Exile with Storage Space: Family Fortunes in the Barren Lands

Chapter 431 - 0412: Take Control to the End (1)

The person let out a miserable scream and fell to the ground.

He curled up, rubbing his leg incessantly, probably from the fierce kick.

"What’s happening?" Li Yuzhu, hearing the noise, rushed over, "Mr. Song is asking what’s going on?"

Loud voices came from the backyard, audible even through the house in the deep, quiet night.

Both Mr. Song and Song Jinxiu in the bedroom heard it.

Mr. Song, feverish and drowsy, asked, "Who’s in the backyard?"

Song Jinxiu’s face turned pale instantly, and her eyes darted quickly toward the direction of the sound.

Noticing Song Jinxiu’s odd expression, Li Yuzhu asked her to look after Mr. Song while she went to check.

"A thief came!" Li Xing’an sneered coldly.

"Take him further away for questioning, don’t frighten Mr. Song and Jinxiu," Li Yuzhu glanced toward the bedroom and said.

"Of course." Li Xing’an found a rag in the kitchen, stuffed it into the person’s mouth, tied up his hands and feet, and dragged him to the back of the kitchen.

It was even further from Mr. Song’s bedroom here.

Mu Yuanxiu relit Song Jinxiu’s lantern and walked over to illuminate the person’s face.

Upon seeing the face clearly, he raised his eyebrows and smiled faintly, "Oh, it’s you."

Li Xing’an, who was not very familiar with the people of Qingshui River Village, asked, "Mu Yuanxiu, who is this person?"

"His name is Tian Sanbao, he’s the village chief Song Lizheng’s nephew, known for petty thefts and gambling," Mu Yuanxiu sneered.

"So he’s a thief? Report him to the officials!" Li Xing’an rolled up his sleeves, "Goodness, bullying the old and weak in Mr. Song’s family, stealing in the dark! Utterly despicable! Have the government beat him with dozens of strokes, see if he dares next time!"

Tian Sanbao’s face turned pale with fear, his whole body trembling.

He shook his head desperately, making muffled sounds.

Li Yuzhu squinted her eyes, "What do you want to say?"

Tian Sanbao looked down at the rag in his mouth.

"Take out the rag and question him first," Li Yuzhu said.

Mu Yuanxiu found a stick in his hand and waved it a few times in front of him, "Speak softly, if you disturb Mr. Song, I’ll crack your head open."

Tian Sanbao was bound, could he dare disobey?

He nodded frantically, "Mm, mm, mm."

Li Xing’an removed the rag from his mouth, "Speak quickly!"

Tian Sanbao spat out a breath and then spat to the side, the sour and foul taste of the rag was unbearable!

"I’m not a thief; I’m the village chief Song Lizheng’s nephew. My family has money, would I fancy Mr. Song’s junk?" Tian Sanbao laughed coldly.

Mu Yuanxiu chuckled lightly, "Hard to say, last year you stole Granny Hu’s large iron pot from your neighbor and sold it for eighty coins. You were even caught in the act, and Granny Hu was so angry she chased to your house and hit you with three blows."

Tian Sanbao laughed sheepishly, "I was drunk and not thinking clearly that day. Did I really steal?"

Li Xing’an laughed coldly, "Still, you stole! Mu Yuanxiu, ride the mule to the town and find the Pavilion Chief, have him report to the county government! If this guy isn’t locked up for three to five years, he’ll steal again next time!"

Tian Sanbao hurriedly said in fear, "I’m really not a thief; I came to see Song Jinxiu! I... I have something to discuss with her. If you call Song Jinxiu here, she’ll surely have you release me."

"You came to see Song Jinxiu?" Li Xing’an, unaware of Song Jinxiu’s matters, asked in surprise, "A man visiting a girl in the dead of night?"

Li Yuzhu and Mu Yuanxiu exchanged a glance, both frowning together in confusion.

She recalled overhearing a conversation among several women by the pond this morning.

"Keep him steady, I’ll go ask Jinxiu," Li Yuzhu nodded to them.

"Okay." Mu Yuanxiu replied.

He stuffed the rag back into Tian Sanbao’s mouth.

Li Yuzhu returned to Mr. Song’s bedroom.

Mr. Song, after taking the fever-reducing pill given by Li Yuzhu, had already fallen into a drowsy sleep.

Song Jinxiu sat by the bed, anxiously twisting her sleeves.

Li Yuzhu beckoned her over.

Song Jinxiu glanced at the bed and quietly got up, tiptoeing out of the house.

"Come with me." Li Yuzhu didn’t take Song Jinxiu to the kitchen in the backyard but led her to the front yard.

The Song family had no neighbors on either side, and the nearest household was a hundred steps away.

Li Yuzhu glanced around and quietly asked Song Jinxiu, "Jinxiu, the trouble you mentioned this morning, it’s about Tian Sanbao, right? And the person driving you to despair, wanting to die, is also Tian Sanbao, right?"

Song Jinxiu shuddered.

In the faint moonlight, Li Yuzhu couldn’t see her expression but could see her eyes flickering with insecurity and fear.

