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

Chapter 435 Kick to the Heart
"His father, his father."

Knowing Gu Youtian's temper, Jia was afraid that he would beat Gu Ruinian badly.

“Ruinian didn’t want to fail the exam either. He’s more upset than anyone else right now. We, as his parents, can’t blame him.”

Gu Youtian said angrily, "Don't you know how well you did on the exam? He came home after the exam and told us that he did very well and that he would pass both the county-level exam and the top-ranking exam. If he hadn't leaked the news beforehand that he would have passed, would I have lost so much face? I, Gu Youtian, am now the laughing stock of the whole Yanguan Town, all thanks to your good son. When I go out tomorrow, see how many people will gossip behind my back, saying that I'm bragging and that I'm delusional."

"Now you've been proven wrong, haven't you? What's even more infuriating is how Jingzhe passed the exam? Without Jingzhe as a comparison, it would be understandable, but now that we have Jingzhe as a comparison, who knows what people are saying about us behind our backs."

Gu Youtian, carrying a stick, arrived at Gu Ruinian's door and kicked it open.

Grandpa Gu didn't stop him. He felt that it wouldn't be good for Gu Ruinian to be so discouraged by just one exam. It would be good if Gu Youtian could wake him up.

Of course, he would stand by and prevent the shot from actually hitting the target.

Madam Jia desperately tried to stop Gu Youtian, crying, "Even if Ruinian does well on the exam, it's useless if his writing doesn't meet the examiners' standards. Our Ruinian is just unlucky, it's not his fault. Father, calm down, Ruinian will definitely be the top scorer next year!"

Ignoring Jia's attempts to stop him, Gu Youtian kicked the door repeatedly.

The door to the old house was already flimsy, and Gu Youtian kicked it hard, almost causing it to crack.

Jia hugged the fire poker and wept bitterly.

With a strong pull, he got the fire poker into his hand.

With such a thick stick, coupled with Gu Youtian's rage, one blow would take half of Gu Ruinian's life.

"You're used to it."

Gu Youtian, frustrated and with nowhere to vent his anger, kicked Jia in the chest.

Jia fell to the ground, vomited blood with a loud cry, and fainted.

Grandma Gu and Xiaoxue were so frightened that they stepped forward and pinched her philtrum.

The commotion at the old house was so great that it attracted the attention of the neighbors.

Originally, everyone came to see Gu Ruinian make a fool of himself, but when Jia Shi was kicked down by Gu Youtian, everyone forgot about the excitement and swarmed around to help Old Madam Gu and Gu Xiaoxue pinch Jia Shi.

"Fengnian's mother, wake up."

"What can I do?"

"We need to call a doctor."

The crowd shouted louder and louder, and Old Madam Gu was so frightened that she collapsed to the ground. If Madam Jia died, those ravenous brothers and nephews of the Jia family would not let Gu Youtian off the hook.

"Mother, Mother," Gu Xiaoxue cried.

While Wei was in her room, Gu Yaojia, having finished Gu Jingzhe's banquet, had some cakes given to him by Man'er in his pocket that he was reluctant to eat. He also hid the meat in a large white steamed bun in his bosom. After returning home, he pulled Wei into his room and handed it to her.

Mrs. Wei was pleased with her son's thoughtfulness. She ate a steamed bun and hid the meat, planning to give it to him as an extra meal that evening.

She usually ignored the commotion outside, but when she heard that her mother-in-law had been kicked down by her father-in-law, she could no longer stay silent.

So he came out.

Gu Fengnian also came out.

The couple looked anxiously at Jia.

The couple turned pale with fright when they saw Jia vomiting blood.

"Go and fetch a doctor," Madam Wei said to Gu Fengnian.

Gu Fengnian took off running.

Suddenly realizing he had no money, he turned to ask Old Master Gu for some.

All the family's money was used for Ruinian's exam in the prefectural city, and Grandpa Gu had no money left.

"Forget about the money for now, get the doctor here first," Aunt Qin, who had come to join in the fun, said to Gu Fengnian.

Gu Fengnian then freed his feet again.

Everyone worked together to carry Jia Shi into the house.

Wei asked Gu Xiaoxue to look after her, and then she got up and walked towards the west end of the village.

She hated her brother-in-law to death.

If you fail the exam, so be it. What's the point of hiding in the room like a coward?

