First Assistant's Petite Wife Has Space

by Usui Takumii

not mine, readwn dot org.

2. 16 to 30

A Blind Cat Caught a Dead Rat

Lu Jiao brewed the medicine as she thought it over. Outside the courtyard, much noise appeared. The noise was also mixed with heart-wrenching cries.

Lu Jiao focused and listened and realized that the noise came from Second Grandma's house. What happened over there?

Lu Jiao remembered how kind the Second Grandma was and decided to go check it out. Efficiently, she put out the fire underneath the crock.

Just as she stepped outside, she found the four little ones peeking out the door in terror.

Lu Jiao quickly comforted the four little ones, "It's okay. Go back inside and stay with daddy. I'll go and see what happened."

The four little ones retreated right away. Lu Jiao walked to her neighbor's in giant steps.

By the time she arrived, she saw that many people from the village were there. They stood around in the yard and chitchatted.

"I heard Xiaobao got a fish bone stuck in his throat."

"If a fish bone is stuck, you have to eat something dry to push it down."

Lu Jiao listened to the villagers as they chatted and peeked inside the room. Inside the room, the Second Grandma and her oldest daughter-in-law had begun to cry from anxiety.

Xie Xiaobao was the youngest son of Lady Zhao. He was only 13 years old and was very spoiled in this family. This young man had a rather good reputation.

When he had some free time, he would go up the mountains to hunt birds or go into the rivers to catch fish. He never bullied little kids nor did he ever steal or sneak around. He was rather likable. Nobody could expect him to get hurt like this today.

Inside the room, the Second Grandma's eldest son, Xie Laifu, gritted through his teeth, "Let's bring Xiaobao to Chuntang Hospital immediately."

Xie Laifu's eldest son, Xie Hu, hurriedly left to borrow an ox cart.

Lu Jiao watched everything unfold before her and couldn't help but step forward. For a fish bone to get stuck wasn't exactly a big deal. But it wasn't a small matter either. If the fishbone slid into the esophagus, it would become troublesome. It would be fine if the fishbone slid into the stomach though.

The villagers noticed Lu Jiao the moment she stepped out. Each one of them started to mumble.

"What is that woman doing out here?"

"She's here to gossip. Xiaobao is in pain yet she came to watch the show. How heartless."

"She's always been like this. Stop talking about her. If you provoke her, she'll make a scene again."

People said all sorts of things. Within the crowd, a soft and thin voice arose, "She doesn't even care about her own man and children. Let alone other people's."

Lu Jiao turned her head just in time to watch Shen Xiu nonchalantly say this to the others.

The person beside Shen Xiu instantly cursed, "It's unfortunate for the Xie Village to have such a scourge."

Lu Jiao's gaze was unspeakably cold. She cooly glared at Shen Xiu and then turned back to walk into the Xie main room.

Inside the Xie family's main room, everyone had perspired from stress. The moment Lady Zhao saw Lu Jiao walk in, she started to curse angrily.

"You jinx. What are you doing inside my home? Are you happy to see my Xiaobao in pain?"

Lady Zhao's words earned a glare from the Second Grandma, "Just what are you saying?"

The Second Grandma looked over to Lu Jiao, "Jiaojiao, is something the matter?"

Lu Jiao raised an eyebrow, "I can help Xiaobao and take out the fish bone."

Her words made everyone inside the room freeze. Only Xie Xiaobao continued to cry.

Outside, people didn't hear clearly and asked, "What did Lu Jiao say?"

Someone repeated, "She said she can help Xiaobao take out the fish bone."

Her words made everyone inside the yard sarcastic.

"She sure dares to speak. I hope she doesn't hurt Xiaobao."

"She's trying to show off again."

"She's only been good at bullying the kids before. Now she's pretending to know how to treat kids?"

Lady Zhao heard what everyone was saying and her face grew ugly. She pointed at Lu Jiao and screamed, "Get the **** out of here!"

Lu Jiao glanced at Lady Zhao. She didn't try to persuade her. She had spoken honestly and if Lady Zhao didn't want to believe her, then that's not her problem.

Lu Jiao turned to leave. Behind her, the Second Grandma chased after Lu Jiao, "Jiaojiao, tell me, can you really take out the fish bone?"

Lu Jiao stopped walking and turned back to look at the Second Grandma. This Grandma has had a hard life to have lost her husband young and to have raised her four children by herself. Despite the hardships, she managed to maintain her kind heart.

"I can."

The Second Grandma instantly turned to look at Lady Zhao. Lady Zhao had her arms around Xiaobao as if someone was there to hurt him.

"Mom, you cannot treat Xiaobao as a joke. Do you not know what that woman was like? She takes pleasure in causing others pain and is known to be a bully. Look at how much she's hit her own four children. You really believe she's kind enough to help Xiaobao with the fish bone?"

Lady Zhao then shouted at Lu Jiao, "You, leave right now!"

Lu Jiao turned to leave. She had to get back and brew medicine anyway.

Behind her, Xie Laifu stopped her, "Yunjin's wife, can you really take out the bone?"

Lu Jiao was now impatient and frowned, "Yes."

Xie Laifu clenched his teeth and looked over at Lady Zhao, "Let Yunjin's wife try."

Lady Zhao didn't agree and held onto Xiaobao. She directed her anger at Xie Laifu, "You want our Xiaobao to die?"

Xie Laifu was angry as well, "Look at how much pain Xiaobao is in. Who knows what will happen once he's at the hospital. What if he becomes mute and can no longer speak? Would you be satisfied then?"

Lady Zhao silenced and started to cry while he held onto her son. However, she no longer insisted Lu Jiao should leave.

Lu Jiao walked over to Xie Xiaobao, "Endure for a moment. Open your mouth and let me see where the bone is."

While Xie Xiaobao was in a great deal of pain, he was 13 after all. After Lu Jiao's instructions, he opened his mouth despite the pain.

Lu Jiao stared but couldn't see well. The lighting here was far too dim. She indicated for someone to come over with an oil lamp. But still, it wasn't clear.

Lu Jiao took out a mouth stretcher from her space and placed it into Xiaobao's mouth. Lady Zhao instantly started to scream, "What are you doing? What is that?"

Lu Jiao answered leisurely, "A mouth stretcher. This can hold his mouth open so I can see clearly where the bone is."

She then located the fish bone, "It's okay. The bone didn't slide into the esophagus. I will take it out for him."

Lu Jiao then secretly took out a thin and long tweezer. Then, she followed the light and extracted the fish bone.

No wonder he was in so much pain. The fish bone was large and was stuck on the bottom of his throat. That would've made it very painful.

"It's okay. It's over. The fish bone is out."

Lu Jiao then put away the mouth stretcher and the tweezer.

The Xie family's faces were all in disbelief. It was that simple? It was that easy?

Xie Xiaobao swallowed a few times. Since the pain was gone, he had stopped crying.

Lady Zhao rubbed his neck, "My son, does it still hurt?"

"No, it doesn't hurt anymore. I'm not in pain."

Outside the room, everyone was stunned to watch this happen. Such a big problem was resolved just like that?

When did that fat woman become so capable?

Lu Jiao had her mind on Xie Yunjin's medicine. She left right after she took out the bone. The Xie family was so happy they didn't even notice.

The villagers in the yard, however, cleared a path for Lu Jiao. This was because her actions shocked everyone.

As people watched her leave, someone said, "Yunjin's wife feels different now."

"Yes, I think she's different from before as well."

Shen Xie listened to these comments and her heart burned like a flame. Angrily, she sputtered, "A blind cat caught a dead rat, that's all. Do you really expect something from her?"

Disheartened

Lu Jiao heard her and turned her head around to look at Shen Xiu. With a fake smile, she said, "Ergou's wife, I ask that you stop bringing food to my Yunjin. You're a widow. For you to bring other men food is bad taste."

Lu Jiao left after she said those words. Behind her, everyone from the Xie village was confused, "Ergou's wife? Who's Ergou's wife?"

"Who's the widow? Who brings Yunjin food?"

Everyone chit-chatted and then thought of Shen Xiu's husband. His name was Su Ergou. That meant Ergou's wife was Shen Xiu. Shen Xiu's husband died which made her a widow.

Everyone stared at Shen Xiu and remembered what Lu Jiao had said. Their faces grew unpleasant.

Everyone knew this woman wanted to marry Yunjin and self-proclaimed to be his best childhood friend. However, Yunjin never promised to marry her and they were never officially together.

Because of this, Lu Jiao once threw a fit. Who knew that even after this woman's husband died, she would still bring Yunjin food.

She had definitely crossed the line.

Shen Xiu listened to the comments made around her and started to cry out of anger. She then ran away while others continued to mumble criticism about her.

Lu Jiao didn't care about any of this. She went home and continued to brew Xie Yunjin's medicine.

Once she poured out the brewed medicine, a few people came to visit.

It was the Second Grandma's family.

The Second Grandma, Xie Laifu, Lady Zhao, and Xie Xiaobao.

But the family didn't enter. They stood outside the fence and asked, "Yunjin's wife, are you around?"

Lu Jiao was on her way out of the kitchen with the medicine when she saw the Second Grandma's family. She quickly went to greet them, "Second Grandma, what are you doing here?"

The Second Grandma smiled and said, "We are here to thank you for taking the fish bone out of Xiaobao."

Lu Jiao opened up the bamboo door and indicated for them to enter, "It's no big deal. I only did what I could."

Xie Laifu gave Lady Zhao a look. Lady Zhao remembered how unfriendly she was towards Lu Jiao and walked up to apologize.

"Yunjin's wife, I did you wrong and I want to apologize. Don't be angry at me. I am just a farmer and I don't know how to speak properly."

Lady Zhao then took out 50 copper coins from her sleeve and shoved them into Lu Jiao's hand. Lu Jiao declined it instantly, "Sister, I was just passing by and helped with what I could. I don't need money. You should take it back."

Lady Zhao continued to shove but the Second Grandma spoke up, "Alright, let's just remember what Jiaojiao did for us and remember to repay the favor later."

Lu Jiao was embarrassed and smiled, "It really was no big deal. You don't need to do this."

Xie Laifu and Lady Zhao started to look at Lu Jiao differently now. Yunjin's wife truly has changed. She was much nicer now. Not bad, not bad at all.

Xie Laifu stared at Lu Jiao and asked, "How's Yunjin doing?"

"He's alright."

Xie Laifu said, "Let us go visit him."

Lu Jiao led them to the east bedroom. Once they entered, they didn't even have a place to sit.

Xie Laifu looked at this poor home and was not at all happy with how cold-hearted Xie Laogen's family was. The way he looked at Xie Yunjin was full of pity.

"Yunjin, how are you feeling? Are you better now?"

Xie Yunjin naturally saw the pity in Xie Laifu's eyes. A rush of coldness subconsciously engulfed him and his brows grew sullen.

These people used to all stare at him with admiration. They used to look at him as if they belonged in different worlds.

Now, he was being pitied by these people. These thoughts made Xie Yunjin feel like something had been shoved up his heart.

"Thank you for your kindness. I am fine."

Xie Laifu sighed. How could he be fine when he was wounded like this? Though he looked okay on the outside, it wasn't certain whether or not he would survive this. Plus, the color of his face truly was a point of concern.

Xie Laifu wanted to help, but when he remembered how expensive each portion of medicine was, he felt helpless. All he could do was to comfort him despite his heavy heart.

"Yunjin, don't overthink it. The heavens will bless those who are good. It will get better."

Behind him, Lady Zhao nodded in agreement. The Second Grandma walked over and held onto Xie Yunjin's hand, "Good child, you will be okay. Everything will get better."

Xie Yunjin nodded, "Mhmm."

Xie Laifu and Lady Zhao then asked about their four children. They then lectured Xie Xiaobao to take good care of the quadruplets in the future. Xie Xiaobao was eager to agree.

The family then left. After Lu Jiao sent them away, she returned to feed Xie Yunjin medicine.

Inside the room, Xie Yunjin lied on the bed with his face gray. He didn't move for a long time and he acted like a dead tree trunk. Disheartened, he looked towards Lu Jiao and asked, "Lu Jiao, if something were to happen to me, you would treat the four children kindly, right?"

Before Lu Jiao could respond, the quadruplets, who slept on the inner corner of the big bed, started to cry out of fear.

"Daddy."

"I don't want daddy to die."

"Daddy, quickly take the medicine. You'll be fine after taking the medicine."

