Wu Caiwei walked straight out of the door and returned a moment later, holding a stick in her hand.
At first, Zhou Tianpeng was full of doubt, wondering what she would do with the stick. Was there something hidden on the beam?
The next second, he knew what the stick was for, because it landed squarely on his leg, making him cry out in pain.
But Wu Caiwei did not stop. She had long wanted to teach this scumbag a lesson. Zhou Tianpeng had never known that being hit with a stick could hurt so much. He tried to dodge, but the stick seemed to have eyes, constantly hitting him.
"Are you crazy? How can you hit someone?" Zhou Tianpeng was almost in tears, wondering when this woman had become so fierce.
Wu Caiwei ignored him. He had chosen to stay, and she deliberately aimed for places that hurt but showed no visible wounds.
"I know I was wrong, alright? I'm leaving, I'm leaving." Tears streamed down Zhou Tianpeng's face; it hurt so much.
Wu Caiwei knew when to stop. "From now on, stay away from me. If you dare to cross my path again, you won't be as lucky as today."
Zhou Tianpeng stood up, limping towards the door, gasping as he walked. He had never felt so humiliated in his life.
Seeing that he was only one step away from crossing the threshold of the small courtyard, he turned back, looking at her with a vicious gaze, "Shiyun, just you wait."
Wu Caiwei raised the stick directly. Upon seeing this, Zhou Tianpeng took to his heels and ran. Even after running a long distance, he still felt a lingering fear.
Wu Caiwei could imagine that there would be another tough battle tomorrow. By hitting Zhou Tianpeng, she had stirred up a hornet's nest. The old Madam Zhou and her two married daughters, who still liked to meddle in Zhou family affairs, would definitely not let it go.
However, nothing was more important than sleep. She washed up and went to bed as usual.
In the dead of night, she suddenly opened her eyes. Under the moonlight, she changed into her night-clothes, revealing only her eyes. She quietly went to the old Madam's courtyard.
She lit her specially made medicine and pushed it under the door. After a while, she gently pushed the door open. She tiptoed past the master and servant who were sleeping soundly. Guided by the original owner's memories and her own deductions, she quickly found a black box in a hole in the wall beside Madam Zhou's bed. Su Dan Novel Network.
Taking the box, she went to the dressing table, found a hairpin, and fiddled with it a few times. The box then opened.
Inside were stacks of silver notes. She stuffed all the silver notes into her clothes, then locked the box and put it back in its place.
She slipped out without a sound. She had intended to return to her own room, but then she changed her mind, turned, and, using the same method, plundered Zhou Tianpeng's silver notes. Not stopping there, the rooms of the two daughters also did not escape her.
The harvest was abundant that night. With these silver notes, she felt more confident about her future.
The next day, after breakfast, she began practicing calligraphy as per the original owner's habit.
Suddenly, the door of the room was kicked open with a loud bang. Startled, Wu Caiwei's hand trembled slightly, and an ink drop fell on the paper, smearing it. Seeing that the calligraphy she had worked on so diligently for a long time was ruined, she frowned almost imperceptibly.
"We waited in Mother's courtyard for so long, and here you are, still in the mood to practice calligraphy," Zhou Wanqiu said, seeing her leisurely appearance, her anger rising.
Wu Caiwei ignored them and took out a fresh piece of paper to continue writing.
Seeing that she paid them no mind, Zhou Wanyue stepped forward, snatched her paper, tore it into pieces, and tossed them into the air.
The scene suddenly fell silent. Wu Caiwei's expression was blank; no one knew what she was thinking.
Although Madam Zhou felt that her daughters' behavior was inappropriate, the thought of her having beaten her precious son filled her with rage.
"How could you hit Peng'er? He is your husband," the old woman pointed at her with a trembling finger and asked. When she first heard her son's accusations, she hadn't believed him. But many servants had seen her son limping out of her courtyard yesterday, so she had no choice but to believe him.
"So what if I hit him? Should we find an official to judge his actions? Beating him is still a light punishment. This is the first time, so it's fine. But if you come to my courtyard without my permission again, you won't be as lucky as today." Wu Caiwei pointed at her two cheap sisters-in-law, wondering why married women were still frequenting their maiden home to take advantage.
"This is the Zhou residence, and we all share the surname Zhou. Why are you, an outsider, acting so tough here? Who can't find someone to judge? We can go too. Setting aside other things, you were supposed to pay your respects to Mother in her courtyard today. First, you didn't come, and second, you didn't come. And you? You were in the study practicing calligraphy. Do you have any right?" Zhou Wanqiu could not stand her calm demeanor, feeling like she was punching cotton – a futile and tasteless effort.
"You all want me to leave, yet I'm supposed to go pay my respects? Why would I seek suffering? Are you here today because you agree to my terms? If you agree, I'll pack my things and leave immediately. If you don't, yesterday was just the beginning."
"Wishful thinking. Only a fool would agree to your terms..."
Before Zhou Wanqiu could finish speaking, she screamed. It turned out that at some point, Wu Caiwei had taken out yesterday's stick and was hitting her with all her might.
Seeing her sister being beaten, Zhou Wanyue immediately rushed to help. Wu Caiwei kicked her to the ground. Her face contorted in pain, and she couldn't get up for a long time.
The maids and servants brought by the women heard the commotion and rushed in to check the situation. They saw the old Madam hiding far away, the eldest young lady being beaten, the second young lady lying on the ground, clearly injured, and the mistress still beating them. They didn't know what to do for a moment.
"Are you all dead? Can't you come forward to help?" Madam Zhou roared, seeing that they weren't stepping forward.
They looked at each other and then, steeling themselves, they went forward. They wanted to grab Wu Caiwei and snatch her stick, but Wu Caiwei hadn't had her fill of beating yet. How could she let them have their way?
Looking at the servants groaning on the ground, Madam Zhou gasped. She had never known her daughter-in-law to be so strong. It seemed she had truly encountered a formidable opponent today.
Zhou Wanqiu felt like an eternity had passed before she stopped. By then, she was unable to get up. The feud between them was sealed. Of course, after today's incident, they couldn't confront her head-on; they were no match for her. Underhanded tactics would surely follow.
Although they were unwilling, the difference in strength was too great. They could only retreat for now.
The room became quiet again. Wu Caiwei continued practicing calligraphy, completely unfazed by the recent events.
However, the four members of the Zhou family felt deeply humiliated. They shut their doors and began to plot their revenge; a conspiracy was brewing.