Year 1983: I was a carpenter in Northeast China

The old lady naturally refused to admit it, saying, "Don't listen to their nonsense! I just found out myself!"

Da Hong, Da Wei, and Dayong, you guys are so foolish! We're all family, how could you do such a thing behind someone's back!

It makes me, someone who's practically buried in the ground and doesn't have many years left to live, feel ashamed!

When I see the old man in the afterlife, he'll blame me for raising you all alone but failing to educate you properly..."

Xu Dahong was unwilling to give up and wanted to argue, but the old lady silenced him with a suggestive glare.

Xu Wei and Xu Yong shrank their necks and lowered their heads, not daring to look directly at the others.

Xu Bei didn't care how the old lady tried to argue or use her sob story. He said in a cold voice, "Whether she's lying or not, the truth will be revealed when we get to the police station."

Brother-in-law, I don't think we need to argue here. Let's go and report it to the police! The professionals there will definitely get to the bottom of this!

"I think it's fine! No need for further nonsense!" Zhu Wenliang agreed and started to follow them outside.

No matter how much Xu Dashan hated and disappointed he was, he didn't want things to escalate to the point where the police would intervene.

"What do you mean, 'okay'? We're asking this right now! Hurry up and tell us, who knows?"

Seeing this, Xu Wei and Xu Yong, fearing that Xu Bei and the others would actually report the case, dared not hide anything and eagerly told the whole story.

"Besides my aunt, there's only my grandmother!"

"Yes, my parents don't know!"

Even though Xu Dashan was a very filial son before, now that he knows his mother has also gotten involved, he can no longer show favoritism.

"Mother! How could you do this! Xiaoli is still your granddaughter, no matter what. She finally got pregnant. If you really ruin her, how can you live with yourself?"

Xu Dajiang and Yu Xiufang were also full of resentment.

"Mother! They're young and senile, but you're so old, how can you be like this..."

"Isn't this putting your grandchildren in a very difficult position? If we had known it would be like this, we wouldn't have come after seeing your telegram!"

The old lady, who was used to putting on a show of crying, making a scene, and threatening suicide, was also thrown into disarray this time. "I didn't mean to harm my granddaughter! I just wanted to teach her mother a lesson! Who told her to hit me, an old lady, and hit me so hard!"

Xu Dahong, quick to change his tune, chimed in, "That's right! I didn't mean to hurt Xu Li! I was just angry about being beaten and wanted to get revenge. Who would have thought she'd be so unlucky as to slip and fall!"

Xu Bei became even angrier upon hearing this, his face turning as black as ink. He retorted without any restraint, "You all deserve a beating! My mom didn't hit you hard enough! She was too late! I should have brought my mom with me; I could have given you a good beating right in front of everyone to vent my anger!"

Zhu Wenliang also treated his mother-in-law, whom he considered like a son, with great affection, echoing, "Exactly. What kind of elder acts like that? They deserve a beating!"

Even if Xu Dashan blamed the old lady for what she did wrong, he couldn't remain silent when he saw his son and son-in-law acting so heartlessly towards their family.

"Even if your mother comes along, you can't lay a hand on her. What will people think if word gets out? They'll laugh at you!"

"Haven't people seen enough jokes lately? One or two more won't make a difference! Thank goodness my mom wasn't here, or she'd be even angrier hearing you say that!"

Xu Bei, too lazy to waste time with Xu Dashan's pleasantries, cut to the chase, saying, "Now that we know what really happened, your mother, sister, and nephew were all involved. I want to see how you're going to explain this to us!"

Xu Dahong noticed her second brother's hesitation and wavering, and couldn't help but shout, "What explanation do you want! Isn't Xu Li alright? Do you want to force us to our deaths right before the New Year?!"

Xu Dashan was very tolerant of his mother, but he was completely different with his younger sister.

He especially believed that a large part of the reason for the divorce was this troublemaker.

Now, her eldest daughter, who had finally gotten pregnant, almost had an accident, which made her lose face in front of her son and son-in-law and lose her authority.

"It's all your fault! How dare you even shout like that!"

Along with those words came a big slap.

With a "smack," Xu Dahong was stunned.

The room fell silent.

The reactions of the people were varied.

Xu Bei never expected that Xu Dashan would hit Xu Dahong.

But seeing the red handprint that quickly appeared still made me feel a little relieved.

"You dare hit me!" Xu Dahong covered her face and wailed, "Who did I do all that for! Wasn't it to help you vent your anger? That jinx is gone now, and he's making money doing folk dances and operas, running a business!"

You, on the other hand, got a long leave from work because of your divorce, and now you're stuck at home, sighing and complaining all day like you can't afford to live!

"Don't give me that! What do you mean, 'standing up for me'? If you hadn't come, would my perfectly good family have fallen apart? You forced me into this divorce!"

Xu Dashan's face was flushed, veins were bulging on his forehead, and his eyes were wide open. "I'll get your tickets right away. Get on the train today and go back to your hometown!"

Upon hearing that they were to be driven away, they even had to spend Lunar New Year's Eve on the train.

Not only did the old lady slap her thigh and wail in reluctance, but Xu Dahong and Xu Dajiang's family also certainly didn't want to leave in such a dejected manner.

Xu Bei and Zhu Wenliang did not stay to continue watching this farce.

Anyway, they came here to test and find out if these people were behind the scheme. Now that they've achieved their goal, they naturally don't want to waste any more time.

As for whether Xu Dashan would ultimately get these people onto the train back to their hometown, the two of them didn't really care anymore...

At this moment, four or five customers are selecting goods in the clothing store of Fengying Department Store.

While answering customers' questions, Zhao Fengying and Xu Li huddled together whispering to each other and frequently glancing outside the shop.

"Your brother and Wenliang have been gone for so long, and we still don't know what's going on."

"Don't worry, Mom. You know your son has become very opinionated these days, and your son-in-law isn't exactly a pushover either. They shouldn't suffer any losses."

"That's true. It's better than you going with me. Otherwise, I'd have to worry about your health."

But could it be that they weren't the ones who did this utterly despicable thing?

"Besides them? Who else? I can't think of anyone even if I rack my brains."

While the mother and daughter were talking to each other, Xu Bei and Zhu Wenliang returned on their bicycles.

After parking the car and entering the house, the two, mindful of the customers present, did not immediately explain the situation, but instead went to warm themselves by the stove.

When Zhao Fengying and the others saw that the two were unharmed, only their faces were a little red from the cold, they breathed a sigh of relief.

Only Xu Li came out from behind the counter and anxiously leaned over to ask about the situation in a low voice.

"Is it really them?"

"It really was them, and they all admitted it."

Xu Bei and Zhu Wenliang explained the situation, one after the other.

Xu Li felt relieved for a moment, and then regretted it.

"Even the old lady is involved? Humph, she's just like her old daughter, with no better upbringing. I should have gone with Mom!"