The next day, Liu Yu was woken up by the obnoxious child.
He rubbed his hair in frustration. What kind of strange hobby did this family have to be so enthusiastic about waking people up?
In the courtyard, Liu Gui’s shrieking seemed ready to pierce his eardrums. Liu Yu supported his sore body and got out of bed.
“You lazy bum! See if I don’t break your legs!” Liu Gui mimicked the way his mother usually berated his older sister, raising a thorn branch and attempting to whip Liu Yu’s legs.
Liu Yu failed to dodge in time. By a stroke of misfortune, his pants were torn, and a thin, bloody scratch appeared on his fair, tender thigh. Against his pale skin, the wound looked increasingly vivid.
“You uncouth little brat,” Liu Yu said, staring at the child without changing his expression.
“Huh? What did you say? Say that again!” Liu Gui froze for a moment, doubting his own ears. He wondered if this fool, who usually didn’t fight back when hit or scold when cursed, had suddenly developed a new personality.
Liu Yu’s lips curled into a cold sneer as he taunted, “I said you are a little beast who has a mother to give birth to you but no mother to teach you. I have never seen someone like you who loves to ask for a scolding.”
“Waaah!” Liu Gui stood stunned for a moment before snapping back to reality; tears erupted like a broken dam.
He instantly pushed aside his surprise at Liu Yu’s behavior, his mind filled only with the grievance of being provoked. “Mom! Mom! Come quickly, Mom!”
“What is it, Guizi?” Li Cuihong hurried over, unable to even put down the kitchen knife she was holding. Her precious son, whom she had finally managed to have, was someone she would feel heartache for even if he suffered the slightest bump or scratch.
“Guizi! My precious heart! Tell Mommy, where did you get hurt?”
“Waaah! This jinx with no father or mother cursed me, calling me a little beast!” Liu Gui wailed loudly, snot streaming from his nose.
“What? He really cursed you like that?” Li Cuihong looked at Liu Yu, her eyes blazing with fire. “Fine! You ungrateful wretch! This family has provided you with food and shelter. Even if we don’t expect repayment, this is how you bully your brother behind our backs!”
Liu Yu had been worrying about how to find a reasonable excuse to leave this family. Look, the opportunity had delivered itself right to his doorstep.
Liu Yu lowered his head, a faint, imperceptible smile flickering at the corner of his mouth. Seizing the moment, he ran toward the front gate.
Seeing this, Li Cuihong shouted angrily, “You cheap thing! You bullied my Guizi and now you want to run off without a word? See if I don’t kill you!”
She was so furious that she couldn’t even bother with her precious son crying on the ground. She grabbed the kitchen knife and chased after him.
On the footpath, Liu Weiguo’s wife was resting in the shade, drinking water. Seeing Liu Yu running in such a manner, she found it quite amusing. “Heqing, why are you running? If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were being chased by a wild boar! Hahaha!”
“Grandma,” Liu Yu called out in a shrill, miserable voice. His eyes turned red instantly, and as if seeing a savior, he grabbed her sleeve tightly and pleaded, “Auntie is holding a knife and wants to kill me! Grandma, please save me!”
In the village, everyone knew that Aunt Yuzhen, who lived at Liu Lao-er’s house, was kind-hearted and loved to meddle in others’ affairs, even if someone’s pig gave birth, she would run over to join the fun. Since they were close relatives, she had no reason not to intervene.
Behind them, Li Cuihong chased them, panting while clutching the kitchen knife.
The people watching the commotion on the footpath realized the situation was dire when they saw the kitchen knife in her hand. They hurriedly pulled Liu Yu behind them to shield him.
Aunt Yuzhen raised her voice and shouted, “Cuihong, it’s not that I want to lecture you, but being aggressive in the village is one thing; the neighbors don’t hold it against you. How could you be so ruthless to a half-grown child at home?”
Ever since Li Cuihong gave birth to a boy, she hadn’t seen any younger member of the family dare to defy her like this. Now that she was in a fit of rage, it was impossible to pull her back with just a few words from others.
“Hmph! Ever since his parents died, this family has pitied him and provided him with food and drink. It’s bad enough that he doesn’t know gratitude, but now he actually dares to bully his brother at home!” She glared at Liu Yu with a ferocious expression, gritting her teeth in hatred. “Don’t you stop me; I’m determined to teach him a lesson for his parents today!”
