Chapter 1 Who the hell hit me with a club?

“Damn it, who the hell just sucker-punched me?” Before Ye Wuyou could even react, a rain of blows rained down on her. This completely threw Ye Wuyou off. What the hell was going on? In the middle of her stunned confusion, a stick struck her on the head, causing her to pass out immediately. Her last thought before losing consciousness was: Don’t let me find out who did this. If you dare, I’ll come back and kill you. Then Ye Wuyou lost consciousness.

—

Ling Family.

“Brother, take the money and get Wuyou back. You kissed her in public. If you don’t buy her back, her family will beat her to death,” Ling Zixiao said to his older brother.

Ling Yu hesitated, “But your tuition…”

“It’s fine, brother. There are many kids in the village who don’t go to school. I can start a year later. Just go quickly—Er’Dan just told me that her uncle is beating her again,” Zixiao replied.

“Alright, human life comes first. Don’t worry, Zixiao. Your brother will make sure you go to school next year,” Ling Yu finally sighed.

He took the 300 yuan he received after returning from the military and headed toward the Ye family. Just as he reached the Ye family’s gate, he heard a mocking voice:

“Ling family’s eldest son, what are you doing here? Not only did you ruin our family’s reputation in public, but you also acted irresponsibly after kissing the girl. Artificial respiration? What a joke. Don’t think that having the village chief on your side means you can do whatever you want,” said Wang Xianglian, Ye Wuyou’s uncle’s wife.

Ling Yu frowned at her words and pressed his lips together. “I’m here to take responsibility. Where’s the girl?”

Wang Xianglian was stunned and asked uncertainly, “You’ll take responsibility? Do you have 300 yuan? Didn’t your brother have to go to school?”

“If you want to take responsibility, where’s the money? Not a cent less than 300 yuan,” Ye Wuyou’s formidable grandmother, Wang Laotai, stepped forward.

“Where’s the girl? I’ll only give the money if I see her,” Ling Yu replied firmly.

“That little shameless brat, so young yet so immodest. I had her uncle beat her and lock her in the woodshed. If you bring the money, then you can take her away,” Wang Laotai, with her slanted eyes, said.

Ling Yu frowned sharply at her words. These people were really ruthless.

“I’ll only give the money if I see her,” Ling Yu repeated.

Wang Laotai snorted. “Alright, eldest son’s wife, go take her out of the woodshed.”

“Sure, mother,” Wang Xianglian replied happily, thinking she might actually get the 300 yuan.

“Follow me,” she said, leading the way, constantly chattering: “You know, if you had just taken responsibility earlier, none of this would have happened. She wouldn’t have been beaten. You know my husband has a temper—he doesn’t hold back. If anything happened to her, don’t blame us. If you had just been responsible from the start, none of this would have happened.”

Wang Xianglian blamed Ye Wuyou’s beating on Ling Yu.

Wang Laotai went back to the main house to call her eldest son.

“Dazhu, Dazhu, wake up! Go block the gate. That Lin boy said he brought money to take responsibility. Today, we can’t let him leave without the 300 yuan.”

“What? Mother, are you serious? That Lin boy is really willing to spend 300 yuan to buy that useless girl?” Ye Dazhu jumped out of bed in shock.

“Go wait at the gate. If he doesn’t show any money today, don’t let him leave. If he hadn’t ruined that little brat’s chastity, I could have sold her for a good price,” Wang Laotai said, rolling her round eyes.

“Alright, mother, I’m going,” Dazhu said, dragging his slippers as he went outside.

When Wang Xianglian led Ling Yu to the woodshed, they saw Ye Wuyou lying on the ground, covered in bruises. Her thin clothes were torn, and the wound on her forehead was particularly noticeable.

Ling Yu frowned deeply, bent down to check her breathing, and felt relieved when he realized she was still alive. He then picked her up and tried to leave.

“Hey, hey, what are you doing? You’re trying to take her without giving the money?” Ye Dazhu blocked him from outside.

“Move aside. If she dies, I guarantee you won’t get a single cent,” Ling Yu said coldly.

Perhaps it was the intensity of his gaze that made Ye Dazhu hesitate to advance further.