I proved immortality through the imperial examination.

Chapter 22: Come to the door
"Sister, sister, why are you crying? Are you hungry?"

The little guy pouted, clearly about to sound the horn.

"Why are you crying? You're blaming me."

Madam Xue lowered her expression.

"Eat first, wash your hands before eating..."

After washing his hands, Xue Xiang carried the little guy and sat down around the stove table.

On the table were four cold dishes and eight hot dishes, with a hot pot steaming gently.

"Wearing gloves while eating?"

Xue Xiang glanced at Xiao Wan's woolen gloves.

"I caught a chill on the way here, and the cold hasn't worn off yet. Brother, let's eat."

Xiao Wan's anxiety had not yet faded.

After dinner, Xiao Wan helped Liu Mei clear the dishes. The little one wandered between the main room and the kitchen. Xue's mother was embroidering, and Xue Xiang was tending the stove.

"We've got enough firewood. Sit for a while, then it's time to go back to your room."

Seeing that Xue Xiang was still adding firewood to the stove, Xue's mother spoke up to persuade him.

Xue Xiang smiled and said, "The night is still long."

Just as Liu Mei and Xiao Wan finished tidying up the kitchen, there was a commotion outside the courtyard, "Wan-mei, Wan-mei..."

"It is friendship."

Xiao Wan lifted the curtain and chased after him.

Xue Xiang, Xue's mother, Liu Mei, and the little guy all went out.

Then they saw a carriage parked outside the gate, with a coachman sitting in the carriage wrapped in zongzi (sticky rice dumplings), and two people standing under the carriage: a handsome, thin young man and a cold-faced middle-aged man.

"Greetings to my mother-in-law, and greetings to my elder brother."

Young people prostrate themselves in the snow.

Liu Mei opened the door, and Xue Xiang pulled him up, saying, "How dare you come here?"

The thought of Xiao Wan's ordeal made Xue Xiang furious.

"Brother."

Xiao Wan hurried forward, tears welling up in her eyes. "It has nothing to do with you, sir. If you hadn't covered for me, I wouldn't be back today."

My uncle's (Fan Youren's) old friend came to visit. We drank from noon until the afternoon. My aunt (Fan's mother) told me to take charge of the kitchen, and I couldn't leave for a moment.

My husband secretly went to the kitchen to come out for me, which allowed me to return home.

Xue Xiang's expression softened slightly, and Fan Youyi cupped his hands to the middle-aged man, saying, "Uncle Li, it's the second day of the Lunar New Year now, and it's rare for Wanmei to come home."

Furthermore, my elder brother's banquet is about to end, so please inform Mother that I may stay at my parents' home for the night."

Li Bo chuckled and said, "Second Master, I am just a servant and cannot make such a decision."

I came with you on the orders of the master to fetch the second mistress.

The old man is still waiting to drink the hangover soup that the second wife personally prepared.

"Good, good, good, what a fine Fan family!"

Xue Xiang's eyebrows twitched rapidly.

Li Bo lazily cupped his hands and sneered, "Is this Xue Dalang? I heard you also work as a public servant in Jiufen Mountain, so you should know some principles."

As the old saying goes, a woman follows her husband after marriage. The second wife has already taken the surname Fan and has no further connection with the Xue family…

Before he could finish speaking, Xue Xiang swung his hand and slapped him hard, making a crisp sound. Li Bo spun around on the spot.

The driver, who was half asleep, was startled and quickly cracked his whip to turn the carriage around.

Li Bo was filled with shock and anger. Seeing Xue Xiang staring at him with ill intent, his heart pounded. He jumped onto the carriage in a few steps before daring to utter harsh words, "Fine, fine, fine! You brat dare to hit your father! You wait, the Fan family is not to be trifled with..."

Xue Xiangcai took two steps forward, startling Uncle Li into screaming, "Run! Run!"

"Dalang!"

Madam Xue said in a stern voice, "You acted impulsively. How is your sister supposed to face the Fan family now?"

“I have my own ideas, Mother, you don’t need to worry.”

Xue Xiangtai knew very well that he was 90% responsible for Xiao Wan's miserable end.

No matter how strict the social norms of the time, he would never let Xiao Wan jump back into the fire pit of the Fan family.

The group returned to the main room, where Xue Xiang instructed Fan Youyi to have a bowl of braised pork noodles.

Fan Youyi ate without relish, holding his rice bowl, dumbfounded. Xiao Wan also looked worried.

