Hunting 81: Gathering Goods in the Mountains, I Spoil My Ex-Wife to the Extreme

Li Yunlan glanced around the room, her gaze landing on each piece of furniture—a five-drawer chest, a three-door wardrobe, a dressing table, four stools, and so on.

These were all part of her dowry given by her family when she got married, collectively known as "thirty-six legs".

Back then, when she got married, although her mother was unwilling for her to marry far away, in order to fulfill her wishes and to give her confidence and dignity in her husband's family, she almost emptied the family's savings and gave everything she had to prepare this dowry for her.

When she got married, her eldest brother, third brother, and several other brothers from the hunters' family in the same village personally carried the furniture onto the tractor of the Wang family's wedding procession to send her off to Xinghuo Commune.

When she married into this family, she thought she would have children, be a good wife and mother, and live a good life.

Unfortunately it backfired.

Although her husband, Wang Yuanchao, was honest, he lacked his own opinions and was blindly obedient to his mother, Feng Cuilan. Feng Cuilan, on the other hand, was mean-spirited, malicious, and lazy. In the few years since she married into the Wang family, she had hardly had any good days and had endured a lot of hardship.

It wasn't until she was subjected to domestic violence by Wang Yuanchao and Feng Cuilan that she completely lost faith in the Wang family.

Now, with the support of her family, she no longer intends to continue her relationship with Wang Yuanchao; she wants to divorce him.

Since she was going to divorce Wang Yuanchao anyway, there was no point in keeping the furniture that she had brought with her as part of her dowry here.

"Big brother, third brother, carry this chest of drawers, dressing table, wardrobe, and several stools to the yard and burn them."

Li Yunlan pointed to the furniture in the room and said calmly.

She knew that her family had only brought a tractor and three bicycles, which wouldn't be enough to move all the furniture, but she didn't intend to leave it at the Wang family's house.

She could throw away those old clothes, and she could just as easily burn these old pieces of furniture.

"If it's burned, so be it. Let's get to work. We're not short of money. At worst, we can just find a carpenter from the commune to make another thirty-six legs. Even if we make seventy-two legs, we have the money. We can't let this thing that can't be taken back benefit that guy surnamed Wang."

Li Yunshan didn't seem to have any objections to this.

In his view, these pieces of furniture, like the old clothes that Li Yunlan had thrown away, were simply meant to be burned; out with the old, in with the new.

It's good that they burned them; it also saves my fourth sister, Li Yunlan, from seeing these old furniture, which sometimes makes her feel uncomfortable.

Besides, this person needs to look forward.

"Fine, whatever you say."

Li Yunshi had no objections.

Then, Li Yunshan went outside to call people in, bringing in Cai Er, Zhang Sange, and Zhao Shuanzhu, while leaving Peng Youlian, Wang Laojiu, and Wu Shenghong outside to watch over that old hag Feng Cuilan.

"They moved all this furniture out to burn? What a waste."

It is said that Li Yunlan is going to move all thirty-six legs that she brought with her as part of her dowry to the courtyard and burn them. Cai Er, Zhang Sange, and Zhao Shuanzhu all felt that it was a pity to burn them like that.

"Out with the old, in with the new. By burning these old pieces of furniture, my sister can completely sever ties with the past and embrace a new and wonderful life. We'll move them all out and burn them."

After Li Yunshi finished speaking, he waved his hand.

"Okay, burn it."

Without further ado, Cai Er and the others immediately got to work, first emptying the contents of the chest of drawers and the three-door wardrobe and throwing them on the ground. Then they carried the chest of drawers, the wardrobe, several stools, the dressing table, and so on, all into the yard and piled them up together.

"What...what are you trying to do?"

Seeing Li Yunshan and the others move all the furniture out of the house, Feng Cuilan quickly got up from the ground.

"What for? Of course, we're burning it. Why would we keep it for you and that bastard Wang Yuanchao to use?"

Cai Er said with a grin.

But these words struck like a bolt from the blue: "What? You're going to burn my furniture? You can't burn it! You can't burn it!"

