“But didn’t she just say she has no interest in Lin Youfu?”

“Well, who knows if she was telling the truth.”

The crowd gathering to watch the drama was growing, including a few of the educated youth. Among them, Xu Laidi was watching with a look of schadenfreude, hoping for Song Wei’s downfall. Bai Yunjiao’s eyes flashed with interest as she stood among the onlookers, a faint smile on her face.

A cold gleam appeared in Song Wei’s eyes. This old woman, she thought, was truly malicious, trying to ruin her reputation.

“Old lady Lin, do you have any proof of what you’re saying?” Song Wei asked.

“My grandson said so himself! That’s proof enough,” the old lady retorted. “I’ve seen women like you before—taking advantage of my grandson and then turning your back on him. I’m telling you, it won’t work with me!”

Song Wei didn’t directly deny the accusation. Instead, she said, “I saw your eldest daughter-in-law sneaking around with another man in the haystack.”

Deng Chunhua’s eyes widened in shock, and she let out a shriek, lunging at Song Wei.

“You wretched girl! How dare you spread such lies! I’ll teach you a lesson!”

Song Wei didn’t hold back this time. She grabbed Deng Chunhua by the hair, slapped her hard, and threw her to the ground in front of Old lady Lin. Her cold eyes held a slight smile as she looked down at them.

“I also saw you, old lady Lin, talking secretly with an old man in the middle of the night, saying none of your sons are really Old Man Lin’s—something about a ‘green hat’ you put on him,” Song Wei continued, “I even heard that you were quite improper with other men when you were younger, wearing scandalous clothes and flirting openly.”

Old lady Lin’s hands shook as she pointed at Song Wei. “You… how dare you spout such lies, you shameless girl.”

The crowd started to whisper.

“Could it be true? Are Old Lin’s sons really not his?”

“Did Deng Chunhua really sneak off with someone else in the haystack? Who was it?”

“Old lady Lin did have a bit of a reputation in her younger days, come to think of it. And Old Lin has always been quiet, never really standing up for himself…”

Hearing these remarks, old lady Lin felt her head throbbing with anger. Her resentful gaze stayed fixed on Song Wei’s smiling face, and she looked ready to tear her apart.

Suddenly, old lady Lin threw herself to the ground, pounding her fists and wailing. “I can’t go on living! To think I’m being smeared by an outsider like this in my old age. This is too much! These so-called educated youth think they can trample on us common folk!”

The team leader looked pained, rubbing his temples in exasperation.

Meanwhile, old lady Lin’s daughters-in-law came over to comfort her. Lin’s daughter suddenly picked up a stone from the ground and threw it angrily at Song Wei.

“How dare you bully my mother? Die, you shameless bitch!”

Heidan: “Sister Song, be careful!”

Song Wei didn’t dodge either. She raised her hand to catch the stone that was thrown at her face. She weighed it in her hand, and suddenly threw the stone back to its original path.

As everyone exclaimed, the stone brushed past the face of Old Lady Lin’s daughter and hit the ground, creating a deep pit.

Old Mrs. Lin’s daughter turned her head tremblingly, and her legs went weak and she almost fell down.

“Ah… looks like I missed,” Song Wei said casually.

Everyone shivered, feeling a chill down their spines. People were starting to look at Song Wei with some fear. This girl was… ruthless.

The team leader originally wanted Song Wei to come over and apologize, but the words got stuck in his throat.

Old lady Lin’s daughters-in-law also fell silent, no longer daring to rush forward. Seeing Deng Chunhua’s swollen face and remembering how Song Wei had pulled her hair, they were wary.

But old lady Lin, undeterred, continued her wailing, demanding the brigade punish Song Wei. The rumors she had spread about Song Wei and Lin Youfu were now mostly ignored in favor of the sensational gossip Song Wei had thrown back at her.

Xu Laidi and Bai Yunjiao, meanwhile, looked bitter, clearly dissatisfied that Song Wei had turned the tables on the Lin family in this way.

Old lady Lin’s eyes glinted with hatred, and she turned her gaze toward Heidan, who was still cowering behind Song Wei.

“You little mongrel, come here! You’re just like your father—a backstabbing, ungrateful wretch. I should’ve strangled you when you were born!”

Unable to get to Song Wei, old lady Lin set her sights on Heidan.

“Go and bring that little brat here!” she ordered.

Heidan clutched Song Wei’s clothes, trembling with fear. Old lady Lin sneered at Song Wei with satisfaction.

“Hand over my grandson, you shameless girl, or I’ll report you for kidnapping!”

Song Wei smiled calmly. “If you want to take Heidan, sure.”

Heidan’s hand trembled, but when he felt a light pat on his head, he relaxed, trusting her completely.

“Just compensate me for my losses first,” Song Wei added, pulling out a broken watch. Its face was cracked.

“This is my watch. It’s worth 130 yuan, and Heidan broke it. I took him in to work off his debt, so if you want to take him back, just pay me the 130 yuan and a watch coupon.”

Everyone gasped. Watches were highly valuable at that time, and everyone craned to get a look at the watch in Song Wei’s hand.

“Such a beautiful watch. How did Heidan manage to break it?” someone asked.

Heidan didn’t fully understand why, but he nodded along with Song Wei.

“It was my fault,” he admitted.

Song Wei’s eyes sparkled with amusement. “The other day, Heidan was carrying a huge bundle of firewood down the mountain and bumped into me. I fell, and the watch hit a rock and broke,” she explained. “And it happened because he was out gathering wood for your family.”

People in the crowd looked at the Lin family with disdain. Everyone knew it wasn’t unusual for Heidan to gather firewood for them.

“Who’s to say you didn’t break it yourself?” old lady Lin shouted desperately.

“Why would I break my own watch?” Song Wei replied coolly. “Something worth over a hundred yuan? Besides, Heidan admitted it himself.”

“She’s right. If I had a watch like that, I’d treasure it, not break it for no reason,” someone muttered in the crowd.

“Song Wei’s too kind,” another added. “Something that expensive, and she only asked Heidan to work it off without demanding compensation.”

Song Wei held out the broken watch toward the Lin family. “So, are you going to pay?”

Old lady Lin cursed under her breath and tried to hit Heidan, but Song Wei stepped in her way.

“He has to work off his debt to me. If you hurt him, who’ll help me?”