A fierce wife enters the house: She helps up a house full of spineless people.

Early the next morning, Wang Jinzhu and Chen Tianfang went to town and sold a wild rabbit and a pheasant to a restaurant, earning a total of two hundred coins.

Chen Tianfang took the copper coin, counted it carefully twice, and put it in his pocket.

"Come on, let's go see our parents." Wang Jinzhu pulled him toward the meat stall.

Before even reaching the stall, Wang Jinzhu sensed something was wrong.

In the past, there would always be three or five people gathered around Dad's stall. Today, under the blazing sun, the meat on the cutting board was neatly arranged, but there wasn't a single person in sight.

A queue had formed at the meat stall across the street.

"father?"

Wang Dali was sharpening his knife when he heard the sound. He looked up, a hint of panic flashing across his face, before he forced a smile.

"You two are here? Have you eaten?"

"Dad, your business..." Wang Jinzhu frowned.

"It's hot today, so there aren't many people." Wang Dali placed the knife on the cutting board. "That's normal."

Wang Jinbao peeked out from behind, saw Wang Jinzhu, opened his mouth, but was silenced by a glare from Wang Dali.

"Alright, you two should hurry back. Don't wander around outside in this heat," Wang Dali urged impatiently, practically pushing them away. "Your mother went to buy some goods and isn't home. Go back if you don't need anything else."

Wang Jinzhu was not someone who could be easily fooled. Just as she was about to press for more information, Aunt Wu, who sold tofu next door, came over with a bowl of cold tea.

"Oh, is this Jinzhu? Long time no see. You've gotten even more plump since you got married."

"Aunt Wu," Wang Jinzhu nodded with a smile.

Aunt Wu chuckled twice, then suddenly lowered her voice, took her hand, and led her two steps to the side.

"My dear daughter, let me tell you something from the bottom of my heart. Everyone knows your father's flesh is good meat. But these rumors circulating outside lately..."

Wang Dali's expression changed: "Sister-in-law Wu!"

Aunt Wu ignored him, patting Wang Jinzhu's hand and continuing, "Girl, I don't mean anything by it. It's just that recently there have been rumors in town that you seriously injured your husband's younger brother at his house, and some even say you took down several people by yourself... I know it's not true, but people believe it anyway. Your father's business has been ruined by these rumors."

Wang Jinzhu's smile vanished.

Who sent it?

Aunt Wu gestured eastward with her chin: "It's from the academy, your brother-in-law's classmate is talking about it everywhere."

Wang Dali grabbed Wang Jinzhu's arm: "Daughter, listen to your father—"

"Father." Wang Jinzhu turned to look at him, her eyes filled with fire, not tears. "How many days have you been hiding this from me?"

Wang Dali remained silent.

"Three days or five days?"

He remained silent.

Wang Jinzhu took a deep breath, pried Wang Dali's hand off, and turned to walk towards the academy.

Chen Tianfang caught up with her in three quick steps and grabbed her.

"Golden Pearl, wait."

"What are you waiting for? I'm going to the academy right now to drag that Chen Shuyan out!"

"What if he doesn't recognize you when you go?"

These words left Wang Jinzhu speechless.

Chen Tianfang rarely spoke at length: "The lies he made up at the academy, no matter what we say, no one will believe them. He's a student who has only completed the preliminary examinations, so his classmates will naturally side with him. You can't win an argument with just empty words."

Wang Jinzhu stared at him for several breaths.

"Then what do you suggest we do?"

"Looking for Wu Laosan."

"Wu Laosan, the human trafficker. The second wife's family hired him when they wanted to sell Tianwei. He knows the whole story inside and out. If we bring him over, how will Chen Shuyan fabricate a story?"

Wang Jinzhu was stunned for a moment, then suddenly reached out and punched Chen Tianfang in the chest.

"Well done, Chen Tianfang, you've finally figured it out?"

Chen Tianfang was so hard from her punch that he took half a step back, his ears turning red.

Wang Dali walked over, his face grim.

He glanced at his daughter, then at his son-in-law, and after a long pause, snorted through his nose.

"Jinbao, Yinbao, Xiaobao!"

The three of them popped out from behind the stall at the same time, as if they had rehearsed it beforehand.

"Go with your sister, you can't let her get bullied." Wang Dali's voice wasn't loud, but every word hit the ground.

Wang Jinbao had been itching to shout for a long time, and he grabbed the boning knife from the cutting board—only to have it slapped away by Wang Dali.

"Put it down! We're here to reason with them, not to slaughter pigs!"

Wang Jinbao chuckled and followed empty-handed.

Wu Laosan wasn't hard to find. When he had nothing to do, he would wander around the gambling den every day, looking for people who had lost everything gambling and wanted to sell themselves.

