Chapter 91

Chapter 91: Girls Are Like Dandelions

Ding Zhuang, holding Dingxiang's hand, walked outside, overhearing people discussing what they had heard.

The interrogation of Mrs. Hao went relatively smoothly.

At first, she was defiant, admitting she led Ding Likai to the grove, but insisted she didn't intend to kill him; she just wanted to catch pheasants with him.

Ding Likai, chasing a pheasant, slipped and hit his head on a rock. Thinking he was dead and fearing Ding Zhuang would blame her, she panicked and threw him into the well.

The county magistrate bellowed, "You dare deny the evident truth! Bring forth the thumb screws!"

As soon as the torture device clamped onto Mrs. Hao's fingers, she screamed in agony and confessed everything.

She not only admitted to knocking Ding Likai unconscious with a stone and throwing him into a well, covering it with leaves but also confessed to breaking Ding Sifu's leg when he was three months old and disfiguring Ding Sanfu.

She pleaded with the magistrate, claiming her actions were driven by her own suffering. Ding Zhuang had crippled her leg, ruining her life. Unable to retaliate against Ding Zhuang, she vented her anger on his grandchildren.

She blamed Mrs. Wang for instigating her mother-in-law to beat her and her daughter for no reason, making their lives at home worse than a dog's.

Ding Zhao, who was also present, said that Ding Zhuang beat her because she had placed needles on Ding Xiang's body. There was little interaction between the two families, and a one-year-old child couldn't have offended her; her actions were purely malicious.

The villagers present testified that Mrs. Hao had first placed needles on Ding Xiang, prompting Ding Zhuang's beating.

Mrs. Hao, crying, claimed that her mother-in-law, Mrs. Ding Xia, had ordered her to do so, threatening to beat her and her daughter if she refused.

The trial concluded today with the sentencing set for tomorrow. They planned to attend the verdict the next day.

Hearing that Ding Sifu's leg was broken, not accidentally but deliberately, even Ding Zhuang felt a chill.

He sighed and cursed, "Treating a baby so cruelly, that woman's heart is too dark. She won't escape hell after death."

Someone remarked, "Indeed, even the county magistrate called Mrs. Hao a heartless and poisonous woman. It seems she will receive a severe sentence."

Mrs. Wang, hearing from her husband that their fourth son's leg was deliberately broken, wailed and attacked Ding Pan's brother, causing him to scream in pain.

Ding Sanfu, also furious, joined Mrs. Wang in the assault.

Ding Youcai rushed to attack Ding Youshou.

The cries and commotion from the Ding family's main house drew everyone out again, sparking loud discussions.

Fearing a fatality, Xia Li cautioned at the main door, "Don't be too harsh, we can't afford another death."

At his granddaughter's request, Ding Zhuang went to the main house. Unable to enter the tightly shut door, he pounded on it, warning Ding Shan that Ding Pan's sister was his own granddaughter and must not be beaten to death.

Inside, the beating continued.

Ding Zhuang bellowed, "Ding Youcai, if you don't heed your father's words, don't come to me for help with your son's affairs ever again."

Ding Youcai finally stopped.

Mrs. Wang, sitting on the ground, began to wail, "My life is cursed, two of my sons ruined for life by that vile woman..."

With a throbbing headache, Ding Zhuang left.

He thought, after the case is resolved tomorrow, I must urgently get Ding Pan's sister out of here.

Ding Youshou, beaten and bleeding, sat on the ground for a while, then had an idea.

He cried out, "Big brother, I also despise Mrs. Hao's wicked heart and wish her dead. Haven't I already divorced her? Killing us won't save Sanfu and Sifu. How about this? We sell Pan's sister and use the money to find a wife for Sanfu."

The Ding family was poor, and Ding Sanfu was extremely unattractive, making it difficult to find him a wife.

They never even considered finding a wife for Ding Sifu, who was crippled and short.

Everyone accepted that Ding Sifu would remain a bachelor for life.

Ding Youcai looked at Mrs. Wang, who stopped wailing and turned her gaze to Ding Pan's sister.

Although thin, she was still of a decent height. At twelve, she could start serving clients wherever she was sold.

Mrs. Hao had destroyed her own sons; now, they would subject her daughter to an even worse fate.

Mrs. Wang bitterly said, "A hundred taels of silver can't bring back my healthy sons. Selling Pan's sister to a broker would fetch at most five guan. If sold directly to a brothel, she could bring in eight or nine guan. With that money, I could find a good wife for my disfigured son."

Pan's sister immediately knelt and cried out, "Father, I am your own daughter, how can you even think of this? Uncle, Aunt, please don't sell me there. If you must, sell me to a respectable family, I beg of you..."

She kept kowtowing to Mrs. Wang.

Mrs. Wang coldly said, "Respectable or not, who cares where you're sold to? I just want to make more money to find a wife for my disfigured son. Don't blame me, blame your heartless mother, she's the one who brought you to this."

Pan's sister pleaded with Ding Li, "Grandpa, I am your own granddaughter, you can't let them sell me there."

Ding Li sighed and went inside.

Ding Youshou, with teary eyes, advised, "Pan's sister, it's better to live poorly than to die. You won't survive long in this house, but leaving might save you. Don't blame your uncle and aunt too harshly, your mother is to blame. She ruined Sanfu and Sifu and our entire Ding family. Consider this as repaying her debts."

Pan's sister cried loudly, "I'd rather hang myself than be sold there."

Her pitiful cries faintly reached Ding Xiang, who felt extremely distressed.

No matter how deserving Mrs. Hao was of death, what fault did Pan's sister bear?

In this world, some are destined for joy, while others for suffering.

Ding Xiang recalled a saying from her past life, "A girl's fate is like a dandelion, thriving with the wind, withering without it. If it lands on fertile ground, it prospers; on barren land, it endures a lifetime of hardship."

Pan's sister, hardworking, kind, and resilient, was being crushed and suffocated by the world's injustices.

Almost none of the villagers' voices showed sympathy for Pan's sister.

Ding Xiang pleaded with her grandfather to help get her out today.

Ding Zhuang shook his head, "They're too angry to release her today. I've already warned them, just avoid a fatality. Once Mrs. Hao's sentence is pronounced tomorrow, and the officials have avenged them, their anger will subside. We'll try then."

Soon, the cries ceased, and only then did Ding Xiang feel relieved.

The slanting sun half-hidden, wisps of cooking smoke rising, villagers chatting leisurely head home for dinner.

After a day of bustle, Bei Quan Village finally quieted down.

Ding Zhao returned home, driving the ox cart.

He handed the whip to Yang Hu and, carrying two oil-paper packages, went to the west wing.

The whole family sat in the south room, keeping company with Ding Li Lai.

Mrs. Zhang smiled, "Knowing you'd buy treats, I only made a pot of vegetarian soup."

Ding Zhao chuckled, "I bought Li Lai's favorite spiced chicken and four-happiness meatballs."

He opened one of the packages, pulled out a chicken leg, and handed it to Ding Li Lai.

In the household, chicken legs were usually for Ding Zhuang and Dingxiang. Finally having one all to himself, Ding Li Lai eagerly stuffed it into his mouth.

Ding Zhuang frowned at Ding Li Lai's ravenous eating, "Slow down, no one's competing with you. The other chicken leg is yours too."

Ding Li Lai just managed a smile, then modestly said, "Give it to my sister, I should be good to her."