Er Hei's mother exploded, her thick, short legs kicking furiously at the fence gate, knocking it down in a few swift movements.
"You little slut, I'll teach you today what you can and cannot say. You black-hearted wretch, you cursed my son, I'll scratch you to death." Er Hei's mother yelled, waving her claws.
Qi Zhenzhen, however, was not about to let herself be scratched. She dodged nimbly, and Er Hei's mother couldn't even touch her.
After all the commotion, Qi Zhenzhen's face was not flushed and her heart was not pounding. Er Hei's mother, on the other hand, was panting heavily, looking as pathetic as a defeated rooster.
"With no skill at all, have you come here to embarrass yourself?" Qi Zhenzhen whispered into Er Hei's mother's ear.
This remark was like a stimulant. Er Hei's mother let out a yelp and lunged at Qi Zhenzhen again.
Qi Zhenzhen stepped back, and for some reason, suddenly squatted down.
To outsiders watching, it looked as if Er Hei's mother had knocked Qi Zhenzhen down.
"Nonsense, Ding Cheng's wife, what are you doing?" a stern voice rang out.
Er Hei's mother turned around and saw the village head standing there with his hands behind his back, looking furious.
She quickly got up and said ingratiatingly, "It's just that my Er Hei is injured, I came to ask what happened."
"Is this how you ask questions? I think you're clearly beating someone!" The village head glanced at everyone. "You few, are you just going to stand by and watch Ding Cheng's wife bully someone?"
"It's just that Er Hei's mother moved too fast, we couldn't stop her!"
"Exactly, exactly..."
The people who had come with Er Hei's mother said.
The village head glared at them. "I'll settle this with you later. Hurry up and help the Qi family's young lady up!"
Two young wives quickly ran forward to help Qi Zhenzhen up.
Qi Zhenzhen's face was now covered in tears, her small face looking timid and frightened.
The village head felt a pang of guilt. Life was already hard enough for orphans and widows. With Yun Shi sick, this young girl was the only one holding the family together. Now, with so many people gathered at their doorstep, who wouldn't be scared? Er Hei's mother had also hit someone earlier.
"Qi family's girl, don't be afraid..." The village head wanted to comfort Qi Zhenzhen.
Qi Zhenzhen glanced at the village head, then quickly averted her eyes, clearly appearing to be afraid of him too.
The village head had a granddaughter of similar age to Qi Zhenzhen. She was usually very lively, unlike this girl, who was timid and even looked at him cautiously.
How pitiful.
"Zhenzhen, tell me, what happened?" The village head tried to soften his voice.
Qi Zhenzhen looked fearfully at Er Hei's mother and took a step back.
"Don't be afraid, I'm here. Just say what you need to say, you don't need to fear anyone," the village head said, gently patting Qi Zhenzhen's shoulder.
"Er Hei's mother cursed, and she kicked our door down," Qi Zhenzhen said softly.
"Ding Cheng's wife, what's the difference between you and bandits or robbers? Since Yun Shi and her son have settled in Xinghua Village, we are all villagers. If you bully people like this, how will outsiders see Xinghua Village when word gets out?" the village head chided with a frown. "If you implicate the village's reputation, can you bear the consequences?"
In ancient times, reputation was highly valued. Personal reputation, family reputation, and village reputation were all considered important, in that order.
As the village head, he naturally wanted outsiders to think of Xinghua Village as prosperous and united. He didn't want people to frown and say, "Is that the village with so many shrewish women?"
How embarrassing would that be? How could he, as the village head, hold his head up among the heads of other villages?
Er Hei's mother shrunk her neck. Although a little scared, she felt she was in the right. Moreover, the Ding family were natives of the village. The village head couldn't truly protect outsiders, could he?
With this thought, Er Hei's mother pulled Er Hei over. "Village head, look how Er Hei was beaten. As a mother, seeing my son like this, how can I not be heartbroken? In my haste, I brought people here."
This implied that her son's condition was inextricably linked to Qi Zhenzhen.
The village head did not believe Er Hei's mother.
It was laughable. The Qi family's girl was thin, weak, and timid. Er Hei, this boy, was sturdy, taller than the girl, bigger than the girl, and strong enough to be split in two. How could the Qi family's girl possibly overpower him?
"Ding Cheng's wife, do you think I'm old and easy to fool?" the village head was extremely annoyed.
Er Hei's mother waved her hands. "How could that be! Although Er Hei wasn't hit by this girl, it's not unrelated to her. At such a young age, she hasn't learned anything good, she's learned from her seductive mother, hooking up with people! Our Er Hei was beaten like this by someone she enticed!"
Er Hei's mother was very angry. Her precious son was beaten like this, and it pained her to death.
Yun Shi was beautiful, gentle, and possessed an aura that village women lacked.
Village men had no reservations and would often say a few words about Yun Shi when they gathered. When couples argued, they would even compare their wives to Yun Shi in anger. Thus, Yun Shi did not have a good impression among most women. They spoke ill of her.