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Ruyi hated her Third Brother and Sister-in-law intensely, thinking they were heartless. Despite her own miserable state, they still chose to add insult to injury. They had benefited greatly from her in the past, and since they were so unkind, she wouldn't feel guilty about being ungrateful.
The Li Family was caught off guard at home when disaster struck. She left everything to her husband to handle, as Ruyi was his blood-related sister. It would be different if he revealed Ruyi's whereabouts; others might say Xie Youtai was betraying family ties, but they would label her as a cruel and heartless sister-in-law. She didn't want her reputation to worsen. Ever since Xiao Lihua's reputation improved, she realized how important a good name was. However, her decision to stay home quietly allowed Ruyi to trap her inside.
When Ruyi opened the door to the Li Family, a stone struck her head, causing it to bleed. Before she could scream, Ruyi hit her several more times, knocking her unconscious.
After beating the Li Family, Ruyi intended to run back inside but heard voices next door and feared being discovered. Spitting on the Li Family's face in anger, she turned and fled.
The Li Family only temporarily lost consciousness; once Ruyi left, she woke up, enduring the pain from her head injury as she crawled out the front door, just in time to encounter someone coming from next door.
When Xie Youshun and Xie Youtai arrived, they saw the Li Family being helped up. Upon learning that it was Ruyi who had attacked them, both frowned. They thought Ruyi had truly gone mad; she showed no mercy even when killing.
"Ruyi must have run toward the mountain; Shackles is over there. Don't let her encounter..." The Li Family said weakly. She regretted it deeply—why did she provoke Ruyi, a murderer? Ruyi had dared to attack Stone and Wood before! She had even taken pleasure in Ruyi's earlier failures; now it was her turn to face retribution.
Xie Youtai and Xie Youshun exchanged glances and immediately asked their neighbors to look after the Li Family while they informed the village chief about the incident. Then they ran toward the mountain together.
They were fortunate; it was also unfortunate for Ruyi that they managed to catch up with her.
As a woman, Ruyi wasn't fast to begin with. Having been injured previously and walking a lot these days had caused blisters on her feet that hadn't healed yet. Looking at the distant mountains, she thought about dying there; after all, there were wild beasts in those mountains. Even if she ran away, where could she go? She had forgotten to take her bundle when leaving and now had no money or even a change of clothes!
Just as despair set in for Ruyi, she encountered Shackles playing nearby. Her anger surged toward the two nephews as she grabbed a large tree branch and began swinging it at them. The two children screamed and ran away; Shuanzi was faster, so Ruyi chased after Lock instead.
Shuanzi threw stones at Ruyi while she retaliated against him. Lock also found a branch to hit Ruyi with, but they were still young and could only run away while crying.
Hearing the children's cries, Xie Youtai and Xie Youshun rushed over. Seeing the scene unfold, they disregarded everything else and captured Ruyi.
"Second Brother! Fourth Brother! Let me go! Please! I'm your sister!" Ruyi had been blinded by rage earlier but now realized she needed to escape as Xie Youshun held her arm tightly in pain.
"Do you still deserve to be our sister? Look at what you've done!" Xie Youtai glared at Ruyi as he saw blood on his nephews' faces from where she had hit them. "You wanted to harm Stone and Wood before; now you want to harm Shackles! You even injured your Sister-in-law severely, leaving our mother bedridden and making our father age overnight! You've brought shame upon our family! If you were my sister, would you think of the Xie Family? You are not my sister; you are a curse upon us!"
Shuanzi cried out, "Second Uncle! What happened to my mother? I want my mother!"
Lock cried even louder: "Aunt is bad! She said she would kill us! Aunt is bad! Second Uncle! Fourth Uncle! Don't let Aunt go! I'm scared!"
Xie Youtai comforted them: "Don't be afraid; your Fourth Uncle has caught her and won't let her go! Your mother is fine; come on now."
Hearing this made Ruyi panic even more; she struggled wildly against Xie Youshun's grip until he struck the back of her neck hard enough to knock her out cold.
Li Xing ran over with a group of men. Seeing that they were unharmed, he felt relieved. However, when he noticed the hatred gleaming in Ruyi's eyes, he couldn't help but feel sorrow for his sister, Li Jinfeng, who had died. Their parents were heartbroken, and so was he. Capturing Ruyi to avenge his sister was his wish, and now it had finally come true.
Xie Youshun watched Li Xing's fury and sighed inwardly. Even though he had decided to hand Ruyi over to the government, he still felt uneasy. No matter how bad Ruyi was, she was still his sister. Therefore, he understood Li Xing's pain and said to him, "Ruyi is here; you can take her to the county office."
Li Xing bowed deeply to Xie Youshun and his brother. He knew that if they let Ruyi go and then tried to capture her again, it would be a hassle. But they hadn't done that; he wanted to thank them. Moreover, the feud between their families could finally come to an end without harming their brotherly bond.
Xie Youshun and Xie Youtai returned with shackles just as Zhao Physician was treating the Li family’s injuries. He also took a look at the two children and found that although they had several wounds on their faces and bodies, none were too serious. However, if the medicine wasn't applied properly on their faces, there might be some minor scars left.
