Huang Xiaojuan was tightly gripped by the collar and unable to escape. Moreover, she was wearing lightweight summer attire, so she couldn’t resist too strongly for fear of ripping her clothes and revealing herself. Xia Mian was merciless; after being hit hard repeatedly, Huang Xiaojuan bit her lip and reached out to grab Xia Mian. Seeing her own furious reflection in Huang Xiaojuan’s dilated pupils only further fueled Xia Mian’s anger. The image of a kind little angel she had maintained for so long was completely ruined by this scum!
The neighboring aunties struggled to hold Xia Mian back. After getting hit accidentally several times, and they gradually became too scared to approach. With no one left to pull her back, Xia Mian was unrestrained. Huang Xiaojuan was no match for her and was quickly kicked to the ground by Xia Mian, sobbing miserably, “Stop hitting! Stop hitting! Are you trying to kill me?! Wuuu…” Her pitiful appearance momentarily made Xia Mian hesitate, but when she thought of Xiao Feng’s always anxious and frightened eyes and the dark room, her anger flared again.
Bending down, Xia Mian grabbed Huang Xiaojuan’s hair and sneered, “Why are you crying? When you hit my nephew, you wouldn’t even let him make a sound. Cry, and you’d threaten to prick his mouth with a needle.” Xia Mian continued, “How about this? As long as you don’t make a sound, endure ten hits from me, and I’ll let you go,” Then she kicked Huang Xiaojuan’s thigh hard.
In extreme pain, Huang Xiaojuan unleashed surprising potential, pushing Xia Mian away and running off in a panic, soon running into a tall young man.
“Dr. Ning!”
“Ah, be careful, Dr. Ning!”
“Oh no, are you okay, Dr. Ning?”
Concerned exclamations followed one after another, as if this Dr. Ning were a porcelain doll that Huang Xiaojuan could break with a single bump.
Xia Mian was not in the mind to pay attention to the chorus of concerns. Her eyes were focused solely on Huang Xiaojuan, and she was prepared to rush over and deliver another kick.
“Dr. Ning, save me!” Seeing this, Huang Xiaojuan swiftly hid behind the young man.
“Even the King of Heaven can’t save you today! Xia Mian tried to grab Huang Xiaojuan, but the young man, who was firmly held by Huang Xiaojuan, was accidentally pushed forward. Xia Mian missed her mark and accidentally landed her hand on his shirt…
A large hand grasped her wrist, and a pleasant, baritone voice came from above, “Little girl, please show some self-respect.”
OMG, what a nice voice! Blushing to her ears, Xia Mian looked up, only to be captivated by a pair of beautiful, affectionate peach blossom eyes. When the young man slightly squinted his eyes, they appeared full of affection.
With this pair of mesmerizing eyes, paired with a well-shaped nose and cherry lips, even Xia Mian, who wasn’t particularly a fan of handsome men, found herself momentarily dazed, until the grip on her hand brought her back to reality.
“I’m sorry.” Xia Mian forcefully freed her hand from his grasp and reached out to grab Huang Xiaojuan again.
Huang Xiaojuan, terrified by Xia Mian, clung to the young man, causing Xia Mian to nearly bump into him again, making both of them frown.
Huang Xiaojuan started crying miserably, “Thank you, Dr. Ning, you don’t know how horrible she is… I…”
Seeing Huang Xiaojuan’s white lotus act of playing the innocent victim infuriated Xia Mian, “Excuse me,” she snarled, reaching out to push the young man aside.
Her move was professional. Ning Shaobai instinctively countered, ready to subdue her. Xia Mian paused, thinking he was going to help Huang Xiaojuan, and coldly asked, “Are you related to Monk Tang?” Can’t you tell humans from beasts?
Ning Shaobai was already speechless from being dragged into the fight between the two women, and being nearly hit and subsequently scolded only added to his bemusement. Upon hearing Xia Mian’s accusation, he let out an angry chuckle, “And what are you? Sun Wukong? You are being too impulsive.” Do you even understand the situation?
Xia Mian was furious. This damn guy dare to compare her, a little angel, to a monkey!
The angry little angel stopped wasting words. With a swift movement, she freed her wrist from Ning Shaobai’s grip and aimed a kick at Huang Xiaojuan.
