After catching his breath, the old man walked over and retrieved the door bolt he had thrown aside earlier.

A few neighbors, hearing the commotion at the Wang family’s old residence, had gathered at the gate to watch. The old man addressed them, "It's nothing, everyone can head back now!"

These onlookers had witnessed the old man driving the intruders away, so they didn't linger and dispersed.

The old man turned and re-entered the courtyard, only to see his eldest daughter-in-law, Madam Tian, and his youngest daughter, Fang'er, emerging, presumably having just come out after hearing the noise.

The old man looked at his daughter’s expression, uncertain whether she had heard Liu Song’s earlier words. He turned to the old woman, who was equally unsure if their daughter had caught everything, and she simply shook her head at the old man, indicating her uncertainty.

So, the old man simply told the gathered women, "It’s fine, I’ve chased them off. Everyone can disperse now, go about your business!"

Upon hearing this, Wang Guifang turned and returned to her room. In truth, she had heard every word Liu Song had spoken. She was utterly astonished that, after being married, Liu Song could utter such things about her.

However, it was a small comfort that she now had absolutely no ties left with the Liu family; she wouldn't have to face them or their words anymore!

Meanwhile, after returning to their room, the old man and old woman began to blame themselves.

"Alas, if only I hadn't been so picky back then, rejecting this family and that family, why would we have kept our daughter at home until she was so old, only to marry her off to such a family!" the old woman lamented, blaming herself.

The old man felt self-reproach as well. He recalled how excellent his daughter’s character was—she was faultless in every aspect. But because they had been too high and mighty at home, constantly scrutinizing every match, they had ultimately delayed their daughter, leading her to marry into the Liu family and ruining her life.

"Enough, you don't need to blame yourself. It’s too late for regrets now!" the old man sighed.

"Oh, every time I think of it, I regret it! Even if our daughter doesn't speak of it now, who knows if she resents us? But even if she does resent me, I have nothing to say; it was entirely my fault for ruining her," the old woman murmured.

"What nonsense are you speaking? How could our daughter resent us?" the old man countered.

"But…" the old woman tried to press on.

"Enough of this talk. Actually, I think there was some sense in what Liu Song said today," the old man stated.

"What? You think that scoundrel made sense?" the old woman interjected anxiously.

"Oh, don't rush. Just listen to me first," the old man soothed. Once the old woman quieted down, he continued, "Liu Song is right; our daughter still needs to get married. Think about it: even though our daughter still has her dowry and assets, that’s only because we, the old couple, are still here, and the rest of the family dares not covet it. If one day, we are both gone, who will stand up for her? At that time, forget keeping her dowry, she might have to beg for a bite to eat and watch others' faces!"

The old woman was silent for a long moment after hearing this, then sighed, "Do you think I don't know that? But setting aside whether our daughter even wishes to remarry, given her status as a divorced woman, who wouldn't have reservations about marrying her? If she ends up marrying someone greedy for her dowry, it will be a net loss."

The old man understood his wife’s worries were valid, but he was unwilling to give up just yet. He said, "That won't happen. We will certainly find someone willing to marry our daughter who isn't after her dowry. We definitely will."

Hearing the old man's certainty, the old woman couldn't bear to crush his hope. Finding such a person wasn't easy. Even if they found someone willing to marry her without coveting her dowry, how old was their daughter now? Anyone willing to marry her wouldn't be much younger than her. Since they wouldn't be much younger, they must have been married before, possibly even have children. Would their daughter have to become a stepmother the moment she married? Being a stepmother wasn't easy. If the children weren't raised well, everyone would blame the stepmother. But if they were raised well, it would be expected. Furthermore, if their daughter had her own children later, how could she truly remain impartial and unbiased?

Forget it, she wouldn't dwell on it for now. She would ask their daughter about her own wishes another day. It would be terrible if they, the old couple, were busy finding matches while their daughter had no intention of remarrying.

The incident where Old Man Wang's divorced son-in-law came to cause trouble quickly spread throughout the village. Some villagers who were already envious of the Wang family now reveled in their misfortune. These villagers even managed to pry out exactly what Liu Song had said when he was at the Wang family’s old residence, ensuring they didn't miss the words Liu Song spoke about Wang Guifang.

Consequently, some women who had married into Wang Village after Wang Guifang's wedding asked, "Was the old Wang family's daughter really unmarriable back then? Did the Liu family kindly take her in?"

