Sickly Peasant Girl: General, I’m In Charge! - Chapter 24

Chapter 24: It Doesn’t Hurt Anymore

Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation

Mrs. Li, holding her cloth shoe, pointed at Mrs. Qian. Her face was filled with rage as she exclaimed, “One tooth is not enough, I should rip out all your teeth!”

Her daughter had always been frail. She was raised like a delicate flower, feared it might dissolve in her mouth or shatter in her hands. It took an enormous effort to nurture her to her current state of slightly improved health. Yet Mrs. Qian dared to hit her?!

Erzhu was already hurt, and he was beaten to the point of bleeding again. This was a matter of life and death!

Mrs. Qian burst into tears. With the exertion, her front tooth popped out, rolling a few times on the ground, gathering dust before finally coming to a halt.

Her face, her mouth, her body, everything hurt profoundly.

She pointed at Mrs. Li’s nose and sobbed, “You wait, I’ll have Darong deal with your husband and children!”

Everyone gasped. Chen Darong was known around the town, a notorious figure with a gang of troublemakers at his disposal. If they really aimed at Chen Baolai’s family, Chen Baolai’s sons might suffer greatly.

Mrs. Li was shaking with fury. She wished she could bring Mrs. Qian down with her.

She had assaulted her daughter and grandson, and now she threatened to attack her husband and sons in the future?!

Chen Xiaosang placed her hands on her waist and said in a childlike voice, “Then we will report to the officials, and have your son thrown into jail!”

Even the threat was laid bare. Hmph, she wouldn’t be cowed.

Upon hearing about imprisonment, Mrs. Qian panicked and cried out, “We’ve never involved the county magistrate in our fights!”

With her mother and so many people around, Chen Xiaosang was not afraid of Mrs. Qian. With wide eyes, she countered, “The county magistrate is there to ensure justice. If you bully my father, I will report it!”

The village chief chuckled. A little girl knew about the county magistrate.

“Alright, let’s handle our village matters ourselves. Why involve the county magistrate?”

Chen Xiaosang looked at the village chief, pouting, “But Mrs. Qian threatened to sic gangsters on my father and brother. If we don’t seek the county magistrate, who will protect us?”

“Your father and brother are members of Chen Family Bay. It’s unreasonable for outsiders to bully them.”

Chen Xiaosang’s eyes sparkled, and she excitedly said, “If I don’t seek the county magistrate, then I’ll seek help from Uncle Village Chief. If my father and brother are bullied outside, Uncle Village Chief, you need to lead the villagers to help my father and brother.”

“And Mrs. Qian, she beat up Dazhu and Erzhu, and even came to my house to hit me. Dazhu and Erzhu are so pitiful. They’re dizzy, nauseous, and feel like vomiting. Oh, I’m also pitiful. I have a headache. The doctor said a headache can be fatal. If I die, how heartbroken my parents, brothers, and sisters-in-law will be.

Without anyone to protect my three nephews, what happens if they get bullied?

Uncle Village Chief, you have to protect our family.”

The village chief was left in a daze. Wasn’t the agreement to keep the outsiders from causing trouble for the Bao and the five sons? How did it turn into a promise to protect her entire family?

Before he could comprehend, the little girl had already wrapped her arms around her mother’s leg, saying sweetly, “Don’t fret, Mom. Uncle, the Village Chief, promised to safeguard our entire family.”

The Village Chief’s eyes bulged. When had he made such a promise?

Nevertheless, Mrs. Li sighed in relief. Lifting Chen Xiaosang into her arms, she expressed her gratitude, “Village Chief, we truly appreciate your help.”

Left with no option, the Village Chief braced himself and replied, “It’s my responsibility.”

Chen Xiaosang, beaming with joy, gave a thumbs-up to the Village Chief, her praise sincere, “Uncle, the Village Chief, is truly a great man!”

Her heartfelt praise seemed to lift the Village Chief’s spirits. He turned to Mrs. Qian, whose face had been beaten to a pulp, and stated, “Our village won’t tolerate being bullied by outsiders. If your son Darong assaults Baolai and his son, you shouldn’t stick around in this village.”

