Jiang Jinbao from the eldest branch was the first to react, snatching a shoulder pole from the wall and charging forward.
Built strong and sturdy, he worked as a guard at the county's security agency and had never missed an opportunity to bully the second branch.
"You little bitch, I'll break your legs!"
Jiang Liuli's eyes turned cold. As the pole swung toward her, she sidestepped and precisely struck Jiang Jinbao's knee with her wooden stick.
A crisp crack echoed as Jiang Jinbao screamed and collapsed to his knees.
"Uncle, do you enjoy breaking people's legs so much? Then your niece will break yours, so you can taste what it feels like!"
Jiang Liuli's voice was icy as she raised her wooden stick high once more…
Seeing this, Jiang Tongbao from the third branch grabbed a shovel and tried to ambush her from behind.
As if she had eyes in the back of her head, Jiang Liuli dropped into a sweeping kick. Jiang Tongbao fell flat on his back, and the shovel blade landed squarely on his instep with a clang before he crashed to the ground.
Jiang Tongbao let out a pig-slaughter-like howl, clutching his bleeding foot and writhing on the ground.
Wang Shi was terrified by the scene. She rushed over, flustered, to help her husband press on his bleeding instep. But in her panic, she pressed too hard, and Jiang Tongbao kicked her away.
"Stupid woman! Go find a doctor now! If my foot is ruined, how will I ever become an official?"
Staggering from the kick, Wang Shi ignored the pain and scrambled out of the room.
"Rebellion! This is outright rebellion!" Jiang Laotou beat his chest in frustration. "What are you all standing around for? Get her! Capture this disrespectful wretch and burn her alive!"
At his command, the men and women of the eldest branch snapped out of their daze and closed in on Jiang Liuli with whatever tools they could grab.
"You little bitch, how dare you hit your uncle? I'll tear your mouth apart!"
Wu Shi, Jiang Jinbao's wife, snatched the shoulder pole he had dropped and charged.
But before she could get near Jiang Liuli, Zhao Shi rushed out from the kitchen, wielding a kitchen knife, and forced her back!
Rubbing her chest, Wu Shi watched Zhao Shi brandishing the knife wildly. She had dodged just in time—otherwise, the blade would have struck her.
"Zhao Shi, have you lost your mind? You'd actually cut someone?"
Zhao Shi's hand trembled as she gripped the knife, but her eyes held unprecedented determination: "Anyone who touches my daughter will get cut. Go on, try me!"
Everyone was stunned by Zhao Shi's ferocity.
No one had expected the usually timid Zhao Shi to dare wield a knife against others!
A flicker of relief passed through Jiang Liuli's eyes. It seemed Zhao Shi was truly beginning to change…
"What are you waiting for? Your father-in-law has been beaten badly by the second branch—get moving!"
Furious, Wu Shi screamed hysterically at her two sons and their wives.
Seeing their parents brutally beaten, the eldest son Jiang Daniu and the youngest Jiang Xiaoniu saw red. They raised their sickles and hoes and charged at Jiang Liuli.
Though Wu Shi's daughters-in-law, Zheng Shi and Tian Shi, were afraid of the "mad" Zhao Shi and Jiang Liuli, they knew if they didn't act now, they'd face their mother-in-law's wrath later.
Gritting their teeth, each grabbed a wheat sickle and rushed toward Zhao Shi.
Not to be outdone, Liu Shi and Jiang Xiaoni also seized whatever was at hand and joined the fray.
Jiang Liuli sneered as she watched Jiang Dani lunging toward her. With a swift swing of her wooden stick, she knocked the sickle out of Jiang Dani’s hand, then followed up with a kick that sent him flying backward.
Jiang Dani’s body hit the courtyard wall with a dull thud like a ragged sack, then slid to the ground, unable to recover for a long while.
Seeing this, Jiang Xiaoni raised his hoe and swung it at the back of Jiang Liuli’s head. As if she had eyes in the back of her head, Jiang Liuli ducked low, dodging the blow, and struck Jiang Xiaoni’s knee with a backhanded swing of her stick.
With a thud, Jiang Xiaoni dropped to his knees, sweating profusely from the pain.
On the other side, Zhao Shi’s hand trembled as she gripped the kitchen knife, but her eyes were unusually resolute.
When the daughters-in-law of the eldest branch—Zheng Shi and Tian Shi—charged at her with sickles, she swung the knife wildly, her voice shaking as she shouted,
“From now on, no one will bully my daughter! Otherwise, I’ll kill you all!”
The two daughters-in-law of the eldest branch were intimidated by her fierce stance and hesitated to advance.
Liu Shi and Jiang Xiaoni seized the opportunity while the two were off guard, grabbing brooms and sticks from the ground and striking them.
“Ah!” Zheng Shi yelped as Liu Shi’s stick landed on her back, making her jump in pain.
Tian Shi was struck in the eye by Jiang Xiaoni’s broom, tears instantly streaming down her face.
Seeing the situation spiral out of control, Jiang Laotou stomped his feet in fury:
“This is rebellion! Outright rebellion! You unfilial wretches, why don’t you all just drop dead!”
Jiang Liuli watched as Jiang Dani and Jiang Xiaoni, thoroughly beaten, lay on the ground moaning and groaning, too afraid to get up.
She cursed them as “cowards,” then slowly turned to face Jiang Laotou, her gaze as cold as a blade.
“Grandfather,” she said, enunciating each word, “Did you just say you wished our whole family would die out?”
Jiang Laotou took a step back, frightened by her icy tone, but quickly straightened his back:
“What? Did I say something wrong? You unfilial brats deserve…”
Slap!
Jiang Liuli backhanded him across the face, sending him staggering. A trickle of blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.
“That slap was for my father,” Jiang Liuli said coldly. “As his father, you allowed the eldest and third branches to bully our second branch for years.”
Slap!
Another slap landed.
“This one is for my mother. She married into the Jiang family over twenty years ago, worked tirelessly, and never received a shred of kindness from any of you.”
Jiang Laotou, dazed and disoriented, clutched his swollen cheek and stared at Jiang Liuli in terror. “You… you wicked creature…”
Jiang Liuli sneered and abruptly kicked him in the knee.
“Ah!” Jiang Laotou screamed, collapsing to his knees, trembling all over from the pain.
“That kick was for me,” Jiang Liuli said, looking down at him. “I am your own granddaughter, yet for ten taels of silver, you would send me to my death? And you still have the nerve to call our second branch unfilial?”
“It wasn’t me who wanted you dead—it was the River God who chose you…”
“Oh? Really? Was it the River God who wanted me dead? Or was it you colluding…”
“Jiang Dani! How dare you return home arbitrarily after being chosen as the River God’s bride, and even raise your hand against your own elders! You are utterly unrighteous, disloyal, and unfilial! Someone, seize Jiang Dani and burn her! Offer her to the river!”
Before Jiang Liuli could finish, a man’s voice cut her off.
Jiang Liuli turned around to see Liu Lizheng and Zhang Witch entering the Jiang family's courtyard with over a dozen strong men, followed by numerous villagers who had come to watch the commotion.
Upon witnessing the pitiful state of the Jiang family members on the ground, the onlookers were stunned. Was this the work of the usually timid second branch of the Jiang family?
"Gousheng, what happened here?"
Earlier, the villagers had mistaken Jiang Dani and Zhao Shi for ghosts, and many had run to fetch the village head without seeing the scene unfold. Now, observing Jiang Dani and Zhao Shi, they realized these were not ghosts at all.
They cast shadows behind them…