The moment Shen Nian stepped out of the thatched hut on her short little legs, she saw Shen Dafu standing there, his face black as charcoal, glaring at her as if he wanted to bore two holes straight through her.
This damn girl—she used to be like a puppet with a loose string, letting him manipulate her however he pleased. But today she was wearing new clothes, her back straight like a flagpole, her eyes so clear they practically reflected light. Compared to her former dazed, foolish look, she was a completely different person.
Was this really Shen Nian?
“Hurry up and come back with me! Are you trying to make the whole village point their fingers at your father’s back?” he barked.
Shen Nian rolled her eyes inwardly. Full of bad intentions—who knew what he really wanted her back for?
The next second, she changed expressions faster than flipping a page. She grinned wide, revealing two rows of uneven little white teeth, grabbed the rust-covered machete beside her, and charged straight at Shen Dafu like a rabid dog, howling as she went.
“Chop bamboo! Chop bad people! You’re a big bad guy! Chop chop chop!”
Gu Xiao, peeking from behind the door, was completely stunned. His brows knit so tightly they could crush a mosquito: ???
This girl had calmly and methodically treated his wound just that morning—how did she suddenly switch styles and turn into a half-witted idiot who hadn’t even been weaned?
Was this man really her biological father?
Chopping her own dad—what kind of operation was that?
The machete in Shen Nian’s hand cut through the air with a loud whoosh, heading straight for Shen Dafu’s face.
Shen Dafu was scared out of his wits. His legs went weak as he staggered backward, still clinging to his authority as a father.
“You unfilial wretch! You dare chop your own father? Do you still have any respect for me?!”
He tried to control Shen Nian the way he used to, not realizing that the soul inside this body had long since been replaced.
The current Shen Nian was someone who would dare yank even the King of Hell’s beard!
She swung the machete with terrifying ferocity, every strike aimed at Shen Dafu’s vital points—yet each one precisely avoided him, forcing him back until his spine slammed into an old tree. He fell hard onto the roots, grimacing in pain.
“Clang—!”
A deafening crash shook the ground three times over!
The machete in Shen Nian’s hand slammed accurately into the tree trunk above Shen Dafu’s head, the blade embedded deep in the wood, leaves raining down with a rustle.
Shen Dafu let out a shrill scream, startling the birds in the nearby woods into exploding out of their nests, flapping away for hundreds of meters.
Then a hard-to-describe stench spread through the air.
Shen Dafu felt heat in his crotch—he had peed himself from fright!
“You bully me! I’ll chop you to death! Chop you to death!”
Shen Nian continued screaming with the blade raised, though her eyes were full of disgust.
That’s it?
With courage like that, he still wanted to deal with her?
Shen Dafu trembled as he looked up at the machete less than two centimeters from his head. Cold sweat streamed down his face, soaking into his collar.
This monster… she really wanted to kill him!
What he didn’t know was that Shen Nian was only scaring him. If she truly wanted him dead, his head would have split open long ago.
She wasn’t about to ruin the rest of her life over a piece of trash like him. That would be a losing deal.
Having barely escaped with his life, Shen Dafu’s soul nearly left his body. He scrambled and rolled down the mountain, fleeing as fast as he could.
Faster than if a dog were chasing him. The wet fabric in his crotch rubbed against his thighs—anyone who’d experienced it would know just how awful it felt.
Once he disappeared from sight, Shen Nian clapped her hands as if brushing off dust, then casually grabbed the machete handle and pulled it out with ease.
Gu Xiao’s lips curved slightly. As expected—this girl was not simple.
That strike just now—its strength and angle had been calculated perfectly. She’d clearly held back on purpose, frightening him without actually hurting him. She definitely had skills.
Shen Nian withdrew her disgusted gaze and brought the machete down on a bamboo stalk. With a sharp crack, it snapped in two.
“Pah! What a piece of trash! Delaying my work!”
She was chopping enthusiastically when she sensed a gaze sticking to her from the doorway. Without turning her head, she spoke lazily.
“I suggest you don’t wander around. If your enemies catch you, I won’t have the time to save you. Think it over yourself.”
Gu Xiao leaned against the doorframe, completely unconcerned. After Shen Nian’s emergency treatment, his condition had improved significantly. At the moment, he was watching her with great interest.
“You’re from this village. Why don’t you go home? Why live alone halfway up the mountain?”
Shen Nian ignored him as if she hadn’t heard a thing, lowering her head and chopping bamboo with sharp cracks. That small body of hers seemed to contain endless brute strength—she hacked bamboo as easily as slicing tofu.
Meanwhile, Shen Dafu tumbled all the way down the mountain. Looking down, he saw his calves were still trembling uncontrollably. His pants clung wetly to his body, cold and stinking—he couldn’t have looked more pathetic.
His mother’s words echoed in his mind: either strangle Shen Nian to death, or make her earn money for him.
Was there even a choice?
Of course he’d strangle her!
The more he thought about Shen Nian’s ferocious expression, the angrier he became. The fire in his chest surged upward, and he wished he could rush back right then and chop her up to feed the dogs!
That beast—she used to obey a few of his commands, but now her wings had hardened, and she even dared to swing a knife at her own father?
Since she wouldn’t listen, keeping her was just asking for trouble!
Tonight, he would wait until Shen Nian fell asleep, then sneak up and strangle her—one clean move to end it all.
With that thought, Shen Dafu turned back and shot a vicious glare at the thatched hut on the mountainside, his eyes like he wanted to devour someone. Then he limped away, strutting stubbornly like a defeated rooster still clinging to his pride.
As for Shen Nian, she had no time to care about Shen Dafu’s filthy thoughts. She cut the bamboo into one-meter sections, then split each pole into four pieces with sharp cracks. Beside the hut, she used stones to mark out a neat rectangular shape on the ground.
Next, she drove the split bamboo pieces one by one into the outlined lines, clamped the outside with longer bamboo poles, and tied everything together with vines—snap crack pop—until a simple yet sturdy bamboo fence wall was complete.
Her movements were unbelievably nimble. In no time at all, she had finished three walls. The last side was made into a door that could open, with a space left specifically for a latch—thoughtful and thorough.
She dumped more than a dozen little wild ducks into the bamboo enclosure with a splash. The ducklings quacked loudly, flapping their short legs and running around inside. They were still too small to fly out, so they could only stay obediently inside.
Shen Nian looked at the results of her labor and nodded in satisfaction, but soon frowned again.
The duck pen still needed a roof. Otherwise, if it rained and the ducklings got soaked and caught cold, that would be troublesome.
She looked up at the sky. The sun hadn’t set yet—there was still time. Grabbing her machete, she strode briskly down the mountain, planning to cut some reeds to weave a roof.
Gu Xiao had watched her from the doorway all afternoon—from chopping bamboo to building the duck pen. This girl worked nonstop, her feet barely touching the ground. Inside that slender frame seemed to hide the strength of an old ox. She worked fast and well, without any hesitation.
What had such a young girl gone through to become this capable?
It seemed like no difficulty was a problem for her—tough, hardworking, and even someone who genuinely loved life.
Watching her busy figure recede into the distance, Gu Xiao couldn’t help but feel a trace of curiosity.
Only after Shen Nian had gone far away did Gu Xiao slowly step out of the house and walk over to examine the duck pen.