Li Jiao had slept surprisingly well.
In the ten years of her previous life, she had never felt so comfortable, enveloped by a deep sense of security beside Qin Lie.
Upon waking, Li Jiao instinctively nuzzled against the not-so-soft human cushion beneath her.
Her thoughts snapped back instantly, and her eyes flew open.
What met her gaze was Qin Lie’s sharply defined profile. The man’s jawline was tense, a layer of dark stubble emerging on his chin.
His fever seemed to have subsided somewhat, yet his body remained rigidly fixed in the same position from last night.
Pressing her lips together, Li Jiao realized he had stayed like that to avoid disturbing her sleep. Her nose began to sting, and her eyes grew warm again.
Qin Lie struggled to open his eyes. When those bloodshot eyes caught sight of Li Jiao’s delicate face, they grew evasive.
He tried to prop himself up to sit, but half his body had gone numb and lost all sensation.
Qin Lie grunted, his elbow instinctively pulling back, only to accidentally brush against a hard, angular shape.
The man froze. His previously tense shoulders imperceptibly slumped a fraction, a flash of bewildered confusion passing through his eyes.
The money was still there.
She actually hadn’t left?
He had thought last night was an illusion.
No, perhaps it was because the heavy snow had blocked the mountain passes. Or maybe Li Wenbo hadn’t made thorough enough preparations.
Or perhaps she thought running away directly would make it too easy to be caught and brought back.
But it didn’t matter. Whatever the reason, he was determined to use his broken body to keep her here, no matter how despicable it seemed.
If pity could make her stay, then he would tear open his wounds for her to see.
As long as she remained, even if it was all a lie, he would accept it.
Bang, bang, bang!
Just then, the already flimsy courtyard gate was kicked with a thunderous force.
The impact was so strong that dust shook loose from the window frames, fluttering down.
“Second Brother, are you up yet? The sun’s already baking your backside, stop playing dead! Don’t think being crippled means you can laze in bed without working. Our Qin family doesn’t raise freeloaders!”
Qin Lie’s expression darkened instantly. As he tried to move, Li Jiao pressed him down.
Frowning, Li Jiao sat up, clutching the quilt, her head buzzing.
Before the two could even get properly dressed, the door was shoved open with a loud crash.
Sister-in-law Wang Cuifen barged in, wearing a blue cotton jacket so worn it had a greasy shine. The collar was caked with a thick layer of black grime, reeking of stale sourness—it was unclear how long it had been since it was last washed.
Wang Cuifen held a child’s hand in each of hers, her hair a disheveled mess as if she’d just brawled with chickens in a coop.
The two children took after their mother. Da Bao and Er Bao had sturdy, round heads but wore vacant, dull expressions.
They sniffled, wiping the yellow snot dripping to their mouths with their sleeves, which were already crusted with a layer of dark, shiny mucus.
As soon as they entered, the children’s eyes fixed greedily on the thermos flask on the table and Li Jiao’s wool coat hanging on the wall, their covetousness completely undisguised.
Wang Cuifen’s beady eyes darted around the room before finally settling on Qin Lie.
Noticing Li Jiao was still there, the flesh on Wang Cuifen’s face twitched, revealing disappointment.
“Oh, Second Sister-in-law is still here?”
Wang Cuifen let out a couple of mocking laughs, baring a mouthful of uneven, yellowed teeth. Her eyes were filled with malicious glee. “I thought I wouldn’t see you here this morning.”
“You have no idea, last night that educated youth Li waited at our courtyard gate until midnight, nearly freezing into an icicle. What, didn’t you go meet your sweetheart?”
Qin Lie’s previously rigid body instantly slumped, his hands dropping weakly onto his legs, unable to muster a single word of rebuttal.
Li Jiao’s heart tightened. How could she not know? In her past life, if anyone spoke even a little ill of Li Wenbo, she would go mad defending him.
But at this moment, she didn’t want to say anything.
Li Jiao pulled on her warm military coat and asked coldly, “You know so clearly, sister-in-law? What, do you feel sorry for Li Wenbo? Then hurry up and go find him to warm him up. Big brother isn’t home anyway.”
Wang Cuifen shuddered all over, her face showing a mix of disgust and anger. “Pah! You shameless little hussy! You’re the one without morals, yet you dare drag me into this?”
Li Jiao instantly rolled her eyes. Just as she was about to speak, Wang Cuifen cut her off.
“Enough, I’m not here to bicker with you. Mom said, Second Brother breaking his leg this time is retribution! Who told him to have such a hard fate, bringing misfortune to his parents.”
