Free Web NovelChapter 68: Chapter 68: Demanding an Explanation
Zhou Mazi raised his arm to strike Zhou Gu’er, but there was no way she was going to let him. She met his charge, cleaver in hand.
Gu’er’s cleaver nearly struck Zhou Mazi. If he hadn’t dodged so quickly, he would have been cut.
"You’re rebelling! You dare to attack me? I’ll beat you to death today!"
Zhou Mazi was livid. He felt his dignity as the head of the household had vanished. Seething, he stomped his feet and cursed, ready to strike Gu’er again.
Someone came over and held Zhou Mazi back, urging him to get the facts straight first.
Gu’er looked on. The courtyard was crowded—it seemed like half the village had shown up, and everyone was murmuring amongst themselves.
Her adoptive mother hadn’t appeared. ’She must not be back yet. I don’t know where Zhou Feng’er tricked her into going, but she should be safe.’
’It’s better that my adoptive mother isn’t here.’
Gu’er didn’t see Sun Jiaming.
’It’s good Sun Jiaming isn’t here either.’ Subconsciously, Gu’er didn’t want either Sun Jiaming or Liu Yuan to see her in this state.
’With so many people here, since I’ve been pushed this far, I might as well settle things once and for all. After what Zhou Feng’er has done, there’s no going back to the Zhou family. I’ll use today as my chance to break away from them.’
"Why are you all making a racket instead of sleeping? Don’t you want to live your lives anymore, or what? Why can’t you give people a moment’s peace?"
By now, not only had Zhou Mei’s uncle, Zhou Da Kui, arrived, but so had several other respected village elders.
Seats were naturally found for these arrivals. Zhang Da’s family didn’t have enough stools, so a neighbor brought several over from next door.
Zhang Da just kept groaning in pain, saying nothing.
"How bad are the injuries?"
An old man with a white beard asked.
The doctor explained the situation. Zhou Feng’er’s back wound wasn’t serious—just a cut that needed some ointment. Her chin was only bruised and not a major concern.
Zhou Mei’s arm injury was a bit deep and required stitches. It would definitely leave a big scar.
Zhang Da’s wound was deeper and larger than Zhou Mei’s, requiring quite a few stitches, but none of the injuries were life-threatening.
The stitching couldn’t wait. People helped Zhang Da and Zhou Mei away to get their wounds sewn up, while Zhou Feng’er was taken to have her cut treated.
Once they left, the crowd followed, including Gu’er and the others. They all went to the clinic, packing it full of people who wanted to know the outcome.
The doctor first disinfected and stitched Zhang Da’s wound. From the courtyard, you could hear him squealing like a butchered pig.
The crowd pointed at Gu’er and whispered among themselves.
Gu’er remained very calm, offering no defense. The truth couldn’t be faked, and she would explain the facts of the matter shortly. freeωebnovēl.c૦m
Once Zhang Da had been stitched up and given an injection, he was helped back out. Zhou Mei was also stitched and given a shot, and Zhou Feng’er’s wound was treated.
The crowd didn’t leave, deciding to get to the bottom of the matter right there in the clinic’s courtyard.
The crowd was large, the wounds were all stitched, and the key figures had arrived. Gu’er stepped forward and recounted the entire incident.
’I have to make sure they see I was in the right. Otherwise, I won’t be able to stay in this village after injuring people for no reason.’
As the crowd listened, they murmured among themselves. By the time Gu’er finished, most of the people present believed her, including Zhou Mazi.
Why? Because of the person they knew Gu’er to be.
She was at Zhang Da’s home. If she hadn’t really been dragged there, if Zhang Da hadn’t tried to take advantage of her, why would she have attacked someone?
For a gentle young maiden to attack someone with a cleaver, what could it be if not that she was pushed to her absolute limit?
"You’re lying! You’re the one who did something shameless, so why are you blaming my Mei? My Mei would never do something like that! Don’t you dare try to frame her!"