A flash of surprise crossed Ning Shaobai’s eyes as he turned around. However, with Huang Xiaojuan clutching at him like a lifeline, he inadvertently blocked Xia Mian’s attack.
Seeing Dr. Ning seemingly determined to help Huang Xiaojuan, Xia Mian didn’t hold back anymore and aimed a kick at his knee. Ning Shaobai dodged agilely, and the two inexplicably started exchanging blows.
After a few exchanges, Xia Mian’s competitive spirit was completely stirred. She momentarily forgot about Huang Xiaojuan and focused solely on trying to hit Dr. Ning.
The onlookers looked at each other in shock at the turn of events.
“How did it turn into a fight with Dr. Ning?”
“W-what do we do now…”
Huang Xiaojuan, clutching her stomach in agony, cried out heartbrokenly, “This girl was a troublemaker back in the county town, always getting into fights! Her mother died because of stress!”
But no one seemed to listen. Ning Shaobai’s unexpected combat skills attracted more attention, with most people murmuring, “Who knew Dr. Ning could fight like that…”
Some passing youths were impressed, their eyes lit up, “Are they practicing martial arts? They’re quite good.”
Meanwhile, Xia Mian hadn’t landed a hit for a while and was growing frustrated by the physical limitations of this body. Just when she planned to catch her opponent off guard, a stern shout rang, “Stop!”
Everyone turned around and saw two police officers, a man and a woman. “The police, it’s the police!” The reverence for police among the public in this era was evident as everyone became cautious.
Xia Mian and Ning Shaobai ceased fighting. Xia Mian walked towards Huang Xiaojuan, who panicked and stumbled towards the police, crying, “Officer, help, she’s trying to kill me!”
The older male police officer frowned fiercely at Xia Mian but spoke more gently to Huang Xiaojuan, “Did you call the police?”
Huang Xiaojuan hesitated, but Xia Mian immediately wore an aggrieved look and loudly exclaimed, “Officer, it was me who called the police!”
The officer: “…”
The neighbors: “…”
Ning Shaobai: “???”
What kind of move was this? Calling the police on oneself?
Xia Mian pointed at Huang Xiaojuan and loudly accused, “I want to report this mistress-turned-stepmother for child abuse!”
This amount of information…
The revelation shifted everyone’s attention to Huang Xiaojuan, with Ning Shaobai frowning slightly.
Huang Xiaojuan’s forehead twitched as she exclaimed, “What nonsense are you talking about?” Clutching her stomach, she pretended to be in pain and weakly said to the male police officer, “She is the sister of my husband Old Zhang’s late wife. She can’t stand seeing us live well. It’s just that her sister’s child was disobedient, and I disciplined him a bit. I treated him like my own son, that’s why I laid hands on him. Everyone disciplines their children like this, don’t they?” She then showed the bruises on her arm, “Look, just because I disciplined the child a few times, she beat me so ruthlessly.”
Because Xia Mian initially thought she was in a dream, she had no scruples when beating Huang Xiaojuan, leaving very apparent marks that now served as proof. The two police officers frowned at the sight of the bruises.
“She is right,” chimed a neighbor, the wife of a factory director who recently became close to Huang Xiaojuan, “That child of her family is really disobedient. Ask anyone in the compound; who doesn’t find him annoying? If he’s not disciplined properly, he’ll probably end up just like his aunt here.”
Xia Mian gave the woman a cold look. She stood upright, her flamboyant red hair that usually gave her the vibe of a delinquent looked sharp and serious at that moment, “What the truth really is, the police will decide. It’s not for a criminal and her accomplice to argue here.”
Huang Xiaojuan and the neighbor’s faces changed slightly.
Xia Mian turned to the police, “Uncle officer, if I’ve committed a crime, I accept the punishment, but I absolutely cannot let a child abuser go unpunished!”
Her statement was powerful, making it hard to associate her with a troublemaker and instead painting her more like a crusader for justice.
Since Xia Mian was the one who called the police, the officers were obliged to handle it. The middle-aged police officer asked, “Where’s the child?”
“At home.” Xia Mian said, “Uncle and sister, please follow me.”
The young female police officer, initially dismissive of Xia Mian, was slightly embarrassed and softened her attitude when called “sister.”
Huang Xiaojuan finally sensed trouble. She didn’t think hitting the child was a crime, but she didn’t want to ruin her image of being gentle and virtuous. “Officer,” Huang Xiaojuan blocked the police, “I’m in severe pain. I want to report a crime too!”
