Chapter 58: Does This Old Man Have a Daughter?

Zhang Gousheng glared at Ji Chunhua, his face darkened. “Chunhua, you wench, you still dare to come back? If you had the guts, you should have just stayed gone! Your dead family would have been better off, and I’d even save a mat.”

Hu Zhaodi’s eyes turned icy. Like a flash of lightning, she moved swiftly, appearing right in front of Zhang Gousheng. Without hesitation, she jumped up and slapped him twice, hard.

The sharp “slap” echoed as Zhang Gousheng stood dazed, stunned by the sudden blow.

“Who are you calling a wench?” Hu Zhaodi shouted. “You dare to be so insolent in front of Sister Chunhua’s family? If we weren’t here, would you have thought you could bully her however you wanted?”

Li Erxia, finally regaining her senses, sat down on the ground, wailing loudly, “This is outrageous! They’re killing people! People from Dawai Village are killing people here in Dahuaishu Village!”

“Shut up!” Hu Zhaodi snapped. “If you keep making noise, I’ll really kill you!”

Li Erxia didn’t take Hu Zhaodi seriously, thinking that such a small woman couldn’t possibly strike her own son. How could she even hope to hit her?

But Li Erxia’s cries didn’t stop. “They’re killing people! People from Dawai Village are killing people!”

With a loud “slap,” Hu Zhaodi gave Li Erxia a hard smack across the face.

Li Erxia immediately shut her mouth, but with red eyes, she climbed up from the ground, muttering, “You dare hit me? I’ll fight you! Ouch…”

With a “thud,” Li Erxia was kicked hard by Hu Zhaodi and knocked to the ground.

Seeing his mother fall, Zhang Gousheng raised his hand to strike Hu Zhaodi.

However, before he could, the three Ji brothers, Han Dongsheng, and Wu Yinghai stepped in front of him, blocking his way.

The sounds of fists and kicks echoed as the fight broke out.

Ji Chunhua quickly covered her daughters’ eyes, but her own gaze never left Li Erxia and her son.

While Hu Zhaodi and the others were still fiercely beating them, the villagers nearby, armed with hoes and sickles, arrived at the scene.

Han Dongsheng looked coldly at the approaching villagers, his voice dripping with menace. “Let’s see who dares to interfere.”

The villagers, noticing Han Dongsheng’s fine clothes and the icy coldness in his eyes, hesitated, afraid to step forward.

Hu Zhaodi straightened up and addressed the villagers. “So, you all seem quite united. Are you coming here with your hoes and sickles to help the Zhang family? Or are you here to support my poor sister and get her justice?”

An older man stepped forward, asking, “Young lady, are you from Dawai Village?”

Hu Zhaodi nodded, “Yes.”

“Your people from Dawai Village came here to bully the people of Dahuaishu Village. Shouldn’t we do something about it?” the old man asked.

Hu Zhaodi smiled faintly, “Then let me ask you, is Ji Chunhua from Dawai Village or Dahuaishu Village?”

“Although she’s married to a man from Dahuaishu Village now, it’s undeniable that she’s originally from Dawai Village,” the man replied.

“Oh? So, Zhang Gousheng and his mother from Dahuaishu Village beat Ji Chunhua, who’s from Dawai Village. How do you think we should handle this?” Hu Zhaodi asked.

“Ji Chunhua has already married into our Dahuaishu Village, and it was her husband and mother-in-law who beat her. It’s a family matter for the Zhang family, and we can’t get involved,” the man said.

“Ji Chunhua is the daughter of the Ji family. We are all part of the Ji family. When the daughter of the Ji family is beaten, we Ji family members are bound to stand up for her. Isn’t that our family matter? So, it’s perfectly fine for us to get involved, but not for you?” Hu Zhaodi asked coldly.

She stepped to Ji Chunhua’s side and lifted her sleeve, revealing the countless bruises and scars on her arm. “Look, everyone, look at this. After being beaten like this, do you expect us, the Ji family, to pretend we don’t see?”

“To all the women of Dahuaishu Village—Aunties, Older Sisters—have your men ever treated you like this?”

Hu Zhaodi’s voice rang out as she continued, her tone firm and accusatory. “You all have children. If your sons or daughters were treated like this, would you stay silent? Would you pretend not to see?”

She scoffed, looking at Zhang Gousheng, “Is your Zhang family fighting for a throne or something? Is that why you’re beating up women like this?”

“Besides, who can decide whether a child is a boy or a girl? Is it something we women have control over?”

Her eyes swept over the gathered women as she pointedly said, “Let me tell you, it’s the man’s chromosomes that decide. Women can’t change that. Only men can decide whether we’re having a boy or a girl. It has nothing to do with what’s in our wombs.”

The women began to murmur amongst themselves:

“All this time, they’ve been blaming us women for not bearing sons, but this is the first time I’ve heard that it’s the men who decide the gender. Is that really true?”

“I don’t know, this is the first time I’ve heard it too. Ah, us women are so unfortunate. If we can’t bear a son, not only does the husband’s family look down on us, but the entire village points fingers.”

“I think that girl’s got a point. If you plant melon seeds, you get melons; if you plant beans, you get beans. Our wombs are like fields. Can you expect to plant beans and harvest melons?”

“That makes sense, but who can we complain to? After being beaten half to death, we still have to drag ourselves around taking care of our husbands, in-laws, and children.”

“Chunhua is lucky. Even though she’s been wronged in her husband’s house, her family came to her defense. My family won’t help me. They’d probably just worry about me eating up their grain.”

The older men in the crowd turned red with embarrassment. This was the first time they had ever faced such a situation.

It was rare to find a woman who hadn’t suffered in some way after marrying out of her family. Even his own wife had been beaten when she was young.

But in these hard times, with everyone struggling for food, having an extra mouth to feed meant more hunger. Who would dare to let a married daughter stay at her parents’ home?

An older man spoke up, his voice gruff, “Zhang family’s business is their own, but when you people from Dawai Village come to someone’s house and hit them, that’s wrong. Chunhua is Gousheng’s wife, and it’s only right for a husband to discipline his wife. No matter what, you shouldn’t have come to beat people!”

Hu Zhaodi smiled slyly and turned to Ji Chunhua, asking, “Sister Chunhua, does this old man have a daughter?”

Ji Chunhua hesitated for a moment, then nodded, “Yes, his eldest daughter married into our Dawai Village. She’s Hu Tieniu’s wife.”

“Ah, hahahaha…” Hu Zhaodi couldn’t help but laugh aloud. “In that case, let’s go back. Sister Chunhua, you take the children and come with us first. Tomorrow, I’ll have Hu Tieniu beat his wife half to death, and let’s see just how righteous this old man really is!”

The old man’s face turned purple with rage as he trembled and pointed a shaking finger at Hu Zhaodi. “You—how dare you? Why would you have Hu Tieniu beat my daughter?”

“Because I want to. And because I can offer Hu Tieniu something in return. If he doesn’t listen to me, I’ll make sure his sons and grandsons can’t attend school in this village,” Hu Zhaodi responded coldly.

With that, Hu Zhaodi grabbed Ji Chunhua and started to walk away. “Hurry up, let’s go. I’ll go find Hu Tieniu once we’re back.”

“Wait!” The old man, now panicked, called out. “I won’t get involved in Zhang family’s affairs anymore. Just please don’t have Hu Tieniu beat my daughter!”

A cold smile curled on Hu Zhaodi’s lips as she looked at Ji Chunhua. “Sister Chunhua, do you know where the daughters of these people are married? Tell me what you know.”