TSWPF -Chapter 153 The Blow

Li Laifu answered without hesitation, “I bought them at Jinyu Pavilion. The hairpin and the buyao each cost around ten taels of silver.” He recognized the style of the hairpin and buyao because he had once wanted to buy a hairpin there to please Meiniang. But when he heard the price, he couldn’t afford it, so the jewelry left a deep impression on him.

“Niece, if you want these, you can take them! Consider it a gift from your uncle for your dowry.”

As soon as he said this, Li Baozhu loudly protested, “No! These are mine—I don’t agree to give them to her!” These were her cherished possessions; how could Li Qingling just take them? Not a chance. “Li Qingling, give me back my things immediately!”

With that, she ran forward, reaching out to snatch them.

At this moment, she had completely forgotten that the hairpin and buyao actually belonged to Li Qingling. Her mind was entirely focused on getting them back.

Li Qingling grabbed Li Baozhu’s hand and, using a deft push, sent her two steps back.

“Are these really yours? You know the truth yourself.”

Although Li Qingling had never seen these hairpieces before, she fully trusted what Liu Zhimou had said; he would never lie to her.

Li Baozhu’s face flushed red and green with anger. Gritting her teeth, she took a few hurried steps forward and tried to claw at Li Qingling’s face.

She wished she could ruin Li Qingling’s face.

Li Qingling, seeing such vicious behavior, decided not to hold back. She lifted her foot and kicked Li Baozhu hard, sending her crashing to the ground.

Her face was icy, her gaze extremely cold. “Don’t act shamelessly. If you move another inch, I’ll cripple you.”

This was the real Li Baozhu. All the times she had casually come to chat and cozy up to Li Qingling must have been for some hidden agenda.

Li Baozhu covered her bruised body and quietly sobbed. That kick had clearly been full force—it was extremely painful.

“Li Qingling, how can you do this? How can you kick your sister Baozhu?” Madam Liu’s face changed. She quickly ran over and helped Li Baozhu up, her eyes wide as she glared at Li Qingling. “You really have no respect for anything!”

If Li Qingling knew Madam Liu had also taken her hairpin and buyao, she would surely ask for them back. That absolutely could not happen. The only solution was to quickly send Li Qingling away.

Li Laifu took the opportunity to block Li Baozhu. Frowning, he said, “Niece, Baozhu is your sister. How can you act without a word? This is too much.”

Li Qingling really was impossible to please. She had completely changed from the niece he remembered.

Li Qingling cast them a cold glance, pressed her lips together, and stayed silent.

Let them gloat for a while—soon they would have nothing to say.

Seeing Li Qingling remain silent, Madam Liu assumed they had the upper hand and continued to scold her. “Li Qingling, are you mute? Speak up! You kicked Baozhu like this—don’t you owe her compensation?” Since Li Qingling was so wealthy, it was only fair she pay some silver.

“Oh? Grandma, do you want me to compensate? With silver?”

Aha… there’s a chance.

A gleam of triumph flashed in Madam Liu’s eyes. She nodded firmly, “Yes, silver.”

Li Qingling let out a mocking laugh, full of sarcasm, and asked Madam Liu how much silver she wanted.

This put Madam Liu right on the spot. Just as she was about to voice her demand, Old Li scolded her loudly:

“Shut your mouth!”

He glared angrily at Madam Liu and told her to be quiet. Madam Liu bit her lips and dared not speak further. Old Li then turned his attention back to Li Qingling.

“Xiaoling, your grandma was only joking. Don’t take it to heart.”

This woman really needed to be taught a lesson. If she wasn’t disciplined, she would never take his words seriously.

Li Qingling gave Old Li a blank look and lightly acknowledged him.

At that moment, Liu Zhimou and the village chief arrived.

Li Qingling and Liu Zhimou had already agreed—they would seize this opportunity to take back all the dowry items that had been left at the Li household.

Li Baozhu’s commotion provided the perfect excuse.

Old Li’s face darkened when he saw the village chief. He was furious—Li Qingling was making a mountain out of a molehill. This was their family matter; why involve the village chief? This was a complete loss of face.

“Fourth Brother, why are you here?” Even though he was angry at Li Qingling, he forced a smile and greeted the village chief.

