Zhang Mazi lay in the hospital for three days without paying his admission fee. The hospital gave him an ultimatum. When he had no other choice, he had to slip out of the hospital dejectedly and go home to recuperate.
There were no surveillance cameras in the alley now. The police started investigating from his acquaintances, but all those who had grudges against him had alibis. The matter became a cold case and was dropped. Everyone said that Zhang Mazi might have done something immoral and was deliberately retaliated against, and that he deserved it.
Zhang Mazi went to the police station several times but could not get a satisfactory answer. He had originally intended to catch the person and teach him a lesson, and then get compensation from him. He didn't expect those people to be so useless, with no results after such a long investigation.
He sat at the entrance of the police station all day long, cursing incessantly, which caused many people to change from sympathy to disgust. Finally, the police officer directly told him that insulting police officers was a crime punishable by imprisonment, which scared him into scrambling back home.
The incident of Zhang Mazi insulting the police spread throughout their village. Moreover, because he had been castrated, people in the village gossiped and pointed fingers at him. This made Zhang Mazi increasingly depressed, and he no longer dared to go out.
Meanwhile, Tang Weiwei, after the incident with the little snake last time, had not been to the mountain for several consecutive days.
After completing the task of gathering pig feed, Jun Jiuli would go to the fields to observe how everyone was planting. Then she would start planting in the space she owned, and in her leisure time, she would study how to strip the heroine of her space. Her days were very leisurely.
Time flew by, and Jun Jiuli had been here for over a month. It was an uneventful afternoon.
Goudan next door had spread the news of Tang Weiwei going to the deep mountains alone. The Tang family had started discussing it and worrying incessantly, but not a single person suggested going to the mountains to look for Tang Weiwei.
At this moment, Jun Jiuli, who was nearby, spoke. "Uncle, are work points more important or is your daughter more important? If your cousin has an accident, will you be happy no matter how many work points you earn? Hurry up and take your two cousins to look for her."
Tang Weiguo was still hesitant. At this moment, Tang Dakui, who didn't want to work in the fields, said, "Dad, Cousin is right. Da Ya is the little lucky star of our main branch. Look how much wild game she brought back a few days ago. If something happens to her, wouldn't you and Mom be heartbroken?"
Tang Dongliang said, "Dad, there's not much work left. Let's inform the team leader, Dad, and the two of us will go look for sister. Otherwise, if something happens, you'll regret it too late."
The elders of the Tang family unanimously agreed. After notifying the team leader, Tang Weiguo took his two sons into the deep mountains.
After arriving in the mountains, they decided to split up and search. Tang Dongliang was too lazy to move after working all day. He thought his sister was resourceful. She had been to the mountains so many times without any trouble, and this time it was definitely unnecessary worry, so he found a shady spot under a tree and went to sleep.
As for the other two, after splitting up, they searched with all their might.
The mountain was filled with dense tree shadows and tangled vines. Tang Dakui, who had been bending down to search for only a few rounds, was already panting with exhaustion. He was now trapped by a patch of thorns. If he could get through here, he would see a slope.
Because he was not familiar with the road here, he had not found the right path. He wandered in the woods, and was scratched by thorns in several places, bleeding. He sat down on the ground to rest for a while.
After a while, he heard a commotion. He thought that there might be large animals in this area. He cautiously poked his head out to observe.
What he saw scared him to death. A wild boar weighing about 300 pounds was galloping down the slope. The vines along the way would entangle the boar's limbs. Since the vines were too weak, the boar broke free from the restraints and rushed down again.
Tang Dakui could hardly believe his eyes. Were there monsters in this mountain? Why would those vines entangle the wild boar by themselves?
After a while, he saw his sister heading towards the wild boar. He didn't care about his own fear; his sister's safety was more important. So he hurried out of the woods and headed in the direction Tang Weiwei was going.
"Da Ya, wait for me. It's dangerous ahead, don't go any further."
Tang Weiwei heard Tang Dakui's call and had to stop her forward progress. "Brother, why are you here? It's very dangerous here."
Tang Dakui bent over, supporting his knees with both hands, and panted for a few breaths before saying, "Goudan next door said you came into the deep mountains, and Dad, Mom, and I were worried about you, so we came into the mountains to find you. Let's go back quickly, they must be worried waiting."
"Brother, you go back first. I saw a wild boar that was injured. If we can hunt this wild boar, our family won't lack meat in the future."
After Tang Weiwei finished speaking, she was about to move forward. Tang Dakui grabbed her wrist.
"Little sister, don't go. There are monsters in this mountain."
"Brother, it's a new era now, where are there any monsters?"
