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Snowflakes continued to fall from the sky, and it was neither cold nor slippery. The snow was already quite thick, making a light crunching sound underfoot. However, Xiao Lihua was running too fast and nearly tripped, but Xie Youshun caught her just in time.
"Wife, you and Xiao Yue should walk slowly behind. I'll go take a look first!"
Xie Youshun set Xiao Yue down and quickly ran ahead, feeling anxious inside.
Xiao Lihua held Xiao Yue's hand and hurried forward, asking her why they had fought. Xiao Yue explained that Dog Egg and Big Tiger had knocked down the snowman they built. When Shitou went to stop them, a fight broke out, and Shitou got pushed, hitting his head against a rock buried under the snow.
Upon hearing that Dog Egg was the one who pushed Shitou, Xiao Lihua felt furious. She remembered how she had almost lost her life when Zhang Shuitao had pushed her down. Now it was her son pushing Shitou—this couldn't be allowed! While Xiao Lihua had some responsibility for her own injury back then, Shitou had done nothing wrong; why should he suffer?
Wang Dashan's house wasn't far from Xie Youshun's home, and they soon arrived. Xiao Lihua saw two snow piles in front of Wang Dashan's house, clearly the remains of the two knocked-down snowmen. She pursed her lips and rushed inside. Before she even entered, she heard loud arguing and the sound of children crying.
Zhang Shuitao said, "In this heavy snow, the ground is slippery. I think Shitou was just playing and lost his balance, fell, and hit his head. Now they're blaming my son for it. We won't be taken advantage of!"
Sister Zhu chimed in, "I think so too. Who doesn't know that when Shitou's mother got hurt, they almost blamed Zhang Meizi? Now it's happening again with the younger ones—like mother, like son."
Mutu angrily said, "You can't speak ill of my mother!"
Dog Egg poked his head out from behind Zhang Shuitao and said, "Your mother is bad!"
Mutu jumped in frustration and shouted, "My mother is not bad! You're bad! Your mother is bad!"
Zhang Shuitao looked at Mutu, noticing how his face had changed from thin and yellow to plump and white. A cold glint flashed in her eyes as she said icily, "Mutu, who are you calling bad? What did I do wrong? Little kids who tell lies might get taken away by wolves to be eaten!"
Scared, Mutu quickly ran to Xie Youshun, who had just come out of the back room, clutching his clothes tightly and exclaimed, "Dad, she's scaring me."
Zhang Shuitao's eyes widened again, thinking that this little brat actually reported her. She looked up at Xie Youshun and said before he could speak, "You need to manage your son properly. That woman, Xiao Lihua, has led him astray. He keeps saying bad things about others and even lies to blame my son. As a father, you really let them get away with too much. If you don't take care of it, be careful he grows up to be a rogue bully. By then, don't come crying to me!"
Zhang Lianxiang couldn't stand it any longer and said, "Stone and Wood listens well; he’s not as bad as your Dog Egg. Copper Coin and Xiao Yue saw everything today. It's your Dog Egg who is in the wrong. You protect him too much; you should worry about him turning bad in the future."
Sister Zhu said, "Copper Coin and Xiao Yue are good friends with Stone and Wood, so of course they will speak for him; that doesn't count. Didn't Shackles witness it too? Let them testify; they are from the Xie Family, so their words will definitely hold weight."
"Do you think we're fools? Shackles has always bullied Stone and Wood. Today's incident is definitely related to them. If they testify, they will surely side with Dog Egg and Big Tiger!" Zhang Lianxiang said.
Zhang Shuitao snorted and said, "Even your own brothers help outsiders; it shows how bad Stone and Wood's character is. Xie Youshun, you really should discipline your two boys properly."
"I know how my son is; I don't need you to manage him. Just take care of your own son," Xie Youshun said, stroking the little head of the boy wearing a hat while looking coldly at Zhang Shuitao.
Zhang Shuitao's heart sank as she glared at Xie Youshun, but he didn't even look at her as he carried the boy inside.
Xiao Lihua listened from outside and gritted her teeth in anger at Zhang Shuitao. This woman not only sheltered Dog Egg but also tried to smear dirt on her and Stone's names; it was simply outrageous.