When Wang Jinzhu found him, he was squatting by the wall eating a sesame seed cake. When he saw Wang Jinzhu and Chen Tianfang, he almost choked on the cake.

"What do you want from me? I paid for someone last time, so it's really not my fault."

Wang Jinzhu squatted down and looked him in the eye.

"Come with me. Explain your deal with the second branch of the Chen family in front of everyone."

"Why should I—"

Wang Jinbao took a step forward.

Wu Laosan immediately changed his mind: "Go, go, I'll go, okay?"

Wang Jinzhu borrowed a copper gong from a roadside general store. The shopkeeper recognized Wang Dali and handed it over without saying a word.

She carried a gong in one hand and a mallet in the other, walking and striking the gong as she went from the west of the town to the east.

"Clang—clang—clang—"

The sound of the gong made everyone on the street stick their heads out.

"My name is Wang Jinzhu! I'm the daughter of Butcher Wang! I married into the Chen family in Chenjia Village!" Her voice was so loud it could carry for three streets. "Recently, some people have been spreading rumors about me, saying I beat my brother-in-law and bullied scholars! Today I've brought the person involved here. Anyone who wants to know the truth, come with me to the entrance of Zhiyuan Academy!"

One head after another appeared in the shops along the street.

The sound of the gong drew people out from all walks of life: cloth sellers, rice sellers, tofu sellers, and tea drinkers.

Some people recognized her as Wang the butcher's daughter, some recognized the three Wang brothers following behind, and some recognized Wu Laosan, who was shrinking his neck.

The procession grew longer and longer.

Inside Zhiyuan Academy, Chen Shuyan was copying a book.

A classmate rushed in, panicking: "Shuyan! Shuyan! There's a woman coming this way, banging a gong, saying she's your sister-in-law!"

The pen in Chen Shuyan's hand fell to the paper with a "thud," and a blot of ink spread out.

He stood up and tried to slip out the back door.

Zhang Jingwen grabbed him, saying, "Brother Shuyan, what are you afraid of? She's just a village woman, how dare she cause trouble at the academy? Perfect, let the teacher judge! Come on, let's go out!"

Several other classmates joined in, saying, "That's right! Are we, a group of scholars, afraid of a butcher's daughter?"

Chen Shuyan was pushed and shoved towards the door, his legs feeling like they were made of lead.

Outside the academy gate, Wang Jinzhu placed the gong on the steps.

Behind him, the three Wang brothers stood in a row with their hands on their hips. Wu Laosan was sandwiched in the middle, his face ashen.

Across from them, Chen Shuyan walked out surrounded by a group of classmates.

Zhang Jingwen stood at the front, chin held high: "You're Wang Jinzhu? How dare you cause trouble at the academy!"

Wang Jinzhu didn't even look at him; her gaze was fixed on Chen Shuyan's face.

"Chen Shuyan, tell your classmate how you got the injury on your face."

Chen Shuyan swallowed hard, and Zhang Jingwen spoke for him, "Need I say more? It's naturally because of you and your husband—"

"Shut up, I wasn't asking you." Wang Jinzhu pointed at Wu Laosan. "This Wu Laosan is a human trafficker. Chen Shuyan, do you want him to help you remember?"

Wu Laosan was pushed by Wang Jinbao and staggered forward two steps.

He glanced at the crowds three layers deep at the entrance of the academy, then looked at Wang Jinzhu's expression, and resignedly spoke.

"Chen Shuyan's wife, Liu Yiyi, came to me wanting to sell her eldest uncle's fourteen-year-old niece, Chen Tianwei. The price was agreed upon: five taels of silver. Later, the eldest son's family discovered this and that's when they took action. Chen Shuyan was beaten because his family wanted to sell someone else's child, and the eldest son's family came to demand an explanation."

Silence reigned.

Zhang Jingwen's chin froze in mid-air.

Dozens of eyes turned to Chen Shuyan.

Chen Shuyan's face turned from white to red, then from red to purple, his lips trembled, and he couldn't utter a single word.

Wang Jinzhu took a step forward, her voice not loud, but every word was clear.

"Chen Shuyan, you said at the academy that I bullied you and that I was jealous of your studies. Then tell me in front of everyone—where were you, this scholar, when your parents sold your niece?"

Chen Shuyan took a step back.

Someone in the crowd scoffed.

Zhang Jingwen's face turned a deep purplish-red. He turned to look at Chen Shuyan, his mouth opening and closing repeatedly.

"Are these books and inkstones real?"

Chen Shuyan remained silent, sweat dripping from his forehead.

At that moment, footsteps echoed through the academy.

An elderly man with gray hair and beard pushed through the crowd and stepped out.

The Master has arrived.