Liu Shi glanced at Jiang Yinzhu without a word, then quickly entered the second branch's thatched cottage holding a medicine bowl.
She handed the medicine to Zhao Shi, "Mother! Please feed Father the medicine. Da Ni and I will guard the door with knives. Let's see who dares to come forward…"
As she spoke, she picked up the kitchen knife previously left on the kang bed and prepared to guard the doorway.
Jiang Liuli stopped her, "Go watch the children. Don't let them come out."
Since all the children had sustained minor injuries, they were all staying in Liu Shi's room.
The second branch of the Jiang family lived in the west wing, which consisted of three rooms total. Jiang Yinbao, Zhao Shi, Jiang Dani, and Jiang Xiaoni shared one room, while the other two rooms were occupied by each of Jiang Yinbao's two sons and their families.
"Can you handle this?"
Liu Shi asked with concern.
Jiang Liuli looked at the dozen or so strong men outside and curled her lips, "If I can't handle it, adding Second Sister-in-law won't change the outcome. Second Sister-in-law, go!"
Liu Shi bit her lip, ultimately clutching the kitchen knife tightly as she turned and entered the inner room.
She knew Jiang Liuli was right – staying behind wouldn't be much help, and protecting the children was the most urgent matter at hand.
"Da Ni! Are you sure about this? If not, you should run! Your mother can handle things here!"
Zhao Shi looked at the shadowy figures outside, her face turning deathly pale…
"Don't worry! Even if twice as many people came, they still couldn't beat me!" Jiang Liuli said as she opened the door and stepped out.
Seeing Jiang Liuli emerge, Jiang Yinzhu curled her lips in a mocking smile. Not wanting to waste words with Jiang Liuli, she directly addressed the men behind her:
"Attack her! After beating her up, tie her and sell her to the brothel. She might be ugly, but there will always be dirt-poor wild men who aren't picky!"
"And those hiding inside – drag them all out and beat them! I'll take responsibility if anyone dies!"
Hearing this, all the men moved toward Jiang Liuli.
They stood bare-armed, dark muscles bulging with prominent veins, clearly men accustomed to heavy labor.
Jiang Liuli remained calm, sidestepping to avoid the leftmost man's fist while her right hand shot out like lightning, grabbing his wrist and twisting it accordingly.
A faint "crack" was heard, accompanied by the man's piercing scream as he curled up in pain, sweat instantly soaking through his coarse short jacket.
The man on the right, seeing this, grabbed a carrying pole from the corner of the yard and swung it at Jiang Liuli's head.
She sidestepped, narrowly avoiding the pole.
Before the man could recover his stance, she had already closed in, driving her elbow hard into his chest.
The man grunted, the pole clattering to the ground as he fell straight back, clutching his chest, sour liquid bubbling from his mouth.
In the blink of an eye, two strong men lay incapacitated.
Everyone in the yard stared in stunned silence, even Jiang Yinzhu forgetting to move the hand holding her handkerchief, which slipped from her fingers and floated to the dusty ground.
Since when had this Jiang Dani become so formidable?
She turned to the men behind her, furious: "You're all useless! All of you attack! What are you afraid of? Can a group of men not defeat one young girl? What's the use of keeping you all?"
The men exchanged glances, looking at their moaning companions on the ground, then at this seemingly delicate yet ruthlessly efficient girl before them, their legs beginning to tremble.
But Jiang Yinzhu was highly favored by their master, and they didn't dare disobey her.
The men, driven to desperation by Jiang Yinzhu, had no choice but to steel themselves and inch forward.
After the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the courtyard was filled with the sight of men howling and writhing on the ground.
The color drained completely from Jiang Yinzhu's face.
She couldn't fathom how the ugly girl who had endured all their beatings and insults in the Jiang family had transformed into a fierce character capable of taking down over a dozen burly men with effortless ease.
Jiang Laotou sat slumped on the ground, the cloth bundle in his arms had long since come undone. Scattered silver coins rolled across the ground, but he didn't even bother to pick them up. His murky eyes were wide with shock.
