Chapter 90 Mountain Home Hearth 90

Chapter 90: Hearth and Home in the Mountains

The opposite door opened, and Lin Xingniang's family emerged.

Lin Xingniang, ever the loudest, immediately asked, "It's good he's found! But why the trouble?"

Fang Wu, also puzzled, turned with his copper gong to face the messengers.

The men who brought the news had run so fast they were gasping for air, leaning against the fence to recover.

After a few deep breaths, one spoke: "Sanxi carried him down from the mountain. We don't know exactly what happened—we were too busy reporting to stay and listen. But Qiusheng's face was deathly pale, and his lips were blue!"

A collective gasp rippled through the onlookers.

Fang Wu sighed, shaking his head. "Come on, let's go see."

He left with his gong and the men, leaving the two families staring at each other in bewilderment.

After a moment of stunned silence, Lin Xingniang ventured, "...Should we go take a look too?"

They were all from the same village, and it wouldn't feel right to know and not check.

Of course, Lin Xingniang wasn't one to care much for others' opinions or gossip. But with nothing else to do in the village after dark, joining the commotion seemed like a better option.

Cui Lanfang said nothing but turned to see Liu Guyu's eager expression.

"...Alright then, let's go take a look?"

With that, both families followed.

Tian Qiusheng was the Tian family's son, so Zhou Qiaozhi and Tian Dacheng were clearly the first to hear the news and arrived earliest.

Tian Qiusheng was Tian Dacheng's only son, his sole heir. The usually indifferent Tian Dacheng finally reacted, snatching his son from Chen Sanxi's back. He checked for breath, felt for a pulse, then roared hoarsely, "Where's the doctor? Hurry, get a doctor!"

The village head had also arrived, drawn by the news, and many nearby villagers had gathered, all having rushed out at the commotion.

Someone said, "Someone's already gone for Doctor Wan."

Another added, "Oh dear, what's wrong with the boy? Did he run into something?"

Someone else asked Chen Sanxi, "Sanxi, where did you find him?"

Zhou Qiaozhi, terrified by Tian Qiusheng's condition, her face pale, rushed forward with trembling hands, trying to embrace her youngest son in Tian Dacheng's arms.

"My son! What happened... what happened?"

She tried to hold Tian Qiusheng, but Tian Dacheng pushed her away, yelling angrily, "Stupid woman! Get out of my way!"

It was almost dark, and Tian Qiusheng still hadn't returned. The couple had already argued about it, then frantically called the village head to organize a village-wide search. That's what led to Fang Wu beating his gong through the village.

Zhou Qiaozhi, pushed aside, had no time to argue with Tian Dacheng. Instead, she turned on Chen Sanxi, grabbing him and demanding, "Chen Sanxi! Tell me now! What did you do to my Qiusheng? Did you harm him?"

They weren't in Zhou Qiaozhi's home!

And Chen Sanxi wasn't about to show her deference just because she was older!

He had kindly carried her son down, and instead of thanks, he was being accused. Chen Sanxi's face darkened considerably, and he directly shoved Zhou Qiaozhi's hand off his collar.

The people around them quickly intervened:

"Mrs. Tian, calm down!"

"Yes! Be reasonable... Sanxi carried Qiusheng down. He probably saved your son! You can't be so unfair!"

"Exactly! Let Sanxi explain first!"

Liu Guyu and the others arrived just in time to hear these words. Pushing through the crowd, they saw Chen Sanxi reply stiffly:

"When I found him, he was lying under a tree. His belt was undone, and there was a bruise around his neck... I checked. His belt was on the ground, but it was broken."

Clearly, this was Chen Sanxi's first time encountering such a situation. He had just finished checking his traps in the mountains and was on his way back when he stumbled upon Tian Qiusheng unconscious on the ground.

He paused before continuing, "He must have tried to take his own life, but luckily, the belt he used to hang himself broke, and he fell."

Though he wasn't dead, he didn't look good.

Chen Sanxi didn't know how to treat him, but Tian Qiusheng's pale complexion suggested he was close to death.

Though he usually avoided meddling, a matter of life and death was different. He couldn't just pretend not to see, so he carried the boy down the mountain to seek help.

