Wang Ergou covered his face, but when he heard there would be a wife involved soon, his eyes lit up. “Auntie, I’ll listen to you.”
Zhang Qian changed her clothes. “That old witch Wang Guifen, just you wait. I’ll settle this score sooner or later,” she muttered, angrily drying her hair.
Then she paused, a sly smile appearing on her face. She still had a backup plan. If Wang Ergou succeeded, Su Yi’s reputation would be ruined. In the village, a woman with a ruined reputation would be socially shamed and ostracized. Wang Guifen had gone crazy today—she had never liked Su Yi. Su Yi already had a questionable reputation, and if Wang Ergou succeeded, she would be destined for abandonment.
“Little sister… Zhang Qian little sister…”
Zhang Qian snapped back to reality and jumped up. “Could it be that Wang Ergou actually succeeded?”
She rushed toward the door.
Because she had been changing her clothes, the courtyard door had been closed, blocking the view both ways.
At the door, Zhang Qian called, “Brother Ergou, did it work?”
The coquettish “Brother Ergou” made the aunt outside blush.
Outside, Wang Ergou glanced at Wang Guifen, who nodded.
Wang Ergou replied, “It didn’t work.”
“Didn’t work?!” Zhang Qian shouted angrily from inside.
“Brother Ergou, I have a perfect plan! Su Yi is from the city, delicate and weak, how could you, a man, not overpower her? Once it works, she’ll be your wife,” Zhang Qian coaxed eagerly.
Outside, Su Yi’s hands clenched tightly. She hadn’t expected that the woman she had been around would have such a poisonous heart.
Wang Guifen patted Su Yi’s hand. “Don’t get angry. Anger is bad for your health.” She was carrying twins and couldn’t afford to get upset.
“I’ll deal with this for you.”
From now on, anyone who dared to touch her daughter-in-law would regret it. Even the strongest man in the pond village wouldn’t match her strength—one punch would suffice.
“Zhang Qian, if I did succeed as you suggested, but Aunt Wang didn’t kick Su Yi out, what then? Would you marry me?” Wang Ergou laughed.
Zhang Qian froze, tugging at her blue plaid dress. The shameless Wang rogue! She didn’t even glance at herself—an ugly, pockmarked toad daring to think of her?
Today her plan had failed. Su Yi would now guard herself, and Wang Guifen disliked her. In the future, she would have few chances to make life difficult for Su Yi.
But with Wang Ergou as her pawn, she could make him do her bidding. If Wang Guifen found out, she wouldn’t be the one punished.
So she needed to flatter Wang Ergou, manipulate him, and have him work for her.
“Oh, Brother Ergou, how did you know I like you?” Zhang Qian cooed.
“That damn Su Yi is my enemy. If you could humiliate her—make her so ashamed she leaves the village—then I’ll marry you. How about that?”
The aunt spat. “Shameless.”
“Who knows how many others she’s seduced?”
The men in the family were wary, making sure no one got lured away by this cunning fox.
“Little sister, do you really like me?” Wang Ergou asked, suspicious.
“Brother Ergou, I’m telling the truth. No one in the village is as handsome as you, and I’m sure you’re the best in… that area too,” Zhang Qian said, saying anything to keep him pleased.
“Ugh, Zhang Qian, you shameless girl.”
“Bam!”
Wang Guifen shouted, kicking the door open.
“Ah!”
Zhang Qian didn’t dodge in time. The door hit her head. She looked up and saw a crowd of aunts and some men returning from the fields, watching.
Wang Guifen held Wang Ergou, whose face was bruised and battered.
“You… you all?”
“Zhang Qian, you are wicked, instructing Wang Ergou to harm my Yi Yi. Just now, you were acting with him. I see you two were made for each other,” Wang Guifen scolded, hands on her hips.
“Yes, Zhang Qian, if you like Wang Ergou, then marry him. He’ll take good care of you,” Aunt Li said with a smile.
Her own household had sons. If Zhang Qian had gotten away with her scheming, it would have been catastrophic. A daughter-in-law like Zhang Qian would be a troublemaker.
Zhang Qian shook her head repeatedly. “No, I won’t.”
“Ergou, carry your wife inside and check if she’s injured,” Wang Guifen ordered.
Wang Ergou, grinning with yellow teeth, went to pick up Zhang Qian.
“Don’t worry, wife, I can hold you down.”
“Go away! Go away!” Zhang Qian swung her sleeves.
Normally, the aunts would rush to separate them, but today Zhang Qian’s true nature made everyone uneasy. She was not just a troublemaker, but a seductress.
Wang Ergou carried her, laughing. “Zhang Qian, I didn’t expect you to like me so much!”
“I don’t like you! Let go! Let go!” Zhang Qian struggled.
“Aunt Wang, Aunt Wang, I’m sorry! I won’t do it again! Please forgive me!”
“Zhang Qian, that’s wrong. You said you liked Wang Ergou, and everyone here heard it. Don’t worry, we’re witnesses. When you marry Ergou, I’ll make sure you get a big red envelope,” Wang Guifen laughed.
Soon, Zhang Qian was pulled and tossed into the house by Wang Ergou.
Within seconds, she ran out again, her plaid dress collar torn, exposing her fair neck.
Wang Ergou chased after her.
Wang Guifen stepped forward and helped the fallen Zhang Qian up. “Zhang Qian, now you can be assured. You’ve been close to Ergou, and he will surely marry you.”
Zhang Qian bit her lip tightly. “Wang Guifen, it’s you! You old witch ruined me!” She lunged angrily.
“Smack!”
Wang Guifen slapped her hard. In her past life, she had been blind not to see that Zhang Qian was a troublemaker, and now her son’s wife and the little grandchildren were all at risk.
“Smack!” Another hard slap.
“You little bitch. You can go with Wang Ergou if you want—no one will stop you. But if you dare lay a hand on my Yi Yi again, I pulled you out of the pond today. If I had known, I would have let you stay in the water.”
“What? Zhang Qian fell into the pond?”
Zhao Xi approached. “This morning, Zhang Qian fell into the pond. If Aunt Wang hadn’t used the pole to pull her out, she probably wouldn’t have survived.”
“That’s repaying kindness with enmity.”
“Exactly. She wanted to harm my daughter-in-law. Such a malicious heart.”
“Someone should report this to the commune, let everyone see this shameless woman.”
“Who dares?”
Suddenly, from behind the group, a figure appeared.
She wore a red floral top, indigo pants, square-toed cloth shoes, and carried a woven bamboo basket.