If these questions were posed to people with no ties to the Wang family, the answer received would be, "Don't listen to that nonsense from the Liu family. Plenty of men wanted to marry the old Wang family's daughter back then, but the Wang family was too picky, keeping their daughter home until she was so old. In the end, they had to settle for the Liu family, whose financial standing was decent at the time."

However, if the question was put to those who were jealous or resentful of the Wang family, the answer would be different: "Oh, yes, wasn't that the case? The old Wang family's daughter was so old and still couldn't get married! If that kind Liu family hadn't been so kind as to take her, she probably wouldn't be married even now!"

Because two completely different narratives existed, the topic of Wang Guifang was continuously discussed in the village lately, jumping between the things Liu Song had said and debates over whether the old Wang family's daughter was truly unmarriageable.

Li Wu, who lived in the same village, certainly heard the gossip. His immediate reaction upon hearing it was intense fury. How dare that Liu brat speak like that! It was infuriating. Even the village busybodies were ceaseless, spreading malicious rumors. Who was saying that Wang Guifang couldn't get married back then?

The more Li Wu thought about it, the angrier he became, and he began planning a thorough beating for Liu Song. He couldn't easily deal with the village gossips, but surely he could handle a cripple?

Li Wu gathered a few friends with whom he usually hung out in the village and shared his plan. These friends were well aware of Li Wu’s feelings for Wang Guifang. One of them couldn't stand it and tried to persuade him, "Wuzi, do you really have to do this? It's been so many years. Must you keep going like this? No matter how much you do for her, it’s useless. She doesn't even know, and she won't even thank you. She might not even recognize you."

Li Wu remained silent, lost in thought.

Another friend nudged the speaker, "Stop talking... You know Wuzi's temperament."

"How can I not say anything? I really can't watch this anymore. It's just a woman! If he likes her, he should just go and tell her. Besides, she’s divorced and back home now; wouldn't the Wang family agree if Wuzi wanted to marry her?"

Li Wu glared fiercely at the speaker, "I don't want to hear that again. How I handle things is my business. If you don't want to help, I won't force you; I'll do it myself." With that, Li Wu started to leave.

The man who had spoken quickly grabbed Li Wu’s hand, "Wait, wait... Don't go. I won't say any more! I just can't stand seeing you like this. If you truly like her, just marry her, what's the point of all this? But if you've decided on this path, I have nothing more to advise. Who are we? We’re brothers! Tell us, what do you need us to do this time!"

Li Wu knew his friend meant well and wasn't truly angry. He said, "The time isn't right yet. When the time comes, I will definitely bring her home as my wife."

His friends became animated. Had Li Wu finally come to his senses? They excitedly discussed what kind of wedding they should plan and how they would conduct the bedding ceremony, making Li Wu’s face twitch until they finally stopped.

Then, Li Wu laid out his plan. After hearing it, the group immediately started the execution.

Truthfully, they weren't strangers to laying hands on people. Now, ordered to beat someone who was an adversary to their friend, they were ruthlessly efficient. The group used a cloth sack to cover Liu Song, and then the fists began to rain down.

Liu Song was walking down the road, planning how to convey his difficulties to his daughter, when suddenly he was bagged and subjected to a brutal kicking and punching session. He was beaten unconscious, naturally never seeing who his attackers were.

When Liu Song awoke, he cursed vehemently, wondering whom he had recently offended. It seemed the Wang family was the only one he’d crossed recently. But according to the Wang family's habits, even if they wanted to teach him a lesson, they wouldn't typically cover him with a sack so he couldn't see! Yet, besides the Wang family, he couldn't recall offending anyone else. Liu Song thought for a long time but couldn't reach a conclusion.

Eventually, Liu Song gave up thinking. He struggled to his feet; his injuries were terrifying. He needed to attend to the wounds before considering anything else!

When he returned home, his body covered in injuries nearly scared Liu Granny to death; she initially thought her son had borrowed money from loan sharks again and been beaten for it! When she realized that wasn't the case, she worried her son had offended someone powerful. Given their family’s current meager resources, they truly couldn't afford any more trouble.

Liu Song looked at his mother's cautious demeanor and felt deeply displeased. He was the one injured, yet his mother's first thought wasn't about revenge against his attackers, but worrying about who he might have offended—this chilled him to the bone.

With that, Liu Song shot his mother a fierce glare and retreated to his room to tend to his wounds.