Lu Jiao had an unpleasant expression as she stared at Xie Yunjin, "What are you talking about so late at night? Look at how much you're scaring the kids."

Xie Yunjin turned to look beside him and saw how sad the quadruplets looked. It was obvious that they were scared witless.

Xie Yunjin's heart ached and he cursed at himself for being stupid.

Why did he think that he could leave the four kids to Lu Jiao? He knew the kind of person Lu Jiao was. She was only nice to the kids now because she either wanted to separate from him, or she wanted to make up with him.

If he died, she wouldn't treat the quadruplets kindly. So, he wasn't allowed to die.

Xie Yunjin had been enlightened. Life returned to his body and emotions reappeared on his visage. Like a winter plum that's been watered by cold dew, he now appeared dignified and frosted.

Then he softened his gaze and looked over at the quadruplets.

"Alright, stop crying now. Nothing will happen to me. I will have my medicine. Once I'm better, I'll have to teach you all how to read."

The First Born wiped his tears and pointed at the medicine bowl in Lu Jiao's hand.

"Then hurry up and have your medicine."

Lu Jiao glared at Xie Yunjin and used her arm to help him sit straight. Then, she fed him the medicine.

This time, Xie Yunjin was cooperative and quickly drank it all.

The quadruplets finally stopped their tears after he took the medicine. However, those four pairs of eyes were red from crying and their faces were full of worry. Anxious and unsettled, they sat by Xie Yunjin.

Their reaction pinched Xie Yunjin's heart. They were his children, how could he have the heart to leave them behind?

Even if he did become paralyzed or disabled, he needed to stay by their sides. Children without a father were pitiful.

Xie Yunjin used all his strength to pat the quadruplets on the heads, "Alright, I was wrong. I shouldn't have said those things to scare you. It's late. Go to sleep now."

The four little ones carefully tucked themselves in beside him. Each one of them took out a hand to grab onto his clothes, terrified that he would leave them behind.

Lu Jiao's heart hurt when she saw this. She looked over to Xie Yunjin and said angrily, "I told you, I will find someone to cure your legs. I will do what I promised. Don't scare them like that anymore."

Strictly on Guard

Lu Jiao then walked out with the empty bowl. Behind her, Xie Yunjin glanced at her silhouette but didn't take her words seriously.

Because Xie Erzhu didn't show up, Lu Jiao worried that Xie Yunjin may need something overnight. So she grabbed some sheets and slept in the east bedroom.

This time, neither Xie Yunjin nor the quadruplets fought her over it. They had silently accepted her decision.

The moment Lu Jiao lied down, her eyelids started to fight themselves. She was so tired she could barely keep her eyes open.

However, up on the bed, Xie Yunjin didn't seem to be able to sleep. He tossed and turned occasionally, which forced Lu Jiao to ask, "Are you thirsty?"

"No."

"Then, are you hungry?"

"Am I a pig?"

"Then why are you moving?"

"Did I bother you?"

Lu Jiao was too lazy to pay attention to this troublesome man. She closed her eyes and was ready to sleep. Then, her brain flickered and she thought that Xie Yunjin moved around like this because he needed to use the washroom but was too shy to ask for help.

She quickly turned her head and looked at the man on the bed, "Could it be that you need to use the washroom but are too embarrassed to ask?"

By now, Xie Yunjin knew what she meant by "washroom". It was true, he wanted to pee but didn't want to tell Lu Jiao. This was why he continued to toss around and couldn't sleep.

Xie Yunjin didn't speak but Lu Jiao knew that he wanted to use the washroom. Speechless, she made a face. What an annoying man. Would he die if he asked for help? Why did he have to be difficult?

Lu Jiao yawned as she crawled off the floor. She walked to the bed and took out the urinal from underneath the bed. She then extended her arm to pull up Xie Yunjin's clothes.

Xie Yunjin's face drastically changed and he grabbed onto his clothes.

With his eyes dark and cloudy, he stared at Lu Jiao and sneered, "What do you think you're doing?"

Lu Jiao was confused, "I'm helping you pee."

Xie Yunjin's brows subconsciously grew tense, "Give me the urinal. I will do this myself."

Lu Jiao was speechless as she stared at him. This delicate and handsome face of his was almost frosty and those dark eyes on him exuded with cold air. The angry way he looked at her was like she was a pervert who provoked a young woman.

Lu Jiao was unhappy as she continued to stare. Was he so strictly on guard because he thought of himself as some kind of a prize? Did he think she wanted to take care of him?

Annoyed, Lu Jiao handed Xie Yunjin the urinal.

[If you can do it yourself, do it yourself.]

Lu Jiao retreated two steps and turned around. That would be enough for him, right?

Sadly, she waited for a long while but heard no noises.

No longer able to suppress herself, she asked angrily, "Why aren't you doing it?"

She was so sleepy after such a hard day.

Behind her, Xie Yunjin's face clouded over. It took him some time to finally speak through his teeth, "I can't do it with you in this room. Get out."

Lu Jiao rolled her eyes and walked out. The moment she left the room, she heard noises from inside, and only when all sounds subsided, did she return. She took the urinal back from Xie Yunjin's hand.

This time, Xie Yunjin didn't object and gave it back to her.

He was wounded because of her. So it was natural that she took care of him. She should take care of him.

Lu Jiao didn't find this dirty. As a military doctor, she frequently dealt with this stuff. This was very normal.

Lu Jiao took the urinal outside and dumped it. Then, she rinsed it in the yard with water and left it there to air out the smell.

Once she was done, she cleaned her hands and went back to sleep.

On the bed, Xie Yunjin saw that Lu Jiao was ready to sleep and said unhappily, "I haven't washed my hands."

Lu Jiao very much wanted to say, enough already!

But she recalled how violent the future First Assistant could get and accepted her fate. She fetched some water and washed Xie Yunjin's hands. By the time she was done, it was late into the night and the family finally slept in silence.

The next day, when the sun had just started to rise, Lu Jiao got up to go up the mountains. Not only could she lose weight this way, but she could also come back with some firewood.

Up on the mountain, she went to check out the trap she set up yesterday to see if there's been any more prey.

Who knew that there really was an animal inside the trap. A wild boar that was over 100 pounds and hasn't been dead for too long.

Lu Jiao was ecstatic and she pulled up the wild boar.

She won't find firewood today then. Instead, she'll bring the boar to the market and sell it.

This boar was so big it would be impossible for the family to finish. So it would be better to sell it.

Since she has space, the boar wouldn't go bad if she placed it there. However, she didn't want to kill this animal, so it was better to sell it.

Should she put this boar into her space and then secretly sell it, or should she make a big deal out of this by bringing this boar back home?

Lu Jia thought it over and decided to bring this boar back home. Because she will need to buy Xie Yunjin medicine and buy food for the four little ones right after.

If people didn't see how she made her money, the villagers would make up all sorts of rumors as to how she got it.

Lu Jiao happily went down the mountain with the boar on her back. Once she was close to her home, she heard an excited cry come from her front gate.

"Oh my god, is… is that a wild boar?"

Lu Jiao looked up and found Lady Zhao staring at her and her wild boar with an astonished expression.

Before Lu Jiao could speak, the neighbors heard the commotion and all rushed out to see.

Everyone was in awe and Xie Xiaobao happily ran around while he screamed, "Wow, third aunt, you're so great. Did you hunt this wild boar?"

Lu Jiao looked at Xie Xiaobao and smiled, "I set up a trap earlier. I didn't expect it but I caught a wild boar."

Just then, Lady Zhao snapped back to reality. She stared at how easily Lu Jiao was carrying this wild boar and her scalp went numb. Just how strong was she? How strong could she get if she was in a physical fight?

Lady Zhao's heart trembled as she mumbled silently to never wrong Lu Jiao. If Lu Jiao ever punches her, she may just lose half her life.

Lady Zhao thought about it and started to wave around the eggs in her hand, "I brought you some eggs."

Lu Jiao declined instantly, "Ah, sister, there's no need."

Lady Zhao insisted, "You saved our Xiaobao yesterday and refused to take any money. Don't reject these few eggs. If you don't accept them, then you don't see me as family."

Lu Jiao thought about it and did not decline again. It was true that she saved Xie Xiaobao. And it was not a big deal to eat a few of their eggs.

Lu Jiao walked into her yard with the boar on her back. Behind her, Lady Zhao followed with an unexplained troubled expression.

Xie Xiaobao didn't understand why his mother was so scared. He followed Lu Jiao into the yard and pursued, "Third aunty, how did you make your trap? You're so capable. Can you teach me?"

Lady Zao's face went dark. There was no way someone would share their hunting strategy.

Lady Zhao was about to scold Xie Xiaobao when Lu Jiao said, "Sure. I will teach you later."

The reason why she was able to catch a wild boar wasn't only because of the trap. It was also due to the baits she used that had been brushed with the spiritual stream. That water had the ability to draw in prey.

Lady Zhao didn't know that and was touched, "Yunjin's wife, ignore him."

Xie Xiaobao angrily turned his head to glare at his mom, "Mother."

Suspicions

Up in front, Lu Jiao tossed the wild boar onto the ground with a thump. Inside the east bedroom, the four little ones heard the noise and dashed outside. The sight of the boar on the ground shocked them. They stood by the door as they were too stunned to leave.

Outside the Xie family's gates, a lot of nearby villagers heard the clamor and rushed over for the show.

"Oh my, what a big boar."

"Did Yunjin's wife catch that? She has such a skill?"

"I heard that she made a trap to capture it."

"What kind of trap is that great?"

"The hunters from our village can't even get a boar this big."

"Who cares about the others? The point is that she caught it."

There were all sorts of voices in the crowd. Someone raised their voice and asked Lu Jiao, "Yunjin's wife, are you going to kill this boar?"

Those words unlocked lots of people's imaginations. Even Lady Zhao started to have some selfish thoughts.

If Lu Jiao killed the boar, then they could take some of that meat back home. It's been so long since people here ate meat.

Though the Xie Village was established right by the mountains, since most villagers did not know how to read, they didn't recognize the stuff that was found on the mountains. Therefore, they didn't dare to touch most of the things there.

The only thing the villagers could count on were the agriculture in the field. However, since the Xie Village was next to the mountains, the humidity was high and the sunlight was never direct. Therefore, they rarely had a full harvest.

Because of these factors, the Xie Village was very poor. So poor that many families couldn't eat a full meal. They didn't even have enough grains, let alone eat meat.

Lu Jiao scanned the villagers who stood around the gates. A portion of the people here weren't very nice, but the majority of them were good enough. Though some of them had fought against the original host before, they've always been nice towards Xie Yunjin and the four children.

Xie Yunjin was born into the Xie Village. The Village will always be his roots even if he does leave in the future.

This was a generation that focused on filial ties. If they didn't emphasize their care for their clan, Xie Yunjin may get impeached even if he does become an official in the palace.

Xie Yunjin had plans to go through the Imperial Examination, become the number one Scholar, then later the First Assistant. So, the Xie Village was important to him. Plus, if the four children wanted to leave here one day, their reputation was very important.

Lu Jiao thought about it and smiled at everyone by the gate. In a bright voice, she announced, "Since everyone wants to eat meat, then I will ask someone to kill this boar."

Just then, she looked over to Lady Zhao, "Laifu's wife, I remember that Xie Hu knew how to kill a boar. Can you ask him to kill this boar for me?"

Lady Zhao nodded happily, "Alright, alright."

She looked up to her daughter-in-law, who stood outside the gates, and ordered, "Chunyan, go get your man and ask him to help Yunjin's wife with the boar."

Xie Hu's wife was named Lin Chunyan. After marrying Xie Hu, she hasn't borne any children and thus had to live with her head down at her in-law's. She never dared to disobey her mother-in-law's words. After she heard Lady Zhao's words, she instantly responded, "Yes, mother."

Lu Jiao glanced around the villagers outside the gate and said, "After we kill the boar, whoever wants meat can come and get some. Since we are all neighbors, I won't ask for much in return – only 15 copper coins per pound."

Pork on the market were normally 20 copper coins per pound. Since wild boars were rarer, the market rate was sometimes even higher.

Who knew that Yunjin's wife would give them a discount right off the bat? Each villager was overjoyed.

"Alright, I will come and get a pound."

"My family will also get a pound so we can satisfy our cravings."

Everyone happily went home first to come back later. Of course, there were some people who were not happy.

