Jiang Muxuan patted his younger brother’s shoulder comfortingly. “Don’t be sad. She’s back now. Let’s just treat her well and make up for lost time.”
Of course, if things were as they suspected, anyone who deserved punishment would be found—and no one would be spared.
Jiang Muxuan’s dark eyes glinted mysteriously in the dim room.
In town.
At a corner house, the door was knocked. A woman opened it.
If Jiang Yuyan were here, she would recognize her as the same beautiful woman who had opened the door for her before.
“Oh? Who’s this? Isn’t this Jiang Guangqiang from Zhuanliang? What brings you here?”
Jiang Third Son smiled awkwardly, ignoring her sarcastic tone and flattering her.
“Sister-in-law, don’t tease me. Me? How dare I let you call me brother? Actually, is Brother Hao home? I have a big deal I want to discuss with him.”
The woman eyed him suspiciously, then pursed her lips and told him to wait in the courtyard while she went inside.
Third Son snickered inwardly. Such a flashy woman—how dare she look down on him? Hmph. Once Brother Hao tires of her, her good days would end. She would pay for her past contempt.
That wretched woman!
Moments later, a man shorter than 1.6 meters with a face full of pockmarks appeared. Upon seeing him, Third Son froze like a mouse caught by a cat, not daring to move.
Pockmarked man: “Qiángzi, you looking for me? Heard you have a big deal to discuss?”
Third Son revealed everything—the Jiang Goudan family split funds and Jiang Yuyan’s situation.
Then, nervously rubbing his hands, he said, “Brother Hao, according to the rules, I’ll take three layers. Sound good? Is this deal profitable?”
“Are you sure the woman you mentioned is that stunning? If you dare lie to me, I’ll make sure you fertilize the fields yourself,” the pockmarked man said.
Third Son shivered but smiled. “I promise, I swear. When have I ever lied to you, Brother Hao?”
The man stroked his chin, thinking.
“Fine. Seems the situation is calmer lately. The decoy method worked well, confusing the authorities. Once this is done, I can rest easy.”
Imagining the outcome, the pockmarked man’s attitude toward Third Son softened considerably.
By noon, Jiang Yuyan had finished making the ointment before Jiang Mother returned but had no clean labels to use.
While she pondered, Jiang Mother came back to cook. Jiang Yuyan temporarily set aside the ointment to assist her.
Although she had the original girl’s memories and knew how to work from childhood, 25th-century Jiang Yuyan was a pampered city girl. Besides making Chinese medicine, she was terrible in the kitchen—anything fried or baked would be ruined.
She could only lend a hand.
“Oy, girl, don’t go into the kitchen. Go call your Third Brother. I need him for something.”
Jiang Yuyan sighed. She knew her mother didn’t want her exhausted. She felt she shouldn’t be doing such heavy work.
If they knew the original girl had worked nonstop since childhood at the Lin family, they’d probably be furious enough to go punish them.
Jiang Murong followed his sister. “Mother, you need me?”
“Yes. Go chop some firewood. We’re running low, and we need to check the mountain for more.”
“Alright.”
He picked up a thick log, placed it on the chopping block, took a deep breath, gripped the axe, and swung—
Thud. The log didn’t split.
“Pfft!”
Jiang Yuyan covered her mouth, eyebrows curved with amusement. Her Third Brother was hilarious.
Jiang Murong blushed. “Cough… that didn’t count. This time, one swing will do it.”
Jiang Father returned, grabbed the axe, and in moments had chopped a small pile of firewood.
Jiang Mother shook her head. “Third Son, you’re a man, yet the girl is laughing at you. Don’t you think you should practice more?”
Third Son seemed weak in body and not very clever. Outside, he would be easily tricked and still help count money like a fool.
He laughed sheepishly, scratching his head, unapologetically confident. “Mother, this just proves I’m not fit for physical work. Find me an easy office job in the future; I’ll excel at it effortlessly.”
Jiang Mother flung a spatula. “Dream on!”
He dodged behind his sister, teasing her mother. Jiang Yuyan quickly intervened. “Mother, the pot is smoking!”
Jiang Murong gave her a thumbs up, silently cheering. If nothing smoked, nothing would cook properly. Sister was braver than him!
Evening.
Jiang Yuyan noticed the black ointment on the table and realized she hadn’t delivered it to Big Brother.
She grabbed it and knocked on Jiang Muxuan’s door.
“Who is it?”
“It’s me, Big Brother.”
A pause. “Come in.”
She placed the ointment down and met his curious gaze, smiling mischievously.
“Big Brother, your legs must be hurting. There’s no painkiller, so would you like to try my homemade ointment?”
Looking at the dark blob, Jiang Muxuan hesitated. “Alright… let’s try it?”
Quickly before he could change his mind, Jiang Yuyan scooped some and applied it to his legs, smoothing it carefully.
The sticky texture made him uneasy, but seeing her focused on applying it, he couldn’t say anything.
After applying, she used a clean cloth in place of bandages, wrapping his legs snugly. Not a single gap remained.
“Big Brother, how does it feel? If it feels warm, that’s the medicine working. Don’t worry.”
Jiang Muxuan nodded. “I… don’t feel warmth yet. It’s late; you should go rest.”
As she was leaving, he spoke in a low voice, “Also… thanks for the ointment.”
Her lips curved. Jiang Yuyan bounced back to her room.
At around one a.m., the “Dung Squad” was deep in sleep.
Under the moonlight, five or six men ran toward Jiang Yuyan’s house.
Pressing against the wall to check the inside was quiet, they used hand signals, scaled the wall, jumped into the yard, leaving one man to keep watch.
Jiang Yuyan was not asleep yet. According to her 25th-century time, this was the peak of her late-night enjoyment—eating and having fun.
Suddenly, she heard a thump, thump, thump outside. Small sounds, but enough to signal danger.
She immediately got up, looking for a weapon. The room only had a table and chairs.
Unable to do much, she grabbed a chair and fixed her gaze on the door.