Chapter 107

The beating had already happened.

Yin Zhihe swore he would teach Lu Jiaojiao a lesson she wouldn’t forget.

The louder Lu Jiaojiao screamed, the harder Yin Zhihe hit her.

Fortunately for Lu Jiaojiao, it wasn’t her fate to die that day. The educated youth had recently been relocated to the old Yin family house, which was quite close to the current Yin household.

Hearing Lu Jiaojiao’s wailing cries for help, a female educated youth who had participated in several Women’s Federation activities hurried to the brigade office to get help.

At the brigade’s health station, Lu WeiWei’s third aunt, Ye Hongying, was busy preparing the last batch of puffed rice candy. She had just spread the freshly roasted rice candy into the mold and was hammering it down to pack it tightly.

Her work wasn’t finished yet when Zhao Lingling and Feng Shishi came rushing to the Lu family’s house.

“Director Ye! Is Director Ye here?”

The “Director Ye” they were calling out to was Lu WeiWei’s third aunt.

Elected as the women’s director of Xiangyang Brigade, Ye Hongying was respectfully addressed as “Director Ye” by both the educated youth and the village’s women and young wives.

“Yes, I’m here!”

Hearing someone call her, Ye Hongying handed the task to Tang Yunling.

She wiped the rice candy crumbs from her hands on her apron and walked out of the kitchen.

“Comrades Zhao and Feng, I’m here helping make puffed rice candy for Weiwei’s family today. What’s the matter?”

“Director Ye, you need to go to the Yin family quickly! Yin Zhihe is beating Lu Jiaojiao again, and she’s screaming terribly. We could hear it all the way at the educated youth’s dormitory,” Zhao Lingling said urgently.

“The educated youth who just came back from the brigade office with their grain have already gone to the Yin household to intervene, but you should hurry over. It’s almost New Year’s, and Yin Zhihe still won’t behave. What if he seriously injures her?”

Zhao Lingling, being a genuinely kind person, was sincerely worried about Lu Jiaojiao.

Feng Shishi, on the other hand, wasn’t there out of sympathy for Lu Jiaojiao.

That daughter-in-law of the Yin family had gone all the way to the county Women’s Federation to lodge complaints, and in doing so, she had dragged Feng Shishi into her accusations against Yin Zhihe. Because of this, Feng Shishi’s reputation at the educated youth dormitory had been tarnished.

Whether Lu Jiaojiao lived or died had nothing to do with her. Feng Shishi had only come to the health station because she wanted to discuss something with He Ting.

Still, Zhao Lingling was genuinely kindhearted. After participating in a few Women’s Federation activities, she had become even more proactive and upright in her thinking.

Zhao Lingling’s enthusiasm to get involved was commendable, so Feng Shishi didn’t object to helping.

Ye Hongying handed Zhao Lingling a handful of chopped rice candy.

Even though she didn’t think much of Feng Shishi, as the brigade’s women’s director, Ye Hongying made sure to give her some candy too—she couldn’t make her favoritism too obvious.

Ye Hongying asked Tang Yunling to help Lu WeiWei with the candy-cutting work and then quickly headed out with Zhao Lingling.

Meanwhile, Feng Shishi lingered behind, chewing on the rice candy and glancing around aimlessly, unwilling to leave just yet.

Ye Hongying asked Tang Yunling to help Lu WeiWei with the task of cutting the candy. She then headed out quickly with Zhao Lingling, while Feng Shishi lingered behind, chewing on puffed rice candy and looking around.

When Feng Shishi saw He Ting and Zhou Yan Feng pushing a cart loaded with grain back, her eyes lit up.

“He Ting, it’s great that you’re here with Zhou Yan Feng. I have something to discuss with you both,” she said eagerly.

“Since we just collected our grain from the brigade office today, the folks at the educated youth dorm are planning to have a group New Year’s Eve dinner. You and Zhou Yan Feng are both part of the educated youth group, so why not join us? It’ll be fun!”

