Zhao Shi breathed a sigh of relief when she saw her daughter return.
For some reason, Zhao Shi felt that since her daughter had narrowly escaped death, she had become particularly decisive, even giving her a subtle sense of security.
As long as her daughter was around, it seemed there was nothing to fear…
"How did it go? Did you find the evidence?" Zhao Shi hurried over and asked in a hushed voice.
Jiang Liuli nodded. "Yes, I found an account book and several hundred taels of silver—all the embezzled money they've taken over the years."
"That's good, that's good…" Zhao Shi exhaled in relief. "With the evidence found, Da Ni, you're safe now!"
Liu Shi also approached, her voice tinged with excitement:
"Da Ni! This truly is a blessing in disguise!"
"And today was so satisfying!"
Liu Shi glanced toward the main house and said with vindication, "I've always said we should fight back. Just look at your strength—if we really confronted them, we might not lose. See? I was right! If you had been like this earlier, our second branch wouldn't have been bullied for so many years!"
Jiang Dani was born with extraordinary strength, but her former timid nature had left her unable to stand up for herself, always being manipulated by the first and third branches.
Hearing Liu Shi's words, Jiang Liuli curved her lips slightly. The previous Jiang Dani had indeed been a pushover, swallowing her grievances in silence, but she was different now.
"The past is the past, the present is the present," she said calmly. "From now on, anyone who wants to bully our second branch will have to consider whether their bones are hard enough."
Seeing the determination in her daughter's eyes, Zhao Shi felt both heartache and warmth, reaching out to pat her arm.
"Da Ni, your father… he's still unconscious. They've already called a doctor and are treating your grandmother and uncles in the main house. Do you have a way to…"
"Mother! Don't worry! With me here, Father will be fine. I'll go get the doctor right now."
With that, Jiang Liuli headed toward the main house.
Just as she reached the entrance, she heard the shouts of Jiang Jinbao and Jiang Tongbao from inside.
"Ouch! Father, Mother only got hit on the back of her head—she'll wake up soon. Look at my foot, it's bleeding nonstop! If I don't get treated, I'll die! Our family depends on me to bring honor to our ancestors—treat me first!"
Jiang Tongbao had wrapped his foot in cloth, but the wound was too deep, blood still seeping out relentlessly. His face was pale with fear.
Terrified of dying young, he couldn't even spare a thought for his doting mother, who remained unconscious.
"Father! I'm the main breadwinner! Which household expense doesn't rely on me? What does it matter if Tongbao bleeds a little? He doesn't do anything anyway! Have the doctor look at my leg first. If I become crippled, no one will be left to earn money for the family!"
Jiang Jinbao endured the pain in his leg, terrified of becoming lame, and likewise ignored his mother.
Their wives also chimed in, each advocating for her own husband, afraid that any delay would leave them disabled.
Jiang Laotou grew dizzy from the noise of his sons and daughters-in-law, stomping his cane twice on the ground. "Shut up, all of you! What kind of behavior is this!"
Gasping for breath, he pointed at Jiang Tongbao and told the doctor, "Bandage him first. He's lost so much blood—we can't risk his leg getting worse."
Jiang Jinbao felt displeased upon hearing this but said nothing.
After all, he had long grown accustomed to his parents' lifelong favoritism toward his scholarly younger brother.
The physician hesitated for a moment, glancing toward the old woman's direction, before finally crouching down to unwrap the cloth strips from Jiang Tongbao's foot.
The wound did look frightening—a deep gash with flesh torn open—but fortunately, the bone remained unharmed.
Jiang Tongbao grimaced in pain but still managed to mutter, "Father truly cares for me… He knows how precious my legs are…"
His wife chimed in nearby, "Exactly! Tongbao is meant to bring glory to our ancestors. He mustn't become crippled."
A faint, mocking smile touched Jiang Liuli's lips. Jiang Qianshi always claimed the second branch of the family was full of unfilial descendants, while the first and third branches were virtuous.
If she could see her most cherished children and grandchildren behaving like this, she'd probably leap right off her kang in fury.
The sound of Jiang Liuli pushing open the door wasn't loud, yet it fell like a massive rock into boiling water, instantly silencing the room's clamor.
