Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Around two o'clock in the afternoon, the warm spring sunlight bathed the ground. The village party secretary steeped some tea leaves, planning to finish writing this month's report. He had a city meeting in a few days and had to give a report.

The village committee office was just two small bungalows stuck together. One room was where the village cadres worked, and sometimes city leaders came, and they'd rest and meet there. Inside were a few chairs, with a beat-up table in the middle. The old secretary was hunched over the table, writing his report when he suddenly heard a faint voice, like a cat's meow:

"Grandpa Village Chief, Grandpa Village Party Secretary."

Along with a soft tapping on the door, the old secretary reluctantly put down his pen and went to see what was up.

At the door stood a little girl, about thigh-high to the secretary. Her hair was a tangled mess on her shoulders, and she had a bruised, purple lump on her forehead that looked sore. Her clothes were tattered and dirty, probably hand-me-downs from someone in the family, too big, hanging loose on her thin frame. Though it was March, the weather was still chilly and changeable. He could see the kid shivering, carefully edging into a patch of sunlight, hugging her arms to ward off the cold. Her shoes had two toes sticking out. The old secretary sighed to himself. Their village wasn't rich, but it was rare to see a kid this neglected.

The old secretary led the girl inside, poured her a cup of hot water, added a pinch of sugar, and handed it over. Feng Xia took it, smelled the sweetness, and ignoring how hot it was, tipped her head back and gulped it down. She set down the enamel mug and gave a shy smile.

The secretary poured her another cup of hot water, but this time without sugar. He looked at the pitiful girl and asked gently, "You're Feng Aiguo's second kid, right? Feng Xia, yeah? What brings you to the village committee? Did your folks send you?"

When Feng Xia heard the name "Feng Aiguo," she visibly trembled, and tears welled up in her eyes. Her voice quivered as she stammered out what happened:

"Grandpa Secretary, my grandparents, parents, and everyone went to my uncle's for a feast. They didn't take me. I... I really wanted meat. I couldn't help it. I killed and ate the old hen. When my grandma came back, she beat me. She said she'd kill me, take my life. She cursed me, called me a worthless bitch, said I didn't deserve to eat her hen. Boohoo... I wanted to go to the feast too, but they didn't take me. I wanted meat, I wanted meat so bad."

The secretary's head throbbed at this. The Feng family—how could they leave a ten-year-old girl home alone while they all went to a feast? Even an adult would be pissed off in that situation!

He sighed and said, "Ah, Feng Xia, don't cry. Your grandma wouldn't really kill you over a chicken. Go back, apologize to her, and it'll blow over."

Feng Xia sobbed, tears mixing with the dirt on her face, soaking into her clothes. Her voice was as faint as a mosquito's buzz, and the lump on her forehead was swollen and purple, making her look pitiful as hell.

"My... my grandma really wants to kill me. She just hit me with a stick, but she fell down on her own. She said I kicked her and sent my aunt to get my uncle and dad. I'm scared, so scared, boohoo... I ran over here."

Saying this, she rolled up her sleeves. Her arms, thin as twigs, were covered in scars—some old and healed, some fresh and getting infected in the warm weather. The old secretary gasped. Sure, kids got disciplined, but this twelve-year-old girl was being beaten half to death by the Feng family!

These days, they cracked down hard on this stuff. At recent meetings, they stressed that women couldn't be harmed. If the Feng family kept this up, this girl might not even make it to grow up! What a crime! What a crime!

The old secretary's face flushed with anger. He was nearly sixty, one of the few literate people in the village, and even though the Cultural Revolution had raged a few years back, people still came to him for advice. He was highly respected in Daba Village, and everyone listened to what he said.

His tone hardened as he said to Feng Xia, "Kid, sit here for now. When the village chief gets off work, we'll both go to your house and have a word with them. Your parents—how can they beat a kid like that? They're out of their minds!"

Feng Xia nodded and then told the secretary she wanted to go outside and bask in the sun. She was dressed too thinly and felt cold indoors. The secretary's disdain for the Feng family grew. What kind of people were they?

