Lester turned to Adam and Ben, asking, "Is that true?"
The two boys, clearly embarrassed by how they looked, turned their heads away and nodded gloomily.
Lester immediately rolled up his sleeves. "Those little punks dared to beat up my kids? Just wait—Daddy's going to get you justice!"
And who were these punks, anyway?
As it happened, they were none other than the two sons of Kenny Liew—the same man who'd used Clara's watermill for free and didn't pay.
The two boys, eleven or twelve years old, were burly and domineering. In the village, the children had split into two camps—those who followed them to bully the younger kids, and those like Adam and Ryder who were the ones getting pushed around.
Normally it was just a few shoves and name-calling. Nothing ever escalated like this.
Lester's thinking was simple: even a rabbit bites when cornered. If his usually well-behaved son Adam had been pushed to fight, then those two had definitely gone way too far.
With old grudges added to new rage, Lester stormed down the mountain with a broom snatched from beside the door.
The four kids were stunned—they'd never seen their father this angry.
No, more accurately, they'd never seen him stand up for them like this.
What surprised them even more was that their stepmother didn't stop him. Clara simply watched Lester storm off into the village.
She then turned to the four bruised little ones. "Can you still walk?"
Adam, Ben, and Deb nodded. Chad wiped his tears and gave a muffled "Yeah," signaling he could manage.
And so, Clara locked up the house, gathered the kids, and marched after Lester with a stormy expression.
Adam grew nervous. "Auntie, where are we going?"
"To! Get! Justice!" Clara said, her voice icy.
Adam and Ben both gulped.
Ben mumbled, "That might be a bit... much..."
But Clara was already burning with rage. She didn't hear a word.
With Chad sniffling in one arm and Deb stomping beside her, Clara strode quickly, while Adam and Ben jogged to keep up.
Lester glanced back and saw his fierce wife following behind. With his confidence renewed, he didn't wait to reach the Kenny Liew household before roaring:
"Liew Baldy! Get out here right now! Teaching your sons to bully my little ones? Have you no shame?!"
Unfortunately for him, Kenny Liew and his wife were already nearby and shouted back furiously.
"Well, well! Liew Third! I was just about to find you, and you come charging in like a mad dog!"
Kenny's wife dragged their two sons around the corner, while he followed behind with a torch.
The moment they came face-to-face, Lester's aggressive aura faltered. His eyes widened as he saw Buck and Colt's faces—swollen like steamed buns.
One sentence popped into his head: "Your own mother wouldn't recognize you."
Lester smirked. "Buck, Colt, come let Uncle have a look. Tsk tsk, karma's a nasty thing, isn't it? Walkin' around at night and falling flat on your faces, huh? Serves you right for messing with my kids. Let's see if you dare bully Adam and the others again!"
Despite their pitiful look, he refused to back down. Anyone who messed with his kids? Today he'd make them pay.
Clara arrived with the children just behind him. One glance at those bruised faces, and she couldn't help but wince and hiss quietly.
She looked back—Adam stared at the ground, Ben looked at the sky, Chad and Deb stood holding hands, still full of indignation.
But since they were here, she didn't hold back. Clara took the busted bamboo ball from Adam's arms, stood beside Lester, and coldly glared at the other family.
Her presence hit like a storm. Kenny Liew's entire family shuddered.
Realizing things weren't going their way, Kenny shouted loudly to draw the neighbors.
More people arrived, and he puffed himself up again. He pushed his sons forward and demanded justice, asking who really bullied who.
When the villagers saw the boys' swollen faces, they gasped.
"Just a kids' spat… this is way too much," someone whispered.
Given Lester's usual poor reputation and how bad Buck and Colt looked, most instinctively sided with Kenny.
Deb stepped forward, voice sharp, "They tried to snatch our ball! When we wouldn't give it, they pushed me and hit my brothers! They're the bullies!"
She was young but spoke clearly and boldly.
Clara felt proud: That's my girl.
Ben gave Chad a signal with his eyes. Chad began to cry again, wailing dramatically.
Adam stepped up to explain. But then Kenny's wife dropped to the ground, flailed her legs, squeezed out a couple of tears, and started sobbing about her poor sons and how Lester and Clara should apologize and pay up.
Lester laughed, livid. "Like hell you're getting away with that!"
If your kids turn out like this, it's the father's fault for not raising them right. Try hitting me back first!
He grabbed the broom and charged at Kenny.
Clara waved for the kids to back up. She shielded Lester from interference, blocking others with seemingly light gestures that were strong enough to keep them at bay.
Lester, seeing Clara behind him like a protective talisman, went all in.
He slapped Kenny square across the face with the broom. The thin bamboo strips landed with satisfying snaps.
Kenny screamed in pain and swung a fist.
But Lester was a seasoned dodger—after all, he had Clara to train with. If he could survive her, Kenny was nothing.
Agile as a monkey and with a long broom in hand, Lester thoroughly beat the man.
His wife screeched and scrambled to help, but Clara was watching. She stuck out a foot at just the right time and tripped her flat on her face.
The woman howled in pain, rolled over, and nearly passed out.
Seeing things get out of hand, someone ran to get the village chief.
"Enough!" the old chief barked, and the brawl finally paused.
Lester gave one last whack for good measure as Kenny curled on the ground.
"You wanna extort me?! Not until you cough up everything you owe, you snake!"
Then, with drama worthy of the stage, Lester messed up his hair, smeared dirt on his face, tossed aside the broom, and rushed to the chief.
Honor? He'd never heard of it.
With a dramatic slide, he knelt and clung to the chief's leg, pleading, "Chief! You must give us justice! They beat up my kids and now they want money? That's evil!"
The show stunned Kenny for a beat—then he scrambled after him, bruised and bloodied.
"Chief! Save me! Lester is trying to kill me!"
His wife tried her usual theatrics, but Clara caught her wrist and said coldly, "Let's not trouble the chief further. We'll leave this to his judgment."
Buck and Colt, once feared in the village, shrank behind their mother. When they met Clara's cold, unreadable gaze, they finally learned what fear really meant.
(End of chapter)
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