Chapter 18: Sister-in-law Was Bullied by Second Aunt  

The outcome was far from what those people had expected, leaving them utterly disappointed.  

Shen Jiaojiao, looking so delicate, turned out to be quite capable when it came to farm work.  

“I never thought Educated Youth Shen actually knew how to do farm work!”  

“You’re overthinking it. The weeds in the field weren’t cut by Shen Jiaojiao at all; it was all Xu Meili. I saw it with my own eyes.  

She didn’t do any work herself. She just sat under the tree enjoying the shade, ordering Xu Meili around.  

Unbelievable! She hasn’t even married into the family yet, and she’s already showing her future sister-in-law such an attitude. What will happen after she does? Liu Xiaolan is truly unlucky to have such a daughter-in-law.”  

Xu Mo’s Second Aunt, Zhang Xiufang, never missed a chance to stir up trouble.  

Earlier that day, she had been angered by the main household and had originally wanted her husband to go teach Liu Xiaolan a lesson.  

But her husband was a coward who didn’t even dare to step into the main house’s doorway.  

This infuriated her to no end.  

Even now, she was still seething with anger.  

And since Shen Jiaojiao was about to become Liu Xiaolan’s daughter-in-law, in Zhang Xiufang’s eyes, she was already an enemy.  

Besides, bullying a young girl like Shen Jiaojiao was much easier than dealing with that shrew, Liu Xiaolan.  

“You’re lying! My sister-in-law never ordered me to work! She even pulled out a lot of weeds herself. My sister-in-law is very capable!”  

Xu Meili shouted fiercely at Zhang Xiufang.  

“You stupid child, what do you know? She was obviously making you do all the work. She’s just trying to intimidate you before she even gets married, so you’ll be her servant in the future.”  

“That’s not true! You’re a bad person, a lazy donkey! You love badmouthing others. My mother said that everything you say is just nonsense—disgusting and foul!”  

“Oh? I’m your Second Aunt! You little brat, how dare you insult me? Let’s see if I don’t smack your backside swollen!”  

Hmph, after all, disciplining her own family was nobody else’s business.  

Zhang Xiufang raised her hand, ready to strike.  

Shen Jiaojiao reacted swiftly, swinging a sickle horizontally with the blade intentionally facing upward.  

In an instant, Zhang Xiufang’s hand came down directly onto the sharp edge of the sickle.  

Blood immediately oozed from her palm.  

“Aiyo… aiyo… my hand! Oh my, I’m bleeding!”  

Zhang Xiufang yanked her hand back, staring in horror at the jagged wound across her palm.

She immediately fell to the ground, rolling around and making a scene.  

“Murder! Murder! Shen Jiaojiao chopped off my hand! I won’t be able to earn work points anymore…!”  

Everyone in Yonggan Village knew that Zhang Xiufang was lazy, greedy, and always looking to take advantage of others.  

Once she latched onto someone, she would not let go until she squeezed every last bit out of them.  

Now that Shen Jiaojiao had provoked her, there was no way she would back down without some compensation.  

“Captain, you saw everything! I was just disciplining my own family, and yet Shen Jiaojiao had to meddle! She even injured my hand! Captain, you have to get justice for me!”  

She then viciously pointed at Shen Jiaojiao.  

“Shen Jiaojiao, if you don’t compensate me with a hundred yuan today, I’ll cling to you for life! I’ll eat your food, drink your water, and use your things until you’re sick of me!”  

After all, these city folks had money.  

If she demanded more, Shen Jiaojiao could certainly afford it.  

Shen Jiaojiao barely held back an eye-roll.  

Zhang Xiufang’s hand had only been scratched by the serrated sickle. Though it bled, the wound was shallow.  

Yet, she made such a fuss, screaming and wailing—it was clear she was just trying to extort her.  

Shen Jiaojiao had no patience for such nonsense.  

“Captain, you saw it too. She was the one who tried to hit Meili first. I only stepped in to protect Meili.”  

“She was the one who threw herself onto my sickle. What does that have to do with me?”  

