Shen Chunhua held Qin Changyuan's black-and-white portrait, standing stiff-faced before Tang Min.
"Say it clearly in front of Changyuan, to everyone here—from this day forward, you, Tang Min, and Qin Qing have no relation whatsoever to our Qin family!"
The words hit Tang Min like a thunderbolt, leaving her momentarily stunned.
"Mother, Qing'er is Changyuan's daughter!"
"Our Qin family does not acknowledge her!"
Shen Chunhua's expression was icy cold. After the old master of the Qin family had passed, she had been the one calling the shots in this household. Even when the second son was still alive, he had always yielded to her. Now these two little sluts wanted to defy her? Then let them sever all ties completely!
"Sister-in-law, don't you just want money? Take the money and leave. From now on, you have nothing to do with our Qin family."
Qin Changbing added his two cents.
Tang Min's body went weak. She hadn't expected the Qin family to be so heartless.
Qin Qing pulled Tang Min up, her back ramrod straight.
"Fine! We'll do exactly as you say!"
This Qin family—she didn't want to stay in it any longer either.
"Then kneel down and say it in front of your father's face!"
Shen Chunhua snarled viciously, raising the portrait in her hand.
"Changyuan…"
Looking at Qin Changyuan's portrait, Tang Min's tears slipped down her cheeks again. The man in the photograph was gentle and refined, his calm eyes carrying endless tenderness. It was precisely because of Qin Changyuan's gentle treatment that Tang Min had willingly stayed in the Qin family.
"Kneel! If you don't kneel, you don't get the money!"
He Cuiyun added fuel to the fire from the sidelines, delighted to watch the spectacle.
"Alright, we'll kneel."
Seeing the determination in her daughter's eyes, Tang Min knew she had already made her decision.
"Mother, let's kneel together and bid Father farewell."
Qin Qing took Tang Min's hand, and mother and daughter knelt heavily before Qin Changyuan's portrait.
"Changyuan, I wanted to take care of the Qin family for you for the rest of my life. But I can't do it anymore. Will you blame me? Blame me if you must, but right now, I only want to look after Qing'er and live our own lives well."
Tang Min spoke through her tears.
"Father, the Qin family doesn't acknowledge me, and they don't want my mother either. From today on, my mother and I sever all ties with the Qin family completely—no more contact! But I will always, always be your daughter!"
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Qin Qing knocked her head heavily against the ground three times in kowtow to her father.
In this life, she bowed to neither heaven nor earth—only this once, kneeling for her father. From now on, no one would ever make her bend her knees again.
"Village chief, everyone, you all heard that, right? From this day forward, this Tang Min and Qin Qing have not a single cent of connection to our Qin family!"
Qin Changbing shouted loudly, as if afraid someone might not hear.
"That's right, not a single cent of connection! This 10 yuan is the bride price Wang Mazhi paid—take it!"
Shen Chunhua hurled the crumpled bills clutched in her hand directly at Tang Min's face.
The money—one-yuan and two-yuan notes mixed together—scattered messily across the ground.
Shen Chunhua had deliberately intended to humiliate Tang Min, but Qin Qing didn't mind. She bent down and picked up the bills one by one. This was the capital she needed to turn her life around—she wouldn't disdain it for being dirty.
Qin Qing pulled Tang Min to her feet. "This is what my mother earned through years of hard work—it has nothing to do with Wang Mazhi's bride price!"
"Qing'er, we need to take our things too."
Tang Min said in a low voice.
"Things? What things?" He Cuiyun planted her hands on her hips, blocking the doorway. "We've already given you the money, and you still want things? There's nothing!"
"Cuiyun, you at least have to let us take our clothes and shoes, right?"
"Those rags of yours, we burned them already. There's nothing here. Get out, now!"
"Get out, get out! Bad luck, that's what you are! Our Qin family doesn't want you, and the Tang family won't keep you either!"
Shen Chunhua spat out a curse, yanked He Cuiyun back inside, and slammed the door shut, locking it.
"Mom!! At least let me grab a pair of shoes for Qing'er!"
Tang Min pounded on the door, but there was no response from inside.
The onlookers watched Tang Min and Qin Qing—both soaked through, dressed so thinly, and Qin Qing's bare feet red from the cold. Everyone sighed. The Qin family really were heartless.
But no one stepped forward to help. Hedong Village was notoriously poor, each household poorer than the last. A cotton-padded jacket and a pair of cloth shoes together cost a whole yuan—who could afford to give that away?
"Qing girl, come to my place! I'll have your auntie find you some clothes. Are we in Hedong Village going to let someone freeze to death?"
Qin Wanguo couldn't bear to watch any longer and told the mother and daughter to follow him home.
"Thank you, thank you, Village Chief!"
"Alright, everyone, disperse!"
And so the farce came to an end.
As Qin Qing followed Qin Wanguo away, back in the Qin family courtyard, He Cuiyun quietly asked her husband.
"Changbing, what you said—is it all true?"
"I saw it with my own eyes!"
Qin Changbing's voice rose a full octave, but a glare from Shen Chunhua made him shrink back, lowering his voice.
"That Wang Mazhi's house burned to a pile of black ash! And what a coincidence—when the fire started, Chen Guangfa, the village chief of Hexi Village, and Liu Jianguo, the director of the county state-run restaurant, were both at Wang Mazhi's place."
"Those two are big shots. What were they doing at Wang Mazhi's house?"
"How would I know? Chen Guangfa and Wang Mazhi got out fast—just their faces blackened by smoke. But Liu Jianguo had it bad! They say when he was running out, his waist got slashed open with a big gash, bleeding nonstop. His pants caught fire too, and then a falling wooden beam hit him. When they pulled him out, he was still unconscious!"
"You're saying Tang Min and her daughter started the fire at Wang Mazhi's place?"
Qin Changbing looked dead certain. "Tang Min ran out, and then the Wang house caught fire—how could that be a coincidence? Mom, this is a big deal. Wang Mazhi, Liu Jianguo, and Chen Guangfa—each one is harder to deal with than the last. When they come looking for payback, who's going to take the fall?"
Shen Chunhua's heart pounded, her body nearly unsteady in her seat, her hands trembling with fear.
Wang Mazhi was already a reckless thug, and Liu Jianguo and Chen Guangfa were men of status and position. The fire was almost certainly Qin Qing's doing—that girl, after drinking the calming tonic, turned into something like an Asura Yama possessed, ready to bite anyone she laid eyes on.
"Changbing, you've got a good head on your shoulders. We'll cut all ties with that little wretch. We already gave them the ten-yuan bride price. When Wang Mazhi comes looking for trouble, he can take it up with the Tang family. It's got nothing to do with us."
Shen Chunhua had heard Qin Changbing's rough account earlier and had immediately decided to pay money to ward off disaster.
"Mom, we've said the words, but what if Wang Mazhi doesn't believe us?"
He Cuiyun's eyes darted back and forth. Thinking of how Tang Min and her daughter had humiliated her in public today, she gritted her teeth in hatred.
"You have an idea?"
"Changbing, you go to Hexi Village right now and find Wang Mazhi."
"Going to poke at his bad luck at a time like this? Are you trying to get me killed?"
"You don't know shit! If those two troublemakers aren't dealt with, they'll bring disaster on us sooner or later. Just do as I say!"
He Cuiyun's narrow, elongated eyes gleamed with a venomous light, like a poisonous snake, poised to strike a fatal blow at any moment.