"I just saw those vines entangle that wild boar by themselves. There must be tree spirits in this mountain. We can't stay here anymore, let's go home quickly."
"Brother, are you hallucinating? If there were monsters, why wouldn't they attack us? Let's follow them quietly. If there's a problem, we'll run away quickly, okay? That's a wild boar."
Tang Dakui struggled internally, feeling a little afraid of the vines he had just seen, but also wanting to obtain the wild boar. Finally, after weighing it in his mind, he decided to follow his sister to hunt the wild boar. Anyway, his sister had divine strength since birth, and if the tree spirit couldn't even handle a wild boar, it probably wasn't very powerful.
After the siblings discussed it, they ran in the direction of the wild boar. And during the brief moment of talking with Tang Dakui, she had already entangled the wild boar with her superpower.
When the siblings reached the bottom of the slope, they saw the wild boar lying on the ground.
"We're rich, we're rich, hahaha, Da Ya, that wild boar hit itself to death."
"Yes, brother, we're really lucky. Don't talk so loudly, in case someone else finds out, this meat will have to be shared."
Tang Dakui quickly covered his mouth. The siblings walked towards the wild boar's corpse.
"Huh, sister, what's that?"
Tang Weiwei leaned closer and saw it was a pair of human legs.
Meanwhile, Old Mrs. Tang in the fields was extremely worried, always feeling uneasy. She would rely entirely on the eldest son's family in the future, and nothing must happen to them.
Tang Weimin also got off work. As soon as Old Mrs. Tang saw him, she felt much more at ease.
"Second son, quickly go into the mountain and take a look. Your eldest brother and the others have been gone for half a day and haven't returned. I'm so anxious."
"What did eldest brother go into the mountain for?"
"Why are you still asking these questions? Don't waste time. I told you to go, so you go. Hurry up." After saying that, she gave Tang Weimin a sideways glance.
Tang Weimin lowered his head like a young wife and responded, then set off towards the mountain. At this moment, Jun Jiuli ran up to him.
"Dad, I want to go with you."
"Why would you, a child, go? It's too dangerous in the mountains. Listen to your dad and go back quickly."
"What are you babbling about with her? If that good-for-nothing wants to go, take her with you. Don't waste time. If your brother has an accident, I won't forgive you." Old Mrs. Tang roared angrily from behind.
Tang Weimin dared not retort, so he pulled Jun Jiuli and walked forward without stopping.
Halfway up the mountain, the father and daughter saw Tang Dongliang sleeping. Tang Weimin went forward and woke him up.
"Dongliang, why are you sleeping here alone? Where are your father and the others?"
Tang Dongliang rubbed his eyes and saw that it was his useless second uncle. He rolled his eyes. This person was really disturbing his dreams. So he said impatiently, "Second Uncle, how would I know where my father and the others are?"
Tang Weimin said sheepishly, "Didn't your grandma say that you and your father came up the mountain to find Da Ya? I thought you were together."
"Haven't my father and the others found her yet?"
"I don't know, I just came up the mountain."
"Hmph, you don't know anything, what use are you?"
Tang Weimin did not argue with him. "Then hurry up and get up, let's go into the mountain together to find your father and the others."
Tang Dongliang reluctantly got up and followed behind Tang Weimin.
On this side, Tang Weiwei and her brother discovered that the person the wild boar was pinning was their father. They worked together to pull the wild boar away.
"Dad, wake up quickly." Tang Dakui shook Tang Weiguo while crying uncontrollably.
"Stop crying. Go find your second uncle to help. I'll hide the wild boar first, and we'll take Dad to the hospital together."
At this moment, Tang Dakui had lost his composure and was completely following his sister's instructions.
He hadn't walked a few steps before he saw Tang Weimin and the others. "Da Ya, Da Ya, there's hope. Second Uncle is coming this way." He spoke excitedly to Tang Weiwei while waving and calling out to Tang Weimin.
Tang Weiwei, who was about to put the wild boar into her space, paused. She couldn't hide the wild boar in just a few seconds. It was better not to arouse suspicion.
As soon as Tang Weimin arrived, he saw his brother covered in blood, with a large wild boar beside him. "Dakui, what's going on?"
"Wuwuwu, Second Uncle, when we arrived, we saw this wild boar pinning my father. Hurry and think of a way to save my father first."
Tang Weimin checked his breathing and felt relieved in his heart. Fortunately, he was still alive.
"Dongliang, you're fast. You go down the mountain first and inform your third uncle Tang to prepare an ox cart to wait for us at the foot of the mountain, and let your grandmother go back to get money to send your father to the county hospital. The smell of blood here is heavy, and other large animals might appear later. Dakui, take your two sisters back to get some strong men from the village to carry the wild boar."
