Chapter 15

Lin Xi didn’t have much of a good reputation in the village to begin with, and now that she was holding a knife, no one dared to step forward to stop her.

Some people went home to check if anything of theirs had been stolen, while others stayed behind to watch the commotion—of course, most chose to watch.

By the time Tian Yufen and Gu Yang rushed back, they pushed through the crowd just in time to see Lin Xi kick Gou Dong to the ground, point a kitchen knife at his forehead, and curse:

“You thief! In broad daylight you dare climb over my courtyard wall to steal? Today I’m going to chop off your hand and send you to prison!”

Tian Yufen had already suspected from the shouting that it might be her own daughter-in-law, which was why she had hurried back. Now that she saw it for herself, she was startled and came to Lin Xi’s side, calling:

“Xiao Xi, what on earth is going on? Put that knife away—what if you hurt someone? It’s too dangerous.”

“Mom, while you were out, he climbed our courtyard wall to steal something. Luckily I was inside the house. I heard noises in the yard, grabbed the kitchen knife, and caught him red-handed.”

“Xiao Xi, put the knife away first, this is too dangerous.”

When Gou Dong saw that Lin Xi’s hand was being held by Tian Yufen, he tried to sit up, but Lin Xi said coldly:

“Move again, and even if I do cut you, it’ll be for catching a thief.”

As she spoke, she pulled her hand free from Tian Yufen, swung the knife again, and scared Gou Dong into stillness. He knew this crazy woman wasn’t bluffing—just moments ago, the knife had passed close to him several times, and she had truly meant to cut him.

At this point Gou Dong regretted everything, wishing he could slap himself a few times. Why on earth had he been stupid enough to provoke this she-devil? She might look delicate and frail, but she was insane!

Seeing that he’d quieted down, Lin Xi addressed the onlookers:

“Could someone please go find the village chief for me? I’m going to the town to report to the police—this man attempted burglary.”

Hearing the word “police,” Gou Dong panicked:

“You’re talking nonsense! I didn’t steal anything!”

“Then why did you climb over my courtyard wall?”

“I… I… that was…

Obviously, you invited me in! You said since Oldest Gu hasn’t been home for months, you were lonely and wanted me to keep you company!”

Taking advantage of the crowd, he decided to bite back—this damned woman had humiliated him, so he wasn’t going to let her off easy.

For a woman, reputation was everything. If people said she was unfaithful, she’d spend the rest of her life being gossiped about, which was worse than death. And the more you tried to explain such things, the worse they sounded. This was the price of crossing him!

But to his surprise, Lin Xi didn’t show any panic. Instead, she gave a cold laugh:

“Did you leave your brain behind somewhere? Who would believe that nonsense?

First of all, I don’t even know you, so when exactly would I have invited you in? Second, with that ugly mug of yours, you’re not even worth a single hair on my husband Qingyan’s head—why would I be interested in you?”

Her sharp words made the villagers who had harbored some suspicion suddenly think it through. Someone muttered:

“Yeah, if it was really the Qingyan’s wife inviting him, why would she be chasing him with a knife? And she’s never even met him before.”

“Forget Qingyan’s wife, I don’t even know when this kid came back.”

“He got back yesterday afternoon—I saw him.”

“I thought he might have learned some manners while he was away. Guess not—first day back and already up to this.”

“…”

Hearing the villagers’ chatter, Gou Dong wanted to jump up and curse them, but with the knife still so close to his forehead, he didn’t dare move.

“Xiao Xi, listen to me, give me the knife,” Tian Yufen urged.

She was truly afraid Lin Xi might actually stab Gou Dong. A few women who were on good terms with her also tried to help persuade:

“Qingyan’s wife, give the knife to your mom. A woman chasing someone with a knife—if that spreads, it won’t sound good.”

“Don’t be impulsive, Qingyan’s wife. We’re all neighbors here—talk it out.”

“Qingyan’s wife…”

The village chief had already heard about the matter earlier, but since Gou Dong had once caused chaos at his home and he’d been glad to get rid of him, he didn’t want to get involved.

But when he heard that Lin Xi was the one chasing Gou Dong with a knife, he finally strolled over slowly.

Lin Xi’s reputation in the village hadn’t been good before, but the other day he’d met her and noticed she seemed to have changed. Tian Yufen had also told him she’d turned over a new leaf.

If this had been the old Lin Xi, he would’ve rushed over—after all, if she really did stab someone, he’d be dragged into it.

But the current Lin Xi? He felt she knew her limits. Don’t ask why—just a gut feeling.

While the crowd continued persuading her to put away the knife, a shrill voice suddenly cut through as a woman pushed her way forward:

“What do you think you’re doing, pointing a knife at my son? Are you trying to kill someone in broad daylight?!”

She shouted at Lin Xi while trying to help Gou Dong up, even reaching to grab the knife from Lin Xi’s hand.

The village chief arrived then, calling loudly from outside the crowd:

“What are you all doing standing around here? You finished all your work in the fields already?”

When they saw him, the villagers made way. He walked in with his hands behind his back and said to Lin Xi:

“Qingyan’s wife, put the knife away and tell me what happened.”

Only then did Lin Xi hand the knife to Tian Yufen, who quickly passed it to their next-door sister-in-law:

“Sis, could you take this back for me and check in on Xingxing and Yangyang?”

Little Gu Yang had already been sent home by his grandma to watch over his little sister, and the two children were now sitting side by side on the doorstep waiting.

When Gou Dong’s mother saw the village chief arrive, she immediately started wailing:

“Village chief, you have to stand up for my Dongzi! The Gu family’s daughter-in-law tried to kill my son! If he hadn’t run fast enough, she’d have chopped him up by now!”

She’d already guessed the reason for this whole mess when she heard her son had been chased with a knife—he’d been asking about the Gu family’s daughter-in-law both last night and this morning.

She also knew about her son’s past affairs with other men’s wives, but so what? She always believed it was those shameless women who seduced him—her son was good-looking, young, and the one being taken advantage of.

She just hadn’t expected such a big scene this time—that the Gu family’s daughter-in-law would actually dare to chase her son with a knife.

With the knife now taken away and his own mother present, Gou Dong straightened his back and pointed at Lin Xi:

“It was her! She told me to go to her house to find her. I’ve seen plenty in the world—why would I ever steal her pathetic junk?”

Looking at the mother and son acting like the same brand of shameless rogue, Lin Xi’s fists itched. Where was her knife? She regretted giving it to her mother-in-law earlier—she would’ve loved to give this pair a slit from the corner of their mouths to their ears!