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Due to the Er Bai’s injury, his momentum weakened, while Chen Feng was fighting with all her might and clearly had the upper hand.
Onlookers advised against intervening in the fight, but no one stepped in. One reason was that Chen Feng seemed like she had gone mad, and her small iron shovel was flying up and down, making people afraid of getting accidentally hurt. The other reason was that the Er Bai was usually annoying, and no one genuinely wanted to help him. In fact, some people wished he would get hit a few more times.
Chen Feng was still somewhat weak, and after a while, she began to feel physically drained, causing her strength to diminish. On the contrary, the Er Bai’s confidence grew, and he even struck her several times, with one blow aimed at her head. She instinctively used her left hand to block the blow, and the impact caused intense pain and made her sit on the ground.
As she put her left hand down and swung the small iron shovel in her right hand with force, she suddenly saw a flash of black light. A black bird seemed to fly out from her left hand, heading straight for the Er Bai who was reaching out to grab her. She heard the Er Bai cry out as he dropped the stick and held his left cheek, wailing in pain. Then, the black bird vanished into the sky like a bolt of black lightning.
At first, Chen Feng thought the black lightning was an illusion and blinked to clear her head. However, when she saw the Er Bai holding his face and the blood flowing from his fingers, she realized that the black bird must have been real and incredibly powerful.
Both Chen Feng and the Er Bai stopped fighting, and a few men rushed to drag the Er Bai aside. Two women also approached to help Chen Feng to her feet.
At this point, more and more bystanders gathered, including Gao Lizheng, Chen Ming, and Chen Lu. Chen Dabao also ran over, crying.
Chen Ming was assisted over, and by now, he was too angry to speak. After catching his breath, he said, “A’Feng, why is your life so bitter? You finally got better from your illness, and now you’re being bullied by wicked people. I’m useless, I can’t even protect my own daughter.” As he spoke, tears streamed down his face.
Chen Feng dropped the iron shovel and ran to comfort Chen Ming, saying, “Don’t be afraid, Father, I’m fine. I injured the Er Bai. We won’t be bullied again in the future. Anyone who bullies us, I’ll beat them up.”
Chen Dabao ran over and hugged Chen Feng, crying, “Mother, I’m scared, I’m scared.”
Chen Lu also hugged Chen Feng and cried, while she comforted the two children.
Chen Ye and Chen Gui also arrived, furious and ready to beat the Er Bai. They cursed, “I’ll kill you, you braggart. You dared to think about my cousin A’Feng…”
The Er Bai’s face was already swollen, and he sat on the ground, letting them kick and hit him.
Onlookers urged them to stop, saying, “Stop, don’t hit him. We don’t know what kind of bird pecked the Er Bai earlier, but it left a hole in his face and caused a lot of bleeding. Don’t let it turn fatal.”
Some bystanders also saw the bird and speculated that it might have been pecking at something on the ground and got involved in the fight between the Er Bai and Chen Feng. They were angry and took it out on the Er Bai. As the bird flew so fast, they couldn’t clearly identify the species. It looked somewhat like a swallow, but how could a swallow be so powerful?
As the doctor bandaged the Er Bai’s wound, some of the onlookers discussed what had happened with Gao Lizheng. These people already disliked the Er Bai and agreed that he had instigated the fight. Although Chen Feng had been fiercely formidable, some people were not pleased with her, but no one wanted to offend her. Therefore, the accounts were factual, and some were biased in favor of Chen Feng.
Gao Lizheng listened and then went to ask Doctor Yu, who was treating the Er Bai’s injuries. Doctor Yu was still examining the hole on the Er Bai’s left cheek, wondering what kind of bird could have caused such a serious wound. Without looking up, he said, “The Er Bai won’t die. However, he has wounds on his head and shoulder, a long gash on his right arm, and many bruises on his back and arm. Especially the deep hole on his left cheek, which bled a lot. He will definitely be disfigured.”
People around looked at Chen Feng, who was calmly comforting her son and brother, Chen Dabao and Chen Lu. Aside from the hole in the Er Bai’s left cheek, she was responsible for the rest of his injuries. This woman was too fierce.
Gao Lizheng, considering the circumstances, decided that the matter could be resolved despite the severity of the Er Bai’s injuries. He said that the Er Bai had bullied others first, and Chen Feng, who was suffering from a mental illness, was provoked into hitting him as a result. It served him right! He was lucky not to have been killed.
The Er Bai was severely injured. Although the bird had pecked the hole in his left cheek, the wounds on his head and body were caused by Chen Feng. As a result, the Chen family had to pay 100 copper coins for medical expenses, which was deemed an acceptable resolution.
Chen Ming, seeing that his daughter had not suffered, agreed to the settlement. Aside from the palm of her left hand and two fingers being pierced by the stick, Chen Feng was fine. Meanwhile, the Er Bai was covered in blood, with wounds on his head and body. He felt that 100 copper coins was a reasonable sum and also agreed to the settlement.
The Er Bai was not satisfied and wanted to demand more, suggesting that 100 copper coins were not enough and at least one tael of silver would be acceptable. However, his face was in intense pain, and he couldn’t speak. At this moment, a man in his thirties wearing a silk robe spoke up.
This man was Hu Laowu. Having recently arrived, he listened to the discussions and became increasingly displeased. How could a fool like Chen Feng prevail in this village? He didn’t hesitate to express his thoughts, saying, “Gao Lizheng, you’re too biased. Chen Feng caused the Er Bai to suffer so much, and you think 100 copper coins is sufficient? We need at least two taels of silver.”
Upon hearing Hu Laowu’s words, the Er Bai, lying on the ground, started moaning loudly.
Chen Ye was extremely unhappy with his younger brother in law’s behavior. The younger brother in law had often helped him with work, but now he was siding with an outsider. With a loud shout, he said, “Laowu, how can you say that? It’s clear that the Er Bai bullied A’Feng first, and she fought back because she was forced to.”
Hu Laowu chuckled and retorted, “Brother-in-law, I’m just being fair. The Er Bai has lost so much blood and been disfigured. One tael of silver is a reasonable amount.”
Gao Lizheng argued, “The Er Bai’s disfigurement was caused by the bird, not by A’Feng. We can’t blame her for that.”
Hu Laowu persisted, “But besides the hole in the Er Bai’s face, his head and shoulder were struck by Chen Feng, causing bleeding. With such severe injuries, 100 copper coins are definitely insufficient. They should pay at least one tael of silver. Gao Lizheng, you can’t bully someone just because the Er Bai has no parents or siblings.”
Gao Lizheng was furious but could do nothing about Hu Laowu.
Chen Ming exclaimed, “This is outrageous. The Er Bai bullied my A’Feng first, and now you want us to pay one tael of silver? Hu Laowu, that’s just despicable.”
Chen Feng was also upset. If she was swindled out of one tael of silver, then the whole fight would have been for nothing.