Chapter 6: Xiaoxi Bullied When Going Out

Chapter 6: Uncle Xiao Xi Gets Bullied When He Goes Out

Once he had taken the two children far away, Chen Lanfang rose and sat down beside Yan Fengan, saying, "This husband of yours may seem a bit simple and naive, but he's actually a decent person. Since marrying into the family, he's always put you first and never shown any selfishness. Once you're better, you must not let him down."

With her son's condition improving more and more each day, Chen Lanfang was naturally pleased, but she feared Yan Fengan might still be as clueless as before, so she felt she had to say something.

Yan Fengan replied, "Since I've married him, I'll do right by him."

Satisfied with his assurance, Chen Lanfang let out a relieved breath, then heard Yan Fengan add, "I noticed Xi Geer's clothes are old and thin. I'd like to ask Mother to have a few new outfits made for him. Once I get my stipend from the court, I'll repay you."

"We're all one family—no need to talk about paying me back." Chen Lanfang glanced toward Li Wan and He Jin. "Your eldest and second sisters-in-law are already working on shoes for him. As for clothes, I don't have any spare fabric right now. I'll take him into town one of these days to have a look around."

Yan Fengan nodded and said politely, "Then I'll be troubling Mother with this."

Chen Lanfang seemed about to say something more, but seeing the coolness in his expression, she ultimately kept quiet.

—

Wen Xi took the two children toward the river, running into several village neighbors along the way. News of his marriage to Yan Fengan had already spread throughout the village, and people couldn't help but whisper when they saw him. Some meddlesome types even approached him pretending to be concerned, prying into matters of the Yan family.

Wen Xi wasn't much of a talker. He said his hellos but little else, keeping his head down as he led the two children along toward the river.

Many children and adults were messing around and fishing by the riverbank. Tiezhu and Tao'er ran into their playmates from the village and soon got caught up in their own games.

Wen Xi worried about the children's safety, so he didn't dare stray too far from them while fishing, keeping his eyes on them the whole time. Only when he saw the two children sensibly stay away from dangerous areas did he relax.

Fish and shrimp were nutritious fare. When Wen Liu got a hankering, he'd often send Wen Xi to the river to catch some. After trying many times, Wen Xi had gradually figured out a few methods for catching fish.

For slippery fish like carp and crucian carp, grabbing them by the body or tail and they'd slip away easily. But if you timed it right and grabbed them by the head, your chances of success were a lot better.

There was also a type of fish in the river with sharp spines on its body. Wen Xi didn't know what people in other places called it, but the villagers in their area had named it "yellow duck call."

Compared to other fish, the yellow duck call was meaner. Wen Xi had been stuck by its spines several times while trying to catch one—that itchy, painful sensation still bothered him to this day, and he wouldn't go near one even if he saw it.

In mid-autumn, the river water was at a comfortable temperature, not freezing, and it was the season when fish were abundant and crabs were plump.

Wen Xi focused intently, his movements quick and deft. Soon his fish basket held a bunch of small fish, shrimp, and loaches. Besides these, he was lucky enough to catch a crucian carp weighing about two or three jin.

Back when he lived with the Wens, Wen Xi had once caught a crucian carp, and Li Qiaozhen had gone out of her way to buy a block of tofu to make crucian carp and tofu soup.

Though Wen Xi hadn't gotten a single taste of it himself, the savory flavor of that fish soup had stuck with him, never quite leaving his memory.

Since marrying into the Yan family, no one had ever treated him poorly when it came to meals. He wondered whether he'd have that luck this time.

Today's catch was a good one. Wen Xi held up his fish basket, a faint smile spreading across his face.

Just then, Tao'er, who had been playing in the distance, came running over crying her eyes out: "Uncle Xiao Xi, Tiezhu is fighting with someone! Hurry, go see!"

Hearing this, the smile that had just begun to form on Wen Xi's face vanished instantly. His complexion turned pale as he asked, "What happened?"

