When Sun Meiping, riding in the carriage, saw Zhao Yongqiang standing idly in front of the medical hall, suspicion arose in her heart.

Wasn’t it said that Father was in critical condition?

Why did Big Brother look like he couldn’t care less?

Suppressing her doubts, Sun Meiping picked up her child and followed her husband into the clinic.

After Zhao Yongwen explained the situation, the clinic sent Doctor Wang with them for a house call.

At this point, Sun Meiping’s confusion deepened.

Why hadn’t they arranged for a doctor in advance?

If they had, they could have departed the moment they arrived.

Instead, they had to wait while someone went to fetch the doctor, delaying things by at least half an hour. Sun Meiping remained silent and sat quietly in the carriage.

The urgency she’d felt at first had already faded.

There were four people in the carriage: Zhao Yongwen and his wife, their daughter Zhao Xiaoyun, and Doctor Wang.

The carriage was small; with four people inside, there was no room for anyone else.

Zhao Yongqiang had no choice but to sit outside with the coachman, on the driver’s bench.

The cold wind made his nose run.

Actually, Sun Meiping did it on purpose.

She simply couldn’t stand Zhao Yongqiang, the eldest in the Zhao family.

Though she wasn’t exactly sure what scheme he was pulling this time, her gut told her it wasn’t simple.

So she deliberately placed her daughter on the seat.

In fact, if she had held the child in her lap, they could have squeezed in another person, but she refused.

Zhao Yongwen was too worried about his father to notice his wife’s little manipulations.

As for Zhao Yongqiang—he had gotten what he wanted.

What was a bit of cold wind?

He didn’t care at all.

Only Doctor Wang probably noticed Sun Meiping’s little trick, but it had nothing to do with him.

After years of house calls, he knew: the less trouble, the better.

Doctor Wang closed his eyes and ignored the family’s internal politics.

..

At the Zhao residence, Mother Zhao, who had been waiting anxiously, welcomed the doctor and rushed him into the main room.

Inside, aside from her, no one else was present, which made Sun Meiping even more suspicious.

Even Zhao Yongqiang, after bringing the doctor, had gone straight into his own west wing room and never came out.

Once the diagnosis was complete, Mother Zhao and Zhao Yongwen looked to Doctor Wang with hope in their eyes.

Doctor Wang, having seen this kind of illness many times, shook his head slightly and said:

“Sweating during sleep, afternoon fevers, coughing, fatigue, poor appetite, in severe cases with bloody phlegm or nosebleeds, heat, rapid pulse, and weight loss—this is what we call laozhai.”

In other words, Zhao Daqing had tuberculosis.

Upon hearing this, Mother Zhao and Zhao Yongwen were heartbroken. Everyone in this era knew: tuberculosis was incurable.

Zhao Yongwen gave Doctor Wang a respectful bow.

“Please prescribe the medicine.”

Doctor Wang stroked his beard knowingly.

He understood the meaning: even if it couldn’t be cured, at least ease the suffering.

After writing the prescription, Zhao Yongwen took it, preparing to return to the county with Doctor Wang to get the medicine.

Before leaving, Doctor Wang said: “That will be ten taels of silver.”

Sun Meiping’s heart skipped a beat—now she understood why Zhao Yongqiang had acted so strangely the whole time.

Doctor Wang’s words made Zhao Yongwen frown.

He looked around and only then realized his eldest brother was gone.

Mother Zhao quickly got up to retrieve her hidden silver.

Sun Meiping stopped her. “Mother, let me pay first.”

Not wanting to delay things further—so Doctor Wang could return quickly with the medicine—Sun Meiping took out a ten-tael silver note from her pouch and handed it over.

This silver note was the one she had prepared in advance, assuming her father-in-law was on his deathbed, to help with funeral expenses.

Zhao Yongwen gave his wife a grateful look, nodded, and left with the doctor to get the medicine.

Mother Zhao looked at Sun Meiping, full of relief.

She had no intention of letting her third daughter-in-law cover the cost permanently, but it was the thought that mattered.

Then she glanced at the tightly shut west wing room.

The eldest son’s family still showed no concern.

Mother Zhao turned her sorrowful gaze to the bed, where her husband lay, eyes open, deep in thought.

“This is the eldest son you chose to rely on in your old age—he’s worse than a stranger when trouble comes.”

Shaking her head, her back hunched, she walked toward the kitchen.

It was well past lunchtime.

The old man was bedridden, the eldest son’s family stayed behind closed doors, and the third son’s family—his wife and child—still needed to eat, so she had to cook.

With resentment in her heart, Mother Zhao only cooked enough for five, intentionally excluding the eldest son’s family.

Sun Meiping quietly helped her in the kitchen.

She didn’t ask questions, even though it was clear something serious had happened.

After the meal, Zhao Yongwen finally returned.

Mother Zhao grabbed the medicine and rushed into the kitchen to begin brewing it.

After eating, Zhao Yongwen began feeding his father medicine and food.

Sun Meiping took care of their daughter.

The smell of medicine in the room was overwhelming, and Zhao Xiaoyun began whining to go outside, so Sun Meiping took her out for some fresh air.

…

Huanghualing Village wasn’t big.

The village’s favorite gathering spot was the old locust tree.

Sun Meiping followed the local custom and took Zhao Xiaoyun there.

After lunch, the place was buzzing with activity.

Despite the cold, everyone was chatting excitedly about the Zhao family’s affairs.

This was the hottest gossip since Qian Chunhua was slandered the day before.

After lunch, the villagers had all gathered there without planning to.

When Sun Meiping arrived with her daughter, the noisy chatter abruptly stopped.

Everyone stared at the mother and child, and the atmosphere grew increasingly awkward.

Sun Meiping greeted everyone with a smile.

“Sister Hongying, have you eaten yet?”

Sun Hongying gave an awkward smile.

“Yes, we have. Did you just get back today?”

Sun Meiping nodded.

“Yes. This morning, Big Brother went to the academy to get Yongwen, said Father was gravely ill, so we rushed back.”

You had to admit, Sun Meiping was smart.

Her casual tone hid the fact that she was probing for information.

Just as she finished speaking, someone nearby—Zhou Guifen—spat and snapped: “Pah! Still calling him Big Brother? Your father passed out from anger because of him!”

Sun Meiping’s eyes widened in shock. What?!

Seeing her so bewildered, the ever-gossiping villagers couldn’t hold back.

One after another, they spilled everything that had happened recently.

They even acted out the highlights with hands and feet.

They started with Zhao Xiaojun and Zhao Qingshui stealing vegetables, then told how Zhao Yongqiang ruined Qian Chunhua’s reputation, how he was locked in the Zhao ancestral hall, and how Li Cuihong snuck into Qian Chunhua’s field at night to spread lime.

And finally, they revealed that Zhao Yongqiang’s entire family was expelled from the Zhao clan today.

One shocking tale after another left Sun Meiping speechless.

She had completely misjudged the Zhao family’s eldest son—he was more devious than she could have imagined.

She felt a chill run down her spine.

“Meiping, your family’s cabbages were pulled out too. Your dad said you couldn’t make it back in time, so he asked Zhao Xiaojun and them to help harvest.”

That last sentence—no one knows which “helpful” villager added it—poured fuel on the fire in Sun Meiping’s heart.