She muttered, "They were knocked out. You're still saying that this isn't serious?"
Mrs. Qian seethed with anger and clenched her teeth, "Who knows if they're pretending to be unconscious?"
Trembling, Chen Xiaosang sought solace in Mrs. Li's embrace. With a pained expression, she asked, "It was the doctor who said that they were unconscious. What did I do to make Auntie so angry?"
The village chief frowned as he saw that Mrs. Qian was trying to argue with a child, "Mrs. Qian, so you admit to having beaten up Dazhu and Erzhu?"
Mrs. Qian persisted, but Chen Qingshan coughed to get her attention, urging her to answer the village chief, "Just answer the village chief's question."
Reluctantly, she replied, "Yes, I hit them. But it was because they hit my grandson. I couldn't stand it any longer, so I defended myself."
Mrs. Li's anger flared up instantly. "So, because you couldn't stand it, you took a big stick and hit my two grandsons' heads? If I can't stand the sight of you, should I burn down your house?"
Mrs. Qian jumped up immediately and pointed at Mrs. Li, appealing to the village chief, "See? She wants to destroy my house. Village chief, please make a fair judgment!"
Ignoring her plea, the village chief turned to Chen Qingshan and said, "I have already examined Dazhu and Erzhu with Bao Lai. Their injuries are serious, and they need proper care."
Mrs. Qian and Chen Qingshan were caught off guard by Chen Baolai's swift action of taking the village chief to see the injured boys. They couldn't come up with any excuse, so they just fell into silence. Seeing this, Chen Xiaosang was obviously very happy. She was even starting to respect her father even more. Usually, it was her mother who acted unreasonably, and her father would always bear with it. She never expected him to be so thoughtful and resolute in this situation. It was no wonder he could keep her mother in check.
The village chief turned his attention to Chen Baolai and asked, "What do you think should be done in this matter?"
Chen Baolai's expression turned cold. "We just consulted a doctor. The fee was 30 wen, and the medication for three days amounts to 120 wen. All these expenses should be covered by my elder brother. We will need to consult the doctor again and buy more medicine in the future."
Whispering into Mrs. Li's ear, Chen Xiaosang expressed her concern, "Dazhu and Erzhu are so pitiful. They've lost so much blood. Will they end up like me, needing to take medicine frequently?"
Mrs. Li's heart skipped a beat as she imagined her grandsons covered in blood. She interjected, "We also need money to buy meat, eggs, and rice to nourish their bodies until they recover."
"You want them to eat meat and eggs? How much do you want to spoil these kids?" Mrs. Qian exclaimed in anger.
She couldn't bear to eat meat and eggs herself, and now she had to give them to those two brats? Why don't they just stop eating and perish?
Mrs. Li responded immediately, "If it weren't for your audacity to slap my two grandsons, they wouldn't have to endure this pain!"
The village chief addressed Chen Baolai, "Since you and your brother share the same mother, we should try to sort this out like a real family. State the amount, and Qingshan will provide it."
Mrs. Li immediately stood up and whispered a few words into Chen Baolai's ear.
"800 coins," Chen Baolai said to the village chief.
"800 coins? Go rob a bank if you want that much!" Mrs. Qian exclaimed in anguish. In her view, 800 wen for beating up two children was absolutely not worth it!
Chen Baolai ignored her and turned to Chen Qingshan. "Big brother, do you agree?"
Chen Qingshan frowned, "800 coins is too much."
800 coins would take his family several months to save. They couldn't just give all of that money to Chen Baolai.
Chen Baolai insisted, "Then let's stick to what I said before. You will cover the cost of the consultation and medicine. Each child will have one egg, two taels of meat, and six bowls of rice per day until they recover."
Mrs. Qian tugged at Chen Qingshan's clothes and gestured to him, urging him to agree to this arrangement and not pay the 800 wen.
Country children are resilient, a little wound isn't a big deal to them. They could even get well without taking medicine. As for the eggs, rice, and meat mentioned by Chen Baolai, they could stop providing them after two days. Even if they sought help from the village chief again, she could say that both children had recovered.
