Laughter from the women around them exploded in the air. Su Rui’s face flushed as she sulkily went back to mixing cement.

Her assigned job was to mix cement, which had a specific setting time. She and her coworkers had to thoroughly mix it before it set.

As she stirred the cement, flashes of that fleeting moment kept replaying in her mind. Even after a long day of work, returning home covered in dust, that striking image of the military officer refused to leave her thoughts.

Marching off with her shovel in high spirits, dragging herself home exhausted—one day’s labor earned her eighty cents and a meal. The rest of the benefits were just bonuses, but still, it wasn’t a bad deal.

When she arrived home, Su Rui suddenly noticed Su Hongpei crouching under the jujube tree, crying. A plate of sesame biscuits sat beside her feet.

She dropped her shovel and rushed over, crouching beside her sister. “Big Sister, why are you crying? Did that scumbag Wang bully you again?”

In the novel, Su Hongpei suffered hardship for most of her life. Now that Su Rui was here, she didn’t want her sister to go through that misery. Whenever she heard that Wang Luxing had mistreated her sister, she was ready to roll up her sleeves and fight him.

“Tell me, don’t make me worry.” Su Rui pulled her up and helped her sit on a wooden chair. Looking at her sister’s red, tear-filled eyes, she asked with concern, “What happened this time?”

Su Hongpei had cried many times over the past few days. Today, she finally couldn’t hold back. Her shoulders trembled as she covered her face with a handkerchief and sobbed, “He said his family hasn’t saved enough money and can’t afford a betrothal gift for me.”

“That short-limbed, third-degree cripple who can’t even properly tuck in a quilt dares to say that to you?” Su Rui immediately understood—Wang Luxing thought he had her sister locked down and was about to tighten his grip.

According to the novel’s plot, her sister would be married into his family by the end of the year.

Su Hongpei was devastated, her voice hoarse from crying as she clung to Su Rui. “He said I’m already twenty-four. In our village, women my age already have two children. He—he—”

“Enough, I get it,” Su Rui interrupted, stopping her from repeating such hurtful words.

She got up and poured a glass of water for her sister. Once Su Hongpei calmed down, Su Rui spoke coldly, “He’s been stalling on purpose. I told you before he wasn’t a good person, but you still believed he was. A few sesame biscuits, and you’re willing to marry him?”

The more Su Rui thought about it, the angrier she became. She stomped on the plate of sesame biscuits, grinding them under her foot. “Twenty-four is still a prime age. In many places, people don’t graduate from university until twenty-four. Getting married and establishing a career by thirty is completely normal.”

Su Hongpei wiped her tears. “But… but I’ve been with him for six years.”

Su Rui bared her little tiger teeth, ready to bite someone. “That makes it even worse—he’s been plotting this all along. He’s dragged you along for six years without marrying you. How many marriage proposals did you turn down in those early years? You talked about love with him, but did he ever truly care about you?”

Su Hongpei recalled her early twenties when matchmakers frequently came knocking. Maybe not every few days, but at least one or two proposals each month.

After she started dating Wang Luxing, she turned them all down, thinking she’d settle down early. Yet somehow, the marriage kept getting postponed again and again—until now.

“See? What did I tell you? That Wang guy is no good!”

Su Chang’e walked in from outside, wearing a crisp white shirt that made her stand out against the rest of them, who were covered in dust.

Su Yuqin and Su Li also entered. Su Li carried a large sack of cabbages, placing them under the eaves in neat rows, his usual silent and serious self.

Su Yuqin glanced at the scene, then turned to Su Hongpei, who was still sobbing. “So, what do you want to do now?”

Su Rui’s heart clenched. She knew what her sister was thinking—she was planning to endure the hardship and sacrifice herself for that scumbag!

She immediately cut her off before she could speak and declared loudly, “Break up!”

Su Hongpei looked up in shock, tears rolling down her cheeks. “Break up? After all these years…”

Su Rui held her sister’s hand tightly. “What’s the point of holding on? If he’s treating you like this now, imagine how much worse it’ll be once you’re married. He’ll work you to the bone—no, actually, not even that.”

At least cattle and horses had it tough under a 996 work schedule.

Su Hongpei would be stuck in a 007 nightmare!

Her voice cracked. “Am I really worse off than livestock?”

Su Rui nodded firmly. “Yes!”

Su Chang’e leaned against the jujube tree, cracking sunflower seeds as she sneered, “Not bad. That would make two hardworking donkeys in our family.”

