Taking advantage of the moment when no one was paying attention, Lin Xizhi quietly slipped out of the clinic.
The salty sea breeze rushed toward her, tossing the loose strands of hair across her forehead.
The wind swept past the low stone houses of the fishing village, making the old fishing nets hanging from bamboo poles sway gently like schools of fish beneath the sea.
They shimmered with silvery light.
The sky by the coast was always a vivid blue, like a freshly dyed bolt of fabric.
Along both sides of the road, women wearing bamboo hats and patched clothing sat on homemade stools. Some sorted vegetables, while others stitched the soles of shoes.
Their fingers moved deftly as they chatted in the Lingnan dialect a language Lin Xizhi could understand but couldn’t speak.
Their conversations were punctuated by bright, hearty laughter.
The scent of burning firewood lingered in the air.
Everything before her blended into a vibrant, living picture of ordinary life.
She had truly returned.
During the countless days and nights she had been imprisoned in the Pei family’s basement in her previous life, Lin Xizhi had dreamed over and over of returning to Shajing Commune.
She dreamed of the days when the number one female “tyrant” of Widow Village Aunt Hui had trained her as an apprentice in herbal medicine.
Back then, every day began with hard work the moment she opened her eyes.
Her master had also forbidden her from associating with young men, and because of that, she had missed her chance with Song Zhuowei in her previous life.
Yet if Aunt Hui hadn’t carefully nursed her health back to strength and taught her medicine…
She might not have survived for so many years.
To Lin Xizhi, Aunt Hui had been both a teacher and family.
Master and disciple had lived together for more than ten years.
Had Aunt Hui not suddenly disappeared later on, Lin Xizhi had even planned to invite her to move to Hong Kong City together.
Now that she was back…
The first person she wanted to see was Aunt Hui.
The woman who had been both teacher and friend
And who, in many ways, had filled the void left by the absence of a mother’s love.
However, she had barely walked a few steps away from the clinic before Pei Yuncheng caught up with her.
“Xizhi!”
The sweltering weather had left Pei Yuncheng drenched in sweat.
His usually neat bangs clung messily to his forehead.
Even so, his long, peach blossom-shaped eyes still looked watery and affectionate.
He had naturally seductive eyes.
Even if he were simply looking at a stray dog, it seemed as though he were gazing at a beloved lover.
Taking a deep breath, Pei Yuncheng said with concern,
“Where are you going?”
“You’ve always been in poor health, and you just went through such a terrible ordeal.”
“You should be resting.”
Lin Xizhi looked at him.
But she no longer saw the love and concern on his face.
Instead…
She saw him in her previous life after he had imprisoned her.
When she went on a hunger strike, he had grabbed handfuls of food and forced them into her mouth.
She saw him weeping uncontrollably as she begged him to let her go, saying in a dazed voice,
“If I let you leave, Father and Mother will be disappointed in me.”
“Xizhi…”
“We’re supposed to stay together for the rest of our lives.”
“Do you understand?”
She saw the endless stream of mistresses who had come and gone from his life.
The ambiguous kiss marks that often appeared on his body.
Without hesitation, Lin Xizhi stepped sideways.
Deliberately widening the distance between them.
She found this man filthy.
Even though the current Pei Yuncheng had not yet become twisted, obsessive, and mentally unstable…
He was still the same person.
His nature had never changed.
Lin Xizhi didn’t even want to be touched by the darkness that clung to him.
She spoke firmly.
“Pei Yuncheng.”
“I’m not your fiancée.”
“There has never been any engagement between us.”
“From now on, stop introducing me to other people as your fiancée.”
“If you do it again…”
“Don’t blame me for being rude.”
The corners of Pei Yuncheng’s eyes lifted slightly as though he were struggling to suppress his irritation.
He continued patiently,
“Xizhi, none of us wanted our belongings to be stolen by the pirates.”
“But that’s already happened.”
“For now, the only thing we can do is settle down here first and wait for another opportunity to leave in the future.”