Zhou Mei’s mother shrieked. She refused to believe her daughter was capable of such a thing. Even if it were true, she couldn’t let the villagers believe it. Otherwise, her daughter’s reputation would be destroyed.
"Zhang Da, you tell them."
Zhou Gu’er ignored Zhou Mei’s mother and stood before Zhang Da.
Even after coming to the clinic, Gu’er hadn’t dropped the cleaver. It was still stained red with blood, a truly unnerving sight.
Zhang Da stared at Zhou Gu’er. The firelight flickered across her face, making it glow red. In that moment, he no longer found her the least bit attractive. To him, the red on her face wasn’t firelight, but blood. He saw her as a deadly she-demon, one who was out to take his life. freēwebnovel.com
"OWW... I don’t know! I don’t know anything! Don’t ask me, go ask them! It hurts like hell!"
Glancing at the cleaver in Gu’er’s hand, his back searing with pain, Zhang Da didn’t dare confess, nor did he dare deny it. But in saying what he did, he had basically confessed.
"Zhang Da, you bastard! Don’t you pin this on my Mei! It must have been you and that shameless Zhou Gu’er messing around! My Mei must have caught you, and that’s why you two attacked her!"
Zhou Mei’s mother hastily started cursing Zhang Da again.
"You’re the real bastard! You think your daughter is some saint? This whole thing was her idea! She came to me twice about it, and I had no choice but to agree! It was her and Zhou Feng’er who tricked Zhou Gu’er here! It was their plan! I was forced into it! If it wasn’t for them, would I have gotten cut like this? Now that there’s trouble, you want to pin it on me? No damn way! I don’t care, you’re going to compensate me! Pay up, or I’ll die on your doorstep!"
Zhang Da was a ruffian himself and was never one to back down from a shouting match, but he was terrified of someone who would fight to the death.
The moment those words left Zhang Da’s mouth, the crowd knew exactly what had happened, and they all began to chatter.
Some said they never expected Zhou Mei and Zhou Feng’er to be so vicious, to come up with such a wicked plan to harm someone at such a young age.
Some said Zhang Da was a piece of trash, always thinking about harming young women, and that he deserved to be cut.
Others said that this Gu’er girl was too ruthless. She actually dared to attack people, even her own sister. She couldn’t be a good person either.
Everyone had something to say.
Zhou Mazi’s eyes flickered. He truly hadn’t expected his second daughter to be the mastermind. ’She dared to do this behind my back? Gu’er is supposed to be married into Liu Shu Village! If they find out she was trapped in a room by Zhang Da and attacked people with a cleaver, they’ll never accept her! The marriage will be off! My money!’
The thought of the lost money made Zhou Mazi’s gut twist with fury. He strode over to Zhou Feng’er and slapped her hard across the face. Stunned, Zhou Feng’er collapsed to the ground, sobbing. But that didn’t quench his anger. He viciously kicked her twice more.
Zhou Feng’er sprawled on the ground where she’d been kicked, able to do nothing but cry.
"Zhou Mazi, how do you plan to handle this? I don’t care whether what Gu’er said is true or not, I’m not buying it. You know what kind of man Zhang Da is—you can’t trust a word he says. I don’t believe my Mei would do such a thing. And even if it’s true, Gu’er wasn’t harmed. Zhang Da didn’t manage to do anything to her. But she’s the one who attacked people—three of them! I don’t care about your second daughter, and I don’t care about Zhang Da’s side of it. But Zhou Mei is my niece, and who knows what will become of her arm? You need to give me an answer, or this won’t be the end of it!"
Zhou Da Kui was the village chief and Zhou Mei’s uncle. Even though his niece was in the wrong, she was injured, so he had to step in—especially since Zhou Gu’er hadn’t been harmed.
"Zhou Mazi, I don’t care! My back is practically ruined! If you don’t pay me, I’ll take a knife to you! You just wait!"
Zhang Da didn’t dare say anything to Gu’er, whom he thought was a lunatic, but he did dare to threaten Zhou Mazi.
