Listening to his curses and oaths, Su Jinxia found it truly amusing. But then she thought about it again. Retribution really did exist in this world; otherwise, how could she have been given the chance to live her life over and change everything that had not yet happened?
The man’s chest was so hard. Her small hand rested on it, and she did not know where else to put it, so it unconsciously moved downward until it touched his eight-pack abs.
Feeling his body grow even more tense, she slowly raised her head. His face held no expression and looked rather fierce. Then she noticed his earlobes, which were already frighteningly red. So he had blushed after all.
It was only because his skin was dark that it was not so obvious.
How embarrassing!
For a moment, she even forgot to cry.
Seeing the young woman’s pitiful appearance, with tears still clinging to her cheeks, Zhao Yue could not help reaching out to wipe them away. Only then did he realize that he had crossed a line.
How could he casually touch a young woman’s face?
“I’m sorry.” Su Jinxia slowly released her hand. She felt a little regretful, but only for that brief moment.
Still, this fellow had a great figure. He was handsome, well-built, and especially gentle with people.
Zhao Yue said, “It’s fine. As long as you stop crying.”
He did not know how to talk to a young woman. He was a rough man—how could such a delicate young woman possibly be lying?
Watching the two of them crying so miserably, Ma Cheng’s sympathies shifted once again. He reached out, intending to hit Song Jianping on the head, but when he saw the wound there, he changed his target and smacked him directly on the shoulder.
“Is what you did something a decent human being would do? You even cursed and swore! If Heaven had eyes, it should have taken you away long ago.”
“Station Chief! What do you mean by that? Are you saying I was beaten for nothing? Every one of these women is a swindler, and this man is in league with them. Didn’t you see them embracing each other?”
Song Jianping thought indignantly that he had laid out such a scheme, only for this fellow to benefit by playing the hero and rescuing the beauty.
If he had known this would happen, he would not have acted so rashly.
Ma Cheng said, “Do you take me for a blind man? Do you think I don’t know exactly what happened? I can see that your injuries are serious, so hurry up and confess everything you need to confess, then accept medical treatment. You know perfectly well that those who confess are treated leniently, while those who resist are punished severely!”
“What, do I have to drag you back there myself?”
Song Jianping was seething inside. He had tried to steal the chicken and ended up losing the rice instead.
Just then, the door was pushed open, and a man and a woman rushed in from outside. They looked to be around fifty or sixty years old and were dressed in worn-out clothes. At a glance, one might have mistaken them for beggars from the roadside.
Seeing them again, Su Jinxia’s murderous rage surged once more. This elderly couple was Song Jianping’s parents.
They were extremely protective of their son. Every time Song Jianping beat her at home, the old man would stand guard by the door. Whenever outsiders came over to ask about it, he would simply say that the couple had been fighting and would soon make up, telling them not to meddle in other people’s business.
After enough time passed, no one bothered to ask about it anymore.
Later, even when people outside saw her with her face swollen and bruised from the beatings, they would merely glance at her before walking away.
When Song Tiezhu saw that his son was injured, he grew as anxious as an ant on a hot pan. “What happened? How did your head get beaten like that?
“If Old Xie hadn’t come to tell me that you were injured and hospitalized, I wouldn’t have known anything about it!”
Wang Qiulan threw herself onto the bed. “Son! Tell your mother who did this!”
When Song Jianping saw that his parents had arrived, he immediately began to complain. “It was these two women and that man. These two women beat me, and then that man gave testimony for them.”
“There’s no justice in this world! They wanted to take advantage of me, and when I refused, they beat me with a brick!”
Wang Qiulan knew what kind of person her son was. She turned to look at the two young women. One of them was Lin Yuanyuan, her son’s prospective arranged-match partner. The other also lived nearby, and she seemed to recall that her father’s surname was Su.
Her son had reached marriageable age, and she had basically inspected all the young women nearby. She wanted to choose a gentle wife who would be easy to control.
Lin Yuanyuan had an especially mild temperament and was fairly good-looking. Most importantly, both of her parents were cowards.
She had already discussed it with her son. If necessary, they could simply add a few more yuan to the bride price and secure the match first; they could figure out the rest later.
But her son was unwilling to spend that extra money. He had once told her privately that if they could get the rice cooked before it was even bought, they would not need to spend so much money.
In these times, once a woman lost her chastity, she could no longer marry anyone else. Then she would have no choice but to marry into their family. Wouldn’t that mean they could knead and shape her however they pleased?
She reached out to grab Lin Yuanyuan by her braid, but another hand blocked her. Wang Qiulan looked at the Su girl in front of her. “What do you think you’re doing?”
“That’s what I should be asking you. She isn’t your daughter, and she isn’t your daughter-in-law. What gives you the right to yank her braid?”
Su Jinxia looked coldly at Wang Qiulan. “Your son has the same character as you. You want to take advantage of everyone, and when bullying people doesn’t work, you try to extort them. Sure enough, people from the same family really do share the same rotten nature!”
“Oh, you think you can run wild now?” As Wang Qiulan spoke, she reached out with her other hand, intending to scratch the young woman’s face and ruin her beautiful features.
Because she herself was ugly, the old man had never treated her well throughout their marriage. If she had not given birth to a son, who knew what her situation would be now?
That was why she envied and resented every pretty young woman she saw.
At the same time, she wanted her son to find a beautiful wife so that they could have beautiful children.
Her son was only 1.65 meters tall, with a flat nose and monolid eyes so narrow that they disappeared whenever he smiled. All these features combined—“ugly” was hardly enough to describe him.
They had spent a great deal of money to secure him a position as a worker at a fertilizer plant. Once he entered the factory, he would be eating from the state’s rice bowl—a secure job. With that, finding him a wife would also be much easier.
Su Jinxia had just raised her hand to knock the old woman’s arm away when Zhao Yue, standing beside her, grabbed the old woman by the collar and pulled her aside.
Seeing the young woman’s furious expression, he had done it simply because he did not want her to suffer.
Wang Qiulan spun around before coming to a stop. Only then did she notice that the young man in front of her was tall, powerfully built, and strong—and that he was wearing a Navy uniform.
“Why are you taking their side?”
Zhao Yue said, “Your son was in the wrong first. He tried to bully them. I saw it with my own eyes. I’m not taking anyone’s side.”
The man’s face was stern, and he clearly was not someone to provoke. Wang Qiulan became somewhat more timid.
Ma Cheng also came over. “All right, stop making a scene. Don’t you know what kind of person your son is?
“You’re claiming that these two young women beat him up? How is that possible? I certainly don’t believe it!”
Su Jinxia’s heart lurched. She had almost exposed herself just now! Fortunately, Zhao Yue had stopped her. When she met his probing gaze, she unconsciously rubbed her nose.
At that moment, another man and woman arrived outside.
“Dad, Mom! You’re finally here!” Lin Yuanyuan called to her parents standing at the door. She immediately rushed over and threw her arms around them. She felt so wronged—so terribly wronged.
“Oh, so you’ve come!” Wang Qiulan roared before charging toward them as well. “Then we’re going to settle today’s matter properly!”