Her petite figure was like a slender willow, but her thin arms seemed to have iron claws attached, gripping tightly onto an elderly yet tall man, lifting him high as she moved towards the courtyard exit.
Beside her were a pregnant woman and a child, their faces pale with fear. They nervously surrounded her, terrified that with one wrong move, she might slam the old master to the ground.
"Waa waa waa, Great-grandfather..."
"Second Aunt, don't drop him, for heaven's sake! Please don't drop the Third Old Master!"
When Lin Youtian, the clan leader, arrived moments later, he witnessed this scene that nearly took his breath away.
"Who are you? Put my father down immediately!"
Chu Chi raised her eyes to look at him.
Zhang Xuanniang, who had been bravely tugging at Second Aunt's sleeve, heard the commotion at the door and instantly felt her vision darken.
It's over!
Their family was surely done for!
Parading the clan leader's 80-year-old father on her head, and getting caught red-handed by his own son – there was no way the clan leader would let their family off the hook!
"Waa waa waa, Second Aunt..."
She finally broke down crying in fear.
Second Aunt?
Lin Youtian gasped in shock, took a closer look, and after a moment's thought, immediately identified who she was.
"You must be Chu, Yuanzhou's new wife, right? I'm the Lin clan leader. Please put my father down first, and we can discuss any issues calmly, okay?"
Though his eyes were blazing with anger that could erupt at any moment, he still lowered his voice to pacify her. No matter what, he had to rescue his father first.
Forcefully taking him back was clearly not an option. His eldest grandson had reported back last night. This Chu woman was as strong as an ox; a mere woman who could actually go to the mountains to hunt bears and kill pigs. When he heard it at the time, he thought it was nonsense.
But now, looking at his father who was so frightened he was about to faint, Lin Youtian spat in disgust.
Bah, what kind of weak woman was this!
Clan leader?
Chu Chi blinked, recalling what An'an had repeatedly told her last night. It seemed this clan leader was quite an important person. Although he looked as weak as a chicken, An'an said the clan leader held great power, and it was only with his consent that she could stay.
It didn't matter if she didn't understand; the main thing was that she listened to advice.
"He tried to steal my food, he wanted to drive me away, to sell us off."
She needed to explain the reason first; she didn't just randomly decide to manhandle someone. Lin Youtian barely understood what she was saying, but he nodded and agreed hastily.
"No stealing, no driving away, who could drive you away? You're Yuanzhou's wife. When you returned yesterday afternoon, I already added your name to the clan register.
Selling people is even more absurd. Our Lin clan has never engaged in human trafficking. There must be a misunderstanding here. Chu, please put the old master down first, and let me explain everything to you slowly!"
"Yes, yes, Second Aunt, the clan leader is right, this is all a misunderstanding!"
Hearing the clan leader's constrained tone, full of signs of yielding, Zhang Xuanniang suddenly felt alive again. Clutching the sleeve in her hand, she shook it vigorously.
"Although the Third Old Master came in cursing you, immediately wanting to drive you away, and even saying he wanted to turn you over to the authorities for fraud or something, but just like the clan leader said, it must all be a misunderstanding!"
In her almost eighteen years of life, she had never had a moment when her brain worked as well as it did now, frantically trying to absolve her family of responsibility.
"Second Aunt, your niece-in-law knows you've injured your head, causing your mind to be unclear at times, which is why you might not understand many things now. You must have misunderstood the Third Old Master's meaning, leading to this misunderstanding..."
Zhang Xuanniang's words laid everything out clearly – Clan Leader, listen carefully, my Second Aunt has mental issues. What to do about it? You figure it out yourself.
Lin Youtian winced in pain. Why didn't that little brat Lin Yuanshan tell him that this Chu woman was an idiot? Damn it, how could he reason with someone whose mind wasn't right?
"Misunderstanding?"
Chu Chi frowned in confusion.
"Yes, yes, yes! Isn't it all just a misunderstanding? Yuanzhou's wife, please put my father down first. Let your Second Uncle explain to you in detail what all these misunderstandings are about!"
If she couldn't understand something, there was no need to think about it. She obediently put the person she had been holding up back on the ground. Poor Old Man Lin, who had arrived in good condition, had nearly not made it back.
His legs were shaking so badly he couldn't use his strength. As soon as his feet touched the ground, his body tilted to one side. Lin Youtian hurriedly rushed forward to support him.
"Father!"
"Great-grandfather!"
"Third Old Master, are you... are you alright?"
Seeing the old master's pitiful pale face, Zhang Xuanniang barely managed to rephrase "Are you still alive?" into something more appropriate.
But there was no need to ask. Just looking at his gasping state, seven parts exhaling and three parts inhaling, how could he possibly be alright? An old coffin-filler in his eighties had never experienced such intimidation in his life!
"...Son, my son!"
Old Master Lin's voice was so frightened he almost lost it. After taking several deep breaths, he finally managed to adjust his breathing. Feeling that his son's presence gave him some backbone, he pointed a trembling finger at Chu Chi and stammered suicidally:
"Tie her up, call people to tie her up! This woman has gone too far, daring to disrespect her elders! Tie her up, punish her according to family law, and then divorce her!"
The old man had heard what his son said earlier. Since she had already been added to the clan register, she was a daughter-in-law of the Lin family. As the only surviving old master of the clan, how could he suffer such humiliation at the hands of a mere woman?!
Lin Youtian felt a bitterness in his mouth. Looking at his father whom he was supporting, then glancing at the woman opposite with her big eyes wide open, he felt that life was damn difficult.
"Father, Chu hasn't violated any of the seven grounds for divorce. Even though I'm the clan leader, I can't arbitrarily divorce a clan member's wife without reason!"
His father was really getting more muddled with age.
Just looking at Chu's strength, easily able to lift a person, it was clear that her bear-hunting and pig-killing skills weren't just talk.
Which clan member would be able to tie her up? If they angered her and she went berserk, wouldn't their Lin family have to shed some blood and hang some white mourning cloth?
And the most crucial point was that this Chu wasn't a normal person mentally, right? Otherwise, which new daughter-in-law would dare to lift the clan's old master over her head to intimidate him?
A crazy person, a crazy person with great martial skills and extraordinary strength – if they truly offended her, who knows what else she might do next time?
"Can't?"
Old Man Lin coldly rebuked, very dissatisfied.
"You're the clan leader, all clan members should listen to you! It's just a widow, divorce her and be done with it. What can she do?"
Lin Youtian shuddered at his father's words. He carefully glanced at Chu, fortunately, although her face was expressionless, she didn't seem about to get angry or go berserk. Thank goodness.
He wiped his face miserably, inwardly cursing Lin Yuanshan, that little bastard, for being so unhelpful.
He could only force out a smile with great difficulty.
