Slapped and Sent Flying
Jian Mingyue avoided eye contact, holding a half-eaten steamed bun as she prepared to slip away.
Huh, strange, why can’t I move?
Jian Mingyue flailed her arms like a dog paddling, desperately waving them forward, but she remained rooted to the spot, not advancing an inch.
Jiang Taohua extended two fingers, tightly gripping Jian Mingyue’s clothes.
“Are you alright, auntie? The culprit who tripped you is right here.”
Jian Mingyue’s eyes blazed with fury as she turned her head and shot a venomous glare at Jiang Taohua.
“Congratulations, Host, for angering the female protagonist. You have earned three yuan.”
“Jiang Taohua, you despicable woman who kicks someone when they’re down, how dare you harm me…”
Before she could finish her sentence, the auntie lunged at her fiercely, scratching her face with her nails. Jian Mingyue’s face burned with pain.
The auntie’s nails still held shreds of flesh she had just scratched off.
“You little wretch, you’ve got a death wish, deliberately tripping me like that. What a filthy, rotten little tramp!”
“What are you saying, you old hag? My foot was there first. I think you’re just trying to scam me,” Jian Mingyue retorted, her face flushed red, refusing to admit any wrongdoing.
The auntie, who had been so aggressive moments ago, suddenly sat on the ground, pounding her chest and wailing loudly.
“Oh, heavens, this is outrageous! A young woman is bullying people! Everyone, judge for yourselves!” she cried, wiping her snot and tears all over Jian Mingyue’s pants as she wept.
As she continued her tantrum, the crowd of onlookers grew larger, and they began pointing fingers at Jian Mingyue.
“This young woman looks decent enough, so why is she bullying others?”
“Yeah, look at how this auntie is crying. She must have suffered a great injustice.”
Hearing the surrounding comments, Jian Mingyue grew anxious.
“Don’t talk nonsense! It wasn’t me. I didn’t trip her.”
Hearing her attempt to deny it, the auntie immediately grew agitated and grabbed hold of her pant leg. “You’re talking nonsense! I was walking just fine earlier, and it was you who stuck your leg out and tripped me. No, you have to compensate me with ten yuan.”
After all that talk, the auntie finally revealed her true intention. Since this fat sheep had walked right into her trap, she wouldn’t hold back from taking a bite.
“What? Give you ten yuan? Why don’t you just rob me?”
Jian Mingyue stomped her feet in anger, convinced that this auntie had ill intentions and was just trying to swindle her out of money.
As she racked her brains trying to figure out how to escape, she heard the auntie turn to Jiang Taohua and say, “If you don’t believe me, these two young women can testify for me.”
Jiang Taohua said, “Mingyue, I’m sorry. Even though we’re close, the fact is you deliberately tripped this auntie. If I were to help you against my conscience, I wouldn’t be able to live with myself.”
Jian Mingyue found her words oddly familiar, as if she had heard them somewhere before.
Suddenly, it dawned on her—wasn’t this the exact phrase she often used to slander Jiang Taohua?
Now, those words had come back like a boomerang, mercilessly piercing her chest.
Jiang Taohua continued to mock her sarcastically, “Mingyue, when you make a mistake, you should admit it. It’s wrong to keep shirking responsibility. Hurry up and apologize to this auntie, then pay up.”
“Congratulations, Host, for angering the female protagonist. You have earned three yuan.”
Jian Mingyue wore an expression of defiance. “She was the one who wasn’t looking. Why should I pay?”
The people around her looked at her with disdain.
“How can this young woman be like this? Even her friend admitted it, yet she’s still stubbornly refusing to admit fault.”
“Exactly, I think she just doesn’t want to pay up.”
The auntie jumped up from the ground and grabbed Jian Mingyue’s ear.
“You little brat, who are you calling blind? Let me tell you, if you don’t pay today, this isn’t over. I have witnesses anyway. Come on, let’s go to the police station and let the officers decide who’s right.”
Jian Mingyue’s ear throbbed with pain. She slapped the auntie’s hand several times, but the woman refused to let go.
