Chapter 29: He Who Does Evil Will Perish by It

Hu Feng, always an expert at procrastinating work, went to the outhouse. Halfway through her work shift, she ran off to relieve herself. After she was done, she pulled up her pants and stood up from the bushes, only to see a person walking by. She was so startled she almost screamed, “Pervert!”

She took a closer look and realized it was that idiot, Liu Xiu. That kid had it made. Both his dad and his older brother were salaried workers, so he didn’t have to go to work. He just wandered around all day, and now he was wandering all the way to this barren mountain.

Wait! A thought suddenly occurred to Hu Feng. Only her family was working in this area. The idiot was being so sneaky; was he trying to secretly watch Fuzhen? Hu Feng spat in contempt. That shameless dog! He’s forcing me to move up my plan.

Originally, she had planned to act during the next struggle session held by the brigade. The last two sessions had been focused on the Zeng family, but a third time would be too much. It was time for someone else to be the focus. She had noticed that her dear granddaughter wasn’t interested in these meetings. The last time her daughter was the victim of a public shaming, that wretched girl only sat for a little while and left before it was over. So, the next time there was a meeting, that girl might not even show up. When most of the villagers were at the meeting, no one would be home. That would be the best time to act.

But “Madman Liu” was lurking around. If he found a chance to act on his perverted ideas with Fuzhen, he was a madman, so no one could do anything to him, and Fuzhen’s life would be ruined. Hu Feng’s eyes narrowed. It’s all or nothing. I’ll act tonight. Learning from Wu Jingui’s betrayal last time, she had wised up. She found a chance to tell her daughter her plan in secret.

Zeng Fuzhen was a bit reluctant. “I’m not doing it.”

“That idiot won’t listen unless you go. Just do what you’re told, and your mother and your second brother will take care of the rest. Tell me, do you want that idiot to follow you around all day?”

Of course, Zeng Fuzhen didn’t want that. She reluctantly agreed.

The night was cloudy, with no moon in the sky. Everyone had to get up early for work tomorrow, so after cooling off outside for a while, they all went home to sleep. Liu Xiu had been waiting for days to hug Zeng Fuzhen and didn’t want to go home. He was still wandering around outside. He was just reaching the small square in front of the brigade when he heard someone softly call his name. He looked up and saw the person he had been dreaming about standing behind a boxwood tree, smiling at him.

Liu Xiu ran up to her, eager to embrace her. The person behind the tree nimbly dodged him. “Big Brother Liu Xiu, why have you been following me lately?”

“My mom said if I hug you and kiss you, you’ll become my wife.” The silly boy sold his mother out without hesitation.

Zeng Fuzhen cursed the old hag in her heart, but she smiled sweetly and held up a large ceramic mug. “You must be tired from following me, Big Brother Liu Xiu. Have some water.”

Liu Xiu didn’t think twice. He took the enamel mug and drank it all in one gulp. He smacked his lips and complained, “It’s a little bitter. It’s not good at all.”

Zeng Fuzhen curled her lips, patiently dealing with him for a moment. When she saw his eyes glaze over, she immediately turned to find her accomplices. Hu Feng and Zeng Fugui emerged from the shadows and took over from Zeng Fuzhen, grabbing the giggling Liu Xiu and quickly walking toward the lighthouse stone house where Zeng Yan lived. After walking a short distance, seeing that the idiot was still just giggling and showed no signs of passing out, Zeng Fugui grew worried. “Something’s not right, Mom. Is this medicine reliable? Did the effect wear off?”

Hu Feng was also puzzled. She had hidden the packet of medicine in a crack in the rafters, and it had luckily survived the search the day that wretched girl had caused a fuss. Today, it was perfect for her plan, but had the effect worn off so quickly?

“This is enough medicine to knock out a bull. It can’t have worn off this quickly. Look at him, he’s not making a fuss at all, so it must still be working. Don’t worry about it, let’s just hurry. Once we get there, you’ll do exactly as I say. Put him on that girl’s heated bed and then immediately run to the brigade to get everyone. We’ll catch them in the act.”

Zeng Fugui’s right hand was clenched. The back of his hand, which that wretched girl had stabbed, still throbbed with a dull ache. Ever since that girl was hit by the tree, nothing had gone right for the Zeng family. The family split had shamed them in the brigade, and because of her schemes, after two public shaming sessions, his family not only had to continue to clear new land, but all four of the adult male laborers had to work on the fishing boats this winter. All of that was nothing. What he hated most was that wretched girl’s treachery, which had ruined his own mother’s reputation. A person who owes her mother for bringing her into this world doesn’t know how to be grateful and doesn’t want to redeem herself, but instead wants to escape and have a good time? Don’t even dream about it.

Lost in his thoughts, Zeng Fugui quickened his pace. Zeng Yan’s little stone house was indeed a long way off, and with the dark and uneven path, it took them over half an hour to reach the top of the slope. Unexpectedly, before they even got to the front of the little stone house, the giggling Liu Xiu suddenly became clearheaded and began to struggle fiercely. “What are you two doing? Where are we? Let go of me! I’m scared, I want to go home!”

The big idiot was strong. Not only could Hu Feng not control him, but even Zeng Fugui was struggling.

Hu Feng screamed in panic. “What’s going on?” How could this little brat be stronger than a bull? How did he recover so quickly? What they didn’t know was that some people had a high tolerance for anesthetics and were naturally insensitive to them.

Seeing that they couldn’t control him, Hu Feng told her son to find a rock and knock him out. She didn’t care about anything else now. They were so close. If they could just get him to that wretched girl’s house, their plan would be a success.

The three of them struggled, and without realizing it, they had reached the old lighthouse foundation. When the lighthouse was moved, the workers had even taken the foundation stones buried in the ground, leaving a deep pit that was now covered by dense weeds. Zeng Yan had deliberately left that patch of grass uncut, hoping to use the pit as a trap. While it wasn’t a deep mountain forest, with a little luck, she might catch a wild rabbit or pheasant to eat. Recently, she had been too busy with the sea to set the traps. If she had, Zeng Fugui might have had a few more holes in his body.

Zeng Fugui stumbled and fell into the pit, and his hand immediately let go of Liu Xiu. Hu Feng, blinded by the promise of the 300-yuan bride price, refused to let go of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. She clung to Liu Xiu, screaming for her son to climb out and help her. Liu Xiu was furious. The shock and the darkness made his madness surge, giving him incredible strength. He grabbed Hu Feng by her armpits and swung her around. Zeng Fugui, who had just climbed out of the pit, could only watch helplessly as Liu Xiu swung his own mother toward the cliff.

A scream echoed from the bottom of the cliff, and then there was nothing. Liu Xiu, terrified, began to wail. He wiped his tears and stumbled back down the slope toward the village.

Zeng Fugui was stunned for a full minute before he came to his senses. He scrambled to the edge of the cliff, yelling for his mother, but the only answer was the mocking sound of the waves.

Watching it all with her newly purchased night-vision goggles, Zeng Yan showed no emotion. She whispered to herself, “He who does evil will perish by it. So be it.”