Chapter Nine: Murder

"Wow—"

"You still think you can hit me? I’ll beat you, I’ll beat you to death!" In no time, the group of children was tangled together. Gou Dan was pushed to the ground, and Cen Hai, terrified, could do nothing but wail.

When Mrs. Wu came out wielding a butcher's knife, she saw her own son pinned beneath the hefty Tian family boy from next door, being pummeled. Her eldest was lying on the ground, his eyes turning crimson with rage.

"You little brat from the Tian family, how dare you hit my son and cause trouble here! See if I don’t beat you to death today!" Mrs. Wu was beside herself with fury. The older ones shamelessly came to steal the family’s pork, now the younger ones were here to beat her child—did the Lin family appear to have no one left to stand up for them?

"Go ahead, hit me if you dare! My grandmother and my father won’t let you get away with this!" Tian Youfu shouted defiantly while the other boys who'd come with him quickly scattered, sensing the tide had turned. Even as Mrs. Wu grabbed Tian Youfu and landed several hard smacks on his backside, he kept yelling, "Just you wait! My grandmother, my grandmother!"

Tian Youfu’s cries were so loud that little Cen Hai stopped crying and stared in awe at his formidable aunt. But before he could fully process what he’d witnessed—

"You Lin family wretch, how dare you bully my eldest grandson! I’ll kill you—kill you, you shameless woman!" Old Mrs. Tian suddenly appeared, brandishing a battered broom from who knows where, and charged at Mrs. Wu. Unable to dodge, Mrs. Wu took a few blows before shoving Tian Youfu aside and grappling with Old Mrs. Tian.

"You old hag, I’ve tolerated you long enough! Stirring up trouble for us every chance you get, even egging your grandson on to bully my Gou Dan. If I don’t teach you a lesson today, you’ll really think I’m afraid of you!" Mrs. Wu knew full well that the old woman had been lurking nearby, instigating her grandson to pick on Gou Dan and Little Wolf. Seeing her own grandson struck was apparently more than she could bear.

Meanwhile, in the main house, Old Madam Lin was discussing arrangements for her granddaughter’s (or rather, her granddaughter by marriage) full-month celebration with Madam Meng. For these two grandmothers, Fubao’s coming-of-age was of utmost importance; they agreed the festivities must be lavish, inviting not only the Lin family’s kin and neighbors but all of the Meng family’s friends and relatives as well. Money was no object for the Mengs.

They were deep into planning the banquet’s formalities when suddenly, a Lin family aunt burst in, breathless.

"Sister-in-law, something’s happened! Your eldest daughter-in-law is fighting with old Mrs. Tian again—no one can break them up. You’d better come quickly!"

"What? Who’s fighting with whom?" Old Madam Lin demanded.

"Old Mrs. Tian," repeated the messenger.

"Pfah! That old witch is truly incorrigible, picking fights day after day. Does she really think the Lin family has no one left? I’ll show her today!" Old Madam Lin stormed out, grabbing the longest stick at hand, and followed her kinswoman out—ready to settle the score.

Madam Meng watched Old Madam Lin march out, weapon in hand.

"...Will that thing really not kill someone?"

At the gate, the brawl between Mrs. Wu and Old Mrs. Tian was still raging, with neighbors trying in vain to separate them. Just as the chaos peaked—

"Enough! All of you, stop this instant!" Old Madam Lin’s commanding roar brought the melee to a sudden halt.

"You old witch, come here and face me!" Old Madam Lin charged over, iron rod in hand.

At the sight of what Old Madam Lin was wielding—a massive iron club, spiked for good measure—the crowd scattered in terror. Even little Cen Hai, who had been crying nonstop, was yanked away by Little Wolf. Sensing imminent danger, Old Mrs. Tian turned to find Old Madam Lin bearing down on her with the spiked club.

"Help! The Lin family is going to kill me!" Old Mrs. Tian, suddenly possessed of remarkable speed for someone her age, took off at a sprint, with Old Madam Lin in hot pursuit.

The entire village witnessed this extraordinary sight: Old Mrs. Tian fleeing for her life, Old Madam Lin chasing after her relentlessly. One running, the other chasing, neither slowing for a moment.

In the end, it was only when Gou Dan fetched the village chief, Lin Erde, that Old Mrs. Tian was spared.

"Erde, you have to stand up for me! The Lin family is trying to kill me! They want to murder me, ooooh!" Old Mrs. Tian clung to the chief as if he were her last lifeline, launching straight into her complaints against Old Madam Lin.

The chief could only sigh helplessly.

"Really, Old Witch—ah, I mean, Mrs. Tian—what trouble have you gotten yourself into this time?" The village chief nearly let his true feelings slip.

"That’s not fair, Chief! It was the Lin family bullying my grandson, not the other way around! Why are you blaming me? And now that Old Madam Lin’s tried to kill me, you must stand up for me! You can’t play favorites just because you’re related!"

The chief’s patience was wearing thin. What a foolish woman...

"Playing favorites, am I? Fine! Since you insist, let’s get to the bottom of this. We’ll find out exactly what happened today." The chief, clearly displeased, called the children over. "Come here, Gou Dan, Little Wolf, Cen Hai, and... that Tian boy, too—all of you!"

"My name’s not ‘that Tian boy,’ it’s Tian Youfu," the child protested.

"Whether you’re Tian Youfu or Tian Fatty, I’m asking the questions now. All of you, tell me exactly what happened today," the chief said sternly.

"But will there be candy if we answer?" Little Cen Hai asked with wide, sparkling eyes.

The chief nearly lost his composure.

He looked down into several pairs of innocent, expectant eyes.

In the end, it was the Tian family’s shopkeeper, Tian Zhen, who dragged home his trembling wife and his eldest grandson, whose mouth was still full of sticky candy—thus, the matter was put to rest.

After sending the Tian family on their way, the village chief heaved a deep sigh.

That old Mrs. Tian was truly exhausting—he felt utterly drained.