Chapter 13: A Cheap Advantage

The onlookers said nothing. Xiang Wenxuan only described what he had seen, but the village chief’s face was even darker than Old Fourth Xiang’s.

He slammed his cane on the ground. “So early in the morning—can your family just stop already?!”

Xiang He quickly turned toward Mrs. Li lying on the ground and chimed in, “Exactly! Grandma, haven’t you had enough? Coming to our house to make a scene first thing in the morning—can’t you let anyone have some peace?”

That remark crossed the line a bit. The village chief shot her a sharp look, clearly annoyed. Xiang He shrugged, stuck out her tongue, and pressed her lips together to show she wouldn’t interrupt again.

Xiang Wenxuan, seeing her playful expression, turned away to stifle a laugh. When did this girl become so bold? Not only was she speaking out more, she even dared to lay hands on her own grandmother—it was truly unbelievable.

At this moment, Fourth Aunt walked over with Xiang Yun in tow, clearly ready to stand up for them. “Village Chief, it’s true that that wicked ol— I mean, that Fourth Mrs. Li struck first. She threw punches right at the head! She even tried to smash a bucket over Ah Ci’s head! You need to judge this fairly!”

Earlier, when Mrs. Li had thrown that first bucket of slop, Fourth Aunt had rushed home to grab something to defend herself with. But her home was far off at the edge of the village, so by the time she came back, Mrs. Su’s face was already swollen from being beaten. She had been furious and lashed out with the pole without hesitation.

But after all, she wasn’t part of their household. She didn’t dare use too much force—if she injured someone badly, Mrs. Li would definitely make her pay. Thank goodness He girl arrived in time.

Now, helping to protect them didn’t matter so much, and hiding behind her, Xiang Yun poked her head out, sniffling. Mimicking Mrs. Li, she rolled up her sleeve to show the bruises on her small arm.

“G-Grandpa Village Chief… Grandma and Aunt-in-law pinched me…”

Xiang Yun had long been malnourished. Her small, thin frame looked even more pitiful now, and the purplish bruises on her arm only made people’s hearts ache.

Mrs. Su saw the marks and was overwhelmed with sadness. She immediately pulled Xiang Yun into her arms, sobbing, “It’s all my fault, I failed to protect Yun girl…”

Xiang Yun hugged her mother’s neck and rubbed her head against her shoulder. “I’m fine. Mom got hit so badly and didn’t even dodge…”

Mother and daughter cried together, and Old Fourth Xiang’s face was so dark it looked like it could drip ink.

Seeing that the sympathy was leaning toward them, Mrs. Li started wailing again, “It was clearly that Third family who beat me! Now they cry a few tears and everything becomes my fault?! Then what about my injuries? Am I just supposed to suffer for nothing? There’s no justice! What a cursed family!”

It was the same few lines over and over. Xiang He rolled her eyes in disgust. “Oh, so hitting my mother doesn’t count, but when my mother defends herself, she’s the one who should apologize? That’s rich—dream on.”

“Not just an apology! You also owe us silver! Healing my injuries will cost at least ten taels of silver!”

Great, after all the talk, it still came down to wanting money.

Xiang He pointed to the wound at the corner of Mrs. Su’s eye, then raised her left hand. “Let’s do the math. The injuries on my mother and Yun girl already balance out the ones on you. So how about my hand? It’s bleeding—I’d say that’s worth at least ten taels too. Bring the silver.”

Her left hand was covered in bloodstains, but the wound had stopped bleeding. She had secretly cast a blood-stopping charm earlier, or she would have fainted.

Everyone fell silent for a moment. Mrs. Li gritted her teeth in anger. Suddenly, a quiet voice came from nearby.

“I think that’s fair…”

“Shh!”

Everyone turned to look. Xiang He also glanced over. The speaker was the newlywed, recently married into the family. Her mother-in-law pulled her close, hiding her behind, forcing a strained smile. “It’s not what I’m saying, don’t take it to heart…”

Then she pinched the new bride’s hand behind her back, warning her to stop talking.

The bride didn’t dare say more. She caught Xiang He’s gaze and tried to avoid it, but saw Xiang He smile gently at her. Unable to resist, the bride smiled back.

This was the second person with a conscience Xiang He had met in this village.

“Enough!”

Xiang He curled her lips and turned to Old Fourth Xiang. His face, as dark as the bottom of a pot, sank deeper. “We’re family. Why bother with petty calculations? It’s morning—there’s work to do!”

