The Hidden Immortal

Chapter 24 Don't Bully My Mother

"Sir, the Lin family also has a daughter. A few years ago, she happened to come to the county government to report the loss of her favor, and was demoted to a lowly status."

The lightly armored man sat upright in the main hall of the county government office, took the file from his subordinate and glanced at it.

He then snorted and said, "For an unfilial person, a hundred strokes of the cane are too lenient."

"Should we capture him?" the subordinate asked.

The lightly armored man pondered for a moment and said, "Never mind, it's just one person. It must be a coincidence. There's no need to cause any more trouble."

The subordinate nodded and said, "Such an unfilial daughter, yet she was spared from death because of this. I don't know whether to say that Heaven is merciful or blind."

In an instant, everyone in Pingshui Town distanced themselves from the Lin family.

Many people threw rotten cabbages and stones at the Lin family's house.

Whether you're a relative within five degrees of kinship or a member of the Lin family's main lineage, just smash it!

The Lin family, who were once revered in Pingshui Town, are now like rats in the street, hated and beaten by everyone.

At this moment, someone remembered Lin Qiaoxi.

Those with malicious intentions would run to the county government to report them.

As a result, he was beaten thirty times and was in excruciating pain.

Although the lightly armored man disliked Lin Qiaoxi's report of severing ties, he had at least signed the document in the county government's file, which complied with the laws of Jing Kingdom.

You're coming here to betray us now, aren't you trying to kill someone on purpose?

When Lin Qiaoxi severed ties with him, she was just a young girl of sixteen or seventeen, with no grudges or hatred between them.

With such malicious intent, it would be entirely justified to give you thirty lashes as punishment.

Some people wanted to take this opportunity to sue Zhang Sanchun as well, but seeing this situation, they didn't dare to say anything more.

The dramatic changes in Pingshui Town quickly reached Songguo Village.

Upon learning of this, Lin Qiaoxi turned pale and was filled with fear and unease.

She was afraid of dying, but even more afraid of implicating her husband and son.

The villagers all avoided her, and no one dared to approach the Zhang family's house.

Li Tianjian's wife was shouting that Lin Qiaoxi was a scourge and might bring down the entire Songguo Village, leading to their execution.

Fortunately, the news that the informant had been flogged thirty times spread quickly.

Li Shoutian personally visited her and gave her a scolding.

"They have already severed ties with the Lin family and are no longer considered part of the Lin family. What undeserved calamity has befallen them? Your gossiping will not harm Zhang Sanchun and his wife, but it will only tarnish the reputation of our Li family!"

"If word gets out, people will only say that the Li family is kicking someone when they're down! Brother, keep your wife in check and don't gossip!"

"Otherwise, I'll take this to the county government, and you'll all get a beating too!"

Li Shoutian has a calm and steady personality, and over the years he has rarely lost his temper with his family.

He was also frightened this time. After all, although he was not a member of the Lin family, the road in Songguo Village was built by Lin Xianzong, who also contributed two thousand taels of silver.

They used to cheer and dance for this, but now they don't know if it's a blessing or a curse, and can only vent their fear through scolding.

Li Tianjian's wife knew she was in the wrong, muttered a few words, but didn't dare to talk back.

Only after Li Shoutian left did she lash out at Li Tianjian: "You coward! You saw your wife being bullied, and you couldn't even utter a sound!"

Li Tianjian said with a dark face, "Just shut up. Aren't you afraid of getting a beating? Thirty strokes of the cane, can you handle that?!"

His wife shrank back, but still muttered, "How lucky Zhang Sanchun is. If he hadn't left the Lin family years ago, he would probably be exiled by now."

Li Tianjian chimed in, "You still have the nerve to say that? Back then, you laughed at other people's wives for being unfilial and stupid. You'd rather marry a peasant and be reduced to a lowly status than go to the prefect's house to enjoy a life of luxury."

"Now you see, she's incredibly lucky! If she had really married the prefect's son, she wouldn't be alive now!"

The crime of exterminating nine generations of one's family is not something everyone can commit.