Widow Li was very displeased and said angrily, "Yunjin's wife, we are all neighbors from the same village. How can you charge us when you've got such a big boar?"

Widow Li's words gathered some support. Some others chimed in, "Yeah, we all live in the same village. Why would she charge us?"

Lu Jiao raised her head to look at Widow Li, who was outside the gate. This woman was the mother of Shen Xiu, who was after Xie Yunjin. Not only did this mother have an evil tongue, she was also cheap and greedy. Her behavior was not exactly good.

Rumor had it that a lot of men from the village had relationships with her. All because she wanted to gain something from those men.

Lu Jiao snickered and stared at Widow Li, "My Yunjin is gravely wounded. As neighbors, how come I don't see you coming over with silver to help him with treatment? I have a critically ill person at home, and four little ones to feed, how come I don't see you helping out one bit?"

Lu Jiao's words gained some support. Outside the gates, many started to curse at Widow Li. That woman truly was good for nothing.

"Doesn't she want any face? Her greed has no limit."

"She's hungry for others' meat. She sure didn't consider that family's situation at all. How shameless."

Those people's words made Lu Jiao feel a little better. With a kind tone, she said, "I can also sell this wild boar to a restaurant for at least three taels of silver. Once I kill this boar, I can only get half of what I could gain. But as a member of this village, I should not forget my roots. The days have been hard for everyone. Since I hunted down this boar, I should benefit a little from it. So, if you guys still want it, it will be 15 copper coins per pound. You can come later to buy it."

Afterward, Lu Jiao did not pay any attention to the others. It was late. Xie Yunjin and the four little ones haven't eaten breakfast yet.

Lady Zhao took some eggs and followed Lu Jiao into the kitchen. There, she placed the eggs down.

"Ignore that short-sighted woman. She lives as if she's never seen anything good in her life. She wants to take home even the weed by the road, let alone meat."

Lu Jiao nodded, "Yes, I won't pay attention to her. The more attention you give her, the further she crosses the line."

After some chit-chat, Lady Zhao left. Behind her, Lu Jiao boiled a pot of water for Xie Hu to use with the boar. She then made some cornmeal porridge and added boiled eggs to it. Lady Zhao gifted her 20 eggs. Lu Jiao boiled six of them – one for each person in the family.

Once breakfast was made, Xie Lu came over to help her kill the boar. A lot of kids gathered in the garden, this included the four little ones who ran out of the house to watch.

Lu Jiao didn't mind any of this. She made some sugar water and brought it to the east bedroom. Xie Yunjin was hurt badly and needed to stay hydrated. Of course, she didn't forget to add some spiritual stream water in there to help condition his body.

Xie Yunjin was still very fragile. If he didn't make the effort to get better, it would be difficult to go through surgery. So, he must heal well enough before surgery can smoothly occur.

Inside the room, Xie Yunjin heard the commotion outside. It was like New Year's or something.

By now, he had already learned that Lu Jiao caught a wild boar this morning.

Xie Yunjin remembered how Lu Jiao caught two wild chickens and a rabbit yesterday. She even found two ganoderma. Today, she went out and managed to catch a boar.

Was there that much good stuff up in the mountains?

Xie Yunjin narrowed his eyes. The more he thought about it, the stranger he found Lu Jiao to be.

Outside the door, Lu Jiao arrived with sugar water, "You must be thirsty. Drink some water. Breakfast is cooking. Once it's done I'll bring it in and feed you."

Xie Yunjin didn't speak. After Lu Jiao fed him the water, he looked up and stared at Lu Jiao, "How did you catch a wild boar?"

The stare made Lu Jiao nervous. However, when she spoke, her tone was nonchalant, "I made a trap. The wild boar ran into the trap and was stabbed to death by bamboo sticks. I carried it back."

"Yesterday, you got a rabbit, chickens and ganoderma. Today, you got a wild boar. How come I never knew of this skill of yours?"

The Four Little Ones Made Lu Jiao Empty Promises

Xie Yunjin's gaze fixated on Lu Jiao and refused to let any changes in her expression slip by. This woman looked the same as usual. However, the way she handled everything was not at all the same as before.

If it weren't for this face of hers, he was certain that this was not the same woman. But the face on her looked the same as ever. Was there a second person in this world who looked like that?

Lu Jiao saw how Xie Yunjin stared at her. This man must suspect that she wasn't the same person as before. After all, their personalities were so different.

Lu Jiao didn't want to explain to him so she simply sneered, "When have you ever cared about me? Don't act as if you know me better than everyone else. I have always been like this. Before, I lost myself and acted crazy. I'm awake now."

She then glared at Xie Yunjin before she left.

Behind her, Xie Yunjin stared at her silhouette and discovered that even the way she walked was different. Before, despite her roughness and ruthlessness, she was insecure and acted very fidgety and scared.

But now, confidence exuded out of her pores. Everything she did was kind and cheery in nature.

Xie Yunjin couldn't figure out how someone could change so drastically.

Outside the room, Lu Jiao didn't think twice about Xie Yunjin's suspicions. Right now, she just needed to feed them good food and good drinks. When the right time comes, she will perform surgery on Xie Yunjin. Once he is healed, they will no longer cross paths. What was the point of thinking too much?

Lu Jiao went into the yard and found Xie Hu had shaved down the boar. Since the boar was dead, there wasn't much blood to drain. He only needed to shave it and then cut open its belly.

Xie Xiaobao excitedly circled the boar while he chatted with the four little ones. This was because Lu Jiao had just helped Xie Xiaobao get out the fish bone in his throat.

So, Xie Xiaobao was very keen to take care of the quadruplets and talked to them non-stop.

Lu Jiao was very happy to see that. The four little ones stayed home all day and never left the gates. That wasn't ideal.

With Xie Xiaobao taking the lead, he could bring them into the village to play later.

Lu Jiao then called out to the four little ones for breakfast, "First, Second, Third, and Fourth Born, it's time to eat breakfast."

The four little ones were reluctant to leave. However, they didn't dare to defy Lu Jiao's orders so they hesitantly went to the kitchen for food.

Lu Jiao found this funny, "You can come out and watch after you eat. It's not like I'm not letting you look."

The four little ones' eyes brightened. They rushed into the kitchen to eat their breakfast. By the time Lu Jiao entered, the four of them had drank half their porridge.

However, nobody touched the eggs that were placed in the middle of the table. Lu Jiao took the eggs to peel and then placed four peeled ones into the bowl.

"After the cornmeal, each one of you should eat an egg."

The four little ones were stunned and stared at Lu Jiao in shock. The eggs were for them?

Though the last few days they've eaten well, without Lu Jiao's orders, they didn't dare to peel the eggs to eat. They were certain that the evil woman boiled the eggs for herself to eat.

They didn't expect that the eggs were for them. Plus, who knew that the evil woman would peel the eggs for them?

The four little ones gawked at the white eggs and then carefully looked up to Lu Jiao. She didn't appear as evil as she used to be.

Lu Jiao ignored their thoughts and patted their heads. With a gentle voice, she said, "Once we get more money, all of you can eat an egg every morning."

The First Born heard Lu Jiao's words and raised his head to speak loudly, "We will not eat the eggs. Sell the eggs and buy daddy medicine."

Then, his dad would be cured.

Lu Jiao's heart felt so sour. These boney kids who looked like baby chickens were more worried about their dad's injuries.

These children have big hearts. Lu Jiao couldn't understand how these children would end up as villains who commit all sorts of evil.

Lu Jiao thought about it and continued to speak gently, "As you can see, I can hunt. From now on, our family no longer lacks the money. We have enough to buy your daddy medicine. So you need to stop worrying and eat whatever you are given."

The four little ones quickly looked up to her, "If you can help cure dad, we will let you hit us in the future."

"Even if you hit us, we won't curse at you."

"That's right. We will be good and listen to you."

"When we grow up, we will also take care of you."

Lu Jiao found this hilarious. Were these all empty promises? Their brains sure were sharp.

"Enough now. Didn't you want to watch the boar get shaved? You can go and watch once you're done eating."

The four fellas instantly forgot how they made Lu Jiao empty promises. With a super speed, they finished their porridge and eggs. As they ate, they wondered. This evil woman is no longer evil Should they call her "mom" if she continues to be nice?

They didn't have time to think too much before a loud shout outside interrupted their thoughts, "I'm opening up the belly! Opening up the belly!"

The four little ones hurriedly finished breakfast and dashed outside.

Behind them, Lu Jiao sat down to eat. After she ate her cornmeal and egg, she washed the dishes. She scooped out some more food to take to the east bedroom and feed Xie Yunjin.

"I made cornmeal porridge and egg for breakfast. Today, I'll go into town to sell the ganoderma. With the money, I'll buy some rice and flour. You and the babies aren't healthy enough to only eat cornmeal. It doesn't have much nutrition."

Lu Jiao then started to peel the egg. Xie Yunjin remained on his bed and squinted his eyes at her. She acted at ease and confident. The person was still the same but inside that body, she didn't appear to be that person anymore.

Xin Yunjin narrowed his eyes subconsciously. Just who was she? Her appearance was the same as before but everything else appeared to be different.

Lu Jiao ignored Xie Yunjin. No matter how wild his thoughts were, there was no way he would think that she was transmigrated here.

At the most, he suspected that she had devious intentions. So she didn't care what he thought of her.

After she fed him the cornmeal and egg, Lu Jiao offered kindly, "If you need anything, just call for me."

Xie Yunjin softly agreed, "Okay."

Lu Jiao left with the dirty dishes. However, before she could get out of the room, she heard a thin voice call to her, "Third sister-in-law? Are you here?"

Lu Jiao recognized this voice to be Xie Yunjin's sister, Xie Lan. That woman was just as mean as her mother. In the past, Xie Yunjin treated her extremely nicely. However, ever since Xie Yunjin was wounded, Xie Lan never came to visit.

For her to visit now meant she had selfish intentions.

Lu Jiao faked a smile and glanced at Xie Yunjin. In the past, Xie Yunjin treated his sister way better than he treated the original host.

Xie Yunjin's brows were heavy as coldness exuded off him.

Lu Jiao shouted towards the door, "Come in."

Outside, Xie Lan pursed her lips. She wasn't too willing to go inside. The third brother was paralyzed, which meant his room must be dirty and smelly. Should she go in?

But if she didn't go in, how could she tell her third sister-in-law to give them the boar's hindlegs? The thought of pork made Xie Lan salivate. It's been a long time since she had pork.

With that as her motivation, Xie Lan didn't think further about the mess and the scent.

She lifted her leg to go into the east bedroom. Once she was there, she found Xie Yunjin's cold stare. Xie Lan found this version of her third brother to be a little unfamiliar. However, she remembered that Xie Yunjin was paralyzed and figured it was normal for him to behave this way.

So Shameless

Xie Lan grinned and greeted Xie Yunjin, "Third brother, how are you doing? Are you better?"

Xie Yunjin's lips curled up sarcastically. So this was the little sister he spoiled in the past. She sure had a wolf heart.

"What do you think? Do I look better?"

Xie Yunjin asked Xie Lan instead, which stumped Xie Lan. She was a little frustrated at her third brother's tone. Whatever, since he was injured, his sister decided not to fight him on this.

Xie Lan ignored Xie Yunjin and turned to speak to Lu Jiao, "Third sister-in-law, I heard you hunted down a wild boar. Mom had spoken – keep the hindlegs of the boar for the family. Sell the rest and keep the money for third brother's treatment."

Lu Jiao was speechless as she stared at Xie Lan. Just how shameless did she have to be to say something so sick and delirious? That family forcefully moved them out and now they have the audacity to come over here and ask for meat?

Lu Jiao bluntly snickered, "Xie Lan, I want to ask you, where do you get the audacity to speak such words?"

Xie Lan's expression changed as she stared at Lu Jiao, "What do you mean by that?"

Lu Jiao sarcastically continued, "I hunted the boar. Why do I have to give you the hindlegs? I have to do that just because you have a big face with thick skin? You moved us out and gave us only 5 taels of silver. Now, I don't even have enough money to get treatment for your third brother. Despite all this, you have the audacity to come here and ask for meat?"

Xie Lan's face dropped after she heard Lu Jiao's words. She glared at Lu Jiao and angrily said, "Lu Jiao, you are being unfilial. You captured a wild boar and as your parents, they only asked for the hindlegs. You are refusing that small request from them? If this news gets around, aren't you afraid that others would curse you as disobedient?"

