Half a month after her husband died, the ledger showed that twelve people owed her a total of 6,300 yuan. Xiuying had only eighteen yuan left in her pocket, and was still short forty-five yuan for her daughter's school fees. There were eight cattle in the shed, and she decided to slaughter one. When word got out, fifteen or sixteen men showed up in her yard early the next morning, all eager to help. Some were sincere, some had been forced, and some had been sent by Sun Demao to cause trouble. Xiuying pulled a chair to the doorway and questioned them one by one: “Did you come of your own accord, or did someone force you?” When the slaughter knife came down, she didn't cry. She knew this was only the beginning.
