Chapter 49: Chaos in the Bing Family: All Hell Breaks Loose

Chapter 49: The Bing Family Free-for-All—All Hell Breaks Loose

Nan Jinping glanced at the Bing family members, who looked like lit firecrackers ready to explode at any moment, then at the leisurely reclining Bing Wengu, before slowly sitting down beside him.

"Eldest Brother, I’m asking you—did you give the Nan family the tofu recipe?" Bing Silang pressed.

Bing Wengu tilted his head and raised an eyebrow. "Yeah. Got a problem with that?"

Regardless of how the Bing brothers reacted, the Feng brothers, who had followed in case they needed to intervene in a fight, were stunned speechless. They stared at Bing Wengu as if he were a monster.

Even if they doted on their wives, none of them would ever hand over a centuries-old family recipe to their in-laws. This was beyond outrageous—unthinkable even ten generations back!

This Bing Dalang must either have lost his mind from studying too much or be so lovesick he’s lost his senses.

Now they understood why emperors in operas would topple kingdoms for beauty—Bing Dalang was clearly capable of such madness.

Feng Sanlang even felt a twinge of regret. Had he known Bing Wengu was this foolishly infatuated, he’d have pushed his own daughter into Bing’s arms.

Of course, Feng Sanlang kept that thought to himself. This wasn’t his fight to weigh in on. He had only come to mediate if the Bings started brawling.

And a brawl was brewing—no way around it. The Bings hadn’t divided the family estate—everything Bing Wengu earned belonged to the whole household. That was the way of their time: no separating the family fortune while the elders breathed. Even a married couple hiding a few dozen coins would earn them a beating from the mother-in-law, with no objections from their own family.

But the Bings’ situation was different. Bing Wengu had spent years studying while the rest of the family slaved like beasts of burden, all banking on him to bring them wealth someday.

In blunt terms, it was a gamble. Win, and Bing Wengu would make them rich. Lose, and all their years of labor would be for nothing.

Now, Bing Wengu had money—but he’d given away a family recipe to the Nan family. If Feng Sanlang were in their shoes, he’d be seeing red.

Before the Bing brothers could speak, Qian Shi cut in, "Eldest Brother, you’ve gone too far this time. How could you give our family’s tofu recipe to the Nans without consulting anyone? Don’t you know that’s a treasure to be passed down for generations? You’ve sold out our ancestors’ legacy!"

She finished in a huff, still fuming. "This is absurd! Dad, Mom, you can’t favor Eldest Brother this time. We must get the recipe back and forbid the Nan family from selling tofu!"

Nan Jinping shrank into himself like a scolded child, silent.

Liang Shi and Old Bing frowned. Though they didn’t join the accusations, their expressions were grim.

This was their world collapsing.

Aunt Bing, clutching her crying child—distressed by the tense atmosphere—didn’t even try to soothe him, her face anxious. "Hold on—this doesn’t add up! Erlang, Sanlang, Silang, isn’t there some misunderstanding? How could Eldest Brother have given the recipe to the Nans? If he’d had such skills, wouldn’t he have used them sooner? He wouldn’t have been jilted by Li Erniang and driven to leap into the river!"

"Sister, you don’t understand—he got the recipe after that," Li Shi said. He probably bought it in the city—where such things weren’t rare.

Aunt Bing didn’t know how to respond, her gaze darting helplessly to Bing Wengu.

"Dad, Mom, what do you say?" Bing Wengu’s voice was calm, his tone unchanging, but his gaze was like a honed dagger, slicing through the greed shrouding the couple’s hearts.

Liang Shi shuddered, as if doused in icy water, and jolted awake. "The recipe is Dalang’s. He can give it to whomever he pleases."

"Mother!" Qian Shi gaped at her. "You’re picking favorites *now*?!"

"Silence!" Old Bing, now equally wised up, felt a chill at his eldest son’s deadly calm.

Last time, Silang had almost *died* for crossing him. Now, Dalang sat quietly—but that silence was more terrifying than any outburst. The quiet before the slaughter.

Old Bing dreaded what would happen if his other sons pushed Dalang too far. The explosion would be brutal—his sons wouldn’t live to regret it.

Old Man Bing said, "What are you doing now, grilling Da Lang? Don't forget, although our family hasn't split up, the family assets were split long ago. It was decided ages ago that you brothers could each rely on your own abilities—keep what you earn."

That’s not how this works. If the tofu recipe was obtained afterward, then fine. But it was acquired before the property division, so it's family property and must be shared.

"Even if we really recover the tofu recipe, it would still belong solely to your eldest brother. If Dalang uses it to do business, the money he earns has nothing to do with any of you. So, this recipe—Dalang can give it to whomever he pleases, and no one gets a say," Old Man Bing said.

