Chapter 19

Chapter 19

The mountains behind the military base had barbed wire strung up, and aside from the housing area, many spots had guards stationed. But Feng Xia moved like a light, nimble bird, with no one spotting her.

The barbed wire was about six to ten feet high, with soldiers every few yards. Feng Xia found a dead angle, nimbly climbed over it, landing so quietly, not a peep.

The further in she went, the thicker the woods got. Keeping track of time, Feng Xia grabbed two wild pheasants on her way back. She was short on time, with afternoon classes coming up, and the area was crawling with soldiers, so she planned to come back and check it out another time.

Carrying the two big pheasants, Feng Xia snuck back to Old Lady Wu’s place. Even Old Lady Wu’s usually calm face showed a crack. “Where’d these pheasants come from?” she said sternly.

“I caught ‘em in the back mountain, Grandma. One for each of us. Cook ‘em up, and we’ll eat ‘em tonight,” Feng Xia said with a big smile, her cheeks dimpling sweetly, looking real cute and lovable.

Old Lady Wu’s voice got even sterner. “You can’t just go messing around on that mountain. If they catch you, they’ll send you packing back home. The guys patrolling up there are packing real guns. Didn’t Commander Qian tell you that?”

Feng Xia said, “He did, but I’m still hungry, Grandma. Just cook ‘em for me, I’m starving.”

Watching the girl clutch her stomach and beg, Old Lady Wu couldn’t help but give in, shaking her head, making a mental note to talk to Qian Jun about it. She took the chickens to the kitchen to pluck ‘em.

Feng Xia headed off to elementary school with a grin. The kids in her class practically worshipped her. Before the teacher showed up, a bunch of kids pulled snacks out of their pockets for Feng Xia. Feng Xia took it all, eating while listening to them suck up to her. She liked these sharp little kids.

Over there, Xu Wen had been busy all lunch, no break, putting together a detailed plan for gifted education, and going over the details with Old Director, making sure nothing was left out. When the bell rang, she tucked her lesson plans under her arm and went to class.

This class was writing class. Xu Wen had the students write an essay on “The Most Beautiful Thing,” since they were third graders, the essay was capped at 300 words, to be finished in one period.

Feng Xia’s handwriting was starting to look decent, each stroke was clear and easy to read, not fancy, but at least neat. To Feng Xia, the best thing was that bowl of braised pork from the cafeteria cook. She had it the day she got there, and the taste was out of this world, soft and sticky, rich and fatty, with a savory sauce. Nothing beat that. So while all the other kids wrote about their parents or favorite toys, playing it safe, Feng Xia’s essay was totally one of a kind.

After the essays were turned in, Xu Wen went through them one by one in the second class. When she got to Feng Xia’s, after reading it, the kids were all swallowing hard, like they could smell the meat right there, thinking they’d beg their parents for braised pork that night, leaving Xu Wen both amused and exasperated.

The third period was usually for quiet study. Feng Xia was called to the office again.

“Feng Xia, here are the math textbooks for fourth and fifth grade. Read them here, and ask me if you don’t understand,” Xu Wen said softly, her eyes full of affection.

Feng Xia nodded and flipped through the books quickly. She finished the thin fourth-grade book in about twenty minutes, then moved on to the fifth-grade one. The rapid page-turning made Xu Wen a bit uneasy.

Other teachers in the office watched curiously, their eyes mocking as Feng Xia breezed through two books in one period. They thought she was just a clueless kid flipping pages like counting money—how could she possibly understand?

“Teacher, I’m done,” Feng Xia said.

“Good. Do you understand everything?”

Feng Xia nodded. Xu Wen pulled out a fifth-grade math final exam from last year and handed it to her. “Finish this before you leave.”

Without a word, Feng Xia picked up the pen and started writing. The test had 15 fill-in-the-blank questions and 5 word problems. For her, it was easy—she answered the blanks in seconds and finished the whole thing in fifteen minutes, ten minutes after school had ended.

Xu Wen graded it immediately. Perfect score, not a single mistake. She let out a soft breath. This student was truly brilliant.

