Chapter 293: Beaten Up

Chapter 293: Beaten Up
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
The two were escalating their argument. Zhang Ping couldn’t stand it anymore. He walked over, grabbed Zhang Hu by the back of his neck, and dragged him out.
Shortly after, muffled sounds of punches hitting a body could be heard from outside. Zhou Lan then realized that even though her son-in-law usually treated her daughter gently and listened to Jiang Qing in everything, he actually had a violent temper. When he disciplined someone, he did not hold back at all.
The sounds frightened Liu You. She feared that she might be the next one to be hit. Moreover, the only person in the room who had spoken in her defense had been dragged out. She felt more unsteady.
Zhao Wan saw Liu You’s predicament and said, “Liu You, our family’s stance is clear. When you go back, tell your father not to waste any more effort.”
Liu You’s face turned pale, then flushed. Although she lacked social awareness, she still cared about face. Being rejected after literally throwing herself at the family made her resolve not to proceed with this marriage at all.
Stomping her foot, Liu You stormed out.
With the main character of this drama gone, everyone resumed their activities.
Zhou Lan headed to the kitchen to cook, assisted by Jiang Qing and Jiang Gu. With nothing to do, Jiang Xia planned to take a stroll.
Noticing this, Zhao Wan asked Third Brother Zhang to accompany Jiang Xia to prevent her from getting lost.
On their way up the mountain, Jiang Xia’s family had taken a route through a bamboo forest. Today, Third Brother Zhang led her on a more secluded path, bypassing the bamboo forest.
Third Brother Zhang was shy and didn’t know where to take Jiang Xia, so Jiang Xia suggested that they take another route.
All along, Third Brother Zhang remained quiet. Jiang Xia didn’t push for conversation either but took note of each path and its surroundings.
It was a habit of Jiang Xia’s to familiarize herself with a new environment first, ensuring its relative safety before settling down.
On the other hand, Jiang Chuan, upon arriving at a new place, would chat with locals to understand the area better, making sure he was well-informed in subsequent interactions.
Both their habits were cultivated from frequent travels and business dealings. On their trips, Zhou Lan only needed to prepare clothes and food; she didn’t have to worry about anything else. The father-daughter duo truly pampered Zhou Lan.
Jiang Xia noticed that although this path was remote, the traces of people having walked it were clear. It was obviously not an untrodden path. After walking for about a few hundred meters, she saw a chimney in the distance, smoking. She realized that there must be a house in the distance, which was why people were using this path.
Following slowly behind Third Brother Zhang, even though the house was still quite distant, she could now clearly see its entire structure.
She was surprised to find that the design of the house was very unusual. The house had three floors. The demarcation between floors was clear, indicating that the first floor was built first, and after several years, the next two floors were added. That’s why there were differences in how the walls were eroded by the wind.
Moreover, Jiang Xia noticed that each of the three floors of the house was much taller than regular houses.
Whether in rural areas or in the modern era, personal residences typically have each floor measuring around three meters in height. However, this house appeared to have each floor more than four meters tall.
As a result, the house looked like a deformed rectangle, quite strange.
There seemed to be something installed on the top floor of the house, but it was too far for Jiang Xia to see clearly.
The house was located halfway up a hill, but after having three stories, its line of sight could even reach the top of the mountain, capturing a view even from places much higher than Zhang’s house.
Pointing to the house, Jiang Xia curiously asked, “Whose house is that?”
Third Brother Zhang took a glance and said, “Oh, that’s Liu You’s house.”
He then looked up at the sky. The sun was hidden behind clouds, making the sky look gloomy as if rain was imminent.
Having grown up in the mountains, Third Brother Zhang had always been accurate in predicting the weather, even more so than his two elder brothers.
He said to Jiang Xia, “This path is straight; it leads directly to Liu’s house. There’s not much to see. It looks like it’s going to rain soon. We should head back.”
Jiang Xia took one last glance at the strange house, then obediently followed Third Brother Zhang on their way home..