Chapter 118: The Incident of Li Daya’s Divorce (Part 1)  

On the third day of the Lunar New Year, Li Daya returned home in the morning.  

Before she left, Mother Li held her hand and repeatedly reminded her of various details. Li Daya still felt uneasy. Her gaze, filled with anticipation, turned to Shen Yiyi, clearly seeing him as her pillar of support, hoping he would offer her some words of encouragement.  

Everything that needed to be said had already been made clear the previous night. After some thought, Shen Yiyi simply said: “As long as you catch them in the act, this matter will be settled. The rest can be left to Father and the others to handle…”  

Pausing for a moment, Shen Yiyi finally added: “Elder Sister, you must be strong and ruthless. Your maternal family will always be your strongest support!”  

“Mm!” Li Daya was so moved by his words that she almost burst into tears. However, she forced back the moisture in her eyes, clenched her fists tightly, and her gaze filled with hatred. “They have humiliated and wronged me—I will make them pay for it!”  

Shen Yiyi had thought that, given Li Daya’s personality, it would take a long time for her to change. He had not expected her fighting spirit to be awakened so quickly.  

This was good. At the very least, there was no need to worry about her softening at the last moment.  

With that, Li Daya set off. Li Chen rode his bicycle and took her to the entrance of the village.  

Shen Yiyi had given her a coat yesterday when she went to the hospital. He wanted her to wear it back, but she refused. She knew that if she wore it home, her mother-in-law would undoubtedly snatch it away upon seeing such a fine coat.  

Although she could take it back after the divorce, she did not want to sully Shen Yiyi’s clothing.  

When she arrived at the Chen family’s house, they had already finished lunch. Mother Chen was washing the dishes. The moment she saw Li Daya return, she immediately threw down the rag, rushed forward, grabbed her by the ear, and cursed loudly:  

“You little wretched thing! How dare you stay out all night! Did you sneak off to fool around with some man? Huh? You shameless tramp! Let me beat you to death!”  

As she spoke, she reached for the stick in the corner.  

For more than ten years, these filthy insults had been hurled at her daily. Li Daya had thought she had grown numb to them. But at this moment, she realized—she had not.  

She was utterly disgusted and wanted to fight back. But she knew—it was not yet the right time.

Li Daya could only dodge Mother Chen’s stick while pleading: “Mother, Mother, I didn’t fool around last night. I was at my maternal home.”  

“So you went back to your maternal home, huh? No wonder a few eggs are missing from my cupboard! So, you stole them and took them back to your family! Look at you! You’re already married into the Chen family—you are our daughter-in-law now, not a daughter of the Li family! And yet you dare to betray us? Just wait till I beat you to death!”  

In the past, when Li Daya was beaten, she never dared to dodge. Avoiding it would only make Mother Chen more ruthless. But this time—she dodged.  

Mother Chen already had a guilty conscience, and now, seeing Li Daya behaving so unusually, she felt a sudden pang of unease. Had her maternal family told her something?  

A bad premonition crept into her heart. She chased after Li Daya, striking at her while speaking in an indifferent tone. “Stop right there! If you keep running, I’ll send you back to the Li family! Hah! Don’t think life will be any better if you go back! All your brothers are married now. Even if your parents can tolerate you, are you sure your sisters-in-law will? Pah! You might not even be able to step through their door! Or do you think you’ll find another man to take you in? A hen that can’t lay eggs like you—who would want you? Only our Chen family was willing to take you in, and yet you still run? Stop right there!”  

In the past, when Li Daya was beaten to the brink, she had thought of escaping. But every time, her mother-in-law’s words would deter her, making her believe she had nowhere to go. If she got divorced, she would only be waiting for death. So, she endured it again and again, resigning herself to a life of suffering.  

But now, Shen Yiyi’s words from last night echoed in her ears—  

“Women have become a crucial force in society. We have the same ability as men to earn a living through our own labor. We can support ourselves just like men do!”  

She could support herself. She could get divorced!  

And if things truly didn’t work out, she still had her father to back her up!  

A flash of determination appeared in Li Daya’s eyes. Right now, the only way to escape Mother Chen’s beating was to submit. She stopped running, burst into tears, and wailed loudly: “Mother, I’m sorry! I was wrong! I won’t do it again! From now on, the Chen family is my only home! Please don’t hit me, wuwu~”  

Seeing her seemingly subdued, Mother Chen felt pleased with herself. Just as she was about to strike her a few more times to reinforce her dominance and make sure she wouldn’t dare to run again, a voice rang out from next door.  

“Aunt Chen, it’s the New Year, and you’re beating your daughter-in-law again? How many times have we told you to learn your lesson? Have you already forgotten how your son Jianjun was beaten half to death by Daya’s younger brother last time?”

Mother Chen froze for a moment and turned her head. She saw the village chief’s wife leaning over the courtyard wall, her face filled with anger.  

The last time Li Chen came and discovered that Li Daya was being abused, he was so enraged that he beat Chen Jianjun half to death. It was only after the village chief’s family intervened and promised Li Chen that they would keep an eye on the Chen family—ensuring they wouldn’t harm Li Daya again—that Li Chen finally let it go.  

