Farm Tough Girl
Chapter 344 - 344 345 Where is the Backbone_1

Chapter 344: Chapter 345 Where is the Backbone_1 Chapter 344: Chapter 345 Where is the Backbone_1 “Hey, what kind of rubbish are you spouting? You’re still claiming to be a pure maiden, but who in the village doesn’t know about that mess with Mr. Qian from before? And now you’ve got the gall to say such things!” Mrs. Zhu rolled up her sleeves, looking ready to start a fight.

While there was non-stop quarreling on one side, the other side was bursting with raucous laughter.

“Hahaha, truly the people of the Daqian Dynasty are all lowly, able to betray each other over such trivial matters. Sooner or later, our Qilian Kingdom will trample these useless wretches under our feet!” the man with the scar arrogantly declared.

Clearly, he reveled in the sight of people betraying one another. Otherwise, he could have simply taken people by force. Why bother with the talk of ‘every family must give up one woman’?

Song Wanwan’s face turned pale with fright as she panickedly looked at Li Cheng, “What are we going to do now?”

Li Cheng’s temples throbbed with anger, “I’m going to fight with them!”

But he was immediately grabbed by Song Wanwan, “Have you lost your mind? Even risking your life, you’re no match for them.”

Li Cheng clenched his teeth, “Then what can we do? Just stand by and watch them humiliate us?”

“It’s a good thing Qinghe isn’t here right now. Muniang’s home is so remote, I just hope no one will find it. Hopefully, it remains unfound.”

No sooner had Li Cheng breathed a sigh of relief than he heard a voice shouting out.

“There are still people who haven’t been brought here. In that household resides our village’s two most beautiful women. Aren’t you going to capture them?”

All the villagers looked toward the voice in horror—it was Madam Zhao! Everyone had realized earlier that Muniang’s family hadn’t been found and were keeping their mouths shut about it, and yet someone so malicious exposed them. That person was none other than Madam Zhao, Qiao Muniang’s own grandmother and Li Qinghe’s mother-in-law!

Madam Zhao now loathed Qiao Muniang and Li Qinghe with a passion, blaming these two women for the ruin of her precious son. How could she let them off easily now?!

The man with the scar’s eyes lit up when he heard her, and he immediately ordered, “Men, search for them!”

The others, sensing the opportunity, swiftly had Madam Zhao lead the way.

Seeing the villagers’ inaction, the man with the scar bellowed, “What are you fools waiting for? Hurry up and hand over the women.”

Then, suddenly, Dabao’s Mother was caught off-guard and pushed out, with Mrs. Jin screeching, “This is our family’s woman! I beg your extra kind lordship to spare our household!”

At this point, in their home, it was just the two of them, mother-in-law and daughter-in-law; the son and grandson had gone to learn blacksmithing in the prefectural city. Mrs. Jin was just trying to save herself.

Dabao’s Mother cried out in a panic, “No, no, don’t!”

Seeing that Dabao’s Mother was at least passable in appearance, the man with the scar ordered her to be snatched right away, “What about the rest? Bring them all out! Being favored by me is your good fortune. Hand over everyone now!”

Dabao’s Mother cried her heart out, her frantic struggles completely futile as she was dragged into the house.

The atmosphere was growing tenser by the minute; the villagers were so frightened they didn’t dare to breathe loudly, each desperately shoving the other, terrified of disaster befalling them.

Muniang had just returned from the embroidery room, planning to take a midday nap when she was abruptly awakened by a violent pounding on the door followed by the dismal screams of the servant boys.

Muniang jumped up with a start and immediately went out to see what was happening.

Just then, Qingya burst in, her voice laced with panic, “Lady, Lady, it’s terrible, outside there are many men wielding knives, they’ve just injured our gatekeeper.”

“Could it be those scattered soldiers who infiltrated from the Qilian Kingdom?”

“This servant thinks it’s most likely them; they probably came to our house so late because it’s situated in a remote area. It seems everyone in the village might have already been captured.”

Muniang darted outside only to find several scattered soldiers wielding knives in the courtyard. Upon seeing Muniang’s appearance, their eyes gleamed, “Wow, isn’t she a fine little thing? Let’s quickly snatch her away; after our boss is done with her, we can still have a taste.”

At a glance, Muniang realized it was only these few lowlifes trying to capture her, so she knew they definitely weren’t aware of her true strength, and at the very least, could be certain they weren’t there specifically for her.

She could easily kill these few men without much trouble, but considering the situation of the villagers, she kept her calm, “If you want to capture me, I’ll go with you, as long as you don’t harm my mother and my family.”

“Oh, so agreeable! Naturally, that’ll be the case, but looking at this house, it seems you’ve got a hefty dowry. We’re going to make a fortune out of this!”

Muniang suppressed her rage and said, “My house isn’t going anywhere, but aren’t you gentlemen in a hurry to take me back and report to your superior?”

“True, our boss has a terrible temper and surely is waiting for this woman to quench his craving,” one of the soldiers admitted.

The scattered soldiers then put the matter of the house aside for the time being and hastily escorted Qiao Muniang to seek their leader’s orders before taking further action.

The villagers were collectively corralled into a large grain field; the man with the scar was lounging leisurely on a Taishi Chair. Women were being dragged into a house one after another, but he remained still, evidently waiting for the best catch. The moment he laid eyes on Qiao Muniang, he perked up.

“Tsk, tsk, to think that in such a little mountain village, there could exist such a beauty! Well, this trip hasn’t been in vain! Ahahaha!” The man with the scar laughed obscenely.

By now, the villagers had lost all reason, shoving and cursing at each other, each trying to cling to a sliver of hope for survival. Muniang’s heart was filled with desolation, and she couldn’t help but yell, “What on earth are you all doing!?”

Suddenly, the whole place fell silent, including the scarred man who was laughing heartily moments before.

“Do you not realize this is our village? These outsiders are our real enemies, yet you’re madly oppressing your own people. How is this different from slaughtering each other? Instead, you become the joke of our enemies. Is this the extent of your backbone? In the face of the enemy, should we not stand together to resist and drive them out, rather than struggling pointlessly like this?” Muniang’s eyes reddened with anger as she watched, heartbroken. The harmonious villagers from before now seemed like strangers, their behavior chilling her to the bone.

The villagers who had been pushing and yelling at each other suddenly paused, as if awakened from a dream by Muniang’s words. Although they were just commoners, why should they suffer such humiliation? Why couldn’t they fight back? They might not have weapons, but Tupo Village had several hundred inhabitants – these scattered soldiers numbered only twenty or thirty. Why should they become their playthings?

“What nonsense are you spouting, you wretched woman?!” the man with the scar bellowed.

With a cold laugh, Muniang retorted, “What am I saying? I’m about to show you exactly what I’m saying!” As soon as the words left her mouth, she quickly turned and knocked down the scattered soldiers who were restraining her in a swift strike.