He Shiyi tossed the shovel in her hand toward the doorway.
She took down the clothes that had dried on the clothesline, led Hunhun into the main room, and bolted the door shut from the inside.
Quickly, she tore off the tattered bedsheet wrapped around her body and changed into clean, dry clothes.
She searched through the three rooms for quite a while, then packed half a sack of corn, half a sack of dried sweet potato slices, and half a sack of sorghum flour.
From beneath He Zhu’s pillow, she also dug out two five-yuan bills, stuffed them into her shoes, and tucked them together with the ten yuan she had extorted from Luo Lingfeng.
She opened the door to the main room.
Two half-sacks were slung over Hunhun’s back, and she carried another half-sack in her hand.
She picked up the shovel she had thrown aside earlier, led Hunhun, and prepared to leave the He family for good.
“This family is unlivable. I’m setting up on my own. From now on, I’ll live by myself.”
The He family froze.
They stood there with mouths agape, stunned for a long moment.
He Shiyi—who had always been obedient as a block of wood, so numb she wouldn’t even feel pain if pricked with a needle— had overnight turned into a savage, rabid dog that bit anyone in sight.
Lu Guihua hadn’t cooked a meal in many years, hadn’t washed clothes, hadn’t even touched a broom.
Although she constantly searched for husbands for her daughter He Shiyi, she had never truly intended to marry her off.
Privately, Lu Guihua often discussed with her husband He Zhu that He Shiyi’s marriage should be delayed as long as possible.
If it dragged on until no one wanted her, they would keep her at home, forcing her to serve them until their deaths.
Lu Guihua never imagined that her obedient daughter would rebel, would turn against them, and would even want to split off and live independently.
“Damn girl, what nonsense are you talking about? Your parents are still alive—what right does a girl have to split the family? He Yi, slap her awake!”
Lu Guihua ordered her son He Yi to slap He Shiyi.
He Shiyi reacted instantly.
She dropped the half-sack of dried sweet potatoes in her left hand.
The shovel in her right hand swung up— clang!
He Yi took a shovel straight to the head.
His brain buzzed violently.
Stars exploded in his vision. He swayed a few steps and collapsed to the ground.
Chen Juan’s face turned ghostly pale as she screamed at the top of her lungs.
“Murder! He Shiyi has killed someone!”
He Shiyi ignored her completely.
She stepped on He Yi’s body as he struggled to rise, picked up the half-sack of dried sweet potatoes, grabbed the shovel, and led Hunhun away.
Under the terrified gazes of everyone present, her eyes resolute and her stride bold, she walked straight onto the village road.
Hunhun couldn’t wait to escape the flea-infested He household.
With two half-sacks on his back, he shot ahead— and vanished in the blink of an eye.
He Shiyi’s abnormal behavior sent Madam He and Lu Guihua into a panic.
Staggering, they chased after her, then dropped to their knees in desperation.
Madam He clung to He Shiyi’s right leg.
Lu Guihua clutched her left.
Both cried and wailed miserably.
“Damn girl, of all the grandchildren, Grandma loves you the most—and you love Grandma the most too! Are you abandoning Grandma now? If you leave, where will I ever find another such filial granddaughter?”
Lu Guihua cried even harder.
“Shiyi, you can’t go! If you leave, how will your mother live? Who will serve your grandma? Who will serve your father? Who will take care of your pregnant sister-in-law? Who will look after this whole household of old and young? Ever since I gave birth to you children, my health has been bad—everything hurts. For over twenty years all I’ve done is give birth. I don’t know how to cook or wash clothes. I can’t take care of people. I think I’m pregnant again. Your father says this time I’ll definitely give you a younger brother. Daughter, you can’t leave. Your mother is counting on you to take care of me during my confinement!”
Lu Guihua’s words nearly made He Shiyi faint with rage.
In her past-life memories, Lu Guihua truly had spent more than twenty years giving birth— two children every three years, never resting for even one.
Even the strict family-planning policies couldn’t stop her obsession with having a son.
And every child she bore was a daughter—those she could raise were all given away.
[My past self fell into a family of vampires. It’s terrifying beyond words.]
[They won’t stop until they’ve drained every last drop of blood from my body.]
“Pah! Vampires—stay away from me. From today onward, I, He Shiyi, sever all ties with the He family. We’re done.”
She kicked Madam He away.
She kicked Lu Guihua away.
Carrying her sack and shouldering the shovel, she walked off without looking back.
Lu Guihua’s face went pale, terror and confusion filling her eyes.
She chased after He Shiyi, clapping her hands and wailing curses.
“You’re not human! You have no conscience! Other people’s daughters build brick houses for their families, buy them all kinds of things! You’ve added not a single tile, not a shred of cloth. Raising you was worse than raising a dog! How did I give birth to such a heartless ingrate? I should’ve drowned you in a ditch, drowned you in a chamber pot—”
He Shiyi couldn’t even be bothered to give her a contemptuous glance.
She curled her lips in a cold sneer.
“You forget a thousand good deeds and remember only one mistake. You really are beasts that can never be satisfied.”
“How dare you curse your own mother! Heaven will strike you down! You’ll die miserably! You’ll be trampled by ten thousand people—”
Lu Guihua cursed viciously through clenched teeth.
He Shiyi’s purpose in arguing was to infuriate the He family.
The more she was cursed, the happier she felt.
Her right hand carried the half-sack of dried sweet potatoes.
Her left held the shovel.
Her steps were light and fast as she ran westward along the village road.
When she grew tired, she stopped on the three-meter-wide road and looked around, searching for a suitable place to settle down.
The sun had not yet risen.
Standing alone on the early-morning village road,
He Shiyi looked strikingly out of place— clearly incompatible with this world, utterly different.
“Catch her! Help me catch her—this girl is possessed! A few acupuncture needles will wake her up!”
He Zhu came running wildly toward He Shiyi with his aunt Zhou Ying, a large crowd of villagers trailing behind, eager for spectacle.
“Tweet—tweet—tweet!”
A piercing whistle suddenly rang out.
The running crowd froze in place, all turning toward the source of the sound.
“The work whistle sounded at five! Other people are already halfway through their rows, and you lot are still loafing around at home! Are you deaf? Don’t want your work points? Don’t want your grain rations? You all want to pay cash and be classified as grain-deficit households?”
Luo Lingfeng’s stern, authoritative voice exploded through the air like thunder.
Everyone was stunned.
“Tweet—tweet—tweet!”
“Get to work! Anyone who doesn’t show up will have their work points docked!”
Luo Lingfeng blew his military whistle three more times.
Work points—the lifeline of every commune member.
No one dared delay.
They rushed home in panic, grabbing hoes, shouldering shovels, and ran toward the fields as if chasing money.
Soon, only He Shiyi and the He family remained on the village road.
Luo Lingfeng had never liked the He family.
His eyes were filled with coldness and disdain.
“Why aren’t your family going to work? Growing horns on your heads? Or do you want me to hold a public criticism meeting and invite you all up on stage to show yourselves off?”