She took out a math problem set from her desk and gave it to Feng Xia. The problems were far harder than elementary level, a translated version from Sulian with awkward phrasing. Feng Xia accepted it politely. “Teacher, may I go now?”

Xu Wen nodded, and the child left happily. Xu Wen shook her head—still just a kid.

A teacher from the fourth and fifth grades came over to tease. “Xu, that student of yours reads like she’s counting money. How’d she do?”

Xu Wen handed over the test without a word. The teachers gathered around, seeing checkmarks everywhere—all fill-in-the-blanks correct, the word problems clear and well-structured, better than some fifth graders.

“She must have studied this before!” they exclaimed in disbelief.

Xu Wen smiled. “No, she just learned it.”

The two teachers exchanged glances, realizing she was a true prodigy. But their faces turned bitter. In 1970, with the country in turmoil and the college entrance exam not yet restored, who knew if such a child would ever see that day?

Feng Xia, thinking only of her pheasants, raced back to Old Lady Wu’s house. From a distance, she saw a young woman holding a child’s hand, talking to Old Lady Wu. Even from afar, she could sense the old woman’s grim expression. Feng Xia quickened her pace and dashed to the door.

She didn’t recognize the woman—about thirty, fair-skinned, with a seductive figure in a tight blue cloth top, accentuating her curves. The chubby boy beside her looked well-fed.

“Oh, is this the new relative at Aunt Wu’s? Such a pretty girl! How old are you, little sister?” the woman asked with a fake smile.

It was rush hour, and neighbors passing by saw Tian Guihua and her fat son blocking Old Lady Wu’s door. They knew the deal.

Tian Guihua was the compound’s notorious troublemaker. Her husband had been disabled in battle years ago and died two years later. She was sharp-tongued and greedy, always trying to squeeze something out of others. Today, she’d set her sights on Old Lady Wu, and it wouldn’t end well.

The woman had a certain allure that made some men weak-kneed. Even in the military compound, a few fools slipped her money, keeping her and her son afloat like petty scoundrels.

When Feng Xia didn’t answer, Tian Guihua put on a stern, lecturing tone. “What’s the matter? Why aren’t you answering your auntie?”

The boy scowled, looking ready to hit Feng Xia.

Old Lady Wu calmly pulled Feng Xia behind her. “This girl’s from the countryside, shy and quiet. Tian Guihua, just say what you want. Xia Girl and I need to get dinner ready.”

Tian Guihua immediately beamed. “Oh, Auntie, we’re out of food again. I saw you plucking chicken feathers this afternoon. My Dabao here hasn’t had meat in months. Could we join you for a meal tonight? I won’t eat, just let my boy have some. He lost his father young, and it’s so hard raising him alone!”

She started fake-crying. The women and kids on the street knew her tricks and felt nothing but contempt. Without any men around, who was she putting on a show for?

The neighbors stood by, ready to help Old Lady Wu if Tian Guihua caused trouble, but no one wanted to provoke the shrew and bring her wrath upon themselves.

Old Lady Wu frowned. “The chicken was a gift for Feng Xia. I can’t decide, and neither can she. If you want some, go ask her family in Daba Village.”

Tian Guihua’s smile froze. Cursing the old woman under her breath, she pinched her son’s hand. Zhao Dabao immediately started wailing, his shrill voice loud as he rolled on the ground. Tian Guihua joined in, howling, “My poor Dabao! He just wants a bite of meat, and they won’t give any! Old Zhao, why did you leave us? How are we supposed to live?”

She plopped down in front of Old Lady Wu, crying and wailing, with Zhao Dabao chiming in, “I want chicken! I want chicken!” The scene was chaotic.

Old Lady Wu’s face darkened like a storm cloud, her sharp eyes freezing on Tian Guihua.

Feng Xia handed her backpack to Old Lady Wu. It was army green, handmade by the old woman, with a five-pointed star embroidered on it.

Old Lady Wu grabbed the girl’s arm. “Go inside. Don’t stay out here.”

