I attained immortality through meditation in the Great Qian Dynasty.

Zhao Zian stared blankly at Li Suqin.

Are they the flesh and blood of the Zhao family?

absurd!

My elder brother had been bedridden for several years and was no longer able to perform sexual acts.

Heaven knows this, earth knows this, and he and his sister-in-law are both fully aware of it.

My sister-in-law is lying.

That's it, that's it.

Zhao Zian was unwilling to delve into the matter further.

Where could a widow with no relatives go after leaving the Zhao family?

Go back to her parents' home? A divorced woman will only be met with contempt.

Remarrying? Easier said than done.

"I see."

"You... take good care of yourself and don't overwork yourself. I'll take care of things at home."

After saying that, he went back to his room.

Li Suqin steadied her weak legs by holding onto the stove.

She knew that Zian was usually a bit dull, but he had the softest heart.

But... she lowered her head and touched her lower abdomen.

Is it possible to get pregnant in one attempt?

……

Zhao Zian closed the door.

Whether what my sister-in-law said is true or false, whether that child... actually exists or not.

The problem now is poverty.

This family has reached the end of their rope.

To pay for his brother's medical treatment, the family not only spent all their savings, but also sold their only few acres of meager farmland.

Finally, he borrowed thirty taels of silver from Zhang Laizi, a loan shark in town.

My elder brother eventually passed away.

But this debt weighs heavily on the uncle and his sister-in-law.

With interest compounding, it's probably worth more than thirty taels now.

A loud bang suddenly came from outside the courtyard!

Immediately following was a burst of extremely arrogant shouts and curses.

"Zhao Zian! Get the hell out here!"

"Paying back debts is a matter of course! Are you hiding from us to avoid paying your debts?"

Zhao Zian's face darkened.

They're Zhang Laizi's men!

He suddenly stood up and opened the door.

In the main hall, Li Suqin stood there, her face deathly pale.

"Zi'an, no...don't go out! It's them...they're here again!"

Zhao Zian smiled at her.

"Sister-in-law, don't be afraid."

"Go inside and lock the door. No matter what you hear, don't come out."

Li Suqin was stunned.

The Zhao Zian before me seems different from before.

"But……"

"obedient."

Zhao Zian pushed her into the room and closed the door.

At the entrance of the courtyard, four thugs with a shady appearance were blocking the way.

The leader had a scar on his face that ran from the corner of his left eye to the corner of his mouth.

It was none other than Scarface Liu, Zhang Laizi's most capable henchman.

Scarface Liu was accompanied by three thugs.

Outside the courtyard, a group of neighbors had gathered to watch the spectacle.

"It's Zhang Laizi's men again. The Zhao family is really having a run of bad luck."

"That's right, Zhao Zian is just a bookworm. How could his widowed sister-in-law, a woman, possibly afford such a large debt?"

"Shh... Keep your voice down, or that Scarface Liu will hear you."

Zhao Zian looked calmly at Scarface Liu.

"What brings you gentlemen here so early in the morning?"

Scarface Liu glanced at him sideways.

"Oh, Scholar Zhao, are you pretending to be ignorant when you know the truth?"

"Your brother owes our boss thirty taels of silver, plus interest from the past few years, totaling fifty-eight taels! If you can't come up with the money today, don't blame us brothers for being impolite!"

Fifty-eight taels!

This leper is indeed a wicked devil who eats people without spitting out the bones!

"I will definitely pay you back. But not now. Please give me some time."

"When?"

Scarface Liu burst into laughter.

"Hahaha! Why should we give you leeway?"

The three thugs behind him also started laughing.

"Brother, stop wasting your breath on him! I don't see anything valuable in this yard, so why don't we..."

A thug lowered his voice.

"I heard his widowed sister-in-law is quite a beauty!"

Upon hearing this, Scarface Liu's eyes lit up.

He had long heard that Li Suqin, the widow of the Zhao family, was a famous beauty in Liuxi Town, but he had never had the chance to see her in person.

The bedroom door was ajar.

Li Suqin was worried and was peeking out through the crack in the door.

That glance landed right on Scarface Liu.

"Yo!"

Scarface Liu almost drooled.

"She's truly exceptional!"

Li Suqin felt uneasy under his gaze and quickly closed the door.

Scarface Liu licked his chapped lips and looked at Zhao Zian.

