Chapter 422: The Peasant Girl’s Splendid Manor
Chapter 422: Shameless Retaliation (4)
Mo Yan was thoroughly fed up. Faced with such a ruffian, besides giving them a beating and warning them not to cause trouble again, what else could she do?
However, if she were to really beat up Wang's family, everyone in the village would probably know she was behind it. If Wang's family persisted, the situation would only get messier.
Others hearing about the situation found Wang's family increasingly despicable. Some even wished to spend money to bribe officials and have Wang's family thrown into jail, preventing them from causing harm again.
Just as everyone was distressed, Tang Xin suddenly spoke up, "Why don't we let Xiao Hua and Da Bai scare Wang's family tonight? Wang's family keeps a lot of chickens. If a few are bitten to death and left behind, people in the village will think it's retribution for their misdeeds. Wang's family will also be more fearful! If once is not enough, we can do it several times. Wang's family will be so scared they won't dare to cause trouble again."
"Good idea! Big sister, let's do this!" Zhen'er exclaimed excitedly, clapping his hands and being the first to agree. The Wang family was so annoying; biting a few of their chickens would be revenge enough.
Xin'er and the others all looked at Mo Yan, though they didn't speak, their agreement with Tang Xin's proposal was evident on their faces.
Despite the eager gazes of the children, Mo Yan didn't grant their wish. She simply sent them off to play.
The disappointed children left reluctantly. No one dared to argue, but their disappointment was clear.
Mo Yan found their reaction amusing, shaking her head without saying anything. These children hadn't fully formed their sense of right and wrong yet. If she agreed in front of them today, they might act recklessly in the future, relying on the fierce animals at home.
---
The next day, news about a major incident involving the Wang family spread like wildfire throughout Liuyang Village. As the Wang family members hadn't walked far from their house, villagers immediately started gossiping:
"Hey, this is really strange. Those beasts came down the mountain and only bit Wang's chickens. They didn't take them away. Maybe it's payback for Wang Dali stirring up trouble last time."
"It might not be. But the Wang family sure has had some bad luck. They kept those chickens for laying eggs, only to have them ruined by wild animals."
"If it were just a few dead chickens, that would be one thing, just a loss of money. But those dead chickens were neatly lined up at Wang's gate, facing west. It's ominous. Who knows what else might follow!"
"Hmph, do you really think those chickens were attacked by wild animals? If it were truly wild animals, would they arrange the dead chickens like that? Maybe the Wang family offended some deity and this is divine retribution!"
Hearing this discussion, a chill ran down the spines of the listeners. The incident at the Wang family's was indeed eerie and terrifying. No matter how they guessed, they couldn't figure out what had attacked the chickens. Moreover, they harbored another layer of worry.
"If it's true that the Wang family offended some deity and this is their punishment, then that's fine. But if wild animals really came down from the mountain, who knows if they'll come back? If they do, our chickens might be in danger too."
"It shouldn't happen. If it were really wild animals, they would be intelligent creatures. As long as we don't offend them, they shouldn't bother us. We just need to be careful when going into the mountains in the future and avoid provoking them."
Everyone nodded in agreement, burying their fear and worries about wild animals slowly dissipated.
After wandering around the village, Zhen'er returned excitedly, having heard all sorts of speculations. He held hands with his siblings, joyfully running back home to share the news, clearly enjoying the misfortune of the Wang family.
Finally, Zhen'er stared at Mo Yan with admiration, cautiously asking, "Big sister, did you send Xiao Hua and them to do this?"
Mo Yan continued wrapping dumplings swiftly, not looking up. "You're thinking too much. Xiao Hua and them don't understand to arrange dead chickens facing west."
Zhen'er didn't believe her, pouting. "Xiao Hua and Da Bai are smart! If Big Sister told them, they could definitely do it."
Mo Yan lazily ignored him, sending Zhen'er off to study in the study.
Without a definitive answer, when Zhen'er wanted to ask again, Yun Zhao pulled him away.
Xin'er, while rolling out dough, whispered to Mo Yan, "Sister, it was Xiao Hua and them, right?"
Li Xiu and Tang Xin also perked their ears to listen.
Mo Yan's lips curled into a smile, neither confirming nor denying, but she was already planning to reward Xiaohua with a roasted chicken later that night.
Ignoring the village's lively discussions, with such an ominous and terrifying incident happening, the Wang family members themselves were scared witless. They hastily made chicken coops from wood and prepared to keep the chickens in their living room, not daring to cause any more trouble for Mo's family.
Yang Bao was concerned about wild animals entering the village and attacking Wang's chickens, so he personally visited Wang's family. He searched around but found no trace of wild animal footprints, unable to confirm if it was indeed the work of wild animals.
Nevertheless, to be safe, he decided to reorganize the disbanded patrol team from a few days ago and increase patrols every night.
Since the Lunar New Year was approaching in a few days, and with no wild animals having entered the village before, the patrol team formed by the village had disbanded. The dozen or so local dogs that Xiao Hua had driven back home were also sent back home. Though something had happened to the Wang family, no one blamed Mo's family for this incident.
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