As Chunxing spoke, she carefully watched Su Yu’s reaction.
Anyone who didn’t know the situation might have thought Su Yu was the one bullying her.
At that moment, Tang Chen stepped directly in front of Su Yu.
His face was dark as he looked at Chunxing.
“If you don’t want this to become ugly, leave now. I have absolutely no interest in the shoes you made.”
…
Tears immediately welled up in Chunxing’s eyes again.
They looked ready to spill at any second.
The three of them stood stiffly at the doorway.
Looking at the woman before her, Su Yu couldn’t help thinking that her skin was incredibly thick.
Most people would have left long ago.
“That’s right.”
Su Yu folded her arms.
“My husband is correct. He doesn’t want the shoes you made. I’ll make shoes for him myself. You should leave already and stop being an eyesore.”
Su Yu felt she had already phrased it quite politely.
Unexpectedly, Chunxing suddenly burst into loud sobs.
Clutching the shoes, she turned and ran away.
Even after she disappeared, the sound of her crying could still be heard.
The noise left Su Yu irritated.
“Don’t expect me to help you with something like this next time.”
This woman hadn’t appeared in Su Yu’s previous life.
She suspected that her rebirth had altered some of the world’s original course.
The sun slowly sank toward the western mountains.
A breeze suddenly swept through the yard.
Today, Su Yu was wearing a faded cotton-linen outfit.
The wind puffed up the back of her clothes, making them balloon outward.
Her loose pants revealed just how slender her legs were.
Seeing this, Tang Chen’s eyes filled with concern.
He silently vowed to earn more money in the future and make sure Su Yu was well-fed and healthy.
“Alright, let’s go inside.”
Su Yu waved a hand.
“We can talk about everything tonight.”
She was determined to interrogate Tang Chen properly.
Just how many admirers did he have in this village?
If women kept showing up at their door every day, how were they supposed to live?
That evening, the atmosphere during dinner was noticeably colder than usual.
After eating, Su Yu immediately returned to the bedroom with Tangtang.
The dim kerosene lamp added a trace of warmth to the room.
Thin wisps of smoke drifted from the wick.
“Tangtang, it’s time to sleep.”
Tangtang clutched her clothes nervously.
Something felt different about Mommy and Daddy today.
Looking at Su Yu’s gentle face, she obediently closed her eyes.
After a while, her breathing became steady and even.
Her long eyelashes cast shadows across her cheeks.
Even in sleep, however, her little fists remained tightly clenched.
Su Yu carefully tucked her hands beneath the blanket and gently patted her.
“Sleep well, sweetheart.”
She kissed Tangtang’s forehead.
Then she glanced toward the doorway.
Tang Chen still hadn’t come to bed.
Curious, Su Yu finally got up and headed outside.
The moment she opened the door, she found Tang Chen standing there.
He looked awkward and uncertain.
Moonlight spread across the ground like a silver veil.
Su Yu had to tilt her head slightly upward to see his face.
He was wearing a white sleeveless undershirt and loose dark-blue pants.
His muscular arms were fully exposed.
Judging by the droplets still clinging to his skin, he had just finished bathing.
Tang Chen swallowed.
His Adam’s apple bobbed visibly.
For some reason, Su Yu suddenly felt her throat go dry.
She immediately turned her face away.
“Ahem…”
Her expression became unnatural.
“Why are you standing here like an idiot? Get inside already.”
What if he caught a cold wearing only a sleeveless shirt?
Seeing that Su Yu had finally spoken to him, Tang Chen smiled.
“Hehe.”
“I was waiting for you to calm down before coming in.”
He looked guilty.
“I really wasn’t trying to help Chunxing—”
Su Yu glared at him.
Tang Chen quickly corrected himself.
“That woman.”
The two sat facing each other across the table.
Su Yu sat on the left side.
Tang Chen sat on the right.
Her eyes carried unmistakable scrutiny.
“Comrade Tang Chen.”
Her tone became serious.
“Confession earns leniency. Resistance earns severity. I advise you not to even think about lying to me.”
Li Xiuling was the biggest gossip in the village.
If Tang Chen refused to tell her, Su Yu fully intended to ask Li Xiuling tomorrow.
“No, no.”
Tang Chen immediately became flustered.
“I never intended to lie to you.”
He scratched the back of his head nervously.
Su Yu remained silent and simply stared at him.
Tang Chen cleared his throat and began recounting an old story.
“It happened before we got married.”
“That’s when Chunxing and I met.”
He quickly added,
“But don’t worry. We really weren’t close.”
That day, Tang Chen had been returning from an errand outside the village.
Along the way, he ran into Fuzi.
Fuzi was infamous throughout the village.
His favorite pastime was harassing pretty young women.
Chunxing happened to be fair-skinned and attractive.
She had attended school for several years and carried a small bag over her shoulder.
As she walked along a field ridge, she unfortunately ran into him.
“Chunxing!”
Fuzi called out.
“Where are you headed? Want your big brother to accompany you?”
A foxtail grass stem dangled from his mouth.
He scratched the big toe sticking out of his worn shoe.
The moment Chunxing saw him, panic flooded her face.
This wasn’t the first time she had encountered him.
“No, thank you.”
She immediately quickened her pace.
But Fuzi wasn’t about to let her go.
He spat out the grass stem and strode forward.
Then he grabbed her bag.
“Why not?”
He grinned.
“It’s dangerous for a young lady to walk around alone. I’ve worked hard all my life. Being your bodyguard sounds pretty good to me.”
Looking at Fuzi’s shameless expression, Chunxing was so frightened that tears nearly fell.
And then—
Tang Chen appeared.
Without saying a single word, he kicked Fuzi straight into a drainage ditch.
“Hmph.”
Su Yu puffed out her cheeks.
“That really was a perfect hero-saving-the-beauty moment. If I were Chunxing, I’d probably like you too.”
Her fingers absentmindedly scraped against the edge of the table.
To Tang Chen, her muttering and pouting looked exactly like jealousy.
And that made him surprisingly happy.
He reached forward and grabbed her hand.
“Nothing happened after that.”
His voice was gentle.
“I escorted her home, then went back to work. We barely saw each other after that.”
Because she was listening so intently, Su Yu didn’t even realize how intimate their current posture had become.
“Alright.”
She nodded.
“I understand.”
“In the future, I’ll just avoid her.”
In this lifetime, Su Yu only wanted to live peacefully.
She didn’t want to waste her time fighting over men.
If 001 ever found out she was doing that, it would probably lecture her again.
“You don’t need to avoid her.”
Tang Chen shook his head.
“Tomorrow I’ll go directly to her family and make things clear.”
He paused.
“Her parents are reasonable people.”