Chapter 20.1

Zhu Hongxia and her companions, due to their injuries from being knocked over by a wild boar, found it difficult to move around in the cold winter.

This meant that they didn’t personally come to make trouble for Qin Qingman. However, while they stayed back, their family members stepped in on their behalf.

At this moment, the ones knocking firmly on Qin Qingman’s door were the family members of Zhu Hongxia and her two sisters-in-law.

Each one was tall and sturdy, looking very formidable and intimidating. More importantly, their faces were filled with anger, and they seemed extremely agitated.

“Sister, Second Aunt and the others have gone too far!” Chuchu, peeking out through a crack in the window, saw what was happening outside the courtyard gate. Recognizing the people, his face immediately flushed with anger, and he clenched his little fists tightly.

“It’s okay, we don’t need to be afraid of them.”

Qin Qingman reached out and gently patted Chuchu’s head, showing no sign of fear.

Despite the boy’s somewhat poor, yellowish hair, it was soft and comforting to touch, bringing her a feeling akin to petting a cat in her previous life.

Though Qin Qingman didn’t seem afraid, Chuchu was still full of concern. He had initially assumed that the troublemakers would be people from their uncles’ households.

After all, their uncles were family, sharing blood ties; even if things got tense, there would still be a sense of kinship that would hold them back a little.

But he hadn’t expected that it would be the maternal family of his aunts causing the trouble.

These relatives of his aunts weren’t from Kaoshan Village and didn’t share any sense of connection to the community, so there was no concern for face or courtesy.

Filled with worry, Chuchu tightly gripped the hem of Qin Qingman’s clothes, trying to stop her. “Sister, let’s not open the door or go see them. They can’t just barge into our house. And if they do, we’ll go call the police to deal with them.”

The child, for once, showed some cleverness, thinking of seeking outside help.

Qin Qingman chuckled at his words, glancing at Wei Ling beside her before saying, “Chuchu, don’t worry. With your Big Brother Wei here, not even a large group could break into our courtyard.”

Wei Ling, feeling needed, slightly puffed out his chest in pride.

Chuchu’s eyes instantly brightened, and he turned toward Wei Ling, gazing at him with a look of trust. “Big Brother Wei.”

“With me here, no one will get through that gate.”

Wei Ling spoke with confidence.

Though the visitors were many, they were all ordinary people. In front of him, they stood no chance; numbers alone wouldn’t be enough.

Reassured by Wei Ling’s promise, young Chuchu finally felt at ease.

He even eagerly pulled Wei Ling back to the east room to change clothes, disapproving of Wei Ling wearing his father’s clothes, which he found insufficiently imposing.

Chuchu urged him to put on his own clothes—particularly his military uniform, which he knew would hold an undeniable intimidation factor in the eyes of the villagers.

As Wei Ling was led away, he looked back at Qin Qingman, fully understanding Chuchu’s intentions.

Qin Qingman had already planned to make good use of Wei Ling’s identity.

Instead of constantly introducing him to others, she realized that his uniform alone would make a stronger statement, as military attire in this era was a rare and unmistakable symbol.

Wearing the uniform marked him unmistakably as a soldier.

While Wei Ling went back inside to change, Qin Qingman didn’t remain idle either. She began to prepare herself.

She bundled up in a heavy coat, leather boots, gloves, a scarf, earmuffs—anything that could keep out the cold. She knew that a prolonged confrontation was likely, and it wouldn’t end with just a few words. If she wasn’t properly wrapped up, she’d be the one left shivering.

Still not satisfied, Qin Qingman filled three small leather pouches with warmers and tucked them into her sleeves for extra heat. She was now ready to handle any lengthy standoff.

A few minutes later, the three of them, fully prepared, opened the door.

The lively chatter that had filled the courtyard quieted instantly as soon as Qin Qingman, Wei Ling, and Chuchu appeared. All eyes turned to the three of them, finally landing on Wei Ling.

They were taking in Wei Ling himself—and the uniform he wore.

It wasn’t just any uniform; it was military, complete with a firearm, marking him as a genuine soldier.

In front of this military presence, the crowd that had gathered outside the Qin family’s gate suddenly lost its confidence. Even the loudest of them all, Zhu Hongxia’s brother, pressed his lips together and fell silent.

Seeing this reaction, the Kaoshan Village residents who had come out to watch the commotion couldn’t help but look on with disdain.

