Bai Sheng was almost amused to the point of laughter. She turned her head to Lu Ye and said, "Husband, I'll handle the arguing, you handle the beating!"
"Okay, I'll listen to my wife," Lu Ye couldn't help but chuckle.
Bai Sheng took a few steps forward, her eyes fixed on Zhang Jiawang, and said loudly, "You there, what's your name, Zhang Jiawang? You just said 'the camel was caught by them in the desert a few days ago,' right?"
"Precisely!" Zhang Jiawang puffed out his chest slightly and arrogantly put his hands behind his back.
"That's right! It was caught by us a few days ago!" Zhang Yijin and Zhang Youliang said in unison.
"Excellent!" Bai Sheng clapped her hands. "Then, please tell me, Zhang Yijin! Zhang Youliang! Who exactly caught it between the two of you? At what specific time a few days ago? At what precise location?
How did you catch it and bring it home?
What kind of rope did you use to tie it up after bringing it home? To which part of its body was it tied?
What kind of fodder did you feed it? Where did this fodder come from? If you bought it in town, from which shop? So we can go and verify! If you cut the fodder in the desert, please tell me exactly where you cut it? Can you take us to see it!"
Zhang Yijin and Zhang Youliang stammered, unable to answer a single question as Bai Sheng fired them off like a string of firecrackers.
The two looked at each other, their faces extremely unpleasant.
Seeing this, Old Madam Chen couldn't hold back and yelled at Bai Sheng, "You cheap slave, asking so many questions at once would confuse anyone!"
"Exactly! We're all farmers, our memories aren't that good! Aren't you deliberately making things difficult?" Lu Fengshou spread his hands and shouted.
"Is that so?" Bai Sheng sneered at Old Madam Chen and Lu Fengshou, her voice suddenly rising. "They can't answer because they are lying!
If everything they said were true, they would be able to answer quickly, accurately, and in detail!
For example, Old Madam Chen, two nights ago, who were you with, at what time, and at what place, doing what shameful deed, how did you do it, and what was the outcome? You can definitely answer quickly and in detail!"
"Bah, you lewd, cheap whore! Don't try to frame me!" Old Madam Chen's eyes darted nervously as she cursed viciously.
Bai Sheng gave her a sinister smile and turned away, no longer bothering with her. Then she looked at Zhang Youliang again and said loudly, "This afternoon, you said in front of many people that 'the camel was caught by Zhang Yijin two days ago.' What, has it only been a few hours and you've already forgotten? Now you're stammering and can't speak!
Who is lying! Who is intentionally slandering my husband to seek personal revenge! Isn't it obvious?!"
"The little camel doesn't know you at all. It specifically came to rely on my sister-in-law, and it even gave my sister-in-law a wooden stick!" Lu Yun's clear, childish voice echoed through the night sky.
The people of Huangsha Village flinched, no one uttered a word.
Zhang Jiawang, seeing their lack of progress, glared back at them with a look of disappointment and snorted, "So, you instigated that camel to injure my clansmen? Almost caused Zhang Yijin to be infertile, and Zhang Youliang to have his chest crushed?"
"Bullshit! You dirty, stinky old ugly man!" Du Min stepped forward and suddenly cursed loudly, "Which of your eyes saw us instigating the camel to kick people? It was clearly those two idiots who forcibly tried to drag the camel away, and then the camel kicked them."
"You—you slut!" Zhang Jiawang's face contorted with anger at being called an old ugly man by Du Min!
"That's right! My brother and sister-in-law stood there without moving a muscle! It was Zhang Yijin and Zhang Youliang who provoked the little camel first, and that's why they were kicked! Heaven can bear witness!" Lu Hua shouted bravely.
Lu Jizu snorted and yelled, "At that time, your entire family was around, so of course you could say whatever you wanted! No one could prove you were lying!" httpδ:/m.kuAisugg.nět
"I!"
As soon as Lu Jizu finished speaking, a weak child's voice rang out.
Everyone turned to look. A dozen or so vagrants, dressed in rags that were almost reduced to dust, had somehow appeared on the side. The one who had spoken was a thin, small boy, covered in dirt and black as a mudfish.
The little boy was a bit timid. He took a few steps forward, looked at the people of Huangsha Village, and said solemnly, "I can prove that their family is not lying!" The little boy pointed at Lu Ye and Bai Sheng.
"This afternoon, I saw with my own eyes those two uncles trying to forcibly take the camel away. The camel didn't want to go with them, so it kicked them. These two brothers and sisters were standing nearby and didn't move at all."
"Me too! I... I can also prove it!" Another frighteningly thin and dark woman walked out from among the vagrants. She pointed at Bai Sheng and said, "That camel clearly came looking for this black-faced little girl! It only listens to the black-faced little girl!"
Bai Sheng was stunned! She had been ruthlessly labeled the "black-faced little girl"!
"Me too!" A man as withered as dead wood stepped forward. "That camel knelt down to the black-faced little girl! It must have been begging her to take it in!"
"Me too!" An old woman with white hair walked a few steps closer. "That camel willingly followed the black-faced little girl home."
"Me too!"
...
A dozen or so vagrants, big and small, all stood on Bai Sheng and Lu Ye's side!
Although they were all emaciated, filthy, and so thin they looked like ghosts that could be blown away at any moment, they still retained the most basic kindness in their dwindling lives.
At this moment, Bai Sheng's eyes were a little moist. She never expected these people, who were about to starve and die of thirst, to still have the courage to stand up and speak for strangers like them.
Lu Ye also felt as if something was stuck in his throat, making him a little choked up.
Du Min and Chen Pingyuan were also incredulous; they had initially thought these vagrants were incredibly indifferent.
Lu Yun tilted his head and looked at the little boy who had spoken first. Then he walked up to him and asked kindly, "What's your name? Can we be good friends?"
The little boy's eyes immediately lit up with surprise, and he quickly nodded, "My name is Tian Dou. You can be my good friend."
Lu Yun squinted and smiled, then walked over and took his hand.
"Birds of a feather flock together! They're all the same unemployed lowlifes, of course they'll cover for each other!" Old Madam Chen muttered disdainfully.
"You dead ugly old hag! Watch your mouth, you're the贱民 (jian min - lowlife), the absolute lowest, most spiteful, ugly old crone! Ugly on the outside, even uglier on the inside! Rotten heart, rotten liver, rotten lungs, trash!" Du Min stepped forward and pointed at Old Madam Chen, yelling.
"Where did you come from, you slut? Watch me tear your mouth apart!" Old Madam Chen cursed and stepped forward, trying to grab Du Min's hair.
Du Min, not to be outdone, immediately grabbed back!
"Stop it all!" Zhang Jiawang suddenly roared, then looked up at Lu Ye and said, "Regardless of anything else, they were injured because of you two. You pay five taels of silver, and this matter is settled, otherwise—"
"Otherwise what?" Lu Ye sneered, raising his fist and cracking all ten knuckles. "It's already very clear what happened here today. If you know what's good for you, then hurry up and scram! Don't come to Hongshu Slope to provoke us again in the future. If you continue to be unreasonable, you'll have to see if your heads are hard enough!"
Zhang Jiawang involuntarily shrunk back. Lu Ye had practiced martial arts, and he was actually afraid of a direct confrontation. But with such a large crowd today, he was unwilling to leave without gaining something.
Zhang Yijin lowered his voice, "Brother Jiawang, we have more people, we're stronger, and we all have weapons. They are all starving ghosts, they can't do anything. How about we..." Zhang Yijin's eyes gleamed with malice as he made a throat-slitting gesture.