Jiang Ai Dang lifted his face streaked with two trails of nose blood, gnashing his teeth as he cursed: "You bitch, just wait till I beat you to death…"
Li Qiu Ying hurriedly helped him up: "Ai Dang, Xiu Jun didn't mean it. She hit her head too. Don't take it out on your sister – she's confused. Mom will talk to her later."
Jiang Ai Dang shoved her hand away: "Get lost."
"Mom, see that? Your precious son wants to beat me up," Song Xiu Jun tilted her head and smiled brightly at Li Qiu Ying.
Li Qiu Ying avoided her gaze, standing upright with timid deference: "Li Min's still in the hospital. I need to pack some things for her. We're all family – let's talk this out properly."
Jiang Ai Dang gave her a smug, sinister grin, emitting a creepy "heh heh heh" sound that was utterly punch-worthy.
This was the birth mother connected by blood ties. In the original host's memories, she had been abandoned by her own mother time and again – from dependence to numbness. Perhaps her refusal to give up that job was also an attempt to hold onto the last remnants of paternal love.
When her father Song Minghua was still alive, the original host had been truly happy. He never favored sons over daughters, had a gentle temperament, and never took his bad temper out on his wife and daughter. But such is the unpredictability of life.
After Li Qiu Ying was widowed, her maiden family suffered confiscation and banishment, terrifying her beyond measure. When Jiang Jian Guo came proposing marriage, she couldn't wait to sever ties with her own family. Begging for Jiang Jian Guo's protection, she married him without asking for any bride price, even voluntarily handing over her former husband's compensation money to him.
The original host had always resented and failed to understand this, though it didn't affect the current Song Xiu Jun.
Earlier hosts she had served had undertaken missions in the 1970s, so she was quite clear about this era's developments and rules.
The Jiang household was a nest of scum – their records couldn't be clean. Once she dug up dirt on these people, a few anonymous letters would be enough to bring them trouble.
But first, she'd collect some interest.
Li Qiu Ying randomly gathered some of Jiang Li Min's belongings, eyes darting nervously as she left home.
"Your mom's gone. Now you've only got two options," Jiang Ai Dang grew increasingly smug. This stepmother of his knew how to read situations best.
"Option one: strip naked and serve me. Do it well, and I'll let you off. Be my woman from now on, and I guarantee Jiang Li Min won't dare lay a finger on you again."
"Option two: I beat you up right now, then you kneel at home until Li Min returns before getting up, then obediently work like a slave for her."
Song Xiu Jun crooked her finger at him: "I choose option three. Come here, let me tell you."
Jiang Ai Dang froze, not expecting this response. He thought this stepsister would be like before – glaring at them with hatred while silently crying. That look… tsk, what man wouldn't want to bully someone like that.
His mind wandering with desire, he rubbed his hands and swaggered closer: "What do you want to say? Let me tell you, people should know their place. Even your mom won't protect…"
Before he could finish, Song Xiu Jun knocked him to the ground with a left hook.
He viciously spat: "Damn bitch, refusing a toast only to drink a forfeit. How dare you fight back!"
When this stepsister first came to the Jiang household, she would fight back when bullied and make scenes. But after realizing her birth mother wouldn't help, she quieted down.
One person naturally couldn't defeat two. Though she stopped seeking adult intervention, she still fought back, leaving both siblings with minor injuries.
Later, Jiang Ai Dang told her that if she fought back, they would make life difficult for Li Qiu Ying…
Song Xiu Jun couldn't be bothered to argue with him. She grabbed Jiang Ai Dang by the collar, lifted him up, and tied him to a chair.
His eyes widened in shock. "Y-You… you…"
Before he could finish his sentence, Song Xiu Jun slapped him into silence.
Soon, only the sound of slapping filled the room. Within seconds, her hands moved so fast they became a blur, and Jiang Ai Dang's face swelled up like a pig's head, making his speech slurred.
She then switched to alternating left and right hooks, stopping only after knocking out two of his teeth.
