“Oh, look at that, he’s getting mad. Can’t beat me himself, so he needs a man to stand up for him. So you’ve had your eye on Wang Fuyuan all along, huh? No wonder you’ve been so sour today. Fine then, I’ll bless you two shameless dogs with a long life together and many children.”
Qin Suian threw his own mocking tone right back at him.
“You! You! You filthy bitch!” Liu Ba lunged forward to hit her, but the brigade leader stopped him.
Originally, they had hoped to use him to distract Qin Suian and seize the knife from her hands.
Who would’ve thought Liu Ba would be so useless, completely outmatched.
“Enough already, what are you stirring trouble for? Move aside.” The brigade leader pulled Liu Ba away and turned toward Qin Suian.
“Fuyuan’s wife, listen to me—”
Before he could continue, Qin Suian interrupted him.
“My name is Qin Suian, not ‘Fuyuan’s wife.’ If anyone calls me that again, I’ll take it as an insult.”
Qin Suian had endured that for a very long time.
The Qin family might have been awful too, but at least they had given her a proper name.
Yet after marriage, even her name disappeared. All she became was someone’s “wife.”
“Alright, alright, Qin Suian. Divorce is a major matter. Put the knife down first, calm down. Whatever grievances or suffering you have, tell the production team properly, tell the women’s director properly, alright? We’ll stand up for you.”
Seeing that Women’s Director Chen Ping had just arrived, the brigade leader quickly shot her a look, hoping she could help.
“That’s right, Suian, put the knife down first. I’ll listen to you slowly. This is too dangerous.” Chen Ping was also terrified by the scene.
But as the women’s director, handling family disputes like this was part of her job. She couldn’t avoid stepping in.
“No matter how much you talk, in the end you’ll still tell me to endure it and continue living properly with Wang Fuyuan. If it’s just that kind of empty mediation, then there’s no need to say anything.
Director Chen, Captain, the Wang family and I have already discussed this. Both sides agreed. I don’t think there’s anything left to discuss.”
Qin Suian remained completely unmoved.
“Suian, you should think about it again. Even if not for yourself, then for Xiaojun. Having a divorced mother doesn’t sound good. It’ll be difficult for Xiaojun to find a decent husband in the future.”
An elderly voice suddenly spoke up.
Everyone turned to look. It was Grandma Shen Chuntao, over seventy years old, leaning on a cane and holding a tobacco pipe.
Back in the day, Grandma Shen had actually fought against the Japanese invaders. She was highly respected throughout the surrounding villages.
She was known for fairness, and her words carried weight in the village.
“Grandma Shen, thank goodness you’re here. Please persuade Suian.” Seeing Chen Ping failing to help, the brigade leader hurried over to support Grandma Shen and ask for her aid.
A wave of helplessness rose in Qin Suian’s heart.
Men truly had clever methods—they always used women to deal with other women.
“Grandma Shen, why does everyone keep using me to persuade my mother? If my mom doesn’t divorce, does that guarantee I’ll find a good husband? Then why did Grandma want me to marry the fool from Lin Family Village?”
Xiaojun suddenly spoke up.
She genuinely couldn’t understand. If everyone cared so much about whether she could marry into a good family, then why had she almost been married off to an idiot?
“Why is my chance at a good marriage tied to my mother’s reputation? My mother’s reputation was excellent before—filial to her in-laws, hardworking without complaint—but didn’t my older sister still marry badly?
On the day my sister returned home after the wedding, her husband beat her. Every word out of his mouth complained that our family hadn’t given enough dowry. Is this what you call a good reputation? Is this what you call a good husband?”
Crying, Xiaojun looked at Grandma Shen.
Why had no one seen the grievances the three of them suffered in the Wang family over the past ten or twenty years?
Yet the moment her mother picked up a cleaver, suddenly everyone noticed. Suddenly everyone was willing to listen.
Grandma Shen was rendered speechless by Xiaojun’s words. She stared blankly at the girl.
