Chapter 2 Beat Him Up_2

Ms. Qian's face changed dramatically, and she immediately snatched the silver lock and secured it in her bosom, fuming, "This can't be given away, this is... this was made by your father and mother for you. The Taoist priest said you have a valuable fate and need something to suppress it; this lock is meant to suppress your destiny."

Old Zhou said, "It can't be given."

The enforcer laughed out of frustration, "So a life-preserving lock is more important than your son's life, huh? Look, it's already halfway through the hour; we still need to get back to the county seat. If we can't make it back, will you be responsible for our food and lodging for the night?"

The men behind him sprang into action, starting to rummage and kick around the yard, "Hurry up and pay up; it's only right to repay debts."

The people from the gambling house were known to leave nothing untouched. How could Zhou Dalang allow them to search through his home? He hurried to stop them.

Zhou Erlang and Zhou Sanlang stopped holding Zhou Silang and hurried to help their big brother.

Zhou Wulang and Zhou Liulang, fired up with enthusiasm, followed their brothers forward, and of course, the villagers of Qili Village couldn't stand to see someone from their village being bullied and joined in the fray as well.

What's more, the enforcers had never seen a gambler's family with so many brothers. Seeing the villagers surrounding them, they didn't dare go too far. They just mockingly shoved each other, but they couldn't suppress the anger welling up within them.

The village head sighed at the sight and intervened, "Alright, isn't it just missing two hundred wen? Uncle Jin, I'll lend it to you for now, just remember to pay me back later."

With that, he sent his son to fetch the money.

The money that was scraped together filled the box; aside from two small pieces of broken silver, it was all copper coins. The enforcers didn't disdain them and stuffed the copper coins into a bag after counting them.

However, after tossing the broken silver pieces, one said, "These pieces of silver can be exchanged for more than this amount of copper coins. You should be aware that in the money exchange, an ounce of silver can now be exchanged for twelve strings of cash. So..."

Zhou Dalang strode forward and kicked Zhou Silang, demanding, "Were you gambling with copper coins or with silver?"

"Copper coins, it was copper coins."

Zhou Dalang clenched his fist and punched him, furiously asking, "Was it copper, was it copper?"

Zhou Silang's face was bruised and swollen, with blood dripping from his nose as he wailed repeatedly, "It was copper, it was definitely copper."

Zhou Dalang, unrelenting, continued to punch him in the face, his expression livid as he demanded, "Is it copper, is it really copper?"

Zhou Silang cried out for his parents, "It is copper, big brother, it really is copper. They're deceiving you, they are just deceiving you all."

Seeing that Zhou Dalang was spare no effort in beating Zhou Silang until he was in such a state, the enforcers felt embarrassed, pocketed the broken silver pieces, and nodded, "Fine, let's settle with copper coins then."

After saying this, they turned to leave.

Zhou Erlang blocked their way and demanded, "What about the IOU?"

One of the enforcers pursed his lips dismissively, handed the IOU to him, and patted his shoulder, "You people can't afford to gamble. Better keep a close eye on your own brother, or next time, luck might not be so kind. There are plenty of families driven to ruin and death because of gambling in this world."

The Zhou brothers all glared at Zhou Silang disapprovingly.

Zhou Silang cowered on the ground, and seeing the looks from his brothers, buried his head and dared not even cry too loudly.

The enforcers finally left.

Old Zhou and his eldest son managed a strained smile as they sent the villagers off, thanking them for their help, especially the village head, repeatedly saying they would treat him to a meal when they found the time.

After everyone was sent away, Old Zhou told Zhou Xiaoliu to close the door, then turned around, picked up a bamboo pole, and continued to thrash his son.

Fearing her daughter would be frightened, Ms. Qian took her back to the room ahead of time. But it wasn't very effective; the child kicked off her shoes, climbed onto her own bed, and watched from the window as her father beat her fourth brother, clearly finding it intriguing.

Ms. Qian was not feeling well, and after such an ordeal, she was both heartbroken and exhausted. Not stopping her daughter, she instructed her daughters-in-law to prepare something to eat in the kitchen. From morning to now, they had not eaten a single grain of rice. Though adults might endure it, the children couldn't.

Once everything was arranged, she called her daughter over and put the silver lock on her, saying, "Didn't I tell you not to take it off? This is for suppressing your fate that your parents have given you. From now on, don't take it off again, understand?"

Manbao sulkily replied, "It's uncomfortable to wear."

Ms. Qian thought for a moment and then said, "You may not wear it at night, but you must during the day."

Manbao reluctantly agreed, and, seeing her mother's sorrowful face, asked, "Mother, what about Fourth Brother?"

"Don't mind him. Let your father beat him; only then his life might improve for a few years. He's learned to gamble and destroy his family. He deserves to be beaten to death."

Manbao said, "If he's going to be beaten to death, might as well let the gambling house people do it, we would save money that way."

Ms. Qian was taken aback and said, "You child, you speak just like your father. Not sparing anyone with your words."

"Eh? Is my father that clever?"

Ms. Qian ignored this question and instead remarked, "Regardless, he must be beaten. Without a lesson, he won't learn. If this happens again, how much money does the family have to waste on him?"

"Fourth Brother doesn't learn from beatings; it's useless, even if he were beaten to disability. Unless his legs are broken so he can't walk."

"No, we'll still need to take care of him in the future," said Ms. Qian, also fearing that Old Zhou would harm their son too severely. Sighing, she shouted out the window, "Enough! If you disable him, we'll have to pay for medical expenses, and we don't have a single penny left at home."

The slapping sounds outside gradually ceased, and Old Zhou, frustrated at his son's failure to meet expectations, kicked him and then ordered the eldest and the second brother to drag him back to his room.

In the house, Manbao shared with her mother, "Mother, I have a good idea. It can punish him without costing our family any money."

"What is it?" Ms. Qian inquired.

"Let Fourth Brother clear new land. Then let him plant things on the wasteland. Whatever money he earns could be used to pay back the family and his brothers-in-law. He owes fifteen taels of silver to the family and his brothers-in-law."

Ms. Qian was puzzled, "Clear new land? How did you come up with the idea of clearing land?"

Manbao responded, "Isn't it what the village chief elder brother mentioned? The government office is letting us open new land. Whatever land we clear will be ours, and for the first three years, they won't even collect taxes on it."