Chapter 51: The Wicked Stepmother

When Xiao Pingle heard that Wang Tiehua actually wanted to ruin Xiao Weiguo’s job, his eyes instantly filled with blood. Pointing at Wang Tiehua, he shouted, “You… you… you venomous woman! Our Xiao family finally has a city dweller, and you dare sabotage that!”

“Xiao Pingle, you’re really something now, pointing your finger at me! What’s next, you think you’ll hit me too? Go on, hit me! I dare you. I’m going to ruin that little brat’s job, you want to stop me? Hit me if you can!” Wang Tiehua advanced on Xiao Pingle, step by step, forcing him back.

Xiao Pingle’s whole face turned crimson. Without thinking, he slapped Wang Tiehua hard across the face.

With a crisp sound, Wang Tiehua’s left cheek bloomed red.

She stared at Xiao Pingle in disbelief, covering her face, stunned that this usually timid and docile man had struck her. For a moment her mind went blank, then filled with rage.

Furious, she lunged at Xiao Pingle and knocked him to the ground, flailing wildly at his face with both hands.

“All right, you hit me, you hit me, I’ll show you—” she shouted as she struck him.

Xiao Pingle scrambled to dodge and tried to push the mountain of flesh off his body, but he had just come back from the coal mine and was utterly exhausted, unable to move the brawny Wang Tiehua.

The fifth child, Xiao Qigong, saw his parents fighting and burst into terrified wails.

Xiao Weijun, just returning from play, heard the commotion from the yard, peeked in, and then ran out in a hurry.

“Big brother! Grandpa! Mom and Dad are fighting!” Xiao Weijun shouted as he ran to his grandfather’s house.

“Let’s go! Have a look!” Grandpa immediately headed for Xiao Pingle’s home.

By the time they arrived, the battle had ended. Xiao Pingle’s face was swollen like a pig’s head, his collar torn into rags, while the red mark on Wang Tiehua’s face had already faded.

Outside, villagers who’d heard the uproar had gathered to watch.

Xiao Weiguo followed his grandfather into the main room and saw his father still sitting on the floor, dazed from the beating, while Wang Tiehua sat on a chair, face twisted in anger.

“What’s going on now? Get up at once,” Grandpa Xiao Tieniu said to Xiao Pingle.

“You Xiao family men dare lay a hand on me? I won’t live like this!” Wang Tiehua raged at Grandpa.

Xiao Pingle got up and spat, “You shrew!”

“You still dare insult me? Still dare?” She lunged at him again, ready for another round.

Xiao Tieniu quickly stepped between them to stop her.

Wang Tiehua then stormed into the bedroom, cursing under her breath as she packed her things.

Soon, she emerged with a bundle in hand and declared to the three men in the room, “Just you wait! I’m going back to my family—how dare you hit me!”

Ignoring little Qigong’s sobbing, she marched out, brimming with rage.

“What happened—tell me everything,” Xiao Tieniu demanded once she’d left.

“That shrew wants to destroy Weiguo’s job—says either give it to her nephew or hand over all his wages to her, or she’ll go to the factory and ruin Weijun’s job too. I lost my temper and slapped her,” Xiao Pingle explained.

“Hmph, she deserved it. If she tries it again, use a stick next time, beat her to death and I’ll take responsibility. If she dares ruin the Xiao family’s hope, I’ll ruin her first! Go find your second uncle, have him write a divorce letter—no need for this wife anymore,” Xiao Tieniu said, seething.

Xiao Weiguo listened from the side, so angry he could barely contain himself.

Xiao Tieniu looked at Xiao Pingle’s disheveled clothes and swollen face and added, “Clean yourself up first. After the celebration banquet tonight, we’ll go together. She’s probably gone back to her family.”

Back at Grandpa’s house, Xiao Pandie reported that her father planned to come and scavenge for good things, nearly sending the old man sprawling in fury.

“The nerve! If he shows up, I’ll kill him!” Xiao Tieniu raged.

Seeing his grandfather in such a state, Xiao Weiguo could only silently commiserate with his second uncle.

“Grandpa, don’t worry—it’s not like we don’t know what kind of person she is. No one can take this job from me,” Xiao Weiguo reassured him.

Grandma, looking deeply troubled, said, “It wasn’t easy to get a wife, and if Pingle divorces her, he’ll be left with five children—how will he find another?”

“No discipline, no order! A woman overturning the heavens—she must be divorced!” Xiao Tieniu said darkly.

As they spoke, they heard a cheerful voice outside—Xiao Pingxi, greeting the old couple.

“Dad, Mom, I came straight to see you as soon as I got back. How are you feeling?”

“Scoundrel!”

Xiao Tieniu, still furious, grabbed a stool and flung it at Xiao Pingxi.

He dodged in confusion, “Dad, what’s wrong? I came to see you—why are you angry?”

“You’re here to steal from me again, aren’t you?” Xiao Tieniu shouted.

Xiao Pingxi was startled that the old man had guessed his intent, but kept his tone innocent, “No, I’m just here to visit you both.”

“Visit me, visit me!” Xiao Tieniu began hurling stones after him. Xiao Pingxi ran, calling out, “Dad, I’ll visit next time!” and disappeared from sight.

“Infuriating!” Xiao Tieniu stormed back inside.

Meanwhile, Xiao Pingle cleaned himself up and prepared to take his four children to the celebration banquet. Truthfully, after getting his face battered, he didn’t feel like going. There was still half a bowl of braised pork at home—enough to satisfy his craving. But thinking of the children, and considering it was a free feast, he decided to swallow his pride and go.

So, Xiao Pingxi led Xiao Hongmei, Xiao Weijun, Xiao Lianxin, and Xiao Qigong to the banquet.

The three girls, though they’d eaten well at noon, had emptied their stomachs several times through the afternoon and were hungry again—one meal of meat was never enough, and their mouths still watered at the thought, wishing they could eat like that every day.

At the site, all the support team members had brought their families, sitting and chatting. When someone asked about Xiao Pingle’s swollen face, he claimed he’d fallen.

Suddenly, a group of men’s voices rang out from outside, “Xiao Pingle, get out here! You dared hit my sister and bully someone from Wangjiazhuang? Today, I, Wang Hu, will settle this with you!”

At the shout, everyone turned to look at Xiao Pingle.