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

After Chen Tianwei ran out, the courtyard was quiet for a few moments.

Chen Yuxiang stood there, her hand still outstretched, her expression changing from anxious to aggrieved.

"Tianfang, look at your sister. I tried to talk to her nicely, and she just turned and ran away. She has no manners at all. Ever since your wife came into the family, Tianwei's heart hasn't been with me. I'm her own mother..."

Chen Tianfang didn't say anything.

Chen Yuxiang continued to complain, "Wasn't I just doing it for her own good? The Yang family is rich; she won't have to worry about food and clothing after marrying into their family. How could I, as her mother, harm her? Your wife is an outsider after all; can she take care of Tianwei for the rest of her life?"

Chen Tianfang remained silent.

He just stood there, looking at his mother.

As Chen Yuxiang spoke, her voice lowered. Her son's gaze wasn't fierce, but the silence was more unbearable than a reprimand.

"Tianfang, say something..." Her voice was so soft it was like a mosquito's buzz.

Chen Tianfang finally spoke.

"Mother, did you know that Yang Laosan beat his wife to death?"

Chen Yuxiang's lips twitched: "That's a rumor..."

"His first wife died, and his second wife ran away. Jinzhu and I were asking around in town yesterday."

Chen Yuxiang opened her mouth, but no sound came out.

"You're so eager to send Tianwei into the fire because she didn't get sold," Chen Tianfang said in a flat, emotionless voice. "Mother, do you think life is too comfortable for you right now?"

"I don't--"

"Do you want to go back to the old days?" Chen Tianfang interrupted her, "Getting up before dawn every day to cook, then going to the fields, then washing clothes. Grandma scolding you and you didn't dare say a word, Auntie ordering you around and you didn't dare talk back. Wasn't that kind of life easier?"

Chen Yuxiang's tears fell.

"Tianfang, I really didn't..."

"You said those things to Tianwei behind Jinzhu's back. How do you expect Jinzhu to feel?" Chen Tianfang's tone grew increasingly harsh. "She sacrificed her reputation to bring fairness to our family, risking her life to protect us from human traffickers, and now her own mother-in-law is turning against her at home."

Chen Yuxiang cried so hard she hiccuped.

"If she becomes disillusioned and abandons you, how do you think you can live in this family? Grandma and the second wife are always plotting to sell Tianwei; can we stop them?"

These words were like cold water poured over her head, and Chen Yuxiang stopped crying.

She recalled the changes in her family over the past few months. Meat was now on the table, Chen Tianrun had gained weight, and Tianwei no longer had to live in constant fear. Old Mrs. Chen no longer dared to scold or beat her, and Chen Xiufen no longer dared to boss her around.

All of this was because of Wang Jinzhu.

Without Wang Jinzhu, her family remained the same as before, huddled in a corner, gasping for breath.

A wave of fear surged up from the soles of my feet.

"Tianfang..." her voice trembled, "Jinzhu, can she forgive me?"

"I have no idea."

Chen Tianfang turned around and walked into the house.

"I won't interfere in her affairs. Whether she forgives you or not is for her to ask."

Chen Yuxiang stood in the courtyard, stunned for a long time. The sun was shining on her, but she felt cold all over.

She wiped her face, took a deep breath, and walked heavily toward the main house.

When the door opened, Wang Jinzhu was untying Chen Tianwei's braids and slowly combing them with a fine-toothed comb. Chen Tianrun was squatting by the door playing with grasshoppers; when he saw Chen Yuxiang come in, he almost crushed the grasshopper to death.

"Golden pearl."

Chen Yuxiang walked up to Wang Jinzhu and spoke hesitantly, "It was my fault for being foolish. I shouldn't have told Tianwei those things behind your back. I've become so happy that I've forgotten who gave me everything. You can hit me, you can scold me, just please don't abandon us."

Chen Tianwei remained calm and silent for a long time, looking at Chen Yuxiang who had her head down.

Sometimes silence is more agonizing than insults; Chen Yuxiang felt like she was suffocating.

"Alright, this is the last time." Wang Jinzhu put down the comb, her voice neither loud nor soft. "If there's a next time, you're no longer one of my own. If you're not one of my own, then don't blame me for only caring about myself."

Chen Yuxiang looked up at Wang Jinzhu and nodded repeatedly. "Mother remembers, remembers."

Chen Tianwei tugged at Chen Yuxiang's sleeve, and the mother and daughter exchanged a glance, their eyes both reddening. Chen Tianrun also came over and hugged his mother's leg.

Wang Jinzhu didn't say anything more and went out of the house, where Chen Tian waited outside the door.

"Just remember the lesson," Chen Tianfang said, his voice muffled. "She's just soft-hearted and easily influenced. Next time someone gossips about her, just stop them."

Wang Jinzhu glanced at him sideways: "You're quite talkative today. What, afraid I'll bully your mother?"

Chen Tianfang stepped forward, put his arm around her waist, and leaned down to whisper in her ear, "What are you saying! I'm definitely on your side."

Seeing that he didn't seem to be flirting and was restraining himself, Wang Jinzhu deliberately tilted her head and brushed her lips against his cheek.

Chen Tianfang's ears suddenly turned red.

Qi, she's terrible at games but loves to play!

Chen Yuxiang jumped around for a long time, unaware that the other party had no intention of letting Chen Tianwei think about it at all.

Liu Yiyi changed into clean clothes for going out, her hair was neatly combed, and she carried a bag of snacks in her hand. She led Chen Xiufen out of the courtyard through the back door.

When the two arrived at Yang's Rice Shop, Liu Yiyi asked Chen Xiufen to wait at the door while she went in first to greet them.

Inside the shop, Yang Laosan was working on an abacus behind the counter. He was in his fifties, broad-shouldered and thick-waisted, with an old scar on his neck and fingers as thick as old tree roots.

Liu Yiyi stepped forward, gave a curtsy, and explained the matter in a few words.

Yang Laosan put down his abacus and looked her over.

How big?

"Thirteen, then it'll be fourteen after the New Year."

"Thirteen?" Yang Laosan was both surprised and happy. He had never seen such a young woman before. Her family members were truly beasts!

"How does she look?"

"Nice-looking, and quick-witted."

Yang Laosan grunted in acknowledgment, took out two taels of silver from under the counter, placed it on the table, and pushed it forward.

"Take this and buy some snacks for the girl to try. I'll send a matchmaker to her door in three days."

Liu Yiyi picked up the silver and thanked her with a smile.

When they left the rice shop, Chen Xiufen was still wiping away tears. Liu Yiyi stuffed a tael of silver into her hand and helped her walk back.

"Mother, think about Shuyan's future. Once Shuyan passes the imperial examination and becomes a scholar, the whole family will enjoy a comfortable life. Shujie will also have support after marrying into the family; her brother is a scholar, so the Yang family won't dare to go too far."

Chen Xiufen held the two taels of silver, her fingers sometimes tightening and sometimes loosening.

The silver is not hot.

It feels heavy when held in the palm of your hand.

Three days later, the matchmaker arrived.

Chen Shujie was unaware that she had already been promised to a man by her mother.

A note from the author:

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