But Zhou Qiaozhi exploded in anger upon hearing this, lunging forward with a furious snarl, trying to scratch and hit Chen Sanxi.

"You cursed brat, you who bring ill fortune to your parents! How dare you curse my Qiusheng! I'll tear your mouth apart!"

Chen Sanxi was already annoyed, feeling his good deed had only brought him trouble.

He wasn't about to show Zhou Qiaozhi any respect. He swiftly dodged, causing her to stumble and fall face-first into the dirt and dry grass.

At that moment, Qin Banban, holding Cui Lanfang's hand, spoke up, clearly displeased: "Auntie Zhou, you're being so unreasonable! Look for yourself—there's a bruised ring around Tian Qiusheng's neck from hanging!"

"Instead of worrying about your son in such a critical state, you're busy picking fights with others!"

The crowd heard Qin Banban's words, and even Tian Dacheng immediately pulled open Tian Qiusheng's loose collar, fully revealing the faint bruise that had been partially visible.

"Oh! There really is a bruise!"

"The boy really tried to hang himself?"

"Oh dear, oh dear, how awful! I've only heard of women mistreated by their in-laws hanging themselves, or sick people not wanting to burden their families... But Qiusheng is so young! Other boys his age are still playing all over the mountains! What could be so bad that he'd want to hang himself?"

"Poor thing..."

"Mrs. Tian, you truly wronged Sanxi this time! Your Qiusheng owes his life to Sanxi! If Sanxi hadn't happened to find him and carry him down, who knows how long it would've taken to find him? And whether he'd even be alive then!"

"Yes, yes, you were really in the wrong here!"

Zhou Qiaozhi's mind was in turmoil. She glanced at Tian Qiusheng, still unwilling to believe her son would attempt suicide by hanging.

Why?

Why would he hang himself?

She had never deprived him of food or drink!

She treated him like a king!

To ensure he could study well, the best food and drinks at home always went to him first!

Last winter, he was the only one in the family who got a new cotton-padded jacket! All because she was afraid the cold would freeze his hands and make it hard to write!

She always thought of him in everything, worried about him in everything, and arranged everything for him.

"How could this child still be so immature!" she thought.

Thinking of this, Zhou Qiaozhi felt wronged! If it weren't for supporting Qiusheng's studies, their family's life would have been so much better!

She heard villagers muttering reproaches, but Zhou Qiaozhi still didn't think she was at fault. Instead, she suddenly crouched down, covered her face, and began to cry.

"How could my Qiusheng possibly have hanged himself? How old is he? What does he know? We’ve never lacked food or clothes at home—what could possibly have driven him to such despair?"

"Few families in the village are as devoted as I am! I stew meat or chicken for him regularly to nourish his body so he can study! Who else would invest so much money to send their son to school?"

While she was crying, Doctor Wan finally arrived.

He had been summoned by a fellow villager and had clearly heard the news on the way. He rushed over anxiously, crouched down to check Tian Qiusheng's pulse, lifted his eyelids, and felt for his breath. After examining him for a while, he snapped impatiently:

"Are you all fools? This child tried to hang himself, and instead of hurrying to send him to town by cart where he might still be saved, you're wasting time here! What kind of parents are you!"

At these words, Zhou Qiaozhi stopped crying abruptly. She stared blankly at Doctor Wan, her mouth agape and her eyes bulging. A large teardrop rolled from her eye and straight into her mouth.

Village Chief Chen Qiaosheng quickly jabbed the stunned Tian Dacheng and urged, "Quick, quick! Saving the child is what matters! Pick him up! Ah Wu, get our ox cart and take them to town to see the doctor!"

Fang Wu nodded and ran home. Tian Dacheng, snapping out of his daze, hurriedly picked up the child and followed.

Zhou Qiaozhi wiped her tears and tried to follow, but Tian Dacheng yelled at her to stay back. When she attempted to board the cart, he pushed her away forcefully, causing her to fall flat on her back, yelping in pain.

"You jinx! Don't you dare follow! From today on, stay away from my son!"

"You wicked woman! You're nothing but trouble! You've torn this family apart with your nagging!"

