After the family of four arrived at the thatched hut where Shen Youyou had been living temporarily, Li Shi spoke anxiously:
“Youyou, you stay here and watch over your father and Nannan. I’ll go down the mountain and ask a doctor to come take a look.”
“Alright. Be careful on the road.”
Shen Youyou knew her mother was worried about her father’s injury, so she agreed without hesitation.
After Li Shi left, Shen He looked embarrassed, his face flushed as he said:
“Youyou… I never thought things would end up like this. If I’d known, I should have left the Shen family with you back then. Then you wouldn’t have had to live alone on this mountain for so many years. It’s Dad who’s useless… I’m sorry to you.”
As he spoke, the honest farmhand—already in his thirties—had reddened eyes.
It was his weakness, his cowardice, his refusal to resist, that had caused his daughter to suffer all these years. Though he would occasionally bring her some good food, it couldn’t erase the fact that he had abandoned her alone on this mountain.
Guilt weighed heavily on his heart.
If his leg could heal in the future, he swore he would never allow anyone to bully his daughter again.
Including his own mother.
After hearing this, Shen Youyou didn’t feel much emotional turmoil.
Firstly, the former Shen Youyou had been foolish. She could sense that her heart had been pure—she felt only gratitude toward the three family members who regularly brought her food up the mountain, never resentment. As long as she ate well and drank enough, the rest of her days were spent playing, living happily.
In her view, this life was far more comfortable than living in the village below—at least there were no bad people to bully her.
Secondly, she came from the apocalypse. Having witnessed endless violence and bloodshed, she truly didn’t care much about these small scuffles.
One could even say she found them rather novel. Even toward Old Madam Shen, who had cursed and beaten her, Shen Youyou felt no deep hatred. To her, such vivid, living characters were simply interesting.
So even after being struck a few times, Shen Youyou herself wasn’t angry.
“There’s no need to dwell on it. It’s all in the past. Life will only get better.”
Seeing such a big man shedding tears, Shen Youyou rare words of comfort.
Shen Nan looked at her with shining eyes, full of admiration, and said excitedly:
“Big sister, you’re amazing! You actually managed to get the upper hand against that old witch—so awesome!”
“Alright, enough flattery. Come help out. Let’s tidy things up. We’ll make do in this hut for a couple of days, and starting tomorrow, we’ll build a new house nearby.”
“Coming! Hehe, this is great. From now on, we can live our own lives. No more being bullied by Uncle’s family!”
As he spoke, Shen Nan worked together with his sister, doing whatever he could, his mood exceptionally good.
Watching the children happily cleaning up, Shen He finally felt a little better as well.
Yes—his daughter was right. Things would get better. As long as one was alive, there was hope. For now, the most important thing was to heal his leg so he could better protect the three of them.
Meanwhile, on the other side—
The news that Shen Youyou had brought Shen He’s family up the mountain to live spread like wildfire.
In no time, the entire village was buzzing with discussion. Shen Youyou’s name became thoroughly famous throughout Shen Family Village.
“Hey, did you hear? That foolish girl from the Shen family isn’t foolish anymore—she’s cured! Isn’t that strange? She suddenly got better!”
“Yeah, I heard! And I heard she even beat up Old Madam Shen? Hahaha, what a talent! That old woman always takes advantage of others and can’t stand being wronged—finally someone dealt with her, and it was her own granddaughter! Let’s see if she still has the face to brag around anymore. It’s hilarious!”
“What’s so funny? A fool beating a madwoman. That whole family isn’t decent—don’t even bring them up.”
“Second son’s family is actually not bad. They’re just too soft-hearted, completely controlled by that old woman. It’s good they split off. At least now she can run her own household—better than working harder than an ox and eating less than a chicken in the Shen household.”
“That Old Madam Shen is truly heartless. That’s her own son, and she’s that ruthless—unbelievable.”
“Exactly. This way is better. Living on their own—even if life’s harder, at least it feels better in the heart.”
“But that foolish girl is really something—she even dared to hit her grandmother. Tsk tsk tsk. I say, even if she’s not foolish anymore, she won’t be easy to marry off. Too fierce. Who’d dare marry such a tigress?”
“Right! Her reputation’s ruined in one go. Totally improper. No matter what, that’s her elder—how could she hit her?”
…
While people were gossiping endlessly about Shen Youyou, Li Shi finally brought the village’s only doctor to the thatched hut.
With a serious expression, the doctor treated Shen He’s wound, reset the bone, and prescribed some medicine for external use. He instructed the family:
“An injury to muscles and bones takes a hundred days to heal. He should lie down and rest properly for a while. Fortunately, you came in time—otherwise, it really would have left lasting damage. I’ll come back in a few days to check again.”
“Thank you, doctor, thank you so much. How much do we owe you? I’ll get the silver.”
Only then did Li Shi finally feel relieved. As long as her husband’s leg could heal, that was all that mattered. She had truly been terrified—if his leg were ruined, it would affect him for life.
Doctor Zheng sighed when he heard this. He had heard a bit about their family’s situation—it was indeed difficult.
“We’re neighbors. One tael of silver will do. I’ll also write you a prescription for internal medicine. Tomorrow, go to the town to buy the herbs and let him take them for seven days—it’ll help his recovery.”
“Alright, we’ll do as you say. Thank you so much, Doctor Zheng!”
With that, Shen He’s injury was finally under control. After Li Shi escorted Doctor Zheng away, she immediately started bustling about like a spinning top, tidying up the things they had brought over.
The most urgent task was making dinner.
It was already late, and the children must be starving. As Li Shi lit a fire and boiled water outside, she comforted them:
“Youyou, Nannan, you must be hungry. I’ll cook some porridge right away. Don’t worry—it’ll be ready soon.”
As she spoke, she opened the half-bag of coarse rice she had brought, rinsed it, and poured it into the pot to cook.
Just as the family was talking, they saw Brother Mo approaching with two little toddlers, carrying a bowl.
“Auntie Shen, I heard a bit about your family’s situation. This is some chicken I cooked. If you don’t mind, please add it to your meal. Thank you for always giving me the vegetables you grew before.”
“How could that be acceptable? Those few vegetable leaves of mine weren’t worth anything, but this is meat! No, no—you should take it back and save it for the two little ones.”
Li Shi hurriedly refused. Even though their days were hard now, she couldn’t take advantage of a younger neighbor.