They knew that the Xue family was not a safe haven. The laws and etiquette of the time were strict, and the existence of Fan's mother was an insurmountable obstacle.

Knowing their worries, Xue Xiang comforted them, saying, "Tomorrow, I will send someone with gifts to visit Aunt Fan (Fan's mother). We will explain things clearly. You two should rest for the night."

After giving his instructions, Xue Xiang went out.

When he returned, the main room was in chaos again.

However, the terrible frostbite that Xiao Wan and Fan Youyi had hidden in their gloves was discovered. All four hands were black and swollen, with not a single patch of healthy skin.

"How could there be such a heartless mother in the world? The Fan family is not without servants. How could you two do all the work in the Fan family, causing such terrible frostbite?"

Tears welled up in Liu Mei's beautiful eyes. "Unless you soak your hands in ice water every day, you wouldn't ruin them like this."

"That damned old hag."

Xue Xiang's eyes were bloodshot.

"Phoenix oil, Phoenix oil..."

Mother Xue burst into tears. No matter how much she valued the bride price, she never thought of pushing Xiao Wan into a pit of fire.

She never expected that the well-educated and reasonable Mr. Fan would die young, leaving behind a shrew who would mistreat her daughter.

Liu Mei hurriedly brought over a medicine box and cleaned and wrapped the two of them.

Just then, a series of clanging noises came from outside the courtyard gate, followed by a hoarse shout, "You damned Xue Dalang, how dare you hit my servant! Come out here and kowtow to your grandfather to apologize..."

"Yes, it's my elder brother..."

Fan Youyi's eyes were filled with panic.

Xiao Wan's face turned deathly pale.

"Fan Youyi, get your ass out here right now! And Wanmei, the drinking party isn't over yet, and we haven't even had our hangover soup..."

"Haha, Lao Fan, she's your sister-in-law, not your wife, how can you order her around..."

"Everyone knows that half of the sister-in-law's buttocks belong to her brother-in-law."

"........."

"Elder brother, let's go back. It's the New Year, and we're making Mother uneasy. I..."

Xiao Wan couldn't help but burst into tears.

Xue Xiang waved his hand, "Go to sleep, you bunch of bugs, they can't cause any trouble."

Having witnessed Xue Xiang's grandeur, Xue's mother and Liu Mei felt somewhat reassured.

Mother Xue carried Xiao Shi back to her room, Liu Mei pulled Xiao Wan away, and Fan Youyi was sent back to his room by Xue Xiang. Xue Xiang sat alone by the stove, peeling peanuts and eating them.

The commotion outside grew louder and louder. Fan Youren had clearly drunk quite a bit, and the swearing he was spouting with his drinking buddies was getting increasingly offensive.

The door was pounded on so loudly it was like thunder, and the lights that had been turned off in the neighboring houses were all turned on again.

Finally, with a loud crash, the door was ripped off and thrown to the ground.

Xue's mother, Xiao Shi, Liu Mei, Xiao Wan, and Fan Youyi all peeked out of the room.

"Lang Jun."

Her delicate eyebrows and beautiful face paled.

"If you can't sleep, let's sit around the fire and have some tea. I'll be right back."

Xue Xiang strode out the door and locked it.

As soon as he stepped into the courtyard, Fan Youren led seven or eight drinking buddies into the courtyard.

The neighbors, who were there to watch the spectacle, also blocked the gate.

"Think you can get away with hiding your head in a turtle shell? Damn it, Xue Dalang, you have to consider the owner before beating a dog. You dare to lay a hand on Uncle Li? You're not taking me seriously at all..."

Fan Youren was a burly man whose bright red, bulbous nose twitched as he spoke, making him look like a big monkey. "I'm not going to argue with you anymore. Where's Wanmei? Get her out here! The drinking party isn't over yet. Who told her to leave? Come on, take down the door too... Hey, why isn't she moving..."

A cold wind swept over him, and Fan Youren, somewhat sober, glared at his surroundings. Wang An, who was closest to him, suddenly whispered, "This Xue Dalang has a rather intimidating aura. What does he do?"

"Who knows what he does? He's neither good at academics nor martial arts, just trying to survive..."

Fan Youren slurred.

He knew very little about Xue Xiang; in his memory, he was just a good-for-nothing.

In addition, like Song Yuan, he also worked in the police station on the street, so he was even less sensitive to what was happening on Jiufen Mountain.

(End of this chapter)