They had anticipated a fierce argument as soon as the two sides met. Instead, they saw a group of people who only knew how to bully the weak.

“Second Uncle, what do you mean by bringing so many relatives to my house?” Qin Qingman asked calmly.

The weather had been good recently, without any snow, so she walked with poise through her courtyard, her posture upright and composed.

Her demeanor was in stark contrast to Qin Lei and his group.

The freezing weather had them instinctively huddled, shoulders hunched, making them appear even less imposing.

In this standoff, the aura of Qin Qingman’s group of three easily overpowered the group that had come to cause trouble.

Qin Lei, who led the group, was already wary of Wei Ling’s military identity. Hearing Qin Qingman address him directly, he flinched slightly, his gaze wavering as he looked at the three of them.

Their pace was steady, neither fast nor slow, but even as Qin Qingman, Wei Ling, and Chuchu reached the courtyard gate, no one dared to step forward or cause trouble. In fact, all eyes turned to Qin Lei, awaiting his lead.

Already reluctant to be the main instigator, Qin Lei’s facial muscles twitched with nervous tension as he felt the intense gazes of Qin Qingman and Wei Ling on him.

As for Chuchu, the small child standing beside them—Qin Lei automatically dismissed his presence, ignoring the child’s gaze entirely.

“Second Uncle, and all the relatives, if you’ve come here to apologize for the incident with the wild boar on the mountain yesterday, then that works perfectly. Our village neighbors are here too, so we can make this a witness event. I have a few simple requests I’d like to make.” Qin Qingman took the initiative to speak first, cutting through the noise.

She hadn’t forgotten the push Zhu Hongxia had given her earlier.

“Wait!” Qin Qingman’s words stunned Qin Lei, but even Zhu Hongxia’s eldest brother was taken aback.

Zhu Laoda (Eldest Brother Zhu) stared at Qin Qingman, unsure of what he had heard. “We’re here to apologize?”

“Yes, wasn’t Uncle Zhu coming on behalf of Second Aunt to apologize to me?” Qin Qingman’s face showed a hint of confusion.

Seeing her expression, which didn’t seem fake, Zhu Laoda couldn’t help but think this was the biggest joke he’d ever heard, so he laughed, “Qingman, girl, your aunts’ family hurt by the wild boar, and instead of paying for the medical bills, you dare to ask us to apologize? What apology? I think you’re having a fit.”

“Yeah, Qingman, are you having some kind of fit? The wild boar was clearly brought in by you, and it hurt people, yet you want the injured party to apologize to you? How shameless can you be? Have you gone crazy from being poor?” Liu Rong, the eldest daughter-in-law from the maternal family of her third aunt, Li Meina, sneered as well, her eyes filled with disdain.

“You brought the wild boar to hurt people, and you must apologize. If not, this matter won’t end here.” Qin Sishen, Yao Chunying’s second brother from her maternal family, added.

Seeing the others speak up, he figured that they had the upper hand with so many people, and that Qin Qingman, even with her soldier, would have to follow the rules. With that thought, he boldly spoke his mind.

“Yeah, not only should you apologize, but you must also pay for the medical expenses. Our family can’t just suffer injuries for nothing.”

“If you don’t pay for the medical bills, we’ll report it to the police. This matter is far from over.”

“That’s right. No matter what, our family members married into your Qin family, and although they didn’t contribute much, they’ve worked hard to help your family grow. How could you treat them like this? If you don’t give us an explanation today, we’ll have nothing to do with your Qin family!”

“No, this isn’t over. It’s definitely not over!”

—o—o—o—

The situation was growing more chaotic as the group of relatives got louder and more aggressive.

Each voice seemed to rise higher than the last, as if louder voices gave them more reason.

Qin Qingman opened her mouth several times, but her words were drowned out by the rising clamor.

The people left in Kaoshan Village at this time were mostly the elderly, the sick, children, and a few women. Faced with this rowdy and aggressive crowd, they didn’t know the full situation and didn’t want to interfere. They could only look to Qin Qingman, the person involved, to handle it.

As the noise reached a crescendo, Wei Ling’s gaze grew colder.

Just as he was about to take action, a hand suddenly grabbed his.

Though he was wearing gloves, Wei Ling immediately recognized whose hand it was.

Faced with Qin Qingman’s restraint, Wei Ling no longer acted impulsively. He had seen Qin Qingman angry before and knew she was a calculating person who wasn’t easily bullied.

Understanding this, he calmed down and also realized why Qin Qingman had stopped him.