Xiao Lihua lifted the curtain and entered the house, glancing only briefly at Zhang Shuitao and Sister Zhu before heading into the inner room.
In the inner room, the Physician was bandaging Stone. After finishing, he told Xie Youshun that Stone was fine; he just had a bump on his head with a scrape that bled a little but not much. Only then did Xie Youshun and the others breathe a sigh of relief.
Stone sat on the kang, looking at Xiao Lihua's reddened eyes with his big eyes wide open. He softly said, "Mom, I'm fine; it doesn't hurt at all."
Xiao Lihua wiped her eyes and sat beside him, holding him in her arms. She didn't know what to say to comfort him but finally managed to say, "If it hurts, just tell me. Mom will blow on it for you, and then I'll make you something delicious when we get home. After eating something tasty, it won't hurt anymore."
"I want to eat braised pork, I want stir-fried tenderloin, I want dumplings, and I want big steamed buns."
"Alright, I'll make it for you when we get back."
Xiao Lihua thought that as long as the child still wanted to eat, everything was fine, but she still felt uneasy. She had only crossed over after being hit once, and that bump on the head was very dangerous. She had only suffered a minor injury and was able to get up and work again in a few days, but the original Xiao Lihua was dead. This time, Shitou had a big bump on his head, which she considered extremely dangerous.
Mutou went over and held Shitou's hand, calling him brother, while leaning on Xiao Lihua's lap.
Copper Coin and Xiao Yue all gathered around to comfort Shitou, then started saying that Dog Egg, Big Tiger, and Shackles were bad and that they wanted to help him take revenge.
Wang Dashan asked again if Dog Egg had pushed Shitou down. The four children nodded in unison and recounted what had happened. In short, they had been happily building a Snowman when Dog Egg and his group came to cause trouble, knocking down their Snowman and kicking it. Naturally, they didn't want that to happen, so they went to stop them, but as a result, Shitou was pushed down and hit his head on a stone.
Xie Youshun had just sent the Physician back and asked, "Did Shackles help them beat you?"
Shitou nodded and said, "Dad, they pushed me too and held me back so I couldn't stop Dog Egg from kicking my Snowman. Dad, they also said you and Mom were bad for not helping them pay for school."
Xie Youshun's face immediately darkened. He thought about how children understood nothing; it was just adults who always talked like that. Without needing to ask, he knew those words came from his good Third Brother and Sister-in-law. They hadn't helped him much before; now that his family was doing well, they wanted him to help them borrow money for their children's education—why should he? It seemed he hadn't been wrong to tell the Li Family not to come over after they rummaged through his things.
Wang Dashan suggested calling the village chief. Zhang Shuitao and Sister Zhu were clearly being unreasonable; they could only seek the village chief for justice since Dog Egg was his only grandson.
Sister Zhu became anxious upon hearing this. The village chief currently held Xie Youshun in high regard because of the bridge repairs; even if he protected his grandson, he would still handle things fairly. Their family could end up suffering as well. She quickly looked at Zhang Shuitao, thinking it would have to be him who stepped in.
Zhang Shuitao stood at the threshold, looking at Xie Youshun and said, "It's common for kids to fight; do you really need to involve my Father-in-law? Everyone knows my Father-in-law thinks highly of you because of the bridge repairs. Even if it's not our Dog Egg's fault, as Dog Egg's grandfather, he has to say Dog Egg is wrong. That's unfair to our Dog Egg. Xie Youshun, think carefully; if you insist on going through with this, I'll cry at your house every day until New Year's Eve."
Zhang Shuitao's eyes fixed intently on Xie Youshun.
Xiao Lihua frowned, wondering why Zhang Shuitao's gaze seemed so strange. It reminded her inexplicably of the look that Mistress had given her ex-husband when she came over with a big belly. She quickly shook off such absurd thoughts from her mind, but Zhang Shuitao's resentful expression made it hard not to think that way. She looked at Xie Youshun and found that her man’s expression hadn’t changed; his eyes remained angry and indifferent. She thought this was good; as long as her man was resolute, what did Zhang Shuitao’s gaze matter?
Xie Youshun said to Zhang Dashan, "Wang Erge, there's no need to call the village chief."
