What's our Baizigou most famous for, you ask? A few things. First, there's the Hundred Sons River, so named for all the male children born in the area. Second, there are our fierce and tough people—even the foreign invaders couldn't get the better of us back in the day. And then there's the Xu family's third son, Xu Lizhu.
Of course, this fame is limited to the surrounding area. A bit farther out, say in the county seat or in Linxian, Xu Lizhu isn't known as Xu Lizhu. He's Xu Qiguang.
In today's terms, he's just plain unlucky—doomed to fail whenever something important comes up. Back in the day, though, that man was incredible. As us old folks say, he was destined to be a high-ranking official.
He was so good at his studies, incredibly gifted, and handsome to boot. You know how books describe a modest, refined gentleman? He was the perfect example.
And yet, a man as seemingly perfect and flawless as him just seemed to be missing a little luck. He had none at all. And it wasn't just once—it happened every single time.
Back then, everyone for miles around was sure Baizigou was finally going to have a university student. No joke, how could it be otherwise? His score left the person in second place in the dust.
But what happened? The night before the college entrance exam, he came down with a fever, and not just a mild one. By the time the exam was over, he was still stuck in the hospital, unable to even get out of bed.
But that was fine. He couldn't take it the first year, so the old headmaster from the county seat said that as long as he was okay, he'd be even more prepared the second year. He might even come back as the provincial top scorer.
So, the next year, everyone was just waiting for Baizigou to host a massive celebratory feast. This time it wasn't him who got a fever. Instead, his mother was bitten by a snake and fell ill with a fever right before his exam.
The story goes that in order to get the antivenom needed to save his unconscious mother, he had no choice but to miss the exam yet again.
Which brings us to a question. This kid was the Xu family's third son, so he obviously had older brothers. Why was he so stubborn about watching over his mother himself?
Well, there's a story there. You young folks wouldn't know, but us old-timers are crystal clear on the matter. Old Xu's wife was his second wife.
Get it now? As her son, how could he rest easy leaving his own unconscious mother in the care of his two older brothers? Oh, and you ask why he didn't go to his in-laws, the Bai family?
You don't get it, do you? There's a story behind that, too. Back then, the head of the Bai family wasn't the later Secretary Bai. It was Secretary Bai's father who was in charge.
That old man was something else. While the rest of us wouldn't dare dream of marrying into his family, he dared to set his sights on Xu Lizhu! If he hadn't schemed early on to marry off his daughter in a luck-changing wedding, the match never would have been made.
Let's not talk about it anymore. It was just fate. Still, to miss out for the sake of saving someone... sigh. For such a fine young man to end up like that. It's such a pity.
「...」
Recalling a scene from her dreams and the gossip she'd overheard, Xu Changqing looked at her father entering with a grim face and scratched her head in frustration.
Standing to the side, Bai Chenggang sized up the situation and decided Xu Changqing was truly clueless. 'You took on two of them by yourself and won, hands down,' he thought. 'So why aren't you the first one to go crying to Dad?'
'Just you wait. She's definitely going to get the short end of the stick.'
"Dad, look! Just take a good look!" Xu Baimei pointed to herself, then to her wretched-looking husband. "If you don't rein her in, she's going to get bold enough to kill someone!"
Bai Chenggang thought, 'See? The guilty party is the first to complain. If you have proof his hands weren't clean, you'd better show it now. Otherwise, you're guaranteed to lose this fight!'
'Hurry!'
'The proof!'
Xu Changqing pressed her lips together.
"Fifth, do your uncle a favor and take Mr. Fang to the clinic," Xu Qiguang said. Dressed in a short-sleeved white shirt and blue trousers, he carried a duffel bag in one hand while protectively guiding his wife inside with the other.
"Dad, why are you leaving?" Xu Baimei stomped her foot. "I'm not finished! Look what she did to Brother Jun and me! Is there any order left in this house?"
"Honey?" Bai Xiulan questioned. "Sending him to the clinic just like that? What will people say when word gets out? Our Changqing's reputation is at stake. Wouldn't it be better to have the doctor come to the house?"
"Get him there first. I'll deal with this later." Xu Qiguang continued to ignore his older daughter. Seeing his wife hesitate, he let go of her hand and walked straight inside.
"Let's go." Bai Chenggang tugged on Fang Jun, who was staring motionlessly at Xu Qiguang's retreating back. "If we don't leave now, you're just going to get hit again after Changqing gets punished. Stop dawdling."
Fang Jun narrowed his eyes, watching the main door where Xu Qiguang's back had disappeared. This time, he didn't resist leaving, allowing Bai Chenggang's pull to turn him around.
"Mom, look at Dad!" Xu Baimei also tore her gaze away from her father's back and shook Bai Xiulan's arm petulantly. "Look, just look at him~"
"What is there to look at? Your father hasn't forgiven you yet, and you, the older sister, are fighting with your younger sister. Even if she was in the wrong, couldn't you have waited until your father and I were home?"
"Yes, it's all my fault," Xu Baimei said, feeling deeply wronged. She held out her hand. "Going to the clinic isn't free, you know. I look like this, don't I need to go too? I might even have to make a trip to the county hospital."
Bai Xiulan glanced at her son-in-law leaving with her nephew, then shot a look at her younger daughter who was following her into the house. She couldn't resist reaching out and poking her older daughter on the forehead.
"Mom~"
"Honestly, you're all the bane of my existence." Bai Xiulan impatiently pushed aside her daughter, who was blocking the way. "I'll reimburse you later, how about that?"
"You promised."
"Yes, I, your mother, said it." 'If she were truly beaten for no reason, I wouldn't give her a dime. That's probably what her father was thinking, too.' "Go wash your face before you leave."
"No!" Xu Baimei lifted her chin smugly. "I'm not washing it. I want to go out just like this so everyone can see how tough your precious Xu Changqing is. Daring to lay hands on her own sister and brother-in-law! And to think my uncle and the others are always praising her for making the family proud. Oh, she's certainly made us proud, hasn't she? Learning a few fighting moves just to use them on her own sister..."
"Are you looking for trouble?" Bai Xiulan was so angry she poked her daughter's forehead again. "If you dare run your mouth outside, don't even think about coming back here. Do you really think your sister would attack your husband for no reason? You know what she's like, or are you just blind? Now go, go on, get out of my sight."
Huh?
Xu Baimei was clearly taken aback. Only now did she realize that no one had actually said why the fight started. She turned and looked suspiciously toward the west room.
'Just the two of them were home, and they started fighting...' she mused. 'Does that damn girl like Brother Jun? No, that can't be it. Does Brother Jun like *her*? Impossible! So why wasn't he at work? What was he doing at my family's home?'
"What are you still gawking at?"
Quickly, Xu Baimei grabbed her arm. "Mom, do you think..." 'No way,' her thought cut off her words. 'Brother Jun would never be interested in that damn girl. She's so plain and swarthy.'
'Besides being good at her studies, she's not as good as me in any other way. What else does she have to offer? Hiss... Ouch, that hurts. She really doesn't pull her punches when she fights.'
"What is it?"
"Nothing!" Xu Baimei shook her head decisively. "Who knows what's gotten into her. I think she's lost her mind. She's just rebelling now because she thinks she can get away with it since Dad is ignoring me."
"Stop talking nonsense. If you ask me, you're the one asking for a slap. You can never just be quiet." Bai Xiulan shot her an exasperated glare, cradled her belly with both hands, and turned to leave.
'What a mess,' she thought. 'This family will be the death of me!'