Su Rui glared at her puffed-up cheeks and snapped, “Can you shut up, you troublemaker? I haven’t even settled my score with you yet!”

“What did I do to you?”

Seeing Su Rui getting worked up, Su Chang’e stuffed the rest of her sunflower seeds into her pocket and stepped forward, trying to push Su Rui. But Su Rui sidestepped and bumped her back, making her stumble against the jujube tree.

Su Chang’e immediately shouted, “Mom!”

Su Yuqin frowned. “What now?”

Before Su Chang’e could answer, Su Hongpei suddenly wailed, “I don’t want to live anymore!”

Su Rui reacted quickly and swiftly grabbed Su Hongpei, preventing her from crashing into the jujube tree. Before Su Rui could breathe a sigh of relief, she looked again and saw that Su Hongpei, overcome with rage, had fainted from sheer fury, unable to catch her breath.

Su Rui immediately pinched her philtrum. Seeing that Su Hongpei was barely breathing, she hurriedly carried her on her back and ran toward the clinic.

Su Chang’e followed behind, clutching Su Yuqin’s purse, and shouted in panic, “Slow down, don’t drop her!”

Su Rui ran so fast that even the donkey carts on the roadside were left behind in the dust.

A stubborn mule, unwilling to be outdone, trotted forward a few steps and brayed at Su Rui’s retreating figure, “Ee-aw! Ee-aw!”

At the village clinic, the only doctor in Yi Wang Village—rumored to have switched careers from veterinary medicine—came over holding an enormous syringe meant for cattle.

Su Chang’e was so scared that she immediately backed away. Su Rui quickly interjected, “Doctor Qian, we don’t need tetracycline shots!”

That was no joke—back in the day, tetracycline had severe side effects, and many people suffered damage to their liver, kidneys, teeth, bones, and nerves.

Doctor Qian waved his hand dismissively and pointed at another patient on a nearby bed—a shivering bald man. “Pull down your pants.”

It was only then that Su Rui noticed he was there too. She gritted her teeth as she stared at Doctor Qian’s massive livestock needle, thinking it looked far too delicate.

The bald man, holding up his pants with one hand, was too concerned with his dignity to expose himself entirely, so only half of his butt was showing.

The moment the needle went in, his wails echoed throughout the clinic.

Doctor Qian muttered, “Huh? The needle bent? It didn’t go in properly. Relax, we’ll try again.” Saying that, he used tweezers to retrieve another needle soaking in an alcohol-filled metal lunchbox.

The bald man lay on the bed, his exposed butt trembling. He was as good as dead.

All past grievances faded like smoke, vanishing before their eyes…

Su Rui forgave him.

As for Su Hongpei, she was given an intravenous drip of glucose. Fortunately, Doctor Qian had a steady hand this time, sparing her from suffering.

By the time Su Yuqin and Su Li arrived, Su Hongpei had already regained consciousness. With the two of them there to take care of her, Su Rui left the clinic.

She had barely taken two steps when Su Chang’e called out, “Where are you going?”

Su Rui replied, “To beat someone up.”

Su Chang’e spat out a melon seed shell and said, “What a coincidence. I’ll join you.”

Su Rui sneered, “I don’t need someone who runs away when the battle starts.”

Su Chang’e said, “This time, I won’t stop until I see results.”

“Alright, let’s go.” Su Rui squinted at the intermittently troublesome Su Chang’e and said, “I’ll deal with you later.”

Su Chang’e smirked. “I’ll be waiting.”

***

Late at night, Wang Luxing returned home, frustrated that he had mentioned not giving a bride price too soon. In the evening, he had gone to the Su family to test the waters, but to his surprise, there wasn’t a single person at home.

“If I’d known, I would’ve just gone ahead and slept with her. Let’s see if she still refuses to marry me then.”

Holding a bottle of liquor—originally intended as a gift for his future father-in-law—he thought about it and decided to sit in a secluded corner, taking a sip instead. “Now she wants to fight with me? She’s already that old. If I were going to give a bride price, I’d rather give it for Xiao Juan. She’s only eighteen. Damn it, I’ll propose to Xiao Juan tomorrow.”

As he muttered to himself, a cold breeze swept over his neck, sending a chill down his spine.

Had he looked up, he would have seen two figures perched on the wall behind him, staring at him with eerie, icy gazes.

Su Rui and Su Chang’e had been lying in wait on his usual path for four hours. The longer they waited, the angrier they became. Now, after hearing his words, their fury burned even hotter.

So he had a backup plan? And he was two-timing with Xiao Juan!

