Xie Hanshuo watched his wife with her cheeks puffed out, looking like a gluttonous little mouse, and a faint, imperceptible smile flashed across the depths of his dark, heavy eyes.
However, the moment Ye Yao turned to look at him, he reverted to his cold, hard-faced, and humorless expression.
The man’s features looked somewhat fierce, and he appeared to be someone you wouldn’t want to mess with.
Ye Yao sighed inwardly.
The tiny spark of hope that had arisen when he gave her the chicken leg was extinguished by a bucket of cold water.
She felt that wanting to seduce Xie Hanshuo into sleeping with her… was truly as difficult as ascending to heaven!
It was no exaggeration to say that Xie Hanshuo was harder to deal with than a monk in a temple!
After the meal, they sat for a while and had a cup of tea before it was time for them to take their leave.
Concubine Liu, who had been complaining about Ye Hanzhu being disobedient just a moment ago, now felt sorry for her and couldn’t bear to see her go.
Ye Hanzhu swore with reddened eyes: “Mother, don’t you worry, I will take good care of myself. I will surely repay you in the future and let you and Father enjoy a good life.”
The mother and daughter bid a tearful farewell.
Ye Hanzhu leaned in close, clutching Concubine Liu’s hand, and whispered through gritted teeth:
“Mother, this time, I will never lose to that bitch Ye Yao!”
The malicious, venomous resentment in her eyes was as thick as a vengeful spirit just crawled out of the underworld; Concubine Liu shuddered all over in fear.
Before she could react, Ye Hanzhu had already let go and walked away with long strides…
The four of them returned to the Xie household together.
Ye Hanzhu’s eyes rolled, and a wicked idea quickly emerged in her mind.
Madam Wang was always stingy; otherwise, she wouldn’t have prepared only a basket of eggs for the return visit, and seeing that the second son of the Xie family wasn’t around, she had even “played dumb” and skipped Ye Yao’s portion entirely.
If Madam Wang were to know that the second son of the Xie family had brought such generous gifts to the Ye family, she would surely find Ye Yao an eyesore and vent her frustrations on her.
When the time came for the second son to go up the mountain to hunt, that bitch Ye Yao would just have to wait to be tortured to death by Madam Wang!
After returning, Ye Hanzhu told Madam Wang about Xie Hanshuo giving the game as a return gift.
Xie Moyan listened quietly from the side without stopping her.
He had been upstaged during today’s visit.
Everyone mocked him for being inferior to his younger brother, and even his mother-in-law had given him cold looks; he was feeling quite unhappy.
Letting Ye Hanzhu stir up trouble was fine; it saved him from being the villain.
The whole family relied on Xie Hanshuo for money now; he couldn’t afford to offend this brother openly.
Ye Hanzhu wiped away tears and sobbed: “Although it was a return to my parents’ home, since I have married into the Xie family, I am a member of the Xie family. Younger Brother sending so much meat back there makes my heart ache just to see it.”
“Dalang’s health is not good; those wild game should have been left for him to nourish his body. Younger Brother is truly too inconsiderate, and sister doesn’t know how to advise him, only indulging him blindly.”
Seeing Madam Wang’s rage growing, a trace of triumph flickered in Ye Hanzhu’s eyes, and she added insult to injury: “Mother, you must manage them well, otherwise, if they continue like this in this house, won’t they become completely lawless?”
“They wouldn’t dare! I’m not dead yet!”
Madam Wang beat her chest and cursed: “That bastard, the second one, and that little bitch Ye Yao—see how I deal with them!”
Having said that, she rushed out while cursing, intending to settle the score with Xie Hanshuo.
Xie Hanshuo was currently in the backyard tidying up the cowshed.
The roof was leaking, so he planned to repair it and make do for a while longer.
Once the weather turned cold in two months, he would move up to the mountain to live.
On the mountain, there was a large log cabin his father had built together with some old hunters; it could withstand the cold, defend against predators, and make hunting more convenient.
