Old Mrs. Song is reborn; get out of here, you scumbag husband and illegitimate child!

It lasted for several minutes.

Sister-in-law Wang rushed into the inner room and hugged the arm of her mother, who was waving a feather duster.

He shouted, "Mom, if you keep hitting her, someone will really die. It doesn't matter if she dies, you don't need to get yourself killed. Who will take care of her three children?"

The Queen Mother was panting heavily.

A few feathers fell from the feather duster in my hand.

She pointed at Qiao Zhaodi, who was huddled at the foot of the bed, trembling and crying, and spat on the ground.

"If it weren't for my eldest son's wife stopping me today, I would have beaten you to death, you good-for-nothing. Stay here and behave yourself. If you dare to run back to your parents' house, I'll break your legs."

Qiao Zhaodi covered her head and didn't dare to utter a sound.

Sister-in-law Wang pulled her mother out of the house.

He closed the door behind him.

Outside the courtyard wall, several neighbors were peeking over the top of the wall.

"Oh dear, what's going on with the Wang family? Beating their son is one thing, but they're beating their daughter-in-law to death too."

"I heard she stole all her family's wealth and gave it to her parents' family."

"Tsk tsk, they deserve to be hit."

The Queen Mother was in a fit of anger when she heard the noise. She grabbed a broom and threw it against the wall.

"What are you looking at? Haven't you ever seen a daughter-in-law being disciplined before? Go back to your own homes and comfort your children."

The neighbors dispersed, laughing and joking.

"Don't be so angry, your son is no better."

"Your son has already separated from the family, so out of sight, out of mind."

The Queen Mother slammed the door shut and turned to go into the main room.

He threw the broom on the ground and yelled at Old Wang, who was still smoking his pipe:

"All you do is smoke. The house is in complete chaos and you don't even do anything about it?"

Zhihe, that stubborn mule, insisted on separating the family. Before we separated, I kept Qiao Zhaodi in check. How dare she be so lawless?

Now look what's happened. They've separated from the family, their ambitions have grown wild, and they even dare to dig up the roots of the Wang family.

Old Wang was puffing away on his cigarette.

His back was hunched over like a bow, and he didn't even lift his eyelids.

"Children and grandchildren have their own destinies. The relationship has already been divided, how can you try to force it back? If you interfere too much, your son will become estranged from you in the future."

The Queen Mother plopped down on a stool and slapped her thigh.

"Zhihe has never been close to me since he was little. When he made mistakes and was beaten as a child, the eldest and third eldest brothers would cry and beg for forgiveness long ago."

He didn't utter a sound, gritting his teeth and enduring it. I think we didn't hit him hard enough back then, we didn't break his rebellious spirit."

Old Wang tapped his tobacco pipe.

There was no follow-up.

……

Qiaojia Village, late at night.

Wang Zhihe and Zhou Fang found their way to the window of Qiao Yaozu's house.

A kerosene lamp was lit inside the room, casting a dim yellow light that illuminated the silhouettes of two people counting money.

Qiao Yaozu's excited voice rang out.

"Honey, with what we've saved up, we should have enough to buy a black and white TV, right? By next year, our family will be one of the first in the village to do so."

Yang Xiaohong held a handful of ten-yuan notes in her hand, grinning from ear to ear:

"I need to save up some more to buy a bigger one."

Don't just be happy; do you not know where this money came from?

Your second sister is really rich, but she looks down on us. She's a complete ingrate.

"Your fourth sister is the best. Although she's a bit poor, she's always eager to give us advice, no matter how much we try."

Qiao Yaozu lay down on the edge of the bed, resting his legs on Yang Xiaohong's lap. He asked her to massage him a few times, then cheerfully inquired:

"Will my fourth sister be alright going back?"

"What could possibly happen? At most, you'll get a beating."

Yang Xiaohong pursed her lips, "Anyway, she's tough. Did we force her to do this? She did it willingly."

In a few days, have Mom go to the Wang family again and tell them you're short of money for timber and bricks to build a new house. Make her hand over all the hidden money Wang Zhihe has saved.

"She's already given it to our mom."

"Why would she leave nothing for her own family, and give it all to our mom? What are you worried about?"

outside the window.

Wang Zhihe's body stiffened, and the cold air rushed from the soles of his feet straight to the top of his head.

He hid the money in a secret place, except by himself...

Wang Zhihe's eyes were bloodshot, his teeth were grinding, and he was about to rush into the house.

Zhou Fang reacted quickly, covering his mouth and dragging him into the shadows in the corner.

"Waaah."

Wang Zhihe's forehead veins bulged, making him look like a wounded wild beast.

Zhou Fang lowered his voice and growled in his ear:

"Should we rush in and beat them up now? If those two yell 'Stop thief!' and send you to the commune, you won't be able to explain yourself."

Wang Zhihe was panting heavily.

His fist was clenched so tightly that his knuckles turned white, and finally he let it loosen weakly.

Zhou Fang stared at the lights in the room, sneered, patted Wang Zhihe on the shoulder, and made a gesture.

He picked up a stone.

It was thrown at the chicken coop in the corner of the yard.

"Snapped!"

There was a thud in the chicken coop.

Qiao Yaozu shouted from inside the house:

"Who?"

Zhou Fang pinched his nose, making his voice hoarse and unpleasant, and winked at Wang Zhihe.

The two of them crouched down and deliberately took heavy steps as they walked down the road.