Then, Xie Lan turned to look at Xie Yunjin and said angrily, "Third brother, why aren't you setting her straight?"

Xie Yunjin coldly snickered. There was no warmth in his eyes.

"If you want meat, pay for it. Alternatively, you can carry me back and treat my legs. Then I will give you the whole pig."

Xie Lan was furious and her eyes spat out fire. However, when she thought that she would lose out on the taste of pork, Xie Lan spoke without filter.

"I see how unfilial and disobedient you are. You have meat yet you do not give any to your parents. Your rudeness is going to be a joke to others."

Lu Jiao was exasperated and shouted at Xie Lan, "Get the hell out of here."

Why would Xie Lan leave when she failed to get the pork she came for? Dirty words started to shoot out of her mouth, "You ungrateful rats! You eat meat and you are not even letting your mom and dad drink the soup. I'm going to go out there and tell everyone just how you treat your parents."

Lu Jiao was too lazy to speak to this shameless piece of crap. She walked up to Xie Lan and pulled her hair to drag her outside.

"You want to tell everyone how we are ungrateful? Let's go. Let's speak outside."

Xie Lan was defenseless towards Lu Jiao's violence and was forcefully dragged out by the hair. She felt like her scalp was almost torn off and started to scream in pain.

"Lu Jiao, you fat woman! Let me go! Let me go this instant!"

She struggled and tried to hit Lu Jiao. However, instead of her strikes landing on Lu Jiao, Lu Jiao slapped her a few times. Lu Jiao smartly avoided her face and hit the back of her head instead.

Xie Lan stopped. She was being dragged out and was hit, this made her begin to cry uncontrollably.

"Lu Jiao, you b!tch! Let me go, ahhh, let me go."

Inside the yard, a lot of villagers came out to buy pork. When they saw the fight between the sisters-in-law, they started to gossip, "What is going on?"

"Why is Lu Jiao hitting Xie Lan?"

While Lu Jiao wasn't the best person, the villagers also disliked Xie Lan. This woman was obviously a countryside woman with her being dark, skinny, and ugly.

However, she loved makeup and was very prideful. She thought since she was the sister of a scholar, she didn't want to marry a commoner and wanted to marry into town.

She was even picky with the people from town. She wanted the person to be from the city, but also wanted a lot of money and an endowment. With her ugly face, nobody from the city wanted her. In the end, she ended up unmarried at 17 and she was very mean to everyone she talked to.

When everyone saw her getting hit, everyone thought she deserved it. However, there were some people who came out to break up the fight.

"Yunjin's wife, let go. What's happening here?"

Lu Jiao let go and pointed at Xie Lan. Towards the crowd in the yard, she said, "This shameless woman came running asking me to give her the boar's hindlegs."

Xie Lan started to cry, "It's for mom and dad, not for me. As the daughter-in-law of the Xie family, it's within your responsibility to give your mother and father-in-law the hindlegs of the boar you hunted."

Lu Jiao ruthlessly fought back, "The audacity to even speak those words… Xie Yunjin was wounded and the family forced him out of the house. There is absolutely nothing useful and of value where we live now. All we can do is for me to get something good and trade it for money so I can buy him medicine and food."

"You guys open your mouths and ask for hindlegs… how come you didn't know to bring money to help your brother get treatments?"

"Today, I, Lu Jiao, am going to make a statement here. From today onwards, do not dream of getting anything from my family. Xie Yunjin is wounded. We have a critically ill and four babies who rely on me to figure out a way to keep them alive. Yet somehow, you guys have the face to come here and ask for food. I'd rather hit my head and die."

Lu Jiao's words caused some chatters to go around the yard. Most of the villagers were on her side.

Xie Yunjin's legs were so gravely hurt yet his parents only gave him five taels of silver. Lu Jiao had to make money to buy him medicine and keep the four children alive. It was so difficult for her.

The Second Grandma walked into the yard and said to Xie Lan, "Go home and tell your parents: if they want Yunjin to be filial in the future, they should bring him and his family back home."

Many people in the crowd nodded in agreement. That was a reasonable request. If they pick him up now and treat his legs, Xie Yunjin will continue to respect them in the future.

Xie Lan heard the murmurs and her face dropped. She continued to cry as she picked herself off the ground and left. At the entrance, she turned her head to stare at Lu Jiao, "Lu Jiao, just you wait. Sooner or later, I will ask my parents to tell my third brother to get rid of you."

Lu Jiao rolled her eyes. She wished that Xie Yunjin would get rid of her. That would save her a lot of trouble.

Many people in the yard started to comfort Lu Jiao and told her to ignore Xie Lan.

The Second Grandma came as well. Lu Jiao thanked everyone with a kind and respectful attitude. Many people from the village didn't like her before but found her to have changed.

Just then, Xie Lu had cleaned up the entire boar. After he opened up the belly, he pulled out all the organs and chopped the meat into pieces.

Lu Jiao said to the villagers, "Alright, the boar is prepped. However much you guys want, just let Xie Hu know."

Lu Jiao didn't count too much on the money she'd make from the pork. If she wanted to make the most money, she would've taken the boar to the restaurant, or sold it to a wealthy family.

She would have earned more money by selling the pig whole. A dead boar's meat wasn't worth as much money – at most, it was worth half a whole boar.

She didn't count on the boar to make her money. She counted on the ganoderma from her space to do that.

Leave it up to the Heavens

After hearing what Lu jiao had said, Xie Lu started to manage the sale of the meat.

Lu Jiao brought the dirty dishes to the kitchen to wash. She then brewed medicine for Xie Yunjin. As she brewed, she thought about how she'll go into the city to sell the ganoderma this afternoon and would return late, she brewed an extra portion for tonight.

Outside, Xie Hu was more than occupied with the sale of the pork. These days, the people lacked oil, and therefore, the fatty parts of the boar were the easiest to sell. The ribs, legs, and organs were harder to sell.

Though the boar was large in size, it couldn't meet all the demand. It didn't take long for the entire boar to almost be sold. The last bit was snatched by Lu Jiao.

"This part isn't for sale."

The part Lu Jiao managed to take was around one pound. It wasn't right for Xie Hu to leave with nothing after he helped her with the boar and all.

Lu Jiao gave Xie Hu the pound of pork she snatched, then gifted him an additional two pounds of ribs and a pork hock.

"Thank you for your help today."

The reason why Lu Jiao killed the boar and sold the meat was that she wanted to establish good relationships with the villagers. After all, she'll live here for a while and her four little ones will need to play around with the other kids.

This place was Xie Yunjin's roots. If any bad rumors about him get out, it may negatively affect his future.

As for Xie Laogen's family… Lu Jiao wasn't worried. They were the ones who exiled Xie Yunjin here.

Xie Hu looked at the meat Lu Jiao gave him and searched for his money. Lu Jiao stopped him, "Just take it. Or else I'll be too scared to ask you for help in the future."

The Second Grandma noticed Lu Jiao's personality and knew how she hated to owe anyone favors. She was good-natured so why did she act like that in the past?

The Second Grandma couldn't understand this and said to Xie Hu, "Alright, it's a gift from your third aunty-in-law. Just take it."

Xie Hu happily responded, "OK."

After Xie Hu left, the Second Grandma noticed something. Lu Jiao had sold the entire boar and there was no meat left for the family.

"You're all out of meat?"

Lu Jiao froze. She lifted her head and saw the four little ones pout in the corner and stand around sadly.

The four little ones met Lu Jiao's gaze and ran away. It appeared that they were angry.

Lu Jiao found this funny and said to the Second Grandma, "We still got the head, ribs, hocks, and the organs."

All the stuff the villagers didn't want.

The Second Grandma sighed, "Those aren't anything good. There's no fat on those parts."

Lu Jiao didn't think so. Braised pork ribs, pork hock stew with beans, braised pig head, and braised intestines… All those dishes were yummy.

It was true that she lacked spices though. Where would she find peppercorn, bay leaves, and anise?

Lu Jiao smiled at the Second Grandma, "All those can be made into tasty dishes. Once I cook it, I will give you some to try."

"Alright, then you should clean this up." The Second Grandma looked at the pile of mess and asked caringly, "Should I ask Chunyan to come and help?"

Lu Jiao shook her head, "No it's okay. I can do it."

Xie Hu did a good job and there wasn't that much left to clean.

After some more chitchats, the Second Grandma left. Lu Jiao turned to go to the east bedroom and found the four little ones listless by the head of the bed. When they saw Lu Jiao come in, they looked away and avoided her. It was obvious that they were mad but they didn't dare to say it.

Lu Jiao said, "You're angry? There's still meat left."

The First Born flashed her a look and whispered, "Those are meat nobody else wanted. They don't taste good."

Lu Jiao smiled and said, "If I cook it, you still think it wouldn't taste good? Did you find anything I made you these few days bad tasting?"

The four little ones shook their heads. This evil woman's cooking was delicious – much better than what the Xie family was capable of making.

Lu Jiao continued, "I can make what we have into really tasty food. Do not worry. Plus, did you forget that we also have two chickens and a rabbit? Today, I'll make you chicken soup first."

Her words brightened the four little ones' eyes. They stopped being mad.

Lu Jiao was about to leave since that's been dealt with. When she turned and saw Xie Yunjin's tense expression and frigid body, she went up and asked, "What's wrong? Are you uncomfortable somewhere?"

Xie Yunjin stared at her, opened his mouth but then shook his head. His expression, however, remained unpleasant.

Lu Jiao remembered how he acted when he needed to use the washroom before. Could it be that he needed to pee again?

"You need to pee?"

Xie Yunjin shook his head but remained speechless. Lu Jiao thought about it and remembered that these past few days, Xie Yunjin hasn't pooped. He likely wanted to poop.

"You want to poop?"

Lu Jiao's words changed Xie Yunjin's expression. His face turned from green to black, then back to green.

Lu Jiao understood based on his reaction. However, she hasn't had a chance to make a simple toilet with the bamboo leaves she got from the mountains. What should she do?

Lu jiao stared at Xie Yunjin and thought about it. Currently, the biggest issue was that Xie Yunjin had a concussion and couldn't move. Every little movement resulted in extreme dizziness and nausea. His broken ribs and internal bleeding, on the other hand, could be endured.

"What if I bring a bucket inside? I'll help you and you can sit on it."

That was the only way.

Xie Yunjin didn't decline. He had no other option and he was sure he couldn't hold it in much longer.

Lu Jiao went outside to get a bucket.

Inside the room, Xie Yunjin was hopeless and accepted his fate. With his eyes closed, he decided to leave everything up to the heavens.

Lu Jiao didn't laugh at him. This was a critical issue with most disabled patients. Some people were unable to do it while bedridden so they just held it in.

Lu Jiao walked to the bed and picked Xie Yunjin up.

Xie Yunjin widened his eyes in shock, "What are you doing?"

Lu Jiao was speechless and her lips stretched out, "Helping you up. How do you get down otherwise?"

Xie Yunjin struggled, "Put me down. I can do it myself."

Lu Jiao remembered the night when this man got out of bed to kill her. Her face froze a little.

However, she didn't let Xie Yunjin go and continued to hold him. It wasn't that she wanted to do it, it was that this man was so injured that any major movement could worsen the situation.

"Enough now. If you struggle any more, you are going to pass out."

If it weren't for the spiritual stream water that's been conditioning him, he would've died or became fully paralyzed after that night's chaos.

The only reason he was still alive was because she's been secretly feeding him the stream water.

Lu Jiao then picked up Xie Yunjin princess style.

Xie Yunjin was in shock. This was the first time he first hand experienced Lu Jiao's strength. This woman was this strong? How come he never noticed this before?

Lu Jiao carried Xie Yunjin to the bucket and put him down. She then started to untie Yunjin's pants.

Xie Yunjin was astonished and pressed onto her hands. His lips were pursed as he stared at Lu Jiao coldly.

It was as if Lu Jiao was an ill-willed female pervert.

Blessed by the Gods

Lu Jiao was speechless and her lips twitched, "Can we please hurry up and finish this? I still need to go and kill the chicken."

Xie Yunjin didn't move and shouted angrily, "You, get out. I'll do it myself."

Lu Jiao glanced at him, then at his legs. His legs were crushed into pieces and he could not stand up. If it weren't for the fact that she held onto him, he wouldn't even be able to stand still. How could she just leave and let him take care of this himself?

