Severed ties and living in a dilapidated house? No worries, the poor thing has a space.

"Whoa!..."

Suddenly, a commotion arose among the onlookers, and Fang Wande could no longer save face. Compared to Lingjie'er's marriage to the Wang family and Pingge'er's going to school, he could still distinguish which was more important.

"This..." The village chief wanted to offer some advice, but stopped himself when he saw Fang Wande's somber expression.

He shouldn't interfere too much in other people's family affairs.

Li signed the three identical letters of severance without hesitation.

This was the first time such a thing had happened in Xishan Village. Today, Fang Wande felt that he had lost all face, which he had accumulated over the decades, so he simply turned around and went inside.

Severing ties is different from dividing the family property. Zhang had some concerns before, and she even regretted saying those hurtful things. But now the severance agreement has been signed.

She said, "You signed the letter of severance of ties yourselves. It's getting late, so you should hurry up and leave. You can save a meal."

Li didn't speak, but her somber gaze slowly swept over the courtyard where she had lived for nearly twenty years.

She could never go back to her parents' home. She had defied all opposition to marry into the Fang family, and her parents had disowned her. Now that she had left the Fang family, where could she go...?

There was a long-abandoned courtyard at the east end of the village, which now belonged to the public. She asked the village chief, "May I take my two daughters and stay there for a few days?"

Even though they've severed ties, they're still people of Xishan Village, so the village chief naturally has to take care of them: "Alright, then you can go and stay there for now, and we'll talk about the rest later."

Fang Yu was very satisfied; Li had done exactly what she had just told her to do.

The mother and daughter went back to their room to pack their things; they only needed three small bundles to fill all their belongings.

The onlookers followed the mother and daughter to the east end of the village.

The house in front of us is so dilapidated that even describing it as run-down is an understatement.

The courtyard wall collapsed in large sections, and the houses inside were teetering on the brink of collapse, as if a strong wind could bring them crashing down at any moment.

It's still better than living under the same roof as the Fang family.

Li was a little worried: "Yu'er, staying here..."

"Mom, it's alright, we just need to reinforce it a little."

Fang Yu walked ahead to clear the way, moving aside any clutter blocking the path in the yard.

Some of the onlookers were kind-hearted and spontaneously offered their help, without needing to be told.

The village chief came in last, found Li, and sighed: "If you need any help in the future, just let me know."

There's always gossip around a widow's door, so Li simply nodded.

They could barely manage to tidy up a habitable room, and laying down straw would make do.

He thanked everyone who came to help, and they all left.

Fang Yu wiped her hands and came out, looking up at the blazing sun overhead: "Mother, I'm going to the mountain to find Xin'er."

Xishan Village is located near the mountains, where there is no shortage of medicinal herbs. When the grain harvest is poor, most villagers will go to the mountains to collect some medicinal herbs to supplement their income.

This is something Fang Xin does every day.

Li said, "Mother, you should go. After all this work, can your body handle it?"

Fang Yu raised her arms and spun around, flashing a sweet smile, "Mother, I feel much better after a good night's sleep."

Despite her words, Li was still worried. Fang Yu then said, "Mother, I'm really alright. I'll be right back. Don't worry."

Before Li could even stop her, she quickly ran out the door.

With tears blurring her vision, Li turned and went into the house. She took out her husband's memorial tablet from her bundle, wiped it with a handkerchief, and held it in her arms, sobbing uncontrollably.

Fang Yu hadn't gone far from the door when a figure approached, forcing her to slow down.

Fang Ling half-covered her chin with a handkerchief and walked over with graceful steps. At first glance, someone who didn't know her might mistake her for a rich young lady from a wealthy family.

She chuckled softly, "Oh, little sister, why are you doing this? Wouldn't it be better to just marry Lin Wu and live a life of luxury?"

He glanced at the dilapidated house from afar, then smiled and said, "If you beg me now, I might say a few good words for you to your grandparents, and maybe I can even get you to move back to the Fang family."

Fang Yu glanced at her as if she were an idiot: "You like kicking someone when they're down so much, don't come kneeling in front of me wailing and howling when justice comes."

"What nonsense are you spouting?" Fang Ling said, trying to shove her, but Fang Yu easily dodged to the side.

Fang Ling overexerted herself and almost fell to the ground.

Fang Yu smiled and said, "Do you think I'm still the same person I was before, someone you can bully at will? If you want to marry into the Wang family unscathed, be smart and don't mess with me."

Fang Ling had sensed something was off about her at home, so she secretly followed her over, intending to kick her while she was down, but instead she was threatened instead.

Fang Yu walked up the mountain with light steps.

The original owner rarely came to this mountain. On the one hand, her mother and sister wouldn't let her come, and on the other hand, it was indeed very difficult for her to climb the mountain.

The ascent up the mountain used to leave me breathless, but now the walk is getting easier and easier.

In the woods, you could see a few figures squatting on the ground, diligently digging for medicinal herbs.

Wild animals live deep in the mountains, and the villagers who dig for medicinal herbs can only move around outside.

She searched all the way but couldn't find Fang Xin, so she asked someone. The person she asked was surprised to see her.

"Sister Yu, why did you come up the mountain?" The man stood up and pointed in a direction. "Sister Xin went that way. She said she was looking for some medicine. It seems there have been wild boars appearing over there recently. We tried to dissuade her, but she insisted on going."

Wild boar?

A sense of unease rose in Fang Yu's heart. "How long has she been gone?"

"It'll be more than an hour," the man kindly reminded her. "I think you shouldn't go, Yu-jie. If you two really encounter wild boars, there's nothing you can do."

"Thank you, I'll go take a look myself."

After thanking her, Fang Yu quickly headed in the direction where Fang Xin had disappeared, calling out as she went, "Xin'er!..."

As they walked, they were getting closer to the deep mountains, but they still hadn't found Fang Xin, and Fang Yu gradually became impatient.

In the distance, there were overturned baskets and a small hoe used for digging medicinal herbs, but Fang Xin was nowhere to be seen.

Suddenly, cries for help came from afar. Fang Yu didn't dare to delay and ran towards the sound.

On the edge of a cliff, a wild boar roared wildly at a tree trunk on the cliff face.

Fang Xin was only a teenager, two years younger than Fang Yu, and much thinner than Fang Yu. She clung tightly to the tree trunk with both hands. When she saw Fang Yu running towards her, she thought she was going to die and even hallucinated, seeing her older sister.

Her sister was frail; how could she possibly be here? She couldn't die. She touched her bosom; she still needed to take the medicine back to her sister.

"Xin'er, don't be afraid, hold on tight, I'm coming to save you!"

Fang Yu's strong and clear voice rang out. Fang Xin blinked, then was overjoyed and exclaimed, "Sister, it really is you! What brings you here?"

Despite her fear, she immediately realized that the wild boar was still under the tree, and she shouted again, "Sister, don't worry about me, you run!"

Her voice completely enraged the wild boar, which roared wildly and began to ram against the tree trunk.