That being said, Chen Qingshan didn't want to just give food to the two boys. He gave his wife a fierce glare and shook off her hand that was snatching him.
If it weren't for her causing trouble, would he have been trapped in the house by the villagers and scared to come out? And now she had brought the village chief here, tarnishing his reputation. He didn't want to give away his money. She was only causing more trouble for him!
Seeing that Chen Qingshan and Chen Baolai remained silent, the village chief tried to persuade Chen Qingshan, "800 coins isn't too much. The children are precious, and it's not easy to replenish their health."
"Don't all children from the countryside get injured every once in a while? Haven't they still all grow up just fine?" Chen Qingshan replied, "I'll give you a maximum of 300 coins."
They had already spent 150 coins today. How could 300 coins be enough? Chen Xiaosang was dissatisfied with Chen Qingshan. In her opinion, Dazhu and Erzhu were seriously injured, and they would need at least a month of care, which would require 1,000 coins to ensure they recover well.
Chen Baolai said, "If Big Brother won't give 800 coins, then let's take care of Dazhu and Erzhu until the doctor says they're well. If Big Brother disagrees, we'll seek the elders' help. If that doesn't work, I still have five sons. We can make this into a fight between our two families. If all else fails, we'll go to the county magistrate."
Chen Qingshan's face twitched, his palms were sweaty, and his feet were wet. Chen Baolai was making this a very big deal.
The village chief gasped, knowing that Chen Baolai was serious. He turned to Chen Qingshan and advised, "800 coins isn't a lot, Qingshan. Just give it to him. The two children have been badly beaten. If anything happens to them, you'll have to take care of them for the rest of your life."
Clutching his fists, Chen Qingshan felt extremely reluctant. 800 coins was not a small amount, and it was hard for him to part with it.
Chen Baolai was usually not one to argue about every little thing, but his brother knew just how merciless he could be if he got serious.
While recalling he and his brother's past, Chen Qingshan shuddered. He clenched his teeth and said to Mrs. Qian, "Give them 800 wen."
The village chief let out a sigh of relief. They had finally reached a compromise, avoiding any need to disturb the elders in the clan.
Mrs. Qian was taken aback, sitting on the ground. Eight hundred wen! Chen Baolai was demanding an outrageous amount, intending to swindle their money to pay the summer tax!
Reluctantly, she remained seated and wailed, "You heartless scoundrel! How could you extort money from my family? We don't have that kind of money! Asking eight hundred wen? Why don't you just kill me and take all our money!"
Before anyone else could speak, Chen Qingshan angrily retorted, "Go get it! Do you want me dead or something?"
Without trying to make this less embarrassing for her husband, Mrs. Qian cried out even louder, "Just kill me then!"
Embarrassed by his wife's outburst in front of the village chief, Chen Qingshan felt his old face completely lost. Paying no attention to Mrs. Qian on the ground, he stood up and went inside to get the money. Mrs. Qian quickly got up and rushed over, resulting in a commotion of fighting, crying, and cursing within the house.
Chen Xiaosang tightly embraced Mrs. Li, turning her head away.
Having vented her anger earlier, Mrs. Qian had also been dealt with by her mother. Now that she had the money in hand, she couldn't care less about Chen Qingshan and Mrs. Qian's argument.
When Chen Qingshan emerged again, his face had fresh blood streaks on it, and his clothes were in disarray.
He slapped the bundle of eight-string notes onto Chen Baolai's hand and gestured, urging him, "Just go!"
With the money obtained, Old Chen departed without saying another word.
As Chen Xiaosang was carried to the yard by Mrs. Li, Mrs. Qian rushed out of the house, her hair disheveled. She scratched Chen Qingshan's face multiple times while berating him.
Chen Qingshan retaliated by slapping Mrs. Qian across the face, angrily scolding her, "What's all this fuss about? If it weren't for you, we wouldn't have lost eight hundred wen!"