Feeling that her life was flowing away and her body was getting increasingly icy, Zhao Lan was furious.

  “Shao Qihai, don’t think that you’ll be fine after I die. Do you think you’re not responsible for Bai Lu’s death at all?”

  “Of course I know I’m responsible. I’m also a culprit.”

  He was the culprit and murderer who had caused Bai Lu’s death. He deserved to die for making her suffer so much pain.

  Therefore, he was waiting to see if Zhao Lan would die. He would lock Zhao Lan up for as long as Bai Lu had suffered while Zhao Lan had remained unmoved. He wouldn’t do anything but lock her up and leave her be. If Zhao Lan didn’t make it through and died, she’d deserve it. If she survived, it would mean she’d gotten lucky.

  If she survived, he wouldn’t do anything. If she died, then he would accept it too.

  Shao Qihai had thought it through. Seeing that Shao Qihai was still unmoved, Zhao Lan felt herself getting weaker and colder, and the resentment and anger in her heart could no longer be controlled.

  “Shao Qihai, if you dare treat me like this, I won’t let you off. I won’t let you off even if I become a ghost.”

  Shao Qihai laughed when he heard that. “If the words ‘I won’t let you off even if I become a ghost’ work, Bai Lu will be the first to not let you off.”

  Everyone heard Shao Qihai and Zhao Lan’s words clearly. They all felt indescribably terrible. Was Shao Qihai wrong about this? No. Zhao Lan had dragged Bai Lu to her death.

  But how could this continue…?

  Seeing that nobody could persuade Shao Qihai and hearing Zhao Lan’s rant get weaker and weaker, the village chief felt that this couldn’t go on. Looking at the bloodstains on the ground, he finally made up his mind.

  “Shao Qihai, we can’t just watch as someone dies. If you don’t give in, we can only do it by force. You’ll also get in trouble if you do this…”

  “No matter the consequences, I’ll bear them alone. If you insist on forcibly barging in, I won’t be polite either.”

  \r \r \r

  Shao Qihai’s eyes were red. No one could persuade him anymore.

  Just as everyone was hesitating, not sure whether to make a move or not since they weren’t Shao Qihai’s match anyway, the village chief looked at Mu Jingzhe and the five kids in the crowd.

  Neither Mu Jingzhe nor Shao Dong had said anything about Shao Qihai’s actions until now. They had been standing in the crowd and watching silently.

  Mu Jingzhe was bitterly disappointed and scared. As a woman, Zhao Lan was really cruel. She had simply watched as Bai Lu had been tortured without caring. She didn’t even dare imagine how desperate Bai Lu must have been back then.

  Giving birth was like walking through the gates of hell to begin with. She had never been pregnant before, but every time she heard about it, she would be afraid. Furthermore, Zhao Lan had gone overboard.

  She deserved it. Falling down served her right. She also felt that what Shao Qihai was doing was right. That was his wife, the wife who had given birth to four children for him.

  If Shao Qihai had known and hadn’t done anything, even Mu Jingzhe would despise him, let alone everyone else.

  This was a grudge between Shao Qihai, Zhao Lan, and Bai Lu. Everything was their choice. Mu Jingzhe had no right to make any comments.

  The five kids didn’t say anything either. Shao Dong had been puzzled about this for a few years. He had dreamed of Bai Lu crying and begging for mercy countless times in the middle of the night. This time, he had even kowtowed in front of her grave. This trip had made their hearts ache even more for Bai Lu.

  Zhao Lan, her mother-in-law, had treated her like that, and she hadn’t been favored by her parents at home either. The Bai Family only wanted to reap benefits, and there were very few people whose hearts had truly ached for her. In the end, she had died due to complications during labor. What right did they have to speak?

  The village chief glanced at Mu Jingzhe and the others, and though he felt helpless, he walked over to them. “Jingzhe… why don’t you try to talk some sense into him? If you do, Shao Qihai will listen. Letting her die like this is not the way to resolve this.”

