During famine years, I had a divination slip in hand, and my whole family ate chicken, duck, fish, a

At this point, all you need to do is hold that hand tightly.

"Second Girl, do you have any ideas?"

Li Chunlian and her mother were wolfing down their food inside the house. Li Chunyan couldn't bear it any longer and called Ye Qingqing out, pleadingly saying...

"You know your sister-in-law is slow-witted, she just gets anxious and can't think of any solutions."

Your older brother is so simple-minded, your wife is counting on you!

Ye Qingqing raised an eyebrow. "We'll talk about it tomorrow."

……

As dawn broke and Lijiatun was still shrouded in a thin mist, a series of hurried and chaotic footsteps and shouts shattered the tranquility of the early morning.

"Li Chunlian! Get out here right now! You think you can hide at your parents' house like a coward and escape?!"

The courtyard gate was kicked open with a loud bang, sending wood chips flying everywhere.

Zhang Dabiao, with a half-smoked cigarette dangling from his lips and his tattered cotton-padded coat open, was followed by three equally slovenly men, each with slanted eyebrows and glaring eyes, clearly not to be trifled with.

Li Chunlian was drinking white rice porridge with pickled vegetables when she heard the sound. Her hand trembled, and the rough porcelain bowl fell with a "clatter" onto the kang mat, spilling rice soup everywhere.

Her face instantly turned pale, and she held her younger brother, who had just changed into his sister's old coat and was finally warmed up, trembling all over.

"Mother...I'm scared..."

Lai Di pouted and clenched Li Chunlian's clothes tightly with his little hands.

"Chunlian!" Li Chunyan rushed out of the kitchen, grabbed a fire poker from the wall, her eyes red with rage. "You little brat, how dare you cause trouble! I'll fight you to the death!"

Ye Dali also picked up the carrying pole behind the door and roared in a muffled voice, "Let's see who dares to move!"

Chunyan's mother and the old man blocked the doorway of the main room. The old man, trembling, picked up a shovel, tears welling up in his eyes.

"Dali, Yan'er, you two step back! Your father has had enough of living, killing one of them is enough!"

Zhang Dabiao sneered, spitting far away.

"Oh, so your family's got some nerve? Anyone who tries to stop me today, I'll make sure they don't leave this house alive!"

Li Chunlian, get out here with your bastard child! I think you're asking for trouble!

The brothers laughed and joked, "Brother Biao, this woman's probably cheating on me, otherwise why would she dare to run away?"

"Take her back quickly, give her a good dressing down, and see if she dares to be stubborn again!"

Just as a fight was about to break out, Ye Qingqing slowly strolled out from the inner room, carrying a heavy little cloth bag in her hand.

She didn't look at Zhang Dabiao, but instead glanced at the growing number of villagers outside the courtyard, who were peeking over the fence to watch the spectacle.

"Did you hear everything?"

Her voice wasn't loud, but it instantly drowned out the noise: "Zhang Dabiao said he'd kill anyone who tried to stop him."

A buzz of excitement erupted from the crowd; some were indignant, some were afraid, but most were excited to watch the spectacle.

Ye Qingqing opened the cloth bag, revealing a gleaming tael of silver inside, dazzling in the morning light. She smiled and said...

"Whoever can drive these pieces of material out of Lijiatun, this silver is theirs."

"One tael of silver?!"

The crowd was in an uproar.

These days, an ordinary farmer toils in the fields all year, and after deducting the cost of grain, he's barely left with an ounce or two.

Several burly young men idly munching on cornbread outside the courtyard suddenly lit up, their mouths watering.

"Really? You're really giving it to me?"

A hot-headed young man in his early twenties was the first to yell at Ye Qingqing, "Girl, don't try to fool us, it's a tael of silver!"

"You've all seen the grain and cloth my sister-in-law brought back from her parents' home. Does my Ye family lack this little bit of money? We'll give it to her."

Ye Qingqing raised an eyebrow and glared sharply at Zhang Dabiao. "However, don't kill anyone, just cripple him."

"Get rid of them, and I'll give you the money on the spot."

"Fuck him!"