While his military identity was a deterrent, it also came with restrictions. As a soldier, he couldn’t do anything excessive in front of civilians.

Qin Qingman was protecting him.

Indeed, Qin Qingman had only used Wei Ling’s identity as a means of intimidation; she didn’t actually intend for him to take action.

She had plenty of ways to handle a group of ordinary people. There was no need to use a sledgehammer to crack a nut—these people, as bold as they were now, would soon feel embarrassed for their actions.

With her plans in mind, Qin Qingman quietly observed the relatives, who had little to no blood relation to her, making fools of themselves.

At the Qin family’s courtyard gate, one side was in a frenzy, while the other remained calm and composed, creating a sharp contrast.

“Pay for the medical bills, pay for the medical bills.” the demands from Zhu Laoda and his group finally merged into a single loud chant.

The agitated crowd grew closer, their saliva nearly splattering on Qin Qingman’s face.

As the tension reached its peak, Qin Qingman finally spoke: “Shut up!”

Her voice was loud and clear.

The scene fell into sudden silence.

No one had expected Qin Qingman to take this attitude, nor had they expected her to be the one stepping forward to solve the problem. Zhu Laoda and the others had always assumed that it would be Wei Ling who took charge.

They had prepared themselves for how to handle Wei Ling’s identity, but things hadn’t gone as planned. Instead of facing a soldier, they found themselves facing Qin Qingman, a seemingly weaker woman.

—o—o—o—

Inside the house, Zhu Hongxia and the others had been listening intently to the noise outside.

When the voices from outside grew louder and more agitated, both Zhu Hongxia and Qin Xiang, along with the others, had pleased smiles on their faces.

However, those smiles froze when they heard Qin Qingman’s sharp command, and the uproar outside suddenly came to an abrupt stop.

Lying in bed, unable to move, Zhu Hongxia was desperate, feeling as though her heart was being torn apart.

She was extremely curious about what was happening outside, but since she couldn’t move, she couldn’t see the chaos and could barely make out what was going on.

Frustrated, everyone who was confined to the bed was anxious.

“Zhenzhu, go see what’s happening outside.” Zhu Hongxia’s mother, Li Meina, instructed Qin Zhenzhu.

“Hurry, Zhenzhu, take Huihui outside to check the situation. I’m so anxious I could die.” Yao Chunying also couldn’t sit still. If it weren’t for the doctor’s orders to stay still, she would have tried to get up and see for herself.

Under her mother’s command, Qin Zhenzhu had no choice but to act. She quickly led her cousin, Qin Huihui, outside.

—o—o—o—

Outside, the group that had come to stir up trouble suddenly fell silent after Qin Qingman’s sharp rebuke.

In reality, it wasn’t just Qin Qingman’s words that had silenced them; it was Wei Ling standing beside her that intimidated them.

Wei Ling, even without speaking, could command attention with his presence.

His military identity was enough to instill fear.

Seeing that Qin Qingman had successfully silenced everyone, preventing Zhu Laoda and his group from speaking further, she sneered coldly, “Saying the wild boar was drawn by me? What a flattering way to put it. If I could draw wild boars, my family would have meat every day, not us siblings starving and looking pale.”

The people of Kaoshan Village, who knew her family’s situation well, were all witnesses to how hard things had been for Qin Qingman’s household.

If it hadn’t been for Qin Qingman convincing the village secretary to intervene, helping her uncles pay back some grain, the siblings might not have made it through the winter.

They might have either frozen or starved to death.

After hearing Qin Qingman’s words, the villagers couldn’t help but laugh.

It was a laugh aimed at Qin Lei, Zhu Laoda, and the others.

The laughter caused Zhu Laoda and his companions to lose face.

They knew the kind of person Qin Qingman was, and as they tried to defend themselves, Qin Qingman spoke again, her words this time grabbing everyone’s full attention.

“The danger on the mountain happened in broad daylight. How the wild boar came, I don’t know, but what I do know is that Second Aunt deliberately led the boar towards me. Not only that, she pushed me towards the wild boar to save herself.”

Everyone was stunned by this statement.

Wei Ling instinctively tightened his grip on Qin Qingman’s hand.

He felt a tremor run through his body as he heard her recount what had happened the day before. He had arrived late and hadn’t witnessed the danger she had faced. This was the first time he was hearing her version of events.

If Qin Qingman’s Second Aunt had really pushed her towards the boar, the situation changed entirely.

