CMWKSD -Chapter 11 Why Not Split the Family?

Jiu Yue withdrew her hand. Everyone hurriedly worked together to carry Ji Shan back into the house. Ji Yiqing stepped forward to speak with her. “Second Uncle, he…”

Jiu Yue smiled with crescent eyes. “You want him to be okay?”

Ji Yiqing nodded helplessly. “It’ll be time to sow the wheat soon. He has to be able to work.”

Jiu Yue nodded briskly. “Got it!” She was resetting Ji Dahu’s bones when she suddenly remembered Ji Dajiang under the bed. “Oh right—and your Third Uncle. Isn’t he still under our bed?”

Supported by Shen Mei, Hu Chunhua was already thinking about how she had to complain to her third son properly. Ji Dajiang had been clever since childhood—just that his cleverness had never been used for the right things.

Using it to deal with a demoness like Jiu Yue was just right.

But no one had expected this. They thought Ji Dajiang had been out fooling around all day—who would’ve guessed he’d been under the bed the whole time?

Hu Chunhua wailed and tried to rush off to find Ji Dajiang, only to see Ji Yiqing and Ji Dahai carrying him out.

Ji Dajiang was already awake, just unable to make a sound yet. The moment he saw his mother, he burst into muffled sobs.

Jiu Yue clicked her tongue twice, stepped forward, and jabbed a needle into him. Ji Dajiang’s voice returned instantly. He raised his hand to grab Hu Chunhua, only then remembering his arm had been dislocated.

“Mother, she’s a devil! A devil! Throw her out! Chase her out—hurry and chase her out!”

Ji Dahai looked at him in confusion. “Third Brother, how did you end up under Yiqing and Jiu Yue’s bed?”

At that, Ji Dahu—who had just regained his ability to speak—lowered his head guiltily. Hu Chunhua didn’t even dare look at Jiu Yue, hurriedly trying to cover her son’s mouth instead. Seeing Ji Dajiang’s arm still hanging limp, she said hastily, “Jiu Yue, um… your Third Uncle’s hand…”

That hand had actually touched her. The fact that Jiu Yue hadn’t chopped it off entirely was already her mercy—and now they wanted her to fix it?

Dream on.

Jiu Yue merely shot Hu Chunhua a cold glance. Hu Chunhua had likely realized why Ji Dajiang had been under their bed in the first place.

She didn’t dare make another sound.

Ji Dajiang hunched over. Down below, he’d been viciously ground into the dirt by Jiu Yue’s foot. He felt he was probably ruined for good—but how could he say that in front of so many people? Especially when Hu Chunhua and Li Xiaocao were dragging him back into the house.

At that point, Ji Dajiang couldn’t say anything at all.

Once everything was settled, Jiu Yue went straight back into the room. Ji Dahai and Su Ruo didn’t dare speak loudly. They only tugged Ji Yiqing aside.

“Yiqing… Jiu Yue, she…” Ji Dahai wanted to say—how could this girl be so wicked?

Those smiling words of hers—no matter how you listened to them, they sent chills down your spine.

Ji Yiqing simply patted Ji Dahai on the back. “Father, don’t be afraid of her. You saved her—Jiu Yue acknowledges that debt. Besides, she’s not someone who kills indiscriminately. Look, the only people she targeted were those who treated her badly. As long as you’re a bit kinder to her, she won’t do anything to you.”

Su Ruo let out a choked sob. Her mother-in-law was unreasonable, overbearing, sharp-tongued, and vicious. Finally, they’d gotten a delicate little daughter-in-law—well, now it was even more terrifying.

Why was her life so hard?

Ji Yiqing looked at the sky. They’d agreed to fetch Ji Chaomian and Ji Youqin today. Staying at the clinic wasn’t a long-term solution, and the family didn’t have much silver either.

“Father, go borrow Uncle Youcai’s cart and donkey. I need to bring Big Brother back while it’s still light.”

At the mention of Ji Chaomian, Ji Dahai’s eyes filled with tears. He was useless—otherwise his eldest and youngest sons wouldn’t have risked their lives going into the mountains just to earn travel money.

Su Ruo went into the kitchen to prepare food. Before long, Shen Mei came in with her daughter as well. But when she saw Su Ruo this time, she no longer dared to be sarcastic or bully her like before.

Anyone with eyes could see Jiu Yue was standing up for the eldest branch. Shen Mei wasn’t even worthy of filling Jiu Yue’s teeth.

“Eldest Sister-in-law, I… I’ll help cook.”

Su Ruo looked up at Shen Mei in astonishment. Having grown used to being oppressed, hearing those words all of a sudden truly caught her off guard.

