I started out with seven husbands, and I worked hard to support my family while crying.

Chapter 496: Is it wrong to save someone?

Just after they left the pharmacy, they were unaware that someone was following them from afar. Fang Xiaoxiao and her two companions returned to their inn room. Li Wan'er and Hongxiu helped her organize the medicinal herbs, but Fang Xiaoxiao felt a sudden tightness in her chest, sensing that something important was about to happen.

Li Wan'er noticed that Fang Xiaoxiao's expression was off, so she asked her what was wrong. Fang Xiaoxiao shook her head and said that nothing was wrong.

At night, Fang Xiaoxiao and her two companions were resting when they heard a noise outside the door. She immediately got up and gestured for the two women beside her to wake up. Li Wan'er and Hongxiu nodded warily. Fang Xiaoxiao took out some soft bone powder from under her pillow and quietly approached the doorway.

A voice whispered outside the door, "Second Brother, this isn't right. She saved our Eldest Brother's life."

Another voice said, "Stop talking nonsense, who are we Whale Gang afraid of! Take them back first, our boss has taken a fancy to this young lady, this is a meritorious deed for us."

Upon hearing this, Fang Xiaoxiao already had a plan in mind.

She flung open the door and forcefully threw the cartilage powder outside.

"Ouch!" Several screams rang out, and the Whale Gang members instantly lost their fighting ability and collapsed to the ground.

"Spare us! Spare us!" they cried.

Fang Xiaoxiao snorted coldly: "Tell me, what exactly do you want?"

One of them quickly said, "Miss, we mean no harm. It's just that our boss has taken a liking to you and wants you to be his woman."

Fang Xiaoxiao shouted angrily, "Outrageous! You bunch of villains, how dare you commit such a heinous act in broad daylight!"

The other man, with a mournful face, said, "Girl, we were just following orders, please spare us."

Fang Xiaoxiao's eyes were icy: "Spare you? Then who will spare the people you've bullied?"

At this moment, Li Wan'er said, "Xiao Xiao, we can't let them get away with this so easily!"

Hongxiu chimed in, "Yes, we can't let them do any more harm!"

Fang Xiaoxiao pondered for a moment and said, "Go back and tell your elder brother that I will never comply, and that he should give up on that idea as soon as possible. If he dares to act recklessly again, I will definitely not let him off!"

The members of the Whale Gang nodded repeatedly: "Yes, yes, we will definitely bring it."

Fang Xiaoxiao said again, "Get out of here!"

They scrambled away.

Li Wan'er said worriedly, "Xiao Xiao, they won't let this go."

Fang Xiaoxiao bit her lip: "What's there to be afraid of? We'll deal with whatever comes our way. Let's think of a solution first."

The three began to discuss how to deal with the situation.

The next morning, while Fang Xiaoxiao and the other two were still resting, they heard a commotion coming from the hall.

"Shopkeeper, is Miss Fang Xiao here?" a gruff voice called out.

The shopkeeper, wiping the sweat from his brow, acknowledged that such a person did exist.

The burly man quickly asked the shopkeeper to take him there.

Fang Xiaoxiao had just finished washing up and was walking to the door with Li Wan'er and Hongxiu when the big man saw her. He immediately smiled and flattered her, saying, "I hope you won't take last night's events to heart, young lady." The big man then took a wooden box from his subordinate. When the box was opened, it was filled with glittering gold, which looked to be as much as five hundred taels.

The burly man said, "This is a small token of my brother's apology for what happened last night."

Fang Xiaoxiao accepted the money without hesitation.

Li Wan'er whispered, "Xiao Xiao, can we accept this money? Could they be up to something?"

Fang Xiaoxiao smiled slightly: "Since it's offered to us, why not accept it? However, we should still be careful."

Seeing that Fang Xiaoxiao had accepted the money, the burly man smiled and said, "Would the young lady like to come with me to meet my brother? My brother has a heart full of love for you."

Fang Xiaoxiao's eyes narrowed: "There's no need to see your older brother. Consider this money as compensation for the fright we suffered last night."