Mother Chen was aggressive, but she knew better than to be too brazen in front of the village chief’s wife. She forced an awkward smile and said: “Sister-in-law, I was just trying to scare her a little. You don’t know how troublesome this little wretch is! Yesterday, she stole my eggs and took them back to her maternal home. She didn’t come back all night—who knows if she was out fooling around with some man? I had to teach her a lesson so she wouldn’t make any more mistakes.”  

The village chief’s wife knew exactly what kind of person Mother Chen was.  

But after all, this was a family matter, and she couldn’t interfere too much. She simply said: “That’s enough. Her younger brother is a ruthless man. If he finds out you’ve beaten his sister again, your Jianjun can forget about keeping his life.”  

At the mention of Li Chen’s ruthless beating, Mother Chen shuddered. She immediately threw the stick aside and forced a laugh. “I know, I know, haha.”  

Then, she spat in Li Daya’s direction. “Why are you still standing there? Go wash the dishes! What bad luck for our family to have married in such a jinx like you.”  

With that, she turned and went inside.  

Li Daya let out a silent breath of relief and gave the village chief’s wife a grateful smile.  

The village chief’s wife pitied her but could do nothing more. She simply offered some words of comfort. “Go wash the dishes. Don’t think too much about it.”  

Li Daya’s gaze flickered slightly, and she smiled. “Thank you, Auntie.”  

Once the village chief’s wife left, Li Daya took a deep breath. She could not wait any longer—she would bring ruin to the Chen family today!  

But on the surface, she maintained the appearance of a timid and obedient daughter-in-law. She quietly washed the dishes and then returned to the house, where her husband, Chen Jianjun, was snoring soundly in bed.  

Instead of entering the room, she took the initiative to sweep the floor.  

Mother Chen saw this and scolded her: “Sweeping the floor on New Year’s? Are you trying to sweep away all our luck?”  

Li Daya obediently put down the broom. Mother Chen then ordered her: “Go heat up some water for me to soak my feet.”

Li Daya went without protest.  

That entire day, no matter what Mother Chen told her to do, she did it obediently.  

Finally, night fell. In the past, as soon as it got dark, Chen Jianjun would slip away to visit Widow Zhang in the village.  

But for some reason, tonight, he showed no sign of leaving.  

Li Daya grew anxious. Seeing that Chen Jianjun was about to fall asleep, she gritted her teeth and endured her disgust as she moved closer to him.  

Chen Jianjun reacted immediately, grabbing her and trying to take things further.  

Suddenly, Li Daya stopped him and said she needed to go to the latrine. When she returned, she wore a troubled expression. “I… I just got my period.”  

Chen Jianjun, already burning with desire, exploded in frustration. “Why now, of all times?!”  

In truth, Li Daya had already had her period two days ago. But since Chen Jianjun had been busy fooling around with Widow Zhang, he hadn’t touched her in a long time and had no idea.  

“I don’t know either.” Li Daya said, looking flustered. “It just came all of a sudden.”  

“Damn bad luck.” Chen Jianjun cursed, pulling on his clothes. Annoyed that she was in his way, he even gave her a shove before hurriedly running out.  

He was going to find Widow Zhang!  

About ten minutes after Chen Jianjun left, Li Daya also slipped out.  

To avoid waking Father Chen and Mother Chen, she moved cautiously and silently made her way toward Widow Zhang’s house.  

Widow Zhang’s late husband had been a soldier. After they got married, they moved out on their own. But in the second year of their marriage, he died in service, leaving her with an unborn child.  

Her mother-in-law believed she brought bad luck, so after the child was born, they took the baby back to the family’s ancestral home to raise it, refusing to let her keep the child.  

As a result, Widow Zhang lived alone, her house standing about ten meters away from the Zhang family’s ancestral home.

Li Daya stood in front of the Zhang family’s ancestral home, clenching her fists. She took several deep breaths, forcing herself not to waver. Only then did she knock on the door.  

“Who is it?” The old Zhang matriarch yawned as she came to open the door. Upon seeing Li Daya, a flicker of impatience crossed her eyes. “If you’ve got something to say, say it quickly!”  

“Grandmother Zhang, I just saw a man go into Sister-in-law Zhang’s house.” Li Daya said, her fists clenched tightly as she forced out the words.  

“What—”  

“Shh! Don’t let them hear.” Li Daya quickly interrupted, stopping the old woman from raising her voice.  

Hearing this, the Zhang matriarch immediately fell silent. Her sharp, calculating eyes darted toward the small house not far away. Without hesitation, she strode forward, stepping over the low fence with surprising agility.  

At the same time, the old Zhang patriarch and their youngest son, along with his wife, also came outside. The elder couple headed for the front door, while the younger couple moved toward the window.  

There was no escape.  

The Zhang matriarch reached the door and kicked it hard, her anger finally breaking free. “You shameless little wench! You still carry the Zhang family’s name, yet you dare to sneak around with some filthy man? Get out here this instant—”  

Bang!  

Before she could finish speaking, the door burst open—it turned out Chen Jianjun had been in such a hurry that he hadn’t shut it properly.  

Despite the darkness, the Zhang matriarch’s sharp eyes immediately caught sight of the tangled figures inside the room.  

Fury erupted within her. Without another word, she stormed in, grabbing at the people inside while shouting curses.  

The two inside had initially tried to escape, but the Zhang patriarch stood guard at the door. He swung his stick, striking down hard. Meanwhile, the youngest Zhang son and his wife rushed in from the window, grabbing hold of Chen Jianjun and raining blows upon him.