My mother-in-law's misfortune today was all caused by her brother-in-law. She hates him and also her father-in-law, who does nothing but take his anger out on women all day.

As a daughter-in-law, even though she had conflicts with Jia, she couldn't just watch her mother-in-law die.

There's no money at home. The doctor will be here soon and I need to prescribe medicine. How can we manage without money?

Wei thought of Tong Huaqiong's family and had no choice but to swallow her pride and borrow money from them.

"Is the old lady there?"

When Wei arrived at Tong Huaqiong's courtyard, she called out.

"Hey, sister-in-law, what brings you to my house?"

When Liu Yue'e came out, she found that it was Wei Shi who was in a bad mood.

Wei and Liu Yue'e married into the Gu family one after the other. Wei followed Gu Fengnian to Qinghewan to worship their ancestors. Old Mrs. Gu gave Wei a bracelet but not Liu Yue'e. In front of Wei, she said that Liu Yue'e had eloped and was not worthy of taking her things.

Liu Yue'e also harbored resentment towards Wei Shi.

In addition, Wei would occasionally come to Qinghe Bay, but she would look down on the people of Qinghe Bay for being uncouth and never take her seriously.

Therefore, she didn't give Wei a friendly look.

"Sister-in-law, I have something urgent to discuss with Auntie," said Madam Wei.

Tong Huaqiong and Gu Jingzhe were inside discussing proposing marriage to the Lu family when they heard voices outside and came out.

Liu Yue'e wanted to say a few more sarcastic remarks to Wei Shi, but she stopped herself when she saw her mother-in-law.

"Auntie," Wei cried out, her voice trembling with tears.

Tong Huaqiong asked, "What's wrong?"

Tong Huaqiong viewed Wei Shi as just an ordinary villager with whom she had no vested interests, feeling neither good nor bad feelings towards her.

Normally, aside from Wei calling her "Auntie" when they met, the two had no relationship and she didn't know why Wei came to her house to see her.

"Auntie," Wei said, biting her lip, "could you lend me two taels of silver? I know I shouldn't ask, and I'm too ashamed to. But I can't worry about that now. My mother-in-law was kicked by my father-in-law and vomited blood. She's collapsed in bed now, and Fengnian needs money to fetch a doctor and get medicine."

Without saying a word, Tong Huaqiong went inside and took two taels of silver, handing it to Wei Shi.

It wasn't that she was being overly compassionate; it was that she couldn't bear to watch people die.

Jia did not do anything immoral or immoral.

Madam Wei took the silver and said through tears, "Auntie, I will return this silver."

Tong Huaqiong waved her hand and said, "Saving lives is the priority, you should go quickly."

Gu Jingzhe said, "I'll go with my sister-in-law to check on the situation."

Liu Yue'e also went to the old house, not to inquire about Jia's situation, but to go and eat melons.

"Mother, there's a huge commotion at the old house. Ruinian didn't pass the imperial examination, and Second Uncle felt he'd lost face and wanted to beat him up. Second Aunt stopped him, and Second Uncle kicked Second Aunt in the chest."

Liu Yue'e strolled around the old house, cut up the melon she had eaten, and took it home to Tong Huaqiong.

How is your second aunt doing now?

Tong Huaqiong could imagine Gu Youtian's anger at his son's failure to pass the exam.

If he had failed the exam quietly, that would have been one thing, but to fail when he was fully prepared to succeed is a huge embarrassment for Gu Youtian.

More importantly, she had heard that Gu Youtian had used Gu Ruinian's status as a scholar to borrow money for business, and now who would dare to lend him money?

However, Tong Huaqiong expressed her contempt for Gu Youtian's domestic violence against his wife.

Liu Yue'e said, "The doctor gave him two acupuncture treatments and he woke up. He saw that his third brother had fainted again and was still being given acupuncture."

Tong Huaqiong: "."

Liu Yue'e said, "Second Aunt can't see Third Brother now, because seeing him will upset her."

Tong Huaqiong found it both funny and absurd, but at the same time, she understood Jia's situation very well.

For an ancient woman who considered her son her everything, all her hopes were pinned on Gu Ruinian.

Gu Ruinian repeatedly brainwashed Jia Shi into believing that he could pass the imperial examination, but when the results were announced, his hopes were dashed. Meanwhile, Gu Jingzhe, whom Jia Shi considered Gu Ruinian's rival, passed the examination. It's no wonder that Jia Shi was furious.