A jinx, me? But I bring good fortune to my whole family!

If Old Lady Gu is second to none in her ability to distort the truth, no one in the surrounding area would dare to claim to be first.

Xiao An was so angry that she wanted to rush forward and fight, but Da An held her tightly. The two children's eyes were full of hatred, a kind of hatred that should not exist at their age.

Su Xiulan, who had been silent until now, suddenly laughed. The laughter was soft, but at that moment it sent chills down one's spine. She slowly stood up from the ground, swaying slightly, but managed to straighten herself. She didn't look at Old Lady Gu, nor at Zhang Aidi, but turned to Gu Chengye and the villagers who had gathered to watch.

"Captain, Party Secretary, fellow villagers," Su Xiulan's voice wasn't loud, but every word was clear, carrying a reckless determination, "Did you all hear that? This is my good mother-in-law, my good sister-in-law. When Jianguo was doing well, he gave most of his salary to the public school to support our whole family. Now that Jianguo is down, not only do they ignore us, they're pushing us to our deaths!"

She dug her nails into her flesh, using the pain to remind herself to stay awake.

"I can't live like this anymore. Today, in front of the entire village, I, Su Xiulan, am making this clear. We're dividing the family property! No—" She paused, staring at everyone, and uttered two words, slowly and deliberately, "We're severing all ties!"

Sever ties!

The moment those two words were uttered, everyone in the room erupted in chaos.

These days, even splitting up a family property can lead to backbiting and being called unfilial.

Severing ties with one's ancestors? That's a grave act of rebellion, deserving the scorn of the entire clan! It's like disowning one's ancestors!

"You...what did you say?" Old Mrs. Gu was stunned at first, then she flew into a rage, her triangular eyes widening in fury. "You've gone too far! Severing ties with your family? Only if I'm dead! You little whore, how dare you say such heartless things? I'll beat you to death!"

As she spoke, Old Mrs. Gu picked up her cane and smashed it against Su Xiulan's head.

The people in the room were quite shocked, not expecting her to act so suddenly. If she had hit them hard, they would have been smashed in the head.

"Stop!" Gu Chengye was about to rush over.

"Let her hit you!"

A hoarse growl escaped from Gu Jianguo's chest.

Everyone was shocked to see that Gu Jianguo, who had been limp, had actually propped himself up on his arms. His bloodshot eyes were fixed on his mother and the cane that was raised high.

"This blow will end our mother-son bond." Gu Jianguo's voice was devoid of any warmth. "Mother, have you thought this through? That slap and those kicks from Dayong have destroyed any filial piety I had. If you still want this son, don't force me to expose all the shameful things you've done!"

Grandma Gu's hand froze in mid-air, the cane so heavy she almost couldn't lift it. She felt a chill run down her spine under the gaze of her third son, a gaze that seemed to devour her whole. She remembered all the outrageous things her second son had done in the past, and how her third son had always covered for her and cleaned up her messes…

"Third son, you...you really want to abandon your mother for an outsider?" Old Mrs. Gu's hands trembled, but she still tried to put on a brave face.

Gu Jianguo's lips twitched into a smile that was more painful than crying. He glanced at Su Xiulan's swollen forehead, then at the children's emaciated bodies, and finally his gaze fell back on his own numb legs.

"Outsiders? Mother, Xiulan gave birth to my children and took care of me when I was bedridden. And you? You're the ones who wanted to suck my last drop of blood while I was unconscious!"

He closed his eyes, and two streams of tears mingled with blood streamed down his face. When he opened his eyes again, all that remained was a deathly stillness.

"To save your life, break off this relationship."

In one sentence, Grandma Gu was firmly rooted to the spot.

Surprisingly, not a single villager came forward to mediate this time. Everyone has their own moral compass; people are all made of flesh and blood. Seeing the miserable state of the Gu family's third branch, and looking at Old Madam Gu's heartless, cruel face, who could honestly say that parents are never wrong?

Grandma Gu trembled with rage, her face shaking. She pointed at Gu Jianguo, her lips quivering, unable to utter a word. Finally, she screamed, and in a fit of rage and shame, raised her cane to strike Gu Jianguo.

"Since you don't want to be my son, then I'll beat you to death, you unfilial son!"

"If I had known you were this kind of thing, I should have slammed you to death in a urinal when you were born."

Before the cane could fall, it was grabbed by a large, iron-like hand.

It was neither Gu Chengye nor Su Xiulan.

He is the village party secretary.

The old man, who was always smiling, now had a face as stiff as an iron plate. He snatched the cane and threw it out the door.

"Haven't you embarrassed me enough?" the village secretary roared, the roof seeming to tremble three times. "Gu Zhangshi! If you dare to move again today, I'll have the militia tie you up and send you to the commune! I think you want to go to jail!"

Grandma Gu was so startled by the shout that she sat down on the ground with a thud, slapping her thighs as if about to throw a tantrum.

"Stop wailing!" The village secretary didn't give her a chance. He turned to Gu Jianguo and Su Xiulan, his expression a mixture of heartache and regret. "Jianguo, the brigade will handle this for you. Severing ties is impossible; our bodies and hair are gifts from our parents, how can we just cut them off like that? But dividing the family property can be done tonight! Not only will we divide it, but we'll also get back every single thing that belongs to your third branch!"

Su Xiulan stood there, tears finally falling again. She knew that although the battle was fierce, they had won.

She knew that severing ties was not easy, after all, it was a big deal. If it really happened, the whole town would know within three days.

The village can't afford to lose face like this; it's already quite generous of them to allow the family to split up.

However, given Old Mrs. Gu's nature, she certainly wouldn't agree readily.

However, just when everyone thought the matter was over, a series of hurried footsteps suddenly came from the doorway, and a boy, about ten years old, ran in panting: "Captain! Something terrible has happened! Er Lengzi said he saw Uncle Gu fall into a trap on the back mountain, and it looks like his leg is broken. He's screaming like a banshee!"

Grandma Gu's wailing stopped abruptly, and she sprang to her feet, exclaiming, "What? What happened to my second son?!"

Su Xiulan and Gu Jianguo exchanged a glance, and the same thought popped into their minds: retribution has come.

Little Green, who was sulking inside, almost burst out laughing when she heard this.

[Giggle, covered in stinky pig poop, probably frozen solid!]

Nuannuan pouted in disgust and muttered softly, "Don't even mention popsicles, I'm too nauseous to eat them."

She loves popsicles, both red bean and orange flavors. Her mom used to buy them for her. She also loves candied hawthorns, which are bright red and have a nice crunchy texture.

"He fell into a wild boar pit. The pit is too deep and the surroundings are too slippery. Even Er Lengzi can't get him out."

"He was so cold he couldn't make a sound, and I didn't even know if he was still breathing. He told me to come and call for help!"