That’s a terrible way to smooth things over!

Suddenly, Xiang He felt her forearm being grabbed. Her left hand was lifted. Mrs. Su was carefully wrapping her wound with a gray handkerchief.

At last, some softness. At least Mrs. Su had shown some backbone. There was no way they’d be bullied again.

Xiang He raised her hand higher for everyone to see the bloodstained white cloth around her wrist.

“I’m not going to argue with you, but since we’re already separate families, don’t come to make trouble at my house again. Don’t try to lay hands on my family. Most importantly, with this injury today, you owe me some compensation. Otherwise, I’ll feel cheated and won’t let it go easy.”

Old Fourth Xiang was furious, but Fourth Aunt couldn’t help laughing—this was like rogues dealing with rogues, no one would try to appease the other. Truly, this was just like He girl.

But the moment Mrs. Li heard they wanted compensation, she was completely unwilling. After groaning for a while, she suddenly stood up and pointed at Xiang He, yelling, “No way! Don’t even think about taking a single thing from my house!”

“Exactly!”

“If you won’t give us things, then pay silver,” Xiang He turned again toward the village chief. “Grandpa Village Chief, what do you think?”

This was all just a wasted fuss!

The village chief and Old Fourth Xiang both looked as dark as thunder. The village chief’s deeply lined forehead furrowed. “What do you want?”

Xiang He actually tilted her head and thought for a moment. Suddenly her eyes lit up. “We still need an axe and a machete. Our thatched hut is about to collapse, so I need tools to repair it.”

Old Fourth Xiang was slightly stunned. “You really only want those two?”

Seeing his expression, Xiang He curled her lips in disdain and glanced at Mrs. Li. “Do you think I’m as shameless as you? Whether you give them or not, I really need these.”

Mrs. Li didn’t expect her to want tools instead of silver, but tools still had to be bought with real money. She crossed her hands on her hips, ready to argue again.

Old Fourth Xiang waved her back behind him. “Lianhua! Go get the axe and machete!”

Lianhua, standing behind the door, shuddered and gritted her teeth before answering, “I-I’ll get them…”

After all that fuss, they were actually being forced to hand over stuff!

She sluggishly went to the corner to pick them up, reluctantly stepped outside, and once past the door, immediately put on a fragile, timid act. She carefully placed the tools on the ground, acting very scared, then quickly ran back inside.

“…” Xiang He’s mouth twitched and her eyes rolled, showing the whites. She walked over and picked up the two tools. “Thanks for your generosity, Grandpa. We’ll head back now—Dad at home still needs someone to take care of him.”

“You!”

Mrs. Li gritted her teeth, panting heavily, but a look from Old Fourth Xiang stopped her. “Go home!”

After all, he was still the head of the household—she couldn’t truly defy him.

Xiang He bent down to pick up the wooden bucket that had fallen to the ground, placed the two tools inside, borrowed Fourth Aunt’s carrying pole, and effortlessly lifted everything up. Humming a little tune, she walked at the front of the group.

Suddenly remembering something, she turned back to look at Fourth Aunt. “Fourth Aunt, why don’t you come to our place for a meal later?”

Fourth Aunt’s eyes lit up instantly, her face beaming with excitement. “That’d be great! I’ll bring some food over and have a proper chat with Ah Ci!”

“Alright!”

Their casual, cheerful conversation made Mrs. Li’s old face flush red with anger, and she burst out cursing, “It was you, you damn girl, who stole my meat!”

Xiang He just kept walking forward without even glancing back. “Now, now, that’s not how you say it. If you lost your meat, blaming it on me isn’t right, is it? Which eye of yours saw me take it? Or was it your butthole?”

—”Hahahahahaha!”

The crude remark instantly sent the entire crowd into laughter. Even Xiang Wenxuan, who always prided himself on being refined, turned beet red trying to hold back his laugh, clenching his teeth tightly.

The village chief gave him an annoyed glare. “Go home.”

“Yes, sir…”

Mrs. Li, humiliated and wanting to chase after them to curse some more, was yanked back by the collar by Old Fourth Xiang. “I said go home! Isn’t this embarrassing enough already?!”

She fumed all the way home. The moment she walked through the door and saw Mrs. Yu still hiding in her room, she immediately started yelling again. Outside, people who had enjoyed the spectacle sat comfortably under a nearby tree, happily listening in.

And so, they began chatting and joking about the “drama” from her household.