Transmigrated as the Villain Boss's Precious Darling-Chapter 38: Jianghu Rules

As expected, the hint of warmth on Raina’s face vanished, her expression darkening once more. They had enough meat to last a year, yet for the New Year, they had only sent over a single cut. Her eldest son had married a wife and forgotten his own mother. ’What kind of blessing is that?’

The two bowls of vegetables had slightly eased the tension between the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, but a single, casual remark from Iris shattered the fragile peace. Phoebe hadn’t caught on yet. While she was a fierce fighter and a formidable curser, she wasn’t one for cunning. When it came to underhanded schemes, she had never once bested Iris.

"BOO HOO... Auntie Iris’s dog came to our house and stole our meat! And it tried to bite me!"

Tang Xiaonan worked herself up, then ran over with a look of terror. She wasn’t even lying. When she had gotten home just moments before, her neighbor’s dog had been acting very aggressively, prowling around their yard with ill intentions. Its greedy green eyes were fixed on the rows of meat hanging up to dry. When she tried to shoo the vicious dog away, it nearly bit her, and she’d taken a tumble.

"Where did it bite you?"

Phoebe anxiously pulled Tang Xiaonan into her arms, checking her all over. Raina came over as well.

"It didn’t bite me, but I fell and it hurts."

Tang Xiaonan held out her dirt-covered hands. Her clothes were filthy, too.

Phoebe and Raina both breathed a sigh of relief. As long as she wasn’t bitten, that was all that mattered. Phoebe gave her a few heavy pats, and Tang Xiaonan felt like her bones were about to break from the force. ’That strength... She could really hold her own against any man!’

"Like owner, like dog! The owner’s got sticky fingers, and so does the pet. I was wondering why we were missing some meat. So it was your family who stole it!"

Phoebe stormed toward Iris, cursing up a storm and rolling up her sleeves to get to work. She had counted the cuts of meat that very morning and had indeed come up two short. At the time, she’d thought she’d just miscounted. ’So that damn bitch stole them after all!’

"Bullshit! Did you see me steal it with your own eyes? I’m not afraid of you!" Iris’s voice lacked conviction, and she had a guilty look on her face. Everyone watching understood immediately: she had definitely stolen it. The woman had always had sticky fingers.

"I’ll kill you, you son of a bitch! How dare you steal our meat..."

Phoebe didn’t waste any more words. She grabbed a handful of Iris’s hair, slammed her down onto the riverbank, and started wailing on her. The other villagers just grinned and watched the show. No one even made a move to break up the fight.

Tang Xiaonan jumped in fright. ’Good heavens,’ she thought, ’I was only trying to distract Mom and Grandma! I never thought Mom would be this explosive! What am I going to do?’

’This won’t turn deadly, will it?’

"Grandma..."

Tang Xiaonan tugged on Raina’s clothes, hoping she would step in and stop the fight.

"Don’t worry. Your mom won’t lose."

Raina’s expression was perfectly calm. Tang Xiaonan didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Of course she knew Phoebe wouldn’t lose; she was worried something would happen to Iris.

But seeing that none of the other onlookers seemed the least bit concerned—they were just chatting among themselves—and that Raina had also gone back to her laundry, Tang Xiaonan calmed down too. ’Maybe this is just how things are done in the village,’ she thought.

"Phoebe Huxley, you old bitch! Just you wait!"

About ten minutes later, a disheveled Iris fled in a panic, clutching a wooden basin full of clothes. After a few steps, she ran back to put on a shoe she’d lost, then took off at a sprint, occasionally looking back over her shoulder to shout a few curses.

"You son of a bitch! I’ll kill you right now! Don’t you run!"

Phoebe stood with her hands on her hips, looking more triumphant than a general returning from victory. She only shouted, though, and didn’t give chase. This only made Iris run faster, and she vanished in the blink of an eye.

Tang Xiaonan felt relieved. ’If she can still run that fast, she must be fine,’ she thought.

Phoebe dusted off her hands and went back to her laundry. As she passed Raina, the old woman muttered gruffly, "We should get a dog."

’The eldest son’s family has so much meat; they need a dog to guard the house. Otherwise, with a daughter-in-law as dumb as a post, how could they possibly protect it all?’