Chapter 15: Li Su, Where Is Your Scheme?

On the Li family’s side, the family had just finished their meal when Li Zhengping spoke up hesitantly, but with a resolute voice, “Father, Mother, I want to divorce.”

Her words struck like a thunderbolt, leaving everyone stunned.

“What… Third Daughter, why do you want a divorce? Married life is bound to have its bumps, and if you go through with this, your younger brother will still have to take the imperial exams and find a wife—this could ruin his reputation…” Feng Cui-cui said earnestly. It wasn’t that she didn’t feel for her daughter, but her heart ached even more for her youngest son, and she didn’t believe things had reached the point of divorce.

It was normal for young couples to have disagreements—how could one talk about divorce at the first sign of trouble?

Divorce might sound simple, but what would life be like after that?

Li Su did not see it this way. For a woman in this era to even consider divorce, the man must have done something truly unacceptable. If life was bearable, why would she want to leave?

The courage Li Zhengping had mustered quickly vanished. Even her own parents didn’t support her. If she divorced and raised her child alone, could she really provide for them both?

And without her family’s support, pursuing a divorce would be nearly impossible.

Li Zhengping hung her head, looking lost and defeated. Wang Zhaodi tugged at her hand. Though a timid little girl, she lifted her chin and said to Feng Cui-cui, “Grandmother, if you agree to let Mother divorce, I’ll do anything you ask, I beg you…”

Feng Cui-cui met Wang Zhaodi’s gaze but couldn’t bring herself to speak.

Turning to Jiang Yu, she said, “Eldest daughter-in-law, second daughter-in-law, please take the children outside to play.”

Jiang Yu and Dong Fangfang led the four children out, Wang Zhaodi glancing back with every step.

Li Su fixed Li Zhengping with a serious look. “Third Sister, why do you want a divorce?”

Li Zhengyi also looked at his sister. “If he’s really done something so terrible, we’ll make sure you get justice.”

Li Zhengping met Li Su’s eyes. Her youngest brother was always the clever one, but if her divorce would jeopardize his future…

She hesitated, even after finally making up her mind.

“That’s right, Third Sister, tell us what happened. Let me handle the rest,” Li Su said. He was fiercely protective of his family—he would never let one of them be bullied.

Deeply moved by his words, Li Zhengping recounted what had happened. “I tolerated how poorly he treated me and the child, but after he hit me that day, I saw him sneak out at midnight. I followed him and saw him tangled up with a widow from the village. They…”

She couldn’t finish, but the Li family understood. Li Zhengyi and Li Zhengqiang clenched their fists, their faces dark with anger.

Feng Cui-cui began to curse through gritted teeth, while Li Zhengping continued, “I wanted to rush over and catch them in the act, but then Wang Dafa said the widow’s child was his. Because I haven’t given the Wang family a son, he wants to cast me off, marry her, and sell Zhaodi. I…”

“At dawn, I took the child and came home.” She truly feared Wang Dafa would sell the child.

Even if she didn’t ask for a divorce, Wang Dafa wanted to get rid of her.

Feng Cui-cui embraced her daughter. “Why didn’t you tell us sooner? Why didn’t you say anything, my poor girl…” Overcome by the revelation, she burst into tears, clutching her daughter tightly.

Li Zhengping broke down, sobbing uncontrollably, while the Li men ground their teeth in fury. If looks could kill, Wang Dafa would be torn to pieces.

Li Su sneered, “Divorce? That’s letting him off easy.” After treating his sister so wretchedly, Wang Dafa thought he could simply divorce her and marry the widow, living happily with his illegitimate child? Dream on.

“Fourth Brother, you’re the cleverest. What should we do?” Li Zhengyi turned to his youngest brother.

“Bring some men and beat Wang Dafa half to death!” Li Zhengqiang declared, swinging his fist.

Li Daping smacked Li Zhengqiang’s head. “Brute!”

Clutching his head, Li Zhengqiang looked to his father. “See, even Fourth Brother says it’s a good idea.”

“…”

“Bring more people and make a scene. After all, our sister did nothing wrong. He’s the one who had an affair and fathered a bastard. But we should prepare so they can’t deny it. I’ll draft the divorce papers in advance and have him sign on the spot.” With a man like Wang Dafa, no fancy schemes were needed. Direct force would do the trick.

A good beating would make sure he didn’t dare cause trouble.

As for whether his sister’s divorce would affect his own prospects in the exams? The current emperor valued talent and ability. Even if it did affect him, he would still go through with it.

Li Zhengping’s lips trembled. She wanted to speak, but emotion choked her. After a long moment, she could only manage, “Thank you…”

Thank you for helping me. Thank you, little brother, for risking your own future to save me.

“Father, Mother, gather our uncles and cousins. I’ll be off duty in two days, and then I’ll take everyone to the Wang family. The more people, the better. Leave the rest to me.” Li Su assigned the task of rallying support to the family.

Li Daping and Feng Cui-cui agreed without hesitation.

After this, Li Su excused himself from the conversation. “I’ll go study.”

“All right, Fourth Brother, go on and study,” they replied.

Li Su lit a candle and pored over “The Great Learning,” determined to memorize all the required texts for the upcoming exam within a month. He studied late into the night.

Before bed, Li Su did a set of eye exercises. He had to protect his eyesight—there were no glasses in this era, and becoming nearsighted would be a tragedy.

Already lying down, he suddenly sat up, rummaging through the room for the abacus that had belonged to his predecessor, but it was nowhere to be found.

No matter. He could do calculations without it, though he worried the teacher might think he wasn’t taking lessons seriously.

…

When Li Su arrived at the private school, he found every classmate with an abacus in hand—a comical sight.

When Lin Ze saw Li Su, he waved him over. “Su!” Then, noticing his empty hands, he asked in confusion, “Where’s your abacus? Did you forget it?”

“I didn’t forget, I just couldn’t find it. I can do the math without one.” Li Su sat down and pulled out a book.

His three best friends exchanged glances. No abacus? Could Su really manage? They remembered that even with an abacus, he’d struggled with sums before.

Among the students, Su’s arithmetic was among the weakest. Last time, when he collected debts, he’d asked someone else to double-check his numbers, and everyone assumed it was because he couldn’t get them right on his own.

Lin Ze offered his own abacus. “Why don’t you use mine? The teacher can be pretty harsh.”

“No need, you keep it.” Li Su continued reading.

Lin Ze was about to say more when the teacher entered.

Ren Shuhua and Qin Ming glanced at Li Su with sympathy—it seemed his time recuperating at home had made him forget how harsh the teacher could be.

The teacher scanned the room, his gaze finally settling on Li Su. With a stern face, he demanded, “Li Su, where is your abacus?”