“Neither of us is familiar with this place.”
“But as long as we’re united, we’ll be strong.”
“Stop throwing childish tantrums.”
“Come back to the clinic with me.”
“It’s better if we stay together.”
As he spoke, he reached for her wrist.
Lin Xizhi quickly avoided him.
“Where I go is my own business.”
Her voice turned icy.
“I’m going to the latrine.”
“Are you planning to follow me there too?”
A flicker of disgust crossed Pei Yuncheng’s eyes.
He clearly disliked her coarse choice of words.
Still, he forced a smile.
“Then hurry back.”
“I’ll wait here for you.”
Only after finally shaking him off did Lin Xizhi hurry alone toward Widow Village.
She walked so quickly that she never noticed…
A pair of eyes had been quietly watching both her and Pei Yuncheng from the entrance of an alley west of the clinic.
…
Later that afternoon, after Song Zhuowei had finished processing the paperwork that registered Lin Xizhi and the four members of the Pei family as educated youths assigned to the countryside, he happily rode his sturdy black bicycle back to the clinic.
Before he had even fully stopped, a slender figure hurried toward him.
“Song Zhuowei!”
The young woman calling his name looked to be in her early twenties.
She wore a slightly worn white medical coat and the square cap of a medical assistant.
Her expression was tense and serious.
“Song Zhuowei!”
“I have something important to tell you!”
Song Zhuowei calmly locked his bicycle before glancing at her.
“What is it, Assistant Peng?”
Peng Zeping blocked his path.
“You’re in such a hurry because you want to see the young woman you rescued today, aren’t you?”
“What a pity.”
“She’s no longer at the clinic.”
Song Zhuowei clearly didn’t believe her.
“It’s her first time in our commune.”
“If she’s not here, where else could she possibly have gone?”
“I don’t think it’s her first time here at all!”
Peng Zeping said unhappily.
“After you left this afternoon, she ran straight to Widow Village.”
“By now she’s probably already found someone there to mooch a meal from.”
Then she questioned him angrily.
“Tell me honestly!”
“Have you actually investigated who she is?”
“Sure, we’ve had minor incidents in different production teams over the past few years.”
“But our commune has never experienced any serious trouble.”
“If you keep someone with an unknown background here and end up sheltering the wrong person…”
“What happens if she causes a major disaster?”
“When that day comes, not even your grandfather will be able to protect you.”
Song Zhuowei raised an eyebrow.
“What?”
“You think she’s an enemy agent?”
“I can’t say whether she’s a spy or not…”
“But her relationships with men are definitely questionable.”
“I saw it with my own eyes.”
Peng Zeping lifted her chin toward the side entrance of the clinic.
“I saw her exchanging affectionate looks with that young man surnamed Pei.”
“I even heard them talking about fiancées, staying together, waiting for each other…”
“They were even pulling at each other.”
“They don’t care at all about propriety.”
After saying all that, she realized Song Zhuowei hadn’t reacted in the slightest.
His eyes kept drifting toward Widow Village.
She became even more annoyed.
“Captain Song!”
“I’m talking to you about something serious.”
“Are you even listening?”
Song Zhuowei unlocked the bicycle he had just secured, wheeled it back out, and swung onto the seat in one smooth motion.
As he pedaled away, he called back,
“Thanks, Assistant Peng!”
“I know about it now!”
“I’m going to bring her back!”
Watching him disappear into the distance, Peng Zeping stood there fuming.
In her opinion, Lin Xizhi was born to enchant men.
Her skin was as white as snow.
Throughout all the villages around Shajing Commune, there wasn’t another young woman with a complexion that fair.
Just based on that alone…
She outshone every unmarried girl in the commune.
That was why Song Zhuowei had become so completely captivated by her.
Hmph.
But once a young woman entered Widow Village…
Sooner or later, those widows would ruin her reputation too.
It would do that little vixen some good to have her pride taken down a notch.