Meanwhile, Old Madam Feng had been carried to the health station. There, only a barefoot doctor and an educated youth who had read a few medical books were present. Zhao Yuee, still at the station, was wailing loudly, claiming her leg was broken and that the little wretch who did this should pay with her life.

The barefoot doctor, surnamed Chen, frowned at Zhao Yuee's foul language. He examined her calf and found a large swelling—likely a broken bone. He pressed a few spots, causing the old woman to break out in cold sweat from the pain, unable even to cry out. With a serious expression, he applied some herbal medicine, set the leg with splints, and asked the Feng family for five mao in consultation fees. The Feng family hesitated, but when Dr. Chen gave them a cold, sharp look, they reluctantly paid.

After receiving the money, Dr. Chen said, "The old lady's leg bone might be broken. If it still hurts badly tomorrow, you'll need to take her to the town hospital."

Feng Shizhu and Feng Aihua immediately wanted their money back—the treatment hadn't worked, and they were being charged! But Dr. Chen shot them a sidelong glare, and they dared not move. In truth, these two were bullies who cowered before the strong. They slunk away, carrying Zhao Yuee back home in disgrace.

Feng Aiguo, meanwhile, had been searching for Feng Xia everywhere. He had circled the area, even gone up the mountain, but found no trace. Furious, he was further irritated when Feng Chengzong started crying loudly. Li Meihua was busy feeding the chickens and had no time for him. Feng Qiu was playing by herself, but she got in Feng Aiguo's way, and he slapped her hard, leaving her cheek red and swollen. She joined Feng Chengzong in crying.

The two children's wailing annoyed Feng Aiguo, and he raised his hand to hit them again. Li Meihua quickly put down the feed basin, pulled the children behind her, and shouted, "What are you hitting them for? They're so young, what do they know? Feng Aiguo, this is your son! If you hurt him, what will you do?"

With that, Li Meihua picked up Feng Chengzong, wiped his tears, and put a piece of rock sugar in his mouth. Tasting the sweetness, he stopped crying and ran off to chase the chickens and dogs in the yard. Feng Qiu, hit harder, was still sobbing, but Li Meihua didn't indulge her. She pinched Feng Qiu's arm hard. Children learn to avoid harm, and seeing no one cared, Feng Qiu slowly stopped crying. Usually, Feng Xia would comfort her, and now the little girl kept murmuring, "Want sister, want sister."

Seeing her quiet, Li Meihua went back to feeding the remaining chicken and two geese. Feng Aiguo sat in the yard, the thick stick at his feet, staring at the gate with a dark, fierce expression.

It wasn't until around five or six in the evening that the Feng family's gate was pushed open. Feng Aiguo, burning with rage, roared, "You little bastard, finally decided to crawl back!"

But when he saw the two figures entering, his curses died in his throat. His face flushed red, and he stammered, "Village Chief, Secretary, what brings you here?"

The village chief and secretary looked grim, having clearly heard the "little bastard." Feng Xia shrank behind them, her face terrified, trembling at Feng Aiguo's shout.

The village chief, a fifty-year-old man with dark skin from years of labor, was usually quiet. He had been dragged along by the old secretary and had just seen Feng Xia's countless wounds. Now, he spoke first: "Chairman said women hold up half the sky. Beating a child like this—you'll kill her! Daba Village can't have this kind of example. If Feng Xia dies from your beatings, I'll go to the city police station and report you. They'll lock you up."

Hearing this, Feng Aiguo's face turned white. His family had been poor peasants for three generations, and he feared officials most. He stumbled back a few steps, revealing his father. Feng Shizhu was also nervous but stammered, "Village Chief, this little... child is too disobedient. She killed our hen. She needs a beating to learn!"

The secretary shot back, "She's disobedient? You all went to a feast and left a child home alone. Is that obedient?"