Jiang Xiumei desperately wanted to explain that she truly hadn’t known Lin Mao was mentally disabled.
No matter how greedy she was for money, she wouldn’t have made it so obvious. She still cared about maintaining a good reputation.
But it was clear that Qin Suian and her daughter were determined to pin the blame on her.
Grandma Shen could no longer continue persuading them. Shaking her head, she stepped back.
She knew Qin Suian had lived badly in the Wang family. Especially with Wang Fuyuan being so tightly controlled by Jiang Xiumei, Qin Suian had never stood a chance. She must have suffered greatly before finally exploding today.
But for women, not marrying was unacceptable. Marrying badly was unacceptable. Marrying too well was also unacceptable.
And divorce? That was even more unacceptable.
The path Qin Suian wanted to walk had never been walked before. How difficult would that road be?
Seeing even Grandma Shen fail, the brigade leader gave up.
Fine then. Let them divorce. He wasn’t the one losing face anyway.
The brigade leader took the divorce paper, signed his name, breathed onto the seal, and stamped it firmly.
“Captain, please copy three more versions, sign them, and stamp them too. Tomorrow we’ll go to the county office to handle the paperwork.”
Qin Suian wasn’t about to let anyone fool her. She knew copies needed to be kept both by the production team and the county office. One copy alone wasn’t enough.
The brigade leader really had planned to brush things over. He’d been thinking they could avoid going to the county office and, after Qin Suian calmed down in a few days, persuade her properly and pretend this whole matter had never happened.
He hadn’t expected Qin Suian to be this resolute—even planning out the entire procedure already.
With a frown, he reluctantly copied out three more versions, signing and stamping each one.
At last, the matter was settled.
Only then did Qin Suian finally release Jiang Xiumei.
Wang Xianghua hurried over to catch and support her.
The very next second, Wang Fuyuan’s fist swung toward Qin Suian.
He had been barely restraining himself this entire time.
Today Qin Suian had humiliated him before the entire village. How much ridicule would he suffer afterward? He would never let this woman off. If he didn’t beat her to death, his surname wasn’t Wang!
But Qin Suian had already prepared for this. Her leg moved faster than Wang Fuyuan’s fist, kicking directly into his most vulnerable spot.
“I’ve tolerated you for a very long time!”
With a cleaver in her hand, fire in her eyes, and hatred in her heart, not striking back would have been an insult to herself.
“Wang Fuyuan, marrying into your family was truly the unluckiest thing in eight lifetimes.”
Wang Fuyuan hadn’t expected Qin Suian to be even more ruthless than him. The agonizing pain made him collapse to his knees.
“Xiaojun, hold this carefully.”
Qin Suian handed the cleaver to Xiaojun and picked up the broom from the ground instead.
Xiaojun accepted the cleaver. Her hands trembled slightly, but her grip was firm.
“In the past, when Wang Fuyuan beat me, no one ever stopped him. Today, anyone who stops me will become my mortal enemy.”
The moment Qin Suian said that, both the brigade leader and the villagers watching immediately gave up any thought of intervening.
Wang Fuyuan didn’t beat Qin Suian often, but whenever he did, he struck viciously.
What family didn’t beat their wives?
That was considered private family business. Not something outsiders should interfere in.
The women’s director would occasionally step in, but all she could really do was persuade people. Afterward, the beaten wife would still continue being beaten.
Now that Qin Suian wanted to hit back, that wasn’t excessive… right?
Besides, she had already swapped the cleaver for a broom. A broom wouldn’t kill anyone. Better to just watch the excitement instead of getting involved.
Judging from the sheer hatred in Qin Suian’s eyes toward Wang Fuyuan, if she wasn’t allowed to vent her anger, this would never end.
Jiang Xiumei had already been helped back into the room by Wang Xianghua.
Jiang Yun merely stood off to the side watching the show. She had no intention of interfering in her elder brother-in-law’s family affairs.