"Dad, you’re not being fair," Qian Shi protested. "Eldest Brother must have gotten the recipe long ago and deliberately played us into signing that contract just to keep us from having any claim to the tofu recipe."

Bing Wengu had initially questioned the Bing couple to gauge their stance.

Their attitude would directly determine Bing Wengu's subsequent decision.

He had no affection for the Bing family, only the obligations dumped on him. As for how these obligations would be fulfilled, the difference could be vast.

Now, the Bing couple's attitude satisfied him, so he could give the Bings another chance to be molded by him.

Anyone he used had to be trained, and it didn’t matter whom—at least the Bings were on his side. Once trained, they wouldn’t betray him without greater incentives.

Aside from Qian Shi and Bing Sanlang, the rest of the Bing family, though flawed in minor ways, were no worse than anyone else.

They could still be trained further. If they proved unsatisfactory again, he could discard them at any time.

"What does it matter?" Bing Wengu was now a ruthless dictator, unwilling to tolerate any defiance of his decisions. "All of you, remember this: what I am willing to give, you may take. What I am unwilling to give—if anyone dares reach for it, I’ll cut their hands off."

Bing Wengu's tone was calm, but it made their blood run cold.

At this moment, the Bings simultaneously recalled the time Bing Silang opposed Bing Wengu's marriage—how Bing Silang had almost drowned.

The Bings suddenly remembered that ever since Bing Wengu was rescued from the river, his temperament had completely changed. He was no longer the pushover eldest brother of the past.

The current Bing Wengu was an outright tyrant who tolerated no disobedience.

Bing Wengu turned to Qian Shi and Bing Sanlang, giving them a thin smile. But the smile didn’t put them at ease—instead, it sent shivers down their spines.

"Qian Shi, Bing Sanlang, both of you seem to have forgotten something very important—you've already been written out of the family," Bing Wengu said lightly, but his words hit them like a bombshell.

Qian Shi stabbed a finger at Bing Wengu. "You deliberately wrote me and Sanlang out of the family, didn’t you?"

Fuming, she stabbed a finger at the other Bings one by one. "Open your eyes and see clearly—this is the 'good eldest brother' you all admire! Do you think he's only guarding against us? No, it's all of you! You all signed that contract, so this tofu recipe has nothing to do with any of you!"

Qian Shi was ready to kill. The chance to become rich overnight had slipped through her fingers.

"Bing Dalang set this trap deliberately—for every single one of you Bings. As expected of a scholar, so cunning! He threw you scraps to play you for fools into thinking he's such a great eldest brother. But in truth? He doesn't consider you family at all—he won't share even a sliver of profit with you!"

Aunt Bing looked frantically from one brother to another, terrified they would turn against each other over this.

Not just a family heirloom recipe—even a pittance left after elders passed away had caused brothers in the village to feud until death.

Every word from Qian Shi was meant to stir the pot among the Bing brothers, and Aunt Bing loathed her for it.

"Sanlang, if you have even a shred of brotherly affection left, take Qian Shi back to your room. Stop her from stirring up trouble here. You've been written out of the family—no matter what, this tofu recipe isn't yours."

Qian Shi exploded again. "Why? If we'd known Bing Dalang had this recipe, we would never have agreed to be written out of the family for such a pittance!"

The mention of disinheritance enraged Liang Shi and Bing father.

So their son had agreed to be written out of the family not out of love for them as parents, but because the compensation was too small.

That stung like a slap in the face.

Liang Shi scolded, "Qian Shi, Bing Sanlang, we two aren’t dead yet! What’s wrong with having you two adopted out? If we want to, we will. You’d have to suck it up. Not only did Dalang give you so much, but even if he gave nothing, as long as we old folks agreed, you’d have to suck it up!"

"Why should we?" Qian Shi had always been resentful about being separated from the family, though she had tolerated it due to the decent compensation. Now she blew up, "You two old bastards only know how to favor Bing Dalang!"

Liang Shi and Old Man Bing were furious. Being called "old bastards" by their daughter-in-law was unbearable for any parents-in-law. They rushed forward to hit her.

Each of them slapped Qian Shi twice, blood gushing from her nose and knocking a tooth clean out.

Terrified and enraged, Qian Shi screamed for Bing Sanlang's help, "Bing Sanlang, are you dead? Just watching your parents hit me like this? I’m fighting for you! Bing Sanlang, don’t forget—you have a son now! If you don’t fight now, do you want your son to end up like you? When he comes of age, will all the village girls avoid him, terrified of getting saddled with him?"

Qian Shi was recounting Bing Sanlang’s own past—how he had faced such rejection, with only her willing to marry him.

"Father, Mother, you’ve vented enough by hitting Qian Shi like this. Please stop now." Bing Sanlang rushed to block his father.

