Eldest Brother Lin and his son quickly turned to stop Third Brother Lin, not letting him get into a fight with Nan Sheng. It would be ridiculous for a younger brother-in-law to hit his sister-in-law, and besides, it was their own spouses who had started it all.
Meanwhile, Nan Sheng and her sister-in-law were already tearing into each other. They fought so fiercely that no one dared to step in and separate them for a while.
Third Lin’s wife only knew how to grab hair, but Nan Sheng was taller, which gave her the upper hand. Soon, Third Lin’s wife found herself on the losing side.
Nan Sheng tugged at her hair with her left hand, while her right hand slapped hard across her face.
The sharp smacks echoed loudly, making everyone’s face ache just from hearing them.
“Eldest Brother Lin, you’re one thing, but Siqi is just a kid—how dare you two lay hands on her? Today, I’m going to tear the skin off your face and see just how thick it really is.”
By the time they were pulled apart, Third Lin’s wife looked a mess—her hair was tangled and wild, her face swollen high, and there were numerous scratches from fingernails bleeding all over.
Nan Sheng had also taken a beating; her scalp throbbed painfully. But when it came to fighting, she was still the authority and definitely wouldn’t admit defeat.
Father Lin and Mother Lin were slower on their feet. The elderly couple cared a lot about face and immediately started scolding as soon as they walked in.
“Are you bored out of your minds? What’s the point of fighting for no reason? Anyone who doesn’t behave can just get out of Xiangyang Village! The Lin family doesn’t want troublemakers like you!”
Father Lin, Lin Guozheng, was the village chief. His words carried weight, and no one in Xiangyang Village dared to cross him—not even the Lin family. Seeing their father, Third Lin and his wife immediately cowered.
Sun Qian covered her face, crying out, “Father, you have to control Second Sister-in-law! She started hitting people as soon as she came in. Look at what she did to me and Third Brother!”
Father Lin shot her a glare, telling her to shut up, then turned to Nan Sheng with a look of deep disgust. “Go back to your own home. Isn’t that shameful enough already?”
What kind of curse had he brought upon himself, marrying one daughter-in-law worse than the next?
Nan Sheng refused to back down. “Why should I leave? I was married into this family by your son. I’m stuck taking care of two kids, and on top of that, I get bullied by my younger brother-in-law. What kind of justice is that?
Today, their couple dared to hit my child. Tomorrow, will they come after my life? Grandpa of the child, if you don’t stand up for me, I’ll hang myself right here in this yard. Let’s see if your Lin family can still find a daughter-in-law after that!”
Nan Sheng was sharp-tongued. She’d experienced the coldness of the world from a young age and knew that kindness often invited exploitation.
Today, she wouldn’t give anyone face. She had to take back control of the situation.
Father Lin didn’t trust her words and instead shifted his gaze to his eldest son, where he noticed Sizhe was injured. He thought to himself, could it really have been Third Brother who started all this trouble?
Eldest Brother Lin nodded. Third Brother was simply inhuman. It was one thing to scold the kids for misbehaving, but how could he lay hands on them?
Besides, Second Brother had already done plenty to help both families.
A neighbor with a sense of justice also spoke up, “Chief, today it’s not Lin Han’s wife’s fault. It was Eldest Brother Lin and Qiqi who were beaten by Third Brother and his wife. Lin Han’s wife was just angry.”
Sizhe silently nodded. It was true that his stepmother liked to fight, but today’s incident wasn’t her fault.
Father Lin felt a pang of guilt for having wronged his daughter-in-law. He apologized to the neighbors, “Sorry for troubling everyone. Please go back home and have your meals; we still have work this afternoon.”
The neighbors, understanding the situation, offered a few words of comfort and then headed back to their own homes. The Lin family members also went inside.
Inside the house, Father Lin and Mother Lin sat on the kang (heated brick bed). Lin Guozheng waved over the eldest son, “Big Boy, come here and explain to Grandpa what happened today.”
Nan Sheng had just finished a fight and was feeling weak. While others might have stood, she plopped down heavily onto a stool, listening as Big Boy began to speak.
“Grandpa, when I got off work, I came home and saw my sister wasn’t there. So, I went to Third Uncle’s house to bring her back for dinner. But as soon as I entered the courtyard, I heard my sister crying. Third Aunt was scolding her, calling her greedy and accusing her of stealing Siyu’s biscuits. When I went inside, I saw her face was red and swollen from being hit.”