"Scholar Zhao, how about we make a deal?"

"Here's what we'll do. You definitely can't pay back fifty-eight taels of silver. But... you have to let your pretty sister-in-law entertain us brothers, make sure we're all happy, and if I'm in a good mood, I'll forgive half the debt! Twenty-nine taels! How about that? Isn't that a good deal?"

Inside the bedroom, Li Suqin felt ice-cold all over.

Zi'an was weak, and she wasn't sure if Zi'an would give her away.

"What did you say?"

Zhao Zian spoke up.

Scarface Liu thought he was interested.

"What? You think it's not worth it? Then let your sister-in-law serve me even more, and I'll give you a few more ounces off..."

He didn't finish his sentence.

A fist rapidly magnified in his field of vision.

The "Green Wood Longevity Technique" circulated within my body, enhancing my strength, speed, and reaction ability!

"Bang!"

Scarface Liu's nasal bridge broke with a snap, and blood gushed out mixed with two broken teeth.

"what!"

The entire audience was stunned!

The three thugs were stunned to see their boss rolling on the ground, clutching his face and bleeding profusely.

The neighbors who were watching were all dumbfounded.

Is this... is this still the same Zhao Xiucai who couldn't even kill a chicken?

Zhao Zian glanced at the remaining three thugs who were already terrified.

"I didn't hear what he just said."

"Who will say that again?"

The three thugs trembled under his gaze.

"You...you dare hit us? Do you know who we work for?!"

Another quick-reacting person drew a short knife from his waist and stabbed at Zhao Zian.

"I'll kill you!"

Instead of retreating, Zhao Zi'an advanced.

Easily dodging the blade, he flipped his wrist and grabbed the opponent's wrist holding the knife.

The dagger flew from his hand.

Zhao Zian caught the falling dagger, and without even looking at it, he flicked it back!

The dagger grazed the third thug's scalp and embedded itself in the door frame behind him.

The thug rolled his eyes and fainted from fright.

In the blink of an eye, only one remained intact.

"Have mercy, sir! Spare me, sir! It's not my fault!"

Zhao Zian walked up to Scarface Liu, who was still groaning on the ground.

"Go back and tell Zhang Laizi."

"Fifty-eight taels of silver, not a penny less, I will return it."

"but……"

"If you dare step into my yard again, or utter another word of disrespect to my sister-in-law..."

"Next time, it won't be as simple as just breaking a nose."

Zhao Zian stood up and ignored the group of scoundrels.

The thug helped Scarface Liu up, dragged his companion, and fled the Zhao family courtyard.

The surrounding neighbors were completely silent.

Is this still the same incompetent scholar Zhao?

This is clearly a celestial being descended to earth!

The bedroom door opened.

Li Suqin stood at the door, filled with disbelief.

That swift, clean, and decisive movement just now...

Is this really Ziyasu?

That younger brother-in-law who blushes when he sees strangers and speaks in a soft voice?

When Li Suqin saw that the skin on the back of his hand was scraped and bleeding, her heart tightened, and she went over to check the injury for him.

"Zi'an, your hand..."

Her fingertips were just about to touch him when Zhao Zian recoiled as if he had been burned.

"Don't worry, sister-in-law, it's just a minor injury."

Li Suqin's hand remained suspended in mid-air for a long while before she awkwardly withdrew it.

"I'll go boil some water and prepare your meal."

The neighbors who had been watching the commotion outside the gate grew bolder now that the dust had settled.

The one leading the group was Aunt Wang from next door.

"Hey, Zian! I always knew you were a bookworm, I never knew you could be so tough in a fight! You really can't judge a book by its cover!"

A man chimed in.

"Exactly! From now on, who in the village would dare to bully your Zhao family!"

Aunt Wang's smile was meaningful.

"Zian, let me speak from the bottom of my heart. Your eldest brother is gone, and you're the only son left in the family. In my opinion, why don't you follow the old custom and take your sister-in-law as your wife? It would strengthen family ties, wouldn't that be better than anything else? It's much better than letting an outsider benefit in the future!"

Upon hearing this, several neighbors burst into laughter.

Li Suqin blushed, her lowered eyes secretly glancing at Zhao Zi'an, her heart pounding as if it were about to burst out of her chest.

Would he be willing?