Men were stronger, and with Old Man Bing gripping Qian Shi, she couldn’t fight back. Bing Sanlang could only try to hold his father back.

But Old Man Bing was beyond reason, and Bing Sanlang couldn’t restrain him. Seeing Qian Shi’s face covered in blood, Bing Sanlang panicked, fearing she might be seriously injured. In his panic, he didn’t think clearly and shoved his dad without thinking.

Old Man Bing was decades older, a shriveled old man who couldn’t withstand the push. Caught off guard, he staggered and fell to the ground.

"Husband!" Liang Shi screamed, abandoning her fight with Qian Shi to help him up. "Are you hurt anywhere?"

Old Man Bing sat on the ground, gaping at Bing Sanlang. "Bing Sanlang, you raised a hand to me!"

Liang Shi hadn’t cried when called an "old bastard" or when fighting Qian Shi, but now, tears spilled over. "Bing Sanlang, are you an animal? You raised a hand against your own father!"

"No, I didn’t!" Bing Sanlang was stunned. "I—I wasn’t trying to. I just wanted you to stop hitting Qian Shi. I didn’t think—how could I dare to raise a hand against Father?"

With a thud, Bing Sanlang was slammed to the ground by a sucker punch. Bing Silang charged out, straddled him, and punched him twice in the face.

"Bing Sanlang, you dared to hit Father—you’re an animal!" Bing Silang was purple with rage.

"I—" Bing Sanlang tried to explain, but Bing Silang gave him no chance.

At first, Bing Sanlang didn’t fight back, but the punches hurt too much. After a few blows, he couldn’t take it anymore, yet Bing Silang showed no sign of stopping.

Bing Sanlang began resisting, but they were evenly matched in strength, and he struggled to counter from beneath.

As Bing Sanlang was beaten worse, Qian Shi, now forgotten, lunged at Bing Silang, yanked his hair, raked her nails down his face, and kicked his sides.

"Get off Sanlang, you little shit! How dare you hit your own brother!" Qian Shi cursed while attacking.

The Zhou couple were honest, but even the meekest had limits. Despite her usual deference, Zhou Shi had long been angered by Qian Shi and Bing Sanlang’s disrespect toward Liang Shi and Old Man Bing. She dove into the fight, playing peacemaker but clearly siding with Bing Silang.

"Qian Shi, stop scratching Silang’s face! Who’d marry him then?"

Qian Shi didn’t care—she’d love it if no one would have him. The more Zhou Shi pleaded, the harder Qian Shi clawed.

Aunt Bing handed Shuang Er to her eldest daughter. "Take your brother far away. Don’t let either of you get hurt."

Then she dove into the fight—less to mediate than to go straight for Qian Shi.

Bing Sanlang used the distraction to flip Bing Silang beneath him, trying to free Qian Shi. Then Bing Erlang charged in, and the Bings became a brawling mess.

At the center of it all, Bing Wengu sat calmly behind his desk, taking in the clown show with detached indifference. Though it had all stemmed from him, it seemed to have nothing to do with him.

Suddenly sensing a gaze, Bing Wengu turned to meet Nan Jinping’s phoenix eyes, wide with fright. He reached out, enveloping her hand in his palm. As Nan Jinping looked down at his broad hand, the icy aura she had sensed from him vanished, replaced by the familiar warmth and gentleness.

"What’s going on here?" The Qian family burst into the Bing household. Seeing their daughter and son-in-law being beaten, they saw red and rushed to help.

The commotion in the Bing family was so loud that the villagers had long heard the noise. Recognizing it as a fight between Bing Sanlang and Qian Shi against the Bing family, they hurried to the Qian family to inform them.

The Fengs, who'd been keeping to themselves until then, saw that the Qians were about to clash with the Bings and could no longer stand idly by. They jumped in to break it up.

The Feng brothers genuinely tried to mediate, though they sometimes favored the Bings a bit. Overall, however, they didn’t go too far.

With the Fengs stepping in and the villagers helping, the Qians and the Bings were soon separated.

The moment Qian Shi saw her natal family, she howled loudly.

Qian Shi’s mother took one look at her daughter and son-in-law, their faces covered in blood, and wailed, "You Bings have gone too far!!!"

Qian Shi’s father glared fiercely at Li Shi and Bing Sanlang’s father. "First, your family adopted your son and my daughter out for no reason, and now you're laying hands on them! This is utterly despicable!"

Qian Da Lang bellowed, "If you don’t give us an explanation today, don’t blame us for not being polite!"

Qian Er Lang snarled, "Your Bing family may have money now, but we Qians aren’t doormats you can wipe your feet on!"

The villagers, however, were stunned by Qian Shi’s father’s unintentional revelation.

"Bing Sanlang was adopted out by the Bings? When did that happen?"

"No idea, never heard a word about it."

