In the hall of Chunfeng House, Tang Xiaobei struck Zhou Dewu repeatedly with the scabbard.
“Xiaobei, stop! You’ll kill him if you keep going!” Sister Ting rushed downstairs, wrapping her arms tightly around Tang Xiaobei’s waist. “Xiaobei, I’m begging you, stop!”
Xiaoru, with a guest in her room, heard the commotion and ran down without even dressing properly, grabbing the scabbard.
Sister Ting, knowing how much Tang Xiaobei valued Jin Feng, whispered, “Xiaobei, if you kill him, you’ll bring trouble to Master Jin, big trouble.”
Commoners who insulted nobles could be killed without consequence, but Tang Xiaobei was no noble. If she killed Zhou Dewu in public, the Zhou family would not let it go.
Tang Xiaobei knew Jin Feng would never abandon her and would do everything to save her.
But she didn’t want to cause him trouble.
At Sister Ting’s words, Tang Xiaobei finally stopped.
Zhou Dewu, lying on the floor, was battered and bruised, completely unconscious.
Tang Xiaobei handed the bloodied scabbard back to Alan and shouted at the Zhou family servants, “Get lost!”
The terrified servants quickly lifted Zhou Dewu and scurried away.
Young Master Wenyuan, realising Tang Xiaobei would not join him for tea, sighed and left with his burly guard.
Throughout, the guard stood between Young Master Wenyuan and Big Liu, wary of Big Liu firing his crossbow.
The madam, looking at the bloodstains on the floor, had a face grimmer than if her own mother had died.
Zhou Dewu was a major patron of Chunfeng House, spending plenty of silver each month.
After this incident, he would surely never return.
Other guests might also be scared off, thinking Chunfeng House unsafe.
The madam wailed, “Xiaobei, my dear lady…”
Tang Xiaobei, no longer in the mood to chat with Sister Ting or listen to the madam’s complaints, flicked her sleeve and left.
…
When Zhou Changlin hurried back after receiving the news, the Zhou household was in chaos.
As the saying goes, emperors love their eldest sons, commoners their youngest.
Seeing his beloved youngest son carried back bloodied, Zhou Dewu’s mother was heartbroken.
The servants who had followed Zhou Dewu were now strung up in the courtyard, beaten beyond recognition.
Even the maids were implicated. In just a short time, two maids had been beaten to death by Lady Zhou for walking too loudly.
When Zhou Changlin returned, Lady Zhou finally stopped her tirade, clutching him and sobbing, “Master, go see Wu’er! He’s been nearly beaten to death!”
“Stop crying. I’ll check on Wu’er first,” Zhou Changlin said, irritably shaking her off.
Though disappointed in Zhou Dewu, he was still his son, and it would be a lie to say he didn’t care.
At the inner room’s door, the physician emerged.
“Mr Wei, how’s Wu’er?” Zhou Changlin asked urgently.
“His left shin is fractured. I’ve set it. Eleven teeth were knocked out, which I can’t fix,” the old physician said. “As for the rest, they’re just superficial injuries. I’ve applied medicine. They’re not a big issue.”
Tang Xiaobei, being a woman, had struck hard only once, the rest being venting slaps that caused little serious harm.
Even so, Lady Zhou nearly fainted from distress.
“Mr Wei, how will he eat without a dozen teeth?” Zhou Changlin clasped his hands. “Please, think of something. I’ll pay any amount.”
This physician, who had diagnosed Tang Xiaobei at the courtesan contest, was the best in the county.
If he couldn’t help, no one in Guangyuan could.
“Lord Zhou, I truly don’t know the art of tooth replacement,” the physician said helplessly. “But I’ve heard of Huixin Hall in the capital, where Dr Shen specialises in it. You could take the Third Young Master there.”
Hearing this, Zhou Changlin felt some relief.
The couple escorted the physician out, then returned to the inner room, where Zhou Dewu had woken.
Seeing his parents, Zhou Dewu cried like a child, babbling excitedly.
But with so many teeth missing, his words were garbled, incomprehensible even to his parents.
“Wu’er, don’t speak. I understand,” Lady Zhou said, wiping her tears. “Rest assured, I’ll make Tang Xiaobei pay a hundredfold for your suffering.”
Zhou Changlin opened his mouth to speak but sighed and left the room instead.
“Wu’er, focus on recovering. Mother will handle the rest,” Lady Zhou said, gently patting Zhou Dewu’s uninjured left hand as if soothing a child.
She left only after he fell asleep.
Meanwhile, Zhou Changlin had asked Young Master Wenyuan for details of the incident.
Young Master Wenyuan, who felt no attachment to Zhou Dewu but rather admired Tang Xiaobei, gave a fair account, largely recounting the events accurately.
“Why did that foolish boy provoke Tang Xiaobei for no reason?” Zhou Changlin sighed helplessly.
Though he felt for Zhou Dewu, he knew his son was in the wrong. If the matter escalated, with Tang Xiaobei’s connection to the governor’s wife, the Zhou family would struggle to gain the upper hand, even without Jin Feng’s involvement.
“Master, Wu’er is your own son! How can you side with that wretch Tang Xiaobei after she beat him like this?” Lady Zhou, overhearing as she entered, was furious.
“How dare you speak out of turn?” Zhou Changlin snapped, turning to her. “Get out!”
Lady Zhou shrank back, gave a courtesy to Young Master Wenyuan, and obediently left.
…
In an era of scarce entertainment, brothels and inns were hubs of gossip.
Such a sensational story naturally spread among the brothel girls.
Overnight, through the girls and their clients, the news spread across the county town.
Tang Xiaobei was already envied and admired by many brothel girls, and this added to her heroic reputation, earning her even more admirers.
But as the person at the centre, Tang Xiaobei acted as if nothing had happened, going to the slave market as usual, selecting girls to train as assistants.
Her days were almost indistinguishable from before.
Eight days passed, and even the brothel girls gradually stopped talking about the Chunfeng House incident.
But on this day, something unexpected happened.
Early in the morning, Tang Xiaobei went to the slave market as usual to pick out female slaves.
That day, a family was holding a wedding, and the sound of gongs and drums startled a horse, which bolted wildly through the streets with its carriage.
Seeing it knock over several pedestrians, Big Liu and the veteran soldiers chased after it.
Alan, hearing the commotion while selecting slaves with Tang Xiaobei, took the female guards to investigate.
The moment they left, a masked figure emerged from the shadows, struck Tang Xiaobei unconscious with a palm, and carried her off.
