This never happened in my previous life.
Qin An caught up and grabbed Li Qinkuai’s other hand, his voice carrying a warning: “Let her go! Qinkuai doesn’t want to go with you!”
Duan Pengyue stopped in his tracks. Hearing his words, he scoffed and tightened his grip on Li Qinkuai’s wrist, his tone icy: “She doesn’t want to go with me? Then tell me, Li Qinkuai, who do you want to go with?!”
Li Qinkuai dared not go with Duan Pengyue.
“I’ll go with Qin An.”
“Wishful thinking!”
Duan Pengyue spat out the words, took a step forward, and swatted Qin An’s hand away before continuing to drag Li Qinkuai down the mountain.
He walked fast and urgently.
As if some ferocious beast were chasing him from behind.
Li Qinkuai waved at Qin An, signaling that she was fine and not to worry. Only then did Qin An not follow them down.
Duan Pengyue kept dragging Li Qinkuai all the way to the foot of the mountain. Only when he saw that Qin An hadn’t come down did he stop and turn to interrogate Li Qinkuai: “Who is he?”
His expression was terrifying, as if he would pull out a knife and attack if Li Qinkuai gave an answer he didn’t like.
Li Qinkuai was so frightened by this version of Duan Pengyue that she took a step back.
But it was this retreat of hers that completely enraged Duan Pengyue.
Her wrist was seized again by the man’s hand. His grip was so strong that Li Qinkuai cried out in pain, her eyes filled with fear.
“Let go of me!”
Duan Pengyue noticed her fear of him and immediately released his grip, suppressing the emotions in his eyes.
Li Qinkuai wanted to run, but she didn’t dare.
She had never seen such a terrifying Duan Pengyue.
Even in her previous life, when she had forced Duan Pengyue to marry her, he had never felt as frightening as he did today.
“Speak!”
Duan Pengyue demanded coldly again.
Li Qinkuai pursed her lips: “She’s Qin An.”
Duan Pengyue glared at her: “Li Qinkuai, you know what I’m asking! Tell me honestly! What exactly is your relationship with Qin An?!”
His inexplicable interrogation made Li Qinkuai feel as if she had been caught in an affair.
The feeling was too strange.
Besides, the person he loved now was Qing Shuangyun, and she had stopped pestering him. What did her relationship with anyone else have to do with Duan Pengyue?
Thinking of Qing Shuangyun, Li Qinkuai grew bold: “What’s it to you? Mind your own business!”
After saying this, Li Qinkuai remembered that she had been avoiding Duan Pengyue ever since that night and hadn’t clarified things with him.
Probably, in Duan Pengyue’s eyes now, she was a woman who couldn’t be satisfied with what she had and was always eyeing more.
“Um… Duan Pengyue, I know it was my fault before. I shouldn’t have shamelessly pestered you even though I knew you didn’t like me, causing you trouble. But rest assured, I will never bother you again. Can we just pretend the past never happened?”
Li Qinkuai had thought that saying this would make Duan Pengyue leave happily, since he had never liked her in the first place.
But to her surprise, Duan Pengyue’s face instantly darkened, and he radiated a terrifying aura, gritting his teeth as he said: “Li Qinkuai, you’re really something!”
He never dreamed that Li Qinkuai would change her heart so quickly.
In just two short days, she could openly seek out another man in front of him. Before, she had said she liked him and only wanted to marry him, but now it seemed it was all a lie!
His brother was right.
Women never cherish what they’ve already obtained.
He shouldn’t have let Li Qinkuai have him, or else she wouldn’t have changed her heart so fast!
Li Qinkuai was frightened by his demeanor and swallowed hard, but still spoke earnestly, “I’m sorry, but don’t worry, I absolutely won’t bother you again!”
Duan Pengyue sneered coldly, his eyes turbulent with emotion: “Absolutely won’t bother me again? Li Qinkuai, you just slept with me in the rice field last night, and today you tell me you absolutely won’t bother me? What do you take me for?!”
Seeing him act as if he had suffered a great loss, Li Qinkuai felt somewhat annoyed. If they were to get into the details, she was the one who had been taken advantage of.
“So what do you want?”
“What do you mean, what do I want? Shouldn’t you make some gesture after doing something like this?”
Duan Pengyue was so angry he laughed.
A gesture?
She understood.
“Then I’ll give you three pounds of pork, and we’ll consider this matter over, okay?”
The more Li Qinkuai thought about it, the more reasonable it seemed. Three pounds of pork was quite a lot.
Duan Pengyue was stunned, staring at the woman before him in disbelief.
Seeing him silent, Li Qinkuai thought he was dissatisfied with the amount. Gritting her teeth, she added, “If that’s not enough, I’ll throw in a chicken, but that’s all I can offer!”
“Fine, three pounds of pork and a chicken. I must be worth a lot to you!”
Duan Pengyue didn’t know how he managed to say those words. Right now, he wished he could strangle this irresponsible woman!
Li Qinkuai’s eyes lit up, and she immediately said, “Alright, I’ll go home and get them now. Wait for me at the educated youth dormitory.”
Without waiting for Duan Pengyue’s reaction, she ran straight home.
Duan Pengyue watched her retreating figure, snorted coldly, and returned to the educated youth dormitory.
Li Qinkuai didn’t go directly home. Instead, she stopped at the foot of another mountain to gather some firewood as a pretense before heading back.
When she arrived home, her parents and older brother were resting in their rooms. Seizing the opportunity, Li Qinkuai entered her space to retrieve the chicken and pork, then carried them to the educated youth dormitory.
Before she even reached the dormitory, she saw Duan Pengyue sitting at the entrance, apparently waiting for her.
Li Qinkuai strode over and placed the pork and chicken in front of him. “Here you go.”
Duan Pengyue glanced at her, reached out to take them, and said nothing.
For some reason, Li Qinkuai felt a pang of fear under his gaze and quickly asked, “Now that you’ve accepted this, we have no further ties.”
Duan Pengyue raised an eyebrow and grunted in acknowledgment.
Only then did Li Qinkuai feel at ease and return home.
Lin Sheng, who had been inside the room, came out just in time to see the pork and chicken in front of Duan Pengyue. “Where did you get these?”
“Li Qinkuai gave them to me.”
“Huh? Does she like you again?”
Duan Pengyue looked at him. “If you don’t know how to talk, you can keep quiet. She’s always liked me.”
Lin Sheng was left speechless.
Putting on an act every day—who knows how long he plans to keep it up.
Meanwhile, although Li Qinkuai had lost a chicken and three pounds of pork, her mood was unprecedentedly joyful.
After all, she no longer had any ties with Duan Pengyue.
After the midday break, it was time for the afternoon shift.
The Li family, as usual, prepared to head to the fields to work.
Suddenly, the sound of gongs and drums echoed from the village entrance.
With such a commotion, many people went to see what was happening. As the production team leader, Li Dafu naturally had to go and investigate.
“Everyone, please hear me out and judge for yourselves. Although I am a man, a man’s reputation is also important. Now my reputation is ruined, my innocence is gone, but the person who wronged me refuses to take responsibility. What should I do?”
“I know I’m just an educated youth sent down to the countryside with no one to rely on, but I won’t let myself be bullied for nothing. If she doesn’t marry me, I’ll report her for hooliganism and have her shot!”
The man banging gongs and drums while shouting about losing his reputation and purity was none other than Duan Pengyue—the same man who had just accepted three pounds of pork and a chicken from her!