Chapter 205: Revenge

When a dog is cornered, it will even jump over walls. Knowing that their true nature had been exposed, these people feared that they would be thoroughly defeated, and a violent confrontation became inevitable.

Those with knives were determined to fight for their lives. They had no choice but to run, dodging arrows if necessary, and made for the direction where women and children were gathered.

Several knife-wielders scattered, and seeing the women and children scream, howl, and flee in panic, they were met with something unexpected today—none of them fled or were afraid. He targeted the two soft targets, two girls who looked around ten years old.

Yet, those young girls looked at him with eyes full of fierce determination. It was as if they saw their prey.

The weapons they had acquired from the rebel forces, which had been so effective outside, were useless here. Before he could even swing his knife, those two children and another young lad had grabbed long wooden staffs and charged at him.

Wooden staffs? What use could they be?

In the past, he could have easily snatched and taken them away. But today, the three kids wielding those staffs had such strength that he couldn’t grasp them. Like nimble snakes, the staffs came at him from different angles, making him duck and jump in agony. He was battered so badly that he could barely hold onto his knife, which was eventually knocked from his grasp. He was struck heavily on his shoulders and legs, and with a sharp pain in his knee, he fell to the ground, unable to rise as the staffs continued to hit him.

They had turned the tables. He, who had wielded the knife, was now the one being beaten.

How could this happen???

—

Forty-seven people.

Nineteen had arrow wounds, and eleven or twelve, who had tried to resist or escape, were knocked down by the clubs. The remaining few, including women and those who had already been cowed, were all bound.

The Zheng family’s mood was clearly off. Recalling that Zheng Daniu had suffered in the county and with Shen Lie’s own grudge against the Zheng family, everyone from both villages watched Shen Lie and the Zheng father and son closely.

Shen Lie, unfazed, directly asked Shen Jin, “Do you want to handle it yourself or should I help?”

Shen Jin, though trembling, firmly took the knife from Shen Lie’s hand, “I’ll do it myself.”

Shen Lie noticed how tense Shen Jin was and patted him on the head, “Alright. No need to do it here. I’ll teach you later.”

He glanced at the four brothers who were bound, treating them as if they were already dead.

On Butcher Zheng’s side, his eyes were bloodshot, and he still held a bloodied butcher’s knife. Zheng Dalang looked at his father and said, “Father, call out my sister. She needs to identify the enemies, and she should witness this revenge.”

Otherwise, his sister would never be free from this torment.

Butcher Zheng understood this too. To help his daughter escape that nightmare, it was probably the only way. He nodded and looked at Zheng Erlang, “Go, bring your mother and sister here.”

—

After delivering medicine, this was the first time Sang Luo had seen Zheng Daniu.

She rarely came over. Zheng Daniu was in poor condition and seldom left her room. Of the few times she had come, they had never crossed paths. Sang Luo only knew that Zheng Daniu’s fever had subsided.

Now, seeing her, Sang Luo noticed Zheng Daniu appeared to be in a dazed state, holding a straw pillow tightly in her arms. She was being supported out by her mother and sister-in-law. When she saw the bound prisoners outside, Zheng Daniu showed no reaction, her entire focus remained on the straw pillow she held.

Butcher Zheng stepped forward, intending to pull his daughter closer, but with his hand still holding a bloodied knife, he had to stop himself. “Daniu, come and see who this is.”

He walked a few steps closer to the bound woman. The woman’s leg was hacked nearly in half, with only a small part still attached. The pain was so intense that she wished she could faint, but she remained conscious, drenched in cold sweat, her whole body soaked as if she had been submerged in water.

Butcher Zheng pulled her hair back to reveal her full face for his daughter to see.

Zheng Daniu continued to cradle the straw pillow in her arms, but Zheng’s mother recognized the woman first. She tightened her grip on Zheng Daniu, causing her pain. Zheng Daniu instinctively glanced at her mother and then followed her gaze.

At first, her eyes were blank. But once she recognized the woman, her pupils constricted sharply, and she recoiled in horror. Her expression changed abruptly as she clung tightly to the straw pillow, retreating and crying out for her parents and older brother.

Zheng Erlang, with reddened eyes, held Zheng Daniu, saying, “Daniu, don’t be afraid. We’re all here. Tell Second Brother, who harmed Yuan Niang? Who cut your flesh?”

“Yuan Niang, Yuan Niang,” Zheng Daniu cried, clutching the straw pillow and trying to hide behind Zheng Erlang. She shook her head repeatedly, “Don’t hurt Yuan Niang, don’t hurt Yuan Niang.”

She didn’t seem to hear her brother’s words at all.

Zheng Erlang turned her around, saying, “No one will harm you. Father and Mother are here, and so is Brother. Tell me who harmed you?”

Zheng Daniu sobbed uncontrollably, burying her face in Zheng Erlang’s chest, crying out for Second Brother.

Seeing that she was less terrified than before, Zheng Erlang cautiously led her closer to the woman, “Don’t be afraid. Brother will avenge you and Yuan Niang. Just tell me who was responsible.”