Just moments ago, he had been clamoring to sell Jiang Liuli to a brothel, but now he didn't dare utter a single sound. The soreness at the nape of his neck hadn't faded, and a chill rising from the soles of his feet added to his fear.
Jiang Qianshi and her two daughters-in-law huddled in a corner, their earlier cursing and scolding completely gone. They clutched the edges of their clothes tightly, their knuckles turning white.
Especially when they saw Jiang Liuli lift her foot and crush a wooden stick that had fallen from one of the men, the crisp sound of splintering wood lashed at their hearts like a whip. All three shuddered in unison, burying their heads even lower, not even daring to steal a glance.
The grandchildren and great-grandchildren of the Jiang family were also staring dumbfounded at the scene before them. They had an ominous feeling that their days of ease were coming to an end!
Jiang Liuli looked at these terrified members of the Jiang family, a faint smile curling at the corners of her lips. She slowly walked toward Jiang Yinzhu.
"You want to sell me to a brothel? And beat up my entire family! Is that right?"
Jiang Liuli's voice was soft, but to Jiang Yinzhu, it exploded like thunder in her ears.
She instinctively wanted to retreat, but her heels seemed rooted to the spot. She watched helplessly as Jiang Liuli stopped in front of her. Those clear eyes were filled with ice, sending a chill through her entire body.
"Oh, Da Ni! Your aunt just thought that you beating your elders was truly unreasonable. Your aunt wanted to teach you a lesson to keep you from going astray!"
"Your aunt is doing this for your own good!"
"Heh… Teach me a lesson? Then, Auntie, do you know why I beat my elders?"
Jiang Liuli's voice was faint, but it sent a shiver down Jiang Yinzhu's spine. Jiang Yinzhu honestly shook her head.
Although she didn't know what had happened, she could guess that her parents must have done something that pushed the second branch of the family beyond their limits.
Otherwise, given the second branch's submissive nature, they would never have dared to lay a hand on her parents.
"You don't even know why our second branch resorted to violence, yet you want to 'teach' me a lesson?" Jiang Liuli let out a light laugh, her laughter laced with iciness that made the hairs on Jiang Yinzhu's neck stand on end.
"Then again… Auntie doesn't need to know what happened! Because everyone in the Jiang family treats our second branch as easy targets, to be bullied by anyone at will. You don't even need a reason!"
As she spoke, Jiang Liuli scanned the courtyard. She saw the children of the second branch, her mother, and her second sister-in-law step out, standing at the doorway and watching the howling men on the ground with visible satisfaction.
The rest of the Jiang family stared at her in fear, as if afraid she would beat them all up like she had the night before.
When the children of the first and third branches saw her gaze fall on them, the younger ones were so frightened they started crying…
She continued, "From today onward, I declare that no one is to bully anyone from our second branch ever again. Otherwise, bear the consequences yourselves!"
Jiang Laotou sprang up from the ground like a cat with its tail stepped on, his trembling finger pointing at Jiang Liuli:
"How dare you! The audacity! How dare you, you little wench, speak such words? I am your grandfather, the head of this Jiang family! Who are you to give orders here?"
Though his words were bold, his voice quivered like autumn leaves in the wind. No sooner had he finished shouting than Jiang Liuli shot him a cold glance, making him plop back down onto the ground with a thud, not daring to utter another word.
Jiang Qianshi spat silently in the corner, not daring to make a sound, only stealing sharp glances at Jiang Liuli from the corner of her eye.
Jiang Yinzhu's face flushed red then turned pale. She opened her mouth to retort, but then she saw Zhao Shi and Liu Shi standing behind Jiang Liuli.
One stood with tears in her eyes yet her back ramrod straight, the other still clutching the kitchen knife she hadn't put down.
The words died in her throat.
She knew that the second branch of the family had truly united as one, no longer a lump of dough to be kneaded at will.
"Fine! Your family matters are yours to solve. I'll be taking my leave now!"
As Jiang Yinzhu spoke, she turned to leave.
But Jiang Liuli blocked her path. "Auntie, you came with your people to beat our second branch and even tried to sell me to a brothel. Did you think you could just walk away like this?"