The young man's eyes lit up, and he casually tossed the cornbread aside, rolled up his sleeves, and jumped into the yard.

"Zhang Dabiao, you scoundrel who bullies women, get out of our village!"

Count me in!

Neighbor Zhang Tiezhu burst in, his fists clenched so tightly they cracked. "I've always heard you're a scoundrel, today I'll show you how many eyes the King of Hell has!"

In the blink of an eye, five or six strong young men surrounded Zhang Dabiao and his three companions.

The villagers who came to watch the spectacle made way for the crowd and cheered enthusiastically.

Zhang Dabiao panicked immediately, unconsciously taking a step back, pointing at them and shouting.

"You've gone too far! A bunch of peasants dare to touch me?" He swung his fist at Li Ergouzi's face.

Li Ergouzi used his strength in the fields every day. He dodged the attack and punched Zhang Dabiao in the ribs. Zhang Dabiao cried out in pain and bent over.

Taking advantage of the situation, Zhang Tiezhu tripped Zhang Dabiao, and the young man next to him kicked him, causing Zhang Dabiao to fall flat on his face.

His three brothers were about to step forward when they were separated by several other young men from the village. They were pushed, shoved, and kicked until they were all lying on the ground, groaning with bruises and swelling.

"roll!"

Li Ergouzi stepped on Zhang Dabiao's back and spat, "If you dare to cause trouble in Lijiatun again, I'll break your bones!"

Zhang Dabiao grimaced in pain, but dared not utter any more threats. He was dragged by the feet by several people and thrown out of the village, covered in dust and dirt.

The whole village erupted in an uproar, everyone crowding around to see if Ye Qingqing would give the money or not.

Ye Qingqing slapped the silver into Li Ergouzi's palm in front of everyone, "Take it."

She wouldn't bother saying a word if something could be done with money.

"Thank you, Sister Qing!" Li Ergouzi was so happy that his eyes disappeared from his grin, and he ran off with the silver in his hand.

The other young men who had helped him left with Li Ergou in high spirits.

The onlookers were buzzing with discussion, and their gazes toward Ye Qingqing held a newfound respect.

In the courtyard, Li Chunlian was still holding her child, trembling, tears streaming down her face.

"Girl...he...he won't give up..."

Ye Qingqing patted her shoulder, her tone indifferent and cold.

"What are you afraid of? With me here, he can't cause any trouble. Tomorrow I'll figure out a way to make sure he can never mess with you again."

Li Chunyan hugged her younger sister and cried loudly.

"Chunlian, did you hear that? With Erya here, you and your daughter are saved!"

The morning light completely bathed the courtyard; that little bit of silver had bought a woman with the first step in escaping the mire. Ye Qingqing's gaze, however, had already turned to a more distant place; it was time to prepare a "grand gift" for that beast.

The noise outside the gate gradually subsided, leaving behind a few clumps of trampled weeds and a few lingering chatter by the fence.

Ye Qingqing withdrew her gaze from the distance, turned around and went into the house, casually locking the door.

Li Chunlian was still huddled in the corner of the kang (a heated brick bed), tightly hugging her daughter Lai Di, tears streaming down her face, soaking the front of her daughter's newly changed old coat.

She watched Ye Qingqing walk back, her lips trembling, and it took her a long time to manage to squeeze out a sentence.

"Girl... Biaozi... he only responds to force, not persuasion. He suffered a huge loss today, and he'll definitely gather even more people tomorrow... Should we... should we hide?"

"hide?"

Ye Qingqing scoffed coldly.

"Where do you want to hide? He knows you. Your parents and brothers are all here. Do you think you can just dig up the roots and take them away?"

Sister Chunlian, as I said yesterday, vows are not made lightly.

When you raise your fingers above your head, you should have thought of today.

Li Chunyan wiped away her tears with her sleeve while chiming in.

"That's right! Chunlian, don't back down. Erya is capable. Look at that one or two taels of silver just now, it stunned all the men in the village."

"Our family isn't like it used to be. We have rice, flour, and meat, and we have our second daughter, this living goddess, to back us up. What are we afraid of?"