Jiang Jinbao had been grimacing in pain, but when he spotted the figure at the doorway, he let out a strange "yowl" of terror and instinctively shrank toward the corner of the kang. Forgetting his leg injury, the movement sent a piercing pain through his bones, draining all color from his face.
Jiang Tongbao was even more terrified. Ignoring the physician who was still applying medicine to his wound, he scrambled desperately deeper into the kang…
The physician watched this scene unfold in bewilderment, casting a curious glance toward Jiang Liuli.
Who was this girl?
Though rather plain-looking, surely she wasn't frightening enough to terrify the entire family like this?
"You… you ill-omened wretch! How dare you come in here!"
Jiang Jinbao's wife was the first to react, pointing a trembling finger at Jiang Liuli while her voice shook like autumn leaves.
Jiang Tongbao's wife didn't dare make a sound when she saw Jiang Liuli enter, instead quickly hiding in the farthest corner of the room, putting as much distance between them as possible.
Old Man Jiang also felt a twinge of fear when Jiang Liuli entered, but as the family patriarch, he couldn't let himself be intimidated by his own granddaughter. The villagers would laugh themselves silly if word got out.
So he thumped his walking stick heavily against the floor, trying to bolster his courage with the sound, and glared at Jiang Liuli with clouded eyes:
"Jiang Dani! Who gave you permission to enter the main room? You unfilial beast! Get out this instant!"
He deliberately raised his voice, but the barely detectable tremor at the end betrayed his inner panic.
Jiang Jinbao instinctively ducked his head in the kang corner, afraid this shouting might provoke the menace at the door.
He'd always known Jiang Dani was strong, but never imagined she'd be this powerful—breaking his leg with a single blow from a stick.
Injured as he was, he couldn't afford to provoke her again, or he might actually be beaten to death…
Jiang Liuli remained standing where she was, calmly surveying everyone in the room before her gaze settled on the elderly physician:
"Doctor! My father is severely injured. Could I trouble you to examine him…"
Jiang Liuli's voice was gentle and polite, leaving the old physician completely puzzled about what could possibly be frightening about this girl.
Just as the physician was about to ask Jiang Liuli to wait, Old Man Jiang's furious voice erupted.
"You vile creature! Have you no respect for your elders? Can't you see the physician is treating your Third Uncle's foot? If you hadn't stirred up trouble, would your grandmother, uncle, and Third Uncle be injured? I haven't even settled accounts with you yet, and now you come to steal our physician!"
Hearing this, the old physician studied Jiang Liuli more carefully.
Due to long-term malnutrition, Jiang Liuli was extremely thin, so frail that she seemed as though a gust of wind could knock her over.
Could a girl like this have beaten the three people on the kang into such a state?
The old physician shook his head, clearly unconvinced.
But since this was ultimately a family matter, it wasn't his place to interfere…
"Grandfather! You say I'm making trouble out of nothing? Because you and grandmother were greedy for money, half of our second branch nearly died overnight. When we resisted just once, you actually accuse us of making trouble? What? Do you think just because you want to beat our second branch, we should endure it like we used to? Should we just accept death if we get beaten to death?"
Jiang Liuli let out a cold laugh, her gaze sweeping over Jiang Jinbao and Jiang Tongbao who were moaning on the kang before returning to Jiang Laotou whose face was livid with anger,
"Grandfather, sometimes I truly wonder if our second branch are really your descendants. Normally favoring the others beyond reason is one thing, but why must you save third uncle who only has minor injuries first when my father is currently at death's door?"
"You call third brother's foot a minor injury?"
Jiang Tongbao grew furious at Jiang Liuli's words, forgetting his fear as he stiffened his neck and shouted:
"Losing this much blood is called a minor injury? Are you wishing for my death? Let me tell you, Jiang Dani! If anything happens to me, grandfather and grandmother won't let you off! Our Jiang family is counting on me to study and bring honor to our name! If my foot becomes useless, the entire Jiang family can forget about rising in status!"
His wife quickly chimed in: "Exactly! Tongbao is the reincarnation of the Literary Star, destined to become a high official someday! His foot is precious! Your father is just a farmer, thick-skinned and rough. What does it matter if he's unconscious for a while? How can he compare to Tongbao?"