The surrounding villagers shook their heads and sighed. Li Cuihong was truly vicious. She knew this child had lost his parents at a young age and had no support, yet not only did she speak without regard for his feelings, she twisted the knife in his heart with every word.
“It’s not like that,” Liu Yu buried his head, letting the tears well up, and said in a muffled voice.
“Child, what did you say? Don’t be afraid, speak up clearly. If it’s right or wrong, Grandma will stand up for you,” Aunt Yuzhen said, stroking his thin back with pity.
After a long while, he finally gathered the courage to lift his head with red, teary eyes. When his gaze fell upon the knife in Li Cuihong’s hand, he turned pale with fright.
He stammered, “It’s not like that. This morning, as soon as I stepped out of my room, my brother started hitting and cursing me with thorn branches. It hurt so much, but I didn’t dare fight back, so I couldn’t help but retort once. Then, Auntie came over holding a kitchen knife, cursing me the whole time. I was truly terrified, so I ran out. I never expected Auntie to chase me with the knife to hack at me.”
At this point, Liu Yu seemed unable to hold back any longer. His tears began to flow like a broken dam, his body trembling as he made small, animal-like whimpers. His thin frame curled backward desperately, looking truly pitiful.
This time, the onlookers couldn’t stand it anymore.
Everyone watching this scene had children of their own. Usually, they would only hit their kids a few times for committing a mistake to teach them a lesson. If they were as well-behaved and studious as Liu Yu, they would be spoiling them; how could anyone bear to hit them?
To put it another way, who would use a knife to hack at a little child? It was only because they relied on the fact that Liu Yu had no one to depend on that they dared to treat him so inhumanely.
Li Cuihong saw everyone looking at her with resentment, her dark face turning red with anger. She had underestimated this little beast. Usually, he was like a wooden block, taking hits and insults without making a sound; now, he was out here spreading rumors to outsiders.
Even so, she remained unconvinced. If she couldn’t teach Liu Yu a lesson today, she would be so bitter she wouldn’t be able to eat for half a year. “Fine, fine, fine! You’re all sticking up for him now, aren’t you? So he’s a person, and my child isn’t? It’s only right that my child suffers bullying!”
“Pfft…”
A snicker came from the crowd. Liu Yu glanced in that direction; it was Auntie Liu San, who had been at odds with Li Cuihong for many years.
The origin of this feud dated back nine years. At that time, Li Cuihong had just given birth to Liu Gui and was incredibly smug. She immediately forgot her own painful experience of being gossiped about by village elders for years for not bearing a boy, and instead joined the camp of gossips, whispering behind the back of Auntie Liu San, who had given birth to two girls.
As it happened, Auntie Liu San overheard them. Being a straightforward and bold person, she flew into a rage and had a fierce argument with her face-to-face.
Li Cuihong was the type who never felt she was wrong and didn’t know how to apologize.
Thus, the conflict escalated until now, reaching the point where they would glare at each other and spit on the ground whenever they met.
Auntie Liu San looked at Li Cuihong with a face full of mockery. “Your child really doesn’t act like a human. Not only does he bully other children in the village all day, but he’s also light-fingered. Who dares to bully him? Even if the King of Heaven came, he’d only be bullied by him. If you ask me, you’re the one to blame—an old beast giving birth to a little beast. Hahaha!”
Once this was said, several people couldn’t hold back their laughter.
Li Cuihong was so angry her temples were throbbing. “You’re the one who’s so capable, why did it take you so many years to bear two girls? My boy will do big things in town in the future. What can your girls do? Marry a widower?”
“So what if they are girls? You’re the one who doesn’t treat your girls like human beings. My daughters are far better than that spoiled brat of yours! Li Cuihong, do you think you can do big things just because you gave birth to a boy? In your dreams! People in town only want smart and capable people like Heqing’s father. They wouldn’t even take someone like your son if you delivered him to their doorstep!” Auntie Liu San scolded more and more vigorously, arms akimbo, looking ready to fight for another three hundred rounds.
Liu Yu hid behind the villagers, having seen enough of the commotion. Seeing the topic drifting further and further, he realized he would become a side character if this continued, so he muffled his voice and intervened, “Alright, Aunties, please don’t damage your harmony because of me. There is some fault on my part for this becoming such a scene, I shouldn’t have run away just because Auntie was threatening to hack me with a knife.”