Mrs. Qian was livid, her anger almost bursting through her veins. She spat out blood while furiously accusing, “Has Chen Baolai bribed you to shield his family like this?”

“One can’t accept bribes in front of everyone, can they?” retorted a voice.

“Do you really think it’s justified to hire outsiders to assault our people of Chen Family Bay? Don’t assume that your son Darong becomes invincible just because he’s got a few thugs at his disposal. Remember, our village has 800 able men!”

“Absolutely! What a hooligan! Instead of doing decent work, he only brings disgrace to our village!”

“If Chen Darong even dares to harm a hair of anyone from Chen Family Bay, we will retaliate fiercely!”

The room resonated with men’s voices, hurling accusations at Mrs. Qian.

These thugs are nothing but idle troublemakers, wandering aimlessly, bullying whomever they come across.

Having Chen Darong in Chen Family Bay was embarrassing enough, and now Mrs. Qian dared to get outsiders to attack their villagers? Did they consider Chen Family Bay to be a soft target?

Seeing everyone berating Mrs. Qian, Mrs. Li’s fury subsided. She gently stroked Chen Xiaosang’s head, asking her with concern, “Does your head still hurt?”

Chen Xiaosang’s eyes gleamed as she stared at the chastised Mrs. Qian, shaking her head repeatedly, “No, it doesn’t anymore.”

Apart from their regular work, the village men had to guard the village, often clashing with neighboring villages over water and land resources. These confrontations were a part of their lives since childhood. Normally, they were manageable, but when genuinely provoked, their collective wrath was incomparable to any woman’s.

Mrs. Qian was scared witless, shrinking into a ball, sobbing and whimpering, “What… what are you saying…sob, sob, sob… I need to see Qingshan…wuwuwu…”

Chen Qingshan, who had been summoned by Chen Wushu, arrived just in time to hear her crying. His face turned even more stern, “What nuisance are you creating now?!”

Mrs. Qian, still sobbing, managed to get up. She pushed through the crowd to reach Chen Qingshan. Crying out to him, she lamented, “Finally, you’re here. I’ve been bullied by them. Look at what Mrs. Li has done to me. Sob, sob, sob, they are behaving like monsters!”

Chen Qingshan was startled by the sight of the pig’s head before him. He tried to step back, but his arm was firmly seized by Mrs. Qian.

Old Chen trailed behind him into the house and addressed Chen Qingshan, “Now that you’re here, brother, let’s talk this out.”

At the sound of Old Chen’s voice, Chen Qingshan’s face darkened as if scorched. “You’ve beaten my wife to this state…”

Yet Old Chen showed no fear. “Your wife stole meat and rice from my home, assaulted my daughter and daughter-in-law, and even sought Darong’s assistance to attack me and my five sons. If you believe you’ve been wronged, we can take this to a village meeting.”

In disbelief, Chen Qingshan glanced at Mrs. Qian, asking, “Is this true?”

Mrs. Qian, taken aback, wanted to deny the accusations, but with the room filled with witnesses, she could only stubbornly insist, “I came to collect our money.”

Chen Qingshan clenched his teeth, struggling to contain his urge to strike her. He turned to Old Chen and asked, “What’s your proposed solution?”

Ignoring Chen Qingshan’s question, Old Chen turned to Chen Wushu behind him and instructed, “Take your sister away to rest.”

Just as Chen Xiaosang was getting engrossed in the unfolding drama, her fifth brother swept her up and carried her out of the room.

“But I haven’t finished listening!” Chen Xiaosang protested.

She was captivated by the confrontation and was reluctant to leave.

Chen Wushu pressed her head into his chest and muttered, “Children shouldn’t interfere in adult affairs.”

Amid their sibling struggle, Mrs. Qian’s cries echoed from the room, “My money! My rice!”

Excited, Chen Xiaosang wriggled out from Chen Wushu’s hold just in time to see Chen Qingshan fling the rice and meat onto the table, snapping at Mrs. Qian, “Shut up!”

“Fifth Brother, let me down!”

“If you don’t let me down, I’ll stop liking you, Fifth Brother!” Chen Xiaosang retorted indignantly.