“Ah! Xia Xian! I f*** your mother!”
Old Mrs. Chu howled a string of profanities in pain. She tried to reach out and grab Xia Xian’s hair, but Xia Xian had already stepped back. With her long arms and legs, Old Mrs. Chu couldn’t even get close to her.
Chu Sheng saw his own mother get hit, and he’d also been tripped into a fall by Chu Ran. Furious beyond reason, he stood up aggressively, ready to strike Xia Xian.
But Xia Xian had already been ambushed once—she wasn’t going to be that stupid again!
Seeing Chu Sheng charging at her, she waited for the right moment, and just as he got close, she kicked him square in the groin!
“Ahh!!”
Chu Sheng immediately clutched his crotch and screamed, the sound deafening.
“You dare kick my son’s manhood! Xia Xian, I’ll fight you to the death!”
Old Mrs. Chu’s eyes went red with rage. Xia Xian had no intention of ruining her own life over their worthless hides. She knew her odds of winning a two-on-one fight weren’t great—a little lesson was enough.
She didn’t even bother grabbing her bundle. She gave Old Mrs. Chu’s hair one vicious yank, then bolted.
Turning and pulling the door open—all in one fluid motion!
She was outside in three seconds. The commotion at the Chu house had already drawn neighbors out to see what was happening.
Xia Xian promptly covered her face with her hands, sobbing loudly.
“Help! He’s molesting me!”
“Chu the Second is a beast in human clothing! His brother’s been dead only a few days, and he’s already trying to force himself on his own sister-in-law! Old Mrs. Chu is helping her son, trying to make me submit!”
“Why am I so miserable! This whole family is rotten to the core! Chu the Eldest was dying and still tricked me into marrying him, and now they’re trying to force me into whoredom, waaaah!”
Xia Xian’s voice was loud and clear, broadcasting all the Chu family’s dirty deeds to the world.
When sorrow reaches its peak, tears flow naturally. Xia Xian thought of her bitter, wronged life in her previous incarnation—she didn’t need to fake it at all. The tears came pouring down on their own.
“What! How can such a thing happen!”
“Someone go fetch the Women’s Director!”
“I’m going to the police station to report this! Shameless! Molesting your own newly widowed sister-in-law—what a morally bankrupt degenerate!”
Most of the neighbors who came out to watch were women, and they could empathize with Xia Xian’s situation all too well. They spoke up in her support one after another, even offering to find someone in authority to help her.
“Thank you all for helping me, waaaah.”
“Otherwise, I’d rather die in the Chu house than let them have their way!”
Xia Xian spoke with conviction, showing real backbone. This was far more admirable than some coy, seductive act. The crowd was even more pleased with her, shielding her behind them as they glared at Chu the Second and his mother.
“It’s not what you think! My brother is gone now, and I’m willing to marry her—it’s not molestation! Have you heard of Jian-xiao, the dual-lineage succession marriage…”
Chu the Second had been a step too slow, and she’d already said so much, winning everyone’s sympathy. He tried to explain, but his words only enraged the crowd further.
“Pah! You say marry and that’s it? Your brother’s dead—why would she marry you? What woman marries two brothers?! Aren’t you afraid of heaven’s wrath!”
“Exactly, exactly! I’ve never liked you lot anyway! He was practically dead and still wouldn’t call off the engagement, ruining a young girl’s life for nothing. And now you want to keep ruining it!”
“Your mother’s a widow too—why doesn’t she marry her husband’s elder brother!”
Xia Xian didn’t need to say another word. The neighbors tore into the mother and son on her behalf, cursing them up one side and down the other.
Old Mrs. Chu shrank back, not daring to open her mouth—a perfect picture of bullying the weak and fearing the strong.
The Women’s Director came running at the commotion. She hadn’t even put her shoes on properly, her heels slapping against the ground as she sprinted over, a feather duster clutched in her hand.
“Who dares to molest anyone! Harming one of our women comrades! Do you think I, your Women’s Director, am dead?!”
She glared fiercely, her eyes locked onto Chu the Second. In her anger, she gripped the feather duster tight, the muscles in her arm bulging.