Once he earned more money and the family’s life became easier, Ye Yao wouldn’t have to suffer anymore.
He wanted her to live a good life, preferably eating the finest food and wearing gold and silver.
If that happened… would Ye Yao like him and be willing to sleep with him?
Thinking of this, Xie Hanshuo felt his whole body heating up with motivation.
But before he could finish his pleasant dream, his mother came charging over, cursing and swearing.
“Second one! You unfilial prodigal! Who told you to use the catch as a return gift? Do you still have me, your mother, in your eyes?!”
Madam Wang brandished a broom, shouting and threatening Xie Hanshuo. She didn’t even spare Ye Yao, throwing out filthy insults without a second thought:
“Ye Yao, that little vixen bitch! It must have been her shameless instigation! That piece of garbage isn’t worth a penny, and yet she wants chickens and rabbits—Bah! Truly shameless!”
Watching as Madam Wang’s insults became increasingly unbearable, Xie Hanshuo finally reached his limit and shouted sternly: “Enough—!”
She could curse him, but she could not curse his wife.
After all, Ye Yao hadn’t done anything wrong!
This was the first time Madam Wang had seen Xie Hanshuo lose his temper like this; she was so startled that she froze on the spot.
Xie Hanshuo was tall and burly, and his face was already fierce by nature.
Being glared at by him like that made Madam Wang’s heart tremble, and cold sweat broke out on her forehead.
“I should be the one asking you, Mother. You prepared a whole basket of eggs for the eldest brother, but my wife returned to her parents’ home empty-handed—what is the meaning of this?”
Xie Hanshuo said mockingly: “Did Mother forget, or is it that… you are intentionally showing favoritism?”
He had originally specially caught two extra chickens, intending to give one to his eldest brother on the way.
He knew his mother was stingy and was afraid that a thin return gift would make them a laughingstock, so he had gone up the mountain beforehand to prepare.
He had not intended to give everything to the Ye family, but when he saw the two of them empty-handed at the village entrance, he knew his mother hadn’t prepared anything for him or Ye Yao at all.
He had not expected Madam Wang’s favoritism to reach such a level.
Ye Yao had suffered such grievances along with him.
In a fit of anger, he hadn’t given the chicken to Xie Moyan.
He hadn’t even complained yet, so what right did his mother have to curse his wife?
Seeing his questioning, Madam Wang felt guilty, and her arrogance diminished.
She had originally assumed that Xie Hanshuo didn’t care about Ye Yao at all; who would have thought he would be so calculative over these few return gifts?
Madam Wang couldn’t win the argument, so she plopped onto the ground and began to roll around and make a scene: “Fine! You ungrateful wretch! I raised you with such hardship, and now you’re trying to anger your mother to death!”
“Isn’t it just a bit of a return gift? We are all one family; why are you being so petty? It’s just chickens and rabbits—your eldest brother’s health is poor, and you don’t even think about him; you white-eyed wolf with your elbows turned outward…”
Her wailing attracted the neighbors, who poked their heads out to look.
Ye Yao, hearing the commotion, ran out from the house.
Ye Hanzhu and Xie Moyan stood at the doorway watching the drama, with neither of them intending to step forward to mediate.
Ye Yao guessed immediately that it was about the return gift.
Her gaze turned cold, and she walked quickly to Xie Hanshuo’s side, standing firmly by him.
“Mother, you can’t say that. Since we are all one family, we should not show favoritism.”
In front of the neighbors, Ye Yao deliberately raised her voice: “When Hanshuo and I went back for the visit, you didn’t prepare anything for us. Mother, is it that you don’t like Hanshuo and me? If you have any dissatisfaction, just speak your mind directly; why make such a scene that outsiders end up laughing at our family?”
“Besides, my Hanshuo has been earning money to support this family alone for all these years, and even the ink and paper for the eldest brother’s studies were bought with the money he earned hunting. Where has he ever wronged you? Hanshuo is being wronged here!”