As Zheng Erlang brought Zheng Daniu closer, the woman’s fear grew. She had no idea that Zheng Daniu was still alive—how could she be alive? Wasn’t she supposed to have been…

The woman’s breathing was rapid until she met Zheng Daniu’s gaze. Zheng Daniu, with a quivering chin, pointed at her and said, “She—she’s the one who took Yuan Niang away. They cut me with a knife. My Yuan Niang, my Yuan Niang.”

Zheng Daniu clutched the straw pillow tightly, wrapping her arms around herself. “My arms hurt, Brother, my arms hurt, my legs hurt.”

The woman shook her head repeatedly, speaking to Butcher Zheng, his family, and even villagers she didn’t know. “Zheng Daniu is mad. How can you believe a mad person? How can you take mad ramblings seriously?”

Butcher Zheng kicked her, his eyes reddened, and asked his daughter, “Daniu, are you sure? Is there anyone else among them?”

Together with Zheng Dalang, the father and son dragged each of the bound captives by their hair, lifting their faces for Zheng Daniu to see. Most of the people, once lifted, looked indifferent. Only three men in the second row stubbornly refused to raise their heads. Butcher Zheng had to kick them several times before they lost their strength and were dragged up like dead fish.

Zheng Daniu, seeing the faces of the three men, first trembled and retreated, clutching her collar. Then, realizing that the men were bound and kneeling, she felt less fear but more anger. Summoning unknown strength, she lunged forward and snatched the slaughtering knife from her father’s hand.

The onlookers, including Sang Luo, didn’t react quickly enough. Zheng Daniu had already attacked those men.

All her fear, pain, breakdown, and despair seemed to find an outlet in the repeated swings of the knife. Accompanying the flashing blade were sounds of anguished cries. Her muffled curses were barely discernible, but it was clear she was shouting about Yuan Niang and livestock.

Shen Ning, Xu Wenyin, and the others were startled and retreated, hiding behind the human wall, afraid to look. Shen An, Xu Wenbo, Er Niu, and Zhou Silang, the younger ones, also took a step back, frightened.

Sang Luo vaguely guessed what was happening and felt a heavy sadness, turning her eyes away, unable to bear the sight or the sounds.

No one stopped Zheng Daniu because most could guess what had occurred. In this world, how many Zheng Daniu and their children were there? These people were just lucky to escape such a dreadful fate by fleeing into the mountains.

The Zheng family did not stop her either. Butcher Zheng waited until his daughter was exhausted and had dropped the knife before he went over and hugged her with one arm.

Seeing how brutally their three companions and the woman they had been keeping were killed, more than forty bound people felt terrorized. Two of them wet themselves in fear, and despite their past misdeeds and courage, they became weak and collapsed on the spot. Outside the village, only Zheng Daniu’s anguished cries, as she sobbed in her father’s embrace, could be heard, her cries hoarse and desperate.

But this crying made Zheng’s mother and Zheng Dalang’s wife look on with some hope. Since rescuing the people, they had never seen her cry like this, as if she wished she could huddle in the corner of the bed with her straw pillow every day, shrinking into her own world.

Zheng’s mother approached cautiously and called out, “Daniu?”

Zheng Daniu looked toward her mother, then her sister-in-law, elder brother, and second brother, one by one, as if seeing her family for the first time. Her gaze finally fell on her father’s empty sleeve. As her fragmented memories pieced together, she clutched the empty sleeve and cried silently.

……

The elderly Feng family members saw that Zheng Daniu’s eyes had cleared up. After the family had embraced and cried together, they stepped forward and asked Shen Lie, “How should we deal with those few?”

By “those few,” they naturally meant the four brothers who had harmed Tianya.

Shen Jin stared blankly at Zheng Daniu and the pool of blood for a while, his body trembling, his hand holding the knife shaking, and his heart torn between conflicting emotions.

He was both shocked and impressed by Zheng Daniu’s swift and decisive vengeance, but he did not have the same courage.

Seeing Shen Jin’s reaction, Shen Lie said to the elderly Feng family members, “These people are responsible for countless deaths. We can’t keep any of them. Let’s deal with them all.”

The elders of the Feng family nodded, but they were momentarily at a loss about how to handle the situation.

Ultimately, they were ordinary people. They had killed animals before, but to turn their hands against unfamiliar people was another matter, and it made their hands tremble a bit.

Seeing their hesitation, Shen Lie understood and said, “There’s no need to struggle with this. Such people don’t deserve to dirty our hands. I’ll handle it. You just need to send a few strong men to help me with the prisoners.”

Without needing the elders to point them out, young men from the Feng family, the Zhou family, the Gan family, the Zheng family, and even Dong Ge’er’s older brother all stepped forward.

The Zheng brothers went back and brought some vine ropes and wooden sticks for dragging. They also brought two mats for drying. They would handle the dead themselves. The living had already had their weapons taken by Xu Wenqing and his group. Now they were tightly bound, strung together with a single rope, waiting only for Shen Lie’s orders.

