I Crossed Over with My Enemy, Only to Find Him Running the Empire - Chapter 25

Chapter 25: Offenses Taken

Zhang Jinhua shot a cold glare at Sister-in-law Wei and huffed, “Some people have such poisonous hearts, and they still want to eat? Starve! It’ll save you from plotting more harm once your belly is full.”

These words were clearly aimed directly at Wei.

The entire table remained silent, everyone burying their heads in their food, terrified of catching the old lady’s ire.

Wu Tiezhu, the head of the first branch, shoveled rice into his mouth in silence, not daring to speak up for his wife. Their son wanted to say something, but Wei gave him a sharp kick under the table, forcing him to bottle it up, his face tight with tension.

The meal was stifling. The only sounds were Zhang Jinhua’s cheerful chatter as she ladled food for Li Qiaoqiao and Wu Ya, punctuated by Wei’s occasional, uncontrollable sobs.

When the meal finally ended, Wei stood up immediately to retreat to her room, but Zhang Jinhua barked, “Hold it! You think you can leave without clearing the table? Do you fancy yourself a young mistress now?”

Biting her lip, Wei turned back to silently gather the bowls and chopsticks.

Zhang Jinhua wasn’t finished. She followed her, scolding incessantly: “If it weren’t for Qiaoqiao being clever, Cuiyun’s life would have been ruined at your hands! What kind of family is the Zhangs? If Cuiyun really went in there, she’d lose a layer of skin even if she didn’t die! As her eldest sister-in-law, how could your heart be so black…”

The berating continued until Wei finished scrubbing the dishes and fled to her room like a fugitive.

Watching Wei’s dejected retreat, Li Qiaoqiao felt her heart sink.

Oh no. This grudge is set in stone now.

She had been so focused on saving Wu Cuiyun that she completely forgot: Wei is the biological mother of Wu Canghai, the original male lead of the book!

She had offended the future powerful official’s mother to the extreme.

…

Back in their room, Li Qiaoqiao couldn’t sit still, pacing back and forth.

Wu Ya leaned against the head of the kang bed, drawing lazily, “Scared now? You were pretty enthusiastic when you were reporting to her.”

Li Qiaoqiao glared at him. “How was I supposed to know Mother would punish her like this? Skipping a meal is one thing, but scolding her nonstop in front of the whole family?”

“In a peasant household, ‘face’ is more important than food,” Wu Ya said flatly. “You made her lose all dignity today. Her son is destined to be a high-ranking official; this grudge is definitely on the books.”

This hit Li Qiaoqiao right where it hurt.

She remembered clearly that in the original novel, Wu Canghai eventually became the Grand Secretary. The first people he dealt with were those who had once bullied the first branch of the family.

“What do I do then?” Li Qiaoqiao spun in circles. “Should I apologize to her?”

Wu Ya scoffed. “If you go now, she’ll just think you’re there to gloat.”

Li Qiaoqiao knew he was right, but she couldn’t just sit and wait for doom. She resolved to find a chance to ease the tension—at least show some goodwill so the future retribution wouldn’t be too horrific.

…

That night, Li Qiaoqiao tossed and turned. She rose before dawn, hoping to catch Wei alone in the quiet morning.

But the moment she opened her door, she heard Zhang Jinhua already screaming in the yard.

“You lazy wretch! The sun is hitting your backside and you’re still not up! Do you think the Wu family raises idle people?” Zhang Jinhua stood at the door of the first branch’s room, her voice booming across the courtyard.

Wei emerged looking haggard and slunk toward the kitchen to start the fire.

Li Qiaoqiao hurried over to help, but Zhang Jinhua grabbed her arm. “Qiaoqiao, don’t you move. Let her do it! She’s a grown woman; if she can’t work well, she shouldn’t have such a surplus of wicked ideas!”

Wei’s hand trembled, dropping a matchstick onto the ground.

Li Qiaoqiao stood there awkwardly, trapped. With Zhang Jinhua hovering like a hawk, she had zero chance to speak with Wei privately.

Breakfast was even more strained than dinner. Zhang Jinhua once again gave Wei an empty bowl—not even a drop of rice water was allowed.

Wu Qinglin couldn’t help but plead, “Grandmother, please let my mother eat. She knows she was wrong.”

Zhang Jinhua’s eyes widened. “Does she know she’s wrong? If not for Qiaoqiao, your aunt would be ruined. Missing a meal won’t kill her!”

Wu Tiezhu pulled his son’s sleeve, signaling him to stop.

Li Qiaoqiao felt like she was sitting on a bed of needles, her food tasting like ash. All day long, Zhang Jinhua watched Wei like a prisoner, her scolding never pausing for a breath.

“You can’t even sweep the floor right! Are you trying to anger me to death?” “The water vat is nearly empty and you haven’t fetched more? Who do you think is going to serve you?” “Look at how you wash those clothes—did you even scrub them? Who are you trying to fool!”

Wei said nothing, her head down as she worked, though tears fell continuously. Every time Li Qiaoqiao tried to intervene, Zhang Jinhua cut her off: “Qiaoqiao, stay out of it. Go rest. A lazy person like this needs to be watched to get anything done!”

By sunset, Li Qiaoqiao gave up. Zhang Jinhua had spent the entire day shouting, barely stopping for a drink of water, as if punishing Wei was her primary mission in life.

…

In the dead of night, Li Qiaoqiao stared at the dark ceiling and sighed.

“Stop thinking about it and sleep,” Wu Ya’s voice came from beside her. “The boat will straighten itself out when it reaches the bridge.”

Li Qiaoqiao turned toward him. “Do you think Wu Canghai will really retaliate against us later?”

In the darkness, Wu Ya was silent for a moment before saying, “In the book, he was the type to seek revenge for even the smallest slight. But the plot has changed now. Who knows?”

“How has it changed?”

“The fact that you and I crossed over from the modern world is the biggest variable,” Wu Ya said calmly. “There weren’t two transmigrators in the original book.”

Li Qiaoqiao paused. That was true. The original Li Qiaoqiao was timid, and the original Wu Tie Niu was a fool through and through. Now, she was brave enough to snatch someone from Squire Zhang’s clutches, and her “foolish” husband had become shrewd.

“So… the future has already been altered?” A flicker of hope rose in her.

“It could change for the better, or for the worse.” Wu Ya rolled over. “Sleep. There’s work tomorrow.”

But Li Qiaoqiao couldn’t sleep. She remembered the way the first branch looked at her today. Could she really get away with offending the protagonist and his mother?

The sun the next day was brutal, making the ground practically steam. In the Wu courtyard, the shouting was louder and more persistent than the cicadas in the trees.

Zhang Jinhua stood with her hands on her hips, her finger nearly poking Wei in the face: “You black-hearted, rotten-gutted thing! I knew it was you! How old is Cuiyun? What does she know? If you hadn’t been whispering in her ear, would she have run off to Squire Zhang’s house to be a maid?”

“Do you think those wealthy manors are easy to enter? Are you tired of her living? I think you just can’t stand to see the Wu family in peace! You won’t be satisfied until you’ve ruined this household!”

Wei shrank back, clutching a rag, tears brimming in her eyes as she whispered her defense: “Mother, I didn’t. I truly didn’t tell Cuiyun to go.”