"Dakui, stop dawdling and help your father up. I'll carry him down the mountain."
"Oh, okay." Everyone quickly responded. Although Tang Weiwei was somewhat unwilling, she did not dare to say more.
Outside the operating room of the hospital.
"Oh, my son, why are you so unlucky? It's all that good-for-nothing's fault. If she hadn't incited him, how would my son have gone up there? Wuwuwu~ Ah, heaven killer, give me back my son!"
People coming and going in the hospital all looked over. Tang Weimin, standing outside the operating room, felt uneasy.
"Mom, don't be like this. Hurry up and get up, so many people are watching."
"Let them watch. My son is like that, how can I sit still? You heartless one, the person inside is your own brother."
At this moment, a nurse walked over. "Madam, I understand your feelings. However, this is a hospital, and noise is prohibited."
When Old Mrs. Tang saw that the person was wearing a nurse's cap and a white coat, her previous domineering demeanor instantly vanished. She only dared to throw tantrums within the family and was extremely obedient in front of outsiders.
So, with Tang Weimin's support, she got up from the ground and sat on a nearby chair.
Seeing the nurse leave, she started to wipe her tears and quietly questioned Tang Weimin.
"What's going on? Didn't I ask you to go up the mountain to find your brother? Why was he hit by a wild boar?"
"I don't know either. When I arrived, eldest brother was already unconscious."
"Wuwu, you don't know anything. Why wasn't it you who was hit by the wild boar? If your eldest brother has an accident, I won't live either."
Hearing this, Tang Weimin felt as if a piece of his heart had been fiercely torn away. He had always known that he was not as favored by his parents as his elder brother, but his parents had supported him in studying at the beginning. Even ten fingers have different lengths, and it was normal for his parents to have some favoritism. He never expected that he meant nothing to his mother.
What he didn't know was that the reason they let him study was because Tang Weiguo didn't want to. The elders also felt that if Tang Weimin became successful in the future, he could better support his elder brother. Otherwise, how could they be willing to let him study?
"It's all Tang Tang's fault, that jinx. If it weren't for her instigating, your brother wouldn't have gone up the mountain."
Tang Weimin could no longer suppress his anger. "Mom, why do you blame everything on Tang Tang? It was you yourselves who were worried about Da Ya, and let eldest brother go into the mountains to find Da Ya. Now that eldest brother is in trouble, you blame it all on Tang Tang."
Old Mrs. Tang was stunned by his roar. "You're yelling at me! You dare to yell at me, Tang Weimin. You've become capable. After marrying a city wife, you dare to yell at your old mother like this."
"Mom, why do you keep bringing this up? What's wrong with me marrying Cheng? You've been nagging me for so many years, it's time to let it go."
"I can't live anymore, I can't live anymore. At my age, to be yelled at by my son. You used to be so filial. It must be that吳晏清 (Wú Yànqīng), that little vixen, whispering in your ear, otherwise how would you yell at me? Heavens, what sin have I committed? My filial elder son is in the hospital, and my younger son is so disobedient, wuwu~"
Tang Weimin couldn't take it anymore and yelled loudly, "Can you just shut up."
This time, he truly scared Old Mrs. Tang into silence.
Seeing her like this, Tang Weimin instantly felt that his mother was not that scary. It felt good to yell back. He dropped a sentence, "I'm going out for some fresh air," and left.
Old Mrs. Tang sat there motionless like a quail, looking at the strange glances from the surroundings. There was no one she knew nearby.
After standing outside the door for a while, the rest of the Tang family also arrived at the hospital by ox cart.
Old Master Tang anxiously asked, "How is your brother's condition?"
"He's in surgery, and the results are not out yet."
"Then let's go in and wait." The whole family bustled into the hospital.
As soon as Old Mrs. Tang saw Old Master Tang arrive, she felt her spine straighten instantly.
"Second son, your brother shouldn't have suffered this. If it weren't for Tang Tang babbling next to him, I would have waited for you to come back and then asked you to go up the mountain to find Da Ya. Your brother purely suffered for you this time. Your second branch has to pay for this medical expenses."
"Mom, you can't say that. Eldest brother went up the mountain to find his daughter and suffered this hardship. How can you blame our second branch?"
"When I speak with my son, it's not your turn as a daughter-in-law to interrupt."
"Mom, what I and Yan Qing think is the same. I handed over all my salary before marriage to you. After marriage, I have my own small family, but I still handed over half to the family. You even took half of Yan Qing's salary. Over the years, it's at least eight or nine hundred. The family doesn't have any major expenses. Eldest brother's medical expenses should be affordable, right?"