Inside, Old Madam Feng heard the commotion and had Zhang Ling help her hobble over, clutching her leg and groaning. Her voice dripped with venom as she fixed her eyes on Feng Xia: "Village Chief, Secretary, this little wretch broke my leg! She's an ungrateful wolf, even hitting her own grandmother! You must do justice for me!"

Feng Xia suddenly stepped forward. Her thin frame was shorter than a ten-year-old's, a stark contrast to Old Madam Feng, who was twice her size, with arms thicker than Feng Xia's legs. Anyone could see it was absurd to think Feng Xia could have beaten her. Neither the village chief nor the secretary believed it, and even the Feng family had doubts.

The two officials ignored Zhao Yuee and said directly to Feng Shizhu, "We're telling you now: if you ever beat this girl like that again, we'll have you arrested."

Then they turned to Feng Xia: "If your parents or grandparents hit you again, come to the village committee. Don't be afraid. The Party will stand by you."

Feng Xia's eyes sparkled as she nodded repeatedly, a sight that stirred a pang of sorrow.

The village chief and secretary had other matters to attend to and left. Feng Shizhu saw them out, and as soon as the gate closed, Feng Aiguo swung the stick viciously at Feng Xia. If it had connected, she would have been barely alive.

Li Meihua pulled the two children away to the pigpen, ignoring the scene. Feng Xia, now with two-fifths of her ox-like strength restored, dodged the stick with lightning speed. Grabbing a small stool nearby, she hurled it at Old Madam Feng. The stool struck the old woman's other calf with a sharp crack, shattering on impact. The sound was music to Feng Xia's ears. She smirked, her eyes dark as stars.

Feng Aiguo forgot about beating her and rushed to his mother. Old Madam Feng felt a sharp pain in her leg, rolled her eyes, and fainted. In that instant, Feng Xia dashed into Feng Aiguo and Li Meihua's room, locked the door, and dragged a large wooden cabinet behind it, blocking the entrance. Despite Feng Aiguo and Li Meihua's furious pounding and shouting, she remained unmoved.

The room had a 1.5-meter-wide bed on the left, where Feng Aiguo, Li Meihua, and Feng Chengzong usually slept, separated by a curtain. On the right was a small bunk bed: Feng Chun on the top, Feng Qiu on the bottom. As for Feng Xia? She had always slept in the kitchen.

The room was long and narrow, not spacious, with only the large cabinet as furniture. Like a little rat, Feng Xia rummaged through everything. Under the bed, she found two large trunks with copper locks. Using a hairpin from Feng Chun, she twisted it into a thin wire and picked the locks instantly. One trunk held clothes and sheets; the other contained sugar, biscuits, a jar of malted milk, and a big bag of rock sugar—about two liang of malted milk and at least a jin of sugar. Feng Xia's eyes sparkled with joy.

She lay on the bed, popping rock sugar into her mouth like sunflower seeds. After finishing the sugar, she mixed the malted milk with hot water from a thermos and drank it all. The biscuits and everything else were devoured, leaving not a crumb.

The lump on her head had healed, but Feng Xia controlled her superpower to leave a bruise, making her look even more eerie with her bright eyes—more like a spirit than a child.

Feng Xia ate until her belly was round. In theory, she could never be full; her superpower consumed food for energy, so she could eat endlessly. This stash restored another tenth of her power, giving her about three hundred jin of strength. She lay on Li Meihua's clean, comfortable bed, closed her eyes, and fell into a sweet sleep.

Feng Aiguo and Feng Shizhu carried Zhao Yuee back to the health station. Dr. Chen was speechless—her left leg wasn't even healed, and now her right was broken. At her age, was she asking for trouble? He kept his thoughts to himself, deftly prepared the medicine, demanded payment first, applied the herbs, set the leg with splints, and sent them home.

The family had a chaotic day. By evening, Feng Chun and the two girls from the main branch returned with firewood. After hearing their mother's account of Feng Xia's deeds, they didn't believe it. But when they tried to enter the room to sleep, they were stunned—the door was blocked!

Their mother must have been telling the truth. Feng Xia had gone mad!