They've all separated, so what does it matter to me if they get poorer and poorer?

Chapter 57 Who Will Believe You
Master Liu was furious when he heard Xu Zhichun's harsh and sarcastic remarks, which showed him no mercy and were all true. His face turned purple with anger.

His own wife was a fool, and she let slip a few words, giving this vulgar woman an opening. Since that's the case, why bother hiding it?
Anyway, there are no outsiders here.

It would be better to teach her a lesson and vent your anger!

Who does she think she is, daring to act so presumptuously in front of me? I'll make her regret it.

Master Liu gave Xu Zhichun a sinister smile, his already gaunt face looking even more ferocious. He sneered at Xu Zhichun, "Yes, you're right. I'll make trouble for him, so what?"

"You admit it!" Xu Zhichun said angrily. "You're a hypocrite. I'm going to tell everyone that you're not fit to be a teacher."

Master Liu laughed loudly: "Go ahead, go tell people if you dare! Do you have any evidence? Do you think people will believe an old scholar like me, or a shrew like you?"

"shame on you!"

"Hmph, so what? You're all bravado right now, but have you thought about what price you'll have to pay? If I were to say that Liang Mingxuan is of bad character and disrespectful to his teachers, do you think he could still pursue the imperial examinations?"

"You're jealous of my Mingxuan, aren't you?"

Master Liu, his sore spot touched, became enraged and his face darkened: "Me, an old man, jealous of a ten-year-old child? Haha, what a joke! You shrew, don't spout nonsense!"

"You're getting impatient! You're just angry and frustrated." Xu Zhichun bluntly exposed him, tearing off his facade of composure. "You only passed the preliminary examination in your late twenties, and you couldn't advance any further. You're unwilling to accept this, and you're jealous that my Mingxuan is called a child prodigy at such a young age. He's only ten years old this year, but he's fully confident that he can pass the preliminary examination. You've tried every means to stop him from taking the exam, and he doesn't want to. You're just jealous."

"I was doing it for his own good—"

"Ha, you know perfectly well whether it's true or not! That's one thing. Another thing is that you have high hopes for your son, but unfortunately he's not cut out for studying. He can't even learn the Three Character Classic in a year, while my Mingxuan could recite it fluently in less than a month. You're even more jealous!"

"Shut up! Shut up!"

Every single word Xu Zhichun uttered was like a sharp needle, piercing Liu Fuzi's heart. Liu Fuzi was filled with shame and indignation, and his jealousy and anger were boundless.

Xu Zhichun looked at Liu Fenghua, smiled slightly, and said gently, "Aren't the white flour steamed buns my Mingxuan brings every noon delicious? Five white flour steamed buns, and your whole family snatched them all up, leaving him not a single one. Even so, wouldn't it have been better to give him a bite of dark flour porridge or a small rice and vegetable dumpling? But you didn't have any, and you just let him go hungry all day. Are you even human? You're ghosts. You've become so vicious because of jealousy, aren't you afraid of retribution?"

Lady Liu's face flushed red and then turned pale, and she couldn't help but cry: "I wanted to save one for him, but my husband said... he said that children can withstand hunger, it doesn't matter if he misses a meal, and that he'll study better if he's a little hungry, so I... I... I just..."

Hearing Liu Niangzi's shameless words, Xu Zhichun felt both heartache and anger for her child: "So it's okay for a child to go hungry for a meal? So it's true that being a little hungry makes you study better? Is the reason your son isn't doing well in school because he eats too much?"

"Shut up!" Master Liu was truly stung by Xu Zhichun's words and became so angry that he blurted out, "You're Liang Mingxuan's sister-in-law? Very well, just because you dared to cause trouble at my house today, I'm telling you, Liang Mingxuan's future is ruined! He can forget about ever taking the imperial examinations again! It's all your fault! Tell me, if he knew that you were the one who ruined him, how would he feel?"

"You ignorant, foolish woman!"

"Do you think you can distort the truth?"

"I can!" Master Liu glared at her fiercely, sneering cruelly, "Because I'm a student of the lowest level of the imperial examinations! And his mentor. What I say goes!"

Xu Zhichun looked at him calmly: "Is that so? But I believe that justice still exists in the world, and I believe that justice resides in the hearts of the people. Let's think of a way, we can always do it."

Master Liu laughed wildly: "Fairness? Justice? My words are fairness and justice! Think of a way? What way can a lowly woman like you have? Let me tell you, even if you kneel down and beg me, I will not forgive you." Xu Zhichun remained silent.

Lady Liu's face turned deathly pale in an instant, and she opened her eyes wide in terror, trembling all over as she screamed in a shrill voice, "Husband! Husband!"

Lady Liu's voice trembled violently, as if she had seen something extremely terrifying.

Master Liu never considered his wife a human being, thinking her both stupid and foolish. He felt they had nothing in common and could never achieve any intellectual connection, leaving him deeply distressed and depressed. If it weren't for his failure to pass the imperial examination and his continued status as a mere student, he would have divorced her long ago.

Seeing her cowardly, easily startled appearance only fueled his disgust: "Shut up too! Useless, stupid woman!"

Liang Lizheng chuckled, "Master Liu, what a magnificent display of power!"

Meng Lizheng sighed softly, "Disgraceful, Quanshan Village has lost all face."

Master Liu's mind went completely blank for a moment.

He stiffly and slowly turned his head, and saw a cruel scene that he would never forget for the rest of his life.

Meng Lizheng, Liang Lizheng of Liangjia Village, and Doctor Jiang of Quanshan Village—the three of them, with six eyes in total, all looked at him with unspoken emotions.

Finished!

Master Liu suddenly stood up, stumbled backward, tripped over his robe, and fell to the ground.

"Husband!" Lady Liu exclaimed in surprise and rushed over to help her.

"Get out!" Master Liu rudely pushed her away, glaring venomously at Xu Zhichun: "It's you!"

Xu Zhichun calmly said, "I have said that there is still justice in this world. It will not allow a despicable person like you to distort right and wrong. As long as we use some methods, we can always achieve it."

"Vicious woman!"

"I can say I have a clear conscience, but what about you?"

Master Liu hesitated, wanting to retort that he was the same, but he couldn't bring himself to say it.

A sudden, earth-shattering fear surged within Master Liu.

What will happen to him if this gets out? He'll become a pariah, hated by everyone! Everyone will despise, scorn, and ridicule him. He'll never be a teacher again, he'll never receive tuition fees again, and he'll even be stripped of his status as a student.

too frightening.

No, that won't work.
Master Liu immediately changed his tune, weeping and pleading with the two village heads to spare him this time. He begged them to forgive him for his years of dedicated teaching in the village. He admitted that he was simply jealous of Liang Mingxuan, and that his jealousy had clouded his judgment, leading him to act impulsively. He swore he would never do it again.
It's getting colder every day, aren't you shivering?

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(End of this chapter)