It became attempted murder.

Cold, steely rage flared up in Wei Ling’s eyes as he glared at Zhu Laoda and the others.

Chuchu, understanding the implications of what Qin Qingman had just said, grabbed hold of her sleeve tightly, even straining to look up at her face, wanting to see her expression.

But being so short, he couldn’t see clearly.

The relatives were worried and concerned for Qin Qingman, while the troublemakers began to falter, unsure of how to respond.

Even Qin Lei, who had led the group to cause trouble, began to hesitate.

Although he was married to Zhu Hongxia, he had not been on the mountain the day before and didn’t know the full details.

All he knew was from what his wife and Li Meina had told him. He had thought everything would be fine when he came here today, but now, after hearing Qin Qingman’s words, he realized the situation was far more serious.

If Zhu Hongxia had really pushed Qin Qingman towards the boar…

Qin Lei couldn’t bear to think about it.

The atmosphere grew quieter, and everyone’s eyes flickered with uncertainty.

Facing the cold expression on Qin Qingman’s face and Wei Ling’s sharp gaze, the group that had come to demand justice began to panic.

Their earlier accusations against Qin Qingman had been based on what Zhu Hongxia and others had told them, with no evidence. But now, Qin Qingman’s words carried heavy implications—so much so that many of them realized that trouble was brewing.

“You’re lying, you’re slandering us!” Zhu Laoda was the first to react, his voice cracking as he tried to deny it.

“Lying?”

Qin Qingman coldly stared at the bloated face of Zhu Laoda, showing no sign of fear. “I’ve never been on the same path as Second Aunt and the others. The wild boar was chasing them. If it was an accident that we ended up on the same path while fleeing, and I had no choice but to run, I wouldn’t say anything. But to push me out to block the wild boar so you could escape—this is murder. This is premeditated. I won’t let Second Aunt go.” 

“You’re making her sound so bad. She is your Second Aunt, your real Second Aunt.” Zhu Laoda quickly played the emotional card.

If things were really as Qin Qingman had said, then those who had come to seek justice today would not only get nothing but might also find themselves in trouble.

No matter what, they could not let the accusation of Zhu Hongxia having committed murder stick.

Qin Qingman had already been bullied to her doorstep. How could she just let it go? Seeing the pleading look in Zhu Laoda’s eyes, she continued, “It didn’t snow yesterday, so the tracks on the mountain are still there. We can report it to the police, let them investigate the scene. They’ll be able to figure out if Second Aunt pushed me.”

“Do you think that’s possible? How could we know if you went up the mountain to fabricate evidence last night?” Liu Rong retorted with unreasonable insistence.

“Yes, it’s been a whole night. How do we know if you went up the mountain in the middle of the night? Some people have guns and aren’t afraid of wild animals.” someone else insinuated.

It was clear they were trying to drag Wei Ling into the mess.

With the waters muddied, some could evade responsibility, while others could take advantage of the confusion.

“Do you think the police are fools?” Qin Qingman looked at the person trying to drag Wei Ling into the situation, her smile calm but her tone anything but. “The police can trace the timeline of the tracks based on the evidence left behind. It’s not as simple as you think. If you don’t believe me, that’s fine. Here’s the deal: let’s all report it to the police. Let them investigate. I won’t take the blame for this wild boar incident. I can’t, and I won’t. If you don’t give me an explanation today, this matter is far from over.”

After saying this, Qin Qingman looked around at the growing crowd, all from Kaoshan Village.

When she saw Liu Sangunzi, his face bruised, she remembered how this guy had once bullied Chuchu.

She slightly raised an eyebrow and called out, “Liu Jun, could you please go get the village Security Chief and Women Association’s Director. Ask them to come and give me a fair judgement. We need to clear things up today.”

“Got it.”

Liu Sangunzi, whose full name was Liu Jun, froze for a moment before realizing that Qin Qingman was calling him.

He immediately put on a submissive smile and ran off, his speed fast but with a slight limp.

Wei Ling watched Liu Sangunzi’s retreating figure, a cold glint flashing in his eyes.

He recognized Liu Sangunzi.

The exchange between Qin Qingman and Liu Sangunzi seemed prearranged, and Qin Lei’s hand had only managed to rise in an attempt to stop it, but that was as far as it went.

Liu Rong, watching the situation spiral out of control, could only stare on helplessly.

The others who had come to stir up trouble stood there, looking as if they were in a difficult situation.

—o—o—o—