Wang Cuifen sprayed spittle as she spoke: “That five hundred yuan is hush money from the illegal coal mine! It can’t see the light of day! Keeping it in your room isn’t safe. What if some unscrupulous outsider runs off with it? This money must be handed over to the family for safekeeping!”
She paused, her eyes sweeping disdainfully over Qin Lie’s broken leg. “Besides, a bastard of unknown origins can’t hold onto so much money anyway. Better to take it out and save it for Da Bao to use for a wife later. Consider it your repayment for the Qin family raising you all these years!”
Qin Lie’s face instantly turned pale, a flicker of excitement flashing in his eyes.
He stared at Li Jiao’s back, actually hoping she would show disgust, hoping she would take the opportunity to give the money to his sister-in-law to get rid of him.
If she showed even a trace of loathing, he would… lock her up without hesitation!
Wang Cuifen, relying on her family being poor peasants for three generations with impeccable class background, had never looked Qin Lie—this descendant of a bad element—straight in the eye.
She let go of the child, tucking her hands into her sleeves to warm them while scanning the kang, openly searching for Qin Lie’s hard-earned money.
Seeing Qin Lie trembling with suppressed emotion, the fire in Li Jiao’s heart instantly ignited.
She hurriedly fastened the last button on her military coat and grabbed Wang Cuifen’s hand—its fingernails packed with black grime—just as it was reaching under the pillow where the blue cloth bundle was kept.
“Who said you could touch it? Wang Cuifen, you’d better watch your mouth. This money is what Qin Lie exchanged his life for in that illegal coal mine! It’s the blood-and-sweat money he earned after nearly dying in the mine shaft and losing a leg!”
“The Qin family usually treats him like a beast of burden, making him do heavy labor and go down the mines. Now that he’s crippled, you still want to take his life-saving money? Are you eating his flesh and blood?!”
Li Jiao violently flung away Wang Cuifen’s filthy hand, standing by the kang and glaring down at her.
Those beautiful eyes burned with two flames, like a mother wolf protecting her food.
Wang Cuifen was stunned by the scolding, then stiffened her neck and shouted, “So what? He was raised by our Qin family! This money was ill-gotten from the start. If you have the guts, go report it to the police! Oh, you don’t dare either. If you don’t dare, then hand it over to me!”
Li Jiao sneered coldly. “Heh, that’s right. I don’t dare report it to the police, but I dare to die!”
She took a sudden step forward, her eyes fixed fiercely on Wang Cuifen, her voice sharp and resolute: “Don’t think I don’t know how Qin Lie ended up in your family back then, and don’t think I don’t know how much dirty money your Qin family has secretly pocketed!”
“If you dare touch a single cent of this life-saving money, I’ll go grab a rope right now and hang myself at the entrance of the county government compound! I’ll write a blood letter, exposing everything—how the Qin family abused their adopted son, embezzled from the illegal mine, and took hush money! I’ll let the whole county see what kind of character Qin Dazhuang, this so-called model individual, really is! Let’s see if Da Bao and Er Bao can ever hold their heads up again!”
Li Jiao, with nothing to lose, had no fear. The Qin family cared about their reputation; Qin Dazhuang wanted to be recognized as a model, and Wang Cuifen prized nothing more than her pure poor-peasant background and her son’s future!
Wang Cuifen’s face turned pale, then flushed, her heart trembling with fear at Li Jiao’s madness.
She couldn’t help but wonder: How strange—in the past, this educated youth Li Jiao always spoke softly and gently. Nothing like today!
“You—you crazy woman! How dare you?” Wang Cuifen, furious and humiliated, raised her hand to strike. “I’ll teach you a lesson on behalf of my second son!”
Li Jiao let out a low chuckle. Instead of dodging, she stepped forward.
Slap! A crisp, sharp sound echoed through the cramped earthen room.
Li Jiao bared her teeth in a grin and shouted, “Get out!”
Wang Cuifen clutched her cheek, staring at Li Jiao in disbelief, momentarily forgetting her usual tantrum.
The icy chill in Li Jiao’s eyes made Wang Cuifen’s heart quiver with fear. Muttering curses, she dragged her two children—who were still drooling over the thermos—and scurried away in disgrace.
The room fell quiet once more.
Li Jiao blinked, frowned, and dropped her fierce demeanor. Cradling her reddened palm, she turned teary-eyed to Qin Lie.
“Qin Lie, her face was too thick, oily and tough. It hurt my hand—look, it’s all red.”