Chapter 79: Jin Xiuyi Loses Her Temper

Doctor Jin’s face betrayed no emotion; he merely nodded lightly to the village chief and said, “You heard it yourself, chief. This child admitted to pushing someone, though it wasn’t the Wen family’s child.”

The village chief looked somewhat embarrassed and nodded. “Yes, I heard.”

He turned to Li San and Li Erhu. “Li Erhu, do you admit to pushing someone?”

“I—I…” Li Erhu stammered, unable to utter any denial.

Doctor Jin let out a cold laugh. “Now, I’ll tell you who it was you pushed—Yier.”

Jin Xiuyi was already beside himself with anger. If Wen Jun hadn’t held him back, he would have rushed out long ago. Now, hearing Doctor Jin call his name, he immediately broke free from Wen Jun’s grasp, stepped forward, and raised his head to shout loudly, “Grandfather!”

The village chief’s face changed abruptly.

“This…” He was at a loss for words, utterly speechless for a moment, and could only glare furiously at Li Erhu’s family. “Li Erhu, aren’t you going to apologize?”

Did they even realize whom they had offended?

Doctor Jin interrupted coldly, “An apology is unnecessary. Li Erhu, pay attention—who you pushed was him.”

Li Erhu was clearly terrified and burst into tears, shouting, “I didn’t mean to—I didn’t push Wen family’s mute boy, he fell in by himself, it wasn’t me, it wasn’t me!”

“You may not have pushed Big Head, but you did push me. If Big Head hadn’t shielded me, I would have been the one to fall into the river.” Jin Xiuyi stood tall, his gaze icy as he looked at Li Erhu.

Though Jin Xiuyi was just a child among Wen Yao and the others, he hailed from a distinguished family, with a father who served as an official in the Hanlin Academy. His demeanor was impressive even at the best of times, and now, deliberately projecting an aura of authority, he left the Li family utterly bewildered.

“You wouldn’t give me your eggs,” Li Erhu cried out.

Anger clenched Jin Xiuyi’s fists at his sides. He glanced at Doctor Jin and asked, “Grandfather, may I deal with this myself?”

Doctor Jin nodded.

Granted permission, Jin Xiuyi stepped forward. “You claim not to know who I am, so let me tell you now. Doctor Jin is my grandfather; my father serves as an official in the capital, a fourth-ranked Hanlin. The actions you’ve taken today constitute attempted murder. If I write a letter to my father, the entire Li family will be thrown into prison.”

A collective gasp rippled through the crowd.

All those watching drew in sharp breaths, staring at Jin Xiuyi in disbelief. The child who had seemed so small now stood as someone utterly beyond their reach.

The capital was a place none of them had ever seen, and now he claimed his father served there as an official—a fourth rank. They didn’t know what fourth rank meant, but even their county magistrate was only seventh rank.

Everyone stepped back a few paces, and the circle of onlookers grew instantly wider.

The village chief’s face changed dramatically. He hurried forward to smooth things over, glaring at the Li family in frustration. “Li San, is this the son you raised? Apologize, quickly!”

The Li family was stunned—prison? The whole family?

“No, no, I don’t want to go to prison. Father, mother, I don’t want to go to prison!” Li Erhu wailed.

Erhu’s mother had already collapsed to the ground in fear, Li San’s face was deathly pale, and Li Dahu was hiding inside, too scared to come out. No one moved to comfort Li Erhu, their little tyrant, whom they had always coddled.

Jin Xiuyi snorted coldly and turned to the Wen family, stepping forward to take Mrs. Luo’s hand. “Grandma Wen, do you want them to go to prison? I can write to my father.”

Mrs. Luo was still reeling from Jin Xiuyi’s revelation. Only when he took her hand did she regain her composure. She opened her mouth and asked, “Can their whole family really be imprisoned?”

Jin Xiuyi nodded firmly. “Yes, as long as I tell my father, none of them will escape.”

Doctor Jin glanced at him but said nothing.

Mrs. Luo finally recovered, realizing she hadn’t heard wrong—Doctor Jin’s son truly was a high official in the capital.

Suddenly, her confidence soared. No matter what, today the Li family must be taught a lesson, or else they might retaliate in unpredictable ways.

“If that’s really the case, then you—”

Before Mrs. Luo could finish, Erhu’s mother let out a shriek, rushed forward, and knelt before Mrs. Luo, knocking her head to the ground repeatedly. “Madam Wen, we were wrong, we were wrong, we’ll never dare again, please don’t send us to prison!”

Li San, coming to his senses, knelt as well, bowing to the Wen family, pulling Li Erhu down with him, and pleading, “We were wrong, we know we were wrong, we’ll never dare again. Madam Wen, Uncle Wen, Brother Xiuyi, for the sake of old times, please forgive us, we’ll never dare again.”

He glanced at Jin Xiuyi, Doctor Jin, and the Wen family, desperately adding, “We’ll take responsibility, we will—Big Head’s medical expenses, we’ll pay them, we know we were wrong. Madam Wen, please forgive us.”

With so many witnesses, they could try to deny that Li Erhu pushed Big Head, but Li Erhu had indeed pushed the young master of the Jin family.

That was even more serious—enough to doom their entire family.

“He wet himself,” Tie Niu suddenly shouted from the crowd, drawing everyone’s attention to Li Erhu. Only then did they realize Li San was pressing him to the ground, and at some point, Li Erhu had wet his pants in terror.

Tie Niu’s mother quickly covered Tie Niu’s mouth and pulled him back a few steps, afraid he’d be noticed by the Wen family or the Jin family’s young master.

Jin Xiuyi looked at Li Erhu with disdain—so little courage, and yet he dared to harm others.

The Li family kept begging for mercy, promising to pay, to cover Big Head’s medical expenses. The Wen family remained silent.

Doctor Jin, for his part, seemed entirely detached, clearly leaving the matter for the Jin family’s young master to resolve.

The village chief, helpless, forced himself forward, cupping his hands to Jin Xiuyi and Mrs. Luo. “Young Master Jin, Madam Wen, since they admit their mistake and are willing to compensate, might you consider letting the matter go? Madam Wen, we’re all from the same village; let’s talk this over.”

Mrs. Luo, holding Jin Xiuyi’s hand, looked to Wen Xiuyi.

“Eldest, what do you say we should do?”

Wen Xiuyi was stunned—having powerful backing certainly made things easier. That little one had subdued the Li family with just a few words.

He had never imagined he’d have the chance to wield borrowed authority, to intimidate others so easily.

“Li Erhu, you’ve bullied Big Head time and again, bullied the Wen family’s children. How do you propose to settle this?” Wen Xiuyi looked down at the Li family.

Li San, sensing hope, quickly replied, “I’ll pay, Brother Xiuyi—I’ll pay whatever is needed for medical costs. We truly know we were wrong. I promise, Erhu will never bully Wen family’s children again—not just Wen family’s, anyone in the village. If he does, I’ll break his legs myself.

Brother Xiuyi, we grew up together, please, help us plead with Young Master Jin, I beg you. We really can’t go to prison.”