"Help! Save… wuwuwuwu…"
A sharp cry came from the reed marsh beside the Red River, then turned into muffled sobbing.
The reeds shook wildly.
Qin Qing and her mother had their mouths covered. Though Wang Mazhi was terrified, he could only obey Chen Guangfa.
He gritted his teeth and dragged Tang Min deeper into the reeds.
Qin Qing's scalp was pulled painfully. Chen Guangfa's vicious face leaned close, and his rough hand suddenly clamped around her neck.
She reached out with all her strength, desperately stretching forward, trying to push Chen Guangfa away.
The intense suffocation made her vision blur…
Bang!
A carrying pole suddenly slammed down hard on the back of Chen Guangfa's head. He let out a miserable cry and fell to the ground clutching his head.
Wang Mazhi turned his head and saw a man in a green military overcoat—a towering figure at 1.86 meters that was impossible to ignore.
He wore a black Lei Feng hat, and a thick beard nearly covered his entire face.
The man stepped back, holding the carrying pole. His legs were uneven—he was a cripple.
"Fang Zhiwei, you damned cripple! How dare you meddle in our village's business? Get the hell out!"
Wang Mazhi stood up and cursed. Compared to the other man's build, he looked like a little chick.
Chen Guangfa held out his hand—it was covered in blood.
That blow from the carrying pole had split open the back of his skull.
"Don't think just because you're a discharged veteran you can throw your weight around. You were kicked out for violating military discipline, and when you came back, you angered your old man to death. You think a poor bastard like you can stand in my way? Get lost!"
Chen Guangfa was extremely arrogant. He didn't give this ragged, rough man a second thought.
"Let them go."
Fang Zhiwei said in a low voice. His tone was deep and steady, his eyes cold and bleak.
"A cripple wants to play hero!"
Chen Guangfa shot Wang Mazhi a look.
Wang Mazhi pulled out a switchblade from his waist, grinned viciously, and approached Fang Zhiwei, suddenly thrusting the knife forward.
Fang Zhiwei clamped Wang Mazhi's arm with one hand and applied slight pressure—a crisp sound of bone breaking rang out.
Accompanied by Wang Mazhi's scream, the switchblade fell helplessly to the ground.
Chen Guangfa's expression shifted. He secretly picked up a stone from the ground and hurled it viciously at Fang Zhiwei's head.
Fang Zhiwei dodged, grabbed Chen Guangfa by the collar from behind, and flung his entire body away.
Bang!!
Chen Guangfa landed ass-first, crashing straight into the manure bucket Fang Zhiwei had been carrying.
The bucket tipped over, and Chen Guangfa was covered in reeking filth. Even Wang Mazhi pinched his nose.
Fang Zhiwei picked up the switchblade from the ground and gave it a casual flick. Radiating killing intent, he stepped toward the two men one by one.
Wang Mazhi was scared out of his wits. He scrambled to his feet and ran.
"Damn it, you useless piece of trash!"
Chen Guangfa cursed angrily, scrambled up, and fled without looking back.
"Qing'er, are you okay? Are you okay?!"
Tang Min hugged Qin Qing in panic, and Qin Qing's tears burst forth instantly.
"Mom! Mom!"
At that moment, Qin Qing couldn't form a single complete sentence.
Having survived the ordeal, mother and daughter clung tightly to each other and wept.
Suddenly, a wave of warmth washed over her. Qin Qing looked up and saw Fang Zhiwei draping his military overcoat over the two of them.
Underneath, he wore only a thin white shirt, covered in patches.
"Fang Zhiwei, thank you! I will repay you for saving our lives today!"
"Xiao Fang, thank you so much."
Tang Min, overcome with gratitude, tried to kowtow to Fang Zhiwei.
Fang Zhiwei quickly helped her up. "It's a soldier's duty to protect the people."
Qin Qing tried to return the military overcoat to Fang Zhiwei, but he pushed it back toward her.
"You need it more than I do."
Fang Zhiwei's face was mostly hidden behind his thick beard, yet Qin Qing could clearly see his bright, star-like dark eyes that put her at ease.