She let out a long breath and smiled with satisfaction. Beating someone up was indeed exhilarating!
To Jiang Ai Dang, she looked like a complete psychopath. "Mmph, mmph, lehff meh goh…"
Her hands were a bit sore. Rubbing her wrists, Song Xiu Jun started stomping on his toes.
"Ah—" Jiang Ai Dang let out a miserable scream.
She fetched a rag from the kitchen and stuffed it into his mouth, then proceeded to stomp on each toe one by one. The tips of her cloth shoes gradually darkened in color.
Suddenly, the front door opened. Without stopping her stomping, Song Xiu Jun looked up and saw that her scumbag stepfather had returned.
The man had a very scholarly appearance, wearing a dacron white shirt and trousers with a patch, paired with cloth shoes identical to Jiang Ai Dang's—likely all made by Li Qiu Ying's hands.
She greeted him politely, "Uncle Jiang, you're back. Working late today?" Her tone was casual, as if it were just an ordinary evening.
Jiang Jian Guo couldn't believe his eyes. "Song Xiu Jun, what are you doing!!"
"Brother told me to take good care of him. I'm just following his orders," she replied with a grin.
Jiang Ai Dang frantically twisted his body, making muffled pleas for help, his face covered in tears and snot.
Song Xiu Jun curled her lip in disgust and kicked him in the shin. He immediately stopped moving, fearfully shrinking his neck.
"Ai Dang, Ai Dang," Jiang Jian Guo rushed forward, only to see a swollen pig-like face. A vicious glint flashed in his eyes—how dare this Song Xiu Jun treat his son like this!
Looking at this sinister middle-aged man, Song Xiu Jun felt her fists itch. But she'd heard that hitting parents would earn her the label of unfilial, so she couldn't directly attack Jiang Jian Guo or Li Qiu Ying. She'd have to find more subtle ways to get rid of them.
Jiang Jian Guo carried his son on his back, preparing to go to the hospital. Just as they reached the front door, Song Xiu Jun stealthily threw a small stone. The scumbag stepfather lost his balance and tumbled to the ground with his son.
By the time the two were back on their feet, Song Xiu Jun had already closed and locked the door. Outside, they could hear the neighbors' surprised inquiries and Jiang Jian Guo's ambiguous attempts to play the victim.
She ignored them completely and activated her system's scanning function.
Closing her eyes, she could scan all people and objects within a ten-meter radius centered on her host body.
In the past, she had used this function to help her hosts find many valuable items, but this was the first time she was using it on herself.
With her eyes closed, she walked into Jiang Jian Guo and Li Qiu Ying's room, sensing every object in the room through her mind. There was something suspicious about the wall behind the headboard!
Song Xiu Jun opened her eyes and rubbed her chin. Something hidden in the wall was definitely unusual.
Sure enough, after pulling out a brick, she found a black cloth bundle containing a small booklet and several stacks of Great Unity banknotes. A rough estimate put the total at at least five thousand yuan.
Jiang Jian Guo was merely a workshop director and couldn't possibly have earned this much money. Looking at the contents recorded in the booklet, it was clear this was money from dubious sources.
Since it was ill-gotten gains, she felt it inappropriate to keep it for herself.
She stuffed the brick back into the wall but kept the cloth bundle, planning to hand it over to the police station later.
Since Jiang Ai Dang was a Red Armband member, taking it to the police station was the best option. Although he also worked at the food factory, he often roamed around causing trouble with others. The factory, fearing disruptions to production, dared not discipline him. He seldom showed up for work yet occupied a position, collecting public wages for doing nothing.
Song Xiu Jun then entered Jiang Ai Dang's room and, as expected, found antiques there.
Such items nowadays were either being smashed to pieces or seized under various pretexts by people like Jiang Ai Dang.
Rather than letting scum benefit, she might as well take them herself.
Without hesitation, Song Xiu Jun thoroughly ransacked Jiang Ai Dang's room.
In Jiang Li Min's room, however, she discovered something unexpected—correspondence with a married man.
She was actually having an affair with someone else's husband!