Ch. 413: Mr. Edwards’ Unraveled Life Chapter 413

Chapter 413

Norah spotted a girl standing nearby in a long brown dress, her bronzed skin glowing under the sun. Contempt filled her gaze.

Norah smirked. "Trying to scare me? Throwing rats? That’s such a low-level tactic."

The girl crossed her arms and took a step closer. "No, I’m warning you! Stay away from Teacher Baimo. Don’t even think about seducing him!"

Her Chinese was slightly better than the children’s, but still somewhat broken.

Norah chuckled. "You’re warning the wrong person. I have no interest in Teacher Baimo."

"Who are you trying to fool?!" The girl’s eyes burned with resentment. "You’re not from our village. You came here with bad intentions!"

Her anger escalated. "And the moment you arrived, you got close to Teacher Baimo. If that’s not seduction, then what is?"

Norah found the accusation amusing, but her laughter only fueled the girl’s fury.

The girl suddenly lunged, trying to shove Norah to the ground. But as Norah stepped aside, something caught her eye—a cauliflower snake coiled in the grass.

An idea struck her.

Without hesitation, she grabbed the snake and flung it at the girl.

"Ahhh!"

The girl shrieked in terror, stumbling back, her face drained of color. She pointed a trembling finger at Norah, her voice faltering. "You—you—you’re vicious! Just wait!"

Then, without another word, she turned and ran.

Norah calmly went back to pulling weeds.

She wasn’t one to pick fights, but she also wasn’t someone people could push around. When the girl threw a rat at her, she had let it slide. But then she tried to attack her? That was a mistake.

What Norah didn’t expect was for the girl to return—this time, with a crowd of villagers.

They surrounded her, gripping wooden sticks, hoes, and sickles.

The girl pointed at Norah, her face full of spite. "She seduced Teacher Baimo and threw a snake at me! She’s dangerous! We can’t let her stay in the village!"

"Get out!"

The villagers began shouting, gripping their weapons tighter.

Norah remained calm, saying nothing.

Just then, a steady voice cut through the chaos. "What’s going on here?"

Baimo pushed through the crowd, his eyes sweeping over the scene.

The villagers immediately turned to him. "Teacher Baimo, we let this woman stay in the village out of kindness. But she threw a snake at Arlene!"

Another villager added, "Snakes are the most hated creatures in our Yi culture! She’s bad luck. We can’t keep her here!"

"We want her gone!"

Murmurs of agreement rippled through the crowd.

Baimo glanced at Norah, noting her composed expression. Then, he turned back to the villagers. "Has anyone stopped to ask why she threw the snake at Arlene? What caused the conflict?"

All eyes shifted to Arlene.

She hesitated, suddenly unsure. "I..."

Baimo’s voice remained calm. "Everything has a reason. She’s a refugee. What would she gain by causing trouble? Outside this village, the Confederate troops are stationed, and there’s constant fighting."

The villagers exchanged uncertain glances, realizing the truth in his words.

Norah took the moment to speak. "I was allowed to stay here thanks to the kindness of the man who owns my house. I’m just trying to earn money for food. All I did was exchange a few words with Teacher Baimo, and suddenly I’m accused of seducing him? I was innocent, yet they threw a rat at me and tried to attack me. Am I not allowed to defend myself?"

Arlene’s face turned red with shame.

The villagers murmured amongst themselves before turning on Arlene. "She has a point."

"We jumped to conclusions too fast."

They began apologizing to Norah. "We’re sorry. We didn’t understand the situation. We almost wronged you."

"Don’t take it to heart. You’re welcome to stay."

"Arlene, you should apologize."

Norah could only understand part of their dialect, but their tone was clear.

Arlene, however, was fuming. She had never dared to confess her feelings for Baimo, and now, thanks to Norah, her emotions were out in the open. And on top of that, she was being scolded in front of everyone.

Her humiliation burned.

Baimo’s voice was firm. "Arlene, apologize to Norah."

She flinched at the direct order. His tone left no room for refusal.

With clenched fists and gritted teeth, Arlene lowered her head and mumbled, "I’m sorry. I was wrong. I apologize."

"I hope this won’t happen again," Norah replied evenly. "I just want to live in peace."

"Fine." Arlene’s voice was barely above a whisper, but her nails dug into her palms.

She wouldn’t forget this.

Baimo addressed the crowd. "Starting tomorrow, Norah will be teaching the children."

The villagers nodded. "Of course, Teacher Baimo. We’ll make sure they listen to her."

The incident was finally over.

Norah knew she had Baimo to thank for that. Without him, these villagers would never have believed her.

She turned to him. "Thank you, Teacher Baimo."

"It’s fine," he replied. Then, with a small smirk, he added, "But I have to admit, catching a snake with your bare hands? That was impressive."

Norah shrugged. "When you’re backed into a corner, you have to fight back. And besides, it was just a cauliflower snake. Not even venomous."

Baimo nodded, a hint of amusement in his eyes. "Hmm."

Without realizing it, the corner of his mouth lifted into a slight smile.

—

That night, Norah’s phone was fully charged.

She turned it on, but the signal was weak—just one bar. Messages wouldn’t send, and calls wouldn’t go through.

Frustrated, she stepped outside, holding the phone up, searching for a better signal. No luck.

The owner of the house saw her and chuckled. "Don’t waste your time. The only signal tower nearby was blown up. It hasn’t been fixed."

Norah sighed in disappointment.

Everywhere she went, there was either no signal or no battery. Now, she was in a village with shelter, yet still cut off from the outside world.

The man added, "Don’t go out at night. Lately, we’ve been selling medicinal herbs, and the allies aren’t too friendly. During the day, it’s fine, but at night, it’s a different story."

Norah’s expression turned serious.

Their village was being watched.