Lu Jiao was about to speak when Xie Erzhu's voice arose from outside, "Third brother, how are you doing?"

When he walked in, he found Xie Yunjin and Lu Jiao wrapped around each other tightly.

Xie Erzhu's face instantly turned red as he subconsciously walked backward.

Inside the room, Xie Yunjin called out, "Second brother, wait a second."

Xie Erzhu was between a rock and a hard place as he peeked back into the room. Xie Yunjin called out again, "Second brother, come and help me out."

Lu Jiao saw how persistent Xie Yunjin was and knew that this guy truly didn't want her help. If that was the case then Xie Erzhu could help.

This time, Lu Jiao also spoke up, "Second brother, help us out."

Since both of them asked for him, Xie Erzhu walked in.

When he saw the bucket behind Xie Yunjin, Xie Erzhu understood right away. So he was just trying to use the washroom. Not sneaking around doing the other thing.

Lu Jiao asked Xie Erzhu, "Hold onto him until he's on top of the bucket. His legs are broken and he cannot stand up. He'll have to rely on you holding him.

Xie Erzhu instantly nodded, "Sister-in-law, no worries. I know what to do."

Lu Jiao handed Xie Yunjin over to Xie Erzhu and left the room. As she left, she took the four little ones.

The four little ones were nice enough to know that their dad didn't want to be watched. So they followed.

Lu Jiao didn't rush into dealing with the pig organs. She first slaughtered a chicken before she cleaned up everything. The pig head and hocks were nicely cut by Xie Hu. Most of the boar could be boiled but the intestines were difficult to clean.

Lu Jiao used wood ash to clean the intestines. Flour and salt were precious to be used to clean but wood ash was just as effective.

After she cleaned up the intestines, she snuck everything into her space when nobody was paying attention. It was summer so they could go bad easily if not dealt with.

It was times like this when Lu Jiao realized how great having a space was. In the summer, it could be used as a fridge.

Inside the east bedroom, Xie Yunjin was done. Xie Erzhu carried him to bed and cleaned him up. He then took out the bucket.

Lu Jiao very much wanted to give Xie Erzhu some good food. However, since he lived with the other Xie's, whatever food she gave him likely will end up with the rest of the family.

Lu Jiao thought about it and said, "Second brother, I should give you some pork ribs. But if I give it to you, I doubt you will get to eat much of it. How about you come visit again tonight. I'm going to braise the pork and I'll pack you a box to bring home for your wife and kids."

Xie Erzhu waved his hand, "No, no need. Save everything for my third brother."

Lu Jiao smiled, "I have a lot of food. Plus, tell your daughters, Da Ya and Er Ya to come and play. I have good food to give them. If they don't come, it's impossible for me to give those to you."

Xie Erzhu instantly shook his head, "There's no need. They're eating at home."

Lu Jiao unhappily stared at Xie Erzhu, "Second brother, are we strangers? I originally wanted to ask a favor from you. If you act like this, it's hard for me to ask."

Xie Erzhu asked right away, "Sister-in-law, what do you need?"

Lu Jiao eyed Xie Yunjin and said, "I don't need much help taking care of Yunjin. But it's a hassle to help him use the washroom. I hope it's not too much trouble for you to come every night and help out with that."

Xie Erzhu was in a daze, "Washroom?"

Lu Jiao turned to look at Xie Yunjin, whose face was pressed into a line as he stared at her coldly.

His reaction made Xie Erzhu understand what "washroom" meant. He nodded, "Okay, I will come over every night."

"Great, then remember to come tonight." Xie Erzhu was about to wave his hand to decline and say that the third brother had already gone today so there was no need.

However, on the bed, Xie Yunjin opened his mouth, "Second brother, come tonight. In the future, tell Da Ya and Er Ya to come and play with the quadruplets."

Xie Erzhu had always respected Xie Yunjin. He had always found the third brother to be smart and he was always willing to listen to him. The moment Xie Yunjin asked, Xie Erzhu agreed, "Okay."

"Then get back. Don't let them find out and curse at you."

Xie Yunjin didn't even mention his parents by their titles. Xie Erzhu wanted to take their parents' side and say something nice but in the end, he said nothing and left.

Inside the room, Lu Jiao walked to the bed and said to Xie Yunjin, "I'm going to the market this afternoon to sell the ganoderma. We are also running out of your medicine and grains. Plus, the four little ones don't have much to wear so I plan on getting each one of them two new sets of clothes."

Lu Jiao paused there before she cautioned Xie Yunjin, "Keep an eye on the four babies. Don't let them run around too much."

Xie Yunjin narrowed his eyes at the woman by the bed. Her face was obviously the same large face as before.

But these days, she's been kind and bright. The words that came out of her mouth have been anything but exasperating. These days, when calm, he could tell that she cared about the four children. The way she cared for them wasn't fake, but very genuine.

Xie Yunjin couldn't understand how the same person could have such two different sides. He couldn't help but to frown and respond lightly, "Okay."

After he responded, he suddenly remembered what Lu Jiao said before. She was so delirious in the past because she loved him one-sidedly and received no affection back.

He quickly denied that thought in his head. The woman before him exuded confidence. That confidence was deep in her bones. Her every movement displayed her excellent upbringing and education. She definitely was not raised by a regular rural family.

Xie Yunjin felt like even the girls from the cities could not match her graceful mannerism. So there was no way that this woman was the Lu Jiao from before.

After she spoke to Xie Yunjin, Lu Jiao turned and left. Behind her, Xie Yunjin stared at her relaxed, elegant, and fearless silhouette.

A silhouette like that confirmed something in his head. This woman wasn't Lu Jiao. So who was she?

Xie Yunjin pondered and finally, something clicked.

He thought of something he's read before. There once was an idiot who woke up one day and was no longer stupid. This man ended up being the smartest of his class and went to school.

In foreign religion, there was a story that a mute one day suddenly started to speak. Not only so, the mute knew how to articulate every word, had perfect speech, and understood how to communicate clearly.

People called these cases people who've been blessed by the Gods.

When Xie Yunjin read those stories, he thought that those people were possessed by wandering souls. Could it be that Lu Jiao's body had been inhabited by one of those lost souls?

Bamboo Copter

Xie Yunjin thought it over carefully and suddenly remembered how Lu Jiao hurt her head until it bled. That day was when she started to behave irregularly. The Lu Jiao today may really not be who she was before.

That possibility garnered much hostility inside Xie Yunjin as his dark eyes reflected with coldness.

Very quickly, however, he recalled that Lu Jiao was not cruel and violent like she was before. On the contrary, she didn't seem to possess much maliciousness. Towards the quadruplets, she even showed affection and love.

Those thoughts calmed Xie Yunjin down. He relaxed a little but remained guarded.

Even if that person has no poor intentions now, who knows what she'll be like in the future? He had to be careful. If she remains the way she was, he may consider the possibility of sparing her life.

After Xie Yunjin thought this through, Xie Yunjin closed his eyes to rest up.

Outside, Lu Jiao wasn't aware of any of this. She took some bamboo and glue and started to make a portable toilet that Xie Yunjin could use in bed.

The quadruplets curiously watched her work.

Since the four little ones were bored, Lu Jiao casually made four bamboo copters.

"Come here. This is a bamboo copter. This is for you to play with."

The four little ones stared at the bamboo copter in her hand. Lu Jiao spun it between her palms and the copter flew upwards.

The quadruplets' eyes flickered as they excitedly gawked at the suspending bamboo copter.

"You guys can compete and see who's bamboo copter flies the highest."

The four little ones were no longer terrified of Lu Jiao so they took over the toys and started to play around with them. It only took a little while before they all started to laugh

The secluded and lonely yard became lively right away. Lu Jiao kept an eye on them while she made the portable toilet. She also made a list of what she'll need to buy when she visits the town.

Lu Jiao made a mental list and finished the portal toilet. After she put everything away, the day was still early so she decided to make a visit to the village leader.

Since she made enemies with the Xie family, it would be good for her to befriend the leader.

Lu Jiao packed up a pork hock and one of the wild rabbits she caught yesterday. She covered them with a large cloth.

"I'm going to make a trip to the Village Leader's home. Do you want to come along?"

Lu Jiao asked the four happily playing children while holding her basket.

The four little ones quickly exchanged glances. The Second, Third, and Fourth Borns hesitated but the First Born shook his head.

"I'm going to keep daddy company."

The other ones also shook their heads when they heard his response. "We are going to stay with daddy."

Lu Jiao didn't persist and walked away with her basket. The Fourth Born took a look at his brothers and then suddenly ran towards Lu Jiao. he then grabbed Lu Jiao's hand.

In shock, Lu Jiao lowered her head to look at him and found him blinking his large eyes at her.

Lu Jiao grinned, "Are you saying you want to come with me?"

The Fourth Born once again glanced at his brothers before he nodded aggressively to show her that he wanted to go.

Lu Jiao didn't decline, "Alright, then you can have some fun outside."

Behind them, the Second and Third Born angrily shouted, "Brother, look at the Fourth Born!"

The First Born peeked at Lu Jiao before he peeked at the Fourth Born. He thought that the woman likely won't sell the Fourth Born so he nodded, "If he wants to go, then he can go."

He then said to the Second and Third Born, "If you guys want to go, you can too. I'll guard daddy."

The Second and Third Born wavered. They wanted to go outside and play too. However, it wasn't nice to leave their brother alone.

Lu Jiao ignored the hesitating boys and walked out the gate with the Fourth Born. Behind her, the Second and Third Born were flustered. Without any capacity to think about their brother anymore, they chased after Lu Jiao.

"I, I want to go too."

"I want to go."

Lu Jiao turned to look at the Second and Third Born and found much anxiousness in their giant eyes. She saw how their faces looked similar to her own face from her previous life and her heart softened.

In her previous life, she didn't even have a man, let alone children. To suddenly see children who looked like herself was a strange feeling.

"Okay, come then. After we visit the Village Leader, I'll need to come back and cook."

The Second and Third Born giggled but suddenly felt bad that they'd leave their brother behind. They turned back around.

The First Born had already gone into the bedroom. So the Second and Third Born followed Lu Jiao and headed to the Village Leader's home.

The Village Leader, Xie Fugui, was considered to be the same generation as Xie Yunjin. With his wife, they had two sons and a daughter. They were fair and just with a good reputation in this village.

Before Xie Yunjin got injured, Xie Fugui placed a lot of hope on him. He thought that if one day, Xie Yunjin could leave the Xie Village and become an official, then the Xie Village could, in turn, get wealthy.

He never imagined for a minute that Xie Yunjin would get injured.

Xie Fugui was sadder about that than Xie Yunjin's mom and dad.

Due to how Xie Laogen and his family reacted to their son's injuries, Xie Fugui very much pitied Xie Yunjin.

When Xie Fugui saw Lu Jiao, he asked with concern, "Yunjin's wife, are you having trouble with anything? If you need help, you can speak up and I'll try to help."

Lu Jiao shook her head, "Village Leader, it's nothing. It's just that we've been relying on you for everything and never did anything in return. There was only a boar hock left so I wanted to give it to you. Leader, please don't mind it."

Xie Fugui instantly declined, "Take it back and use it to help Yunjin recover. We don't need it."

Inside the room, Xie Fugui's wife, Lady Zhang, nodded in agreement, "Yunjin's wife, take it back. We bought a pound of pork from you and we haven't eaten it."

Since Lu Jiao brought it, of course, she wasn't going to take it back. Determined, she said, "Leader, sister, as you know, I know how to hunt in the mountains. So really, this isn't anything valuable. Whatever Yunjin wants to eat, I will hunt it down in the mountains. So please accept this. Or else I will be too shy to speak up when I need your help in the future."

Xie Fugui and his wife exchanged glances. In the end, Xie Fugui asked Lady Zhang, "Take it then. See what vegetables we have that can be given to her. They don't have much vegetables."

Lu Jiao didn't decline. She was worried that if she did, they could reject the gift.

Lady Zhang took the basket to the kitchen and ended up finding a wild rabbit. She screamed.

Xie Fugui unhappily walked in, "What are you screaming about?"

Lady Zhang showed him the injured rabbit, "Yunjin's wife also gave us a rabbit."

From the garden, Xie Fugui's two grandsons cheered and dashed over, "Rabbit! A fat rabbit! We finally have some meat to eat."

They had just bought some pork and now they have rabbit meat. Wow, amazing.

