The wicked mother-in-law doesn't try to whitewash herself; she only abuses her awful children.

Hong sighed and said to Tong Huaqiong with a sorrowful expression, "My illness comes and goes, which has been a burden on Lao He. Since we moved into this courtyard, he has also suffered because of it."

Tong Huaqiong said, "We're family, so let's not talk about how we're implicated by each other. Isn't it normal to be sick and need to take medicine? What's abnormal is that arrogant person who bullies others."

There was something Tong Huaqiong didn't say, but both she and Madam Hong knew in their hearts: the residents in this tenement weren't actually disgusted by the medicine pot; they simply wanted to bully He Chao.

He Chao was no longer the respectable butler of the Zheng family, and was expelled for unsavory reasons, which aroused the evil in human nature of bullying the weak and fearing the strong.

The saying "a tiger fallen into the plains is bullied by dogs" is a direct manifestation of this kind of evil.

Tong Huaqiong looked out the window.

I saw a stove in the yard, with medicine sitting on it, and wisps of smoke rising from it.

The medicine pot was far from the house of the gruff, dark-faced man; even if the illness lingered, it wouldn't reach that house.

That man was simply using this as an excuse to bully He Chao.

Fearing that He Chao would suffer a loss, Gu Dashu followed him into the courtyard.

"Brother, I'm sorry." He Chao lifted the medicine pot to take a look; it wasn't ready yet, it needed to simmer for a while longer.

He had no choice but to smile obsequiously at the cursing, dark-faced man because his wife was sick in the house.

The dark-faced man said unhappily, "I told you long ago not to brew medicine here, but you insisted on doing it here. If you want to brew it, go inside."

He Chao said, "This is an open flame; I'm afraid it might catch fire if I cook it indoors."

The dark-faced man sneered, "Aren't you afraid that if the wind blows a spark into my house, it will burn me down? If you're afraid of fire, then buy a whole courtyard and live there by yourself."

The stove was far from the dark-faced man's house; even if it were to catch fire, it wouldn't reach his house.

Tong Huaqiong felt that the dark-faced man was just looking for trouble.

Madam Hong coughed twice while lying on the bed and said softly, "In order to live a peaceful life, I have been giving Old He some spare change to buy wine and meat since we arrived here. We didn't have much money when we left the Zheng family, and I was sick and needed to get medicine, so I haven't given him any money these past two days. He has been picking fights and cursing people from time to time. Yesterday, he took away our rice and Old He's new clothes."

Under such circumstances, how could Hong's condition possibly improve?

According to Tong Huaqiong, He Chao should fight that dark-faced man and beat him into submission.

Tong Huaqiong continued to look outside.

The dark-faced man then asked He Chao to move the stove.

Gu Dashu couldn't hold back any longer and said, "How come you're getting more and more arrogant? We all live in the same courtyard. This courtyard isn't yours, so why can't we brew the medicine? You say the medicine will pass on the illness to you, but the patients in this room might have gotten sick from being frightened by you. Look at you, you're as dark as a big monkey. Who wouldn't get sick if they looked at you?"

The dark-faced man glanced sideways at Gu Dashu.

He thought to himself that this person was probably a servant who had been kicked out of the Zheng family, otherwise why would he be willing to stand up for He Chao?

What does a servant with no one to rely on have to fear?

“I’m in charge of this yard. I say you can brew medicine wherever you want. If you don’t move it, I’ll kick it over.” Before the dark-faced man could finish speaking, he kicked over the stove and the medicine.

Gu Dashu stretched out his fist, but He Chao stepped in to block it.

Gu Dashu is now the young master of his employer, so he can't let Gu Dashu get into a lawsuit for assault.

The dark-faced man cursed, "Ever since you came to this courtyard, my wife has been afraid to take a bath, for fear that you will peep at her. My wife now has to go out to bathe elsewhere every day, and you should compensate me for the money I wasted going to bathe elsewhere."

He Chao was so angry that he was trembling all over.