The village chief snorted heavily, annoyed. “It’s such an important matter. How could I not come?”

He was thoroughly disappointed in Old Li.

Old Li looked embarrassed, rubbing his hands together and saying in a low voice, “It’s just a quarrel between children. It’s nothing serious. We can settle it within the family.”

He really did not want the village chief involved. If he intervened, the whole village would know—and where would his face be?

Hearing this, the village chief grew even angrier. They had already grabbed someone else’s dowry, and he was calling it a minor matter? What did they consider serious, then?

“Enough of talking in circles! Let’s speak openly!” He wanted to resolve this quickly without bickering with Old Li.

Old Li received a glance from Li Laifu, signaling him to close the yard gate so the villagers wouldn’t overhear.

“Fourth Brother, let’s go inside to talk,” Li Laifu suggested.

The village chief, still giving Old Li some face, agreed with a nod and entered the house, hands behind his back.

Once everyone was seated, the village chief began again. “I’ve heard some of the story from Zhimou. How do you explain it?” He could not fully side with Li Qingling before hearing Old Li’s account.

Before Old Li could speak, Li Baozhu jumped up. “Village Chief, this is all Li Qingling’s fault! She took my hairpin and buyao!” She glared at Li Qingling’s hand, desperate to snatch them back.

But with the village chief present, she dared not act rashly.

The chief directly asked, “How do you prove that these hairpieces are yours?”

Li Baozhu boldly replied, “My father bought them for me, and I’ve worn them at home all the time. Grandpa and grandma know this.” Then, full of indignation, she pointed at Li Qingling. “When I went to chat with Li Qingling, she saw my hairpin and buyao and liked them so much that she insisted they were hers! Village Chief, how can there be such shameless people?”

Hearing this, the village chief turned to Old Li and the others, asking if it was true.

All three of them nodded. “Yes, that’s exactly what happened.”

The village chief frowned and turned to Liu Zhimou. “Zhimou, did you really give these as a dowry gift to Li Qingling? Can you prove it?”

Liu Zhimou cast a cold glance at Old Li and the others, then extended his hand toward Li Qingling. She placed the hairpin and buyao into his palm.

He pointed to the tips of the hairpieces. “Here, there are the characters ‘Qingling’. I had someone specially engrave them.” He handed them to the village chief. “Village Chief, you can check for yourself.”

If he hadn’t looked closely, he might not have been entirely certain. But seeing the engraving confirmed it—these were indeed the dowry gifts he had given Li Qingling.

The village chief examined them and saw the tiny characters “Qingling” on both pieces.

His face darkened like ink, and he glared at Old Li. “Do you have anything to say now? Have your consciences been eaten by dogs? How could you commit such a despicable act?”

He had never seen such relatives before… truly shameful.

Old Li and the others hadn’t expected such a dramatic turn of events. How could they have known that the engraving existed?

“No… I don’t believe it! How could there be characters on them?” Li Baozhu muttered to herself. She had worn them so long—how could she not notice?

Could it have been Li Qingling who had someone engrave them?

That made no sense. Li Qingling had followed her directly to her home—she hadn’t had time to have her name engraved.

So it had to be true.

But since she hadn’t seen it with her own eyes, she refused to believe it.

The village chief, furious, nearly fumed with fire. How could anyone doubt his judgment?

He looked directly at Old Li and handed him the hairpin and buyao. “Take a look. Are the characters really there?”

Old Li’s face flushed red and blue. Hands trembling, he carefully inspected the tips of the hairpieces. Sure enough, there were the tiny characters “Qingling.” The writing was so small that, without Liu Zhimou pointing it out, it would have been nearly impossible to notice.

“Now, what do you have to say?” The village chief saw Old Li’s expression and knew the answer. “I’m truly ashamed of you. Greedy even for your granddaughter’s dowry—how disgraceful!”

“This is impossible!” Li Baozhu murmured, stunned. How could there possibly be engraved characters?

But if it were impossible, her grandfather would have refuted it. Since he hadn’t, it must be true.

Li Qingling paid no attention to Old Li’s expression, looking only at the village chief. “Village Chief, I have a request…”