However, the next moment, Chen Qilan’s fist smashed hard into Zhang Chunsheng’s face. Zhang Chunsheng, caught completely off guard, was knocked flat, his nose bleeding profusely.
“Do you think the military belongs to the Zhang family? Do you think achieving merit can be bought with a Letter of Commendation? Where do you get the audacity to spread such slander?” Chen Qilan roared. “Have you ever served? Have you seen combat? Do you know that military honors are forged in the blood of our soldiers? I’m telling you, every medal worn by a serviceman is something they earned with their lives!”
Chen Qilan’s punch made Qin Shuyao’s heart, which had been sinking into despair, beat fiercely again, and simultaneously enraged the Zhang family beyond measure.
Zhang Chunsheng was the Zhang family’s most powerful patron and pillar of support. Everyone in Zhang Family Village, from the eighty-year-old elders to the eight-year-old children, had to show him utmost respect. But now… Chen Qilan’s punch didn’t just strike Zhang Chunsheng; it was a blatant slap to the face of the entire Zhang lineage!
The Zhang men howled, brandishing the shovels and hoes in their hands as they surrounded Chen Qilan. The women, led by He Cuilian, seized the opportunity, intending to bind Qin Shuyao and drag her away amidst the turmoil.
Once this woman crossed the threshold, she would never escape! First, they would break her legs, then let the men torment and discipline her. *A wife beaten into shape is like dough kneaded into shape.* He Cuilian refused to believe there was a daughter-in-law in the world she couldn’t subdue!
In truth, the villagers of Qin Family Village had long heard the commotion, but Qin Feng, who was guarding the main entrance, refused to let them enter, claiming it was just a squabble between the newlyweds.
“Third Uncle, Fifth Uncle, Brother Tiemin… Help!” Qin Shuyao’s desperate, high-pitched cry for help suddenly rang out from inside the house, causing several villagers’ expressions to change drastically.
“Oh no, something happened to Grandpa Shepherd’s granddaughter!” A sharp-eared villager heard the call, slapped his thigh, and immediately moved to enter and help.
Qin Feng was still blocking the doorway, yelling, “Don’t stick your noses in, this is the Zhang family’s private business… Ow! Who the hell kicked me!”
Before Qin Feng could even scramble to his feet, dozens of villagers from Qin Family Village—men and women—had already surged inside, quickly starting a fierce brawl with the people from Zhang Family Village.
Several women from Qin Family Village saw Qin Shuyao being trampled, bound, and beaten on the ground by He Cuilian and her cronies, and immediately erupted in fury. In the countryside, the fighting capabilities of women are certainly no less than those of men.
He Cuilian was yanking Qin Shuyao’s hair, ready to deliver a slap, when the next moment, her scalp registered intense pain, followed by several hard slaps across her face.
“You dare hit our village girl? You wretched shrew, do you really think everyone in Qin Family Village is dead?”
The woman who grabbed He Cuilian and began thrashing her was Wang Sanmei, a notoriously tough woman from Qin Family Village who had recently had a quarrel with Grandpa Shepherd over a minor disagreement. Yet now, she was the very first person to rush forward and protect Qin Shuyao.
As Wang Sanmei violently beat He Cuilian, she angrily cursed Qin Shuyao. “Useless girl! Don’t you know how to fight back? Did you eat all that grain just to grow weak? What are you frozen for? Come on, hit this dead shrew’s ugly face back!”
Qin Shuyao had never struck anyone before, but in this life-or-death situation, she knew she could not afford to be weak.
He Cuilian was no easy target; she quickly counterattacked, leaving several bloody nail marks on Wang Sanmei’s face.
Seeing this, Qin Shuyao mirrored Wang Sanmei’s stance, grabbed He Cuilian’s hair, and, using every ounce of strength, delivered a savage slap.
A crisp slap echoed throughout the room. All that was heard was a single wail from He Cuilian before she collapsed, stiff and unconscious.