What kind of twisted logic is this?

Hong cried angrily, "Master, he's worse than a pig or a dog. He beats his wife all day long, and when he runs out of money, he pawns her off. He's just trying to stab Old He in the heart and squeeze money out of him."

Such a person can only be tormented by wicked people. Tong Huaqiong thought for a moment and went out, raising her voice: "Why did your wife go to another place to bathe? Wasn't it because you forced her? You, a grown man, are so incompetent that you can't even build a bathroom for your wife in the house, but instead you're here cursing people."

When the dark-faced man saw Tong Huaqiong come out of the house, he glanced at her and said, "I'm not afraid even if ten more people come to back up Lao He."

Tong Huaqiong pointed at the medicine jar on the ground and cursed, "This is life-saving medicine, and you kicked it over. You're trying to kill someone. Let's go see the authorities now."

When it comes to being a liar, Tong Huaqiong has never lost. She grabbed the dark-faced man and shouted, "They're going to kill someone! They're going to kill someone!"

He Chao was almost petrified; this widow Tong was still as shrewish as ever.

The dark-faced man raised his hand to shake off Tong Huaqiong, but Gu Dashu punched him in the face.

Gu Dashu was strong, and the dark-faced man's face immediately swelled up, causing him to jump in pain.

Tong Huaqiong, unable to contain herself, shouted loudly, "Murder!"

"Who killed someone?" The dark-faced man looked somewhat panicked.
He Chao then began to cooperate with Tong Huaqiong, saying, "You deliberately spilled the life-saving medicine because you had the intention to kill someone."

Tong Huaqiong grabbed the dark-faced man and said, "Come on, let's go see the magistrate. Let's have the county magistrate judge this."

The dark-faced man dared not go to see the official.

He had been imprisoned for theft, and he was afraid that his petty theft would be brought up in court.

Even if they weren't imprisoned, they would still be caned.

He usually bullies He Chao only because He Chao's reputation is ruined and he feels powerless in front of him.

Tong Huaqiong, however, disregarded everything and insisted on dragging him to see the official.

"I'm not afraid of seeing the officials either." The dark-faced man suppressed his fear and forced himself to speak boastfully.

Gu Dashu said with a smile, "Old He, the magistrate calls my mother 'godmother,' so don't worry, when you go to the county government, he will definitely get you justice."

The dark-faced man panicked when he heard the county magistrate call Tong Huaqiong his godmother.

"Ma'am, let's talk this out." The dark-faced man immediately slid to his knees and explained to Tong Huaqiong, "I accidentally kicked over the medicine jar, that was my fault."

Tong Huaqiong sneered, "It's fine if we don't see the officials. This medicine is worth two taels of silver, so you just need to compensate Old He with two taels of silver."

The dark-faced man thought to himself, "A wise man doesn't fight a losing battle. I'll pay the old woman two taels of silver first to appease her."

They can't stay here forever; sooner or later he'll take even more from He Chao.

So he smiled ingratiatingly at Tong Huaqiong and said, "I'll pay! I'll pay!"

Tong Huaqiong led He Chao and Gu Dashu to the room of the dark-faced man across the street. The dark-faced man took out two taels of silver and handed it to He Chao through gritted teeth.

He Chao accepted it without hesitation.

Tong Huaqiong said, "Give me back all the rice, flour, and clothes that you took from Old He's family."

As he spoke, he led Gu Dashu out of the house and brought out the rice, flour, and cooking oil. He also untied the two pieces of cured meat hanging on the wall.

The dark-faced man tried to stop them, but Gu Dashu brandished his fist. In the end, he could only watch helplessly as Tong Huaqiong and Gu Dashu carried their spoils into Lao He's house.

He stomped his foot in anger, wondering where this scoundrel had come from.

The dark-faced man gritted his teeth and cursed under his breath, planning to kill his way into Old He's house and take revenge after Tong Huaqiong left.

But he soon realized he had miscalculated. (End of Chapter)