A Warning to the Village
The village chief stroked his beard and said, "A few scratches on the face only hurt the skin, not the bones. As long as the face isn’t disfigured, the authorities won’t get involved."
Wu Caiwei snapped back to her senses and said, "Yes, yes, the authorities won’t care! We common folk always have a few scuffles. Even sisters-in-law scratch each other’s faces when they fight. If every scratch sent someone to the authorities, the county magistrate would be worked to death!"
The villagers all nodded, finding this quite reasonable.
But this only applies to ordinary folks. In farming families, everyone has a few scars—especially the men, who often get hurt working. No one cares about a few marks.
But Su Shimao is different. He’s a scholar. Scholars have to take the imperial exams, and one of the requirements is to have regular features—no obvious moles, scars, or birthmarks. After all, you can’t have an official with a ruined face representing the court—it would be a disgrace.
If Su Li were to scratch Su Shimao’s face and leave a noticeable scar, Su Shimao wouldn’t even be able to register for the exam.
None of the villagers have scholars in their families, so they have no idea about this.
But Mrs. Zhao and Old Mrs. Su know. They understand that Su Shimao’s face must not be left with any obvious scars.
“A-Li, Shimao is your cousin—we’re all family. Please let him go,” Mrs. Zhao immediately softened, her voice pleading.
Old Mrs. Su didn’t dare act tough anymore. She stared at Su Li’s hand, terrified that a slip would leave Su Shimao’s face scarred.
“A-Li, listen to your grandmother and let your cousin go,” Old Mrs. Su pleaded humbly with Su Li.
Su Li looked at them coldly. “Now you’re scared? Su Shimao is your precious treasure, can’t even be scratched, but my mother is just a weed—easy for you to hit whenever you want?”
Mrs. Zhao hurriedly said, “A-Li, your aunt was blinded by greed. It was her fault! Please let your cousin Shimao go, we can talk this out!”
With those words, Mrs. Zhao basically admitted she had slandered Su Li and her mother.
Su Li retorted, “When you were hitting my mother, did you think to talk it out? When you were slandering us, did you admit to your own greed? Now you want to talk—too late!”
As Su Li spoke, the hairpin in her hand moved even closer to Su Shimao’s face. Su Shimao turned pale, shaking like a leaf.
Mrs. Zhao was so terrified that tears and snot streamed down her face. “My Shimao is going to take the imperial exam! A-Li, if you scratch his face, you’ll ruin him! Shimao is the Evans family’s hope—we’re counting on him to bring honor to our family. You’re an Evans too! When Shimao becomes a top scholar, you’ll be the scholar’s sister and enjoy the good life with us!”
Su Li spat in contempt. Now she’s painting a pretty picture—does she think Su Li is stupid?
Su Li shouted, “Listen up! Everyone has someone precious to them. My mother is my treasure, and I won’t let anyone bully her! If anyone dares touch my precious mother, I’ll ruin their precious treasure! I’m not stupid—I’ll always find a way to destroy your treasure and walk away untouched! Evans family, if you ever lay a finger on my mother again, I’ll carve a turtle on Su Shimao’s face and see how he takes the exams! Oh, and the authorities don’t care about carving turtles, so if you want to make a fuss, fine—I’ll toss you two taels of silver for medical bills. I can afford that!”
Su Li’s cold gaze swept over the crowd. Not only Mrs. Zhao and Old Mrs. Su, but even the other villagers showed a hint of fear in their eyes.
Today, Su Li intended to use this incident as a warning to the village: arguments and quarrels are one thing—no one can control what people say—but don’t ever lay a hand! If anyone dares hit her mother, they’ll pay dearly!