Old Madam Hu cursed nonstop, completely unaware of how vicious her words were.
The people who had been standing around her gradually moved away, leaving a large empty space around her. Yet she seemed not to notice at all, continuing to rant without restraint.
The twins had been standing by the sandbox watching other children play. At first, they didn’t want to pay attention. But as Old Madam Hu’s words became more and more excessive, the brothers didn’t know how to talk back. In the end, they were so angry that they cried.
When Lin Zhi arrived, she saw the twins standing off to the side with tearful eyes, while a sharp-faced old woman spewed filth from her mouth.
Without the slightest hesitation, Lin Zhi grabbed a broom and charged forward.
“You old witch! Bullying my sons while I’m not around, huh?”
“I’ll beat you to death, you foul-mouthed hag! How dare you bully my sons? Looks like I’ve been too low-key lately and you’ve forgotten who I am!”
Lin Zhi showed no mercy. After just a few strikes, Old Madam Hu was howling, clutching her head and scrambling around.
The more Lin Zhi hit her, the angrier she became. If the old thing could curse like that in front of so many people, who knew how filthy she was behind their backs?
If she didn’t beat some fear into her today, the twins might not even dare to leave the house in the future.
“I’ll beat you, you old disgrace! Let’s see if you dare curse my sons again! Only I get to bully my sons—who do you think you are? Just because you’re older, you think you can throw your weight around?”
“I’m telling you, they may be afraid of you, but I’m not! Worst case, I beat you to death and get dragged off to be shot. I’ve had enough good days anyway—dragging someone down with me wouldn’t be a loss!”
Arguing wasn’t Lin Zhi’s strong suit. She had always been the type to use her hands if she could. The fact that she managed to say this much was already beyond her usual performance.
Although the onlookers secretly felt that Old Madam Hu deserved it, they couldn’t just stand by and watch her get beaten to death.
“Hey, He Ting’s wife, just hit her a couple of times to vent. Don’t actually kill her!”
Several people rushed forward to stop Lin Zhi. Seeing that she finally stopped, Liu Yuxiang let out a breath of relief.
She snatched the broom away and shot Old Madam Hu a glare. This old woman—people usually tolerated her because of her age, yet she never appreciated it and only grew more outrageous.
The twins were such well-behaved kids, and she still cursed them so viciously. Other families’ children must have suffered the same. With a mouth that dirty, getting beaten was no surprise.
Once she was out of broom range, Old Madam Hu ignored the pain all over her body. She plopped onto the ground and began wailing.
“Oh heavens, there’s no justice! I’m such an old woman, and this little wretch is beating me—”
“You dare say another word?” Lin Zhi interrupted before she could finish, pushing past the people blocking her as if ready to charge again. “You old disgrace who doesn’t act your age—say one more word and I’ll tear your mouth apart!”
Perhaps Old Madam Hu had made too many enemies over the years; those restraining Lin Zhi weren’t exactly sincere. She easily shoved them aside.
Standing with her hands on her hips, towering over the speechless Old Madam Hu, Lin Zhi looked fierce.
“Go on, wail! Keep wailing!”
“You think I’m a vegetarian tiger who won’t bite? Apologize to my two sons right now, or this isn’t over today.”
“If I’m not satisfied, I’ll go to Commissar Hu, to the regimental commander, to whoever can stand up for me.”
At the mention of Commissar Hu, Old Madam Hu instantly lost her bravado.
Though she acted domineering outside, she feared her son the most.
The Hu family had finally produced an official. If something went wrong because of her, she might not only lose her place in the family compound but even be unwelcome in her own home.
Even though she had started this, she had also been beaten several times. Her whole body ached. In her mind, she was the one who suffered.
And at her age, apologizing to two toddlers still in split-crotch pants—how would she ever face the compound again?
Watching her shifting expressions, Lin Zhi could roughly guess what she was thinking. But so what? She had started it. If she was wrong, she should apologize.
She beckoned the twins over, wrapping an arm around each of them, and lifted her chin at Old Madam Hu.
“Old lady, we both know we’re the stubborn type. Don’t pretend to faint and try to muddle through.”
Old Madam Hu had indeed been planning to fake a faint, but before she could, Lin Zhi exposed her.
She glared viciously at Lin Zhi, wishing she could tear her apart.
She had lived in the compound for over a decade and had never suffered humiliation like this. Yet in her old age, she had lost face to such a reckless young woman.
Her son was a political commissar—who wouldn’t give her face? But this one was a fearless troublemaker who didn’t care at all.
Talking about death so casually—young people might not mind, but someone half-buried in the grave hated hearing such words.
As for the women watching the spectacle—usually they called her “Auntie” so sweetly. But when she truly needed them, they stayed far away.
Bah! A bunch of selfish people.
In the end, not daring to let Lin Zhi escalate the matter, Old Madam Hu gritted her teeth and apologized.
Though her voice was faint, Lin Zhi knew to stop while ahead. She snorted and glanced around at the onlookers, raising her voice.
“Let me make this clear—only I get to bully my kids. If I find out anyone dares bully them—whether you’re old enough to have lost your teeth or young enough not to have grown any—I won’t let it slide.”
Then she patted the twins’ heads. “Still want to play? If not, let’s go home. I’ll give you some egg cakes.”
The egg cakes she mentioned were small packaged ones, one yuan each, with a shelf life of two or three months.
She didn’t like them much, but some elderly people with few teeth enjoyed them, so she had stocked a box or two to sell.
Too much wasn’t good, but one or two occasionally was fine.
Hearing about the egg cakes, Chen Xiaoxi—the girl who had run to fetch her earlier—also wanted to follow.
Lin Zhi didn’t know which family she belonged to, but since she had gone to call her for help, she was clearly a good kid.
Seeing the girl biting her finger, wanting to follow yet afraid of being scolded, Lin Zhi waved her over.
“You—yes, you. Don’t look around. I mean you. I like the look of you. Come along. Auntie will give you two egg cakes.”
The girl froze. Lin Zhi beckoned again.
“Hurry up, or Auntie will eat them all.”
This time, the girl was sure Lin Zhi meant her. She wiped her mouth and, forgetting even her own mother, happily ran after her.
Liu Yuxiang hadn’t expected her daughter to just run off like that without even asking her.
She wanted to call her back, but feared Old Madam Hu might realize she had sent her daughter to fetch Lin Zhi and cause trouble later. So she swallowed her words.