"Luo Yuzhen, don't make a scene here."
"Everyone in the village knows your situation. Your daughter is smart and studious, and she earns money for this family. Can't you let her go to school!"
Shen Fuguo's face darkened. Luo Yuzhen's shrewish temper was known throughout the village, and people generally avoided her courtyard.
"Oh, my belly, my poor son! Even before you're born, officials are here to bully us."
"Shen Youshu, where are you? People are bullying your wife and son at your doorstep, and you're just going to watch us suffer? I don't want to live anymore!"
Shen Fuguo's silence was one thing, but as soon as he spoke, Luo Yuzhen started wailing dramatically.
This was why no one dared to provoke Luo Yuzhen. She was either always pregnant or on her way to getting pregnant, and she used this to her advantage to be difficult.
If anything serious happened, it would be a double death, and no one could afford that responsibility. So, everyone avoided her, unwilling to get involved in her family's mess.
Chen Yang was infuriated by this shameless woman.
He had never seen anyone so brazen! Su Dan Novel Network
"Mom, stop your fake crying. Dad went out to sell bamboo baskets, you know that."
"You took the more than two hundred yuan I earned selling fish, and you're my mother, so I accept that."
"But you're not allowed to slander Teacher Chen. If you dare to slander him again, I'll die for you to see."
"If I die, you'll never get a single cent for a bride price from me, nor will you get a cent from me for your son."
Just then, Shen Pandi, who had been silent, suddenly held the wood-splitting knife to her neck.
Her slender neck was instantly cut by the sharp knife, drawing blood!
No one expected that Shen Pandi, who had always endured Luo Yuzhen's oppression, would take such a drastic action. Even Chen Yang was startled by the sudden assertiveness of this gentle girl.
"Pandi, please, don't do anything foolish."
"Put the knife down quickly. If your mother won't let you, I'll pay. I'll pay for your education. I'll pay for high school, and if you get into university, I'll pay for that too."
Chen Yang watched the girl who seemed ready to die and panicked.
Originally, Shen Pandi had tolerated Luo Yuzhen's oppression. It was because of him that she had finally resisted.
But her method of resistance was too extreme. If Shen Pandi were to lose her life because of this, his conscience would never be at peace for the rest of his life!
Shen Fuguo's face turned pale with fright. If someone died under his nose as village head, he would never be able to show his face again.
Luo Yuzhen looked at the bloodstain on Shen Pandi's neck. She had intended to curse loudly, but she finally gritted her teeth and remained silent.
This girl was seventeen. The old bachelor in the front village, although nearly forty, had saved money for half his life and was willing to pay a hundred yuan for her as a bride price.
If she were to push this girl to her death, that money would go down the drain.
She was also getting old. By the time the son in her womb grew up and needed to get married, she would be sixty or seventy. Where would she get the money to get her son married? Her daughters would have to contribute.
"You can pay for my daughter's education, but she earns ten work points a day, which is thirty-seven yuan a year. You have to compensate me for that."
Luo Yuzhen didn't want Shen Pandi to go to school not because she couldn't afford the six-and-a-half yuan tuition. She was just afraid that if the girl went to school and became worldly, she would never come back.
Then where would she find this girl? After that troublesome girl Zhaodi got married, she never came home. In the future, she could still find someone on the west side of the river to ask for money.
If this girl really went to school and ran away, where would she find her to get money to raise her son!
"You wish!"
"I'll earn the tuition money myself. You won't get a single cent extorted from Teacher Chen. If you dare to extort him, I'll die."
But Luo Yuzhen did not expect Shen Pandi, who was holding the wood-splitting knife, to suddenly exert more force.
Instantly, a trickle of blood flowed down the knife. Chen Yang's heart pounded wildly. Shen Pandi was inherently proud.
In her past life, she had always endured. But in this life, because of his appearance, she couldn't bear for Luo Yuzhen to bully and insult Chen Yang, whom she respected the most. She exploded completely.
This was her first thorough rebellion against her birth family.
Although Chen Yang's heart was pounding, he also knew that if Shen Pandi could maintain her firm stance this time, she might be able to completely escape Luo Yuzhen's clutches in this life.
This was a change she had never made in her past life!
But he was afraid Shen Pandi would get too agitated. The blood made him fearful!
"You, you damned girl, won't you stop until you make me furious enough to die!"
Luo Yuzhen looked at Shen Pandi, then at the blood seeping from her neck. The woman finally felt scared.
She was afraid of pushing her daughter to her death!
Luo Yuzhen had just taken more than two hundred yuan from Shen Pandi. Even if Shen Pandi worked for five years, she wouldn't earn that much.
The hundred yuan bride price was a done deal. By keeping this daughter, Luo Yuzhen could get all the money she earned. If Shen Pandi were to die, then she would lose everything.
"Luo Yuzhen, are you even human? You've pushed your child to this point. Are you really going to force her to death!"
Shen Fuguo was truly angry now. This woman was so obsessed with having a son that she treated her daughter like dirt. How could she push her child to such an extreme!
"Pandi, I can agree to let you go to school, but you must promise to return to Shenjiaba Village after you finish your studies."
"I won't marry you off to the old bachelor in the front village. After you graduate from university, I'll find you a good man in the city."
Luo Yuzhen gritted her teeth. As long as she could keep Shen Pandi under her control, it didn't matter if she went to school or not. If she hadn't been afraid of Shen Pandi running away after getting educated, letting her study would definitely lead to a better marriage later.
At that time, the bride price would be even higher. She would be glad to see that happen.
Hearing her words, Shen Pandi felt pain in her heart. Her mother would never willingly let her go.
However, at least she could go to school. At least she didn't have to marry a forty-something-year-old man now, which was better than before.
Chen Yang saw Shen Pandi loosen her grip on the wood-splitting knife. He quickly rushed forward, snatched the knife away, and threw it to the ground.
Shen Pandi's neck had a deep bloody mark from the knife. Blood was flowing, but thankfully, it was only a superficial cut and not deep.
"Luo Yuzhen, you are not fit to be a mother."
Chen Yang glanced coldly at Luo Yuzhen. This woman was truly insane for a son, and it disgusted him.
He had never imagined that a mother could be so heartless.
"Old village head, quickly get the donkey cart. We're taking Pandi to the hospital for a tetanus shot."
Chen Yang wanted to send Shen Pandi back to school. She should never stay in a home like this again.
Although he was disgusted this time, Shen Pandi had at least used her life to threaten Luo Yuzhen into agreeing to let her go to school.
Compared to her past life, Shen Pandi's fate had changed. As for after she finished school, Chen Yang didn't believe this woman would follow her outside and pester her!