Chapter 117: Repaying Kindness with Enmity

She had only eaten a few pastries, and those had been digested long ago. In the urgency of the moment, she hadn't felt anything, but once Xiao Tao and her baby were safe, her tension dissipated, and hunger struck immediately. Now, Bai Xi just wanted to fill her stomach; as for being angry, she didn't have the energy to waste on that.

Hearing this, Chen Rui hurriedly pulled some candies from her pocket. "Great-Aunt, please have some." She hadn't been able to bring herself to eat these, as they were a gift from her.

Bai Xi glanced at the candy in Chen Rui’s hand—two fruit drops and two milk candies—and shook her head in refusal. "I want to eat meat." She was so hungry she felt like she could eat two whole chickens.

Truth be told, Bai Xi could somewhat understand Chen Tianming. After all, it wasn't surprising for someone to act that way when someone they cared about was in danger. However, understanding was one thing, but being coerced by moral blackmail was another. That was right—Bai Xi was just that double-standard. She could be cruel to others, but she absolutely would not tolerate others being cruel to her. As a Nine-Tailed Immortal Fox, Bai Xi had always lived by her own whims. It was fortunate that she was in the mortal realm and had already categorized the people of Niuluo Village as her own subjects; otherwise, given Chen Tianming's actions today, the old Bai Xi would have ensured he met a very unpleasant end.

Chen Rui understood Bai Xi well enough to know that once she said she didn't want something, she truly didn't want it. No one had expected this turn of events, and it was likely that no one had even started cooking yet.

"Great-Aunt, then I’ll go cook for you."

Bai Xi looked at Chen Rui—the girl who was a head taller than her—with a hint of skepticism. Could she actually cook something edible?

"Great-Aunt!"

Hearing Chen Rui’s insistent, pouting protest, Bai Xi realized she had spoken her thoughts aloud. "Fine, then I’ll eat what you cook today."

"Hurry, hurry..." I'm starving!

Although Xiao Hei had lagged behind, its four legs soon caught up. *Master, Master, I gave that brat a piece of my mind just now.*

Bai Xi cast a faint glance at Xiao Hei’s excitement and looked toward the direction of the treehouse, feeling for the first time that home was a bit too far away. Seeing her master so listless, Xiao Hei grew indignant again. It should have bitten that brat earlier; even if it didn't aim for his neck, a bite on his backside would have been satisfying enough.

Chen Rui didn't get to show off her full culinary skills, as Bai Xi couldn't wait. She boiled the dumplings that Chen Zhaodi had wrapped earlier and drizzled them with sesame oil. Bai Xi and Chen Rui each had a bowl, eating with great satisfaction. Bai Xi chased Xiao Hei into the mountains to fend for itself; she certainly wasn't going to prepare food for it.

Over at Old Mrs. Chen’s, despite the joy of a new grandson, the household couldn't muster any cheer. Knowing her eldest grandson had spoken disrespectfully to their Great-Aunt, Old Mrs. Chen couldn't be happy. It would be a lie to say she didn't feel heartache seeing Chen Tianming whipped, but knowing what a grave mistake he had made, she was filled with both anger and frustration. For two days, she had applied medicine to his wounds with a cold face or constant, heavy sighs.

Xiao Tao also felt secretly distressed. She had always doted on her nephew and understood that he had acted out of concern for her, but offending the Great-Aunt was no small matter. Furthermore, the lives of both her and her baby had been saved by the Great-Aunt.

Previously, the town hospital had said her condition was critical; to safely deliver the baby, she would need to go to the city hospital for a C-section. Putting aside whether she would survive the surgery, the family couldn't afford the costs. Moreover, without city residency, a work permit, or an introduction letter, the hospital wouldn't even treat her. It was a major surgery, and city doctors wouldn't perform it lightly; it required an introduction letter from the township commune.

She and her mother-in-law had gone to the commune several times, but they refused to issue the letter, claiming they couldn't burden the city. Yet, Xiao Tao had clearly seen the official whispering with Li Jia’s foster brother. She had wanted to confront them, but she encountered a funeral procession. Upon asking, she learned the deceased had fallen ill and struggled to get to the city, only to die on the operating table. If a simple stomachache could kill someone during surgery, how could her situation, with a baby involved, possibly end well?

After discussing it, the daughter-in-law and mother-in-law decided that since they couldn't get a letter, they would settle for pain relievers from a town doctor. But even the town doctor wouldn't prescribe them without proper cause. Left with no choice, they sought out an unlicensed herbalist in the countryside.

During the examination, the town doctor had been blunt about the risks. Xiao Tao knew her pregnancy was so difficult that even her own life was hanging by a thread, let alone the baby's. As expected, complications arose during labor. She had no experience, but she knew that babies weren't supposed to come out feet first. She was desperate to save the child, knowing the odds were slim, and had pleaded with everyone not to worry about her, to just cut her open and take the baby out. But neither her mother-in-law nor the midwife dared to do it—that would be no different from murder.

Just as Xiao Tao fell into despair, the Great-Aunt arrived. Xiao Tao was delirious and couldn't remember much of the birth, but Old Mrs. Chen remembered the terror vividly; the baby had been born with the umbilical cord wrapped three times around his neck. If the Great-Aunt hadn't devised a plan and instructed the midwife on how to rotate the baby, the child would have surely suffocated.

Old Mrs. Chen finished applying the medicine to Chen Tianming. Watching her eldest grandson, who remained silent, she sighed softly and said, "Go to sleep. Once your wounds heal and you can walk, go and beg for the Great-Aunt's forgiveness."

"If the Great-Aunt doesn't forgive you, then..." Old Mrs. Chen paused before continuing, "then you must leave, and go learn a trade."

Setting aside this incident, even years ago, when her husband encountered wolves in the mountains, it was the Ancestor Bai who saved him. Even her youngest son’s name had been given by the Ancestor, and it was her suggestion that led to him joining the army. If not for the Ancestor, her eldest grandson wouldn't have survived his childhood either.

Now that the Ancestor Bai was gone, to have her grandson shout at the Great-Aunt like that—how heartbroken would the Ancestor be if she knew? This was simply returning kindness with cruelty. It was no wonder the villagers had been giving them the cold shoulder these past few days. Who would want to associate with those who treated the descendants of their family’s savior this way? Though the neighbors helped out a little out of long-standing ties, especially since Chen Tianming was still young and the Great-Aunt hadn't pursued the matter, they were ultimately alienated.