Chapter 41: Chapter 41: Beat to Death Chapter 41: Chapter 41: Beat to Death Chiang Xiao had never thought about slandering Chiang Baohe, but since he had confronted her first, and had cursed her and her mother so nastily, how could she bear it?
After her rebirth, she had vowed to seek revenge for grievances and make those responsible pay, no longer playing the kind-hearted and weak, especially towards those so-called relatives.
The words she yelled out were naturally loaded with deep meaning.
Indeed, the women in the village who hadn’t gone to work in the fields heard her screams.
Actually, the first to run out to witness the commotion were Song Xiyun and her son, Dongdong.
However, when this mother and son saw Chiang Baohe chasing Chiang Xiao, they had no intention of stepping in to protect her. Gripping Chiang Lidong’s hand, Song Xiyun watched with schadenfreude as Chiang Baohe chased the fleeing Chiang Xiao with a carrying pole and said, “Oh dear Laosan, Little Little is still sick; you need to be careful. If something bad happens, watch out she might demand compensation or eggs from you. Our family has no money.”
The Old Chiang Family had three sons and one daughter born to Ho Laidi; Song Xiyun’s husband, Chiang Baoguo, was the eldest, Laosan was Chiang Baohe, the third was a daughter named Chiang Qingshui, and the youngest, Chiang Yuequn, was only seventeen, just four years older than Chiang Xiao.
Both the eldest, Chiang Baoguo, and Laosan, Chiang Baohe, were not young anymore, but the Old Chiang Family had not yet split up the household.
As the head of the family, Chiang Songtao, supporting such a big family was no easy task, so for many years, he had only focused on hard work. With a reserved and reticent nature, he never really took raising the children seriously.
He managed farming and the field work, while Ho Laidi managed the household tasks, took care of pigs and chickens, and looked after a bunch of children.
The Old Chiang Family, supporting so many people, could indeed only ensure everyone had enough to eat, without anything extra to spare.
“Beating her to death would be for nothing, she’d dare to ask me for money?” Chiang Baohe gritted his teeth as he pursued Chiang Xiao.
Chiang Xiao ran clumsily along the village paths, calling out as she went.
Although she was putting on an act, it was truly perilous. She had just recovered from a fever, her body was still weak, and she had worn herself out by taking so many people to Nameless Creek earlier that morning.
Chiang Baohe, a strong and tall farmer used to working the land, quickly gained on her despite Chiang Xiao’s initial head start.
Several times, the carrying pole in Chiang Baohe’s hand nearly struck her back.
Chiang Xiao’s face was pale; she ran for her life, while still crying out, “Uncle Laosan, spare me! I won’t mention the sweet potato field matter to anyone if you ask! Help, save me!”
“You keep wailing, and if I catch you, I’ll beat you to death, you little wretch! Thinking you can trick me, and daring to run before I’ve even made a move!” In reality, Chiang Baohe hadn’t actually paid attention to why Chiang Xiao kept mentioning the sweet potato field.
What made him angry was that he had warned Chiang Xiao not to get close to Ji Desheng, but she had not listened and had run away!
Did that mean she was refusing him?
Would she rather be beaten by him and continue to seduce Ji Desheng?
Another point was, since she had run away, could he not chase her? This was almost an instinctual reflex; he hadn’t intended to hit her, but with her running and wailing, Chiang Baohe, looking at Chiang Xiao like a little lamb, felt his already twisted psyche becoming more warped.
Just beat her! Beat her to death!
This also gave him a strange sense of pleasure.
“What’s going on here?” When the neighbors heard Chiang Xiao’s dreadful screams, they couldn’t help but walk to their doors, only to see a skinny young girl running desperately past, with Old Chiang’s Laosan hot on her heels, swinging the carrying pole after her.
“Baohe, what are you doing?” someone shouted at Chiang Baohe.