She was 175 cm tall, powerfully built, with a ruddy complexion. Not only was her tongue sharp enough to flay a man alive, she was also formidable at stopping wife-beaters and other violent men!
Director Mei Yanxia was a name that struck terror into hearts across the entire neighborhood!
“Director! You’re finally here! There’s no law saying I have to marry my husband’s younger brother just because my husband died, waaaah… And they even tore my clothes, trying to, trying to…”
“I can’t stay here anymore. I want to go home. I just married into this family—I’m still a virgin, I don’t even have a child. There’s no point in me staying with the Chu family. Can you please let me go home, waaaah.”
Seeing her true savior arrive, Xia Xian immediately threw herself at the director, hugging her and sobbing pitifully, all while lodging a very convenient complaint.
Mei Yanxia looked down and saw that Xia Xian’s sleeve was indeed torn, revealing a stretch of fair, tender skin. She was livid. The feather duster went flying at Chu Sheng on the spot.
“You shameless piece of trash!”
“Ouch!”
It hit him square on. Chu Sheng clutched his forehead and yelped in pain.
“Don’t you worry, little missus. I guarantee I’ll see you safely home. Let’s see if anyone in the Chu family dares bully you again!”
“Waaaah.”
Xia Xian said nothing, just nodded through her tears. As her gaze dropped, a flicker of sly amusement passed through her eyes.
This time, she wouldn’t be so foolish. Making a big scene was useless; crying and wailing like Bai Lian did was actually more effective at getting what she wanted.
Once the accusation of molestation was made, the public security officers arrived quickly. Leading them was a young, handsome man with well-proportioned features, deep-set eyes, a high nose bridge, broad shoulders, a narrow waist, and an upright bearing. The moment he appeared, he captured everyone’s attention.
“Who is this young man? I’ve never seen him before.”
“Yeah, he’s so handsome. I wonder if he’s married. I have a niece who looks about his age, and she’s not married yet!”
The aunties whispered among themselves, eager to make a move.
Xia Xian looked at the striking man before her and was momentarily dazzled. Even though she was mature in mind, she couldn’t help but stare blankly for a moment.
But she did remember him. He was from the capital, with an impressive family background. He had only stayed in their area for a few months before leaving, apparently brought in specifically to solve some serial murder case. She didn’t know the details.
When he left, everyone had lamented that such a handsome young man hadn’t stayed.
Quan Ruifeng’s dark, ink-like eyes first swept over Xia Xian, who was crying pitifully, then glanced at the women’s director who was holding her. He then turned expressionlessly to Chu Sheng and spoke in a businesslike manner.
“I am Quan Ruifeng, a public security officer from Ningcheng. I received a report that someone here has been harassing a woman. All involved parties will come back to the station with me.”
His voice was low, cold, and remarkably pleasant to hear.
Liu Jun, who had been overlooked, didn’t seem bothered and spoke with a smile.
“I’m Liu Jun. We’re all old acquaintances here, so no need for introductions. Director Mei, what exactly happened? You should come with us too. We can talk on the way. Let’s not make a big scene—it wouldn’t look good.”
Officer Liu Jun and Mei Yanxia were old acquaintances. He often helped handle these trivial matters and was very experienced.
“Fine. Take this old woman and her son away!”
Director Mei was a true fighter. She didn’t care how handsome the new officer was; she only cared about resolving the plight of the woman in distress.
“Stay with me. Don’t be afraid.”
She held Xia Xian’s wrist and comforted her attentively.
“Okay.”
Xia Xian nodded again like a meek young wife, her fair skin and slightly reddened, beautiful almond-shaped eyes making her look utterly obedient, which only deepened Director Mei’s affection for her.
With the women’s director and the police working together, even if they couldn’t send Chu Sheng and his mother to prison, they could at least get them detained for a few days.
Under the Chu family’s courtyard was buried a box of gold bars, about five pounds. The land had once belonged to some landlord, and when the family expanded their house, they dug up the gold bars. Before she could even rejoice, the very next day Chu Sheng told her the gold bars had been stolen.
Ha. She had been skeptical at the time, and combined with the fact that he later had money to buy a house for his old lover and son, he had definitely hidden those gold bars for himself.
This time, she would dig up those gold bars first!