That light, casual question was like a basin of ice water poured directly over Sun Cuifen’s arrogance.
Sun Cuifen froze.
Of course she knew whose family Su Qiao belonged to now, but so what?
In her eyes, Su Qiao had merely gotten lucky and climbed onto Gu Changfeng’s coattails through improper means.
A rural girl with no family connections or background—even if she married him, she would never have much of a backbone.
“I don’t care whose family you belong to! You stole my daughter’s man, so you’re nothing but a thief!” Sun Cuifen shouted, her voice fierce but lacking confidence.
Su Qiao smiled.
“I am Gu Changfeng’s legal wife.”
She spoke one word at a time. Her voice was not loud, but every word carried undeniable weight.
She pulled the brand-new red marriage certificate from her pocket and waved it in front of Sun Cuifen.
That glaring red color was like a slap, landing hard across the faces of both Sun Cuifen and Su Lan.
“See it? The marriage certificate.”
Su Qiao put the certificate away, and her eyes instantly turned cold, like blades tempered in ice.
“This is a military marriage, protected by the highest level of protection under national law. You just said you wanted to tear my mouth apart?”
Her voice suddenly became stern.
“Go ahead. Touch me and see what happens.”
“Any act intended to destroy a military marriage can result in criminal punishment at the very least. At worst… you could even face execution. Auntie, which one would you like to try?”
“Military marriage.”
“Criminal punishment.”
“Execution.”
Those words struck Sun Cuifen’s heart like heavy hammers.
No matter how ignorant or unreasonable she was, she knew that soldiers were among the people in this country who absolutely could not be provoked.
Harassing a military spouse and deliberately destroying a military marriage were enormous offenses!
Her arrogant attitude immediately deflated by half.
The surrounding onlookers also began changing their tune.
“So they really registered their marriage properly!”
“Then this old woman is just here making trouble for no reason?”
“My goodness, she even dared to threaten a military spouse. She’s got some nerve!”
Sun Cuifen’s face alternated between red and white. She had never expected the niece she used to bully and beat at will to become so sharp-tongued, much less know how to use the law against her.
Her eyes darted around rapidly, and she immediately changed her attitude.
Her fleshy face forced itself into a smile more unpleasant than crying.
“Oh, Qiaoqiao, look at you. What are you saying? Your auntie… your auntie is just worried about you!”
As she spoke, she reached out to grab Su Qiao’s arm, trying to act familiar.
“Look at you. You went and registered your marriage with Changfeng without saying a word. Such a huge matter, and you didn’t even tell your family. Changfeng is such an honest young man. He must have given you quite a lot of betrothal gifts, right? A young girl like you carrying so much money and so many ration coupons around isn’t safe!”
Then her tone suddenly changed, finally revealing her true intention.
“How about this? Your auntie will keep them safe for you first! Whenever you need them, just come and ask me!”
As she spoke, her thick, stubby hand reached toward the small cloth bag Su Qiao had brought with her.
Inside was the two hundred yuan Gu Changfeng had given her!
Sun Cuifen moved quickly, but Su Qiao was even faster!
Just as Sun Cuifen’s hand was about to touch the cloth bag, Su Qiao stepped sideways, and the bag slipped easily out of reach.
At the same time, she shot out her other hand like lightning and grabbed Sun Cuifen’s thick wrist.
“Ahhh!”
Sun Cuifen felt as though her wrist bone had been clamped in a man’s iron grip. A sharp, piercing pain instantly shot through her, making her let out a shriek.
She tried to yank her hand back, only to discover that Su Qiao’s hand did not move an inch.
She stared in horror as she realized that this seemingly frail niece possessed terrifying strength.
“My money doesn’t require your concern, Auntie.”
Su Qiao’s voice was calm, giving away no emotion, but her eyes were filled with icy coldness as she stared at Sun Cuifen.
“And another thing. This is my home. Anyone I don’t want to see had better not come here again. Otherwise…”
She leaned closer and lowered her voice until only the two of them could hear.
“…I’ll go directly to the county People’s Armed Forces Department, or write to Gu Changfeng’s unit, and ask them how they usually deal with relatives who deliberately harass military spouses and attempt to seize a soldier’s wages.”
Sun Cuifen’s pupils suddenly contracted.
Fear flooded over her like a tide.
She finally realized that the Su Qiao standing before her was no longer the timid pushover she had once been able to manipulate at will.
Her eyes, her strength, even the way she spoke—all of it had changed completely!
That gaze was like a knife, capable of cutting straight into a person’s heart and making fear seep into their very bones.
“L-Let go! It hurts! It hurts so much!” Sun Cuifen howled in pain, her face turning pale.
The surrounding neighbors poked their heads out to watch, pointing at Sun Cuifen as she cried and screamed.
“That old woman really came here to steal money!”
“How shameless. Her niece married well, so she came begging for handouts.”
“Serves her right! Let’s see if she dares come again!”
Every whispered comment felt like a slap landing squarely on Sun Cuifen’s face.
She was in pain and humiliated, feeling as though she had lost all the dignity she had accumulated over her entire life in a single day.
Su Qiao stared coldly at her. Only when Sun Cuifen was nearly forced to her knees did she suddenly fling her hand away.
Sun Cuifen stumbled and fell to the ground.
Su Qiao looked down at her from above as though she were nothing more than an insignificant ant.
“Get lost.”
One word.
Cold and filled with unquestionable authority.
Sun Cuifen scrambled to her feet. She could not even spare a thought for her daughter or the two nephews accompanying her. After throwing out the hollow threat, “You… you just wait!” she turned and fled without looking back.
Su Lan and the two men were equally humiliated. They hurried after her, fleeing the scene in embarrassment.
And so the farce came to an end.
Su Qiao clapped her hands as though dusting off some invisible dirt.
She turned toward the neighbors who were still watching and once again put on an apologetic, somewhat helpless smile.
“Sorry you all had to witness such a family scandal. My auntie-in-law… sigh, she’s never been able to stand seeing me live a good life.”
She sighed just enough, her eyes faintly reddening.
Her delicate and aggrieved appearance immediately stirred the neighbors’ sympathy.
“Qiaoqiao, don’t be upset. If anything happens, just tell us. Let’s see if she dares come again!”
“That’s right! This is the military family compound. It’s not a place where just anyone can come and cause trouble!”
Sister-in-law Wang came over and patted her shoulder.
“Good girl, don’t be afraid. If she comes again, just shut the door. We’ll help you curse her out!”
“Thank you, Sister-in-law Wang. Thank you, Aunties and Sisters-in-law.”
Su Qiao thanked them gratefully. Amid their comforting words, she turned and went back upstairs.
The moment she entered her home and closed the door, all the vulnerability and grievance vanished from her face without a trace.
Only cold composure remained.
She walked to the window, lifted a corner of the curtain, and watched Sun Cuifen and the others disappear into the distance. A calculating glint flashed in her eyes.
Today was only the beginning.
With Sun Cuifen’s greedy and vindictive personality, she would never let this go.
Su Qiao had never been the kind of person who simply took a beating without fighting back.
With a thought, a tiny black object, no bigger than a fingernail and as thin as a cicada’s wing, appeared in her palm.
Apocalyptic technology.
A miniature listening device powered by solar energy, with a signal capable of covering the entire city.
She had a feeling that the incident in which both the original owner and Gu Changfeng had been drugged was not as simple as it seemed.
Someone as stupid as Sun Cuifen could never have devised such a meticulous plan.
There had to be someone else behind her.
The corners of Su Qiao’s lips curled into a dangerous smile.
Whoever it was, if they dared scheme against her, they had better be prepared to be uprooted completely.