Flip the table and divide the family property! Take his wife and daughter into the mountains and eat

Someone lifted a corner of the curtain from the outside.

A gust of cold wind, carrying snow vapor, suddenly rushed in, and everyone in the room instinctively looked up, shivering from the chill.

Lin Xiu stood at the door, with some unmelted snowflakes on her shoulders. She was tightly wrapped in an old cotton-padded coat, as if she had rushed out and hadn't even had time to properly comb her hair. A few strands of hair clung to her pale cheeks.

Wang Xiulan was taken aback at first: "Xiuer? What brings you here?"

Lin Xiu lifted the curtain and came in, a faint smile playing on her lips. Her voice was no different from usual: "Niu Niu caught a bit of a cold. Her nose has been stuffy, and she coughed a couple of times last night. I thought I'd come and get some medicine."

Upon hearing this, the old barefoot doctor quickly replied, "Have you caught a cold? Do you have a fever?"

"No fever."

Lin Xiu draped the cotton-padded coat over her arm and patted the snow off her shoulder. "I didn't sleep well last night, tossing and turning. I'm afraid it might cause other health problems."

"Alright, I'll get you some cold medicine and some fever reducers," the old barefoot doctor said, turning to rummage through the creaking wooden medicine cabinet.

Wang Xiulan quickly chimed in, trying to dispel the oppressive atmosphere from before: "Niu Niu has been a bit fussy these past two days. It was windy yesterday, and the child's health is still a bit weak."

Lin Xiu smiled gently: "Yes, her health is just like mine; she can't withstand any storms."

When she said those words, her eyes were calm, as if she really just wanted to get a few pills.

Since entering the room, she hasn't even glanced at Zhao Xiaoyu on the kang (a heated brick bed).

The atmosphere in the room relaxed. Zhao Xiaoyu, who had been tense all over, felt her breath catch in her throat as she saw Lin Xiu's calm demeanor.

Her face was still wet with tears, her lips moved slightly, carrying a sense of relief at surviving a disaster, wanting to speak but hesitating.

The old barefoot doctor quickly wrapped up the medicine and handed it over: "Take this twice a day, and take that if you get a fever at night."

"Okay." Lin Xiu took the medicine packet, tucked it into her cotton-padded coat, and politely thanked her, "Thank you for your help."

Lin Xiu nodded, turned around, as if she was about to leave.

But as soon as she took a step, she suddenly turned her foot and walked steadily directly to the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed).

The people in the room were stunned, their eyelids twitching.

Zhao Xiaoyu froze in bed, forgetting to breathe, staring intently at Lin Xiu who was getting closer and closer.

Lin Xiu walked to the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) and stood still, finally looking down at her.

Zhao Xiaoyu felt a chill run down her spine at the sight, and tears welled up in her eyes again. She swallowed hard, and weakly called out in a tearful voice, "Sister-in-law..."

"Snapped!"

A sharp slap landed in the room, shaking so hard that a few grains of dust fell from the earthen wall.

Zhao Xiaoyu's face suddenly turned to one side, her ears ringing, and even her cries were forced back into her stomach by the slap.

The room was deathly silent.

Wang Xiulan froze, and the old barefoot doctor also stood there dumbfounded. No one expected that Lin Xiu, who was usually mild-mannered and gentle, would suddenly kill him.

Lin Xiu stood by the kang (a heated brick bed), slowly withdrawing her hand, her face still expressionless.

Zhao Xiaoyu was stunned by the beating. Covering her burning cheek, tears streamed down her face even more profusely. She opened her mouth to cry out, "I...I didn't..."

"Snapped!"

The second slap was harder and louder than the first!

Zhao Xiaoyu's last sentence was completely slapped out of her mouth.

She collapsed onto the pillow, half her face instantly swelling and turning red, tears and snot streaming down her face, a hissing sound coming from her throat, and she didn't even dare to breathe loudly.

Lin Xiu stared down at her, her eyes gradually freezing over.

"Try opening your mouth again."

Her voice was very soft, without even a hint of anger.

But when the people inside heard this, a chill ran down their spines for no reason.

Zhao Xiaoyu trembled like a leaf, and didn't dare to utter another word.

Lin Xiu stood there with her hands hanging down, all the warmth she exuded when she entered the room completely gone.

"I heard everything that was said at the door. Would you like me to repeat it to you, sentence by sentence?"

Lin Xiu took a half-step forward, her voice extremely low: "You say you're not as bad as your mother. Fine, I accept that. But just because you're not as bad as her doesn't mean you're clean. You know yourself best. Your feelings for Shanhe aren't brotherly love; you're treating him like a long-term meal ticket, the kind you don't have to be nice to!"

Zhao Xiaoyu suddenly raised her head, her eyes filled with fear and resentment. Her lips moved as if she wanted to retort, but she was nailed to her spot by Lin Xiu's cold gaze.

"You keep saying you've seen him suffer, seen his heels bleed, and seen him eating frozen buns in the middle of the night."

Lin Xiu sneered, the smile not reaching her eyes, but instead carrying a chilling sarcasm. "Since you saw it all, what were you doing then? Were you comfortably roasting the firewood he chopped inside, or were you scheming to ask him for money to buy that face cream next time?"

"I...I was..." Zhao Xiaoyu managed to squeeze out a few broken syllables.

"You're not that you don't dare, you're just cowardly."

Lin Xiu cut her off abruptly, her voice sharpening, "You think you can justify watching him risk his life by claiming you're cowardly? You watched your mother serve meat to your second and third brothers without saying a word, but you didn't skimp on the leftover broth, did you? Your second and third brothers suck his blood, and you chewed up every last drop, blood and marrow, and then you wipe your mouth and say you're the one who cares most about your eldest brother in this family. Zhao Xiaoyu, there's no such thing as having your cake and eating it too!"

Every word Lin Xiu uttered was like a resounding slap across Zhao Xiaoyu's hypocritical face.

"What kind of life did Shanhe lead in this village before? A life so bad even a dog would sigh at the sight of him! Back then, he went into the mountains, truly risking his life, just to earn a bite to eat for you. And what did he get when he came back? Your mother's curses, your brother's disdain, and your self-righteous demands!"

Lin Xiu pointed out the window, her tone chillingly heavy: "Back then, when he was thirsty and had no hot water, when he was sick and had nowhere to get medicine, when he was almost eaten by wild boars in those deep mountains and forests, where were you, Zhao Xiaoyu? You were reading your books under the lamp, thinking about your future! Why didn't you think of begging your mother to be nicer to him then? Why didn't you think of sharing half a mouthful of your thin porridge with him?"

Zhao Xiaoyu was speechless when asked the question, and collapsed into the bed, like a lump of mud.

"Now that he's a factory manager, successful, and capable, you suddenly remember he's your older brother? You're begging him for help now?"

Lin Xiu leaned down, her nose almost touching Zhao Xiaoyu's. "Zhao Xiaoyu, do you really think my Shanhe has a bad memory, or do you think everyone in the world is like you, able to erase all those disgusting things from the past just by crying a couple of times?"

The room was eerily quiet; both Wang Xiulan and the old barefoot doctor held their breath.

They had never seen Lin Xiu like this before. The gentle and graceful woman of the past was now like a sharpened black iron sword, every inch of which exuded a murderous aura.

"Let me tell you, Zhao Xiaoyu. Shanhe owed the Zhao family everything he owed them in this life, and he paid it all back on the day the ties were severed! He doesn't owe you a single grain of rice, not a single penny!"