The Li family naturally couldn't allow their son to be disfigured and quickly insisted on using good medicine. As a result, their silver flowed out like water, causing them great distress as they realized it was their own doing.
Xie Youhe went to bring Captain Wang and several constables back only to learn that Ruyi had been captured. His wife and two sons had nearly lost their lives, leaving him stunned.
Captain Wang led the men as they took Ruyi away. The villagers shouted curses at the cart she was in. They hadn't seen someone like her in their village for many years; now that this feared person had finally been captured, they hoped she would never return—preferably dead.
Xie Shengcai stayed close to the Wang clan, who already knew about Ruyi's situation. She wasn't deaf; she had known from Fang Family's conversation that Ruyi had escaped. With tears in her eyes, she cried when Xie Youkang called her out. When Xie Shengcai returned looking dazed, she knew for sure that Ruyi had been captured and let out a mournful whimper.
Xie Youkang and Fang Family were aware of Ruyi's actions and were relieved they had acted correctly; if they had kept this wolf around, it would have surely cost them their lives.
Xie Youhe initially thought about claiming a reward but ended up with his wife and two sons injured. The shackles needed proper medicine applied; the head of the Li family was severely injured and required good medicine as well. All three needed nourishment to recover. In an ordinary household, one injury could lead to financial strain; with three injuries in theirs, their savings were dwindling rapidly.
The villagers discussed Ruyi and naturally talked about the Xie family as well. They cared about the elders in the old house because Xie Shengcai was an elder. Xie Youkang and Fang Family behaved well enough not to attract criticism; Xie Youtai and Xie Youshun were even less likely to be criticized since they were wealthy and controlled the villagers' means of making money. Thus, all the blame fell on Xie Youhe's family. Previously, they thought they were doing a good deed by ridding the village of harm while also currying favor with Xie Youshun’s family. Now the villagers were frightened again; instead of gratitude, they harbored resentment towards him. Meanwhile, since Xie Youshun saved Shackles, they felt indebted to him instead.
Xie Youhe's family was truly suffering.
Both Xie Youhe and Li family hated Ruyi but began to regret their greed after this incident; it prompted some self-reflection.
Li family lay on the kang with a severe headache when suddenly recalled how Ruyi had cursed them during her attack, claiming they wanted to harm her. How did she know they had such thoughts? After all, Ruyi had been at home all along—someone must have told her!
It was Fang Family! Li family immediately suspected Fang Family since it was them who informed her about Ruyi being in the old house and mentioned the reward money. Over the years, Fang Family had taken advantage of her repeatedly; now she realized she had been used by them once again. This realization provided an outlet for her pent-up anger as she informed Xie Youhe to confront Fang Family for retribution. If Fang Family didn't provide silver for treating them three women’s injuries, there would be trouble for Xie Youkang and his wife as well.
Xie Youhe naturally went; he was furious too.
Xie Youkang and Fang Family refused to acknowledge this issue because admitting it would mean accepting fault and having to pay.
Xie Youhe didn't hold back either; he made sure everyone in the village knew about it. The brothers fell into chaos over this matter while Xie Shengcai trembled with anger. Wang Clan’s health worsened again as Zhao Physician was called back for another costly visit.
Xie Youtai, Xie Youshun, and Auspicious all contributed money while scolding both Xie Youkang and Xie Youhe’s families.
Although Xie Youkang and Xie Youhe's families stopped arguing, they no longer spoke when they met each other, leaving the villagers entertained by the spectacle.
The Wang Clan looked down on several of their sons because of Ruyi's matter and were too lazy to see their daughters-in-law, so they let Auspicious serve them. Auspicious was quite willing; serving Parents not only meant good food and drink but also some benefits from them, making her reluctant to go home.
Ruyi's crime was too severe, and after she confessed and signed her statement, she was sentenced to immediate execution. Her family did not visit her; they only had the jailer provide her with a lavish farewell meal.
Along with Ruyi, Zhang Shuitao was also executed. She faced execution later in the season, and when the day came, the two could keep each other company. Once, one had been the most sought-after daughter-in-law in the Village, while the other was the most praised girl; now they faced the same fate, which was quite lamentable.
Xiao Lihua learned of their deaths and sighed softly, feeling complicated emotions. However, she felt relieved; both of them posed a significant threat to her life. She wasn't afraid but still worried about her two sons—no one could harm them.
"Mom, I want to eat braised pork!" Little Wood looked up eagerly at his mother and tugged at her clothes to bring her back to reality.
"Alright, I'll make braised pork for Little Wood!" Xiao Lihua stopped thinking about those unpleasant people and gently looked at her youngest son, agreeing to his request.
"Mom, I want sweet and sour fish! I'll go catch fish with my brother!" Little Stone shouted loudly.
"Let your father take you," Xiao Lihua said, not trusting the two children to go by the river alone.
When Xie Youshun returned, he saw a warm scene between his wife and two sons. Listening to their conversation, he called out to them loudly, saying he would take them fishing. The two little ones immediately jumped with joy and ran over to grab their fishing gear while waving goodbye to Xiao Lihua.
Xiao Lihua watched the three of them happily leave and smiled, thinking that life might finally be a bit calmer. She perked up and began washing the meat to prepare braised pork for her sons.
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