The discriminatory treatment from the onlookers infuriated the old woman, but she dared not vent her anger on others, lest she inadvertently incur the wrath of the crowd.
He had no choice but to continue targeting Xia Qingqing: "You brat, you beat my grandson like this, you have to pay us compensation."
When Gou Dan heard that he had to pay compensation, he immediately became agitated: "You started it, you hit me too, so you have to pay me compensation."
"Don't worry, I'll take care of it," Xia Qingqing whispered in Gou Dan's ear.
Dog Egg was comforted by her words and looked at his sister with eyes full of trust.
Xia Qingqing glanced coldly at the old lady who was acting shamelessly, and said directly to the people around her, "Aunties and sisters, could someone please call the police? We'll let the police judge this matter and see who needs to pay compensation."
The woman who first mentioned Xia Qingqing was not the one who reacted first: "No problem, young lady, I'll go to the police station for you right away."
She now regrets misunderstanding Xia Qingqing from the beginning and immediately wants to help her.
Upon hearing that the police were to be called, the old woman anxiously grabbed the woman's clothes, saying, "Wait a minute!!!"
Then he turned to Xia Qingqing and said, "Why are you calling the police for such a small thing? The police are very busy. Don't delay their work, you brat."
"You not only hit my brother but also tried to extort us. This is no small matter. Are you afraid to call the police because you feel guilty?" Xia Qingqing crossed her arms and looked at the old lady opposite her with her chin slightly raised.
"I... I didn't do it on purpose. It was this brat who hit my grandson first," the old lady stammered, clearly worried that the police would have to come.
Xia Qingqing pointed at the dirty little boy next to her: "Putting aside the fact that your grandson stole my brother's White Rabbit candy, the police don't care if kids fight. But for an adult to hit a child is child abuse, and you'll go to jail."
The old lady didn't know anything about child abuse, but seeing Xia Qingqing's confident look, she immediately believed her: "No, let's settle this privately and not interfere with the police's work."
“It’s not impossible. You beat my brother like this, you should at least pay me 10 yuan, right?” Xia Qingqing said, looking at Gou Dan’s face with heartache. Neither she nor her parents had ever hit Gou Dan’s face. How dare this old hag hit him.
"What? 10 yuan? Is your brother made of gold?" Upon hearing this amount, the old lady clutched her heart, looking as if she was about to collapse.
“I don’t have that much money. Besides, you hit my grandson, so you have to compensate my grandson.”
Xia Qingqing nodded in agreement: "What you said makes sense. Then let's pay 5 yuan. The other 5 yuan can be considered as compensation for your grandson. 5 yuan per person is reasonable, isn't it?"
She initially only intended to ask the other party for 5 yuan in compensation, deliberately leaving room for negotiation.
The old lady nodded subconsciously. She felt that something was not quite right, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.
He quickly pulled a wad of cash from his pocket, counted out five yuan, and handed it to Xia Qingqing: "Here's the money, but you can't report this to the police again."
"Don't worry, I keep my word," Xia Qingqing said with a secret smile after taking the money, then quickly left with Gou Dan in her arms.
The two siblings hurried as fast as they could and finally managed to get on the oxcart.
The aunties and older women on the oxcart looked at Xia Qingqing with displeasure when they saw that Gou Dan's face was red and swollen.
Everyone thought Xia Qingqing was the one who hit him, otherwise how could someone who was perfectly fine when he came back have a slap mark on his face?
The aunts had even come up with a reason for Xia Qingqing: Gou Dan must have gone to the supply and marketing cooperative or the state-run restaurant and made a fuss about wanting this and that, and Xia Qingqing couldn't stand it anymore, so she beat him up.
Fortunately, no one interfered. These days, it's perfectly normal for kids to get beaten up. Even his own brother can beat him up whenever he wants.
——
When Xia Qingqing and the others arrived home, Xia Heping had already finished eating and gone to work, while Zhang Hongyan waited for the siblings to come home for dinner.
"Dog Egg, what happened to your face?" Zhang Hongyan stared intently at the handprint on her son's face, then immediately added, "Did you misbehave in the county?"
Zhang Hongyan suspected that the injury on her son's face was caused by her daughter, but Qingqing would never hit her younger brother normally. This time, it must have been because Gou Dan was too naughty that Qingqing had no choice but to hit him, so she couldn't blame her daughter.
"No, it was an old woman who hit me. Her grandson stole my candy, and she hit me too," Gou Dan pitifully snuggled into his mother's arms for comfort.
Upon hearing this, Zhang Hongyan's eyes widened immediately: "Which old hag is it? Qingqing, are you alright?"
As Zhang Hongyan was about to check Xia Qingqing for injuries, Xia Qingqing quickly stopped her.
"Mom, I'm fine. It's all my fault. I left Gou Dan alone at the supply and marketing cooperative. I went to the grocery store to buy things, and that's when Gou Dan got beaten."
“How can you blame yourself? That old woman must be out of her mind. It has nothing to do with you,” Zhang Hongyan said, preventing her daughter from intervening and immediately defending her.
Even when Xia Qingqing said she went to the grocery store to buy things, she didn't listen carefully.
Gou Dan nodded in agreement: "Yes, my sister protected me too. She made that old woman pay her 5 yuan." As he spoke, Gou Dan even made a serious gesture.
"Mom, keep this money for you," Xia Qingqing said, handing the money to Zhang Hongyan.
Zhang Hongyan had carefully examined her son's wound. It was just a slap; it would heal in a few days. It was definitely worth the 5 yuan for that slap.
She wondered where that old woman was, and she even wished that old woman would slap her a few times.
Xia Qingqing took out the fish and meat she had bought from her basket: "Mom, Gou Dan got beaten up today. Let's make him something nice to eat tonight to help him recover."
Looking at the 3-pound fish and 2 pounds of meat, Zhang Hongyan felt a pang of heartache: "Even if you're trying to replenish your body, you don't need to eat this well. It's almost like the New Year."
"Mom, I want to eat," Gou Dan said with a silly grin at Zhang Hongyan, swallowing hard.
Looking at the injury on his face, Zhang Hongyan couldn't bear to refuse. She affectionately patted his little head and said, "Eat up. Mom will make braised pork for you tonight. Eat more, okay?"
"Okay, Mom is the best," Gou Dan happily rubbed her hand.
Xia Qingqing took the opportunity to slip back to her room. At that moment, her mother's attention was on Gou Dan, and she didn't have time to scold her for wasting money. Once her mother remembered this, she would definitely nag her again.
After returning to her room, Xia Qingqing sent Ali a video call invitation.
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