For no particular reason—Jian Xiu was simply too exhausted and weak from hunger.

“Liutou don’t cry. Mother is here. From now on, no one will be able to bully you.”

She then pulled Qitou and Er Ya into her arms, gently comforting them.

“You three sit with your father for a while. I’ll cook some rice porridge for you, okay?”

“Okay!” the three children responded in unison.

It wasn’t that she didn’t want to give them better food, but after starving for so long, she worried that something too greasy would upset their stomachs.

Once their bodies adjusted, she would make sure to properly nourish them.

Didn’t Old Madam Liu refuse to divide the household?

Fine, then—she could endure for a little while.

Since she was already in this family, she might as well experience what it felt like to do no work yet still eat meat every day.

Thinking of the old hen just now, it should be enough to make a pot of soup and feed all five of them to satisfaction.

She even hoped that Old Madam Liu could hold out a little longer and not agree to split the family too soon.

At least not until she had eaten up all the chickens, ducks, and pigs that were raised in this household.

Jian Xiu was the type to act as soon as she had an idea.

Without hesitation, she quickly set up a simple stove outside their room.

Then, in full view of everyone, she boldly took out Old Madam Liu’s precious stash of white rice.

Without even looking at it, she grabbed large handfuls and poured them straight into the pot.

The crowd: “……”

“Wuuuuu…” Old Madam Liu scrambled on all fours to reach Old Zhang, her face pale as she pointed at her own chin.

Old Zhang immediately understood and turned to his third son. “What are you standing there for? Go call the doctor!”

“Yes, yes, father! I’ll go right away!”

“And you lot! What are you all doing just standing there? Are you not eating tonight?” Old Zhang barked at his three daughters-in-law, who were frozen in shock.

Hearing this, the eldest daughter-in-law, Fang, and the second daughter-in-law, Chen, quickly hurried toward the kitchen.

That left the third daughter-in-law, Wang Xiuying, stuck in place—unsure whether to leave or stay.

“Third Aunt, do you want to have some rice porridge with us?” Er Ya asked Wang Xiuying.

Hearing this, Wang Xiuying quickly shook her head.

“You’ve already managed to snatch some white rice—don’t waste it. Save some for later so you can eat for another meal!” she whispered.

Glancing toward the kitchen to make sure no one was paying attention, she pulled out a small bottle of medicinal oil from her pocket and handed it to Jian Xiu, worry written all over her face.

“Quick, apply this medicine. Look at you—you’re covered in wounds. You stood up to Mother-in-law like that today, but once she calms down, your life is only going to get harder.”

Seeing this, Jian Xiu flashed a genuine smile, accepting the bottle as she said,

“Third Sister-in-law, don’t worry about me. Since I dared to do this, I was never afraid of what she might do.”

She knew full well that Old Liu wouldn’t let her off so easily.

But so what?

Jian Xiu had never been one to back down from a fight.

Since Old Liu refused to split the household, and the chickens, ducks, and pigs were still here, she wasn’t about to leave either.

Meanwhile, in the kitchen, Fang and Chen were already gloating.

“What do you think? How will Mother punish that little wench tomorrow?” Fang asked with a smirk.

“What else? She’ll beat her within an inch of her life!”

“But we can’t let her get beaten so badly that she can’t move—otherwise, we’ll end up having to do her work.”

“Don’t worry about that! Hasn’t it always been the same? No matter how badly she gets beaten, she still has to do all the chores. Even if she can’t get out of bed, Mother will drag her up to work. Laziness under Mother’s watch? Not a chance,” Chen sneered.

They were both considered valuable daughters-in-law in the Zhang family.

Sure, they made mistakes sometimes.

But Old Madam Liu rarely laid a hand on them—at most, she scolded them a little.

After all, they had both given birth to sons, and their maternal families had strong brothers who weren’t easy to mess with.

“This wasn’t even our responsibility today. Now that little wretch is refusing to work, we’re the ones suffering for it,” Fang grumbled.

“Relax! It’s just for tonight. By tomorrow morning, I bet she’ll regret everything.”

Before long, the doctor arrived. But when he saw Old Liu’s chin, he was so shocked that he momentarily froze.

It wasn’t his fault—Old Madam Liu was infamous for being a shrew.

In the entire Zhang Village, who dared to provoke her?

For her jaw to suddenly be dislocated like this was quite a surprise.

Seeing the doctor staring at her, Old Madam Liu wanted to yell at him—but unfortunately, her chin didn’t cooperate.

She could only glare at him furiously.

“Doctor, can you take a look at her jaw…?” Old Zhang explained on her behalf.

“It’s dislocated. I just need to put it back in place, but Auntie, you’ll have to bear with the pain for a moment,” Doctor Zhang said in a hushed voice.

Doctor Zhang was also from the village.

His name was Zhang Shuqing, and he was in his thirties.

Whenever the villagers had minor ailments, they usually sought him out.

As he spoke, he firmly gripped Old Madam Liu’s jaw, then swiftly pushed it back into place—

Crack!

The doctor instantly let go and jumped back a few steps.

“Ah—!”

Old Madam Liu screamed and immediately lifted her leg to kick at the doctor.

Fortunately, Doctor Zhang had been quick enough to dodge, or else he would have taken the blow for nothing.

“Twenty copper coins. Auntie, will you pay, or should Uncle Zhang?” the doctor asked.

“Why don’t you just go rob people instead? Just a couple of pushes, and you want twenty coins?” Old Madam Liu resorted to playing the victim.

“Auntie, even a house call alone costs five coins. Plus, you’ll need some medicine for a couple of days.”

“Medicine? I’m fine now! Why would I need medicine?”

“If you don’t want medicine, that’s fine. But your recovery will be slower. In that case, just twelve coins will do.”

“Twelve coins?!”

Doctor Zhang: “……”

He knew it would be like this.

If it weren’t for the fact that he had some connections with her third son, Zhang Zifu, he wouldn’t have come at all.

In the end, he only received ten coins before walking away without looking back.

Now that Old Madam Liu had recovered, the first thing on her mind was to go find trouble with Jian Xiu.

But as soon as she stepped out, she suddenly remembered her small stash of fine rice.

Her heart ached terribly.

She wanted to go reclaim it, but then she recalled how strangely fierce Jian Xiu had been today.

And so, she hesitated.

“That little wretch… Did she take the wrong medicine today? She was so aggressive!” Old Madam Liu muttered to herself.

“Forget it! We’ll deal with it tomorrow!”