(The previous two chapters have been heavily revised. Refresh and reread them before reading this chapter so the story flows.)
His severed arm had been restored.
Miroku regained his confidence at once.
He was about to steal the bride before the Oil Family's young master could claim the beauty.
But before a certain pair of groping hands could succeed, the sixteen-year-old girl suddenly lashed out, stabbing the impatient groom with scissors hidden in her sleeve.
This sudden turn shocked everyone present, including Miroku.
"Ah, it hurts! I'm bleeding! I'm bleeding..."
The Oil Family's young master stumbled several steps backward, screaming as he dodged.
Hearing him, the people around them immediately reacted.
The Oil Family's servants, in particular, promptly shielded their young master. Some even demanded sternly:
"Koharu, have you gone mad? How dare you attack the young master?"
"Koharu, look what you've done!"
As servants of the Oil Family, they naturally knew Koharu, who also worked for the family.
As for the other villagers? They shunned the girl like the plague. They had no intention of asking the trembling girl why she had done this. All they knew was that they depended on the Oil Family's rule for their livelihood; now a girl from their village had stabbed the Oil Family's young master with a blade. This was serious. Things were looking terrible.
"That damned girl is going to ruin us."
"The village should never have taken her in over two years ago. Now that she's attacked the Oil Family's young master, Master Oil is bound to take revenge on us when he finds out."
"Koharu, get on your knees and apologize to Young Master Oil..."
One harsh rebuke after another rang out, swiftly breaking the girl, whose state of mind had already been on the verge of collapse.
Quite