Lady Zhang saw how her grandsons reacted and wanted to keep the rabbit. However, that might not be appropriate. She looked towards Xie Fugui.

Lu Jiao walked inside and smiled, "If you are uncomfortable accepting this, then please trade me with more vegetables. We are very low on vegetables."

Picking Bones Out of Eggs

Lady Zhao instantly smiled, "Okay."

She placed the rabbit back into the kitchen and took the basket to pick out some vegetables from her backyard.

By the front door, Xie Fugui asked about Xie Yunjin's conditions caringly, "Though Yunjin's going through a major crisis, it doesn't mean he won't do well in the future. Talk to the doctors from Baohe Tang about his legs and see if they can perform surgery. You should treat him well so that once he succeeds, you can enjoy life with him."

Lu Jiao's lips twitched at those words. She did not intend to enjoy life with him. She would be happy if he would leave her alone and not hurt her.

"I got it, Leader."

Inside the garden, Xie Fugui's two grandsons, Datou and Maomao, stared at the three children's bamboo copters.

Lu Jiao ordered her children, "Second, Third and Fourth Borns, let the older brothers play with the copters."

The three children frowned at once. This was the first time they'd ever received toys and they didn't want to share.

However, due to Lu Jiao's powerful tone, they didn't dare to say no, but their faces were full of unwillingness.

Lu Jiao's voice softened as she explained, "You should share your toys with friends. Only then will Datou and Maomao share what they have with you in the future."

The three children finally agreed. The group of kids soon started to have fun together and the garden filled with laughter.

Xie Fugui watched all this happen and turned back to stare at Lu Jiao. Yujin's wife seemed to have changed. Before, she truly acted like an unreasonable shrew. These days, she turned into a different person.

Could it be that she changed after Yunjin's calamity?

That was the only thing that made sense to Xie Fugui. On the inside though, he felt grateful. He heard that Yunjin's wife could read and knew how to educate her children. That meant the two families could arrange playdates.

Just then, Lady Zhao walked back with the basket full of vegetables.

"Yunjin's wife, once you're done eating these, come back and get more. I planted a lot of vegetables and they need to be harvested before they get over-ripe."

She handed the basket back to Lu Jiao and suggested, "I saw that your garden was rather empty. You could plant some vegetables."

Lu Jiao nodded right away, "That's what I was thinking. This afternoon, I plan on heading into town and getting some pickaxes. I will plow the land and plant accordingly. It'll be easier for us to get vegetables that way."

Lady Zhao agreed, "That's exactly right."

Lady Zhao remembered that the bullock cart was going to town this afternoon and offered, "Our bullock cart is going to town this afternoon. Come back then."

Xie Fugui owned a bullock. When farming was busy, the bullock would help with the plantation. Other times, the family would give rides to the villagers. Of course, they normally charged a small fee of two tokens. If five to six people ask to go into town, they would make the trip.

Xie Fugui also said to Lu Jiao, "Then come this afternoon and get a ride from Tieniu. It'll save you a lot of time."

Xie Tieniu was Xie Fugui's son. He was normally the person who steered the bullock to and from town.

"Alright. Thank you both. I am going to head back first and prepare some food to eat."

"Go back now."

The mother and the three children got ready to leave. Datou and Maomao, however, continued to stare at the bamboo copters.

Lu Jiao took a look at the children and found they had held tightly onto their bamboo copters. Obviously, they were terrified she'd asked them to give the copters to Daotou and Maomao.

Lu Jiao understood them. It was the first time they received toys and they didn't want to just give them away. Even if she made new ones, they wouldn't mean the same thing to the children. So she didn't ask them to give the bamboo copters away.

"Datou, Maomao, how about I make you two new ones this afternoon?"

Lu Jiao calculated in her head and realized that technically, Datou and Maomao should refer to her as "grandma".

That thought made her depressed. How could she be a grandma at such a young age? She quickly shut up.

Datou and Maomao, on the other hand, were very happy. They nodded violently and continued to call out to her.

"Third grandma, don't forget to bring those this afternoon!"

"Third grandma, don't forget!"

Lu Jiao then left with the three children, who were very happy.

On the way back, a lot of people greeted Lu Jiao and Lu Jiao responded to them politely.

Of course, there were also a lot of people who didn't like the sight of her and continued to speak poorly.

"Wow, the scholar's wife just gifted presents to the Village Leader. Hehe, so she doesn't give anything to her parents but gives out things to outsiders."

Lu Jiao looked over and saw that the person who spoke was neighbor Luo Guihua. She never got along with the original host.

The reason why they didn't get along was because Luo Guihua and the original host's mother never got along.

When they were younger, Luo Guihua had her eyes on the original host's father. However, the mother of the host got to him first, which resulted in Luo Guihua and the host's mother hating each other. Afterward, Luo Guihua married into the Xie Village.

That should've been the end of it. Except, the original host also ended up marrying into the Xie Village – the only scholar from the Village at that. Luo Guihua was angry then. Every time she ran into the original host, she would mock and taunt her. Of course, the original host never treated her kindly either.

Every time Luo Guihua said anything, the original host would curse back, which resulted in a very vile relationship between them.

Lu Jiao recalled this woman from her memories and sarcastically commented, "It's not news that sons are not filial to unkind fathers. As the parent, you need to act like a guardian if you want the next generation to respect you. Growing up, I've never run into an instance where the parents would force their injured son to move out of their home. Of course, Aunty Guihua is that kind of person so you naturally don't know what it feels like to be on the receiving end."

Lu Jiao then walked away with her children. Behind her, Luo Guihua cursed loudly, "You dumb fat b!tch! You think you're in heaven just because you married a scholar?! Don't play coy with me! You're a skank who stole another woman's man!"

After she finished cursing, she walked to Xie Laogen's home.

How Cunning

At Xie Laogen's home, Lady Ruan was in a fit because her daughter failed to bring back the pork hock she wanted. Furious, Lady Ruan raged.

Later, Luo Guihua came over and vented more about their daughter-in-law, which made Lady Ruan throw another fit.

Her eldest daughter-in-law, Chen Liu, and her youngest daughter, Xie Lan, agreed with her and added fuel to the fire.

Inside the yard, Xie Laogen was tired of such ugly words and stopped them from talking so vilely.

Of course, Lu Jiao wasn't aware of this. She took her children and returned home to make lunch.

For lunch, she made eggs with chives, chicken soup, and brown rice.

Since Lu Jiao soaked the brown rice ahead of time, it tasted decent after it was steamed.

The quadruplets were more than satisfied. As they ate, they told the First Born how much fun they had at Xie Fugui's home. The atmosphere was rather chatty and clamorous.

Inside the bedroom, Xie Yunjin watched all this happen and his heart couldn't help but to soften. Now when he looked at Lu Jiao, there was way less coldness.

While Lu Jiao fed him food, she told him what happened in the village.

"It looks like to me that the families in the village are rather poor?"

Now, Xie Yunjin no longer detested Lu Jiao like before. The person he hated was the original Lu Jiao. The person before him was most certainly not the old Lu Jiao. So the hate he felt in his chest was rather depleted.

"Yes, the Xie Village is near the mountains. There's not much hydration in the air so crops are hard to grow and the days are hard."

Originally, he had planned to work hard and pass the exams required to become an official. Then, he would be able to provide some support for the village. What he didn't plan for was that he would get very much injured and may never succeed.

The thought of that made Xie Yunjin lose his appetite.

Lu Jiao noticed that he didn't want to eat and fed him half a bowl of chicken soup.

As she cleaned up, she suggested, "If there's an opportunity for everyone's lives to get better, do you think they should go for it?"

Lu Jiao had thought about this on her way back from the Village Leader's home.

The Xie Village was at the foot of the mountain and there were so many medicinal herbs on the mountains. A lot of what she saw was also well-aged. Since the villagers didn't recognize them, they naturally were too afraid to touch them.

If she could teach everyone how to identify the different herbs, the villagers would be able to harvest those and sell them. That way, their lives would get easier.

Of course, she was willing to teach in order to earn some brownie points for Xie Yunjin and the four little ones. Since they now have a poor relationship with the Xie family, they needed to be on the Xie Clan's good side.

She just didn't know whether or not Xie Yunjin wanted the Xie Clan to have an easier time?

Right after Lu Jiao spoke, Xie Yunjin looked up at her with skepticism.

"What are you thinking of?"

At this point, Lu Jiao hesitated. She wanted to teach the villagers how to identify herbs. However, what if Xie Yunjin asks her how she learned about herbs?

Since she didn't speak, Xie Yunjin started to speak slowly.

"Though there are some bad people in this village, the majority of them are nice people. Originally, I thought of going to school and then figuring out a way to help them make a living. I wanted to open a school in the village so all the children can go to school. Who knew I would wound up being disabled."

The last sentence made Xie Yunjin appear extremely sullen and depressed.

With him being like this, Lu Jiao somehow felt guilty. Though it wasn't her problem, she still felt bad.

She did her best to comfort him, "Don't worry. I told you, I will find you a doctor who can cure you. You'll get better."

Just then, Xie Yunjin asked, "What have you thought of that could help the people?"

Lu Jiao said, "There are a lot of herbs up in the mountains. I can teach them…"

Before she could finish, she realized that she had fallen for Xie Yunjin's trap. He first made himself sound pathetic just to ask her what he wanted to know. She had no time to defend herself.

Angry, Lu Jiao glared at Xie Yunjin. It was no wonder that he would become the villain. How cunning.

Without batting an eye, Xie Yunjin asked her, "How do you know which herb is which?"

Lu Jiao's scalp felt numb and she found an excuse, "I learned some from when I lived at home. I don't know a lot."

Xie Yunjin's eyes burned into hers and he chuckled, "I heard that your family has a difficult time as well?"

If Lu Jiao knew all about herbs, then why didn't her own family harvest them and sell them? If they did that, then her family would be wealthier now.

Lu Jiao frowned and she frustratedly admitted, "Before, I didn't know anything about being sick or the difficulties of the world. All I knew was to hide at home and enjoy my days. In hindsight, I shouldn't have done that."

She then took the dirty bowls and was ready to leave.

"Since you're not interested, forget it."

That would save her the effort of explaining everything.

Just as she was about to exit, the person in the bed spoke up, "It's great."

Lu Jiao turned around, "What is?"

Xie Yunjin said in a calm voice, "You can teach them how to identify the different herbs. The Xie Village is far too poor."

Lu Jiao's lips trembled as she thought, why was this all up to him?

But since her goal was to make sure the villain doesn't hate her, she decided to go the soft way.

"Okay, I'll tell the Village Leader to send a few representatives from each family. I won't introduce all the varieties of herbs to them. I think teaching around 10 is enough."

There were hundreds of species of herbs. It would be far too tiring for her to teach everyone everything.

Xie Yunjin didn't object, "Okay."

Lu Jiao added, "But, I'm not teaching those who give me a hard time."

She wasn't that big-hearted.

"As for your Xie family, tell them to send the second sister-in-law. I'm not teaching the others anything."

Especially not Xie Lan. The sight of her made Lu Jiao feel disgusted.

Xie Yunjin didn't have a problem with that. For some reason, this woman before him didn't make him exasperated.

Lu Jiao again tried to leave but suddenly she found the four little ones staring at her wide-eyed. The four little ones glanced in her direction, then at Xie Yunjin.

For a moment there, they were extremely happy that their mommy and daddy spoke nicely to each other.

But very quickly, they realized that they had acknowledged this evil woman as their mother. How dare they? That was unacceptable.

The four little ones' faces hardened.

Lu Jiao found them to be so strange. She placed the dirty bowls on the little table, then carried the table out along with the bowls on top.

Behind her, the four little ones dashed to Xie Yunjin's bed and showed off their bamboo copters.

"Daddy, look at this! This is called a bamboo copter. It's amazing."

"Let me show you how it works."

The four little ones started sending the bamboo copters into the air. As the bamboo copters flew, the four little ones ran around the room and giggled.

Xie Yunjin watched over these four and thought that if Lu Jiao had no poor intentions, she could stay and take care of the little ones. This woman here today seemed to know how to educate children well.

Going to sell Ganoderma

Lu Jiao had no idea as to what was on Xie Yunjin's mind. She efficiently cleaned the dishes and then made two bamboo copters for Xie Fugui's grandsons.

Once she was done with the toys, Xie Hu's wife, Lin Chunyan came over so they could visit the town together.

