Chapter 17

Yuan Fengxin felt somewhat dejected and hated himself for not being thoroughly bad or thoroughly good.

He wanted to use Jiang Manzhu to return to the city, knowing she had money, and hoped to deceive her.

But when Jiang Manzhu distanced herself from him, he couldn't bring himself to truly resort to threatening or killing her.

He realized he was afraid.

His hands were still trembling.

Yuan Fengxin returned to the educated youth station and took out the letter he had hidden well, once again looking at the date with a torrent of regret in his eyes.

Aside from Jiang Manzhu, he had indeed looked for other people he could deceive to quickly get a large sum of money.

None! Otherwise, why would he endure Jiang Manzhu's disdain? But now...

Her knowledge meant his plan could not be realized.

Looking at the job position written in the letter, he lightly touched it. His parents in the city couldn't offer any financial help, and Yuan Fengxin resented everything.

Finally, he sealed the letter at the bottom of the box, sighed, and prepared to go to work.

No matter how unhappy Yuan Fengxin was, he knew that in the village, he couldn't support himself without working to earn work points.

Just as he was leaving and passing through the bamboo grove, everything suddenly went dark, and he smelled a strong, pungent odor.

A wooden stick struck him from behind, each hit powerful. His head was hit once, and he lost consciousness immediately.

The screams abruptly stopped, and the attackers ceased their actions.

"Sister-in-law, we didn't accidentally kill him, did we?" Xiao Bei asked with concern, wondering what to do if they had killed him.

Jiang Manzhu pulled open the burlap sack and checked if he still had a pulse.

"He's not dead, just knocked out!"

Xiao Bei sighed in relief, glad they hadn't killed him.

Jiang Manzhu snorted. She had clearly aimed for his back, but he bent down suddenly, causing her to accidentally hit his head instead.

Jiang Manzhu kicked him. If she hadn't shown up, Yuan Fengxin would have taken the compensation money from Li Linan, which nearly led to the Li family's ruin. He would have returned to the city and lived comfortably.

Though the original host had some faults that led to their downfall, didn't Yuan Fengxin have faults too?

Jiang Manzhu kicked him again,

"Hmph, he got off too easy."

"Xiao Bei, let's go." She took the wooden stick, carried the burlap sack, and chose a slightly more secluded path, also carrying two bundles of firewood back.

"Xiao Bei, we didn't do anything but pick up firewood today, okay?" Jiang Manzhu patted his little head and reminded him gently.

Xiao Bei was a bit confused, still not quite understanding, "Sister-in-law, didn't we just beat him?"

"If Linxi finds out you went and hit someone, he'll definitely be unhappy and might worry about you. We shouldn't make San Ge worry, alright?

After all, we weren't bullied, were we?"

Jiang Manzhu didn't make Xiao Bei do anything; she was responsible for putting Yuan Fengxin in the burlap sack.

The rest was done by her.

Jiang Manzhu wasn't feeling guilty; her only concern was whether Li Linxi would think she had corrupted his younger brother.

"I understand. Don't worry, Sister-in-law, I won't tell San Ge," Xiao Bei said seriously, pounding his chest to promise.

Hearing Xiao Bei's promise, Jiang Manzhu happily rewarded him with three candies. "Eat them secretly, don't tell San Ge."

Xiao Bei nodded happily. Normally, San Ge allowed him only one candy a day, so Sister-in-law was generous.

He hid the candies under his pillow in his room, making sure not to let San Ge find out, or they would be confiscated.

Around noon, Yuan Fengxin, lying by the roadside, slowly woke up in pain. He clutched his head and looked around, dazed. He had been beaten and left by the side of the road?

Who did this??

Yuan Fengxin couldn't figure out who hated him so much-was it the educated youth? The villagers? Or...

Jiang Manzhu, who had just expressed her disdain?

As he managed to get up, the pain made him limp back. Even a little movement made his head ache, so he needed to rest properly.

By the time he returned to the educated youth station, the workers had already come back from their shifts. They were surprised to see Yuan Fengxin.

"Yuan, why didn't you go to work today?"

"Looks like you're unwell. What happened?"

"Did you fall? When going up the mountain to gather wild vegetables or yams, you should be careful."

Yuan Fengxin, feeling resentful, said, "I was beaten. I don't know who we educated youth have offended, why are the villagers treating us like this!!"

