Fu Mu was utterly distraught. How could their good fortune be discovered? Her younger son was still at the police station, what could she do? They needed money to pay compensation, where would they get it?
Fu Longfei, unaware of his mother's current woes, fell silent for a moment. He asked his mother for money, intending to resolve the matter with Long Teng first.
As both parties reached a settlement, Fu Longteng was released from the police station. He looked much gaunt and weary. He had never endured such suffering before, though he was better off than others. He assumed it was his elder brother who had pulled strings for him outside.
The two brothers had just stepped out of the police station and turned a corner when they were ambushed with sacks! Fu Longteng couldn't even resist, so he curled up to protect his head, trying to avoid more serious injuries. He only stopped when he heard his brother cry out in pain, and the attackers suddenly vanished.
He quickly struggled out of the sack and saw his brother, still with another sack over his head, groaning while clutching his leg.
"Brother, are you alright? I'll take you to the hospital!!" Fu Longteng immediately hoisted Fu Longfei onto his back and rushed to the hospital. Upon arriving at the hospital, lacking money, he asked a nurse to look after his brother while he hurried back to fetch funds.
Fu Mu was at home, beside herself with worry. By her calculation, her sons should have returned by now, so why hadn't she seen them? Just as Fu Mu was about to go out to look for them, she instructed Ye Qingqing, who was at home, to start cooking and she would search. Before she could even leave, Fu Longteng, his face bruised and battered, appeared in the courtyard.
"Mom, quickly get me some money, Brother is injured and needs care at the hospital!"
"What?" Although Fu Mu didn't know what had happened, she was extremely anxious upon hearing her elder son was injured. After taking the money, she rushed to the hospital with Fu Longteng. Ye Qingqing also heard about Fu Longfei's injury, but she showed no unusual haste, merely continuing with her tasks.
"Mom, I'm hungry!"
"Alright, dinner will be ready soon!"
"Don't we wait for Grandma?"
"No, Grandma probably won't have time to come back for dinner. You eat first!"
Ye Qingqing ate with her child and, after coaxing the child to sleep, tidied her belongings. She counted her savings from the past few years, then packed the items into a cabinet. She glanced at her sleeping child, lost in thought for a moment, and then left.
By the time Fu Mu and Fu Longteng returned with the injured Fu Longfei, Ye Qingqing had prepared the meal. Fu Longfei had a broken leg and needed a good rest. In the afternoon, Fu Longteng also went to the police station to report the incident. Since they didn't know who the attackers were, the police couldn't guarantee they would catch them.
"Qingqing, Longfei needs to rest his leg well these days. Go buy some bones tomorrow and stew them for Longfei."
"But Auntie, we don't have enough living expenses~"
"Then you'll have to cover it for now. Didn't you have some savings before? It's not yet time for Longfei's salary, and I've spent quite a bit these past couple of days, so I don't have money right now."
Ye Qingqing remained silent and returned to her room. Fu Mu, her back to Ye Qingqing, didn't notice the frown on Ye Qingqing's face nor did she notice that Ye Qingqing hadn't agreed to the request at all. She was inwardly complaining about Ji Mingyi's heartlessness. She planned to search Fu Longfei's room later to see if she had left anything valuable.
Although the Fu family still had some savings, Fu Mu's heart ached. The living expenses previously were mostly covered by Ji Mingyi, and she hadn't minded. Now, she was spending her "coffin money," and her heart was bleeding. She absolutely had to see if there was anything valuable to sell, otherwise, she was losing out big time.
Their retribution was far from over. With Fu Longfei injured, he couldn't go to work. While he could have taken leave, he had offended people! Not only had Han Dong put in a word, but even some people in his own unit disliked him. Seizing this opportunity, they fired him directly.
By the time Fu Longfei recovered and returned, his position was gone. He was either offered a regular staff role or asked to resign. Fu Longfei was angry, but he lacked the confidence to confront his superiors. In his heart, he suspected these incidents were likely revenge from the Ji family.
While Fu Longfei didn't dare to confront his superiors, others wouldn't let him off. Within a few days, Fu Longfei became quite haggard, completely lacking his former spirited demeanor. His temper worsened, and he often took his frustrations out on Ye Qingqing. Fu Mu was even worse. Finding nothing valuable in their room, only some clothes, she sold them for little money, which greatly displeased her. Seeing Fu Longfei hit Ye Qingqing, she not only offered no help but even urged him to hit harder.
The only one with a semblance of humanity was Fu Longteng. He would try to mediate when he saw it, but Fu Longfei's temper was so bad lately that even his younger brother didn't receive a pleasant reception, though he refrained from violence.