Su Rui pointed to the foul-smelling ditch at the end of the road. Su Chang’e held her nose and nodded.

Just as they were about to make their move, a village militia patrol team passed by.

“I’m just resting for a bit,” Wang Luxing told them. “Once I finish this drink, I’ll head home.”

Team Leader Wu reminded him sternly, “Drink up and go straight home. No gambling, no causing trouble.”

Wang Luxing grinned and nodded. “Got it, got it.”

Once Team Leader Wu was gone, Wang Luxing grabbed the bottle at his feet and spat on the ground. “Damn women, a good beating behind closed doors will set them straight.”

As he spoke, a shadow loomed over him!

Su Rui swooped down from above, tossing a sack over his head, trapping him from head to toe!

“Who is it?! Let me go—mmmph!”

Just as Wang Luxing was about to shout, a wooden club struck him so hard he lost his breath, rendering him speechless.

Then came a relentless barrage of blows. He couldn’t even count how many people were attacking him—his vision darkened, and whenever he tried to cry out, the beatings only intensified.

Could it be… debt collectors?

Wang Luxing had a history of gambling and owed money. People had already come knocking on his door for repayment.

Through his muffled groans, he whimpered, “I was wrong! I’ll pay up right away!”

Su Rui wasn’t here to collect debts—she was here to beat him half to death! She quickly tied his legs with a rope and, along with Su Chang’e, hoisted him up before he could react, hanging him upside down from a tree. Then, using an old sugarcane stalk, she gave him a thorough thrashing.

Wang Luxing howled and flailed wildly.

“Someone’s coming,” Su Chang’e whispered nervously.

Wang Luxing froze for a moment, then immediately screamed, “It’s you! I knew it was you, Su Hongpei!”

Upon hearing that, Su Rui swung even harder!

Eventually, Wang Luxing’s cries grew weak, and at some point, he lost consciousness.

Su Chang’e was utterly shaken. This was her first time doing something like this—she had no experience. “Is… is he dead?”

“Dead? My ass!” Su Rui snapped. “Hurry, get some liquor!” If someone found him like this, they could just claim he got drunk and fell.

Frightened by her tone, Su Chang’e scrambled to find some liquor. Su Rui swiftly poured it all over Wang Luxing, ensuring he reeked of alcohol. Then, she dragged him to the edge of the foul-smelling ditch and gave him a hard kick, sending him tumbling down. He rolled to the bottom, leaving only his bruised and swollen head exposed.

Su Chang’e stared, dumbfounded. “How many times have you done this before?”

Su Rui snapped, “Less talking, more running!”

“Who’s there?!” A stern voice called out in the distance—it was a young man!

Su Rui’s heart sank. Damn, she had forgotten about the military patrols stationed in the village!

She turned back, only to see that Su Chang’e had already bolted…

She ran…

Su Rui didn’t hesitate—she took off running as well, panting as she sprinted toward home.

Dozens of meters away, the patrolling soldiers jogged toward the ditch and inspected the scene. One of them went back to report, “Captain, we’ve found a man who was attacked.”

“Attacked?”

Fang Chiye shone his military flashlight down into the ditch. “Take him to the clinic.”

The well-trained soldiers efficiently hauled Wang Luxing out.

Meanwhile, Guo Qingwang, who was accompanying Fang Chiye to assess the village’s situation, shivered slightly and clicked his tongue. “Captain, didn’t I say? This widow village is full of fierce women. Look, something’s happened again.”

Fang Chiye looked over. “The village is called ‘Widow Village’?”

“N-no, it’s called Xiaoba Village.”

“If not, then why do you call it Widow Village?”

“I-I’m just used to it.”

“Used to it?” Fang Chiye narrowed his eyes. “Are you used to it, or do you have a problem with it?”

Guo Qingwang had heard that this officer was tough to deal with, but he hadn’t expected him to be this blunt. He immediately exclaimed, “Sir, you’ve got me wrong! How could I, as a grassroots worker, have any opinions about the people? I swear—”

Fang Chiye remained silent, his phoenix eyes quietly fixed on him.

Guo Qingwang swallowed hard, putting on a remorseful expression as he said with deep regret, “Sir, I will definitely change! I will conduct my work with absolute seriousness and integrity. I promise never to call it Widow Village again.”

The security patrol searched the area but found nothing except for some discarded liquor bottles.

Just before leaving, Fang Chiye’s flashlight shone on an old sugarcane covered in mud.

He bent down and picked it up without hesitation. “Take it with us.”