Well, Qin Shuyao, silent until now, had made a stunning debut, knocking her opponent unconscious with one blow.
The fierce and battle-hardened Wang Sanmei was completely stunned. “Thank goodness you weren’t around last time I argued with your grandpa, or you would have slapped me to death!”
“Stop! Everyone stop fighting!” The two sides were locked in a brutal struggle when several people suddenly burst in from outside. One of them fired a warning shot into the air, and the brawling villagers instantly froze.
“What is this commotion? What is this fighting? Is this acceptable?” A middle-aged man in a Military Uniform strode in, the barrel of his gun still smoking.
Zhang Chunsheng found the voice familiar. He looked up and immediately a look of delight spread across his swollen face.
“Old Liao!” The newcomer was Liao Minliang, a military officer who had some acquaintance with Zhang Chunsheng.
Liao Minliang was momentarily stunned before he recognized the person whose face was covered in blood and swollen like a pig’s head. “Old Zhang? Zhang Chunsheng?”
The Zhang family, who had been frozen in fear, immediately looked ecstatic when they realized the officer was acquainted with Zhang Chunsheng.
Zhang Runsheng and his son broke free from the Qin villagers’ restraint and stood up haughtily. “Hit them! Go ahead and hit them again! Soon we’ll have every single one of you arrested and shot!”
Zhang Baogen wiped the blood from his nose and viciously aimed a kick at the Qin Family Village villager who had struck him earlier.
But Chen Qilan was a step faster, lifting his foot and kicking Zhang Baogen directly, sending him flying.
“You scoundrel!” Seeing his nephew sent sprawling, Zhang Chunsheng erupted in fury, pointing at Chen Qilan and unleashing a torrent of curses.
He took a deep breath, turning to Liao Minliang with an expression full of grievance and helplessness. “Old Liao, these Qin Family Village residents are truly savage and aggressive. My nephew’s lawfully wedded wife ran off with a wild man. Sigh, we were trying to kindly persuade her to return home and live as she should, but just look at the result…”
“Bullshit! A dozen men from Zhang Family Village carrying shovels and hoes broke into a young girl’s bedroom. Is that persuasion or negotiation?” Wang Sanmei spat, narrowly missing Liao Minliang’s face. “A nest of snakes and rats! You wear your official uniform, eat the public’s food, yet you bully the common people. Bah! Aren’t you afraid the Heavens will strike you dead with lightning?”
Liao Minliang opened his mouth to offer an explanation, but Zhang Baogen immediately yelled, “Commander, your timing is perfect. Chen Qilan is your soldier, isn’t he? He committed adultery with my wife, and he assaulted me. You must severely punish this kind of degenerate!”
Liao Minliang observed the injuries on Zhang Baogen’s face, then looked at Chen Qilan, his gaze complex. “Do you have anything to explain?”
Chen Qilan was about to speak, but Qin Shuyao stepped forward first. “Commander, none of this concerns Chen Qilan!”
“Yes, yesterday was indeed my wedding to Zhang Baogen, but those hooligans used the guise of festivity to beat and bully me, even attempting to tie me to a utility pole. If you had been present, would you have stood by and watched?”
Liao Minliang answered instinctively, “As a serviceman, of course, I would not stand idly by.”
“Therefore, Chen Qilan did nothing wrong. That is point one. Point two…” She glanced at Chen Qilan and continued, “Later that night, Zhang Baogen once again teamed up with local thugs to harass me. Commander, if you were Chen Qilan, what would you have done?”
“I would naturally protect women…” Only after speaking did Liao Minliang realize he had been skillfully guided by this young woman, inadvertently clearing Chen Qilan of any wrongdoing.
“If even you believe Chen Qilan acted correctly, then what reason is there to severely punish him? The ones who deserve severe punishment are the Zhang family!” Qin Shuyao’s expression hardened, and she directed her accusation squarely at them. “The reason I went back on the marriage on my wedding day is because the Zhang family is guilty of endless wickedness!”