Seeing his uncle reprimanding his father, the eldest son, Chen Gensheng, couldn’t help but speak up in defense.
“You can’t blame Father for Mother’s fainting this time.
It was all Yingxue’s fault.
Somehow, Yingxue made Mother think of my sister.”
With his eldest son backing him up, Chen Huaiyuan straightened his back a little and said to his brother-in-law, “Yingxue is grown now, and she’s starting to have her own ideas.
Two years ago, when I saw her hiding in the mountains from the war, I took pity on her and brought her home, afraid she would be harmed by refugees.
Even though she’s Tianhao’s child bride, we’ve always treated her like our own daughter.
Now that the world is finally at peace, I’m planning to send Tianhao to school, hoping he’ll make something of himself in the future.
As for starting a family, I want to put that on hold for now.
“If Yingxue stays in our house with this ambiguous status, it will ruin her reputation and hinder Tianhao’s future.
It’d be better if I escorted her back to her hometown in the next few days.
Who knows, she might still have relatives alive.
Since you’re here, Shouren, you can act as a witness so no one can claim the Chen family mistreated her.”
Chen Huaiyuan had already calculated everything in his head.
He was terrified that Jiang Baozhen had actually recognized Lin Yingxue’s true identity.
Even if she hadn’t, Lin Yingxue’s background was a ticking time bomb that could go off at any moment.
Standing behind Jiang Shouren, Lin Yingxue’s brow twitched slightly.
Was he actually taking the initiative to kick her out?
This was exactly what she needed.
The opportunity to leave the Chen family had practically delivered itself to her doorstep.
Since Chen Huaiyuan had laid his cards on the table in front of Jiang Shouren, why shouldn’t she play along and make a few demands of this seemingly reasonable elder?
She couldn’t possibly leave the Chen’s home empty-handed.
She remembered the original book mentioning that Jiang Shouren was about to take over as the village chief of Jiangya Village.
If she could ask for his help to establish her own independent household in the village and allocate a few acres of farmland to her name, given his temperament, he might not refuse.
Seeking Jiang Shouren’s help would be much faster than staying in the Chen’s home and slowly coaxing Jiang Baozhen.
Although Jiang Baozhen’s attitude toward her had temporarily softened on account of “Chen Ruixue,” if Chen Huaiyuan managed to sweet-talk his wife later and the couple reconciled, her life would only become more miserable.
Hearing that Chen Huaiyuan wanted to kick Lin Yingxue out, Jiang Shouren immediately furrowed his brows into a deep knot.
This man was truly unreasonable!
Yingxue had only talked back to him once, and he already wanted to throw her out on the streets.
Although he hadn’t interacted much with Lin Yingxue, Jiang Shouren had a good impression of her.
Back when they were hiding in the mountains from the war, she was always the first to volunteer for grueling chores like chopping wood, digging for wild vegetables, and cooking over the fire.
Besides, she had lost her family long ago.
If they kicked her out now, where would she go?
The world seemed to be at peace, but a helpless girl wandering alone could easily run into trouble.
His expression darkened as he looked at Chen Huaiyuan, completely dropping his formal name and calling him by the birth name he hated most.
“Ergou, what you’re saying is out of line.
Everyone saw how much effort Yingxue put in while we were in the mountains.
She hasn’t eaten the Chen family’s food for free.
Now that we’ve just settled down, you want to chase her away.
If word gets out, people will call the Chen family callous and ruthless.”
Earlier, when he first walked in, he had heard the usually quiet Lin Yingxue speaking up for Baozhen while holding a piping hot bowl of chicken soup.
It was clear she cared deeply for her mother-in-law.
Jiang Shouren’s gaze toward Lin Yingxue softened with a touch of kindness, and his tone became decisive.
“Yingxue, don’t be afraid.
Just stay here with peace of mind.
Let’s see who dares to kick you out!”
Lin Yingxue felt grateful for Jiang Shouren’s protection.
However, she simply smiled and curtsied to him.
“Thank you for your pity, Mr.
Jiang.
It’s just that I’m clumsy.
The food I cook doesn’t taste good, and I can’t wash the clothes cleanly, which constantly angers my parents-in-law.
If I continue to stay in the Chen’s home, I’m afraid no one will have any peace.
It would be better to take advantage of the government re-registering households this time and let me separate from the Chen family to live on my own.”
“Nonsense!
How can a young girl like you establish a household and live on your own?” Jiang Shouren rejected the idea without a second thought.
When Chen Huaiyuan heard that Lin Yingxue wanted to leave, he was initially overjoyed.
But upon hearing Shouren’s objection, he sneered inwardly, and an even more malicious idea popped into his mind.
“Shouren, look.
Yingxue doesn’t even want to stay,” Chen Huaiyuan said.
“Forced arrangements never end well, and keeping her here against her will would only breed resentment.
If you’re worried about her suffering out there, why don’t we find her a proper marriage?
We can marry her off to a decent family, which would be a fitting end to her time with us.”
He calculated that marrying Lin Yingxue off to a faraway place would completely eliminate any future troubles while allowing him to collect a handsome bride price.
That way, raising her all these years wouldn’t have been in vain.
Lin Yingxue’s heart tightened, her voice lacing with coldness.
“Let’s see who dares to make the decision to marry me off!”