"What do you mean 'your furniture'? These are the thirty-six legs that Yunlan brought with her as part of her dowry. What does it have to do with you? If she wants to burn them, she can. It's none of your business. Let me tell you, don't come any closer, or my stick won't be blind. If it hits you, don't cry out in pain."

Peng Youlian and Wang Laojiu each held a two-meter-long wooden stick, staring intently at Feng Cuilan. The old woman was covered in sticky excrement, which was disgusting to look at. If she really rushed over recklessly, it would really make people retreat.

However, they clearly overestimated Feng Cuilan's courage. Under the threat of those two sticks, Feng Cuilan ultimately dared not rush forward.

Perhaps it was the experience of being thrown into the latrine by Li Yunshan that left a deep impression on her and made her feel lingering fear.

However, Peng Youlian's words had a different meaning when they reached the ears of the neighbors who had come to join in the fun.

"What? All thirty-six legs are burned? Are they burning money?"

"This is such a waste. It would cost a lot of money to cut off those thirty-six legs. It's a shame to just burn them like this."

"That's not right. Back when Wang Yuanchao got married, Feng Cuilan bragged in this alley that all thirty-six legs belonged to the Wang family and were just for show for the Li family. How come she's saying something different now?"

"Can't you see? That was Feng Cuilan trying to embellish her image. The Li family burned it down without hesitation. If it weren't for Li Yunlan's dowry, would they have done it so easily?"

"Hey, I really didn't expect this old hag to actually know how to flatter herself."

"..."

The neighbors looked at Feng Cuilan with disdain.

They never imagined that what Feng Cuilan had boasted about in front of others back then was all just her own self-aggrandizement.

Amidst everyone's disdainful gazes, Li Yunshan struck a match and lit a clump of pine needles.

The burning pine needles were placed under the pile of thirty-six legs, and the flames quickly spread like wildfire.

In no time at all, a two-meter-high pillar of fire was lit up.

"Crackling... crackling..."

The wood was burning, the flames were blazing, and the soot from the burning wood flew high into the air with the rising hot air vortex, before falling to the ground in a flurry after leaving the vortex.

Looking at the burning flames and the cigarette ash falling to the ground, the neighbors who had come to join in the fun couldn't help but gloat as they looked at Feng Cuilan, who was standing to the side with tears streaming down her face, but dared not take a step forward.

With the fire burning, Feng Cuilan not only lost both her wife and her army, but she also suffered a huge loss.

The malted milk powder that was stolen from Li Yunlan was thrown away, and her scarf was covered with a layer of sticky excrement. Even the money that was stolen from Li Yunlan was taken back.

Furthermore, the thirty-six legs that Li Yunlan brought with her when she married into the family have also been burned to ashes.

Moreover, Li Yunlan was adamant about divorcing Wang Yuanchao.

Now, the Wang family has lost all their money, all thirty-six legs, and even their daughter-in-law.

This is even more serious than losing both your wife and your army.

Moreover, the Wang family already had a bad reputation, all thanks to Feng Cuilan.

But after Li Yunlan and her family made such a scene, the Wang family's reputation became even worse.

If Li Yunlan and Wang Yuanchao divorce, it will be even more difficult for Wang Yuanchao to find another wife.

Putting aside other things, Feng Cuilan has a history of robbing her daughter-in-law of her belongings and money, and even beating her.

Moreover, Wang Yuanchao also hit Li Yunlan.

Based on this alone, what blind parents would dare to send their daughter into the Wang family's hellhole?

Even if Wang Yuanchao were just a sales clerk at the Xinghuo Commune's grocery store with a secure job, no one would dare to send their daughter into a fire pit so easily, let alone if Wang Yuanchao were the secretary of the Xinghuo Commune.

By this time, Li Yunlan had also packed all her things.

Actually, there wasn't much to pack. She threw away all the old clothes and burned them in the fire in the yard. All that was left were a few new clothes and some valuables, which Li Yunlan packed into a leather suitcase.

"Let's go home."

Seeing that Li Yunlan had finished packing, Huang Zhifang took her hand and held it tightly, saying...