"Thank you!"
Qin Qing draped the military overcoat over Tang Min, who quickly tried to push it away, but Qin Qing forced it onto her.
"Mom, if you don't wear it, I'll give it back to Fang Zhiwei, and we'll both freeze!"
Seeing Qin Qing's insistence, Tang Min had no choice but to put it on.
As she lowered her head, she saw Qin Qing's feet—cut up beyond recognition by the rocks, covered in wounds.
The blood had mixed with sand and turned black.
"You silly child, why did you run out without shoes…"
Tang Min had always been soft-natured, and seeing her daughter suffer like this, her tears burst out instantly.
"Mom, I'm fine! Just a few small cuts, they'll heal soon. Don't worry." Qin Qing comforted her.
Riiip…
A tearing sound came through. Qin Qing looked up and saw Fang Zhiwei tearing off both sleeves of his shirt.
His exposed arms were sturdy and powerful, with perfect muscle definition, clearly brimming with immense strength.
Fang Zhiwei suddenly crouched down and said in a low voice, "This might sting a little. Bear with it."
He pulled a military canteen from his trouser pocket and used the water to briefly clean Qin Qing's wounded feet.
Then he tore the sleeves into strips of cloth and carefully bandaged Qin Qing's feet.
His movements seemed rough, but his touch was extremely gentle—he didn't hurt Qin Qing at all.
"Which village are you from?"
Fang Zhiwei looked up at Qin Qing. They were standing very close, and she could feel the white mist of his breath.
"I… I'm, I'm from Hedong Village."
His gaze was direct, making Qin Qing's face burn hot.
"I'll take you back."
Fang Zhiwei scooped Qin Qing up in his arms.
In such a princess carry, she could even feel the scorching warmth radiating from his arms.
"N-no… that's not necessary."
Qin Qing awkwardly tried to refuse, but Tang Min, worried about her feet, quickly said.
"Xiao Fang, then we'll trouble you."
Fang Zhiwei carried Qin Qing forward, the two of them extremely close.
Qin Qing leaned against Fang Zhiwei's chest, and she could even hear the beating of his heart in her ear.
She didn't speak, just listened quietly. But after listening for a while, she suddenly noticed.
His heartbeat… seemed to be beating a little fast?
Qin Qing looked up at Fang Zhiwei with a puzzled expression. He looked back at her, his eyes calm and unruffled.
She must be overthinking it!
Tang Min followed behind the two, watching as Fang Zhiwei walked with a slight limp yet held Qin Qing with the utmost care.
She suddenly felt that if her daughter were to marry, marrying a man like this wouldn't be bad at all.
Seeing that they were almost at Hedong Village, Fang Zhiwei set Qin Qing down.
"The village is just ahead. You two can walk back together."
After all, if he, a grown man, carried Qin Qing into the village, who knew how much gossip it would bring upon her.
Qin Qing understood Fang Zhiwei's consideration, and felt even more grateful.
"Thank you for bringing me back. Where do you live? I'll return the military overcoat to you another day."
"I'm in Dagang Village. It's getting cold—you two should hurry back."
Fang Zhiwei suddenly reached out and patted Qin Qing's head.
Qin Qing froze, instinctively stepping back in caution.
Fang Zhiwei withdrew his hand, revealing a handful of mixed reeds in his palm.
He smiled, tucked the reeds into his hand, waved at Qin Qing, and turned to leave.
"Little Fang is really a good man."
Tang Min sighed as she watched Fang Zhiwei's retreating figure.
Qin Qing nodded and reached out to hold Tang Min's hand reassuringly.
In her previous life, after her mother drowned herself, she had lived like a walking corpse, and Gu Jingmo had taken advantage of her vulnerability, controlling her completely until she lived like a puppet.
Now that she had been given a second chance at life and had saved the most important person, this time she would never again be a pushover, letting others bully her!
She would live well—live for herself!
"Qing'er, what do we do now?" Tang Min asked uneasily.
"Back to the Qin family! We're taking back what's rightfully ours!"