A Good Country Wife
Chapter 515 - 509_1

Chapter 515: Chapter 509_1

A tall man thus began brawling with a weak woman right on the street. In the process, the cloth that the masked man had used to cover his face was torn off by Lin Yue, and onlookers standing afar immediately recognized the masked man’s identity.

"Look at that face, isn’t that the brother of Li, the arrest officer from the Government Office? Just recently, I saw him at the entrance of the gambling house, having lost all his money and being chased out penniless. I never expected him to be up to such deeds in the blink of an eye. I wonder which unfortunate young lady caught his eye this time. But this young lady is pretty fierce too, to be fighting with this tyrant," one of the bystanders, recognizing Li Jiansan, commented, expressing amazement at how times had changed. Yet, he showed no intention of stepping forward to help, nor did he think of reporting the incident to the government office, completely adopting a bystander’s attitude to enjoy the spectacle.

Although Li Jiansan was not skilled in Martial Arts, he was physically strong and still formidable despite his injuries, not someone the average person could match. Lin Yue had used all the moves she had learned, but still could not gain an advantage over Li Jiansan. She was beaten until her face was a mix of blue and purple bruises. Lin Yue, not caring about her own pain after being accosted by Li Jiansan for no reason, and now beaten into this state, was all the more enraged and wished nothing more than to tear Li Jiansan to pieces. Disregarding her injuries, she fought him fiercely, causing Li Jiansan to sustain quite a few wounds as well.

Doctor Zheng was returning from the north of the city after treating a patient and came upon this ’scene.’ Hearing that it was the brother of the arrest officer Li making trouble on the street, he hesitated over whether to intervene. It was quite rare to see a woman brave enough to fight Li Jiansan. Before he could step forward, he realized the woman fighting Li Jiansan was Lin Yue, which alarmed him. He immediately had his servant rush to Jimin Hall to send a message, while he himself prepared to break through the crowd and dash forward.

"Stop! Li Jiansan, have you no regard for the law, daring to commit such atrocities in broad daylight?" Doctor Zheng spoke while seizing the opportunity when Li Jiansan stopped and looked at him to step forward and pull Lin Yue behind him, placing himself in front of Li Jiansan.

"So it turns out to be Doctor Zheng from Jimin Hall. I see you’re so full that you’re meddling in my affairs. Move aside quickly, or I’ll beat you up along with her," Li Jiansan, who had initially concealed his identity to avoid his brother’s reproach for causing trouble, became even more arrogant with his identity exposed. Certain that having his brother, the arrest officer, to back him up at the government office meant these people couldn’t touch him, his attitude towards Doctor Zheng grew increasingly impolite, and he indeed seemed ready to start a fight.

"Li Jiansan, I advise you to restrain yourself and not be too arrogant. Though your brother holds some power as an arrest officer at the government office, it’s not enough to cover the sky with one hand. If you provoke someone you shouldn’t, even your brother won’t be able to protect you," said Doctor Zheng, who was only a physician and of no young age besides. He surely would not prevail in a fight, but he could only try his best to delay, waiting for the people from Jimin Hall to come to the rescue.

Li Jiansan, upon hearing these words from Doctor Zheng, hesitated. Though he looked down on Doctor Zheng, considering him nothing more than a local doctor with some medical skill, his brother had warned him not to provoke the people from Jimin Hall, as the backers behind the hall were influential individuals that even the Magistrate dared not provoke, let alone themselves.

Although Li Jiansan hesitated and did not lay a hand on Doctor Zheng, the thought of letting off the woman who had plotted against him and caused his injuries was something he found hard to swallow, leading to a deadlock.

"Doctor Zheng, this woman has nothing to do with you. Why protect her? Could it be you’ve taken a fancy to her looks? But at your age, why are you still thinking about such matters? Truly, you’re vigorous in your old age," said Li Jiansan. Although he dared not strike Doctor Zheng due to his internal reservations, this did not prevent him from slandering and belittling Doctor Zheng with a few biting remarks to vent his frustration.

Doctor Zheng did not expect Li Jiansan to be such a scoundrel, making such shameless allegations on the street, his face turned red with anger, pointing a finger at Li Jiansan, "You, Li Jiansan, you bully others with power, thinking everyone is as shameless and lascivious as you."

"You old fart, you dare insult me, think I won’t hit you? If you piss me off, I don’t care about your Jimin Hall, I’ll beat you just the same."

"Shopkeeper, there’s trouble!" Having received Dr. Zheng’s orders, the servant raced back to Jimin Hall in the horse-drawn carriage, threw down the whip and hurriedly sought out Manager Liu.

"Are you asleep or what? Can’t you talk proper? I’m perfectly fine, not a thing’s wrong with me." Manager Liu scolded the blundering servant who had rushed over, before finally asking, "Spit it out, what’s got you in such a flurry, forgetting all your manners? Didn’t you drive Dr. Zheng in the carriage to see a patient? You’re back alone; don’t tell me something happened to Dr. Zheng?"

"No, Manager, it’s not Dr. Zheng, it’s Mistress Lin who’s in trouble! On the way back from seeing patients with Dr. Zheng, we ran into Mistress Lin being beaten black and blue on the street by Arrest Officer Li’s brother, Li Jiansan. Dr. Zheng stepped in to stop it and sent me back to report to you right away," the servant managed to blurt out the situation in one breath, quite cleverly.

"What?! Mistress Lin is in trouble?" Manager Liu, thinking it was Dr. Zheng who had run into trouble, hadn’t been this agitated, but upon hearing that it was Lin Yue, he sprang to his feet with a change in his complexion, no longer asking anything else. He quickly gathered his men to go to the rescue, deciding that securing the person’s safety was the most pressing matter, regardless of what had happened.

The servant hadn’t expected Manager Liu to react so fiercely; seeing him leading men to the rescue, he too hastily followed suit.

Manager Liu, with six or seven men, proved too much for Li Jiansan, no matter how brave he might have been. He could only watch as Manager Liu took the person away. But as soon as Manager Liu left, Li Jiansan started cursing and swearing, and with his injuries, had no choice but to visit a clinic and have the doctor bandage him up.

Lin Yue had already exhausted most of her strength in running away, and had been forcing herself to keep standing while fighting Li Jiansan. Once she saw Manager Liu come with help, knowing she was safe, she relaxed and could no longer hold on, fainting away.

Seeing Lin Yue’s miserable state, covered in injuries from Li Jiansan’s beatings, Manager Liu was already deeply worried. Seeing her faint added a great shock, and he quickly had his men carry Lin Yue back to Jimin Hall for Dr. Zheng to treat her.

As for the instigator Li Jiansan, Manager Liu didn’t bother with him or have him tied up. His whole heart was concerned with Lin Yue’s injuries, fearing that any lack of care on their part might cause problems for her. As for Li Jiansan, Manager Liu wasn’t worried. The Monk may run, but the temple remains; there would be time to settle accounts later.