"Yes, let's go home."

Li Yunlan's eyes reddened. She didn't look back at the place where she had lived for several years. Carrying her suitcase, she took Huang Zhifang's hand and walked out of the courtyard with firm and steady steps.

"Let's go, we're leaving too."

Li Yunshan, Cai Er, and others left the Wang family's courtyard one after another.

At this point, Feng Cuilan, who was terrified of being punished, began to wail and scream.

She plopped down on the ground, slapped her thighs with both hands, sending countless splatters of excrement flying, and then started howling at the top of her lungs.

"This is outrageous! My daughter-in-law's family is bullying this old woman! God, please open your eyes and send down a lightning bolt to strike them dead!"

"Waaaaah, they bullied this old woman who was home alone... Waaaaah, they slapped me in the face and threw me into the latrine..."

"..."

The neighbors who were still watching were caught off guard and were hit on the face or body by the flying splatter of excrement and urine, and they were so frightened that they backed away.

"Damn it, what bad luck! I was just watching the show, and he splattered me with poop and pee. Ugh, I'll have to use two buckets of hot water to take a shower when I get back."

"That old hag, she's been beaten up like this and she still won't stop. She deserves to be beaten like this."

"Hey, who cares about her? Let's hurry back and wash off this poop and pee. Why bother getting angry with this old hag?"

"Hehe, the Wang family has lost both their wife and their army this time. If word gets out, it will become a rare topic of conversation in our Xinghuo Commune. Feng Cuilan and Wang Yuanchao's reputations are ruined."

"..."

After a few more whispers among the neighbors who had been watching the commotion, they saw that Feng Cuilan had finished howling in the yard and was glaring at them angrily. They were so frightened that they quickly went back to their own homes and dispersed in no time.

The neighbors all left as if they were avoiding a plague, and no one helped Feng Cuilan. They didn't even close the courtyard gate; it was left wide open.

The cold wind from the alley rushed in through the courtyard gate. The pile of burned furniture had now turned into a heap of glowing red embers. The cold wind blew them up, and sparks swirled in the air, but they didn't fly very high, not even leaving the Wang family's courtyard, before falling back to the ground.

Feng Cuilan sat on the ground and howled for a long time, until her voice was hoarse and she could cry no more tears. Only then did she slowly get up by supporting herself on the ground.

However, as soon as she stood up, her legs trembled.

She picked up a stick from the ground and slowly moved into the kitchen, scooping water into the pot while crying, then squatted in front of the door to start a fire and boil water.

The flickering flames in the stove illuminated her swollen, red face, which was covered with a layer of excrement.

Just then, a gust of cold wind slipped through the crack in the kitchen door and blew on her, making her shiver suddenly and her body tremble involuntarily.

After finally getting the water in the pot to a boil, she picked up a ladle and scooped the water into a bucket. She then took it to the bathroom, mixed it with cold water, and began washing off the grime with a towel.

She washed herself clean, then washed herself again, and on the third wash she even used soap, scrubbing herself with a towel until she produced dense soap bubbles. She continued until all the hot water in the pot was used up and she changed into clean clothes, but Feng Cuilan still felt the smell of the latrine on her body.

The thought of the smell in the latrine made Feng Cuilan feel nauseous again. She held onto the door frame with one hand and covered her mouth with the other, and began to dry heave.

Actually, at this point, there was nothing left in Feng Cuilan's stomach to vomit, so she dry-heaved for a while, only vomiting mouthful after mouthful of sour water.

"Waaaaah..."

She leaned against the door frame, thinking about how Huang Zhifang and others had slapped her across the face with their arms swinging across their backs that day, and how Li Yunshan had thrown her into the latrine. She couldn't help but feel overwhelmed with grief and began to sob.

She wanted to curse, to rush over and find Li Yunlan and the others, and to return the humiliation she had suffered today.

But now her legs were weak and her stomach was growling. She couldn't even get to the courtyard gate, let alone go to find Li Yunlan and the others.

Moreover, Feng Cuilan was also afraid when she thought about how ruthless Huang Zhifang and Li Yunmei were.