Chapter Ten: The Broken Leg

That crimson gaze was so chilling that even Chen Shu, a veteran of many battles, felt a shiver of dread.

"Help me! Please, help! Qin Zhen's gone mad!"

Wang Wu’s thigh was gushing blood as he twisted and crawled desperately across the ground. All his usual arrogance and swagger had vanished, leaving nothing but naked terror.

"I didn’t do anything! I only slapped your wife a few times—now you want to kill me?!"

At those words, Chen Shu and Li Han instantly grasped what had happened. Wang Wu was infamous for climbing into other people’s homes uninvited—he must have bullied Liu Juan.

In a flash, Chen Shu’s eyes turned icy cold. Li Han, meanwhile, kicked Wang Wu squarely in the face and spat at him with a sneer. “You filthy dog! How dare you bully Sister-in-law Liu Juan? I’ll beat you to death!”

The commotion soon attracted the villagers. The old village chief hurried over, only to see Wang Wu being beaten like a dead dog, half a crowbar still embedded in his thigh, his life hanging by a thread. The sight filled the chief with horror—Chen the Constable was still in the village; if someone died, it would be disastrous!

“Stop! Stop this instant!” The old chief urgently motioned people to hold the men back as he plastered a smile on his face for Chen the Constable. “It’s just how country folk fight, sir, don’t take it to heart!”

Chen the Constable was a shrewd man, squinting as he replied with a grin, “Ah, country ways are rough and ready. Where I’m from, brawls are much the same. We’re all kin here—break a bone and the sinew still connects us!”

“Don’t hold me back!” Qin Zhen, eyes bloodshot, roared, “I’ll kill this beast today if it’s the last thing I do!”

He hoisted his shovel and swung it viciously at Wang Wu’s head.

Seeing this, Wang Wu scrambled and crawled to hide behind the old chief. After all, Wang Wu’s father had done much for the village; the chief could hardly let the son die before his eyes. With trembling arms, he hugged Qin Zhen tightly.

“Zhen, what happened? Must you resort to iron tools?”

At that moment, Liu Juan staggered out of the house, her clothes disheveled and her face streaked with tears—a sight that made every villager’s heart lurch.

With burning eyes, Qin Zhen recounted everything that had happened.

When the villagers heard Wang Wu had bullied Liu Juan, even the old chief trembled with rage. He turned and slapped Wang Wu hard across the face, scolding him fiercely.

“You animal! You deserve to die!”

“All of you owe my father your lives! The whole village is indebted to the Wang family!” Wang Wu, wild-eyed from the blow, suddenly shrieked, “How dare you hit me? I only slapped Liu Juan a few times! I didn’t even get what I wanted! Why are you bullying me for the sake of some outsider?!”

The old chief shook with grief, nearly collapsing.

Qin Zhen raised the crowbar. “Chief, enough talk—let me finish him!”

“Killing is a crime! You’ll end up in prison!” Wang Wu might be a beast, but Qin Zhen was a good lad. The chief hated Wang Wu’s deeds but would not let Qin Zhen’s future be ruined by them.

“Perhaps you should let me handle it?” After watching for some time, Chen the Constable finally stepped forward. “Assaulting a woman is a capital crime—the law says he should be executed in the public square. He’ll die anyway—why dirty your own hands?”

“No!” The old chief refused flatly. “We can’t destroy Liu Juan’s reputation!”

Liu Juan, pale as death, slumped to the ground. Her reputation was her most precious possession; if this became official, she’d rather die than live with that shame.

“That makes things difficult,” Chen the Constable mused. “I can hardly pretend I saw nothing, can I?”

Qin Zhen slipped a few silver ingots into his hand and signaled to Liu Quan.

Liu Quan immediately stepped forward, smiling. “Sir, the rabbit stew is ready and will spoil if it gets cold. Let’s go to the table, shall we?”

“Please, sir, don’t let me die!” Wang Wu, desperate, crawled over and banged his head at Chen the Constable’s feet.

Chen the Constable pocketed the silver, shot Wang Wu a look of disgust, and kicked him aside without a backward glance. He despised such creatures.

Now he had silver and could do a good deed—why not?

The old chief sighed with bitterness; he already knew what fate awaited Wang Wu. Hesitating, he finally clapped Qin Zhen on the shoulder. “His father did much for us—make it quick.”

The blame lay with Wang Wu alone.

The other villagers, cursing Wang Wu, gradually dispersed. A few aunts helped Liu Juan back inside, leaving only Qin Zhen and his companions around the trembling and despairing Wang Wu.

Qin Zhen’s heart ached at the sight of the shattered Liu Juan. Had he returned even a moment later, the consequences would have been unthinkable. That wretched beast!

“It’s getting late—the forest isn’t safe at night. Tie him up and we’ll drag him there in the morning.”

Qin Zhen wanted to kill Wang Wu on the spot, but at Chen Shu’s words, he relented. For a condemned man, those last hours before execution are the most excruciating.

Having bullied Liu Juan, Wang Wu would not be granted a quick death.

He raised the crowbar and smashed Wang Wu’s other leg to a bloody pulp.

Wang Wu’s howls echoed through the fields.

“Han, drag him farther away and tie him up—his screaming is giving me a headache!” With that, Qin Zhen strode back into the house.

“On it!” Li Han bound Wang Wu like a chicken and dragged him straight to the village entrance.

Once inside, after sending the aunts away, Qin Zhen sat on the edge of the bed.

He spoke softly to the devastated, sobbing Liu Juan.

“It’s over now.”

When she didn’t respond, he pulled a household registration record from his breast and handed it to her.

“The certificate is ready, Juan—now we’re truly family.”

Liu Juan’s heart broke; she collapsed into Qin Zhen’s arms, wailing.

“Zhen, I’m tainted!”

“Nonsense!” Qin Zhen pulled her into a fierce embrace. “I know you better than anyone. Think of it as being knocked over by a stray dog!”

“But inside, I still feel...soiled…”

He silenced her with a kiss before she could finish. She resisted at first, then yielded, her sobs turning to whimpers, until she fainted in his arms.

Qin Zhen made a silent vow.

“Don’t worry. From now on, no one will ever hurt you again.”

At dawn, Qin Zhen pulled on his trousers, slung his crowbar over his shoulder, and headed out.

Li Han greeted him with a grin. “Up early to kill a man, eh, Zhen?”

“To kill a cur.”

Qin Zhen’s face was grim. “Where did you tie the beast?”

“At the big tree at the village entrance,” Li Han said cheerfully, leading the way.

“What about Chen the Constable?” Qin Zhen asked.

“Quan said he drank a lot—still sleeping it off!” Li Han chuckled. “Don’t worry, the constable told us to drag the body far enough away. If he doesn’t see the corpse, he’ll just say a wild animal got him.”

“I’ll go alone—you don’t need to come.”

“Liu Juan is my sister-in-law too. If I don’t help, who will?” Li Han replied.

Together, they walked to the village entrance.

“Where is he?”

At the foot of the great tree, they found only shredded ropes, gnawed through by something with sharp teeth. The trunk was stained with blood, which had seeped into the earth, turning the ground crimson. All that remained was a severed leg—Wang Wu himself was nowhere to be found.

Li Han slapped his thigh. “Well, I’ll be! You think a wolf dragged him off to eat?”