Zhang Shuitao's face showed joy, but Xie Youshun's next words twisted her otherwise pretty face.
Xie Youshun said, "Since we're discussing this with someone, we should go directly to them. If we're looking for the village chief because he might favor us, then we should find Li Long."
Li Long is Dog Egg's father, and the village chief Li Gao is Dog Egg's grandfather. Logically, they should be addressing the child's father. However, if they went to the village chief's house, even if they were looking for Li Long, the village chief would know about it. Would he ignore it? Of course not. That's why Zhang Shuitao's expression turned ugly; she thought Xie Youshun was doing this on purpose!
Xiao Lihua observed the way Zhang Shuitao looked at Xie Youshun and realized her earlier thoughts were indeed correct. There seemed to be something off between this woman and her man; specifically, this woman still cared, while Xie Youshun had long moved on. Xiao Lihua felt a surge of anger thinking about that Mistress from her past life. However, she ultimately divorced because her ex-husband was not worth holding onto. Now, Xie Youshun showed no signs of attachment to Zhang Shuitao, so she needed to protect her own happy little family; her son's father was not someone anyone could manipulate!
Xie Youshun carried the stone and went to the village chief's house. Li Long listened as his son denied pushing the stone, and Big Tiger also testified that the stone fell on its own. Naturally, he believed his son. In the end, the village chief suggested calling Shackles.
Xie Youhe and the Li Family arrived with their two sons, and Shackles also claimed that the stone fell by itself.
Xie Youshun glanced at Third Brother and Sister-in-law; he trusted his son and Xiao Yue not to lie, while Shackles' shifty eyes made it clear they were lying. He knew Third Brother and Sister-in-law must have taught them this.
Yang Cao couldn't hold back any longer and said from the side, "Our Xiao Yue wouldn't lie."
Zhang Shuitao glared at her and replied, "Our Iron Egg wouldn't lie either! This girl is just outgoing; she usually doesn't get along with her brother and gets angry when he receives more attention. She's always running around outside; if she marries in the future, what will happen? Won't she ruin our Li Family?"
Yang Cao angrily cursed at Zhang Shuitao but was stopped by the Village Chief's Daughter-in-Law.
The village chief said this matter was unclear but confirmed that the Snowman was broken by Dog Egg and his friends. He instructed Dog Egg and his friends to build two more as an apology.
Dog Egg happily agreed; building a Snowman was just playing around, which he enjoyed. Big Tiger also cast a proud glance at Stone and Copper Coin.
Xiao Yue said, "I didn't lie. The stone was pushed by Dog Egg, and there were others..."
"What are you talking about, you little girl? Go back inside," Village Chief's Daughter-in-Law said unhappily. She cared for her grandson and wondered why her granddaughter was siding with outsiders instead of her brother. She glanced at Yang Cao, thinking it must be her influence.
Yang Cao felt displeased and thought her daughter was speaking the truth. Why was she glaring at her? She said to Xiao Yue, "Xiao Yue, finish what you were saying."
Xiao Yue shouted, "There were others who saw it. Liuzi and his sister both saw it."
Xiao Lihua suggested, "Let's find someone who won't scare them to ask. They will definitely tell the truth."
Zhang Lianxiang said, "I'll go ask; they won't be afraid of me." Then she called Village Chief's Daughter-in-Law and Yang Cao to join her, saying it would prevent her from teaching the children to lie.
In the end, it was proven that Xiao Yue was telling the truth. Both Dog Egg and Big Tiger hung their heads in shame, and Dog Egg shot a resentful glare at Xiao Yue.
The village chief was very angry and punished Dog Egg by not allowing him to go out and play for a month. He scolded him harshly and instructed Sister Zhu to properly discipline Big Tiger. After discussing it, they decided to gather two hundred coins for Xie Youshun as compensation for the stone incident, excluding medical expenses. This matter was finally settled.
Snow continued to fall, and Xiao Lihua held onto a piece of wood while watching Xie Youshun, who was holding the stone, thinking about the situation with Zhang Shuitao.
The author wants to say: I originally intended to remove the plot involving Zhang Shuitao, but I ended up writing it because the more I wrote about this person, the less I liked her. I want to give her a bad ending. Everyone should firmly believe that the male lead is a good man.
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