Feng Xia gently pulled her hand away, smiling. “Grandma, hold my bag. Step aside.”

Then, something unexpected happened. No one saw how Feng Xia moved, but she was suddenly sitting firmly on Zhao Dabao. The slender girl pinned the fat boy down, and despite his screaming, her hands, like iron, smacked his bottom again and again, leaving him crying and drooling.

Tian Guihua froze for a moment, then lunged to grab Feng Xia’s hair. But Feng Xia, as if with eyes in the back of her head, elbowed backward, shoving the grown woman away. Tian Guihua fell at Feng Xia’s feet, and with a kick, she couldn’t get up.

Feng Xia kept hitting Zhao Dabao, moving from his bottom to his face, slapping him until his head swelled like a pig’s, unable to even cry out.

Only then did someone step in to help, pulling Tian Guihua to her feet. Feng Xia stood up, one foot on Zhao Dabao, her clear eyes scanning the crowd with a chilling glare that sent shivers down spines. No one dared speak.

She pressed down with her foot, and Zhao Dabao screamed.

“Still want chicken?” Feng Xia asked.

“No, no! Mom, save me!” Zhao Dabao sobbed.

Feng Xia lifted her foot, and Zhao Dabao scrambled to curl up at his mother’s feet. Feng Xia stared at them, then suddenly smiled. “Come again, and I’ll break his leg.”

She spoke with a smile, her voice crisp, her dimples sweet, but it sent chills through everyone. This girl wasn’t joking—she really would break his leg.

Tian Guihua wanted to say something more, but she was disheveled, her hair a mess, her clothes covered in mud, and she was dragging along a son who was a snotty, teary mess. Meeting Feng Xia's sharp, clear eyes and recalling the pain from that kick, she immediately shut her mouth and slunk away without another word.

Feng Xia also pulled Old Lady Wu back into the house.

The women watching nearby figured this girl was no pushover.

Old Lady Wu watched the girl wolfing down a bowl of chicken soup, her expression complicated. After a long silence, she said, "This isn't good. If everyone's scared of you, you won't have any friends."

Feng Xia just thought the chicken soup was incredibly tasty. Old Lady Wu had added mushrooms, and the combination was exquisite. She couldn't stop drinking it.

"Why worry about that? If I have no friends, so be it. As long as I have Grandma's chicken soup, that's enough. You drink too—this soup is delicious!" Feng Xia's voice was crisp. Old Lady Wu looked at the fading bruises on the girl's arm and sighed inwardly.

In the evening, Qian Jun returned. His wife animatedly told him about the incident: "You have no idea how tough that girl is—one elbow jab and Tian Guihua was on the ground."

Qian Jun only felt a headache. How could he not know? He knew all too well. This was a wild wolf cub, super protective of her food. It was no surprise she'd act that way when Tian Guihua and her son tried to take her chicken.

But he still had to straighten her out. In the dim night, Qian Jun knocked on Old Lady Wu's door again, pulled Feng Xia into the yard, and planned to have a serious talk with her.

Feng Xia had just swallowed a few Red Aconite pills—the most toxic herb found in the mountains. She needed to consume poison to refine her superpower. So she was in a terrible state now, deathly pale, cold sweat dripping from her hair and down her spine. Luckily, in the darkness, Qian Jun couldn't see clearly.

"How could you hit someone? If you can't handle something, just tell us, and we'll help you out." After saying this, Qian Jun saw the girl staring straight at him and felt a bit embarrassed.

Indeed, if this matter with Tian Guihua had been brought to the military, they'd have swept it under the rug. But this girl throwing punches over nothing was way out of line.

Feng Xia didn't reply. Her eyes were hidden in the night. Only when she reached the door did a dim, yellow light illuminate those eyes—a nightmare Qian Jun would never forget for the rest of his life. They were full of brutality and bloodlust, with no trace of human emotion—like an animal, not a person.

Her voice was faint, drifting in the wind, as Qian Jun heard Feng Xia say.

"I know. That's why I didn't kill them."