Holding his soft and delicate little wife in his arms, Jiang Wangchuan fell into a deep, satisfied sleep.
Early the next morning, Jiang Wangchuan began clearing land for a vegetable garden.
Behind his house, next to the bamboo grove, was a patch of overgrown wasteland. It was the perfect place to grow vegetables.
He carried a hoe and a rake over his shoulder and held a sickle in his hand as he walked to the back of the house.
He first used the sickle to cut down the waist-high weeds. Once dried, the weeds could be used as firewood.
Lin Suhe wanted to help, but Jiang Wangchuan said the weeds could cut her hands, and she wasn’t strong enough to use the sickle anyway. Instead, he handed her a bag of dried fruit they had bought in town the day before and told her to sit on a nearby rock and enjoy the snack.
Jiang Wangchuan had spent years chopping firewood and hunting, so thick calluses had formed on his palms. Grabbing the sharp weeds with his bare hands didn’t bother him at all.
But Lin Suhe’s hands were soft and delicate. The sharp grass blades would probably cut her skin in no time.
Jiang Wangchuan worked quickly, and before long, large patches of weeds had been cut down.
Although they were on the mountain, the land here was fairly flat, which was why his house had been built there.
After cutting the weeds, he piled them into a large stack and then began digging the hard ground.
Since the land had never been cultivated before, the soil was extremely hard. Jiang Wangchuan had to lift the heavy rake high into the air and slam it down hard just to break up one section of earth.
After only a short while, sweat was already pouring down his face.
He wiped away the large beads of sweat on his forehead, took off his outer coat, and handed it to Lin Suhe. Wearing only a sleeveless shirt, he continued working.
Lin Suhe held up the water flask.
“Brother Jiang, have some water and take a break.”
Jiang Wangchuan grabbed the flask and drank several big gulps.
“No need to rest. Today I’m definitely going to finish this vegetable garden for you.”
As soon as he finished speaking, he turned back to digging.
Lin Suhe jumped down from the rock and walked over to him.
“Brother Jiang, wait a moment.”
Jiang Wangchuan turned around and looked at her in confusion.
She waved her hand, signaling him to bend down.
Like a well-trained big wolfdog, Jiang Wangchuan obediently bent over and leaned his head toward her.
Lin Suhe reached up and popped a piece of dried fruit into his mouth.
Then she happily skipped back to her rock.
Chewing the sweet-and-sour dried fruit, Jiang Wangchuan felt warm and happy inside.
He worked even harder than before.
Before he had finished digging the field, loud voices suddenly came from the front of the house.
A sharp, familiar woman’s voice shouted,
“Where are they? Where’s that Jiang boy and our Suhe? If they’re not in the house, where have they run off to fool around?”
Lin Suhe and Jiang Wangchuan looked at each other.
They both recognized the voice.
It belonged to Lin Suhe’s second aunt, Zhao Qiuju.
Walking over to Lin Suhe with the rake resting on the ground, Jiang Wangchuan said,
“What’s Zhao Qiuju doing here again? Don’t tell me she’s still planning to sell you to human traffickers.”
Nervously, Lin Suhe grabbed the corner of his shirt.
Jiang Wangchuan gently patted her head with his large hand.
“Don’t be afraid. I’m here. No one is taking you away.”
Looking up at his determined, handsome face, Lin Suhe nodded softly.
Although they hadn’t known each other for long, she believed Jiang Wangchuan would protect her.
As long as he was by her side, she felt completely safe.
They originally planned to stay quiet behind the house, thinking Zhao Qiuju would eventually leave if she couldn’t find them.
Jiang Wangchuan casually chewed on a blade of grass while Lin Suhe continued eating her dried fruit.
The two of them waited leisurely.
But to their surprise, Zhao Qiuju searched all the way to the back of the house.
This time, she wasn’t alone.
Lin Suhe’s second uncle, Lin Qingshan, had come with her.
“Oh, so you’re hiding back here.”
“What guilty thing are you two doing? Your elders came looking for you, and you didn’t even answer!”
As always, Zhao Qiuju spoke in a sarcastic, nasty tone the moment she saw them.
Jiang Wangchuan spat out the blade of grass with a loud ptooey.
“Oh, Second Aunt. You’re here again?”
After seeing what kind of person Zhao Qiuju was before, Jiang Wangchuan had no intention of being polite. He looked at her sideways with obvious disgust.
Zhao Qiuju planted her hands on her thick waist.
“Hah! You ran off with our Suhe. Am I not allowed to come?”
With Jiang Wangchuan standing behind her, Lin Suhe found the courage to speak.
“Brother Jiang didn’t take me away. I came to him on my own.”
The skinny Lin Qingshan immediately jumped forward, pointed at her, and snarled,
“You wretched girl! Shut your mouth! Have you no shame?”
Seeing his twisted, angry face, Lin Suhe instinctively stepped behind Jiang Wangchuan.
Jiang Wangchuan slammed the rake into the ground with a heavy thud and stood protectively in front of her.
“If you’ve got something to say, then say it. Stop speaking so filthily to my wife.”
His tall, powerful frame and the muscles on his arms were intimidating enough already.
Now that he looked genuinely angry, Zhao Qiuju and Lin Qingshan both instinctively took a step backward.
Secretly, Zhao Qiuju pinched Lin Qingshan’s waist and whispered,
“Well? Go on!”
Startled by the pinch, Lin Qingshan forced himself to face Jiang Wangchuan.
“Jiang boy, stop calling her your wife. You two don’t even have a marriage certificate. Who says she’s your wife?”
Zhao Qiuju quickly chimed in,
“That’s right! Calling an unmarried young woman your wife without any official marriage is practically kidnapping! We can report you to the authorities!”
Jiang Wangchuan hadn’t expected them to twist the story around and accuse him first.
They were calling him the kidnapper.
He was so angry that he laughed.
“I’m the kidnapper? Weren’t you the ones planning to sell your own niece?”
Lin Suhe was furious as well.
She had always lived a sheltered life before.
This was the first time she had ever seen such ugly human greed.
She clenched her little fists and ground her small teeth together.
She wanted nothing more than to run over and bite that vicious woman.
Zhao Qiuju screamed,
“It doesn’t matter what you say! Without a marriage certificate, you’re not a proper husband and wife. Today, Suhe is coming with us!”
She had made up her mind.
Lin Qingshan had already found a human trafficker willing to pay ten taels of silver for Lin Suhe.
Ten taels!
Most farming families in the village couldn’t save that much money in an entire lifetime.
With that amount, Zhao Qiuju’s family could finally live comfortably.
Zhao Qiuju and Lin Qingshan exchanged a glance.
Then they moved in from both sides, reaching for Lin Suhe.
Quickly, Lin Suhe hid behind Jiang Wangchuan.
Jiang Wangchuan swung the heavy rake through the air with a powerful sweep.
The sharp iron teeth whistled through the air, forcing Zhao Qiuju and Lin Qingshan to stop in their tracks.
He shouted angrily,
“Whoever dares lay a finger on my wife today…”
“…I’ll rake them into the ground!”