Yuan Fengxin couldn't figure out who was responsible but suspected it could be either the educated youth or the villagers. At this point, he needed the educated youth's help to stir up conflict between the two groups.

"Just like with the previous educated youth, the brigade leader's daughter not only insulted Lao Zhi, but also tarnished the reputation of the other female educated youths in our station. Now, I've been beaten, and I haven't offended anyone. Is it so easy for us educated youths to be bullied?"

Yuan Fengxin was a skilled actor, putting on a display of indignation and resentment both in front of Jiang Manzhu and the other educated youths.

Hearing Yuan Fengxin's words, the other educated youths exchanged hesitant glances.

"Yuan, who beat you?" one of them asked in confusion.

"I don't know, but who else could it be besides us educated youths? Could it be someone among us who resents me and attacked me from behind?" Yuan Fengxin retorted, looking at them.

The educated youths quickly shook their heads, insisting that such behavior wasn't like them. "How could you think that? We should support each other as educated youths…"

"Right, it must be the villagers. We don't know what we've done wrong! We do our work without complaints, and we live in this dilapidated educated youth station without a word of dissatisfaction. Tsk…"

As he spoke, Yuan Fengxin, still in pain, held his lower back.

Seeing him like this, everyone urged him to rest. The group leader of the educated youths also advised Yuan Fengxin not to talk like that in the future, as it might make the brigade leader think they were dissatisfied with the village.

But what they truly thought remained known only to themselves.

Yuan Fengxin didn't continue and accepted their advice to rest. While resting, he pondered who might have attacked him.

Was it Jiang Manzhu… or one of the girls he had recently flirted with?

Aside from them, Yuan Fengxin felt he hadn't offended anyone else.

Meanwhile, when Li Linxi and Liu Jumei finished work, they noticed Huang Yejing from the brigade leader's family staring at them with a strange expression.

Liu Jumei rolled her eyes. "Fat Ying, why are you looking at me like that? Let me tell you, your child is not suitable for my child!"

Liu Jumei was quite blunt. Don't think just because she looked gentle that she truly was—raising four children as a widow, she couldn't be genuinely kind and gentle.

Huang Yejing, who originally looked down on Li's family, was worried about whether the Li family had done something wrong since the eldest and second children had died. She thought the third child might soon follow.

But hearing Liu Jumei's words, Huang Yejing was displeased. "What? You don't think my daughter is good enough for your son? Where is my daughter not suitable for your daughter?"

"Just that the two children don't match, whether it's in terms of personality or other aspects. I hope my Linxi marries someone more diligent."

Liu Jumei genuinely felt that way. Her family's situation was poor; if her son married a woman like Su Qianqian, it would only lead to more trouble at home.

She would rather Linxi not marry at all!

"What, you're saying my Qianqian isn't diligent?" Huang Yejing's eyes widened in anger, almost wanting to rush over and hit Liu Jumei.

"You're saying bad things about my Qianqian?"

"Fat Ying, look at what you're saying. Ask around in the village. Some things don't need to be said directly; it's better to avoid making things awkward for everyone. Anyway, our children are just not suitable. You should find a city match for your Qianqian instead."

Liu Jumei smiled politely but distantly, indicating she didn't want Huang Yejing's daughter involved with her family.

Huang Yejing was so enraged by Liu Jumei's words she almost vomited blood.

Her mind was filled with curses. "My family also thinks your son isn't suitable for my daughter."

It's not that my family doesn't like your son; it's that you don't like my daughter! Bah!

"Good then." Liu Jumei nodded, and her smiling face only made Huang Yejing angrier. The smile seemed mocking, as if Liu Jumei was relieved to finally be free from a sticky situation.

Huang Yejing was so furious that she couldn't wait to go home and berate Su Qianqian.

Indeed, after returning, Huang Yejing scolded Su Qianqian, "Look at yourself now! You're wasting those eyes of yours. First, you went for Lao Zhi, and now you're eyeing the Li family's kid!"

"Today, that old hag from the Li family cursed me out, saying you're not good enough. No matter how I try to find you a match from the city, they don't like you."

"You, you, are you trying to drive me mad?"

As she spoke, Huang Yejing couldn't help but hit Su Qianqian several times. As the brigade leader's wife, she had always had things going smoothly for her, but Su Qianqian's situation had dragged their family's reputation down.

Now, they were being mocked by poor villagers and could only suffer in silence. It was frustrating!

