Chapter 40

By the time Zhang Tieshan returned home that night, it was already completely dark. He had thought his mother would be resting by now, but to his surprise, she was sitting in the main room, eyes fixed sharply on him.

“Mother, why are you still up so late?”

“Late? So you know it’s late? You’ve been running around helping that woman every day—don’t tell me you’ve lost track of time!”

From her tone, Zhang Tieshan could tell his mother had found out. But it didn’t matter. She was bound to learn sooner or later. He planned to marry Li Hehua anyway—there was no hiding it.

Zhang Tieshan sat down beside the table and looked at her. “Mother, if you have something to say, just say it.”

Zhang Linshi glared at him, clearly exasperated. “Tieshan, I heard you’ve been going to town every day to help that woman. Is it true?”

Without hesitation, Zhang Tieshan nodded. “Yes, it’s true.”

Zhang Linshi’s expression turned livid. She slammed her fist on the table. “What are you trying to do! You already divorced that woman! Now what—are you thinking of marrying her again? Have you forgotten all the things she’s done?”

Once she finished speaking, Zhang Tieshan calmly replied, “Mother, she’s not the same person she used to be. She’s completely changed. She’s a good woman now. I like her and want to marry her.”

Zhang Linshi nearly fainted, gasping for breath before recovering. She pointed a trembling finger at him. “You… you’ve gone mad! I tolerated you letting her take care of my grandson, but now you want to bring her back? Have you forgotten how she treated me, your brother, and your son? Has she tricked you so badly you’d turn your back on your family?”

Zhang Tieshan frowned slightly, sighing inwardly. He couldn’t tell his mother that she was no longer the same Li Hehua. All he could do was convince her that the woman had changed.

“Mother, trust me. She’s different now. She’ll treat you all well from now on.”

But Zhang Linshi slammed the table again. “You’ve been bewitched by her! What’s so great about that woman? I’m telling you now—I will never agree! You don’t want to marry Wu Meizi, fine, I’ll find someone else for you. But Li Hehua is out of the question. If she wants to step back into this household, she’ll have to walk over my dead body first!”

Zhang Tieshan pinched the bridge of his nose. Right now it’s just me wanting to marry her—she hasn’t even agreed yet.

“Mother. I’m only going to marry her. I hope you can give us your blessing. Even if you don’t, I will still marry her.”

Zhang Linshi was so furious she nearly fell backward, pointing at him but speechless.

“Also, Mother, don’t bother introducing me to other women anymore. I won’t agree. If you insist, don’t blame me when you lose face.”

“You ungrateful child! Why is my life so bitter? Your father died young, leaving us alone. I raised you and your brother with such difficulty, and now you repay me like this? I might as well die now—what’s the point of living?” Zhang Linshi began to wail, slapping her thighs in dramatic sorrow.

Zhang Tieshan was helpless. It had been years since his mother pulled this trick, and now she was using it again.

He stood up and headed straight to his room. “Enough, Mother. You should get some sleep. Staying up late isn’t good for your health at your age. I’m going to bed.” With that, he shut the door behind him. Zhang Linshi could only gape at the closed door, unable to continue her crying. She went to bed, sulking.

Her words had no effect on Zhang Tieshan. Before dawn, he had already left the house—but instead of heading to town to find Li Hehua as usual, he brought his bow and arrow and went into the mountains.

He wanted to catch some game for her and Shulin. Especially her. Shulin was starting to gain weight, but she was getting thinner. He actually thought she looked good with a bit of weight—there was no need to diet. Eating well was most important.

By midday, Zhang Tieshan returned from the mountain with his hunt. He left a wild chicken at home and brought the rest to town—some he sold to a restaurant, and the rest he brought for Li Hehua.

Worried she’d be overwhelmed, he quickened his pace toward the stall. But before he even got there, he saw a crowd gathered around it from afar, and a man’s angry shouting echoed.

Alarmed, Zhang Tieshan rushed forward, pushed through the crowd, and saw chaos—broken bowls and chopsticks littered the ground, tables overturned, and a few unruly men stood in the center. One of them pointed at Li Hehua, shouting, “I’m telling you, if you don’t apologize right now, I’ll smash this stall of yours! I’ll make sure you can’t do business here anymore!”

Li Hehua looked pale, but she stood her ground. “Don’t even think about it! I already told you—there’s nothing wrong with my food. Don’t you dare try to frame me!”

Zhang Tieshan scanned the scene and immediately understood—they were here to cause trouble.

His expression darkened as he strode to her side. “Are you okay?” he asked, eyes filled with concern.

At the sight of him, the string tightly wound in Li Hehua’s heart finally loosened. The fear she had hidden beneath her calm facade lessened considerably.

“They came to eat, then accused me of serving dirty food with bugs in it. They demanded I apologize and pay twenty taels of silver, or they’d come destroy the stall every day.”

She was certain they were here on purpose to stir up trouble, but she didn’t know why. Had she unknowingly offended someone?

Zhang Tieshan’s gaze darkened. He gently touched her arm. “Don’t be afraid. I’m here.”

That one sentence made her heart tremble. Her eyes reddened. Back in the modern world, she was just a newly graduated girl, pampered by her family, with her big brother solving all her problems. Now she had to rely on herself for everything. She had forced herself to be strong because there was no one to lean on. But now, someone had stepped in to protect her, and her heart ached with emotion.

Seeing the redness in her eyes, Zhang Tieshan’s anger surged. His gaze toward the troublemakers turned ice-cold.

The men shifted uneasily under his stare, but one quickly sneered. “What, you want to stick your nose in? Don’t blame us if something bad happens to you!”