Father Lin clenched his anger but listened quietly as his grandson continued.
“I got upset and pushed Third Aunt away, trying to pick up Qiqi. But then Third Uncle came back, saw what was happening, and without asking for any explanation, picked up a rattan cane and started whipping me.”
Big Boy took off his shirt to show Father Lin the marks—over ten welts, all struck with force.
That was the last straw for Nan Sheng. She stormed over to Third Brother Lin and slapped him twice.
“I’m a stepmother, and I’ve never hit him that hard. Who the hell do you think you are, calling yourself his real uncle? Consider our ties severed—completely severed!”
Third Brother Lin was holding back his anger too. Seeing his wife being bullied was unbearable, and now, after being slapped, he dared not say a word or even look up at his father’s stern face.
He bowed his head and apologized to Lin Guozheng, “Father, I know I was wrong. I won’t be foolish like this again.”
His wife remained silent, clearly feeling wronged.
Mother Lin, who was the village teacher and always spoke with reason, said firmly, “This whole mess is the fault of Third Brother and his wife. How old is Qiqi? Even if she ate a little something, what harm is there? Do you think she could eat you all into poverty?
And Third Brother, I don’t know how you could raise your hand to hit her. Look at Sizhe—he’s already so skinny. Aren’t you afraid you might break his spine? Both of you, apologize to the children right now!”
Third Brother Lin agreed, but his agreement wasn’t enough, especially with Nan Sheng being such a stubborn thorn in the side.
“I don’t agree. Saying sorry and ‘it’s okay’ won’t just erase what happened. He hit our Big Boy so many times, and he deserves to be hit back the same number of times. Otherwise, this isn’t over!”
Big Boy felt wronged too. Seeing his stepmother stand up for him, he even felt a bit touched by her support. Third Brother’s wife joined in the shouting.
“No way! Second Sister-in-law just hit us that many times, and she went all out. She already paid for it. If we get hit again, our family’s the one who’ll suffer!”
Nan Sheng thought to herself, “You’re good at keeping score, huh? Fine, let’s settle this properly then.”
Both sides refused to back down. Mother Lin was caught in the middle, hoping as the elder that the family could live together in harmony.
Nan Sheng glanced around, looking for Third Brother’s daughter. Not seeing her in this room, she turned and headed to another.
Before anyone else could react, the sound of Lin Siyu’s crying drifted over.
Third Brother Lin and his wife exchanged worried glances. Their second sister-in-law really lacked virtue—how could she even lay a hand on a little child? Siyu was barely three years old!
When everyone arrived at the west room, they saw Nan Sheng holding the child in one arm. As Third Brother Lin and his wife approached, she made a show of trying to slam the child to the ground.
“Don’t drop her, Second Sister-in-law, let’s talk this through!”
Sun Qian’s heart nearly jumped out of her chest. Her precious little one was literally in someone else’s hands—how could she just stand by?
The others looked tense as well. “Second brother’s family, put the child down first. If you want to fight, fight Lin Jianshe and his wife—they’re tough and can take it.”
“Feeling sorry now, are you?” Nan Sheng sneered. “Our child is only five years old. When you bullied her, did you ever think she was just a kid? And Sizhe is only ten, yet Third Brother Lin actually whipped him with a cane! I’m making this clear—Lin Jianshe will get a beating he can’t dodge. If you don’t agree, I’ll take it out on his daughter. Nobody’s getting the better of anyone here!”
With that, Nan Sheng gave the child a light smack on the bottom, barely any force, but it scared Siyu into a crying fit. Pretending to be impatient, she warned, “Shut up. Cry again and I’ll hit you!”
Siyu covered her mouth with both hands, tears streaming down her face as she looked at her parents. She looked even more pitiful than Siqi had before.
“I agree! Dad, come hit me now!”
He only had this one daughter. Seeing her cry was worse than death to him.
Father Lin sent the eldest son outside to fetch a thick vine. Third Brother Lin was especially eager, stripping off his shirt without hesitation. He took a full thirty lashes from his older brother, no mercy given.
This time, Nan Sheng was finally satisfied. She put the child down on the kang (heated brick bed) and called her two children, “Come on, let’s go home and eat!”
The others: ……
Your nerve is really something!