She had been picked up by Su Nian and brought back as a child bride for Ji Dahai. After Su Nian died, she’d nearly been thrown out—it was Ji Dahai who protected her. When they came of age, they simply stayed together.

There was no wedding banquet—nothing at all. Just one bowl of white flour noodles each, and that counted as marriage.

Otherwise, with someone like Hu Chunhua, there was no way she’d ever spend money to get Ji Dahai a wife.

Growing up under Hu Chunhua’s thumb, Su Ruo had long since been ground down until there was barely any spark left in her. If not for the children, she didn’t even know how long she could’ve held on.

Now she finally felt how good Jiu Yue was. With Jiu Yue around, it seemed they couldn’t bully her anymore.

Ji Yiqing entered the room. Jiu Yue was bored, flipping through the books on his desk. Ji Yiqing pulled a wooden box out from a hole in the wall.

Jiu Yue watched with curiosity, then saw bits of scattered silver inside.

Ji Yiqing divided the silver into two piles, pushing one toward her. “I’m going to bring Big Brother back and buy medicine. These twenty taels are for treating his leg. The remaining nine taels and four hundred thirty-two copper coins are all for you. Buy whatever you want to eat or drink with this.”

It was Jiu Yue’s first time actually handling ancient currency. She played with a small piece of broken silver in her hand, intrigued. “All of it for me?”

Ji Yiqing nodded, afraid she might blurt out something like, ‘I kill people fast—this bit of silver doesn’t even catch my eye.’

Thankfully, she didn’t say anything.

“I’ll have Mother find you a set of her old clothes for now. What you’re wearing…” To be honest, if it weren’t for the fact that Jiu Yue’s clothes were black and tightly covered everywhere, Ji Yiqing wouldn’t even know how to judge them.

They showed off everything that should bulge and curve.

If she wore that out, people would definitely talk.

Jiu Yue curled her lip. Please—this outfit was custom-made, okay? Worth over a million.

But she knew when to listen. She was well aware of how out of place her clothes were—and how out of place she herself was. If her origins were questioned, she might very well end up tied to a stake and roasted alive.

So she only said she was an orphan and knew nothing else. Amnesia—easy enough.

Ji Yiqing stood up. “I’m going to fetch Big Brother and Little Sister. Rest at home for a bit.”

Jiu Yue nodded. She wasn’t clingy, and besides, Ji Yiqing was just her bargain-bin husband anyway. But just as he reached the door, he turned back.

“How about you come with me? I had Father borrow a donkey cart—we won’t have to walk.”

Thinking of those bumpy dirt roads, even though she was extremely curious about donkey carts, Jiu Yue still refused. She had a feeling she’d be jolted half to death.

Why would she put herself through that?

Seeing he couldn’t persuade her, Ji Yiqing had no choice but to drop it. Jiu Yue had always lived as she pleased—no one could force her to do anything.

He was still worried, mainly about leaving Jiu Yue alone with the Ji family. One misstep, and something would go wrong.

At the door, thinking of the Ji family’s nature, he added, “No killing.”

Jiu Yue blinked. “I’m not some homicidal maniac.”

Ji Yiqing was nearly speechless. Who was it that had just said on the mountain that she killed people fast? Did she know how much psychological trauma that one short sentence had caused him?

For decades afterward, that line would keep whipping him forward—work harder, climb higher—because he’d never know who his wife might offend next, or who she might want to kill.

And where he’d have to go to fish her out.

Jiu Yue rolled her eyes. “Why don’t you split the family?”

Of course she knew that in ancient times, filial piety was paramount—parents alive, no division. A tradition passed down for thousands of years. But it wasn’t unheard of to split even with parents alive; it just depended on whether you dared and whether you truly wanted to.

Ji Yiqing lowered his gaze and smiled faintly. “Father and Mother are soft-hearted. Grandma is fierce and domineering—no one dares to touch her temper. Big Brother and I have to study; we can’t stay home all the time. After splitting, the house would only have Father, Mother, and Little Sister left. We’re afraid that without anyone watching, people would bully them.”

“Grandma bullies them, but her reputation also protects them from being bullied by outsiders.”

Jiu Yue looked utterly baffled. What kind of logic was that?

Afraid of being bullied by others, so you leave them here to be ground down by their own family?

Ancient thinking really was hard to understand. But Jiu Yue didn’t say anything.

Scholars in ancient times valued reputation. Ji Chaomian and Ji Yiqing being sent to study was something Ji Dahai had fought for. So for the sake of completely breaking free in the future, all this endurance now was simply biding their time.

And indeed—just like today. Ji Yiqing had said only a few words, yet everyone immediately stood on their side. Clearly, Jiu Yue was the villain this time.

But because of Ji Dahai’s family’s good reputation, no one cared about the truth. They only heard the truth they believed in.