Chapter 36: Breaking Free
“Lao’er, Laosan, Laosi, where the hell did you die?” Yu Shi screamed at the top of her lungs. “Hurry up and get over here to cripple this stinking girl.”
As Yu Shi’s loud shout spread out, chaotic and heavy footsteps came from outside the courtyard gate.
Bang! Several tall and sturdy men burst into the courtyard.
Three men who looked extremely similar to Feng Laoda charged over with murderous intent.
“Daughter, run!” Zhang Zhaodi hurriedly stood up, but her legs gave way, and she fell to the ground. “Daughter, don’t worry about Mom, run first.”
The reason the Feng Family became the richest household in the village was because they had many men. Every man in the Feng Family was strong; one son could match several sons from other families. No one in the surrounding villages dared to offend the Feng Family, which made this family increasingly arrogant. This time Zhang Shi came to the Feng Family for midwifery. First, the Feng Family promised three times the usual childbirth fee; second, they were polite when inviting her and said a bunch of nice words, making her feel lucky.
Feng Lao’er rushed over to grab Zhou Wangshu.
Feng Laosan and Feng Laosi sinisterly approached Su Yaoguang, reaching out their thick, brutish arms toward her.
Su Yaoguang threw down Yu Shi. Before Feng Laosan and Feng Laosi could make their move, she struck first with a shoulder throw on Feng Laosan. While Feng Laosi was cursing, she kicked his knee, and taking advantage of his unsteady footing, stomped on his wrist.
“Ahhh…” Feng Laosi screamed in agony.
Feng Laosan had just gotten back up. Seeing Feng Laosi’s fate, his gaze toward Su Yaoguang turned to awe.
How could such a scrawny little girl have such great strength? Could they have kicked an iron plate this time? Was this little girl a practitioner of martial arts?
Feng Lao’er was just about to act against Zhou Wangshu when he saw Laosan and Laosi suffer big losses, and suddenly he didn’t dare to make a move.
If a little girl was this formidable, wouldn’t this boy be even more so?
Zhou Wangshu was weighing the stone in his hand.
This was the very stone that had just smashed Feng Laoda’s arm.
“Wangshu, come here…” Su Yaoguang said.
Zhou Wangshu trotted over and stood behind Su Yaoguang, saying obediently, “Yaoguang, look how awesome I am. He’s scared now.”
Su Yaoguang: “…”
He was charging around like an idiot. The men of the Feng Family were all big and burly, but their brains were full of mush. They weren’t scared; they just couldn’t figure out Zhou Wangshu’s true strength and feared he was the type who hid his abilities—a tough nut to crack.
Fools have fool’s luck—that’s him!
But that’s fine; at least he wasn’t injured.
Su Yaoguang stood in front of Zhou Wangshu and Zhang Zhaodi, looking coldly at Yu Shi and the four Feng brothers. “Now we can talk about the compensation issue.”
Feng Laoda said unwillingly, “Fine, I admit it. What do you want?”
“Are you still saying your daughter was killed by my mom?” Su Yaoguang looked faintly at Feng Laoda.
Feng Laoda was silent for a moment, then said in a gruff voice, “She just had bad luck. She died not long after birth.”
From their expressions, Su Yaoguang knew she had guessed right. That little infant girl was probably killed by Yu Shi and Feng Laoda. They despised baby girls and had no intention of letting her live once they saw it was a girl. Her mom had just been unlucky to encounter such a rotten matter. This kind of thing was very common in the countryside. Even if reported to the authorities, the government office wouldn’t handle it. After all, they could manage the heavens and the earth, but not others’ family matters. Her goal today was to take her mom away; she wouldn’t meddle in others’ affairs.
“Good that you admit it. You imprisoned my mom and made her suffer greatly. Isn’t fifteen taels of silver reasonable compensation?”
“Your mom was just hungry for two days. We didn’t beat her or torture her, and you want fifteen taels of silver from us?” Yu Shi screeched. “Why don’t you go rob someone?”
“Good idea. Aren’t I doing just that?” Su Yaoguang said.
Feng Laoda glared at her venomously. “Wasn’t it ten taels just now?”
“I’m tired from fighting. I’ll need tea later; these five taels are for my tea money.” Su Yaoguang said, “Plus, our Wangshu has a weak constitution. Being frightened by you like this, he’ll probably need several more doses of medicine. My mom suffered your bullying and probably won’t dare to be a midwife anymore. Adding it all up…”
“Here.” Feng Laoda lifted his smashed wrist, his expression pained. “Mom, give it to her.”
Yu Shi had never suffered such a loss before.
No one had ever dared to offend their family before. Even those who resisted were beaten by her sons until they dared not resist.
These past years had been too smooth, so they had never imagined they would fall into the hands of a little girl.
Yu Shi didn’t want to give it, but with her sons all injured, she had to. If not, this plague wouldn’t leave.
Yu Shi went inside and came out with fifteen taels of broken silver handed over.
Su Yaoguang squatted down, hoisted Zhang Zhaodi onto her back, and walked out.
At the doorway, she turned back to look.
The several big men of the Feng Family watched her warily. “What else do you want?”
“If I hear outside that someone is slandering my mom, I’ll consider it you who did it. You had better not cause trouble for yourselves, or my fists might come looking for you to scratch an itch anytime.”
Zhou Wangshu untied the ox cart’s ropes and sat in the front driver’s seat.
“Do you know how to drive an ox cart?”
“Probably. I’ll try. You take care of Auntie Zhang.” An ox cart and horse-drawn carriage should be similar. He knew how to drive a horse-drawn carriage, so an ox cart should be the same.
Su Yaoguang and Zhang Zhaodi sat closely together on the hay.
Zhou Wangshu was not smooth at first driving the ox cart; the ox pulling the cart wouldn’t listen and after a good while, they still hadn’t left the village.
Su Yaoguang originally wanted to take over, but seeing him circling in the village, she simply used the opportunity to chat idly with the villagers.
“Auntie, Auntie, are you on good terms with the Feng Family over there? Do you know them well?”
The aunt who had been picking vegetables in the vegetable patch smelled the scent of gossip and came over curiously. “What’s up? Why are you asking about their family?”
“My mom is a midwife. That Madam Feng in their family went into labor. First the fetus was malpositioned; my mom worked hard to correct the position and deliver the child. Then the mother had a massive hemorrhage. My mom is the best midwife for ten li around; even so, she saved her. The child cried loudly right after birth, not affected at all. Normally one should breathe a sigh of relief then, but after my mom slept a bit, she heard their family say the child had died anyway.”
“Auntie, if you’re close to them, comfort their family and tell them to think it through. That child had shallow blessings and was not fated for their family. Anyway, they’re still young and will have more children later.”
The aunt’s expression was strange. She muttered, “I think that child didn’t have shallow blessings but deep fortune, that’s why it wasn’t born into their family. But it survived so many dangers, showing the child has immense blessings. How could it just die like that? That family has done all sorts of evil; they must have done something.”
“Auntie, what are you saying?”
“Nothing. I just want to ask if the child was a boy or a girl?”
“It was a cute little girl.”
“No wonder.” The aunt slapped her thigh and grumbled, “Those heartless bastards, it must have been deliberate. Such a pity for a newborn child…”
