In her previous life, Jiang Jingyi had been an ordinary girl—just a bit prettier than most. She had practiced taekwondo, but only for self-defense; she had no real combat experience.
After crossing over, however, she discovered that her physical strength was considerable. Handling someone like Ji Qiuyang was no trouble at all. She had secretly tested it over the past few days—this body was shockingly strong.
Now, facing three burly men, relying solely on Ji Dongyang wouldn’t be enough to get them out of this unscathed. Even if they only wanted to escape safely, that might not be possible.
Jiang Jingyi wasn’t confident she could take down all three with a single decisive blow. But she understood that her best chance was to catch them off guard—to exploit the fact that they underestimated her because she was a woman.
If she could take down one of them, the other two would surely hesitate. Then, with Ji Dongyang, Mrs. Yun, and herself working together, they would have a chance to handle the remaining two.
So, when Jiang Jingyi charged forward with her stick, she put most of her strength into it. The stick swung down and struck the leg of the man closest to her.
That burly man had never expected a delicate young woman to have such strength. He had been about to make a crude joke, but before he knew it, the stick was already whistling toward him. By the time he realized something was wrong, it was too late—the stick had landed on his leg.
Crack!
The sound of a bone breaking.
The man clutched his leg and collapsed to the ground, sweat pouring from his forehead from the pain.
“Be careful!” Ji Dongyang hadn’t expected her to strike first. But seeing the man fall, he was both shocked and quick to pull her behind him. “Don’t be reckless.”
“I’m not being reckless,” Jiang Jingyi said, her hands trembling slightly. In her previous life, she had never hurt anyone. Now, in this life, she had raised her hand against another person—even if the man was a thug. A wave of fear washed over her.
The other two men crouched down to check their companion’s injury. When they felt the broken bone, they were equally shocked. They looked up at Jiang Jingyi with wary eyes, all trace of mockery gone.
“The little lady’s got some strength,” one of them spat. “We were going to let you off easy, but now that’s out of the question.”
With that, they stopped wasting words. Gripping their clubs, they charged at Jiang Jingyi and Ji Dongyang.
Jiang Jingyi had been on guard. She gripped her stick, exchanged a glance with Ji Dongyang, and charged forward. She knew they were now alert, so she feinted toward one man’s leg. When she got close, she dodged his club first, then slammed her stick into his lower back.
This time, she used all her strength. Then, with a side kick, she sent him flying. He hit the ground, struggling but unable to get back up.
Jiang Jingyi turned. The last man had dropped his stick and was grappling with Ji Dongyang. She was about to go over when she saw Mrs. Yun swing a pot and bang it against the man’s head.
The last thug looked back at Mrs. Yun, rolled his eyes, and passed out.
Passersby who witnessed the scene gave them a wide berth.
After hitting the man, Mrs. Yun went weak in the knees and collapsed to the ground, her face pale. “Did I kill someone?”
Ji Dongyang was at least calmer. He shook his head. “He’s just unconscious.” Then he looked at Jiang Jingyi. “Sister-in-law, what do we do now?”
Jiang Jingyi was also weak all over. Thinking back on what had just happened and her own boldness, she was still shaken. She took a few steps, leaned against the carriage, and said in a trembling voice, “Brother, get some rope and tie them up. We’re taking them to the Wang family’s doorstep.”
Ji Dongyang hesitated. “But won’t that put us in direct confrontation with the Wang family? Should we wake them up and question them first? Or take them to the county yamen?”
Jiang Jingyi shook her head. “It can’t be anyone but the Wang family. They have connections at the yamen. If we get Grandfather involved over this, it wouldn’t be good either. After all, the He family wants to do business in Qingshui County; it’s not wise to have an outright falling out. So, we’ll just dump the men at the Wang family’s door and let them know we’re not to be messed with.”
Seeing that the three men were trying to flee, Ji Dongyang quickly fetched some rope, tied them up, and fastened them to the back of the carriage. They turned around and headed back to Qingshui County.
It was midday, and there were still quite a few people on the streets. Jiang Jingyi and the others had been selling in the county for several days now, so many people recognized them. Seeing them return, someone was about to ask what was going on when they noticed the three tied-up men trailing behind the carriage. “What happened?”
Jiang Jingyi put on a troubled expression. “Not long after we left the county, these three men stopped us. They said someone had hired them to deal with us. We’re just ordinary folk—we’ve never crossed anyone in our lives. I can’t believe someone would do this to us.”
“Did you find out who it was?”
Jiang Jingyi shook her head. She sat on the cart, looked at the three men, and sighed. “Alas.” She refused to say more.
Jiang Jingyi wouldn’t say, but others were curious. They assumed she was going to the yamen, but the direction was wrong. So, a few people followed along to see what would happen.
Inside the carriage, Jiang Jingyi dropped her troubled expression. Mrs. Yun asked nervously, “Will this really work?”
“Whether it works or not, we have to do it.” Jiang Jingyi frowned slightly. She didn’t want the He family dragged into this. But given her strength alone, she wouldn’t get anywhere at the yamen. And the Wang family would just deny everything, leaving her with no recourse. So instead, she would say nothing and simply dump the men at the Wang family’s shop door. Those in the know would naturally understand that the Wang family was behind it.
Besides, this wasn’t the first time the Wang family had done something like this. People would connect the dots and form their own opinions about the Wang family. Before, the Wang family was the only game in town for braised meat. When people craved it but didn’t want to make it themselves, they had to buy from them. But now, with another option, and one that tasted better—only a fool would keep buying from the Wang family.
