After saying goodbye to He Yanyan, Fu Yunzhu left first. Walking along the road back home, thinking that she would soon be able to completely escape this living hell, her mood instantly brightened.
At this hour, everyone in the village was already asleep. The surroundings were quiet, with only the chirping of insects, and even the night breeze blowing toward her carried a cool freshness.
She slowed her pace and looked up at the stars in the sky. She hadn’t expected the countryside night sky to be so clear so clear it seemed closer to the ground than the starry skies over modern cities.
It felt like she hadn’t been this relaxed and at ease for a long time. After leaving this place, she would probably be able to have this kind of mood often.
“Yunzhu!”
A man’s voice came from behind her. Fu Yunzhu stopped and saw Huang Hui, the village chief’s son, jogging toward her.
Her delicate brows furrowed slightly. “What is it?”
Huang Hui smiled. “Yunzhu, could you lend me a hundred yuan?”
Fu Yunzhu narrowed her eyes at him, then coldly refused. “I don’t have any money.”
“We’re all villagers here don’t be so stingy,” he said. Yufen had clearly told him that she had just thrown a tantrum at home and extorted two hundred yuan, leaving Yufen without enough money to buy a wristwatch.
“I really don’t have any money.” After saying that, Fu Yunzhu tried to walk past him.
Huang Hui chased after her again and blocked her path. “Fu Yunzhu, you can fool other people, but you can’t fool me. If you know what’s good for you, hand it over.”
Seeing him finally show his true colors, Fu Yunzhu laughed in anger. “You come to me at this hour asking to borrow money does the village chief know about this?”
“So what if he does? You extorted money from your own family and you still think you’re in the right?”
“My mom sends living expenses home every month, and I hand over every cent. How could I extort money from my family? Where did you hear that nonsense?”
Fu Yunzhu understood now. Given Huang Hui’s habit of constantly currying favor with Fu Yufen, it was almost certainly Fu Yufen who had sent him to “stand up for justice.”
Under the moonlight, Huang Hui stared at her pretty face and swallowed. “In that case, stop competing with Sister Yufen for that marriage. How about you be with me instead?”
“You don’t like Sister Yufen anymore?” Fu Yunzhu questioned.
“What do you know about liking someone?” Huang Hui said disdainfully. “Liking someone isn’t about forcing them it’s about letting them have what they want. Someone like you, who keeps shamelessly clinging to Gu Yu regardless of whether he likes you or not, is actually just selfish.
“Real love, the kind worth showing off, means knowing how to sacrifice for the other person.”
Compared to the pretty Fu Yunzhu, he preferred Fu Yufen smart, good-natured, and talented.
Looking at Huang Hui, who had clearly been brainwashed by Fu Yufen’s manipulation, Fu Yunzhu didn’t know what to say. But in order to get rid of him as quickly as possible and avoid direct confrontation, she nodded. “Fine. Then go back and wait for me to return from Kyoto before you come to propose.”
Anyway, once she left, she would never come back.
Huang Hui never truly intended to marry Fu Yunzhu. He only wanted to trick her into sleeping with him so she would lose any qualification to compete with Fu Yufen.
Just as Fu Yunzhu turned to leave, Huang Hui suddenly grabbed her arm. “Why don’t we just get it done right now?”
Fu Yunzhu reacted instinctively and shoved him away hard. “Huang Hui, you’re being a pervert!”
He hadn’t expected her to be so strong and was pushed back, but since he had done farm work for years, he quickly recovered, rushed after her, grabbed her shoulder again, and yanked hard. Fu Yunzhu fell to the ground.
“Fu Yunzhu, you’re asking for it,” he snarled, then lunged forward to tear at her clothes.
In her panic, Fu Yunzhu felt a stone in her hand and was about to smash it down with all her strength when she heard Huang Hui scream and stumble far backward.
Before he could react, someone hauled him up from the ground. When he saw the face clearly, he cried out in terror, “Gu Yu!”
As soon as the words left his mouth, a fist slammed into his left cheek. Huang Hui saw stars as a metallic taste filled his mouth.
Just as he tried to fight back, another punch landed on his right cheek, followed by several more blows to his face, pounding his head until it buzzed.
Gu Yu let go and tossed him to the ground. He glanced at Fu Yunzhu, who was still lying there in shock. His heart felt as if it were being torn apart. The sudden feeling made him irritable, and he shouted at her, “Get up!”
Only then did Fu Yunzhu react and scramble to her feet. She heard Gu Yu order, “Pick up the stone at your feet.”
Still dazed with fear, she obediently bent down and picked up the stone.
Gu Yu continued, “Come over and smash it down on his head hard.”
Huang Hui backed away in terror and shouted, “I’m the village chief’s son! If someone dies, both of you will go to prison!”
Fu Yunzhu looked at Huang Hui blood at the corner of his mouth, bruises on his face and hesitated, afraid to step forward. If she brought the stone down, would she really kill him?
“If he dies or is injured, I’ll take responsibility,” Gu Yu said angrily. Seeing her still hesitate, he roared, “Didn’t I just teach you to be ruthless? No one will always show up in time to save you. From now on, learn to fight back and save yourself.”
“Gu Yu, you’ve only got a bit of lousy money now do you really think you’re something special?” Huang Hui snapped, enraged by Gu Yu’s utter disregard for him.
Gu Yu looked at him coldly. “Huang Hui, do you know how many crimes you’re guilty of? Today’s attempted assault. Last Tuesday’s group gambling. On July 14th you stole Chen Hu’s chicken. On June 2nd you drove your cow into Aunt Wang’s vegetable garden.
“Your second uncle and the widow from the neighboring village. And seven months ago, your fourth uncle took bribes using your father’s name.
“So whether your father gets kicked out of office or not depends entirely on my mood.”
“How do you know all this?” Huang Hui felt a chill run through his entire body.
Gu Yu stepped forward and planted a foot on his chest. “Want to know?”
Huang Hui nodded.
Gu Yu then beckoned to Fu Yunzhu and shouted, “Come here.”
He was furious at himself for increasingly being unable to tell Fu Yunzhu apart from his wife, his emotions spiraling into fear and anger.
Fu Yunzhu walked over. Gu Yu asked her, “Do you want to know?”
Her emotions were complicated, but she nodded in cooperation. “Yes.”
“Smash it down on his forehead hard!”
Fu Yunzhu closed her eyes and brought the stone down with all her strength.
The stone struck Huang Hui squarely on the shoulder.
Speechless, Gu Yu pressed a hand to his throbbing temple, removed his foot from Huang Hui, and said, “Get lost.”
Huang Hui staggered to his feet. “Gu Yu, who told you all this? Do you have any evidence?”
“Whether I have evidence or not, try it next time and you’ll find out. As for who told me when you’re crippled or in prison, I’ll tell you.”
“You’re not keeping your word.”
Gu Yu shot him an icy glance. “What credibility do I owe you? Besides, Fu Yunzhu didn’t even hit the right spot. If you’re that eager to know, how about letting her smash you one more time?”
At that, Huang Hui ran off without looking back.
This was the first time Fu Yunzhu had seen Gu Yu fight someone outside. In the past, he never needed to do things himself others would rush forward to do his bidding. It turned out that when he fought personally, he was just as brutal.
“Thank you,” Fu Yunzhu said sincerely.
Gu Yu still didn’t look pleased. “I’ll walk you home.”
“No need.”
“Move,” Gu Yu snapped again.
“How did you know all that?” she asked.
Gu Yu hadn’t expected her to ask that. When he turned back and saw her timid yet stubborn, curious expression exactly like his wife’s he froze for a moment, once again lost in a daze.