Shen Lie looked at Chen Dashan and said, “You take everyone back first. I’ll go outside with Xiao Jin and Wenqing.”

Chen Dashan nodded, “Alright, I’ll take everyone back.”

The young ones had to witness some bloodshed, but it was almost time for that to end. For the younger ones, Xiao Jin needed to avenge personally, while Shen Lie clearly planned to use Xu Wenqing for training.

Shen Lie glanced at Sang Luo, who had guessed what he was planning and reminded him, “It’s quite bloody. Be careful.”

“Don’t worry, go back and rest. I’ll be back soon.”

……

There was a short stretch of road that overlapped with the path they had taken, and the villagers were seeing them off. Thus, a large group left the vicinity of the Zhou family’s village. However, after walking a short distance, Shen Lie, who was leading, stopped.

In the distance, he noticed a thicket of trees to his right.

The people behind the trees, aware they had been spotted, emerged one by one, about seventeen or eighteen young men and boys wielding axes and long sticks.

Shen Lie looked at them, recognizing many of them. A number had been seen running behind them at a distance every morning and quietly watching their training from afar.

Their side was indeed quite bloody, and Shen Lie remarked, “They’re not good people. Who knows how many lives they’ve taken to get this close.”

In other words, they weren’t acting without reason.

The leader of the group of men, flustered, almost stuttered: “No, no, it’s not like that. We just wanted to see if you needed our help.”

Shen Lie smiled. “No need, but thank you.”

The man chuckled awkwardly. “We didn’t really help, no need for thanks.”

The younger group of men and boys were visibly excited, though they understood Shen Lie had serious business. A couple of the bolder ones said, “Can we help escort them?”

Forty-odd people.

Shen Lie glanced at the two young men, thought for a moment, and nodded. “Alright, I appreciate it.”

The two young men were thrilled, and several others of similar age stepped forward as well. “We’ll help too.”

Having six or seven more helpers was certainly a good thing. At the fork in the road, Sang Luo exchanged a few words with Shen Lie and then prepared to follow Chen Dashan and the others.

As Sang Luo approached, the group called out in unison, “Madam Sang,” bending slightly.

Sang Luo was taken aback and could only nod in response. “Thank you for your hard work.”

……

The forty-odd people were pushed, dragged, and whipped into the remote old forest, most of them bearing arrow wounds. In the snowy weather, the pristine white snow was dotted with bright red blood.

On a winter morning, after days of snowfall, the sun finally appeared, but it brought no warmth, only its presence. Inside the old forest, sunlight barely reached, and the cold penetrated to the bone.

After Shen Lie surveyed the area and chose a good spot, those who had been holding out were now terrified. They knelt, kowtowing and begging. The few women inside had lost all restraint and were speaking out.

Shen Lie’s expression remained unchanged. He first pulled out the oldest of Shen Jin’s four enemies, waved for Shen Jin to come over, and without waiting for Shen Jin to see clearly, efficiently disabled the man’s hands and feet.

The man screamed in agony and cold sweat, but Shen Lie didn’t spare him a glance. Instead, he asked Shen Jin, “Remember this location?”

“You can take revenge like Zheng Daniu did, but if you’re not used to that, this will do. In this old forest, even in the dead of winter, the wild beasts are starved and fierce.”

Shen Jin’s breathing grew heavy as he recalled the sight of Tianya, who had been so silent when found outside the county. His jaw tightened, and after a moment, he relaxed and said, “Got it. I’ll handle those three myself.”

Shen Lie stood up, and Xu Wenqing understood the situation, helping Shen Jin to restrain each person.

For each one Shen Jin dealt with, Shen Lie sent another up.

The forest was filled with screams, and the thirty or so people left were nearly driven mad by the scene. Among the escorting group, except for the few who had voluntarily joined, none showed any sign of cowardice.

They had confiscated a lot of weapons, including several knives, axes, and hoes. At this point, they didn’t care what they used, as long as it served their purpose.

The young men who had voluntarily come to help were somewhat nervous, but having listened from behind the trees in the morning, they knew who these people were. The most feared were these evil men, so the older ones gritted their teeth, steeled their courage, and stepped forward.

The forest was filled with screams, echoing one after another. Those who had been powerful and domineering on the outskirts for months, who had raided, robbed, and killed, had come into the inner area seeking new targets. Little did they expect that upon entering, they would encounter their first wave of people and have their lives taken.

They met their end in such a terrifying manner, sprawled in the icy wilderness, with the entire forest filled with a thick smell of blood. Yet, they were still alive.

Still alive.

The sound of beasts roaring grew closer and closer, one roar after another.

At this point, they wished for nothing more than to die quickly from loss of blood, freezing to death, or even being scared to death—anything would be better than being torn apart while still conscious.

But they had no choice. Apart from the stench of blood, another, different kind of foul wind was already sweeping in.

In their final moments, their eyes flashed with the faces of those who had once been desperate and terrified under their knives.

And at the very end, their own faces overlapped with those they had tormented.

……

Snow began to fall again, and with a good snowfall, the world would return to its peaceful and clean state.