  “Village Chief, do you think I’m qualified to do this?”

  The village chief laughed bitterly and couldn’t help but look at the children.

  He wanted to say something, but when he saw the looks in the kids’ eyes and remembered how Zhao Lan had treated the children previously, he was at a loss for words. Zhao Lan had indirectly caused the death of their mother and had even treated them badly. It would be good enough if they didn’t take revenge on her, but forgiveness was not on the table.

  The village chief couldn’t treat the five kids like children. He put himself in their shoes and thought for a while, ultimately not saying anything. He sighed deeply and turned around to leave. He waved at the young men and asked them to go over and do it.

  “You’re not my match. You’ll get hurt if you get physical with me.” Shao Qihai spoke when he saw their actions.

  “Even so, we can’t just stand and watch you do this… You’ll suffer in the future. Qihai, you still have a long way to go.” The village chief waved his hand. “I have to take care of this for you.”

  Just as the two parties were about to fight, Little Bei suddenly said, “Daddy… that’s enough.”

  She held Shao Nan and Mu Jingzhe’s hands. Her heart was filled with reluctance, but she still looked at Shao Qihai and said, “That’s enough, Daddy.”

  They wished that Zhao Lan would die too, but they couldn’t really watch her die.

  She hated Zhao Lan indeed, but her heart ached for Shao Qihai. She couldn’t bear for him to shoulder the sin of killing his mother, just like them.

  Although they hadn’t killed Bai Lu with their own hands, Bai Lu had indeed died while giving birth to them. If they hadn’t existed, she wouldn’t have died. Shao Nan and Little Bei knew this feeling all too well.

  After she said this, tears rolled down Little Bei’s face as she apologized to Bai Lu in her heart.

  Shao Nan took a deep breath and tugged at Mu Jingzhe. “Mom, persuade Daddy.”

  Mu Jingzhe watched as Shao Nan looked at Little Bei before her gaze finally landed on Shao Dong and Shao Xi. Shao Dong nodded slightly. Shao Xi seemed a little unconvinced and didn’t look at her, but he didn’t say anything either. Hence, she sighed deeply. “Alright.”

  Shao Dong pulled Little Bei over and hugged her. “Don’t cry. Mommy will understand.”

  Shao Qihai had been persisting without wavering, but when he heard Little Bei’s words, he almost broke down. As soon as he saw Mu Jingzhe walking over, he turned his head and didn’t look at her.

  He couldn’t bear to look at her, nor did he have the dignity to do it. “You… I…”

  He wanted to say something, but nothing came out. His thoughts were so complicated that he couldn’t express them with words.

  “That’s more or less enough. I know you’re thinking that if Zhao Lan dies too, you’ll pay for Bai Lu’s and Zhao Lan’s life with your own, but have you thought about what will happen to Little Dong and the others? Are you going to wash your hands off of them? You just said that you wouldn’t leave them behind!”

  Shao Qihai trembled when he heard Mu Jingzhe’s words. “I…”

  He and Mu Jingzhe had never been a real husband and wife. Mu Jingzhe was outstanding and had even planned to divorce him previously. That was why Shao Qihai knew that even if he died, Mu Jingzhe wouldn’t be affected at all. In fact, she could be even happier. For instance, she could be happy with Ji Buwang, who was a catch.

  But there were also the five kids… Although Mu Jingzhe wouldn’t ignore them… Shao Qihai looked at the five kids with hesitation and internal struggle in the depths of his eyes.

  “Don’t hem and haw. If this continues, you won’t be okay. Neither will Little Dong and the rest. In your dreams, you might not only hear Bai Lu’s screams, but also Zhao Lan’s…”

  The kids were still so young. They had a long way to go in the future. Who knew what people would say about them and whether he would regret it?

  Those who didn’t know would probably say that not only had the five kids forced their grandmother to die, but they’d also forced their father to perish. In the end, it would still be the five kids who would have to endure it. Although it sounded ridiculous, all of this would really happen.