Yingzi’s father did not dare to treat Lian Manman the same way he treated Lian Huahua. First, their relationship with Lian Huahua was different; second, Yingzi had warned him; and third, he feared the Imperially Bestowed Archway of Lian Manman’s family.

Standing outside the gate, he coincidentally ran into Zhang Qingshan, Zhang Qingnian, and Xiao Qi returning home. None of them showed any goodwill towards Yingzi’s father.

Faced with such an overwhelming atmosphere, Yingzi’s father couldn’t help but fear them. He dared not say another word and scurried away with Yingzi’s mother, tails tucked between their legs.

Not until they had left Lian Manman’s family’s land and reached the main thoroughfare did Yingzi’s father slow his pace. Today, he had gained no advantage, let alone managed his original plan—to establish ties with Lian Shouxin’s family by leveraging Lian Huahua, securing a relationship as kin, and stepping into their household. Yingzi’s father fumed with rage as he turned to look at the submissive Yingzi’s mother, and his anger flared even more.

"You useless clod!" Yingzi’s father raised his leg and kicked Yingzi’s mother squarely on her backside.

At that moment, Lian Manman was standing at the gate, chatting with Zhang Qingshan and the others. She happened to glance up and see this scene.

The group entered the courtyard, closed the gate, and Lian Manman and Zhang Caiyun headed to the kitchen.

In the kitchen, Lady Zhang, Lian Zhizhi, Lady Zhao, Lian Yeye, and Da Liangzi’s wife, who worked as a helper, were all busy in a flurry of activity.

Lian Manman recounted the incident just now to Lady Zhang. When mentioning Yingzi’s father and mother daring to make a move on Lian Huahua, Lady Zhang seemed astonished.

"Did a trip to Taicang give them confidence?" Lady Zhang asked skeptically. "Looks like Yingzi is managing some clout over there."

Whether Yingzi was pulling strings was hard to say, but Lian Manman thought of another possibility.

Back when Lian Huahua hadn’t been married yet, Yingzi came looking for her. At the time, their behavior was very suspicious. Later, when Yingzi ran into trouble, despite countless directions she could have turned to, she specifically sought refuge with Lian Huahua. Why would Lian Huahua be so magnanimous as to take Yingzi in? There were countless ways to dismiss Yingzi, yet she insisted on sending her to Taicang, to Lian Shouren and Lady Gu, even giving her a small dowry to marry her off to Sanlang.

Why was this? It couldn’t simply be because of deep sisterly bonds between Lian Huahua and Yingzi.

Lian Manman could only think of one answer: Yingzi had dirt on Lian Huahua. And Lian Huahua had plenty of dirty secrets—for example, breaking the family heirloom jade pendant of the Song Family, where Yingzi had been present at the time.

But could such incriminating evidence really hold such power after Lian Huahua married into the Song Family, making her fear Yingzi to this extent? Lian Manman didn’t think so. During the visit to the county town to seek repayment from Lian Huahua, Lian Manman had seen clearly how Lian Huahua brazenly wore that counterfeit jade pendant without hesitation, not even fearing exposure by the Song Family’s matriarch or others.

There must have been other matters. Yingzi must have held an even more damning secret about Lian Huahua that kept her on edge.

And the reason Yingzi’s parents could treat Lian Huahua like this today likely had to do with something Yingzi had said. Otherwise, with only the nominal roles of being Lian Huahua’s distant grandparents, Yingzi’s father and mother would not dare act so recklessly.

Had Yingzi revealed Lian Huahua’s secret to her father?

No, unlikely. Yingzi’s father was a coarse man without much scheming ability. If he had such leverage over Lian Huahua, he would have used it during the conflict today.

Yingzi likely held a major secret about Lian Huahua, something far more incriminating than the broken jade pendant. And out of resentment from being sent away from the Song family, she might have told her father enough to embolden him and her mother against Lian Huahua.

What could that secret be? What other wrongdoings had Lian Huahua committed?

"Manman, what are you thinking about?" Lady Zhang asked as she cracked a few eggs and noticed Lian Manman standing there lost in thought. "Don’t just stand there—it’s smoky and flustering in here. We don’t need you here. Go play with Sister Caiyun, or go back to entertain the guests."

Lady Zhang’s words brought Lian Manman back to her senses.

"Mother, I just saw Yingzi’s father..." Lian Manman shared the scene of Yingzi’s father kicking Yingzi’s mother.

Lady Zhang sighed upon hearing this.

Da Liangzi’s wife brought firewood inside, overheard this, and sighed as well.

"Yingzi’s mother being beaten is nothing new," Da Liangzi’s wife remarked.

Hearing this for the first time, Lian Manman was visibly stunned.

"Yingzi’s father beats her all the time?"

"All the time," Da Liangzi’s wife confirmed with a nod. "I heard it from my child’s granny. Apparently, when Yingzi’s mother first arrived as a bride, she was lively and dignified. But she was unfortunate to marry someone like Yingzi’s father. From the moment she entered the door, she was beaten—three times a day. Even after giving birth, the beatings continued. Over time, they broke her spirit and left her dazed and foolish. Yingzi’s father is an utter brute..."

A brute not charming in appearance but lacking sense and decency.

Lian Manman now understood that Yingzi had grown up in a household plagued by domestic violence.

The women in the kitchen sighed in pity. In this era, male dominance over women was commonplace, and it wasn’t unusual for men to beat their wives. In fact, in some brutish households, there was a custom where new brides would be beaten regardless of fault. Many women faced routine violence until they bore children. Some mothers-in-law and husbands even justified such abuse as "disciplining the wife."

"...Of all the children, Yingzi is the most attractive, which made her father harbor ulterior motives, treating her like a treasure... a walking gold mine..." Da Liangzi’s wife recounted in a rambling tone.

****......*****

First of all, thank you all for your support last month—"Rebirth of the Little Landlord" received nearly 2,000 votes, ranking third on the monthly ticket list. I deeply appreciate it and hope you will continue to support this month so that Ruoyan has more motivation to write diligently.

This month is the New Year. Ruoyan promises to maintain at least one update a day without interruption and aims, like in previous months, to deliver two updates daily.

Here’s the first update; a second one will be delivered later. On the first day of February, I ask everyone to show their support by voting for this novel. (To be continued. If you like this work, please visit [qidian.com], where you can vote to support it. Your encouragement is my greatest motivation.)