The burly man's expression changed slightly: "Young lady, you're not giving us any face by doing this."

Fang Xiaoxiao sneered, "What? Do you intend to force me?"

The burly man hesitated for a moment, then said, "No, no, since the young lady is unwilling, I will go back and report to my elder brother."

After saying that, the big man led his men away.

Li Wan'er said worriedly, "Xiao Xiao, I have a feeling this isn't so simple. They won't let this go."

Fang Xiaoxiao said, "What's there to be afraid of? We'll deal with whatever comes our way. Let's observe first."

However, not long after, another group of Whale Gang members gathered outside the inn.

This time, the leader is an even more ruthless character.

"Bring that woman out here!" he shouted.

Hearing the commotion, Fang Xiaoxiao walked to the entrance of the inn and looked at them coldly.

"What? Are you going to back out?" Fang Xiaoxiao said.

The leader said, "Young lady, once you've taken our money, you have to come with us."

Fang Xiaoxiao said, "You're forcibly abducting a woman. Have you no regard for the law?"

Just as the two sides were deadlocked, the sound of horses' hooves suddenly rang out.

Just as the two sides were at an impasse, the leader of the Whale Gang walked towards them and asked what had happened. The burly man, seeing his boss appear, immediately sensed something was wrong. He fawned over his boss, saying nothing was amiss and that he had already paid Fang Xiaoxiao compensation as instructed by his leader.

The leader said "Oh," turned around, and went to Fang Xiaoxiao to apologize. To his surprise, Fang Xiaoxiao snorted coldly and recounted what had just happened, emphasizing that their Whale Gang had brazenly abducted a woman in broad daylight.

Upon hearing this, the burly man trembled with fear, his previous arrogance completely gone. The Whale Gang leader, a ruthless man himself, swiftly beheaded the man. Everyone was astonished.

Fang Xiaoxiao was secretly surprised; she hadn't expected the leader of the Whale Gang to be so ruthless.

Li Wan'er and Hongxiu were so frightened that they covered their mouths and dared not make a sound.

The leader of the Whale Gang looked at Fang Xiaoxiao and said, "Miss, are you satisfied now? I have punished this ignorant fellow, and I hope you will not hold it against me anymore."

Fang Xiaoxiao composed herself and said, "Your Whale Gang has committed numerous evils; killing one person is not enough to settle things."

The eldest brother said with a forced smile, "So, what does the girl want?"

Fang Xiaoxiao said, "From now on, I will repent and stop oppressing the people."

The leader laughed heartily: "Girl, you make it sound so easy. My Whale Gang's livelihood in this area depends entirely on these kinds of methods."

Fang Xiaoxiao said solemnly, "If you do not repent, you will face retribution sooner or later."

The eldest brother's eyes turned cold: "Girl, don't be so absolute in your words."

At that moment, someone in the crowd shouted, "We can't let the Whale Gang get away!"

Others echoed.

The Whale Gang leader's face darkened: "Shut up, all of you!"

Fang Xiaoxiao seized the opportunity to say, "Look at the resentment the people have towards you, don't you know you're wrong?"

The eldest brother was silent for a moment, then said, "Let me think about this some more."

After saying that, he left with his men.

Fang Xiaoxiao knew that things wouldn't end so easily.

Back in their inn room, Li Wan'er said worriedly, "Xiao Xiao, the leader of the Whale Gang won't let this go. What should we do?"

Fang Xiaoxiao pondered for a moment: "We need to leave here as soon as possible, and we can't get into their trouble any further."

Hongxiu nodded: "Yes, we shouldn't stay here any longer."

So the three of them packed their bags and prepared to leave.

However, when they reached the city gate, they found that the Whale Gang members were already waiting there.

The eldest brother said, "Girl, you think you can just leave like that? Not so easy."

Fang Xiaoxiao said, "What exactly do you want?"

The leader chuckled: "Come back with me and become my wife. Otherwise, none of you will leave here today."

Fang Xiaoxiao glared at him angrily: "Don't even think about it!"