"Are you trying to anger me to death? I saved all that money for you. Would I still covet the money of you juniors?"
"Grandma, if that's the case, then return the money you saved for my parents to them. Then my parents can use this money to give it to my eldest uncle."
Old Mrs. Tang was so angry that she couldn't stand it. "When adults are talking, why are children interrupting?" She said this and raised her hand to hit Jun Jiuli. Jiuli skillfully dodged. She ran around the hospital with her head covered.
As she ran, she said, "Grandma, don't hit me. I know I was wrong. You can have the money my dad and mom have. I'll ask my mom to borrow money from outside to treat my eldest uncle, okay?"
"You shut up, you little brat, don't run away."
Wu Yanqing quickly stepped forward to protect Jun Jiuli behind her. "Mom, what are you doing? Tang Tang is still young."
The people who came and went in the hospital immediately stopped to watch the drama and eat melons.
"How can there be such an old hag who holds onto her son's and daughter-in-law's money and asks them to borrow money to treat her eldest son's illness. Truly shameless."
Many people began to chime in. "My son and daughter-in-law's money is kept by themselves. It's more convenient for young people to have some money on hand when they go out."
"Yes, yes."
"It's not ancient times anymore, and you're still tormenting your daughter-in-law like this. Look at your younger son, that useless fellow, he must have been bullied a lot."
There happened to be someone from Xiao Tang Village nearby. "She, in our village, is famous for being partial."
"Quickly tell us what's going on?"
Several aunts immediately surrounded the woman who had just spoken. "Let me tell you..."
"Oh, so that's how it is. The eldest son is useless, and now his leg is broken. Even now, he's still clinging to the younger son. With such favoritism, he will definitely have a bad end in old age."
"You old hag, what are you talking about? So what if my son's leg is broken? I still have two grandsons."
"Scatter, scatter. An ignorant old woman has stained our eyes."
Old Mrs. Tang was still muttering curses at those people, while Old Master Tang came to his senses. The eldest son's life was destined to be spent farming, and now his leg was broken. His two grandsons were not yet married. If he didn't firmly grasp the second branch, but instead offended the second branch, then he would definitely not have a good outcome in the future.
So he reprimanded Old Mrs. Tang, "What are you crying and making a fuss about? The eldest son isn't dead yet. The eldest son's surgery fee will be paid from the public funds. I think you're really senile. It was a wild boar that injured the eldest son, what does it have to do with the second branch?"
He then turned to Wu Yanqing and said, "Second daughter-in-law, your mother was worried about your eldest brother's injury and spoke some unpleasant words out of confusion. Don't take it to heart."
"I think she's not confused at all. She's very clear-headed and is trying to shift the blame onto our second branch."
"Old woman, come and apologize to Yan Qing."
"Why should I apologize to her? I haven't said anything wrong."
Old Master Tang was so angry that he almost died seeing her stubbornness. He quickly apologized to Wu Yanqing and forcibly dragged Old Mrs. Tang over to apologize.
"Tang Weiguo's family is there."
"Doctor, hello, I am Tang Weiguo's father."
"Yes, good. The patient has passed the critical stage and still needs to be hospitalized for recuperation and observation for a period of time. Please take this form and pay the hospitalization fee for him."
"Good, good, good."
Old Mrs. Tang squeezed forward and said, "When we first came, Weimin already paid 50 yuan. How much more do we need to pay?"
"Pay 200 yuan first. Mr. Tang will need medication later. There will be a refund or additional payment upon discharge."
"Okay, Dongliang, come quickly and pay for your father." Saying this, Old Master Tang reluctantly pulled out a stack of money from his underwear, counted out 200 yuan, and handed it to Tang Dongliang.
"Since eldest brother has passed the critical stage, let's leave two people here to look after him. The rest can go home. The expenses in the county are high, and we still need to work and go to work tomorrow."
Tang Weiwei quickly raised her hand to indicate that she wanted to stay here. Old Master Tang gave Wang Jinhua 5 yuan and told them to use it sparingly.
When the group returned to Xiao Tang Village, the village chief had already led the villagers to scrape the hair off the wild boar and gut it. Because Tang Weimin's family discovered the wild boar first, and Tang Weiguo was injured.
The villagers unanimously decided to let their family choose first, and the larger portions would also be given to their family. Old Mrs. Tang personally went to pick, selecting two large pieces of lard and the fattest piece of meat.
Tang Weiwei was so angry she was about to explode when she later learned of this. Of course, that's a story for another day.