Chapter 6: Life is but a Stage, and All Depends on the Performance!

Outside the courtyard wall of the Li family home, a large crowd gathered to watch the spectacle. There was no helping it; old man Li’s household provided them with daily entertainment. They simply couldn't resist watching.

At this moment, seeing the scene inside the courtyard, the onlookers sighed with mixed emotions. They had witnessed Li Feng’s actions just moments ago. It was clear he had intended to discipline his eldest son, Dagou, and the others, but somehow, the stick had ended up striking Mother Li instead. Coupled with Li Feng’s stumble on flat ground, Mother Li had taken quite a hit.

The women in the crowd, in particular, looked on with schadenfreude. They were all enjoying the drama unfolding for Mother Li, and not a single person stepped up to defend her.

Observing this, Li Feng felt a secret joy blooming in his heart. So, this Mother Li was truly such an awful person that she was this disliked in Li Village? It seemed his plans would be even easier to implement than he had imagined.

Glancing at Er-ya, who remained in the courtyard, Li Feng tremblingly reached out his hand and said weakly, "Er-ya, quickly help Father up."

Er-ya’s eyes turned red, and she threw herself onto Li Feng. Li Feng leaned back, barely managing to steady himself, a weak smile playing on his honest face. "Father is alright..."

Halfway through his sentence, his voice choked with emotion. The large man and the small girl, left alone in the vast courtyard, looked utterly pitiful—enough to break anyone's heart and move them to tears.

The people outside the wall could no longer bear to watch. One woman leaned over the wall and called out to Li Feng, "We saw everything that just happened. Your mother’s injury has nothing to do with you. Don't just sit there in the yard; go check on your mother."

Only then did Li Feng seem to snap out of it. He scrambled up from the ground with great difficulty, clutching his waist, and limped toward the main room.

"Sigh!" someone outside sighed. "That Mother Li is truly heartless. Look, even the heavens can't stand it anymore!"

"Indeed. Second Li works himself to the bone without ever hearing a kind word. And his two sons—they are sixteen already, yet no matchmaker has been sent to find them wives. Isn't that just because Mother Li forbids it? Poor things, it’s just too pitiful!"

"Exactly. The two boys are twins and sixteen years old. If they were arranging a match for Dagou, surely they could have sorted it out for Er-niu at the same time?"

"Mother Li is just stingy with her silver!"

"Bah, stingy with silver? It’s just pure favoritism. I heard from my grandson that Third Li is going to take the exams again. It’s been decades, and he hasn't even earned the title of a student. Why does he keep studying?"

"Looking at it this way, the Second Li household is truly miserable."

Old man Li had just reached the entrance of the village when he saw Dagou running toward him in a panic. Upon hearing that Mother Li had fallen, the old man remained as slow and unhurried as ever, showing no sign of concern.

Seeing this, Dagou stopped rushing as well, following closely behind his grandfather as they made their way home at a leisurely pace. Because they moved so slowly, the farce had already concluded by the time they arrived.

Mother Li had been carried into the room and was lying on the bed, her face deathly pale, while Li Feng sat on a recliner not far away, looking remarkably ruddy.

Old man Li entered the main room with his hands behind his back. He glanced at Li Feng, who was occupying his recliner, a flash of distaste crossing his eyes. He said displeasedly, "I have told you many times: harmony brings prosperity to a family."

"You lack the capability of your eldest brother and the intelligence of your third brother. Your mother and I don't expect you to amount to much, but we do expect you to serve us. Can you not even manage that?"

Li Feng pretended not to hear him.

Dagou and Er-niu stood like wooden posts; as long as their father didn't speak, they remained silent. The younger children—San-niu, Si-niu, and Wu-niu—sat obediently on the stone steps outside, resting their chins in their hands and gazing at the full moon, as if it were a large sesame cake. Da-ya and Er-ya were even quieter, staying put without a sound.

At that moment, hearing their grandfather’s voice, the little ones couldn't help but shrink back. Grandfather didn't talk much, but once he did, Father would change. He would become even more silent, work even harder, and wish he could spend the entire day buried in the fields. Not only that, Father would apologize to Grandfather and Grandmother, then kneel in the courtyard for the entire night. But Father had done nothing wrong.

Er-ya squeezed her sister’s fingers tightly. "Big Sister, will Father be punished by Grandfather to kneel again?"

"After tonight, will Father stop patting Er-ya’s head?"

"Big Sister, I like today’s Father. He’s so kind..."

Da-ya looked down at her sister, then toward the main room, her gaze flickering. Girls mature early, and children of poor families even more so. Da-ya understood their father’s position in the house. After their mother passed away, although their maternal grandmother would come to check on them occasionally, she was too far away to provide real help.

She felt her previous suggestion had been correct. If they sold her, they could get silver. Her eldest cousin had told her that if she were sold to that "pavilion," her father could get ten taels of silver! Her cousin also said that the girls in the village who weren't married and went to town almost all ended up in that place. If they were pretty, they might even be sent to the prefecture capital. But she had already told her father, so why wouldn't he agree? Da-ya was conflicted.

Dagou stood in a daze, waiting for his father’s command to kneel. Er-niu looked at Li Feng, frowning. He could sense that his father seemed different today. But now, facing his grandfather, why was he silent again? Was he planning to go back to his old ways, working himself to death as a laborer at home? Thinking of their family’s plight and what had happened today, Er-niu sighed silently.

Forget it. If he wouldn't resist, then so be it. His knees were tough enough; kneeling wouldn't kill him. If he really couldn't take it anymore, the worst that could happen was they would all just die together. Better to die young and be reincarnated!

"Go apologize to your mother. Tomorrow, you are to go into the mountains again and hunt a wild boar. Your third brother will be returning soon, and he will certainly need silver for his travel expenses!"

"As an older brother, since you cannot help your third brother with his studies, you must at least do the heavy lifting so he has no worries. Do you understand?"

Old man Li delivered his demands firmly, arranging Li Feng’s life with cold efficiency, never once considering that his son had just been injured, or that his own wife was lying on the bed, unable to move.

Though he was called an "honest man," he was actually a selfish and vicious creature. It was no wonder he could father such beasts as the eldest and third sons.

Li Feng was silent for a moment before saying, "Father, do you wish to see an old man bury his own child?"

"Your son was struck by a wild boar and injured his waist; I have no strength left! My sons need to care for me, and we need to find a way to earn money to pay for a doctor for my mother and myself."

"The family is already struggling. Father, in order to favor the third brother, you are denying my mother and me a way to survive!"

Li Feng’s words were sharp. By putting Mother Li first in everything, he left old man Li momentarily speechless.

He glared at Li Feng in anger, wishing he could step forward and beat the wretch to death. How could he say such outrageous things? How could the cheap lives of peasants compare to those of scholars? The Li family had finally produced a scholar; it must not be ruined like this!