“How could it be your fault!”
“That’s right! It can only be blamed on your aunt for not teaching her child well.”
“Anyone would be a fool not to run if they were about to be hacked!”
The surrounding villagers chimed in one after another, and even those who weren’t particularly sharp-witted glanced blatantly at Li Cuihong, as if they were looking at a newly released convict, showing as much contempt as possible.
“Ah! Ah! Ah!” Li Cuihong’s string, which was already at the breaking point, finally snapped. “Liu Heqing, you’re very good! If you have the ability, don’t come back home. The house can’t accommodate a Buddha like you anymore!” After saying this, she glared at him viciously, dragged Liu Gui over, and turned to walk home.
“Mom, are you really not letting him come home?” Liu Gui asked, sniffling.
“I assume he wouldn’t dare return. Maybe after starving for a few days outside, he’ll come crawling back like a dog begging for food,” Li Cuihong thought viciously. It would be better if he starved to death!
On this side.
Liu Yu rubbed his eyes vigorously, as he could no longer squeeze out any more tears. He stood there dejectedly, like a stubborn yet pitiful little sparrow.
It made people deepen their sympathy for him, and they couldn’t help but sigh that the Liu family was truly heartless.
“Don’t be too sad. When your grandparents come home from the fields, I’ll take you back and have a good talk with them. Li Cuihong is unreasonable, but surely they aren’t that muddle-headed as well?” Sun Yuzhen comforted him.
Wasn’t Liu Yu playing this act just to wait for this sentence? This time, he had to tear a piece of hide off this old Liu family.
“Grandma, I’m already homeless, wuu wuu.” Liu Yu began to sob again. “Auntie is right; they really won’t want me anymore.”
Seeing this child, who was about the same age as her own grandson, crying into a tear-streaked mess in front of her, Sun Yuzhen felt her heart shatter. She cursed the Liu family for being so cruel, bullying a half-grown boy who had lost his parents.
“Grandma, I want to separate the household. I brought back 370 yuan from town, and my grandparents said they would keep it for me. Now that I’m no longer welcome at home, I want to get that money back. Making a living on my own is better than being beaten and scolded by Auntie every day.”
Sun Yuzhen was stunned for a long while and waved her hand abruptly. “Silly child, that won’t do! What boy at this age sets up his own household? It would be better to endure it at the Liu family for a year or two. When you’re seventeen or eighteen and ready to talk about marriage, you can get that money back, marry a wife, and build a brick house to live a good life behind closed doors.”
Liu Yu felt a bit helpless. A young boy setting up his own household was inconceivable even in the place he lived in his past life, let alone in this era. He should have expected this outcome.
But Liu Yu didn’t want to give up just yet. He had to find a way to win the support of the villagers.
Seeing Liu Yu standing stubbornly in place with despair in his big eyes, Sun Yuzhen eventually gave in.
“Fine. I’ll take you to see the village chief. If the chief agrees, maybe we can get your grandfather to help you say a few words, but I can’t guarantee it will work.”
Liu Yu breathed a sigh of relief inwardly. That was enough. With an elder willing to get involved, things would be much easier.
In the evening, those working in the fields began to return home one after another. Sun Yuzhen tidied herself up and took Liu Yu to knock on the village chief’s door.
“Coming, coming!” Opening the door was the village chief’s wife, Zhang Guifang. “Yuzhen, is there something urgent bringing you and the Heqing boy here?”
“Good evening, Auntie.” After greeting her, Liu Yu said nothing more, nervously tugging at the corner of his clothes.
He was fair and cute, and he was quite skilled at acting cute, always able to arouse people’s pity. Zhang Guifang liked such children and quickly invited them inside.
“Youcai went to town this afternoon and I’m not sure when he’ll be back! If you have anything to say, just tell me, and I’ll relay it to him when he returns.” With that, she poured a bowl of brown sugar water for Liu Yu and the others.
“Thank you, Auntie.” The brown sugar water was sweet. Liu Yu didn’t actually like to drink it in his past life, but since he had been drinking taro congee all day yesterday and was forced to act like he couldn’t eat anything today, he felt that this sip made his stomach feel extremely comfortable.