Chapter 189: Chapter 189: The Sound of Face-Slapping

An Ning lifted the basin with one hand and crooked a finger at An Guoping with the other.

"Sis?"

An Guoping called out softly. He followed An Ning’s lead, and the two of them walked to a spot hidden by the courtyard wall.

"Put it down."

An Ning and An Guoping set down the basins they were holding. An Ning peeked out, her eyes gleaming mischievously.

Deviously bright!

"You watch the basins here. I’m going to run home for a second."

"Oh."

An Guoping subconsciously obeyed everything An Ning said. He watched as she ran off with a spring in her step.

’My sis is pretty even when she runs.’

The little fanboy obediently squatted next to the basins and waited.

At that moment, the people in the courtyard finally saw An Sancheng’s family.

The woman with the permed hair was none other than An Ercheng’s wife, Du Guijuan.

If An Ning had been there, she would have recognized her. Du Guijuan was the very same bank teller who had handled her savings deposit.

The only difference was that head of permed hair.

Freshly done.

"This must be Sancheng, right? I haven’t seen you in years. How did you get so old?"

"And you’re... something-Hua, right? I can’t quite remember."

With just two sentences, Du Guijuan had offended An Sancheng’s entire family.

An Sancheng, concerned with saving face, just nodded without a word. Lin Cuihua shot her a glare, not bothering to respond.

But An Guoming wasn’t one to take things lying down. He stepped forward from the back.

"Which great-grandmother of mine is this? Dad, why don’t you introduce us? As a junior, I have to give my New Year’s greetings to Great-Grandma. I’m waiting for her red envelope, right, Big Brother?"

"Right! Hello, Great-Grandma! Auspicious greetings, Great-Grandma!"

With that single phrase, "Auspicious greetings, Great-Grandma," An Guoqing managed to shout with the gravitas of an emperor returning to his palace, loud enough for all the neighbors to hear.

’An Guoming almost broke character because of An Guoqing.’

’Big Brother has improved.’

Flustered by the two brothers, Du Guijuan’s expression soured, and she started laying into An Sancheng.

"The upbringing in your house is a real eye-opener. I know you country folk don’t fuss over etiquette, but you shouldn’t be so disgraceful."

Du Guijuan pretentiously fluffed her permed hair and stuck her nose in the air, a look her daughter had clearly mastered as well.

It wasn’t that An Sancheng couldn’t defend himself, but he would argue with his second brother, not his sister-in-law. It would look bad no matter how you sliced it.

He might let it go, but Lin Cuihua was not having it.

She stepped in front of An Sancheng.

"Well, I’ll be damned. Now I’ve seen everything."

"I’m Lin Cuihua, and I’ve seen plenty of beasts in the surrounding villages, but this is the first time I’ve ever seen a breed like you."

"You’re all skin and bones, so what are you showing off for? That mess of hair on your head has fewer strands than a sparrow in the backyard. Aren’t you afraid a strong gust of wind will blow you bald?"

An Ning returned just in time to catch Lin Cuihua’s tirade.

Those words made An Ning’s admiration for Lin Cuihua rise to a whole new level.

As expected, Du Guijuan’s fighting prowess was nothing compared to Lin Cuihua’s.

Uncle An’s wife, who had been standing at the door enjoying the show for a while, also came out at the right moment.

"What’s all this? Cuihua, you too. As your sister-in-law, I have to say something. It’s the New Year, you should hold back on telling the truth a little."

Uncle An’s wife, her white hair tied neatly and immaculately into a bun at the back of her head, stopped beside Lin Cuihua.

Like a parent scolding her own child first, she then turned to Du Guijuan with a smile.

"Gui Juan, don’t mind her. Cuihua is just straightforward, but deep down, she wishes you well."

An Ning, watching from behind, nodded continuously. ’They’re all so brilliant.’

’Lin Cuihua fights with a bare blade, while Auntie uses a hidden one.’

Du Guijuan, on the receiving end, understood. She recognized the tactic—it was one she often used herself. She never thought she’d be on the receiving end.

"Sister-in-law, what’s the meaning of this?"

"Are you saying you don’t welcome us back?"

Uncle An’s wife immediately looked at Lin Cuihua and asked with an innocent expression, "Was that what I meant?"

"No, she’s blind."

The bluntness from Lin Cuihua almost made Uncle An’s wife laugh out loud. She shot Lin Cuihua a warning look. Lin Cuihua pouted and turned her head away.

"You’re all bullies! Who’d want to come here anyway! Mom, let’s go!"

Du Guijuan’s daughter petulantly hugged Du Guijuan’s arm and started pulling her toward the door.

With quick reflexes, Lin Cuihua pulled Uncle An’s wife aside to clear a path for them.

This gesture only infuriated the mother-daughter duo even more.

The young girl walking in front snorted coldly. A vicious look came into her eyes as they darted around, clearly hatching some malicious plan.

"Son of a bitch!"

"You’re asking to die!"

"How dare you!"

An Ning sprinted forward from behind and gave a shove. The little girl, who was about to deliberately ram into her sister-in-law, Zhou Guifen, was sent staggering by An Ning’s push, which also made Du Guijuan lose her balance.

"AHHH—You’re all bullies!"

The little girl who had been pushed down sat on the ground and started wailing. From inside the house, An Ercheng and Uncle An finally emerged.

"What happened? Get up, quickly."

An Ercheng first helped Du Guijuan up, and only then went to help his daughter.

"Dad, she pushed me."

An Ning, completely unafraid, took a step forward and stared at the girl, her voice like a demon’s from hell.

"Pushing you is nothing. I’d dare to kill you."

"Pull another stunt like that, and I’ll throw you on the mountain to feed the wolves!" 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

An Guoqing was right behind her, his eyes glaring like bronze bells, his heavy breaths visible from his nostrils.

"You dare touch my wife, and I’ll twist your head off and kick it like a ball!"

An Guoming watched the girl with a sinister look from behind, and An Sancheng was genuinely angered now too.

Lin Cuihua didn’t care about any of that; she pointed at the girl and started cursing.

"You little beast, born but not raised! You dare push my daughter-in-law? You’re fucking asking to die!"

Lin Cuihua raised a hand to slap her, but just as it was about to land, An Ercheng blocked it.

"Sister-in-law, the child is still young—"

"Bullshit! Still young? What, is your daughter still breastfeeding?"

Lin Cuihua’s single sentence made An Ercheng’s face turn bright red.

But this time, it wasn’t her turn. An Sancheng stepped up from behind.

"Second Brother, is your brain full of shit?"

An Sancheng’s words made An Ercheng’s expression turn even uglier.

He turned his gaze to Uncle An. Uncle An took a deep breath and clasped his hands behind his back.

"Let’s all come inside and talk."

Since Uncle An had spoken, An Sancheng gave a cold snort. His family followed behind, each of them shooting a vicious glare at An Ercheng’s family of three.

An Ning, in particular, flaunted her new cashmere coat, strutting as if she were on a fashion show runway.

’It’s mine! Hmph!’

After angering everyone, An Ning was in a great mood. It seemed what Jiang Xia had said made some sense after all.

’Take something others want but don’t have and flaunt it for all you’re worth. That’ll really piss them off!’

Sure enough, the little girl was so angry that her crying became a little more real, unlike before when it was all noise and no tears.

"Dad—"

"Ercheng—"

Hearing the calls from his wife and daughter, An Ercheng comforted them, "It’s okay. Eldest Brother is very fair."

"Let’s go inside first, then we’ll talk."