Chapter 18
Confrontation
Li Mei listened carefully and cursed. “It’s that son of a bitch, Zhang Decai.” Furious, she picked up the pole leaning against the wall and rushed out.
“B*stard, you’re still bullying us.” Li Mei cursed as she opened the courtyard door and threw a pole at Zhang Dacai.
Zhang Decai was so frightened that he hurriedly dodged to the side as he scolded, “Shrew, the abandoned wife broke my wife’s hand, yet you still want to hit me.”
Zhang Decai dodged Li Mei’s shoulder pole and seized the opportunity. He grabbed Li Mei’s shoulder pole and punched her. Li Yu and Zhaodi also arrived.
Seeing Zhang Decai punch Li Mei, Li Yu rushed over and kicked Zhang Decai to the ground. Zhang Decai rolled on the ground a few times. Fortunately, he was blocked by a small tree by the roadside and did not roll into the ditch below.
Zhang Decai propped himself up with both hands and sat up. He looked at Li Yu in disbelief. A four to five-foot-long man like him was actually kicked to the ground by a skinny girl. Was this really the Li Yu who only knew how to work?
Seeing Zhang Decai looking at her with certainty, Li Yu pointed at Zhang Decai and scolded, “A family of crazy dogs biting everywhere. Hurry up and get lost.”
“It’s that girl!” Zhang Decai thought to himself. He stood up and looked at Li Yu hesitantly. “Are you really Li Yu? How did you become so strong? And why did you hit my wife and daughter?”
When Li Mei heard this, she pointed at Zhang Decai and scolded, “Dog Zhang, you piece of trash. If you can’t beat her, you just spout nonsense. Let me tell you, when my niece was three years old, she could already hold a piglet that weighed dozens of kilograms for fun. Don’t even think about slandering my niece. You can’t even control the female dogs at home, and you still dare to blame my Xiaoyu. Why don’t you talk about your wife and daughter? On the way, they scolded my niece like a mad dog. And when they can’t win a fight, they go back and bring a mad dog like you to bite people!”
“That slut and abandoned wife of yours who can’t get married.” Mrs. Zhao’s mouth was not as sharp as Li Mei’s. She only knew how to scold non-stop. “Bi*tch, slut…”
“Your whole family are bitches. You should know that it’s my Yu’er who doesn’t want your Zhang Guisheng.” Li Mei was not to be outdone. The two of them jumped and scolded each other.
Li Yu pointed at Zhang Decai. “Zhang Decai, let me warn you. Your family better not play tricks behind my back. Otherwise, I’ll beat you up every time I see you.” After saying that, Li Yu pulled Li Mei and said to her, “Aunt, don’t belittle yourself by scolding her.”
Zhang Decai hurriedly stopped Li Yu. “Don’t go. You broke my wife’s hand. You have to pay for my medicine.”
Li Yu sneered. “Get this straight. It was your crazy dog who bit people first. She deserved to be beaten up. Was her hand broken? I think you’re crazy about money!”
“Just you wait. I’ll go look for Doctor Chen immediately.” Zhang Decai couldn’t beat him or scold him. He could only say some harsh words and pull Mrs. Zhao towards Doctor Chen’s house.
When the people who had rushed over to watch the commotion saw Zhang Decai limping away with his wife, they started discussing as they walked towards the village.
Li Yu pulled Li Mei back to the house. After Li Mei vented her anger, she was no longer upset. She smiled at Li Yu and patted her shoulder. “Yu’er, you’ll probably be stronger than your father in the future. I think you’ll catch up to your grandfather.”
“Mother, was grandfather very powerful?” Laidi looked at Li Mei and asked curiously. Li Yu also looked at Li Mei.
Li Mei recalled, “I don’t know if it’s true but every generation of our family has a person with innate divine power. According to our ancestors, we are the descendants of General Li Tang who had divine power.”
Laidi clapped her hands and smiled. “Oh! This generation passed to my cousin.”
“Yes, let’s go! We should hurry up and go up the mountain to pick the seedlings. It would be a pity if so many ripe ones fell to the ground.” Li Mei went to pick up the wicker basket under the eaves.
Laidi smiled and pulled Li Yu. “Cousin, let’s go! Earning money is more important.”
“Alright, earning money is more important.” Li Yu also smiled and went out to pick up the bamboo basket. The few of them closed the door and walked up the mountain.
Zhang Decai brought Mrs. Zhao to Doctor Chen’s house in the East Village. He looked at Doctor Chen anxiously and said, “Doctor Chen, see if my wife’s hand is broken. Why is it so swollen that she can’t move?”
After Doctor Chen checked Mrs. Zhao’s hand, he shook his head. “It’s not broken. It might be because of the qi and blood. I’ll get you some medicinal wine and you can go back and apply it for two days.”
“It’s not broken! But why is it so swollen?” Zhang Decai looked at Doctor Chen in disappointment.
Uncle Chen looked at Zhang Decai unhappily. “What’s going on? You don’t seem happy to hear that it’s not broken. Why don’t you find another doctor to take a look?”
Seeing that Doctor Chen was unhappy, Zhang Decai hurriedly cupped his hands and smiled apologetically. “There’s no such thing, Doctor Chen. Please prescribe me some medicinal wine!”
Doctor Chen poured a small jar of medicinal wine for Zhang Decai. Zhang Decai took it and asked, “Doctor Chen, do you think it’s possible for a person with a weak personality to become tough overnight?”
Doctor Chen thought for a while after hearing that. “If you’ve suffered a huge blow or experienced life and death, your temperament might change drastically.”
When Zhang Decai heard this, he recalled how Li Yu had been forced to break off the engagement by the mother and daughter of the Chen family the day before. Then, she had been pushed into the bathtub by Guixiang and almost drowned. Perhaps her temperament would really change drastically after being provoked.
Zhang Decai thanked Doctor Chen and pulled Mrs. Zhao home. He instructed Mrs. Zhao and her mother, “Don’t provoke that bull in the future. You can’t defeat her. Wait for me to discuss with Big Brother before dealing with her.”
When Mrs. Zhao and the others heard this, they nodded repeatedly, indicating that they would not provoke Li Yu anymore.
When Li Yu, Li Mei, and the others arrived at the mountain, Li Yu asked Li Mei, “Aunt, our ancestors were passed down by Li Tang. Which dynasty are we in now?”
Li Mei smiled and said, “How would I know which dynasty? I only know that we are now citizens of Great Yong. The surname of the imperial family is Chu. It has been three years since the treasure was opened, and there is still Great Qi on Great Green Mountain. On the official road in the middle of the town exit, there are often caravans going there to sell skins and herbs.”
Li Yu frowned. “Wouldn’t we be in trouble if a war breaks out?”
“In the blink of an eye, it has been peaceful for thirty to forty years. Your father, mother, and Big Dog Zhang’s family have fled to this place for sixteen to seventeen years.” Li Mei looked sad. “Your grandfather and grandmother saved all the food for us. They tricked us into not being hungry after eating. The two of them starved to death before they could escape halfway.”
When Li Yu heard this, she recalled what her grandmother and mother had told her in her previous life. During the famine era, they had finished eating food, leaves, and Guanyin clay. After eating Guanyin clay, they could not digest it or defecate. In the end, they could only be stuffed to death.
Li Yu secretly made up her mind. From today onwards, she would stock up on rice, water, salt, medicine, and anything edible in the space.