The villagers didn’t feel much sympathy for Bowman Golding. The Thorne family, needless to say, sided with their own. Even some of the Goldings looked down on Sherman Golding’s family’s behavior, and they especially despised Bowman for being unable to even beat a six-year-old girl, thinking he’d eaten for twenty years for nothing.

"Bowman has a fiancée, right? What’s he going to do if his family jewels are ruined? He’s supposed to get married next year!"

"They’re definitely not ruined. How much strength can a little kid have? It must have just hurt for a bit. If they were really ruined, Sherman Golding’s family would’ve rushed him to the hospital ages ago."

"Definitely not ruined. And his arm doesn’t seem to be broken, either. Third Uncle Golding already popped it back in. Felix only dislocated the joint."

A few people who knew the real story spoke up. They were Sherman Golding’s next-door neighbors, so they were better informed.

"Felix was too ruthless. We all live in the same village; he doesn’t know how to hold back," someone spoke up for Sherman Golding’s family. It was Phoenix Golding’s father, Silas Golding, who was cut from the same cloth as Sherman.

"I think Felix showed plenty of restraint. Sherman Golding’s family of adults, bullying a little girl like that? Her face was all swollen! Everyone knows how much Felix dotes on his precious daughter; he can’t even stand to say a harsh word to her. After Sherman Golding hit his daughter, the fact that Felix Thorne didn’t chop their whole family into pieces means he was already being merciful!"

The others all nodded in agreement. That was exactly right. If someone hit your precious daughter, what father wouldn’t fly into a rage?

Besides, Sherman Golding’s family tried to steal land that a child had cleared. That was just a despicable thing to do. They deserved to be taught a lesson. The villagers didn’t feel a shred of sympathy for them.

The crowd chattered away enthusiastically. Once they were done with the Golding family, they moved on to the juicy gossip from the next village over: which father-in-law was sleeping with his daughter-in-law, which wife was cheating on her husband, which widow had taken a secret lover... The tellers were animated, and the listeners were visibly excited.

Tang Xiaonan emerged with Jim Thorne, half of her face swollen like a pig’s. She intentionally walked ahead of him, head held high and chest puffed out. Jim was holding a flashlight, and its beam periodically landed on her face. All the villagers turned to look at her; that swollen half-face was impossible to miss.

Good heavens, her face was injured so badly. She used to be such a pretty, delicate little girl, and now she was a mess. No wonder Felix Thorne flew into such a rage. Sherman Golding’s family had it coming!

"Xiaonan, who hit your face?" a busybody intentionally asked, which was exactly what Tang Xiaonan had been hoping for.

She had come out deliberately to play the victim, to let all the villagers see just how "brutal" the Golding family was. ’Hmph, I’m a petty person. I’ll hold this grudge for at least a year.’

"Bowman Golding hit me. I can’t even hear out of this ear now, he pinched my arm, and he knocked out a tooth."

Tang Xiaonan said this with a deeply wronged expression, rolling up her sleeve to show everyone the bruise on her arm. Then she opened her mouth wide for them to see the molar she had lost. She looked for all the world like a poor, pitiful thing being tormented by a bully.

"Oh my... that Bowman is a real piece of work, getting physical with a little girl. It’s just outrageous."

"Bowman has a terrible temper. He’ll resort to violence at the drop of a hat. It’s all because Mandy York spoiled him rotten. Sherman has no say in that house; he does whatever Mandy tells him. The new bride is in for a tough time when she marries in."

"I heard she’s a girl from Rosillia Village, though I don’t know which family. If the new bride is tough, she might be fine. But if she’s a pushover, she’s in for a world of hurt."

...

The villagers’ attention shifted to the new bride Bowman Golding would soon be marrying, and no one was paying attention to Tang Xiaonan anymore. But her objective had been accomplished. After a short walk around the neighborhood, she and Jim Thorne went home to bed.