If Liu Jumei knew Huang Yejing's thoughts, she would be baffled. When did she ever curse her out? She simply said, "Your child and my child aren't suitable."

However, Huang Yejing thought Liu Jumei's attitude was disdainful.

But what could she do? It was all because of Su Qianqian's failure!

Really, what's so great about the Li family's boy? Why should he be so proud?

"Qianqian, since we don't like the Li family's boy either, I'll find you a better match. The pig butcher was great before. You could have eaten pork every day, but you just don't appreciate it!"

As she spoke, Huang Yejing brought up past events, upset and angry, dismissing the Li family's boy with contempt. Her daughter was so much better.

Su Qianqian, however, was fixated on the fact that the Li family looked down on her. It was as if her world had crashed down, leaving her mind blank.

Why? Why do they look down on me????

Li Linxi might have a promising future, but no one knows that now. Given the current situation of the Li family, what right do they have to look down on her?

"Why?" Su Qianqian ignored her mother's attempts to find her a city match and focused entirely on why the Li family looked down on her.

What exactly do they dislike about me? Can I change?

Su Qianqian refused to give up and immediately questioned her mother, determined to find out the reason.

Huang Yejing sighed and looked at her daughter with a hint of pity, as if reluctant to hurt her fragile feelings.

"Anyway, Mom just thinks you're not suitable." Huang Yejing frowned and took the brunt of the ridicule for her daughter.

She believed Liu Jumei had no right to criticize her daughter for being lazy. At least her daughter could earn work points. Liu Jumei's daughter-in-law, Jiang, was even lazier.

"Mom, if you don't tell me, how will I know my shortcomings? I need to improve so I can marry into the city without being looked down upon."

Su Qianqian was very frustrated but knew that if she asked her mother directly, she would not get a straight answer.

A small, kind lie led Huang Yejing to believe, "That Liu Jumei had the nerve to say you're not diligent! Damn, her city-born Jiang educated youth is so diligent? Just cuts pigweed every day?"

Huang Yejing wanted to spit in disdain, thinking Liu Jumei was blind.

Su Qianqian's face stiffened, her brows furrowed. Not diligent? Indeed, she wasn't very diligent at the moment.

Her father was the brigade leader, and her mother and three siblings were all very diligent. As the youngest and most pampered, she didn't need to do much work.

Isn't that normal?

"Our Qianqian was never one for hard work. In the future, when you marry into the city, eat commercial food, and find a temporary job, you won't have to suffer."

Huang Yejing thought Su Qianqian was upset and tried to comfort her, believing that her daughter was too good to suffer alongside the village poor.

Unfortunately, her well-meaning did not reach Su Qianqian.

On the contrary, Su Qianqian saw her mother as an obstacle to her ambitions, not only unsupportive but actively obstructive.

"Mom, I understand." Su Qianqian spoke with a hint of dismissiveness. She needed to figure out how to change her image in Liu Jumei's and Li Linxi's eyes.

She decided she needed to change, starting from today, beginning with cooking for her family, to alter her image in the household and the village.

The Su family… hmm, the three sisters-in-law watched their little sister-in-law start working diligently in the kitchen… cooking????

Seeing this scene, they wondered if the sun had risen from the west. Why was she so hardworking today?

At the dining table, they heard… oh, it was because of Aunt Liu from the Li family?

Their mother-in-law had said something about "our Qianqian not liking their Li family boy," but based on their deep-seated prejudices and understanding of their sister-in-law, they thought their mother-in-law was clearly mistaken.

Their sister-in-law was clearly motivated by Liu Jumei's comment about not being diligent.

Their sister-in-law's behavior was utterly incomprehensible to them, and they thought she was acting like a spoiled child.

But seeing their parents-in-law pleased, they didn't want to dampen the mood by speaking ill of their sister-in-law.

Fine, let her make a fuss. What does it matter to them?

…

At lunch, Li Linxi noticed something odd in the atmosphere between Jiang Manzhu and Xiao Bei.

Especially with Xiao Bei, who kept sneaking glances at him while eating, looking a bit guilty.

What was going on?

Li Linxi glanced at Jiang Manzhu, his expression calm. "Did something happen this morning?"

Jiang Manzhu, with her strong mental composure under Li Linxi's seemingly calm yet sharp gaze, replied, "This morning was as peaceful and diligent as usual. Xiao Bei not only helped cut pigweed but also collected firewood."

