Chapter 204

Shaoshuizhou, Xu Family Village.

The girl paid the silver, lifted the carriage curtain, and stepped down holding her long sword.

The scene before her, however, took her by surprise.

Gongs and drums were clamoring to the heavens, and funeral music was wailing in unison.

As far as the eye could see, there were actually several households in the village holding funerals.

The villagers were dressed in grey-white clothes, their faces all a picture of gloom.

They saw the girl.

These villagers all wore indifferent expressions as they walked past her.

Only one tottering old woman stopped before the girl, eyes wide: "Why aren't you dead?"

The girl recognized the old woman as the mistress she had worked for, and said, "I am not dead."

The old woman shook her palms, muttering, "The village has been struck by disaster; over a dozen households in a row have been struck by disaster. Leave quickly, leave quickly."

Once she finished speaking, she turned and walked into the funeral procession, vanishing into the crowd like a drop of water, never to be seen again.

The girl frowned and walked through the village.

Only then did she discover that the village had almost lost all vitality; the occasional person sitting at the village entrance was also silent, staring blankly.

Without realizing it.

The girl stopped her footsteps and looked up at the gate before her.

The vermilion gate was left ajar, and from within the courtyard, noisy sounds could be vaguely heard.

Subconsciously, she rubbed her own shoulder.

The ugly faces of the servants and the excruciating pain of her shoulder bone being smashed seemed as if they were only yesterday.

She pushed open the gate and walked into the courtyard.

The servants were busy and bustling, and the courtyard was piled full of furniture and sundries.

Clearly, the wealthy family in this village was preparing to move.

"Where did this beggar come from! Get out!"

A servant, panting, was moving a wooden stool into the courtyard; when he looked up and saw the girl, he immediately began to scold.

The girl was expressionless, staring at his face.

She recognized this servant as the very thug who had used a club to beat her.

"I have come to collect my mother's wages."

She said softly.

Hearing this, the servant was stunned; he stared at the girl, sizing her up, and suddenly recognized her: "I remember now, you're the daughter of that dung-bucket scrubber!"

His tone was extremely contemptuous; he stood up straight, looking down at the girl, "It seems I went too easy on you last time, not crippling you; you actually dare to come back and seek death!"

The servant spoke with relish, but he did not notice.

From some unknown moment, the girl's gaze had become extremely cold.

She had been born without a father.

It was her mother who, through all the filth and toil, working hard day and night, had raised her.

People are bullied because they are kind.

She had always known that in the manor, her mother not only had to do many menial tasks but also suffered endless bullying.

"Dung-bucket scrubber" was what they called her mother.

Originally, the job of cleaning dung buckets required great strength and was done by specialized servants.

But that servant had deliberately assigned the work to her mother; if she didn't do it, she would be subjected to even more cruel bullying.

Even her food would be withheld.

Her mother's wages, moreover, were often withheld by Manager Xu and others.

If it weren't for the old mistress occasionally remembering and asking a few questions.

Her mother wouldn't even have been able to get a single copper coin.

"A dung-bucket scrubber's child is born a dung-bucket scrubber, and you still dare to come and ask for money?"

The servant reached out and grabbed a club, walking up to the girl, his gaze lewd, "I haven't seen you in a few days, but you cheap girl have become much fairer; if you weren't wearing these tattered rags, I really wouldn't have recognized you."

Without any hesitation, he stretched out his large hand and grabbed toward the girl's shoulder.

*Ssh! *

Fresh blood sprayed!

The sound of the sword blade entering flesh was extremely clear!

The servant let out a miserable scream, his knee pierced by the long sword, and he knelt to the ground!

The others in the manor were attracted by the commotion and looked over one after another.

Seeing the servant fall into a pool of blood, many were stunned before letting out screams!

The girl held Zhaoming, expressionless, stabbing the servant before her with one sword strike after another.

Not until his four limbs were all covered in hideous bloody holes, revealing gleaming white bone, did she kick him away with force.

The servant lay powerlessly on the ground, his whole body drenched in blood, having completely lost the strength to wail.

He could only open his eyes wide, staring blankly at the sky, his mouth making "ho-ho" sounds.

"Murder!"

A female servant trembled all over, letting out a piercing scream!

The remaining servants had their expressions change drastically!

Some stepped forward to support the dying servant.

Others brandished clubs and charged toward the girl!

*Ssh! *

A bright sword light flashed past, and a head flew out!

At the severed neck, a pillar of blood sprayed!

The servant who had charged to the very front died on the spot!

"Monster!"

"There's a monster!"

Seeing this scene, the remaining servants all stopped in their tracks, terrified to a deathly pale!

Their whole bodies trembled, their hands and feet shaking; they could no longer hold their clubs steady and turned to flee into the manor!

The girl's expression was cold; using her limited Qi, she held Zhaoming and chased after them step by step.

"You, you slapped my mother's face."

She said softly, holding the long sword in her hand, carving chunks of flesh from the panicked face of the servant before her.

"You, you pulled my mother's hair."

Another servant had his scalp sliced off by the sword blade.

Between the cracks of the skull, yellow-white filth gushed out.

"You, you ordered my mother to scrub dung buckets, doing the dirty, exhausting work for you filthy things for over ten years."

The girl smiled, swung her sword to sever the servant's four limbs, and amidst his desperate screams, threw him into the foul-smelling dung pit.

Before long, the dung pit bubbled continuously, and all sound ceased.

Without realizing it.

All the evil servants had been killed.

Only a group of female servants remained, cowering in the corner of the courtyard, their faces full of terror.

Yet they didn't dare to make a single sound.

They could only close their eyes and pray that this murderous demon would spare them and leave quickly.

The girl walked before them, her gaze pausing.

Among them were two female servants who had been quite kind to her mother.

But there were others who had still ordered her mother around, oppressing and bullying her.

*Ssh! *

The girl thrust her sword out; a vicious woman opened her eyes wide, her throat pierced, bubbling with a pillar of blood.

Seeing the bloody scene.

The other female servants trembled all over, their screams piercing the eardrums!

"I do not kill good people."

The girl retracted her sword blade, her tone softening, "Do not be alarmed."

These female servants were still noisy and clamorous, clearly having been frightened out of their wits.

Only one woman, with a calm expression, stood up and walked before the girl.

The girl looked puzzled.

The woman sighed and said, "This is all retribution."

The girl was silent.

The woman extended her long sleeve, wiped the blood from her clothes, and said, "From the very first day Mother Shen came to the manor."

"The old mistress told me to treat her well and give her a way to live."

"It's just that this world is a world where people eat people."

(End of chapter)