Falling into the mortal world

"It's your family matter. You mean even if you killed someone, the authorities can't do anything about it?" Lan Qingqing said with a laugh.

"This is the woman I paid to marry. I can beat her however I want, and nobody can stop me," Miao Tiehan said shamelessly.

"You know you married her, you didn't buy her. She's neither your servant nor your concubine. Now that a murder has occurred, you think you can just dismiss it as a trivial family matter? Let me tell you, if my family goes to court and sues you, you'll spend the rest of your life in jail," Lan Qingqing said.

Who are you trying to scare? You think I can be intimidated by a little brat like you? I've lived most of my life and I've never heard of hitting a woman being a crime. Miao Tiehan said.

This tough guy, Miao, would either beat or scold Miao Linshi. He was used to it, so naturally he didn't believe that beating one's wife would land one in jail.

"Beating your wife isn't illegal, but murder is. Have you ever seen anyone kill their own wife and not go to jail?" Lan Qingqing said with unwavering conviction.

"When did I kill anyone? You can't just falsely accuse me like that," Miao Tiehan said.

"You're being slandered! Open your eyes and take a good look at my aunt now!" Lan Qingqing said.

Miao Tiehan looked at Miao Yushi, who was lying on the ground, barely alive, and said: "This damned woman, what are you pretending for while lying on the ground? I've beaten you so many times before, and I've never seen you lying on the ground acting like you're dying. Is it because your relatives from your mother's family have come that you've become so tough?"

Miao Yu opened her eyes with difficulty and said: Let's get a divorce! Or you can divorce me.

"This old hag is really pushing her luck, isn't she? Divorce? Keep dreaming!" Miao Tiehan said fiercely.

Lan Qingqing said with a sneer: "It's fine if we don't divorce, but either you pay for my aunt's medical treatment, or we'll see the authorities."

Miao Tiehan was starting to regret his actions. Why had he hit her? Although his wife wasn't much, she could still do some housework and keep the bed warm. If she left, who would do the housework? Was he going to rely on his eldest daughter-in-law? He might as well do it himself.

Miao Tiehan decided to treat Miao Linshi, but he couldn't let her really die. Even if she did die, he couldn't let everyone know that he had beaten her to death.

Miao Tiehan asked the doctor: How much will this medicine cost?

"Five taels of silver in total," the doctor said.

"Five taels of silver? Are you robbing me?" Miao Tiehan roared in fury.

Upon hearing the doctor mention five taels of silver, the brothers immediately stopped fighting. "What five taels of silver?" asked Miao Lao Er, his face bruised and swollen.

"The doctor said it will cost five taels of silver to treat your stepmother," Miao Tiehan said.

"Five taels of silver," the three brothers said in unison.

"I'm not going to see her anymore. The old woman is dead, why should I bother treating her?" Miao Jiabao said, limping.

Miao Laosan chimed in, "That's right!"

Miao Linshi had long since given up on this family. People say that sincerity begets sincerity, but even if you gave the Miao family your heart, they wouldn't say a kind word to you.

The doctor continued, "Two slices of ginseng were added to this medicine. Ginseng is expensive, five taels of silver, and I only gave it to you because you're from our village. Otherwise, where could you buy such medicine for five taels of silver?"

At this moment, the village chief arrived and inquired about the situation. After learning the whole story, he said, "Your daughter-in-law is a menace, seducing men everywhere. She has no self-control, always gossiping. I wonder if all the young men in the village have been seduced by this vixen."

The village chief already knew when he arrived that Miao Yushi had gotten involved with his son.

Naturally, they would side with the Lan family and belittle the Miao Yu clan.

Lan Qingqing thought to herself, "This man is really shrewd. He shifted all the blame onto a woman, which helped salvage his son's reputation a little."

"Are you the village chief here?" Lan Qingqing asked.

"I am the village chief," the village chief said.

Lan Qingqing said, "It's like this, my aunt has been beaten so badly she's barely alive. The medical bills are five taels of silver, but the Miao family isn't going to treat her. If anything happens to my aunt, we plan to take it to the authorities."

The village chief glared at Miao Tiehan. If the Lan family were to file a complaint with the authorities, regardless of whether Miao Tiehan would go to jail, the reputation of Miao Village would be ruined. What family would want to marry their daughter into a village where wives are killed?

Normally, if Miao Yushi were beaten to death, she would simply be wrapped in a straw mat and thrown into the mountains, and that would be the end of it. No one would pursue the matter. But now, her family members are right there, and they witnessed her being beaten to death by the Miao family. How can things be resolved peacefully? The outcome is definitely not going to be good.

Miao Xiaoya found some dry grass and placed it under Miao Linshi. The ground was too cold, and Miao Yushi had many internal injuries, so she couldn't stand up at all.

The other villagers also realized that while they could remain indifferent if it didn't concern them, once it involved their own interests, no one made any sarcastic remarks. They all began to condemn the Miao people.

Miao Jiabao realized the seriousness of the situation. He knew that if his family didn't come up with five taels of silver for treatment, things wouldn't end well. So he said, "Aren't you this woman's family? Take her away! My family doesn't have the money for treatment."

It's not impossible for my family to take them away, but we need to sign a divorce agreement. Otherwise, why should my family pay for your family's medical treatment?

Miao Jiabao looked at his father and said, "Why don't we give the divorce papers to this woman? She doesn't look like she'll live much longer."

After thinking for a moment, Miao Tiehan decided to write a divorce agreement. The village chief found a scholar in the village and asked him to write the divorce agreement.

Lan Xiaotian handed over the chicken soup, and Lan Qingqing took the earthenware pot and looked at Lan Xiaotian in shock, saying: You brought someone else's pot over here.

In the village, earthenware pots are what people call cooking pots at home. Lan Qingqing found a quiet place to eat. She was quite hungry, and if it weren't for waiting for things to be resolved here, she would have gone to find something to eat long ago.

There are so many people here, it's not easy to divide this little bit among myself, so I might as well not divide it and just eat it myself! This will be over in a little while.

Lan Qingqing then began to eat without any hesitation. But the matter over there wasn't over yet.

Lan Qingqing told Lan Xiaotian to return the item to its owner, and Lan Xiaotian took the earthenware jar and went to Miao Xiaoya's house. Lan Xiaotian cleaned the jar thoroughly before handing it over. Lan Xiaotian thanked Miao Xiaoya again.

Miao Xiao waved her hand and said: No need to thank me, the money you gave is enough for my sister and me to live on for a year.

Lan Xiaotian then learned that Miao Xiaoya and her sister were the only two people in the family who depended on each other for survival.

Lan Xiaotian felt some sympathy for the two sisters. He thanked them repeatedly before leaving.

The divorce papers were signed by both parties with their fingerprints in the presence of the village chief, clan head, and villagers. Then, Lan's father and Lan Xiaotian found two wooden planks, placed Lin Shi on them, and carried her away.

Before leaving, Lan Qingqing made a startling remark: "Are these Miao brothers marrying one wife? These two brothers are more protective of their sister-in-law than of their own wives!"

These words sparked another bloody conflict within the Miao family, but that had nothing to do with Lan Qingqing anymore. She wouldn't be able to witness any excitement.