Jiang Manzhu guessed that Li Linxi had noticed something unusual because she hadn't praised Xiao Bei's diligence in front of him and his mother.

Does he really need daily praise for routine tasks? Isn't there a risk of making Xiao Bei complacent?

Alright, you're the elder brother, your word is law.

"Anything else?" Li Linxi felt Jiang Manzhu wasn't being entirely truthful. He cast a fleeting glance at her, then turned to Xiao Bei, raising an eyebrow.

Although he seemed indifferent, it made Xiao Bei feel as though his back was chilling. Third Brother was so intimidating!

He wanted to bury his head in his food. He promised his sister-in-law not to tell Third Brother about the fight today.

In the end, feeling his brother's intense gaze, Xiao Bei had no choice but to raise his head, looking pitiful. "Sister-in-law gave me three pieces of candy. I... I hid them under the pillow."

Sniffle, sniffle, my candy.

Upon hearing this, Li Linxi's eyes immediately shot towards Jiang Manzhu. Then, with a cold voice, he said, "Confiscated."

Xiao Bei knew right away that his candy would be taken away by his brother.

Jiang Manzhu glanced at Xiao Bei and thought to herself, "Don't worry, Xiao Bei. If your brother confiscates them, l'll make sure to replace them!"

Li Linxi seemed to sense Jiang Manzhu's thoughts and reminded her,

"Xiao Bei shouldn't eat too much candy.

It might lead to tooth decay."

Jiang Manzhu, feeling somewhat displeased, retorted, "Xiao Bei is not a child anymore. How could he get tooth decay from eating candy? He has self-control and won't eat all the candy at once. Right, Xiao Bei?"

Xiao Bei felt torn between looking at his brother and his sister-in-law. Ultimately, his desire to keep the candy prevailed, so he looked up at his brother with hopeful eyes, "Brother, I... I won't get tooth decay."

"See, you just don't believe me or Xiao Bei," Jiang Manzhu said proudly, her chin lifted as she smiled brightly at Li Linxi, displaying a bit of arrogance.

Liu Jushui, who had kept quiet about such minor issues, felt relieved seeing the children getting along well.

Li Linxi had no ill feelings towards the sparkling, smiling eyes of Jiang Manzhu; instead, he was somewhat taken aback by the brightness. He simply responded with an "Mm" to allow Xiao Bei to keep the three pieces of candy.

"What do you mean, 'Mm'? Li Linxi, you're being unreasonable. We're family, how can you not trust me and Xiao Bei?" Jiang Manzhu didn't realize that Li Linxi's "Mm" was a concession and instead questioned him angrily.

Although Xiao Bei didn't speak, his eyes conveyed disappointment, feeling that his brother was being unfair.

Li Linxi: ...

"Keep the candy. I trust you won't let yourself get tooth decay. If you do get tooth decay, I won't let you have candy anymore," Li Linxi explained helplessly.

Sigh, with such a precious little brother, what else could he do but indulge him?

The mere statement of "I trust you" made Xiao Bei instantly perk up, worried that if he delayed his promise, his brother might take away the candy,

"I definitely won't get tooth decay."

I swear!

Li Linxi nodded and then turned to Jiang Manzhu, "I asked you to take good care of Xiao Bei. Make sure nothing happens to him, understand?"

"Li Linxi, how can you speak to your sister-in-law like that?" Liu Jushui questioned, dissatisfied with Li Linxi's attitude. After all, they were family; issues should be discussed properly.

Li Linxi fell silent. Jiang Manzhu had the support of both of her parents-in-law, leaving him with nothing to retort.

Li Linxi had initially thought that a peaceful life was quite good and that if Jiang Manzhu remained like this, staying with the Li family wouldn't be an issue. At least, it would save him some trouble.

However, by the afternoon, Li Linxi heard that Yuan Fengxin, a youth from the youth station, had been beaten by someone on the way back to the youth station-someone from the village.

The youths demanded that the team leader investigate who hadn't been working today. Otherwise, if the village harbored such malicious individuals, they would be on edge every day.

Upon investigation, it turned out that the laborers were all working hard, while the defenseless Jiang Manzhu and Xiao Bei had been overlooked.

Li Linxi realized that Xiao Bei's earlier nervousness might not have been due to eating candy.

