Fortunate Life of the Rural Beauty
Chapter 144 - 143: Siege

Chapter 144: Chapter 143: Siege

Afu Chen turned and returned to the West Room. The West Room was in a state of chaos, tables, chairs and some household items were overturned. Wang Cai lay on the ground, rolling in an attempt to stand but couldn’t. Zhui Feng didn’t bite him again, instead seeming to tease him. She pushed aside the arm he had over his face with her front leg and licked his face with her tongue, leaving him crying in fear with his eyes closed.

Mrs. Wang appeared to be in shock, standing rooted to the spot, crying bitterly with her hand over her mouth. Little Wang Cai, incredibly excited but not daring to bite anyone, stood at Mrs. Wang’s leg and barked furiously.

"Alright, that’s enough fun." said Afu Chen.

Upon hearing this, Zhui Feng reluctantly released Wang Cai and stood by Afu Chen’s side.

Wang Cai was still lying on the ground, sobbing.

Afu Chen gritted his teeth and said, "not bitten enough, huh? Zhui Feng, go and get him again..."

Upon hearing this, Wang Cai quickly climbed up. Although he wasn’t obviously injured, his hair was dishevelled, and his cotton coat and trousers were torn in many places. His face was covered in snot and tears, shaking all over, he couldn’t even stand steadily.

Afu Chen shouted, "Get out!"

Wang Cai walked out sobbing. Reaching the kitchen, he helped his mother, Mrs. Ding, who was also sitting on the floor crying, to her feet.

When they came out into courtyard, they felt as if they had finally escaped. Many people had gathered outside the Fence Wall to watch the spectacle. The earlier disturbance had attracted people from the nearby area.

Upon seeing this, Mrs. Ding sat back down on the ground and started crying again, singing, "Oh, Heaven, open your eyes and see, I came to visit my daughter and granddaughter, but they beat me so horribly..."

Afu Chen walked out and said loudly, "Stop telling lies. You demanded 100 taels of silver from my mother. When she said she didn’t have it, you beat her. It was only when Zhui Feng heard the commotion and ran over to pull you two apart that my mother wasn’t beaten even worse..."

Zhui Feng ran out again, barking and charging at the duo, but was halted by Afu Chen. Afu Chen’s attempt to restrain Zhui Feng was slightly exaggerated, as if he was struggling, he didn’t let go of her.

Mrs. Wang also came out. At the moment, her hair was dishevelled, her eyes were swollen and red, there were three evident scratch marks on her face. She walked over and knelt in front of Mrs. Ding, crying, "Mom, even if you’re not my real mother, you can’t treat me this harshly. I was sold by you to be a child bride when I was ten, and my younger brother was sold by you when he was six. That’s not all, after being driven back to my maiden home by my ex-husband’s family, you sold me again. I’ve been drained of all my blood and flesh by you, where do I get 100 taels of silver? The courtyard was built by my daughter, I didn’t spend a cent, I truly have no money... If it really doesn’t work, you go bring my biological father here, I’ll hang myself and give him my life back..."

Afu Chen was stunned, not having known this side of Mrs. Wang. It seemed appropriate for her to play the victim now, but considering her established reputation as a fierce woman, it seemed too contradictory. So, she just held Zhui Feng and watched blankly.

The villagers all knew that Mrs. Wang had been sold twice by her stepmother. Now that they heard that even her younger brother had been sold and she asked for 100 taels of silver, they cursed at Mrs. Ding.

However, there were other voices saying that even if Mrs. Ding was wicked, it was up to Mrs. Wang’s father to discipline her, the younger generation shouldn’t take it upon themselves.

Mrs. Ding wouldn’t admit to any wrongdoing and cried, "I didn’t ask for money. They are framing me. I just missed my daughter and granddaughter..." She held back from mentioning her discovery that Afu Chen was Shiying Chen’s biological daughter. She knew very well, if she dares to say such a thing publically, she would be done for. She understood the force to be reckoned with that is Shiying Chen’s mother.

"Bullshit!" boomed out a voice, as Mrs. Chen parted the crowd who were enjoying the spectacle and barged in.

She came to Mrs. Ding, pointed at her and spat, "My second daughter-in-law has been part of the Chens for sixteen years, you never visited once. As soon as they built a big house, you’d turn up. If you’re not here for money, no one would believe it." Seeing the scratch marks on Mrs. Wang’s face, she became angrier, kicked Mrs. Ding a few times and cursed, "I’ll kick you to death, you greedy heartless bitch. Daring to come to your stepdaughter’s in-laws to beat her and demand money. If I let my daughter-in-law be bullied to death by you here, I might as well kill myself with a block of tofu." Saying this, she reached for Mrs. Ding’s hair.

Mrs. Ding wasn’t going to sit idly by, she got up and started pulling Mrs. Chen’s hair. Mrs. Hu and Mrs. Gao, who had followed Mrs. Chen, rushed up pretending to "break up the fight" but in reality, they held onto Mrs. Ding, allowing Mrs. Chen to scratch and pull her.

Seeing his mother being overwhelmed, Wang Cai rushed to protect her. He was quickly pulled aside by Agu Chen who came charging and began to beat him.

Afu Chen looked at Mrs. Chen with newfound respect, this old lady was smart. With a few sentences, she managed to shift the conflict between Mrs. Ding and Mrs. Wang to conflict between both families. In-laws are supposed to be equal, so if the relatives from the wife’s side dare to come here to beat her up and demand money, they’re on the wrong, therefore Mrs. Chen and the others surrounding and attacking Mrs. Ding and her son was justified.

Mrs. Ding and Wang Cai were beaten till they cried for mercy.

Junior Officer Gao came, ordering people to separate the Chen family. Hu Laowu, who was also watching the scene, blocked them. Laughing, he said, "It’s not often we get to watch a spectacle like this, why can’t we watch a little longer?" He reminded Agu Chen, "Agu, take care not to overdo it. Just make sure you don’t beat him to death."

A flushed face Officer Gao scolded him, "Hu Laowu, stop making trouble here." He pointed at the others and said, "Go and separate them quickly. If someone really gets killed, who will take responsibility?"

Finally, the fight was broken up and Mrs. Ding and Wang Cai were a sorry sight. Their hair was dishevelled, their faces bruised and their clothes were torn. Wang Cai’s nose was bleeding, Mrs. Ding’s face was scratched with several fresh bloody wounds, they couldn’t even stand upright.

Officer Gao, pointing at Mrs. Ding and her son, chided them sternly and warned them not to come to Xiangluo Village to bully people again. Sobbing, they promised not to before laboriously making their way out of the courtyard.

The crowd slowly dispersed. Mrs. Wang and Afu Chen stood up to thank Mrs. Chen and Agu Chen, inviting them into the house for a rest.

Mrs. Chen shook her head and stated, "No need, we still have loads of work to do." She then spoke to the still crying Mrs. Wang, "Second daughter-in-law, don’t think too much about it. That old woman Mrs. Ding is rotten to the core, it is not worth it to be upset with her."

After that, she left with Mrs. Hu, Agu Chen and Mrs. Gao. As they left, Afu Chen noticed Mrs. Hu casting several glances at the row of cured meats hanging under the eaves.

Afu Chen helped Mrs. Wang back into the West Room, and said, "Mother, it’s alright now, they have been beaten away, they won’t dare to come bully you again."

Mrs. Wang, holding Afu Chen, began to cry again. She said, "Afu, don’t listen to their nonsense, you are indeed your father’s biological daughter, you are your father’s biological daughter..."