“Ah… it hurts… let go now!!”
The auntie said smugly, “I won’t let go until you pay up.”
Suppressing her anger, Jian Mingyue said hoarsely, “Let go, I’ll pay you.”
Only when she heard there was money to be had did the auntie release her grip, though her eyes remained fixed on Jian Mingyue, afraid she might renege.
Jian Mingyue, her face a mask of restraint, pulled ten yuan from her pants pocket and threw it on the ground. “Here, take it and get lost.”
The auntie quickly bent down to pick up the money, a grin spreading across her face. She didn’t bother about Jian Mingyue’s attitude anymore, tucking the money into her inner pants pocket before leaving with a satisfied smile, revealing a set of yellowed teeth.
Rubbing her ear, Jian Mingyue nearly ground her teeth to dust.
It was all because of that bitch Jiang Taohua, who had grown so bold lately and was constantly opposing her at every turn.
Glancing at her watch, she remembered the rescue mission and turned to head north.
Not long after she started walking, she sensed something was off. What were Jiang Taohua and Wen Shunu doing? Why were they following right behind her?
For a moment, her mind raced with possibilities. Did these two know something? Were they also planning to rescue someone?
She turned around angrily. “Jiang Taohua, what’s going on? Why are you following me?”
Jiang Taohua sneered. “What? Is this road yours? Does it have your name carved on it? You can walk it, but others can’t? Unless you lick the ground, then I’ll believe it’s yours.”
“You… you… you’re utterly shameless!” Jian Mingyue was so furious she lost control of her expression, her face twisting horribly.
“Congratulations, Host, for angering the female protagonist. Reward: four yuan.”
Jiang Taohua was unfazed. “Thanks for the compliment. My strong points are shamelessness and thick skin.”
Jian Mingyue had no time to argue with her. Any further delay, and that child would drown in the well. It wasn’t that she cared about the child—she was just afraid of missing the chance to connect with the commune secretary.
They walked single file for over thirty minutes until faint, intermittent sounds of a child crying came from ahead.
When they reached the well, they saw its dark, deep opening, with the child’s weak cries echoing from the bottom.
Jian Mingyue cupped her hands like a megaphone and shouted down the well, “Don’t be afraid, child. Sister Mingyue is here to save you.”
Jiang Taohua’s lips twitched. The female protagonist was making sure to leave her name behind with her good deed, afraid no one would recognize her.
Even as she said this, Jian Mingyue couldn’t help but shrink back at the sight of the deep, dark well. Who knew how deep it was? What if she failed to rescue the child and ended up trapped herself?
Time was of the essence. While she hesitated, Jiang Taohua quickly took out a rope, tied one end securely to a large tree, and fastened the other end around her own waist.
Wen Shunu looked on with worry. “Taohua, be careful.”
Jiang Taohua nodded and began climbing slowly down the well’s wall. The surface was slippery, and her hands nearly lost their grip several times.
Wen Shunu, waiting anxiously by the well opening, feared something might go wrong at any moment.
More than ten minutes later, she saw Jiang Taohua climbing up with the child in her arms, and only then did she let out a sigh of relief.
The child was laid flat on the ground, having already fainted.
“Taohua, is the child alright?”
“He’s fine. He fainted from excessive tension and crying too much. He’ll wake up in a moment.”
“My child, my child!”
A middle-aged couple hurriedly rushed over.
Seeing this, Jian Mingyue knew it was the commune secretary who had arrived. He plopped down beside the child and said to the couple, “Don’t worry, I just rescued the child. He’s fine now.”
Wen Shunu was so angry she started cursing, “Jian Mingyue, you shameless thing! It was clearly Taohua who saved the child, yet you dare to take credit? Pah, what a despicable scoundrel!”
Jiang Taohua’s eyes narrowed dangerously. How interesting!
Did the female protagonist think she was dead?
“Ah!!” A scream rang out as three pairs of eyes watched a figure fly through the air.
Jiang Taohua had slapped Jian Mingyue away with one blow.