The moment she confronted them, they screamed and collapsed to the ground, even the benches falling on top of themselves.
The women stared at Lu Meiyu in terror.
This Lu was truly capable of sorcery—several attacking at once couldn’t subdue her.
Lu Meiyu coldly shouted: “Still not leaving? Want to feel this again?”
Terrified, the women didn’t dare say another word. They scrambled and fled as fast as they could.
Naturally, the news spread like wildfire.
Lu Meiyu had beaten her mother-in-law, sisters-in-law, and younger sister-in-law!
The Liu family was furious. This was no longer about a piece of meat—it was about the fact that this daughter-in-law had struck her elders. Such impiety demanded divorce.
Liu Cuicui cried, tears streaming: “I didn’t expect it to hurt so much! It felt like being struck by lightning. I couldn’t move at all and only managed to get up after a long time.”
Originally the most favored daughter, even Liu Cuicui’s mother was now being beaten, leaving no time to comfort her.
Old Liu sighed: “Why haven’t we ever seen her this fierce? She’s been holding back all this time.”
“You believe she got that magical weapon from the Water Goddess, right?” Liu the second spoke harshly.
Liu Cuicui’s eyes darted around, recalling the incident, and she fell silent.
“It must be real. Otherwise, why does it only appear during fights?” Liu the third reasoned.
“Is she possessed by a spirit? We should get a Taoist to exorcise her. She’s not the same Lu as before,” Mrs. Zhou thought it suspicious.
Mrs. Wang agreed: “Exactly. Have you noticed her complexion? It’s getting more radiant and enticing…”
Liu the second coughed abruptly. In front of his parents, he thought, what nonsense is this woman spouting?
Mrs. Wang felt awkward, realizing she had spoken her thoughts aloud.
Liu Cuicui was both jealous and resentful: “She must be possessed by a spirit. We need a shaman to deal with her.”
“How much silver would that cost? We don’t have that much.”
Old Liu’s words silenced everyone again.
Whether it was a Taoist or a shaman, without money, they couldn’t hire one.
Zhang held on to her copper coins, wanting nothing to go out.
But even the stingiest person has expenses that must be paid, and the family lived in hardship.
“This Lu woman can even eat meat. The chicken she took the other day? Slaughtered the same day! Today she got a rabbit, sold it, and bought pork to eat! What a wasteful woman. Anything she can get, she puts straight into her mouth.”
Old Liu grew angrier. He hadn’t eaten meat in a long time.
Not to mention large portions.
Those three profitless creatures were eating meat consecutively—and in such quantity!
“Tomorrow, we should also cut some meat to eat, mother?”
Thinking of the big pieces of stir-fried meat on Lu Meiyu’s table, Liu Cuicui’s mind ached.
Everyone looked to Zhang, hoping she would agree.
“Eat? Eat what? Do you even see the state of things? The crops in the fields are dying from drought, even the vegetables! Who knows how bad this disaster will be. Taxes will come due, all our hard work for nothing, and we can’t even pay the field tax…”
Zhang rambled on.
The gist was clear: want meat? Dream on!
“You’re right. We can’t even get food, let alone meat.”
Old Liu agreed with Zhang. He wanted meat too, but long-term considerations forced patience.
“But this Lu woman… why not just divorce her?”
He thought it over, still uneasy.
“Father, yes, divorce her. We cannot accept such a daughter-in-law.” Liu Cuicui supported this naturally.
“Divorcing her is easy, but what about the two kids? Bring them back to the old house to raise?”
Mrs. Wang hesitated.
Mrs. Zhou firmly rejected: “Two mouths to feed out of nowhere? Where would we get the grain?”
“If we divorce her, we’ll have to raise those two profitless girls. Can’t have Qing Sheng come home to find his wife divorced and his kids uncared for—that would break his heart.”
Zhang hesitated, considering her eldest son’s feelings.
“Mother, if we divorce Lu, why not let her raise the children?”
Liu Cuicui shivered at the memory of the “lightning strike” feeling.
“Exactly, that’s proper. Even if divorced, those two girls should remain with her.” Mrs. Zhou agreed enthusiastically.
Lu Meiyu was washing dishes when suddenly the courtyard became noisy. She frowned.
She only wanted a peaceful life—why was it so difficult?
Xiaoxuan looked terrified: “Mom, Grandpa and Grandma are here, bringing the village head and other elders.”
Clearly, something serious was about to happen to her.
Lu Meiyu wiped her hands, took the two little girls, and walked out of the kitchen, frowning: “What’s going on?”
“Lu! The Liu family is divorcing you!” Old Liu shouted, his voice firm.
“Fine, go ahead.”
Lu Meiyu’s calm, even slightly cheerful tone stunned everyone.
This wasn’t how they imagined it.
A woman about to be divorced should be crying, begging, or kneeling.
“Don’t you want to ask why?” Zhang insisted.
“No need, divorce me.” Lu Meiyu still smiled.
It had to be said: Lu Meiyu was truly beautiful; her smile lit up the space.
Before, she had always been timid, head down, back hunched, her pale, dull complexion hardly noticeable.
Now, everyone realized she was not only beautiful but tall.
Standing naturally, she could not be ignored.
Something felt off.
The Liu family head grudgingly said: “Because you, evil woman, violated the Seven Grounds for Divorce and beat elders…”
“Fine, fine, divorce me.”
Lu Meiyu interrupted again, making the family head nearly spit blood.
“Shall we write it now? Pens, ink, paper ready? Xiaoxuan, tidy the table for the village head to write.”
Xiaoxuan froze—she couldn’t believe her mother was about to be divorced!
The sisters burst into tears, finally releasing the tension—they thought this was the normal reaction.
But Lu Meiyu’s next words almost drove them mad.
“Don’t cry. I’ll take care of you two, and then marry a better man, handsome and wealthy! You’ll have meat every day and fine clothes to wear.”
Old Liu’s hand trembled as he pointed at Lu Meiyu: “Shameless! Outrageous! The heavens should strike you with lightning!”
“Then stay away from me, Liu family, lest the lightning hits you instead.”
Lu Meiyu didn’t care, driving the Liu family nearly crazy.
“If you divorce me, and I starve, no one will care.” Zhang fumed.
“As if the three of us didn’t already have no one to care for us! Stop nagging and write the divorce notice.”