She was trembling with fright and said, "You... you know."

The voice from the direction of the back yard just now was clearly Tian Sanbao’s, and since Li Yuzhu asked her so seriously, they must have asked Tian Sanbao some questions.

Song Jinxiu’s mind was in turmoil, not knowing what to do.

Li Yuzhu said, "I guessed." She looked at Song Jinxiu, "Mu Yuanxiu and my third brother caught a sneaky man in the back yard. They thought he was a thief, but he said he wasn’t a thief and was looking for you. If it were a normal interaction, why sneak around in the middle of the night? He must be someone of bad character. Has he been harassing you?"

She overheard from a few women chatting by the pond that Song Jinxiu fancied Tian Sanbao, but the Tian Family didn’t think much of her, which is why she was distressed and attempted suicide.

But she vaguely felt that things couldn’t be that simple.

In general, if someone likes another but gets rejected, they would just feel sad, but Song Jinxiu wasn’t merely sad; she was terrified.

When she heard Tian Sanbao’s name, she was frightened as if facing an enemy; it was too unusual.

Moreover, Tian Sanbao came to find her in the dead of night, sneaking around and not daring to enter through the front gate, but the back gate. Li Yuzhu was certain it was Tian Sanbao who was harassing Song Jinxiu.

In olden times, if a woman was harassed by a man, and the matter was exposed, the man would always turn around and blame it on the woman’s lack of virtue, which could drive Song Jinxiu to despair.

Song Jinxiu took a deep breath, gritted her teeth, and angrily said, "Miss Li, you guessed right. Tian Sanbao is a despicable, shameless cad! He harassed me but told his mother that I was the one chasing after him. He turned the tables deceitfully. He’s a cad! A cad! He’ll meet a bad end!"

She was trembling with anger, her voice quivering.

Li Yuzhu supported her shoulders, "Alright, Jinxiu, your family helped mine, so let me help yours. We’ll handle your matter in our family."

Her family found numerous jobs for their father, but none pleased him; only this teaching job satisfied him immensely.

Now, Prince Luling rose earlier and slept later than Princess Consort Luling every day, diligently teaching. In less than a month, he had won the praise of many students’ families.

Sometimes, students’ families would send over some food items like eggs, duck eggs, dried fish, and vegetables.

They hardly needed to pick vegetables from the fields anymore.

Also, because he walked around daily checking the students’ studies, Prince Luling had lost a few pounds. He seemed more spirited and no longer argued with Princess Consort Luling.

The whole family was very grateful to Mr. Song.

Song Jinxiu smiled bitterly, "You can’t help. Gossip is alarming. How would you help?"

She had known Tian Sanbao since childhood.

She also knew Tian Sanbao wasn’t a proper person, but lately, he followed her all the time.

Whether she was gathering wild vegetables or collecting firewood, she would encounter Tian Sanbao.

Finally, one day, while she was chopping wood in the woods, Tian Sanbao dragged her into the bushes.

In anger and urgency, she shouted, and passing villagers heard her and came over to ask what happened.

Tian Sanbao pointed at her and scolded her, saying she was seducing him and called her a barren woman, cursing the misfortune of anyone who touched her.

The villagers didn’t say much and told her to go home quickly.

Feeling more and more humiliated and angry, she jumped into the water.

Unexpectedly, Tian Sanbao’s mother said she was the one seducing Tian Sanbao.

Tian Sanbao was relentless, coming at night again to harass her.

How could Li Yuzhu possibly help in such matters?

The Tian Family would only throw more dirt on her name.

How could she and her grandfather continue to live in the village?

If she died, it didn’t matter; she didn’t want her grandfather to be driven to death by anger.

Li Yuzhu said, "Jinxiu, to deal with rumors, you must fight fire with fire."

Song Jinxiu blinked, "Fight fire with fire?"

"In any case, I won’t let the Tian Family ruin your reputation. My third brother is here today; he loves to fight injustice the most. Let him handle it, and you just take care of your grandfather." Li Yuzhu said again.

Song Jinxiu’s heart was unsure and chaotic, "It will cause trouble for you. Tian Sanbao’s mother is very fierce; she’ll make a scene at your place."

Li Yuzhu smiled, "No matter how fierce she is, she can’t withstand my brothers’ fists. Don’t worry, Jinxiu, our family will handle your matter thoroughly and help you regain your dignity."

She patted Song Jinxiu’s shoulder and then walked toward the back yard.

Song Jinxiu stood in the yard, taking a deep breath, thinking about the matter. Now that she was at a dead end, she had no choice but to go along.

Perhaps, the Li Family could really help her.

Song Jinxiu went into the main house, glanced toward the back yard, and walked into Mr. Song’s bedroom.

On the bed, Mr. Song slept soundly after taking medicine.

Song Jinxiu sighed, "Grandfather, I’m sorry, I made you sick with anger. You must get better soon."

She mumbled a few words to herself and began to sob quietly.

In the back yard.

Li Yuzhu said to Li Xing’an and Mu Yuanxiu, "This guy is talking nonsense. He came to harass Jinxiu; we can’t let him go easily."