Zhang Tieshan’s voice was flat. “What do you want, exactly?”

Thinking he was giving in, the leader smirked. “Her food’s filthy—who knows if we got sick? She needs to apologize and pay us twenty taels of silver. Then we’ll let it go.”

Zhang Tieshan’s eyes grew colder. “Funny. We’ve been running this stall for a while now and no one’s complained. Why is it only you?”

Clearly accusing them of framing her.

The men grew furious. One of them shouted, “These two are heartless merchants trying to cheat good folks! If they won’t pay, then smash everything!” He picked up a stool, ready to strike again.

But Zhang Tieshan moved faster than lightning. He kicked the man back several steps, sending him crashing to the ground with the stool falling on top of him. The crowd gasped.

The rest of the men lunged at him, but Zhang Tieshan dodged, swept up a stool of his own, and struck with swift, precise movements. Within moments, they were all groaning on the ground, clutching their arms and legs.

Still unwilling to admit defeat, they picked up more stools and charged again.

Zhang Tieshan remained calm, his next blows even fiercer. This time, he not only knocked the weapons from their hands but also floored them completely. They couldn’t even get back up.

It was a complete and utter victory.

Li Hehua’s heart finally settled. She had been terrified he might get hurt, but he had taken them down in mere moments. Still worried, she rushed to his side. “Are you hurt?”

He shook his head. “I’m fine. Don’t worry.”

She inspected him quickly. No wounds. Relieved, she was about to speak again when gasps rippled through the crowd. Before she could react, she was pulled into Zhang Tieshan’s chest.

A loud crash rang out—followed by the sound of ceramic shattering.

“Zhang Tieshan, are you okay?” she cried, trying to look behind him. A bowl had clearly hit his back.

He grabbed her hand. “It’s fine. I’m fine.” Then, turning to the fallen men, he growled, “Which one of you threw that?”

The men flinched and all shook their heads quickly. They had messed with the wrong person today.

One man hesitated a beat too long. Zhang Tieshan immediately seized him, lifting him off the ground with one hand.

“Mercy! Spare me! I won’t do it again!” the man cried.

“You want me to spare you?” Zhang Tieshan asked coldly.

The man nodded frantically. “Yes! Please!”

“Fine. But you have to pay for the damage. Three taels of silver.”

The men wanted to protest—it was robbery!—but none dared argue. They scraped together the silver and placed it on the ground. “Here’s the money. Please let us go.”

Zhang Tieshan threw the man aside. “Get lost. If you dare cause trouble again, it won’t end like this.”

The men limped off, vanishing without a word.

Zhang Tieshan picked up the silver and handed it to Li Hehua. “Here. This should cover what was broken. Don’t be upset.”

She felt her heart twist. “How can you worry about that right now? How’s your back? That bowl hit hard.”

He shrugged. “I’m fine. I’ve got thick skin.”

She didn’t believe him. Determined, she packed up the stall and decided to bring him to a doctor.

Only then did the frightened Cao Simei and her family dare approach.

“Are you okay?” she asked.

Li Hehua nodded. “I’m fine.”

Cao Simei bit her lip, ashamed. When the trouble started, she had held Dahe back, afraid he’d be hurt. But she still felt guilty for hiding when Li Hehua was in danger.

“Sister Hehua, I…”

Li Hehua cut her off. “Let’s clean up. Zhang Tieshan is hurt—I need to get him to a doctor.”

They packed up in silence. Li Hehua’s eyes dimmed. She understood why Cao Simei had hesitated—it was human nature. But she couldn’t help feeling disappointed. She had truly treated them as family. In that moment, she realized: After Shulin, the next most important person in her heart was now Zhang Tieshan.

She sent Cao Simei and her family home and took Zhang Tieshan back to her courtyard.

At home, she didn’t hesitate. “Take off your shirt. I need to see your back.”

Zhang Tieshan froze, instinctively grabbing her hand. “What are you doing?”

“Your back’s injured. Let me look.”

Her gaze was clean and serious. Zhang Tieshan hesitated, then slowly let go. She undid his belt, peeled off his layers, until his upper body was bare.

Though he’d gone shirtless while working before, this time was different. He felt strangely self-conscious, even flustered.

Li Hehua, unaware of his discomfort, studied the bruise on his back—a large, angry welt with red streaks. It looked terrifying.

“Wait here. I’ll call a doctor.”

He caught her hand. “No need. Just rub some medicinal wine on it. I’ve had worse. Trust me.”

She remembered his hunting experience and nodded. She fetched the medicine and rubbed it between her palms to warm it.

“I’ll try, but I don’t really know how to do this.”

“It’s fine. Just use some force.”

She pressed the medicine into his back. He only tensed for a moment, then went still, as if it didn’t hurt at all.

Wanting to distract him, she asked, “Aren’t you afraid those men will report us? If they insist my food was dirty, I might have to pay up.”

He chuckled. “Did any of them say they’d go to the authorities?”

She thought about it. “No…”

“They won’t dare. They’re just local thugs. Even the authorities know them. They were paid to cause trouble—they wouldn’t risk reporting it.”

So that was it.

But the bigger question remained: who had sent them?

Li Hehua could only think of one answer—jealous competitors who wanted her business to fail.

Zhang Tieshan seemed to have the same thought. After a pause, he said, “Don’t worry. I’ll always be here. You don’t have to be afraid.”

Li Hehua’s hand froze. She lowered her head and continued rubbing, pretending she hadn’t heard him—but her heart was already stirred.