Having thought this through, Jiang Jingyi didn’t feel she was at a loss. She glanced at Mrs. Miao, who was staring at her with a pale face and a venomous look. The corner of Jiang Jingyi’s mouth curled into a strange smile. “As the saying goes, those who do no wrong don’t fear ghosts knocking at their door. I’m curious what kind of fate awaits those with such vicious hearts who do evil deeds.”
Her words rang out clearly, and though she didn’t name names, her eyes were fixed on Mrs. Miao. Even without an explicit accusation, most of the onlookers could guess what had happened.
After delivering her warning, Jiang Jingyi had Ji Dongyang drive the cart away. Only after they had gone a good distance did Ji Dongyang say nervously, “From the look on that woman’s face, it really does seem like she was involved.”
Jiang Jingyi didn’t respond. It wasn’t just “seems”—it was certain. If the Wang family truly had nothing to do with it, Mrs. Miao would have been jumping up and down, causing a scene already.
When they had dumped the men in front of the Wang family’s braised meat shop, Mrs. Miao hadn’t said a single word. That was the very picture of guilt.
After a moment’s thought, Jiang Jingyi said, “We should still tell Grandfather about this. If they try to cause trouble for the He family behind the scenes, at least Uncle will know what’s going on.”
Ji Dongyang agreed. He turned the cart toward the He residence. They hadn’t gone far when they spotted a young man in red riding toward them on horseback. Jiang Jingyi looked up—it was none other than He Yu.
He Yu spotted Ji Dongyang and seemed about to greet him, but for some reason, he veered away at a distance. Jiang Jingyi found it odd but didn’t dwell on it. She headed straight to the He family home.
After she finished explaining the situation to He Yan, his expression darkened. “They knew you’re my niece, yet the Wang family still dared to do this? They clearly have no regard for the He family. Don’t worry, Jingyi. Your uncle will handle this properly.”
Jiang Jingyi felt a warmth in her heart. She shook her head slightly. “Uncle, I only told you so you’d be on alert. My brother-in-law and I dumped those three men in front of the Wang family’s shop. If they have any sense, they won’t trouble us again. If they still don’t know their place, then you can step in.”
He Yan looked at Jiang Jingyi, feeling that his niece had truly grown up since getting married. She knew how to consider others now. He smiled. “I understand what you mean, Jingyi. But although the He family has kept a low profile in Qingshui County, we’re not afraid of the Wang family. Even their backer, Constable Miao, wouldn’t dare cross us. Go home and don’t worry. Keep doing your business.”
“Alright.” Seeing that He Yan wasn’t concerned, Jiang Jingyi felt relieved. Just as she was about to leave, He Yan added, “I’ve found a shop space for you. It should be settled in a few days.”
Jiang Jingyi’s face lit up with surprise. “Thank you, Uncle. Let me know when you’ve finalized it. I’ll cover the cost.”
“You’re just a child—why would you need to pay?” He Yan said, then shooed them off before Jiang Jingyi could argue.
Because of the delay on the road, they didn’t get home until late afternoon. Old Mrs. Ji and the others had been anxious, wondering why they were so late. Seeing them return safely, they breathed a sigh of relief, afraid something had happened.
Jiang Jingyi, Ji Dongyang, and Mrs. Yun had agreed not to tell Old Mrs. Ji about the incident. So, they simply said they had stopped by the He family home again, which was why they were late.
That morning, Butcher Zhao had delivered the pork. Old Mrs. Ji, along with Yingtao, Ji Linxia, and even the two little ones, had started early on a large pot of braised meat using Jiang Jingyi’s recipe. In the afternoon, they braised the rest. Fortunately, the brine was salty; otherwise, in this season, it would have spoiled overnight.
Jiang Jingyi went to the kitchen to check on the braised meat and found it had turned out well. After all, once the brine was brought to a boil, it could be reused, and the flavor would become even richer. Adding some fresh spices made it taste even better than before.
In the afternoon, Jiang Jingyi also checked on the bean sprouts. The little sprouts had already grown—quite a pleasing sight. In another two days, they would be ready to sell.
That evening, Jiang Jingyi took out some bean sprouts, stir-fried them with meat, and found the flavor excellent. That afternoon, Ji Dongyang had gone out to buy a few more baskets and had started sprouting more beans with the soaked beans.
This time, Jiang Jingyi didn’t keep them in her room. Her room was already cluttered with too many things to fit more bean sprouts. So, she had the brothers clear out the storage room next door and put the large baskets in there.
Old Mrs. Ji watched her bustling about and said quietly to Mrs. Yun, “Before they got married, I worried about whether Jingyi would adjust to life in the countryside. Who knew she’d be the one to bring so much profit to our family?”
Mrs. Yun smiled. “Then you can rest easy, Mother. Just wait for grandchildren.”
Old Mrs. Ji’s eyes crinkled with joy. Qiuyang was handsome, his wife was beautiful—any grandchild would surely be good-looking too. And if that grandchild took after his father in being studious and successful, even better.
Sensing something, Jiang Jingyi turned around and caught Old Mrs. Ji’s gaze. For some reason, she suddenly shuddered.
Mrs. Yun pressed her lips together and smiled. “Mother is waiting for grandchildren.”
Jiang Jingyi froze.
**