NOVEL NEXT Chapter 164: The Pig-Killing Liu Family's
"Did you just fall?" Xu Xiuxiu asked anxiously, as the little one cooperatively nodded his head, tears flowing freely, "Wuuu... Cheng Guang promised daddy he would protect mommy!" Song Chengguang choked up with grievance, yet he hadn't forgotten what his father, Song Yuanhuan, had told him.
"Mhm! Cheng Guang is good, Cheng Guang did protect mommy." Xu Xiuxiu soothed the little one, kissing the little one's cheek several times while comforting him.
"Stop that howling, you little wretch with a short life, roll away from the front of my house right now, or don't blame me, the pig-killing Liu family, for being impolite." The fat woman's roar came from the house again, this time obviously directed at Song Chengguang's crying. Xu Xiuxiu, who had struck and dodged into the house, was now baring her teeth in anger and rubbing the scratch on her cheek, while clutching a kitchen knife nearby as if she was ready to come out and chop someone.
That foxy and cheap thing, swaying past their door every day, she had inquired about her. She's just a tenant living in the little courtyard at the front, no man in her family, sometimes she stays for a few days, and sometimes who knows where she goes to meet with strange men! Her tender skin and smiling face, always passing by her house. That pig-killing deadbeat of hers constantly ogles her, drooling over her in secret, and she's caught him several times without seeing any hint of him restraining himself, even comparing her and that cheap woman by saying she doesn't match up to a single finger of hers.
Just yesterday, they had a massive fight over this, and now that man has even neglected his pork stall, going off who knows where with some cheap woman, maybe to that widow in the alley again. Thinking of her made her blood boil, especially after she saw that woman walking past her door holding a child early on, solidifying her belief that the other was not some decent and honest woman, presuming she must be a mistress kept outside by someone, hidden from sight. Driven by anger, she fetched a basin of cold water from the backyard and splashed it over her.
Unexpectedly, that woman, seeming so weak and demure, put up a fierce fight. She couldn't withstand the beating, and then there was that little brat; just now, she had been kicked by him several times. The force wasn't heavy, but it was enough to infuriate her.
"Curse again and see what happens! Let me tell you, if you think you can, come out and don't hide in the house like a turtle retracting its head. Also, if my son is hurt anywhere, I'll make sure you pay for it." Xu Xiuxiu had never lost her rationality like today. She looked at the little one crying in her arms, her heart shattered like dumpling stuffing.
Song Chengguang was her first tether to this world. Initially, her desire to open Sichuan Pavilion and be self-reliant was one reason, but another was the concern that she might leave this world at any time. With the world being so fantastical, since she could be reborn in this era, it wouldn't be impossible for the original owner to come back and claim this body someday. But that woman was mean to Cheng Guang. What would Cheng Guang do then?
Thus, she wanted to open Sichuan Pavilion, to have some private property. She had already registered Sichuan Pavilion under Song Chengguang's name earlier. Therefore, even though Xu Xiuxiu was very fond of the little one, she restrained herself and worked hard to help the little one grow up faster. If she were no longer here, with Song Chengguang having his father, Song Yuanhuan, and his own private property, he probably wouldn't have a bad life, and she wouldn't have to fear for the little one or miss him when she's gone.
But now, with "Little Baby" forming a bump in her belly, in this unfamiliar world, she had another bond to tie her down. She began to indulge her heart, freely enjoying all that the world had to offer. She wanted to cherish everything before anything happened—who knows, she might just spend the rest of her life like this!
Yet today, this inexplicably mad woman actually dared to hit her baby; how could she not be infuriated, almost to the point of being desperate.
"Hmph, who are you trying to scare? If you have the guts, come into the house! I have several sharp pig-slaughtering knives here. If you dare to come in, I will treat you like a fat pig and slaughter you," the plump woman was just as aggressive, immediately shouting back in response to Xu Xiuxiu's threat.
"Miss, are you alright?" The arguing had alarmed the neighbors around, and an apparently amiable aunt from the house across from the fat lady came out and quickly approached Xu Xiuxiu, then yelled towards the door: "Slaughter Liu Family, I'd advise you to keep it down. Men are the least patient with women making a fuss. If you don't listen to reason, Slaughter Liu might just drag you to get a divorce tomorrow, and don't expect any of us neighbors to help or dissuade, hmph!"
"Hmph, Mrs. Tian from the wealthy household, don't you pretend to be a good Samaritan here. I, Song Chunxiang, don't need you to speak well for me! Cursing our marriage to end outside my house in broad daylight, keep dreaming, you heartless, scheming thing. You should worry about yourself first! Even if you and Tian Fugui divorce, Slaughter Liu and I will not!" The house resounded once again with a retort, this time seemingly shouted through the crack of the door.
"Song Chunxiang, you keep being muddled as you like! Consider me, Zhao Lifang, nosy then. If I ever meddle with your shabby family affairs again, may I take your surname." Mrs. Tian, infuriated by the words, spat disdainfully towards that direction, her words direct. She then took Xu Xiuxiu by the arm, leading her to her own home.
"Miss, you and the child are soaked through, come sit at Auntie's house for a bit. I'll get you a towel to dry off, so you don't catch a cold." Auntie Zhao Lifang said, casting a gentle look at Song Chengguang, "The child must be scared! Don't stoop to that person's level, she's just someone who's unhappy with her own life and looks for people to lash out at." As she spoke, Zhao Lifang also wore an expression of disapproval.
"Auntie, thank you for just now, but I won't disturb you by coming in. My house is just up ahead, I'll be there shortly," Xu Xiuxiu looked at her own clothes sticking to her skin, soaked through, and politely declined Auntie Zhao Lifang's kindness. Truly, it was the heat of the day; her clothes had been thin, and now that they were wet, the colors of the undergarments were showing through.
Be that as it may, where was she to care about catching cold at this point? Plus, Song Chengguang seemed to have gotten scared; she better get home and check on the little one first.
"Miss, you must be the daughter-in-law who's renting from Mrs. Niu's house!" At first, the people in this alley had seen Xu Xiuxiu a few times, and everyone talked about how Mrs. Niu's place had gained a celestial beauty, beyond description in her looks. She had also looked from afar once, and truly thought this daughter-in-law was exceedingly attractive. But these days, unless there was a matter at hand, neighbors didn't interact much with each other, let alone Xu Xiuxiu who was very busy, looking after her child, managing Sichuan Pavilion, and occasionally going back to the military unit to spend some days, naturally she was unaware that she had become quite famous in this alley.