Chapter 8: Truly Exasperating!

Bang! Bang! Bang!

"Old Lin's family, what's going on in there? Open up!"

A barrage of forceful knocks resounded from outside the door.

Although the neighbors to the left and right rarely got along with Mother Lin, they had lived beside her for years. The commotion in the Lin household tonight was too much—howling and wailing that could terrify anyone. If something truly bad happened, it would reflect poorly on them, so they came over to check.

Hearing the clamor outside, Lin Xiaodou’s eyes turned cold as she looked at Father Lin, her tone threatening:

"You know what to do. If you dare say a single word wrong, I'll cripple your son."

With that, she returned to her small room.

The moment she left, Father Lin relaxed, his back drenched in cold sweat from fear. For a split second, he almost believed that wretched girl would kill him.

The pounding at the door continued relentlessly.

With both legs broken, Father Lin couldn’t stand; he had to crawl to open the door. As soon as it opened, the neighbors gasped in shock at the miserable state inside.

"Old Lin…what happened here? Was it a robbery?"

"Oh my, what's wrong with Dawei? Why is he lying on the floor?"

"Heavens, old Lin, your wife’s face is covered in blood! She’s fainted!"

The neighbors surged in, offering help. Someone propped Father Lin onto the sofa.

"Old Lin, what happened to your legs? What exactly happened in your home?"

Father Lin opened his mouth, wanting to say that Lin Xiaodou had gone mad and attacked them. But then her threat flashed through his mind and he paled.

Seeing his odd expression, a kindly neighbor tried to console him:

"Old Lin, just tell us what happened. Don’t be afraid, we’re all here!"

"That’s right, with so many of us, we can handle any thief."

"It wasn’t a thief..." Father Lin shook his head, feeling a mix of regret and shame. A grown man, afraid of his own daughter—how could he admit that?

Perhaps the crowd gave him courage. Suddenly, Father Lin felt Lin Xiaodou wasn’t so scary after all.

"Actually, it was my dau—"

He didn’t get to finish. The door to the small room in the corner opened, and Lin Xiaodou emerged, leaning on her crutch.

She wore a scarf and kept her head bowed, looking once more like the timid, meek girl from before.

"Dad, what happened here? I just fell asleep—did something happen?"

Father Lin’s eyes bulged, the words stuck in his throat. What could he say? What else could he possibly say? With such a ruckus, anyone would have woken up. Was this feeble excuse supposed to fool anyone?

As he silently grumbled, someone else voiced the question for him.

"Xiaodou, your house was robbed, your parents and brother got hurt, and you could still sleep through it?"

"Exactly, this girl usually seems diligent, but at such a critical moment she’s missing—really irresponsible!"

"I…I didn’t mean to." Lin Xiaodou’s eyes reddened as she whispered, "Tonight, Mom wouldn’t let me eat. I was so hungry I fell asleep."

At these words, the room fell silent.

Only now did the neighbors recall how cruel Mother Lin could be. From the look of things, she must have withheld food from Lin Xiaodou again.

So she fainted from hunger, not because she was truly asleep.

Pity and sighs filled their eyes. The poor child—her leg was injured in a fall, and she went hungry every day.

"What a sin…"

One auntie, who had never gotten along with Mother Lin, secretly kicked her. Such a shrew, tormenting her own flesh and blood—utterly heartless!

In the end, under Lin Xiaodou’s chilling gaze, Father Lin had no choice but to grudgingly tell everyone a thief had broken in. Mother Lin and Lin Dawei had been injured resisting—the former scratched across the face, the latter beaten unconscious.

No one doubted his explanation. There had been several burglaries in the neighborhood recently, with some families suffering heavy losses.

At last, amidst curses against the thief, Father Lin and the others were taken to the hospital by the neighbors.

Lin Xiaodou, unable to walk, stayed behind. Once everyone had left, she locked the door and retreated to her hidden space for a deep, untroubled sleep.

She wasn’t the least bit concerned about what had happened that day. First, her reputation as a timid, self-effacing girl was well known—no one would believe any accusation. Second, even if she fought back, how could a frail girl overpower three people? Third, her father and mother were still counting on her marriage to that fool. If his family heard she’d lost her mind, they’d surely call off the engagement.

All things considered, her father and mother would have to swallow their grievances in silence.

But both of them were vengeful sorts, never willing to let a slight go unanswered.

Having suffered so much, they’d never let this go. They’d surely come up with other ways to deal with her.

Which suited Lin Xiaodou just fine. The bigger the commotion, the more entertaining it would be.

She looked forward to the show.

…

In the hospital.

Mother Lin woke up the next morning.

The first thing she did was frantically search for a mirror.

When she saw the ugly scar stitched across her face, running from one side to the other, she utterly broke down.

"Ahhh! Where is that wretched girl? I’ll kill her!"

With bloodshot eyes, she tried to rush out of the ward.

"Wife, listen to me…"

Father Lin stopped her, speaking soothingly until her rage subsided somewhat.

But she was still unwilling to accept it.

"Are we really going to do nothing and let that wretched girl off?!"

She was so furious she wanted to beat the girl to death—how could she stay calm?

"That girl was probably driven over the edge by hunger and lashed out in a fit of rage," Father Lin said, eyes narrowing. "For now, let’s not provoke her further. If she runs off and hurts people, and the fool’s family hears about it, we’ll be in trouble."

"Mom, if I may—how much would it have cost you to feed her?" Lin Dawei, also in the ward, chimed in. His whole body stung from the medicated ointment.

"If you’d just let the ugly thing eat her fill, none of this would have happened. I’m in agony!"

"I was just trying to punish her. If she doesn’t obediently marry that fool, where will you get the money for your wedding?" Mother Lin’s grievance deepened as she spoke.

She had racked her brains for her son’s marriage, worrying day and night, only to end up disfigured.

It was truly exasperating!