Zhou Fang deliberately made his voice erratic, "Yan Ergou's batch of gold bars were never actually confiscated; they're all buried in Nie Laosi's backyard."

Wang Zhihe was taken aback, then realized what was happening.

Make "uh uh uh" sounds from your throat to accompany it.

"Stop bastard, stop babbling." Zhou Fang cursed as he walked out. "Who would have thought that Old Man Nie was hiding such a big secret? We've hit the jackpot tonight. If we'd been discovered, we'd be finished. Now we'll hide the gold bars in the woods in the village."

The door to the room creaked open.

Qiao Yaozu, wearing a coat, poked his head out, his eyes shining.

Yan Ergou?

bullion?

The arrest of Yan Ergou a while ago was big news.

Qiao Yaozu's heart raced as he looked at the two furtive, hunched figures ahead.

I am truly blessed with good fortune; God has sent wealth to my door.

Without a second thought, he went back into the house, grabbed a rusty sickle, and quietly followed them.

Zhou Fang and Wang Zhihe walked ahead, deliberately choosing to venture into secluded groves.

When Zhou Fang saw the fish take the bait, a ruthless glint appeared on his lips.

We arrived at the grove of trees near the village entrance.

Zhou Fang suddenly stopped.

"Dumb guy, I'm going to take a piss. You keep watch at the intersection."

Done.

He went into the woods, circled around, and returned to Qiao Yaozu's side.

Qiao Yaozu was crouching down, preparing to follow and see where the so-called "treasure" was, when he suddenly felt a cold wind on the back of his head.

Before he could even turn around...

A sack fell from the sky and landed directly over his head!

"Who! I'm Joe..."

"I'm going to hit you!" Zhou Fang kicked Qiao Yaozu in the stomach.

Qiao Yaozu screamed and fell to the ground.

The sickle in his hand had long since flown away.

Wang Zhihe rushed out from the shadows and, without saying a word, straddled Qiao Yaozu and unleashed a flurry of punches.

He punched with deadly force, targeting fleshy areas like the face, thighs, stomach, and back.

Every punch carried the pent-up frustration and anger of the entire year.

"Ah! Stop hitting me, good sir, spare my life!" Qiao Yaozu writhed like a maggot in the sack, crying and begging for mercy.

Zhou Fang picked up a thick tree branch and slammed it hard onto the sack.

"I'm a tomb raider. I'm not afraid of living people like you. Did you overhear our secret just now?"

"No. I didn't hear anything." Qiao Yaozu was terrified.

"Didn't you hear me? Why did you follow me? Trying to double-cross me?"

Zhou Fang chuckled sinisterly. "Perfect timing. I just opened a coffin and need a living sacrifice. Drag him away to fill the pit."

Wang Zhihe cooperated by grabbing one of Qiao Yaozu's legs and dragging him deeper into the woods.

"No, no, no! Grandpa. Ancestors. I shouldn't have been greedy!"

Qiao Yaozu was so frightened that he soiled himself, and a foul stench filled the air.

Zhou Fang covered her nose in disgust and stepped on Qiao Yaozu's chest.

"If you want to live, fine. But I see you're a coward too. Two days from now, in the afternoon, put five hundred yuan behind that dilapidated earth god temple in this woods. If it's a penny less, I'll send a vengeful ghost to knock on your door every day."

"Five hundred? I didn't have that."

"No?"

Zhou Fang raised the tree branch again, ready to strike, "You want money but not your life?"

"Give it to me, I'll give it to you!" Qiao Yaozu shouted in despair.

Zhou Fang kicked him away, saying, "If I don't see any money in two days, you can expect your whole family to die."

Done.

Zhou Fang pulled Wang Zhihe and quickly disappeared into the bushes.

Qiao Yaozu huddled in the sack for a long time until the surroundings were deathly silent before he dared to shakily pull the sack off.

As soon as he peeked out, in the pale moonlight, he suddenly saw a pair of deep blue eyes staring intently at him from the bushes not far away.

That was a stray cat.

But in Qiao Yaozu's eyes, that was a vengeful ghost seeking death.

"Oh my god! There's a ghost!"

Qiao Yaozu screamed and scrambled out of the woods, howling all the way back to the village.

……

On the way back to Xiaoquan Brigade, the wind was howling.

Wang Zhihe walked quickly, the cold wind stinging the scabs on his face.

"Zhihe, this isn't over yet." Zhou Fang lit a cigarette and handed one to Wang Zhihe. "What are you planning to do now? Go north with the car again?"

Wang Zhihe stopped in his tracks.

He glanced back in the direction of Qiao Family Village, the last trace of warmth gone from his eyes.

"I'm not going."

His voice was hoarse. "When spring comes, I'll work for your construction team. It doesn't matter if it's tiring or dirty, as long as it's close to home."

"Have you figured it out?"

"I've figured it out."

Wang Zhihe put the cigarette in his mouth.

"Qiao Zhaodi is hopeless. If I run away again, my three children will be ruined."

"She gave birth to three children for me, so I can't get a divorce. As long as I have no money, she can't cause any trouble."

Wang Zhihe took a deep breath, but his tone was as cold as ice, "From now on, I will save most of my earnings here, and I will only keep a small amount for living expenses to support the children."

I'll take care of the child myself. If she wants to stay, great; if not… then we'll get a divorce.

He didn't go on.

Zhou Fang understood the resolute look in his eyes.