But this was something only Li Linxi figured out. Others in the village thought that the youth station members were just causing trouble and that the violence might have been among them.

"It must be that the youth station members couldn't get along and secretly fought among themselves, then they intentionally shifted the blame to us."

"Exactly, we're all good people. How could we do something like secretly beating others?"

People were discontented, believing that the youths were passing the blame and pointing fingers at them.

Li Linxi didn't care about their complaints. Once work was over, he went to find Xiao Bei. "Xiao Bei, did you go with Jiang Manzhu to beat someone this morning?"

Xiao Bei was currently making bath water, and Jiang Manzhu was picking vegetables. Hearing Li Linxi's question as soon as he arrived made Xiao Bei almost pull out the firewood from the stove in fright.

"I, I didn't." Xiao Bei didn't realize that he was terrible at lying, as his voice betrayed him.

Li Linxi's expression darkened. Seeing Xiao Bei's pale face, he said, "'m not scolding you, just worried if someone bullied you."

With a gentle tone, Li Linxi placed his hand on Xiao Bei's head.

Feeling reassured, Xiao Bei relaxed slightly and carefully asked, "Brother, are you really not mad at me?"

Li Linxi didn't like his brother being so timid and cautious. He preferred Xiao Bei to be lively and proud like a little

swan.

"Of course not. Our Xiao Bei is... very good." Li Linxi comforted himself, thinking that bullying others was better than being bullied.

However, Jiang Manzhu needed a lesson. She was too arrogant, thinking she was all that?

When Jiang Manzhu returned from washing vegetables, she didn't notice anything unusual at home.

During dinner, Xiao Bei was unusually quiet. Jiang Manzhu thought he was tired and didn't give it much thought, as her attention was on Liu Jushui urging Li Linxi to get married.

Liu Jushui said she had already found a matchmaker and would bring people over on the next day off from work.

Jiang Manzhu, listening to this, just smiled, thinking, "Will Li Linxi scare them off with his frown? Haha, I wonder if the matchmaker will be scared."

Shouldn't Li Linxi be quite gentle when he's outside? Why does he turn into a silent person at home?

Maybe... this kind of personality can adapt to different situations?

Li Linxi also felt Jiang Manzhu was watching the situation with a sense of amusement. He glanced at her but didn't pay much attention, turning to his mother, "Mom, on the day off, I need to go to town. I promised to buy meat for Xiao Bei."

Xiao Bei, who had been feeling guilty and didn't dare to speak, immediately lifted his head when he heard his brother mention this, "Yes, Brother is going to buy meat."

Nothing was more important than buying meat.

Liu Jushui: A house full of simpletons!

"Let Manzhu take Xiao Bei. It's common for youths to go to the town. If she can't be trusted, what can we rely on after I'm gone?" Liu Jushui trusted Jiang Manzhu.

"No, l'm not comfortable with them going alone. I don't trust Jiang Manzhu," Li Linxi said, not wanting to call Jiang Manzhu "sister-in-law" because he felt she wasn't worthy but didn't want to worry his mother.

Liu Jushui was firm, insisting that Li Linxi accompany them.

Li Linxi wasn't interested and refused.

Jiang Manzhu ignored their dispute, went to bathe after dinner.

When she came out slowly after her bath, Liu Jushui had washed the dishes and gone to rest, as she needed to get up early the next day.

Xiao Bei, being young, went to bed on time.

As Jiang Manzhu headed to her room, she was stopped by Li Linxi.

Under the dim yellow light of the kerosene lamp, Li Linxi, towering over her, looked down with a cold, stern expression.

Jiang Manzhu, confused, asked, "Li Linxi, what's the matter? Do you need something?"

Li Linxi, with a fierce and aggressive demeanor, grabbed her chin. "Jiang Manzhu, do you think I won't do anything to you?"

Daring to use his brother, was she asking for trouble?

Jiang Manzhu, caught off guard, blinked her pretty eyes, looking dazed and innocent. "What did I do?"

"Using Xiao Bei, enjoying it very much.." Li Linxi's gaze was cold as he stared at Jiang Manzhu's beautiful, delicate face, his heart filled with malice. He shouldn't have kept her around from the beginning.

"I... I didn't... Ouch, ouch, ouch." Jiang Manzhu's chin was being painfully squeezed, and she instinctively tried to swat his hand away. "Let go of me!"

Do you believe I'll burn you with this oil lamp?