"Okay, but don't try anything funny, or you'll be in big trouble."
"You're a grown man, are you afraid of a weak woman like me?"
The man thought about it and realized he was right. Surely he could handle a woman?
"Okay, I'll go to your place."
The man then helped Yang Cui up, and his whole body relaxed.
After taking only two steps, Yang Cui suddenly shoved the man, causing him to stumble and nearly fall.
Yang Cui took off running, shouting as she went, "Thief! Thief! A thief is stealing! Thief!"
The villagers rushed out at the sound: "Where's the thief? Where is he?"
Yang Cui, panting, said, "I saw thieves stealing chickens from Xu Dafu's family, right there by the haystack."
The villagers hated the thief to the core. Life was already hard enough; they relied on eggs to trade for oil and salt, and occasionally they would give their children an egg as a treat. And then someone stole their chickens! How could they not hate him?
The villagers, some carrying carrying poles, some with rakes, some with hoes, rushed over menacingly, but by then the thief was nowhere to be seen. He had already run away when Yang Cui shouted "Stop thief!"
"Yang Cui, did you see what the thief looked like?"
“I didn’t see him clearly, he was wearing a hood!” Yang Cui replied. “He was a man, about five feet two inches tall.”
"You son of a bitch, you stole from our house! You good-for-nothing!" Xu Dafu's wife, Xu Linshi, cursed loudly. Luckily, the chickens weren't stolen, otherwise she could have sat at the door and cursed for two hours.
After this incident, Yang Cui became even more cautious. When she went to sleep at night, she would move all the cabinets and tables in front of her to block the doors and windows before she felt at ease. She thought that next time she went to the city, she must buy a dagger to carry with her for self-defense.
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