Having lived under the same roof for over ten days, Wen Xi had come to understand the temperaments of the Yan family members. Tiezhu and Tao'er were both well-behaved, sensible children who would never start a fight unprovoked. If Tiezhu was fighting with someone, there had to be a reason.

Through Tao'er's jumbled and confused account, Wen Xi finally pieced together what had happened.

While playing hide-and-seek, Tiezhu had found an injured rabbit. Children can't keep secrets, so he immediately showed the little rabbit to his playmates. But another child nearby took offense, insisting the rabbit was his because he'd spotted it first. He started crying and demanding Tiezhu return the rabbit. Tiezhu refused, and the two children came to blows.

Tao'er wiped her tears and said indignantly, "Jinbao is lying! The rabbit was clearly spotted by brother first."

Wen Xi patted her head and comforted her, "Don't cry, Tao'er. Uncle will go over there with you to have a look."

Wen Xi had assumed that since these were all just children, he, as an adult, would be able to handle the situation. But when he got there, he found that Zhao Jinbao's uncle, Zhao Shoutian, was also present.

That man was a shameless troublemaker, and Wen Xi was quite afraid of him. But Tiezhu needed someone to stand up for him—if even the adult cowered, how much worse would the child feel?

Wen Xi clenched his fist, took a deep breath to suppress his fear, and waved at Tiezhu, saying, "Tiezhu, bring the rabbit and let's go home."

His voice trembled slightly as he spoke, but at least his body didn't shake. Wen Xi kept telling himself not to be afraid—once they got home, everything would be fine.

"Mm." Tiezhu wiped his face and hugged the rabbit, ready to leave.

Zhao Shoutian, feeling ignored, was deeply displeased. He barked, "Stop right there! Who said you could leave? I'm telling you, you can go, but the rabbit stays—my nephew saw it first."

"That's a lie! I saw it first!" Tiezhu was young but unafraid, completely undaunted by Zhao Shoutian's bluster.

Having his authority challenged by such a small child, Zhao Shoutian was irritated. He raised his hand threateningly and said, "Looking for a beating, are you? Hand over the rabbit now, or I'll give you a good thrashing."

Tiezhu hid behind Wen Xi. Though terrified himself, Wen Xi shielded him and said, "The children don't understand anything. If you have something to say, go talk to my in-laws about it."

Zhao Shoutian swept a contemptuous gaze over him and sneered, "Only been married a few days and you're already calling them so sweetly. You shameless thing who stole your brother's marriage—you still have the nerve to parade around in public? If I were you, I'd have found a rope and hanged myself long ago."

Wen Xi's eyes widened in shock. When had he ever stolen his brother's marriage? Hadn't Wen Liu himself refused to marry?

Seeing his delicate, innocent expression only fueled Zhao Shoutian's anger. He snarled, "Always putting on that pitiful act—you think I'll fall for it? You unfaithful little husband, are you saying your own man isn't good enough, so you came out here specifically to seduce me?"

The filth spewing from his mouth made Wen Xi want to vomit. He wanted to talk back, but feared the man might actually hit him, so he kept his mouth shut and pulled the two children by the hand toward home.

His retreating figure only made Zhao Shoutian hate him more. Wen Liu had looked down on him, and now who did this Wen Xi think he was, daring to disregard him as well? Bullying the smaller and weaker, Zhao Shoutian snatched the rabbit from Tiezhu's hands and said, "Go on then, get out of here. You're not taking this rabbit."

"Give it back! Give it back! Give it back to me!"

Tiezhu reached out to grab it, but Zhao Shoutian held the rabbit high with one hand and said smugly, "Come and get it if you can."

Tiezhu couldn't reach it, and in his fury, he bit down hard on Zhao Shoutian's other hand.

Wen Xi knew trouble was coming the moment he saw it. He understood Zhao Shoutian well—the man had no bottom line. Whether you were a husband or a child, if you provoked him, he wouldn't hesitate to throw a punch.

