Chapter Twenty-One: Has Your Conscience Been Eaten by a Dog?

At these words, the faces of the Wang family members turned pale. Even the most arrogant of them, Fifth Wang, couldn't help but shiver. Zhang Chunxue was clearly not joking! If this woman truly went mad, she was capable of anything. The Wangs were accustomed to bullying others in the village, but they had never encountered someone so reckless with their own life. For a moment, no one dared to speak. Under the old locust tree at the entrance of the village, only the soft sobbing of Zhong Yuanyuan and the heavy breathing of the crowd could be heard.

Fifth Wang's older brother swallowed hard. He looked at his mother, then at Zhang Chunxue’s desperate posture, and his resolve began to crumble. It wasn't worth risking his entire family's lives for a hundred yuan or a bride who hadn't even entered their home yet. Clearing his throat, he forced a smile that looked worse than a grimace.

"Well... Auntie Zhang, it’s a misunderstanding, all a misunderstanding. Since the money was collected by Liu Cuie, we... we will go find her to clarify things. We were reckless today; please don't take it to heart."

The other Wang family members chimed in, their earlier arrogance completely vanished. Zhang Chunxue let out a cold snort, her grip on the wooden club remaining firm as her sharp gaze stayed fixed on them. Not daring to linger, the Wangs were pulled away by Fifth Wang’s brother. They scurried off in disarray, muttering insults like "madwoman" and "bad luck" under their breath, though their voices were barely audible.

Only when the Wangs vanished around the corner of the village path did Zhang Chunxue finally exhale and toss the club aside.

"Mom!" Zhong Xiaoxiao’s face was still stained with tears, her voice thick with congestion. She stepped forward and grabbed her mother’s arm. Zhang Chunxue reached out to take the still-sobbing Zhong Yuanyuan from her daughter’s arms, gently patting the granddaughter's back. Looking up, Zhong Xiaoxiao’s tear-streaked face was filled with the relief of surviving a crisis and a deep sense of admiration for her mother.

"Mom, you... you were truly amazing just now!" Her voice trembled, a mix of lingering fear and excitement.

Zhang Chunxue looked at her daughter. The fierce, murderous aura on her face gradually faded, replaced by a weary exhaustion, yet her eyes remained resolute.

"Xiaoxiao, remember this: when dealing with unreasonable scoundrels like the Wang family, being weak or making concessions is useless," she said, touching Yuanyuan’s cold little cheek. "If they are fierce, you must be even fiercer, even more willing to risk it all! Only when you have thoroughly scared them and forced them into submission will they stop daring to provoke you easily. Otherwise, if you retreat one step today, they will force you back ten steps tomorrow, until they drive you to your grave."

Zhong Xiaoxiao nodded heavily.

When the two returned home, they couldn't help but stomp their feet. As soon as Zhang Chunxue entered the kitchen, before she could even catch her breath, she set the tofu down on the cutting board and complained, "This weather is truly lethal... Xiaoxiao, shut the door."

Zhong Xiaoxiao quickly complied, closing the door to block out the biting wind. Zhang Chunxue lifted the pot lid, intending to add the tofu to enrich the flavor, but at that sight, she froze.

Where was the fish? The entire crucian carp had been stewed until it was tender and flavorful, but now not even a bone remained! Even the milky-white fish soup was reduced to a mere bottom layer. Zhang Chunxue’s expression shifted instantly, a surge of fury rushing from her chest to her head. She slammed the lid back onto the pot.

"Mom! How is there nothing left?" Zhong Xiaoxiao’s eyes widened in disbelief. "Who... who ate the fish?"

"Who else could it be!" Zhang Chunxue gritted her teeth. She thrust Zhong Yuanyuan into her daughter’s arms, and without caring whether the child cried, she grabbed an arm-thick piece of firewood from beside the stove and strode toward Zhong Chengfa’s room.

The door to Zhong Chengfa’s room was ajar, and the sounds of talking and clinking utensils could be heard from within. Zhong Chengfa sat on the edge of the *kang*, one foot dangling out of his slipper, picking his teeth while marveling, "What got into Mom today? Suddenly willing to stew fish, and it smelled so good!"

Li Hongjuan, clutching her own child, kept busy piling fish meat into her bowl. Her eyes darted around, but her words were seamless. "The fish? Mom said it was for Mingli to regain her strength."

Zhong Chengfa paused, instinctively retorting, "But didn't you just tell me it was made specifically for us?"

"I meant, Mom stewed such a large pot, what’s the harm in us tasting a bit?" Li Hongjuan quickly lowered her head to shovel rice, stuffing the last bit of fish into her mouth, and scooped a spoonful of soup to feed Zhong Hongqing. "Drink up, drink more. It’s rare to have a good meal like this."

A child wouldn't understand; he slurped the hot fish soup with gusto, his cheeks bulging, looking perfectly satisfied.

Just then—

Bang!

The door was kicked open. Zhang Chunxue stood in the doorway, her face dark with impending thunder. The room fell silent, save for the child’s soft swallowing and the sound of Li Hongjuan nervously sniffing. Seeing the two empty bowls and the mountain of fish bones on the plate, Zhang Chunxue was beyond enraged. She lunged forward and struck Zhong Chengfa across the back with the firewood!

"You dog! What did I tell you to do?! Huh?! Instead of working properly, you ate the fish meant for your sister-in-law? Does your rotten mouth deserve to eat this?"

Zhong Chengfa, knowing his mother’s explosive temper, leaped off the *kang* in a panic. Protecting his head with his arms, he scrambled around the room. "Mom! Don't hit me, don't hit me! I was wrong, I was wrong! It was Hongjuan who said we could eat it..."

Before he could finish, he took another blow, this one landing squarely on his backside. He yelped in pain, hopping around the room looking for an exit.

Li Hongjuan, thinking she could escape, picked up her child and tried to flee, but Zhang Chunxue caught her, sweeping the wood across her legs with a loud *thwack*. She let out a miserable shriek and collapsed to the floor. "Oh, my dear mother, you're killing me—!"

She clutched her legs and wailed. Zhong Hongqing, terrified, began to howl along, his voice shriller than anyone else’s.

"You little brat, you’re in on it too!" Zhang Chunxue pointed at the grandson who was still slurping the last drops of soup. "If you dare steal food again, see if I don't skin you alive!"

The boy immediately dropped his spoon, huge tears rolling down his cheeks. He cried and begged his grandmother for mercy. The scene was utter chaos, as lively as a den of wailing ghosts.

Hearing the commotion inside, Zhong Xiaoxiao peeked through the window. Seeing the carnage, she shrank back for a second before rushing off to find her second sister-in-law to warn her. After all, in such a battlefield, she was genuinely afraid her mother might lose control and clean out the entire household!

Inside, the chaos escalated. Li Hongjuan crawled toward the corner, wiping her tears with her sleeve while still trying to argue, "Mom, Hongqing was starving... I thought, since there was so much... besides, Mingli is just one person, she might not even be able to finish it..."

"Not finish it?" Zhang Chunxue sneered. "That was to help her recover! She needs to breastfeed once she’s better, it wasn't for you lot to stuff your faces and line your stomachs! The three of you teamed up to bully a sick woman—do you even have a shred of humanity left? Has your conscience been eaten by dogs?"