I became the Counterpart of the Winner in a Period Novel-Chapter 131 - 128: Someone Wants Trouble

If we were to say that couple loves their child, they would always want to see their child when they visit, right?

But if we were to say they don’t love their child, well, thirty yuan is not a small amount; it’s probably at least half of their salary.

Gouwa said the couple just left the village. Jiang Mingyue has long legs, and she took a shortcut. Before reaching Baihua Forest, she was already waiting for the couple on the road.

"Uncle, Aunt, I am Ming Yue from the Third Branch of the Jiang Family. Could you spare a few minutes to chat?"

Ordinary people, if suddenly stopped by an unknown stranger blocking the way, would probably show displeasure right away.

But this couple didn’t.

Jiang Mingyue knew her guess was quite close to the truth.

"You are Ming Yue?" The Eldest Li from the Li Family showed interest, perhaps having heard many rumors.

"Yes. But today I’ve come regarding Li Xiaowei."

However, Jiang Mingyue didn’t naively speak ill of Li Xiaowei. She first spoke about Old Mrs. Li’s various actions, which were the opinions of the villagers and verifiable, then smoothly transitioned the conversation to Li Xiaowei.

"Uncle, Aunt, the child is ten years old this year. There’s still time. If you raise him yourselves, given Uncle and Aunt’s character, he will learn by example and certainly improve. But if he continues to stay with Grandma Li and those people, in the future, this son will not only be estranged from you but will grow in ways you won’t like. So Uncle and Aunt, you might want to carefully consider this."

Aunt Li kept wiping her tears, by this time she was already sobbing uncontrollably.

"I always said, one’s own child should be raised by oneself. You, you..."

The Eldest Li also had regrets. He didn’t immediately comfort his wife.

"Ming Yue, thank you for coming to talk to us today, otherwise we..."

"As long as Uncle and Aunt don’t mind me meddling."

"How could we..."

Jiang Mingyue chatted with the couple for a bit more and then left.

It turned out the couple wasn’t neglected their child due to work, but because Old Mrs. Li, after being instigated by her other children, threatened the couple with a hunger strike to keep Li Xiaowei, much like holding a hostage. The reason was the thirty yuan they sent each month.

Both husband and wife worked at a water pipe factory. Li Yongming was in charge of the warehouse, earning thirty-eight yuan a month, while Zhuang Hufen helped in the cafeteria, earning twenty-six yuan. Together they made sixty-four yuan a month. But Old Mrs. Li unfailingly demanded thirty yuan each month. Coming back every month to bring money and see their child was another major expense. Like today, when they brought back a bunch of stuff, spending nearly ten yuan, Old Mrs. Li was still not satisfied. They also bought toys and clothes for Li Xiaowei for another fifteen yuan. Holidays were another financial strain, making the couple live almost paycheck to paycheck every month.

A quarter of an hour later, Jiang Mingyue heard Gouwa report back that Li Yongming and his wife had taken Li Xiaowei away and told Old Mrs. Li that the child would go to school once back, and they wouldn’t have any spare money anymore.

This meant they wouldn’t be sending money back either.

The old lady was immediately so angry that she wanted to hit Li Yongming, but somehow Li Yongming whispered something to Old Mrs. Li, which made her change her attitude instantly, though still gritting her teeth, she didn’t dare to stop her eldest son.

Jiang Mingyue attempted again to activate her spiritual power, but it still wasn’t working.

She could only ask a few children to help find them, and Yun Di was the first to run back.

"Baihua Forest, Gouwa just saw Sister Zhenmei enter Baihua Forest. Gouwa already chased after her. Let’s hurry over. Gouwa also said that after asking around the village kids, someone saw Jiang Beiyang talking with Yang the Third these days, who is not a decent person. These two together must be up to no good."

The two quickened their pace.

Meanwhile, on Jiang Zhenmei’s side, after having lunch, she went up the mountain to pick wild fruits. She had discovered them unintentionally while working. Afraid of dragging on too long and having others pick them, she hurried. But just as she came down the mountain, Wang Guihua’s granddaughter Wang Daya hurriedly stopped her, saying she saw her sister Ming Yue encountering bad people and being dragged into Baihua Forest.

Jiang Zhenmei was so scared that she dropped the basket and immediately ran toward Baihua Forest, not wasting a single second.

Jiang Zhenmei was so focused on her sister’s safety that she didn’t notice the rustling of leaves approaching.

When she sensed the breath above her head, it was already too late as she was silenced by a hand over her mouth.

"Mmm..."

At this moment, Jiang Mingyue’s spiritual power recovered. She saw the one covering her third sister’s mouth was that scum Jiang Beiyang.

She heard his sickening words to another person obsequiously: "Third brother, I’ll hold her down, you go ahead, beat her to death. I want to see how the Third Branch can hold their head high in the future."

Then Yang the Third mocked: "I didn’t expect the cruelest would be you. She’s your cousin!"

"What cousin? More like an enemy. The Third Branch aren’t even as good as pigs or dogs. If they hadn’t sabotaged, Big Branch wouldn’t have turned so cold against us. Today, I’m teaching them a lesson to stop them from meddling in our family affairs."

"Hurry up!" Jiang Beiyang urged, as if the act was a game to look forward to rather than an atrocity.

Jiang Mingyue, by then had climbed over the middle rocks at lightning speed, tumbling down on another side of Baihua Forest. With a hundred-meter sprint, she finally managed to arrive before those two beasts acted. Jiang Mingyue threw a stone, hitting the hand Jiang Beiyang used to cover her sister’s mouth precisely.

A one-sided brutal beating followed, she beat them so hard their parents wouldn’t recognize them. If she could, she would have finished these two scumbags.

After the two ran away, Jiang Mingyue quickly embraced Jiang Zhenmei.

"Third sister, Third sister, are you alright? Are you okay?"

Finally, Jiang Zhenmei, who gathered her wits, burst into tears in her sister’s arms, crying so much that the sky seemed dark. It was the first time the third sister cried so sadly and fearfully. Jiang Mingyue felt guilty inside; she swore she would never let those two scumbags go.

After she cried her heart out, Jiang Zhenmei said she was fine; she was just frightened as it was her first encounter with such a matter.

Seeing that she indeed felt much better, Jiang Mingyue then wanted to take her home. Upon rising, she saw Yun Di and Gouwa hiding far away. Jiang Mingyue gestured for them to head back quickly. The young boys were considerate and thankfully did not appear.

On the way, Jiang Zhenmei indeed recovered, but she urged not to disclose what just happened to the family.

Jiang Mingyue naturally complied with her in everything.

Everyone has the right to choose. Since the third sister didn’t want to speak out, she would keep her lips sealed.

But she would remember this grudge and surely seek revenge on those two.

Afraid of encountering Mrs. Jiang in the main courtyard, Jiang Mingyue took her third sister through the back to send her directly to their room to rest.

"Yueyue, you don’t have to stay with me, I’m really fine. I’m just disgusted by Jiang Beiyang. In my eyes, he’s even worse than Yang the Third."

"Indeed, he’s utterly despicable. Someone like him deserves to be struck by lightning, fall into a river, and drown."

Jiang Zhenmei was coaxed into laughter by her sister.

"Thank you, Yueyue, I’m really okay. Like in the story you once told me, even if something really happened to me today, it’s not my fault; it’s those two beasts’ fault. They are the ones who should be punished."

"It’s right for you to think this way, third sister. By the way, why did you go that way specifically?"

Jiang Zhenmei explained how Wang Daya tricked her. Back then, she was so anxious that she hadn’t thought much, and only after encountering the situation did she realize Wang Daya did it intentionally.