Xia Mian sneered, “This is the police report I made. If you want to report, go make your own!” Then she scoffed at Huang Xiaojuan, “Just perfect; you should go for a medical examination. By the time I’m done, we might just meet up. I’m willing to cooperate with the police for the statement!” She then quickly told the officers, “The child is at home. We’ll be there soon.”
The female officer couldn’t help but find the situation somewhat amusing. Seeing Xia Mian’s actions, she was indeed still just a kid.
Seeing she couldn’t stop them, Huang Xiaojuan quickly tried to think of what to say next. At the same time, she deliberately slowed her movements and walked with a limp, as if Xia Mian had already severely injured her, eliciting sympathy from onlookers.
The incident attracted a lot of attention. A girl was fighting with her former brother-in-law’s wife, drawing police to the scene. There was little entertainment in this era, so any piece of gossip in the compound was treated like a new drama release, and today’s episode was both fresh and explosive, promising sky-high ratings.
Along the way, the director’s wife explained the matter to the new arrivals, exaggerating the backstory. She glanced at the two officers, and, afraid that they might stop the onlookers from tagging along, said to the crowd: “We shall follow along, too. We have to testify for Xiao Huang, otherwise, what if others try the same tactic and use the police to reverse right and wrong?”
Xia Mian glanced at Huang Xiaojuan, whose expression darkened. Well, it seemed that she had to thank this righteous aunt. Since she wanted to reveal Huang Xiaojuan’s true nature, of course she needed as many witnesses as possible.
The Zhang family lived on block 18, which had the best lighting and was slightly larger, housing mostly the family of the managers and above. Upon reaching the second floor, Xia Mian pushed open the door, and the police immediately noticed a child sitting on the sofa. The boy, looking around three or four years old, was wearing a white cotton shirt that was too big for his tiny frame. He looked extremely frail but had a clean face, and his pair of beautiful eyes were especially eye-catching.
Startled by the door opening, the child slid off the sofa tremblingly. It was the kind of panic that came from genuine terror, not merely the fear of being scolded for mischief.
With their experience, the police officers became more serious upon seeing this.
“Don’t be afraid, baby,” Xia Mian hurried forward. The child rushed into her arms, whispering, “Auntie.”
Xia Mian carefully picked him up and walked to the police, lifting up his shirt. The onlookers who had followed inside gasped in shock. Under the oversized shirt, the child’s thin body, literally skin and bones, was covered with countless bruises and injuries.
One of the neighbors, an old lady who lived in the opposite unit, sighed, “Such a small child, this is truly sinful…”
Huang Xiaojuan failed to come up with a good plan. As she limped in, she sensed the shift in people’s gaze at the doorway. In her anxiety, she pushed through the crowd and met the stern gaze of the female officer, “Did you cause these bruises?”
Caught off guard, Huang Xiaojuan’s gaze fell on the child. Quickly feigning weakness, she clutched her abdomen and claimed sadly, “You misunderstand, Officer. This child bruises easily, even a slight touch can cause bruises. I have a kid too; how could I possibly be so harsh?” Out of habit, she threatened Xiao Feng with a look.
Xia Mian felt the child stiffen in her arms. She hugged him tighter and turned sideways, shielding him from Huang Xiaojuan’s sight.
Allowing only the police to see the child’s condition, Xia Mian snarled, “Then why is my nephew so thin? Your Xuanxuan is only half a year younger than Xiao Feng, yet he’s plump and taller.”
Huang Xiaojuan defensively claimed, feigning injustice, “You don’t know how difficult this child is to raise. He’s not only a picky eater, but he also gets sick easily, vomiting and having diarrhea after just eating a bit more.” Her brain seemed to be working hard, and she preemptively addressed potential questions about the child’s diet: “He can’t have milk because of lactose intolerance, and he can’t eat meat too…”
Xia Mian interrupted with a cold laugh, “Is it that he can’t eat, or he doesn’t deserve to eat?!”
Caught off-guard, Huang Xiaojuan continued, “This child…”
The female officer cut through the excuses: “Xuanxuan is half a year younger than Xiao Feng? So Xuanxuan isn’t your husband’s biological child?”
“Of course he is,” Huang Xiaojuan blurted out. The next moment, her face turned red with realization.
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