Year 1983: I was a carpenter in Northeast China

Xu Dashan yanked open the door to the west room with a menacing air.

Because the folds were a little dry, they made a creaking sound.

When the Xu brothers, Xu Wei and Xu Yong, saw their second uncle's accusatory stance, and then saw Xu Bei and Zhu Wenliang with tense faces and cold eyes, they were shocked.

Still being young, a hint of guilt and fear flashed across his face.

Xu Dahong, on the other hand, was much more composed. She sat cross-legged on the kang (heated brick bed), glared at Xu Bei and the others, and then asked innocently, "Second Brother, what's wrong with you now?"

Xu Bei and Zhu Wenliang didn't miss any of the three people's micro-expressions, even those that were fleeting.

The two exchanged a glance, becoming even more certain that they were the ones who had committed that despicable act.

Before entering the house, Xu Dashan still harbored some hope.

After all, he always believed that although his nephews were somewhat irresponsible, their character was still good. However, reality slapped him in the face.

His youngest sister, in particular, was definitely the mastermind behind it all, and the fact that she could act as if nothing had happened only fueled his anger.

"Don't you know what I did wrong? Did you guys put the ice in front of the shop? Xiaoli is pregnant and she fell. What if something happened to the baby? Didn't you think about the consequences of what you did?"

When it was confirmed that Xu Li had indeed fallen, Xu Dahong tried to suppress the corners of her mouth, but the emotions flickering in her eyes still betrayed her true feelings.

"Second Brother! This is a huge injustice! We knew nothing about what you're saying! You can't just pin something on us because something happened to them!"

Listening to their aunt's self-righteous complaints, Xu Wei and Xu Yong mustered their courage, stuck their necks out, and stubbornly refused to admit anything.

"Yes, Second Uncle, you can't just pin everything on us! You say we did it, but where's the evidence? Where's the evidence?"

"That's right. You have to catch a thief red-handed, or a adulterer caught in the act. You can't convict someone based on suspicion alone! That would be a terrible injustice!"

Seeing that his two nephews were quite adept at making excuses, Xu Dahong slapped his thigh and shouted towards the east room, "Mother, come quickly! Look at your second son, how did he wrong us!"

Xu Dashan's eyes were bloodshot with rage, and his finger trembled as he pointed at them, "You all..."

Xu Bei watched the three of them putting on airs, and listened to the old woman with bound feet shouting as she put on her shoes in the east room. A cold smile curled at the corner of his lips.

"We must have evidence to have come here! Not only did I see the two of you lurking suspiciously in front of the store a few days ago, but I also shouted at you and ran away."

Around 2 AM tonight, someone saw the two of you in front of our shop, and there were even footprints left nearby. If we report it to the police, they'll find out everything! And getting the truth out of you would be incredibly easy!

In the 80s, people already had an instinctive fear of the police, and Xu Bei spoke of the time and footprints with such certainty.

The Xu brothers, Xu Wei and Xu Yong, immediately deflated like punctured balloons, and in a panic, they both looked at Xu Dahong, who had given them the orders.

"Little Aunt..."

"us……"

Xu Dahong inwardly knew something was wrong.

At the same time, he also resented his two nephews for being more trouble than they were worth. He thought that if he had known this would happen, he would have done it himself and would never have left so many hidden dangers.

But on the surface, he insisted on playing the innocent character to the end, interrupting them fiercely.

"Why are you two calling me?!"

Then he shouted at Xu Bei and the others, "And you guys, if you've got the guts, go report it to the police! We didn't do it, so we can't force a confession out of us!"

At this moment, the old lady, supported by Xu Dajiang, whose face had changed drastically, and Yu Xiufang, who was completely at a loss, came to the west room.

The old lady first glared at her youngest daughter on the kang (a heated brick bed) with exasperation, then softened her tone and said, "Why can't you talk things out? Why call the police? We're all family; blood is thicker than water. Outsiders will laugh at us!"

Xu Bei had no obligation to indulge the old lady and retorted without hesitation, "When I heard we were going to report to the police, you dragged the whole family into it. Don't you find this 'blood is thicker than water' nonsense disgusting?"

If they truly considered each other family, how could they do such a treacherous and despicable thing?

Xu Dajiang and his wife never expected that their two sons would do such a thing behind their backs.

However, the couple both believed that it must have been Xu Dahong's instigation; otherwise, there wouldn't have been such a deep grudge, and their honest and obedient son wouldn't have done such a thing.

At the same time, they were also afraid of alarming the police, so they hurriedly pleaded for leniency.

"Yes, the old man knows those two lads have been acting recklessly and haven't done anything good. But it really doesn't warrant calling the police!"

"Yeah, you absolutely can't call the police! And I heard Xu Li just fell, but it didn't seem like anything serious. The police might not be able to do much about it! It's better to make them apologize in person, or you can beat them up to vent your anger!"

Before Xu Bei could utter his harsh words, Zhu Wenliang interrupted angrily, "What do you mean 'nothing happened'! If I hadn't paid extra attention, Xiao Li might be in the hospital right now, and I wouldn't be standing here talking to you like this!"

I really didn't expect that even though my father-in-law and mother-in-law are divorced, you all share the same surname, Xu, and the same blood. How could you be so insidious and vicious!

"Dad, now you can confirm it, right? They were the ones who did it. They said in the yard earlier that they wouldn't show favoritism. What do you think you should do about it?"

Since his divorce, Xu Dashan has come to understand many things and has also lost his fascination with the people from his hometown who he used to be so open with.

"Don't worry, Wenliang, I will definitely give you an explanation."

After saying this, he glared at his two nephews, who had shrunk into quails, and his sister, the culprit.

"You two, tell me everything right now, in detail, why you did this, whether it was your own idea or someone instructed you to do it!"

If you don't come clean and confess, the police will question you! You'll spend the whole New Year inside!

When Xu Wei and Xu Yong realized that no one was protecting them, they were terrified and broke out in a cold sweat.

They all avoided the suggestive glances from Xu Dahong and the old woman with bound feet, and began to confess.

"We never intended to do this! It was our sister-in-law who forced us! She's resentful because she's not pregnant while Xu Li is, so she came up with this underhanded scheme!"

"Yes, yes, it's my aunt. It snowed yesterday, my second uncle took sleeping pills, and my dad is sleeping very soundly. She..."

When Xu Dahong realized that his scheme had been completely exposed, he resorted to his usual unreasonable and sophistry.

"Stop trying to pin this on me! If you hadn't come back from outside and told me that the 500 yuan for opening the shop definitely wasn't borrowed, and that you wanted it back, I wouldn't have..."

Xu Wei argued vehemently, "We were just joking, we weren't thinking of anything bad! That terrible idea was yours!"

Xu Yong blurted out whatever came to mind, "If you hadn't used our elders and grandma to pressure us, we wouldn't have done it no matter what!"

Watching them fight like dogs, Xu Bei found it utterly ridiculous and disgusting. Zhu Wenliang also found it noisy and infuriating, not to mention Xu Dashan.

He questioned the old woman with utter anger and disbelief, "Mother, you knew about this too?"