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“You foul woman, what are you saying? Who are you calling a good-for-nothing?!” the eldest son of the Jiang family , enraged, pointed at Wan Chunmei as if ready to strike.
Old Tan quickly stepped in front of Wan Chunmei, protecting her. “I’m calling you a coward, the kind who hits women!”
“You’re the coward!” the eldest son of the Jiang family shouted angrily and charged toward them.
It seemed as though luck was not on his side. As he took a step forward, he accidentally stepped into a puddle of water on the ground and slipped violently, falling backward.
Unfortunately, right behind him was a pile of fresh cow manure from an old cow at the village head’s place.
the eldest son of the Jiang family once smooth and fair face plunged straight into the pile of manure.
“Ah! My son!” Old Lady Jiang rushed forward, pulling the eldest son of the Jiang family up from the muck. “My son, are you alright?”
the eldest son of the Jiang family sputtered, expelling manure from his nostrils. He pointed at Old Tan and Wan Chunmei, shouting, “Mother, stop wasting time with them! Just grab that woman and take her back. When we get home, I’ll teach her a lesson!”
Old Lady Jiang whipped her head around and glared at them. “Listen, Tan family. I’m telling you right now—your sister married into our family, and as long as she’s not divorced, she’s still one of us. She has to come back with us!”
Wan Chunmei snorted coldly. “She’s not going anywhere. Not today, not ever. Even if the Emperor himself shows up, she won’t go back with you!”
Turning toward the house, she called out, “Sanyuan!”
Tan Sanyuan appeared at the door, asking, “Mother, what’s the matter?”
Wan Chunmei raised her voice. “Go and write a letter of repudiation for your aunt!”
“Repudiation?” Tan Sanyuan asked, confused.
Wan Chunmei nodded. “That’s right. Today, your aunt is divorcing her husband!”
Tan Sanyuan immediately understood and responded, “Yes, mother. I’ll go write it now.”
Wan Chunmei noticed that Sanyuan was still young. “If you don’t know how to write it, have your elder brother help you. He’s seen a divorce letter before. Let him teach you.”
Tan Sanyuan turned around and replied, “Yes, mother.”
Old Lady Jiang trembled with fury, slowly standing up. “You really think you can divorce him? If you do, we’ll go to every household in your village and spread the word. We’ll say that the daughter of the Tan family is a useless hen who can’t even lay eggs, that whoever marries her is doomed, and she’s nothing but a shameless woman trying to leave our son to run off with a wild man!”
As soon as Old Lady Jiang finished speaking, there was a loud slap.
Wan Chunmei raised her hand and slapped her across the face.
Old Lady Jiang stood frozen for a moment, holding her stinging face, staring at Wan Chunmei. “You vile woman, how dare you lay your hands on me?”
Wan Chunmei sneered. “Since you’ve called me a vile woman, then I’ll be one. Today, this vile woman is going to tear your filthy mouth apart!”
In farming families, a woman’s reputation was highly valued, and they had been publicly accusing Tan Xiaomei of being promiscuous. Wasn’t that essentially condemning a young woman to ruin?
Wan Chunmei’s slap was already too light.
With that thought, she swung her hand again.
Slap!
The sound was sharp and satisfying.
It left Old Lady Jiang face twisted in pain, her mouth crooked from the force of the blow.
“You dare strike my mother?!” the eldest son of the Jiang family , seemingly out of his mind, picked up a large stone from the ground and hurled it at Wan Chunmei.
Old Tan quickly spun around and shielded Wan Chunmei, holding her tightly.
Just when it seemed Old Tan wouldn’t be able to protect himself in time, a sharp, anguished scream echoed through the air.
“Ahhh!”
Both Old Tan and Wan Chunmei immediately looked back in shock.
To their horror, the large stone the eldest son of the Jiang family had thrown had not hit Wan Chunmei as intended. Instead, it struck Old Lady Jiang squarely on the forehead.
Blood began to pour out, streaming down her face.
Old Lady Jiang closed her eyes and collapsed to the ground.
the eldest son of the Jiang family , panicked, quickly dropped the stone and rushed to his mother. “Mother, mother! Wake up, please wake up!”
Old Tan and Wan Chunmei stood there, stunned and confused, unable to comprehend what had just happened.
the eldest son of the Jiang family , his face contorted with rage, pointed at them and yelled, “It’s you! You’re the ones who hurt my mother! I’m going to report you to the county, I’ll sue you!”
While Old Tan and Wan Chunmei were still dazed, Old Man Chen from the neighboring house walked over.
“What nonsense are you spouting, boy?” he said. “I clearly saw you trying to throw a stone at Old Tan’s wife, but you slipped on a puddle and hit your own mother on the head instead! How dare you turn this around and blame them?!”