At that moment, he seemed to completely forget his usual indifference and irresponsibility, laying all the blame on Zhou Qiaozhi in just a few words.

Zhou Qiaozhi fell again, her back, legs, and rear end throbbing, but she was still worried about the unconscious Tian Qiusheng. She quickly got up to chase after them, but Tian Dacheng had already sped off with the cart without waiting for her.

Zhou Qiaozhi broke down and shouted, "Tian Dacheng! You heartless brute!"

After crying for a while, she suddenly remembered something. She wiped the tears from her face, hiked up her sleeves, and ran furiously in a certain direction.

"I know! I know! It must be because of Liu Zaiwen!"

"That damned monster! That beast calls himself a teacher? It must be him—he must have been bullying my Qiusheng every day, driving him to despair!"

She also recalled what Tian Qiusheng had said earlier that day: that Liu Zaiwen constantly scolded and beat him, calling him dumber than a pig and saying he wasn't cut out for studying.

Zhou Qiaozhi had thought at the time, "What teacher doesn't scold? If he scolds you, it must be because you're not good enough! Otherwise, why would he scold you and not others?"

But now it was different—her son had nearly died!

Fuming, Zhou Qiaozhi stormed into the Liu family home and threw a fit.

The villagers didn't know the details of the Tian family's affairs. They didn't realize that Tian Qiusheng never wanted to study—he was forced by Zhou Qiaozhi, paraded like a puppet at his desk day after day, studying and writing until his mind went numb.

Hearing Zhou Qiaozhi's accusations, they now believed it was Liu Zaiwen's fault for pushing the child to such extremes!

As a result, more than half of the remaining students at Liu Zaiwen's school—already fewer than forty percent—were pulled out by their parents.

"It's better to not study than to be driven to hang oneself!" they thought.

Liu Zaiwen felt he was wrongly blamed, but the accusations were based on things he had actually said and done. He had no defense.

In no time, the reputation of Liu Zaiwen and his mother hit rock bottom.

As for what happened later, Tian Qiusheng survived. He stayed at the clinic for a few days before returning home.

Having narrowly escaped death, the child's temperament changed significantly. He began to defy Zhou Qiaozhi.

Tian Dacheng, who had previously been indifferent to family matters, was also shaken with fear. He worried constantly that Tian Qiusheng might attempt suicide again and wanted to keep the boy on a short leash.

The issue of Tian Qiusheng's studies sparked an unprecedented fierce argument in the Tian family.

After a few days, Zhou Qiaozhi finally realized that her son hadn't been driven to hang himself by Liu Zaiwen—he had been driven to it by her.

But Zhou Qiaozhi couldn't understand it. She still felt Tian Qiusheng was being unreasonable and unable to endure hardship. The family provided him with everything—good food, good clothes—and he was spared from any chores or worries. All he had to do was study.

She had done so much for him, all for his future success, and yet he was ungrateful!

Tian Qiusheng stubbornly refused to study any further. If Zhou Qiaozhi even mentioned "studying," he would become hysterical, threatening to crash into a wall, drown himself, jump off a cliff, or even go into Wolf Mountain to be eaten by wild wolves!

Seeing his frantic state, Zhou Qiaozhi didn't dare pressure Tian Qiusheng to continue his studies anymore. She was just disappointed, feeling that her son didn't appreciate her efforts and had broken her heart. She believed he would regret it when he grew up!

Tian Dacheng, for once, stepped up. Worried that if he left again as a traveling merchant, leaving Tian Qiusheng alone with Zhou Qiaozhi might lead to another incident, he decided to take his son with him.

Fearing that Zhou Qiaozhi might come looking for them in town, he took Tian Qiusheng to another town altogether. There, he approached a shopkeeper he had previously done business with and arranged for his son to learn accounting. After that, Tian Qiusheng only returned home during holidays.

Tian Dacheng himself also grew reluctant to return home. His daughter was married, his son was away learning accounting, and only Zhou Qiaozhi—whom he was tired of seeing—remained at home. So he visited even less frequently.

The Tian household was deserted, leaving Zhou Qiaozhi alone.