Even if Chen Huaiyuan tried to force her into a marriage, as long as she made a huge scene, the union would never go through.
She had arrived at the Chen’s home during the war, and her new household registration hadn’t been processed yet.
Technically, she wasn’t a true member of the Chen family.
Since she didn’t belong to the Chen family, Chen Huaiyuan had no right to interfere with her marriage.
The original book mentioned that the new emperor, who came from a peasant background, deeply despised the human trafficking practices of the previous dynasty.
Because of this, the new dynasty’s laws strictly regulated the buying and selling of people.
For a child bride, a contract could only be signed if both sets of parents willingly agreed.
She was an orphan, so her servitude contract with the Chen family wasn’t necessarily valid.
If Chen Huaiyuan dared to force her, she could immediately report him for human trafficking and make him pay dearly!
In the bed of the inner room, Jiang Baozhen, who was being served her medicine by Liu Yinhua, heard the commotion outside loud and clear.
As soon as she heard that Lin Yingxue wanted to leave the Chen family, she could no longer lie still.
When she heard that Chen Huaiyuan actually wanted to casually marry Yingxue off, she burned with fury and abruptly sat up.
That heartless bastard!
He wanted to abandon her Xue’er all over again!
“You son of a bitch, Chen Ergou!” Jiang Baozhen roared.
“You can get lost, but Yingxue is never leaving!”
Ignoring her dizzy spells, a surge of brute strength erupted from Jiang Baozhen’s chest.
She lunged out of bed, not even bothering to put on her shoes, and sprinted barefoot into the courtyard.
Like an enraged lioness, she pounced on Chen Huaiyuan, raining blows down on his head and face.
All the hatred and resentment accumulated from her past life exploded at once.
Her strikes were even more vicious and ruthless than when she had slapped him earlier.
In an instant, several deep, bloody scratch marks appeared on Chen Huaiyuan’s face, and his clothes were torn to shreds, leaving him in a wretched state.
Even the sons who came forward to break up the fight were not spared.
Chen Tianhao, in particular, took several solid slaps to the face, leaving him seeing stars and nearly collapsing to the ground.
She had wanted to teach these ungrateful wretches a lesson the moment she woke up!
In her previous life, every single one of them had sided with Chen Huaiyuan and Chen Tianhao, joining forces to drive her to her death.
Giving birth to them was worse than giving birth to a pumpkin!
Her daughters-in-law, grandsons, and granddaughters shrank into the corners in terror, not daring to breathe too loudly.
“If you dare try to chase Yingxue out again, I will chop you to pieces!” Jiang Baozhen snarled, her eyes bloodshot and wide with such ferocity that she looked ready to eat someone alive.
Jiang Shouren waited until his sister had vented enough of her anger before signaling his nephews’ wives to step forward and restrain her.
Bracing herself, Wu Qiaoqiao, along with Liu Yinhua and Huang Qiuju, awkwardly managed to support Jiang Baozhen back into the room and sat her down on the bed.
Once settled, Jiang Baozhen turned to Jiang Shouren, wiping her tears as she cried, “Shouren, you don’t know how thoughtful this child Yingxue is.
During the two days I was unconscious, I couldn’t rely on anyone else.
She was the only one who knew to slaughter a chicken to help me recover my strength.
Even if you bundled up this whole nest of sons and daughters-in-law together, they wouldn’t amount to half the care Yingxue has for me!”
Everyone was left speechless.
For a moment, it was so quiet in the room that you could hear a pin drop.
Chen Chunsheng wondered what his running around to fetch the doctor and get the medicine counted for.
Lin Yingxue, on the other hand, was still immersed in her shock.
Based on her understanding of Jiang Baozhen, even if the woman was furious, she wouldn’t have beaten Chen Huaiyuan to such a state.
That beating just now was clearly meant to kill!
What on earth had caused Jiang Baozhen’s temperament to become so fierce and ruthless?
Lin Yingxue didn’t believe that Jiang Baozhen would strike a lethal blow at Chen Huaiyuan just to protect her.
“Yingxue cares for me, and yet she earns the hatred of certain people!” Jiang Baozhen shouted from the bed.
“Chen Ergou, you just can’t stand seeing her be filial to me.
You are deliberately trying to anger me to death!
“Well, I won’t let you have your way.
Hurry up and go to your eldest brother’s house to get my land back.”
With his face scratched to pieces, Chen Huaiyuan actually felt mostly relieved when he heard Jiang Baozhen obsessively bringing up the “land.”
He knew it!
How could Jiang Baozhen possibly know that Lin Yingxue was Chen Ruixue?
Back when he abandoned that wretched girl, he had done it completely under the radar.
Even Chen Ruixue’s adoptive father had died long ago, so dead men could tell no tales.
This crazy woman, Jiang Baozhen, must have been severely triggered by the issue of dividing the land.
Her mind was muddled, which was why she mistook Lin Yingxue for Chen Ruixue.
Judging by her current state, she was slowly coming back to her senses.
If she actually knew Lin Yingxue’s true identity, she would have grabbed a knife and hacked him to pieces by now!
At this thought, the slight apprehension in Chen Huaiyuan’s heart dissipated, leaving only impatience toward Jiang Baozhen’s unreasonable tantrums.