This was the first time the people of Songguo Village had witnessed the destruction of a large family.

Hundreds of people, so many heads, all lost because of Lin Xianzong.

Lin Xianzong's greed was beyond anyone's imagination.

How dare he spend over three million taels of silver?

When he returned to his hometown to visit relatives, he donated two thousand taels of silver, which moved countless people to tears.

Lord Lin is so frugal that he wouldn't even replace his official robes when they were washed white. This amount of silver is probably all of his wealth.

Looking back now, it's absolutely hilarious.

When Li Shoutian arrived at the Zhang family's house, he saw Lin Qiaoxi with her head down and tears streaming down her face, while Zhang Sanchun stood by, scratching his head helplessly.

Zhang Anxiu was playing with Huan'er outside the courtyard. The child was innocent and unaware, only knowing that her aunt was unusually good-tempered today, and didn't even get angry when she pulled her hair.

"Anxiu, are you playing around?" Li Shoutian greeted her.

Zhang Anxiu looked up at him, then looked at the courtyard.

She knew perfectly well why Li Shoutian had come, so she gestured towards the courtyard with her chin and said, "Brother Xun is inside too."

Li Shoutian hummed in agreement, and as he passed Huan'er, he reached out and patted his head.

The child has a big head, and his hair is so thick it's frightening; you can't even wrap your hand around it.

Huan'er grinned at Li Shoutian and greeted him in a sweet, soft voice, "Hello, Grandpa Village Chief."

Li Shoutian felt a warmth in his heart. Fortunately, God had eyes and no innocent people were implicated.

"Good boy/girl."

Upon entering the courtyard, Chu Xun looked up and said, "Village Chief."

Li Shoutian nodded slightly and asked, "Is everything alright at home?"

That's completely unnecessary; everything is already laid out before us.

However, this was just an opening statement. Li Shoutian walked over and whispered, "I've asked around, and the officials from the Ministry of Justice won't pursue this matter. Don't worry."

Chu Xun hummed in agreement: "Thank you for your trouble."

"They're all from our own village, it's nothing to worry about." Li Shoutian then looked at Lin Qiaoxi and comforted her, "I can't say much about your family's affairs. Anyway... try to think positively, at least you're still alive, which is a contribution to the Lin family..."

Li Shoutian shut up before he could finish speaking, and even wanted to slap himself.

What nonsense are you talking about? Lin Qiaoxi's surname is Lin, but she is no longer a member of the Lin family.

Too much talk leads to mistakes!

Lin Qiaoxi raised her hand to wipe away her tears and thanked Li Shoutian.

Of course she understood the situation. Even if she harbored resentment, the thought of her family members being dragged away and beheaded made her realize how reasonable it was.

She especially loved her mother and had been hoping that after a few years, when the family was doing better and Huan'er had grown up, she could secretly take her to see her.

Who could have imagined that such a terrible thing would happen before the child had even grown up?

The child wishes to care for his parents, but they are no longer there.

Li Shoutian went over and tugged at Zhang Sanchun, whispering, "Say something."

Zhang Sanchun was somewhat bewildered. After racking his brains for a long time, he finally put his thick lips together and managed to utter three words.

"It's not your fault."

Hearing these three words, Lin Qiaoxi burst into tears.

He immediately knelt down and kowtowed in the direction of Pingshui Town.

"Your daughter is unfilial!"

Unable to fulfill their filial duties in the family, they even dared not claim their bodies after death.

For Lin Qiaoxi, who is kind-hearted by nature, this is the most painful thing.

Huan'er, who was playing outside, heard the crying and quickly ran into the yard.

Seeing Lin Qiaoxi kneeling on the ground, he didn't know what had happened, so he quickly ran over.

Holding his mother close, he glared angrily at the others, shouting, "Don't you dare bully my mother!"

Small body, great courage.

Zhang Anxiu leaned against the courtyard gate and, seeing this scene, couldn't help but wipe away her tears.

Zhang Shigen has been gone for many years, but she has never forgotten him.

I also think of my mother who passed away early. So many years have passed. I wonder if she has been reincarnated into a good family.