Lu Jiao took the bamboo copters and took a basket from the kitchen. She had a lot of stuff she wanted to buy in town today so she needed something to carry them in.

Before she left, Lu Jiao visited the east bedroom, "Xie Yunjin, I'm going into town. Keep an eye on the four little ones and make sure they don't run around too much."

Since the quadruplets were malnourished, they could only get bullied if they ran into trouble. This was why Lu Jiao wanted to make sure Xie Yunjin was careful.

Xie Yunjin nodded. Lu Jiao then smiled at the quadruplets.

"Stay here today and keep an eye on our home for me. There's chicken and some eggs in the kitchen. If you watch our home well, I'll come back and reward you with candy and desserts."

The Fourth Born batted his heart eyes and confirmed in surprise, "Really?"

Lu Jiao couldn't help but pat his head, "Of course."

She then put on the large basket on her back and left.

Behind her, Xie Yunjin and the four little ones watched her leave.

After some time, the four little ones surrounded Xie Yunjin and whispered, "Is it possible that she's not coming back?"

Xie Yunjin saw how the children were worried and he couldn't help but frown. Was that a possibility?

They haven't separated. So no way she wouldn't come back, right?

Plus, she had assured him that she would find him a surgeon. Though he didn't believe her, if she did run away today, there was no way he would forgive her.

Darkness flashed across Xie Yunjin's eyes and he comforted the four little ones, "No way. She said she would bring you treats once she's back so she will be back. Don't worry."

"Oh right. She asked you to keep an eye on the chicken and the eggs. Don't forget to do that."

Xie Yunjin wanted the four little ones to find something to do so they don't focus all their time thinking about that woman.

The four little ones nodded, "Yes, we will do our job and keep the chicken and eggs safe."

They then ran out to guard the goods.

On the other side, Lu Jiao, Lin Chunyan, and Xie Hu walked to the Village Leader's home.

The moment they arrived, Xie Fugui's two grandsons dashed out.

"Third grandma, did you make the bamboo copters?"

"Third grandma, did you bring them?"

Lu Jiao's face froze when she heard them refer to her as a grandma. She quickly took out the bamboo copters and handed them to the two children.

"Here you go. Go play."

Datou and Maomao shrilled in excitement and ran away with the bamboo copters.

Lady Zhang walked out and helplessly exposed them, "They've been mumbling about those all day and even missed their naps. They've been waiting for you."

Lu Jiao laughed, "All children are like that."

The two of them chatted when Xie Fugui's son, Xie Tieniu, took out the bullock cart and asked everyone to get on.

Xie Fugui's young daughter, Xie Xiaojuan also got into the bullock cart with a basket of eggs. She planned to sell some eggs in town and buy some salt.

Everyone chatted inside the cart. However, in the front, Xie Tieniu's face became long. Angry, he turned his head around.

"The other two still aren't here? If they don't come soon, I'm going to leave without them."

Just then, there was a noise of people breathing heavily and someone shouting, "Wait, wait."

Two people ran over holding hands. They were Shen Xiu and Xie Lan.

When they saw Lu Jiao, their expressions changed.

Xie Tieniu unhappily scolded, "Hurry up. It's getting late."

Shen Xiu and Xie Lan climbed into the cart but stayed as far away from Lu Jiao as possible. They had no intention of acknowledging her.

Lu Jiao rolled her eyes at them. As if she wanted to talk to them.

The bullock cart started to accelerate then. Xie Lan checked out Lu Jiao and recalled the time she hit her. The more she thought about it, the angrier she got. What made her even more furious was that Lu Jiao didn't give them any pork.

She thought no matter how poor their relationship was, Lu Jiao would've given them some. However, in the end, Lu Jiao gave nothing. And today, there was a rumor that Lu Jiao talked poorly of the Xie family.

The more Xie Lan thought about it, the angrier she got. She glared at Lu Jiao but was too scared to say anything out loud.

Shen Xiu on the other hand, was full of rage as she stared at Lu Jiao. She wanted to figure out the fastest way to get this woman out of the Xie Village. If this woman stayed and took care of third brother Xie for a long time, he may end up not kicking her out.

Shen Xiu silently plotted.

Lu Jiao didn't care for these two and only thought about all the things she planned to buy.

The cart continued on and picked up two additional villagers on the way.

The Xie Village was close to town and only took around an hour to get there.

Xie Tieniu parked the cart and said to everybody, "Don't spend too much time here. Come back early."

Everyone nodded.

Lu Jiao went to Baohe Tang first to sell her ganoderma and also to get Xie Yunjin's medicine.

Xie Lan and Shen Xiu walked out after her and glared at her. The two of them continued to mumble about her even after they walked for a long time.

"That fat b!tch sold pork and decided to waste her money here in town. It's so sad that my third brother is so injured and nobody's there to take care of him."

Two Hundred Taels of Silver, we have Money now

Lu Jiao was speechless as she watched Xie Lan walk by.

What an odd statement to make. Why wasn't she over there taking care of her brother?

Behind her, Xie Xiaojun came up to comfort Lu Jiao, "Don't mind them. They're not good people."

She didn't like those two women. Every day, one of them pretended to be fragile and weak while the other thought of herself as a rich princess when she was actually dumb and ugly.

Even Xie Xiaojun couldn't find the right words to describe them.

Lu Jiao shook her head, "Yeah, they're unreasonable. No reason to talk to them."

The two of them chatted and strolled. Xie Xiaojun asked Lu Jiao, "Would it be okay if I come over sometimes to hang out with you?"

Xie Xiaojun was a little bit anxious. All the villagers thought of her as a cursed woman who brought calamity onto men. Though they would never say that in front of her face, they kept their distance. Because of that, she was afraid to go out these days.

Lu Jiao didn't mind her at all. She never believed in those superstitions.

"Of course."

Xie Xiaojun's eyes brightened, "Alright, then I will hang out with you when I'm free."

The two then separated as Xie Xiaojun needed to sell eggs and buy salt, while Lu Jiao wanted to go to Baohe Tang.

Lu Jiao checked out the town as she strolled. The town wasn't too big but it was rather populated.

Other than the vendors with shops set up, there were lots of street vendors laid out all over. There were lots of villages around this town and nobody who lived around here was too well off.

Therefore, people were inclined to sell anything worthy they have at home. This made this town rather clamorous with different people selling all sorts of things.

Lu Jiao didn't waste time and headed straight to Baohe Tang.

Not a lot of people were there at the moment. Medicine was expensive and therefore, lots of people simply endured and some even asked for a shaman.

Inside the store, the appearance of Lu Jiao invited much excitement.

"Lady, what are you looking for?"

Lu Jiao glanced at the worker and asked, "Where's Doctor Zhou?"

Doctor Zhou was the doctor who tended to Xie Yunjin before.

The worker smiled, "Doctor Zhou is old in age and has retired."

The reality was that Doctor Zhou took side jobs in secret and was caught so Baohe Tang fired him. Of course, nobody here would tell that to people.

He looked at Lu Jiao and continued to smile, "Lady, are you looking for Doctor Zhou to get a diagnosis? We recently hired an amazing doctor from the Capital City. If you want to see a doctor, you can ask for Doctor Qi."

Lu Jiao didn't persist in seeing Doctor Zhou. She was here to sell her ganoderma. As for Xie Yunjin's medicine, she still had the prescription from Doctor Zhou.

"I'm here to sell medicinal herbs. I wonder if you are willing to buy it?"

Lu Jiao tilted her body to show him her basket. The worker didn't grow rude right away when he heard that she wasn't here to buy.

"We do buy those. I wonder what you are selling?"

Lu Jiao glanced around and then whispered, "I'm selling a 50-year-old ganoderma."

The worker was surprised. He took a look at Lu Jiao and then said, "Please wait a second. I will go to the back and get the manager."

Fifty-year-old ganoderma was extremely rare and was very expensive. There was no way he could make the final call.

Lu Jiao waited outside. Baohe Tang has been established for a long time and was a big shop. The variety of medicine there was also satisfactory.

Lu Jiao remembered how she wanted to buy peppercorn and star anise. According to ancient literature, those ingredients were considered medicinal. She wondered if this shop had it.

As she thought that, she walked to the counter and looked carefully. However, each little drawer was labeled with traditional writing and she didn't recognize those characters.

Though not a lot of people were inside the store, every one of them checked her out in secret. She was just so fat. During a difficult era like this, most people were skinny and jaundiced.

Lu Jiao, on the other hand, was nourished and full of fat. She naturally attracted so much attention.

However, Lu Jiao was collected and not at all insecure.

The worker came out very soon, "Lady, the manager asked to see you in the back."

Lu Jiao raised an eyebrow but she wasn't afraid of the manager pulling up any tricks. She was strong, had medical knowledge, and had tools in space. So she wasn't worried.

In front of Baohe Tang were four different vendors and there was a large yard in the back. Lots of medicinal herbs were being dried in the yard and there were some people combining medicine. At the very back, there was a small building with a resting area. Three people sat there, chatting.

Lu Jiao walked over and the three of them all turned their heads toward her.

The first person was a kind-looking middle-aged man wearing a gray long robe. The other two were good-looking young men, one appeared very friendly and happy, while the other appeared more aloof and seemingly from a wealthier tribe. It was obvious that the last guy was no ordinary person.

Before Lu Jiao could speak, the aloof man standing in the middle spoke up calmly, "You are selling a 50-year-old ganoderma?"

Lu Jiao nodded. She put down the basket and took out the ganoderma to place them on the table.

The kind-looking young man checked it out and quickly turned to look at the others happily.

"Ling Feng, this truly is a 50 year old ganoderma. It's also of the highest quality. This sure is a rare find."

Ling Feng raised an eyebrow and checked out Lu Jiao from a distance, "How much silver do you want for this?"

Lu Jiao wasn't familiar with the value of ganoderma but knew that they weren't cheap. So she said, "You guys can make me an offer. But if the offer is not a good one, I will go to a different town to sell it."

Ling Feng's eyes darkened. He didn't expect this woman to be tactful. However, it wasn't that he planned on conning her. Fifty-year-old ganoderma was difficult to find so he didn't want to scam her.

"How about 200 taels of silver? Even if you sell this in a big city, you won't get an offer like this. Of course, if you go to the Capital City, you may get a different price."

Lu Jiao thought about it and found the offer to be reasonable. She didn't have the time to travel all the way to the Capital City.

"Alright, then let's settle on that price. I have some other herbs as well. You can count those."

Ling Feng nodded and said to the middle-aged man, "Manager Li, go cash her out."

"Yes, sir."

Manager Li walked Lu Jiao out. Even after some time, Lu Jiao could still hear the excited sounds from behind her.

"This ganoderma appears the highest quality. It must be far more effective than normal herbs."

Lu Jiao's lips curled up. This ganoderma was from her space, how could it be of poor quality? It's been nourished by spiritual energy for such a long time. If she didn't need money, she wouldn't have sold it. At least the price the man offered was reasonable.

The Great Villain Vomited Blood

Lu Jiao asked Manager Li, "Does your shop sell peppercorn or star anise?"

Manager Li looked over curiously, "We do. Miss, what do you need those for?"

Lu Jiao smiled, "I have my reasons."

In this era, peppercorn and star anise were used for medicine so she couldn't just say she used them to cook. They would treat her like she was crazy if she answered honestly.

Lu Jiao walked on a bit then asked, "What about gypsum?"

In ancient times, gypsum was also used as a medicinal ingredient. She wondered if Baohe Tang had it.

She wanted some gypsum to make tofu. She had been thinking about what the Lu family can do to make a sustainable living. In the end, she decided to teach them how to make tofu. It was just that tofu recipes needed brine or gypsum. Brine didn't exist then so only gypsum could be used. She wasn't sure if this store had any.

Manager Li stared at Lu Jiao and found this rural woman weird. Why did she ask for strange and rare ingredients?

"Yes, miss."

Lu Jiao's lips stretched into a smile right away. Now in a good mood, she took out the prescription Doctor Zhou gave her before.

"Use your best ingredients. I want to buy 10 portions. Then, I want half a pound of peppercorn, star anise, and bay leaves. Also, give me as much gypsum as your store has."

The manager didn't know what to say given the weird mix of things, "Miss, what are you using these for?"

"To make medicine."

Manager Li was in disbelief. There was no way the combination of those could be good. However, since Lu Jiao didn't want to tell him, he didn't ask.