“Moreover, she just falsely accused me, damaging my reputation. Captain, how do you think this should be handled? If you can’t resolve it, I’ll go to the commune and report it to the leadership. If that doesn’t work, I’ll report it to Public Security.”  

“You wretched girl! You’ve even learned to twist things around now, huh? Me disciplining my own family—what does that have to do with you? It’s only natural for elders to teach the younger ones a lesson! You’re not even married into the family yet, and you already dare meddle in our household matters. Do you need to be taught a lesson too?”  

Zhang Xiufang refused to back down.  

“Well said. In that case, I’ll start by teaching you, you lazy donkey, a lesson today!”  

A voice rang out from the crowd.  

Liu Xiaolan and Xu Mo had arrived, with Xu Meili by Xu Mo’s side.  

Xu Meili was panting heavily from running.  

The moment trouble broke out, she had rushed off to find her mother.  

Xu Meili knew that in this village, only her mother could put Second Aunt in her place.  

“Mother, hurry! Sister-in-law is being bullied by Second Aunt!”

Liu Xiaolan was always the last to finish work.  

She took on heavy tasks, working tirelessly every day—sometimes even outworking a strong man.  

On average, she earned twelve work points a day.  

When she heard that Shen Jiaojiao was being bullied, she immediately grabbed her hoe and ran.  

“Let’s go! I have to teach that old hag a lesson today!”  

At the same time, Xu Mo also approached from the other side.  

He had naturally heard what his Fourth Sister had said.  

His expression darkened.  

“Mother, I’m coming too.”  

Without hesitation, he followed closely behind Liu Xiaolan, hurrying toward the soybean field.  

By the time they arrived, a crowd had already gathered.  

Zhang Xiufang’s loud, obnoxious voice could still be heard.  

Liu Xiaolan instantly saw red.  

She stormed over to Zhang Xiufang, grabbed her by the collar, and slapped her across the face several times.  

Pa! Pa! Pa!  

“Since you claim that it’s only natural for the elders to discipline the younger ones, and I’m your sister-in-law, then I’ll give you a proper lesson today! I already wanted to slap you at noon, but I let it slide. Now you dare provoke my Jiaojiao? Do you think my family has no men to stand up for us?”  

“Aiyo! Liu Xiaolan is hitting people again! Captain, hurry up and take this crazy woman away!”  

Zhang Xiufang howled in pain, but she had no ability to fight back.  

All she could do was wail and cry.  

The Captain was so angry that he felt like he was about to have a heart attack.  

One of these days, the village women were going to be the death of him.

“Stop! No more hitting! If you keep this up, I’ll send you all to Public Security!”  

That was the only way the Captain could intimidate these unruly women.  

Shen Jiaojiao quickly pulled Liu Xiaolan back.  

It wasn’t worth getting involved with Public Security over someone like Zhang Xiufang.  

Meanwhile, Zhang Xiufang kept howling, demanding compensation—either money or goods—refusing to let the matter drop.  

Liu Xiaolan still wanted to slap her again, but under the Captain’s threat of deducting work points and reporting them to Public Security, she forced herself to suppress her anger.  

With a dark expression, the Captain scolded everyone present.  

“You finish work and don’t head straight home? Instead, you gather here to laugh at a young girl? Clearly, you’re not tired enough!”  

“Tomorrow, every single one of you here must do an extra three work points’ worth of labor. Otherwise, you won’t be allowed to leave work!”  

Then, he turned to Zhang Xiufang and shouted, “Stop screaming! You’re driving me mad!”  

Zhang Xiufang had her mouth open, mid-wail, but at his command, she immediately fell silent.  

Just then, a bird flew overhead.  

It lifted its tail.  

With a plop, a dropping fell.  

By sheer misfortune, it landed right in Zhang Xiufang’s open mouth.  

“Urgh—!”  

The moment she tasted it, Zhang Xiufang gagged violently and spat it out.  

The Captain clutched his forehead, feeling an even bigger headache coming on.  

Yet, he couldn’t help but think—perhaps she deserved it.  

Redirecting his frustration, he turned on Liu Xiaolan, criticizing her for being too rough and for resorting to violence.  

With that, the matter was settled.