't costing her any money, she figured she might as well watch.
After examining the child, the doctor also felt sorry for her. "It's all superficial injuries, she'll be fine after some rest. But the little girl isn't in good health either, she often doesn't eat enough and her spleen and stomach are a bit upset from hunger."
Zhao Dashu: ...
Has the second sister-in-law forgotten who she is? Abusing her daughter like this, isn't she afraid of retribution?
"Second sister-in-law, your family doesn't seem to be starving, right? You still live in a brick house, surely you can give the children a full meal?"
That's so mean! I've never seen such a mean person before!
Madam Song frowned. How could her second sister-in-law be so foolish? She was her own flesh and blood, how could she treat her like this?
The little girl took two steps back. Oh no! If her third uncle speaks up for her, her mother will go crazy. She'll be in big trouble after they leave!
Just as Li was about to speak, Zhao Dayong interrupted, "Li, who gave you permission to let your daughter serve the eldest son? You know perfectly well how much the eldest son hates her for tipping off the third son. You did it on purpose, didn't you?"
"Heaven and earth bear witness, Zhao Dayong, you can't wrong me like this. What do you mean I did it on purpose? What does it have to do with me that the little girl offended her brother?"
Dazhu can't cook or do laundry; he's never done these chores before. If the girl doesn't help, am I supposed to go every day? Don't worry, Dazhu has already vented his anger today and won't hit her again.”
Li spoke as if it were the most natural thing in the world, and everyone in the room looked at her in astonishment.
So she knew her daughter would be beaten if she went, but she still let her go. Is this person crazy? How can she be so cruel?
Zhao Dayong felt a metallic taste in his throat; he felt like he was about to vomit blood again, angered by Li Shi to the point of vomiting blood.
"Shut up!"
Li shut up in embarrassment.
"From now on, the girl is not allowed to go to the eldest son's house to do chores for him anymore. If she can't cook, he might as well starve to death. And you, if I find out again that you are encouraging the girl to do chores for Dazhu, get back to the Li family."
After Zhao Dayong finished speaking, he took a breath. He was still worried. If he died, Dazhuzi might really sell his daughter. Li Chunhua had already gone mad.
"And you, you're not allowed to lay a hand on our daughter again, not even once. Do you hear me?"
Li didn't understand why the old man was suddenly protecting his daughter. Didn't he used to dislike her just like she did? He never interfered much when she hit him before, at most telling her not to go too far.
What's wrong with you now? What's gotten into you?
"Okay, okay, I won't touch her."
Zhao Dashu pressed the tip of his tongue against his cheek, "Second Sister-in-law's answer is very half-hearted."
But seeing Zhao Dayong lying on the kang (a heated brick bed) on the verge of death, he chose to keep quiet.
"Third brother, thank you for saving me again today."
"We're like brothers, no need to be so polite!"
Zhao Dayong curled his lips into a smile but couldn't manage it. He struggled to get up, and Li Shi quickly helped him up, saying, "You've already vomited blood, can't you just calm down? Do you have to torture yourself to death before you're satisfied?"
Zhao Dayong waved her hand away; he was so disappointed in his wife that he didn't want to say anything more.
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