Lu Jiao took this opportunity to ask, "Does Baohe Tang accept all sorts of herbs?"

Manager Li nodded, "Yes, we accept all herbs. Better quality ingredients that have been cleaned and sorted of course will get you more money. Raw herbs brought straight here would get you less money. Miss, you want to sell herbs?"

Lu Jiao nodded, "Yes, Manager Li, please treat me kindly in the future."

Manager Li remembered how Lu Jiao just sold them a 50-year-old ganoderma and his expression brightened up, "Of course."

The two of them went to the counter and Manager Li started to pick out the ingredients for Lu Jiao. As he worked, he tried to get information out of Lu Jiao to see what she would use these for. Lu Jiao, however, didn't reveal anything.

The manager was surprised. While this woman appeared chubby and stupid, she was really sharp.

"The total is 70 taels of silver and 20 tokens. I'll give you a discount and just take 70 taels."

Lu Jiao blinked and already spent 70 taels. She exclaimed over the value of ancient medicine, "Thank you Manager Li."

Lu Jiao grinned as she packed up the medicine into her basket and carefully took the 130 taels of silver the manager gave her. Originally, the manager wanted to be nice and give her a bank note instead of silver and tokens.

However, Lu Jiao declined. She has her space and wasn't worried about too much silver and coins. The manager, however, shared a few worried glances but didn't comment further.

While she put away the medicine, Lu Jiao snuck the silver into her space.

She then picked up her basket and got ready to leave. She had a lot of shopping to do.

Since she now had money in her pocket, she quickly turned into a shopaholic. She bought 30 pounds of white rice, 30 pounds of white flour, oil, salt, and vinegar… she wasn't afraid of anything being expensive. Just buy! Clothes? Buy!

Sadly the clothing store didn't sell children's clothing so she bought some fabric to bring home. She did end up finding two outfits for Xie Yunjin.

For herself, however, she didn't even bother to buy fabric. She was determined not to buy anything until she lost some weight. With her current weight, she didn't look good in anything.

She bought some candy and baked goods for the little ones. Then she ran to the blacksmith to buy an ax and a pickaxe. She didn't realize how expensive those tools would be. Despite the cost, she gritted her teeth and bought them.

After this shopping spree, she was 10 taels of silver lighter. However, Lu Jiao felt highly satisfied. To be able to buy without worry just felt so good!

It was getting late and she had gotten everything she wanted, so she went back to where the bullock cart was.

Everyone had already arrived and all of them were waiting for her.

Xie Lan saw her and started to get angry, "I wonder what kind of weird and useless things you bought. Could it be that you already wasted all my brother's money?"

Lu Jiao was not kind when she responded, "If I relied on the five taels of silver your family gave us, your third brother would be dead. Aren't you ashamed of yourself? Why do you keep on bringing up those five taels of silver? Today, I bought 10 portions of his medicine. Do you plan to reimburse me?"

Lu Jiao had hidden the rice, flour, candy, and baked goods in her space. Her basket now only contained Xie Yunjin's medicine, oil, salt, and vinegar. Everyone in the cart saw what was in her basket.

Everyone remembered that Xie Erzhu had said five teals of silver can only get three portions of medicine. That meant these 10 portions would cost more than 10 taels of silver.

What they didn't know was that the medicine actually cost 50 taels of silver.

Everyone sighed. Villagers here couldn't afford to get sick. Xie Lan stayed silent then and only glared at Lu Jiao.

Lu Jiao was too lazy to acknowledge her. Beside her, Xie Xiaojuan squeezed Lu Jiao's hand to remind her that Xie Lan was stupid. Her own brother could only count on this sister-in-law now, yet she continued to butt heads with her. Wasn't that just so stupid?

The bullock's cart rushed its way back. Since the town wasn't far, they got back to the village very quickly. The moment the cart arrived, a small silhouette rushed over and shouted.

"Third grandma, my grandma told you to go home right away. Something had happened."

Lu Jiao glanced over right away and saw that it was Datou who shouted. She asked, worried, "Datou, what happened?"

Datou huffed and puffed from running and couldn't talk clearly, "Daniu… stole… First Born and them… got hit…"

Xie Tieniu saw Lu Jiao was worried and offered, "Let me give you a ride home."

Lu Jiao nodded. The others in the cart didn't object with the exception of Shen Xiu. She heard Datou talk about Daniu. Could it be that her brother's kid, Daniu, had hit third brother Xie's children?

Shen Xiu was flustered and her hand subconsciously squeezed into a fist.

The cart quickly arrived at the west side of the village. Lu Jiao didn't even wait for the cart to fully stop before she jumped out. Xie Tieniu was shocked, "Slow down."

Lu Jiao didn't care and ran back home with her basket. She saw that a bunch of people were outside her home and there were sounds of children crying from the inside.

Lu Jiao went over and before she could get into her home, she heard children's furious cries and cursing.

"Shen Daniu, you're a b!tch! You came to my home to steal my things and you hit us. You shameless b!tch! You're a waste of money and energy! You're a b!tch without a mother who educates you. Once I grow up, I am going to skin you and rip out your tendons! I'm going to make sure your eyes remain open when you die!"

"Oh my god, my life is over. Every one of you comes here to hurt us. We might as well just bang our heads and die."

Before these two cries fully dissipated, another cold and exasperated voice erupted, "Widow Li, are you taking advantage of my family because nobody's home? I am not dead yet."

Lu Jiao got to the main gate. When the villagers saw her, they parted ways for her to enter. Someone yelled, "Yunjin's wife's home."

"This woman's capable these days. I wonder if she knows how to deal with Widow Li's family."

Lu Jiao ignored the villagers and looked around her yard.

Xie Yunjin was on the ground by the east building's door, with his arms supporting his body. His eyes were deadly fixated on Widow Li as if he was ready to kill her.

His face was without any color. Not only was he scary pale, but as he shouted those words, a stream of fresh blood rolled down his chin from his mouth.

Scamming

Lu Jiao's face subconsciously turned cold. Xie Yunjin was internally bleeding yet still struggled his way out of bed and into the yard. The damage to his body grew more severe and that was why he vomited blood.

Lu Jiao then saw the four little ones who stood in the yard. Each one of them had messed-up hair and ripped-up clothes. There were also cuts and bruises on their faces.

When the four little ones saw Lu Jiao appear, they suddenly felt so wronged and sad and exploded into cries. They shrieked and wept, heartbroken.

In giant leaps, Lu Jiao went up to the four little ones and rubbed their heads. She then turned and went to Xie Yunjin and carried him back into the east bedroom.

When she showed up, Xie Yunjin suddenly felt relieved and his mind went blank.

While he fought to stay awake, he said, "Don't be nice to them."

Lu Jiao was strong, Xie Yunjin knew that. His statement meant he wanted Lu Jiao to teach Widow Li a hard lesson.

Obviously, Lu Jiao understood what he meant and with a heavy expression, she nodded, "I know what to do. You need to rest. Don't worry, I will teach them a lesson."

With another sigh of relief, Xie Yunjin passed out.

Lu Jiao knew he'd been fighting to move and now, he had finally used up all his energy.

If it weren't for the fact that she had nourished him with the spiritual stream water, he probably would've died moving around like that.

But she was here now and he would be fine.

With a quick movement, Lu Jiao fed Xie Yunjin some more stream water. This time, she was generous with the amount. Since Xie Yunjin was passed out anyway, he wouldn't know that she fed him water.

The stream water was highly effective so Xie Yunjin's body will repair itself very quickly.

Just then, outside the room, Widow Li's shrill voice spread.

"You dead fat woman, this isn't over. Look at how your four bastards wounded my Daniu and Erniu! You will need to compensate me with money. Until you compensate me, this isn't over. We are not going to let this go."

Right after she spoke, Lu Jiao heard the Second Born's crying voice, "You cursed old widow! Don't you dare think about scamming us. Our money is saved to cure daddy's sickness. It's your Daniu who came over today to steal our stuff. She deserved to be hit!"

After the Second Born cursed, the Third Born's angry voice arose, "Oh my god, lord do you even want me to be alive? I cannot live like this. Lord, just take me away!"

While Lu Jiao was furious, the curses the little ones spat out made her temples jolt.

She felt like the way the children cursed and cried sounded familiar. She thought about it and realized that the original host often spoke like that. Therefore, these two little fellas learned from her.

Lu Jiao left the room.

Outside the room, Widow Li jumped towards the two young boys and cursed dirtily at them, "You bastards, how dare you speak to me like this? I am going to beat you two sons of b!tches. Your dad is disabled and your mom is going to abandon you soon. How dare you scream at me? Watch me beat you two to death!"

Widow Li then raised her arm to hit the boys but the villagers pulled her away. The Second Grandma's family then went to protect the quadruplets.

Xie Xiaobao was enraged and pointed his finger at Widow Li, "You're here to con us! Your Daniu and Erniu came here today to steal yet you think you're in the right? Also, Daniu and Erniu hit the four children, and Wang Gousheng from your family also came to hit the children. Gousheng is already 10 years old yet he hits little kids. Are you not embarrassed? Even I am embarrassed for you."

Widow Li heard Xie Xiaobao's words and jumped up three inches. She spat out, "You are talking trash! Who saw my Gousheng hit anyone? Who? I only saw my Daniu and Erniu getting hurt. So this family must pay up!"

Lu Jiao coldly asked Widow Li, "You want my family to pay you?"

Before Widow Li could speak, her daughter, Shen Xiu grabbed her hand, "Mom, let's go back. Stop this."

Widow Li fought off Shen Xiu's hand and cursed, "Get away!"

Then, she dragged Shen Daniu and Shen Erniu out.

The quadruplets may be hurt, but Shen Daniu and Shen Erniu were in way worse conditions. Not only were their bodies bruised, but there was blood on their faces. One of them lost a tooth while the other had a cracked nose. They looked miserable and couldn't even stand up steadily while they were dragged by Widow Li.

Lu Jiao could tell by one glance that there was no way these two girls were hurt by the quadruplets. The quadruplets were malnourished and very weak. There was no way they had enough strength to hurt two girls like this.

It was most likely the Shen family who had hit their children and blamed it on the quadruplets. They did this to scam their money.

Widow Li pointed at Shen Daniu and Shen Erniu and said to Lu Jiao, "Look at the state my children are in. Their faces are hurt, they've lost teeth, and their eyes are swollen. You have to pay up so we can go see a doctor."

Lu Jiao peeked at the girls and remembered that they beat her four children. For them to be hit by the Shen family was deserved.

She ignored Widow Li and turned to the quadruplets, "Tell me, what happened?"

The First Born stepped out and spoke first.

"You asked us to keep an eye on our home today, so we squatted in the kitchen. We saw Shen Daniu sneak into our backyard and into the kitchen. She ran in, took our eggs and chicken, and ran out. I stopped her from escaping so she screamed for her cousin Wang Gousheng and Shen Erniu."

"Then, the three of them beat us together. We couldn't defend ourselves so we screamed until they ran away. After that, their grandma came over to ask us for money."

Though the First Born was very young, he spoke clearly. His words made the villagers understand what had happened.

A lot of people had guessed what Widow Li intended. She likely thought that since Yunjin's wife sold a boar and earned some money, she could scam that money out of her. Also, Shen Daniu and Shen Erniu were so wounded. How could the little quadruplets hit them that hard?

It was just that Widow Li was very difficult to deal with. She obviously wanted money from Yunjin and that was why she hit her grandchildren so hard.

The crowd worriedly looked over to Lu Jiao.

Lu Jiao remembered the day she transmigrated here because the original host died. That day, the original host suspected the quadruplets stole her eggs. It looked like those eggs were stolen by Shen Daniu. Shen Daniu succeeded once and so she came back for a second time.

Lu Jiao coldly looked at Widow Li and said in a low voice, "Widow Li, where are you standing right now?"

Widow Li was thrown off, "Your home."

Lu Jiao snickered, "Ignoring whether or not your grandchildren were hurt by my children, your grandchildren were thieves first. They deserved to be hit. They deserve to get hurt and even deserve to be hit to death."

"Why don't you go to the judge and ask what happens to thieves? Thieves caught in the act are often struck to death. Those who kill the thieves are considered to be innocent. The ones who caught the thieves today were these four young children."

As Lu Jiao continued, she walked up to Widow Li, "You sent thieves to another person's home. Then afterward, you shamelessly come over to deceive people in that person's home? Haha, you sure dare to dream big."