"Why would they give him away? He didn’t do anything against the family rules, did he?"

"No wonder Qian Shi and Bing Sanlang are kicking up such a fuss. Even if the couple made minor mistakes, the worst they deserved was separation from the family. Adopting them out is too cruel—it's not like they committed some heinous crime!"

In Dayong, lineage and male heirs were held in the highest regard. Families without sons would even adopt boys from others to continue their bloodline. Let alone their own sons—even if they were good-for-nothings who drank and gambled, sold their wives and children, no one would ever dream of cutting them off completely.

So when they heard the Bings had adopted Bing Sanlang out, everyone felt the family had gone too far.

Li Shi, who had fainted earlier, had now regained consciousness. Though still somewhat dazed, she dragged herself over to the Bings’ house to watch the commotion, clutching her aching head.

When she saw the Bings fighting like wild dogs, her eyes lit up, her spirits lifted, and her head cleared. She felt invigorated, as if all her ailments had disappeared.

Hearing the villagers’ murmurs, the Qians puffed up with righteousness.

"Li Shi, Bing San! Today, you must give our Qian family—and my daughter and son-in-law—an explanation, or this isn’t over!" Bing Sanlang’s father was also the third son in his family, so villagers sometimes called him Bing San or Old Bing.

Bing Wengu had no interest in putting on a show for the villagers. He just wanted to resolve the matter quickly. Without beating around the bush, he sneered coldly, "Since Uncle and Aunt Qian insist on demanding justice for their daughter and son-in-law, the Bings might as well speak plainly. Your precious daughter pointed at my parents’ heads and called them ‘old fools who refuse to die’!"

Bing Wengu always went straight for the jugular. There was no need to bring up Aunt Bing’s past—the villagers wouldn’t sympathize with a divorced woman. Instead, they’d think the Bings were insane for adopting out their son and daughter-in-law over her.

Favoring boys over girls wasn’t just a simple saying—it was a reality paid for in blood by countless girls and boys who had suffered under its weight.

So in front of the villagers, one must never compare sons to daughters.

Bing Wengu understood this well and didn’t touch on that topic at all, focusing solely on Qian Shi’s insults toward her in-laws.

In Dayong, where respect for elders was everything, insulting one’s parents-in-law was like spitting in heaven's face—an unforgivable sin.

Instantly, the crowd turned in the Bings’ favor.

"What? Heavens! No wonder the Bings adopted Qian Shi and Bing Sanlang out—she actually had the gall to speak to her in-laws like that!"

"I thought the Bings were being too harsh earlier, but now it makes sense."

"If my daughter-in-law ever dared curse me like that, I wouldn’t just divorce her—I’d knock her teeth down her throat!" one woman declared, throwing dagger looks at her own daughters-in-law standing nearby.

"No wonder the Bings beat them half to death—lucky they didn’t finish the job!"

With just that one sentence, the Bing family shifted from being seen as heartless to occupying the moral high ground, now the justified party.

Bing Wengu retorted to the Qian family, "I might be out of line here, but may I ask Uncle and Aunt Qian, is this how your family usually speaks? Do your sons also address their parents as 'worthless old geezers' instead of 'Father and Mother'? If so, then indeed, our Bing family was wrong to strike—we had no idea this was the Qian family’s usual conduct!"

The Qian couple turned red with shame, not daring to respond. How could they admit to such a thing? Did they want their children to never marry in the future?

The Qians hadn’t expected their daughter to give Bing Wengu this ammunition. Regardless of who was right or wrong before, this single misstep now placed all blame squarely on the Qian couple.

Cornered and speechless, the Qian parents glared furiously at Qian Shi.

Qian Shi wanted to deny it, but not only had the Bings heard her, so had the villagers eavesdropping by the wall—there was no room for excuses.

She was burning with resentment. She’d only cursed in a fit of rage—how had Bing Wengu turned it into some high-and-mighty principle?

Covering her face, she spat defiantly, "Bing Dalang, stop twisting my words! What I’m really angry about is how your parents favor you.

Aren’t all their sons equal? Why were you the only one allowed to study as a child, while the others weren’t?

And later, they exploited your brothers to support a useless leech like you. A fool like you, Bing Dalang, who can’t even tell kin from outsiders—giving your family’s treasured tofu recipe to your in-laws—and they still expect you to pass the imperial exams? Let me tell you, that’s a fairy tale! You’re all delusional!"

Had Qian Shi not cursed the Bing elders earlier, the villagers might have sympathized with her now. But after that outburst, no matter what she said, the Bings held the moral advantage.

"Bing Dalang, what you’re doing is utterly unfair to your brothers and us," Qian Shi pressed on. "No matter what, we’ve supported your studies all these years. Now that you’ve gained some advantage, you throw us away like trash—don’t you see you’re nothing but a backstabbing ingrate?"