Chapter 24: Who Was Actually Taken Away by Force

Upon hearing this, Xiao Heshuo struck Father Yan squarely in the face with a ferocious punch. "Speak! Where are those outsiders from?"

The force of the blow sent Father Yan flying, and he landed heavily on the ground.

"My child's father!" Zhang Juhua cried out, lunging toward him before snarling at Xiao Heshuo, "What kind of nonsense are you... ah!"

Xiao Heshuo grabbed her by the hair and kicked her hard in the stomach. "Not going to tell the truth, are you?"

The kick was so violent that Zhang Juhua vomited bile, and for the first time, she felt genuine terror.

"No, no, no!"

She shook her head vigorously while coughing, "Village Chief, help! Xiao Heshuo is trying to beat us to death!"

Village Chief Luo acted as if he saw nothing. He organized the villagers to pursue the outsiders, shouting, "Catch them and beat them mercilessly, but make sure they stay alive long enough to be handed over to the Public Security Bureau!"

A large crowd of villagers, after confirming the direction from Miao Lanlan, dashed off to hunt down the strangers.

"Village Chief, those outsiders are indeed gone from the main room!" a villager shouted as he ran over, his voice filled with rage. "I just checked; they climbed out through the window."

"The door was left only slightly ajar; we have no idea when they slipped out."

Village Chief Luo’s expression darkened as if he had swallowed something foul. "Xiao Heshuo, save Yan Ziyue first. We will settle the score with this family later!"

The village could no longer tolerate this family. Keeping these subhuman creatures around would only bring further disaster upon the community.

Xiao Heshuo stopped pummeling Father Yan and Zhang Juhua, his face cold as frost. "Yan Zhuangshi, Zhang Juhua, if Yan Ziyue loses so much as a single strand of hair, I will make sure you understand the consequences!"

"You—you are breaking the law! I’ll report you!" Zhang Juhua threatened, her bravado paper-thin.

Xiao Heshuo sneered, "Report me! By all means, go ahead!"

"We’ll see whether the police arrest you and Yan Zhuangshi, or me!"

Zhang Juhua didn't actually dare to report him; she was merely trying to use the threat to intimidate him. "You, you... I’m telling you, this isn't over!"

Yan Ziyue had already been sold to someone in the remote mountains as a wife; even if the villagers chased after them, they wouldn't find them. As long as she refused to admit anything, no one could do a thing to her.

Xiao Heshuo’s eyes sharpened like blades. He said with a sinister chill, "It’s better that it’s not over."

"I have plenty of time and ways to settle this account with you slowly."

Zhang Juhua was nearly frightened out of her wits and did not dare say another word.

***

Xiao Heshuo said no more and turned to find Yan Ziyue.

Just then, Yan Ziyue rushed into his arms, weeping: "Husband, I was so scared!"

Her hair was a mess, her clothes were rumpled, and there were several bloody scratches on her arms. She looked absolutely wretched.

"Yan Ziyue, are you alright?" Xiao Heshuo pulled her close to inspect her.

When he saw the wounds on her arms, a fierce, murderous aura erupted from his dark eyes. "Where did these injuries come from?"

Yan Ziyue sobbed pitifully, "I was just heading home to use the restroom."

"Who knew that halfway there, several men and women would suddenly jump out... I don't know them, but I could tell just by looking that they weren't from our village."

"Without a word, they rushed over and started dragging me, claiming I was a wife they had paid a high price for and that I had to go with them."

She deliberately displayed her wounds to the surrounding villagers. "How could I, on my own, struggle against so many of them?"

"Just as I was about to be forcibly dragged away, Zhang Qingqing appeared from somewhere and started making sarcastic remarks from the sidelines."

"In a fit of rage, I kicked one of them where it hurts, and while they were stunned, I ran back to find you."

She had indeed encountered those outsiders, but she hadn't been alone; she had been standing with Sister Miao and the others. When those men tried to grab her, Sister Miao's group had beaten them until they fled in terror. They had indeed shouted that she was a wife they had bought.

She finally understood what her deadbeat father and his wife were planning.

A cold, ruthless glint filled Yan Ziyue’s eyes. She had truly underestimated them—they were actually trying to sell her off to the mountains as a wife.

Her account caused an immediate uproar.

"What?! The Yan family is too wicked! Yan Ziyue is already married, and they still tried to sell her!"

"I was wondering why the Yan family had been so gleeful these past two days; so they were selling their daughter for money! Such heartless animals!"

"Poor Yan Ziyue. Constantly schemed against and exploited by her own father, and now he even wants to sell her."

Xiao Heshuo was overcome with heartache.

He shielded Yan Ziyue and kicked Yan Zhuangshi and Zhang Juhua hard. "Human trafficking is a capital offense."

"Since your family is so eager to face the firing squad, I will make sure you get your wish!"

Upon hearing the words "firing squad," Yan Zhuangshi and Zhang Juhua turned deathly pale, shaking like leaves.

***

"Yan Ziyue, you wicked child, what are you spouting? That never happened! I think you're just trying to ruin my reputation!"

"Where is Qingqing? Where is she? Yan Ziyue, did you intentionally harm your sister and then come here to act innocent?"

Yan Ziyue listened with a face full of fury.

She knelt before Village Chief Luo, sobbing, "Village Chief, I want to sever all ties with the Yan family!"

"If this continues, I will truly be killed by them!"

She clenched her hands. "Also, I want to relocate my mother's grave to prevent this vicious family from ever desecrating it."

Village Chief Luo helped her up, his expression full of pity. "Very well, I will handle both matters for you."

He glanced at the villagers.

The villagers swarmed toward Father Yan and Zhang Juhua, beating and cursing them fiercely. "You dog-hearted wretches! We should beat you to death today for being so vicious!"

Father Yan and Zhang Juhua shrieked in agony, still desperately denying that they had sold Yan Ziyue. Both of them knew clearly that they could never admit to this.

"Yan Ziyue is my daughter; what business is it of you outsiders?" Father Yan bellowed.

Village Chief Luo sneered, "Even if Ziyue is your daughter, selling her is a crime."

"Do you think you can just sell your daughter because she belongs to you?"

"The law of the land states clearly: regardless of whether it is your own child, human trafficking is punishable by death."

"Just wait for the firing squad!"

Father Yan refused to believe him. In his mind, his daughter was his private property; he could do whatever he wanted with her, and the law had no say in his affairs.

"Village Chief, stop talking nonsense!"

Village Chief Luo couldn't be bothered to argue further. He said kindly to Yan Ziyue, "I think we should take advantage of today; I and the village elders will stand by you, move your mother's grave, and sever your ties with the Yan family."

Yan Ziyue nodded repeatedly, tears of gratitude streaming down her face. "Thank you, Village Chief! Thank you, elders!"

No sooner had she spoken than she heard a villager shouting loudly:

"Village Chief, we’ve caught those outsiders!"