Sure enough, Zhao Shoutian flew into a rage at the pain and cursed loudly, "Damn it! You little bastard's got some nerve! I'll slap you to death!"

Wen Xi had been watching his every move. The moment he saw Zhao Shoutian raise his hand to strike, he grabbed Tiezhu and took the slap himself, shielding the boy with his own body.

Zhao Shoutian had put real force behind it. The slap left Wen Xi's ears ringing and half his face throbbing with pain.

He didn't dare imagine how badly that slap would have hurt a child like Tiezhu. Though his face ached terribly, Wen Xi felt relief in his heart. Both children had come out with him safe and sound—if anything had gone wrong, how could he ever face the Yan family?

"Stay out of my sight from now on." Zhao Shoutian felt no remorse for hitting someone. After issuing his threat, he walked off with the rabbit. Zhao Jinbao followed behind him, then turned around a few steps later and made a face at Tiezhu.

Tiezhu stamped his feet in fury and wailed, "I'm going home to tell my grandma!"

Hearing this, Zhao Shoutian felt a twinge of unease. But then he reasoned that the one who'd been hurt was Wen Xi—that "good-luck charm" brought in for the marriage. Judging by his shabby clothes, he didn't seem to be someone the family valued, so surely the Yans wouldn't stick their necks out for him.

On the way home, Wen Xi kept his sleeve pressed against his swollen, reddened cheek, afraid of what the neighbors might whisper behind his back.

He didn't dare make a fuss, but the two little ones had no such reservations. They wailed loudly all the way home, and before they'd even reached the courtyard gate, they were shouting at the top of their lungs, "Grandma! Grandma! Someone's bullying us!"

Chen Lanfang didn't yet realize the seriousness of the situation. She laughed and said to her two daughters-in-law, "They must have gotten into another squabble with Ermao and the others."

But when the three entered the courtyard and she saw Wen Xi trying to hide his face with averted eyes, she realized this might not be the case.

Li Wan was the first to react. She rushed over and looked her son up and down, while He Jin followed close behind, pulling Tao'er into her protective embrace. Both women asked in unison, "What happened? Who bullied you?"

Tiezhu pointed at Wen Xi and said, "Zhao Jinbao took my rabbit, and his uncle slapped Uncle Xiao Xi."

Without waiting for Wen Xi to speak, he spilled the whole story like beans from a sack.

Though his account wasn't as clear as an adult's, everyone present understood what had happened.

The slap mark on Wen Xi's face was shocking to see, and just imagining it was enough to know how painful it must be.

"That son of a bitch." Chen Lanfang was furious; if Zhao Shoutian were in front of her at that moment, she'd have jabbed him full of holes with her scissors.

Li Wan was soft-hearted by nature, and knowing the slap was for Tiezhu's sake, her eyes welled up as she said indignantly, "That Zhao Shoutian is a steaming pile of dog shit. How dare he bully our family? Mother, we can't let him off easy."

"Exactly, or he'll think our family has no one to stand up for us." He Jin, hot-tempered as he was, had already imagined slapping Zhao Shoutian hundreds of times.

Chen Lanfang gritted her teeth so hard they creaked, her eyes blazing as if about to spit fire: "That Zhao Shoutian, that filthy scoundrel. Of all people to mess with, he dares to pick on our family. I'll teach him a lesson he won't forget in a minute."

In Wen Xi's eyes, his mother-in-law had always been a proper, respectable woman. Seeing Chen Lanfang bare such a fierce face now, he felt fearful, worried she might scold him without hearing the full story for causing trouble outside and take her anger out on him.

Noticing Wen Xi trembling, Chen Lanfang patted his arm and, suppressing her anger, comforted him, "No one in the Yan family has ever been bullied like this before. Go put some ointment on that first. Once your father and your two brothers are back, we'll go to the Zhao family and demand an explanation."