Before He Ting could respond, Zhou Yan Feng immediately declined on their behalf. “Feng Shishi, you all can enjoy yourselves. He Ting and I have families. For something like a New Year’s Eve dinner, of course, we’ll be eating with our families.”

Feng Shishi wasn’t concerned about whether Zhou Yan Feng joined or not. What she really wanted was for He Ting to participate with the group. That way, Lu WeiWei would surely argue with him over it.

Ignoring Zhou Yan Feng’s emphasis on having a family, Feng Shishi tried to persuade He Ting again. “He Ting, we’re all educated youth who came down here together. You can’t just not join us—it wouldn’t look good.”

Zhou Yan Feng wanted to call Feng Shishi out for being ridiculous. Who would abandon their family to eat New Year’s Eve dinner with others?

Seeing that Feng Shishi was persistent and wasn’t giving up, He Ting cut her off with a firm rejection.

“I’m not joining. I’ll explain to a few close friends, but New Year’s Eve dinner is something I’ll be having with WeiWei and the three children.”

When He Ting mentioned the three children, the corners of his mouth lifted slightly.

Of course, one of those “children” was the one in Lu WeiWei’s belly.

Realizing she wouldn’t be able to convince He Ting, Feng Shishi looked visibly deflated.

“Fine,” she said reluctantly. “My uncle sent me some chocolate from Friendship Store, so I’ll give some to Xiao Qi and Ran Ran later. Oh, and I have a piece of corduroy fabric too—I’ll save it for you, He Ting, to make a set of padded clothes.”

As the New Year approached, the weather had grown colder. He Ting, worried that Lu WeiWei might feel cold now that she was pregnant, had given her his military coat from Beijing. Being a man who could withstand the cold, he made do with a thick wool sweater Lu WeiWei had knitted for him.

Feng Shishi had noticed that He Ting didn’t have padded clothing and thought it was her opportunity. She planned to use the corduroy fabric her uncle had sent from the south to make padded clothes for him.

“Feng Shishi, who exactly do you think you are to He Ting? Does he need you to provide fabric for his clothes?” Zhou Yan Feng snapped.

The more time he spent with Tang Yunling, the more he couldn’t stand Feng Shishi’s pretentious behavior.

Of course, part of it was because he had already mentally placed himself within the Tang family’s inner circle.

Of course, it was also because Zhou Yan Feng now considered himself part of the Tang family.

Feng Shishi’s actions, deliberately creating misunderstandings and trying to disrupt his sister-in-law’s relationship, were harmful to the Tang family’s interests.

In short, her behavior, which undermined the unity between He Ting and his wife, was utterly disgraceful.

Zhou Yan Feng, sharp-tongued as ever, stood up for Lu WeiWei:

“My brother He Ting is doing quite well financially. This year, he’s earned plenty of work points and oversees the team’s rabbit farm, while also earning wages from the brigade alongside my sister-in-law.”

“The grain they’ve earned from the brigade this year alone is more than enough to feed their family of four for a whole year. They don’t need your so-called help.”

“Actually, make that a family of five—my sister-in-law is expecting!”

“My brother He Ting lacks for nothing. My sister-in-law even knitted him a sweater,” Zhou Yan Feng continued, tugging at He Ting’s scarf for emphasis.

“And this scarf you’re wearing, He Ting—it’s from my sister-in-law, right? The stitching is so fine, even better than what you’d find in a department store.”

“He Ting, wearing this scarf from my sister-in-law makes you look so dashing and distinguished. No wonder some female educated youth can’t stop thinking about you…”

Proximity has its influence!

The more time Zhou Yan Feng spent with Tang Yunling, the more he mastered her talent for delivering cutting remarks with precision.

Feng Shishi, who had initially planned to visit the brigade clinic to express her “concern” for He Ting, was so infuriated by Zhou Yan Feng’s tirade that she burst into tears.

“Zhou Yan Feng, you’re such a jerk!” she exclaimed, her eyes red with anger, tears welling up.

She turned her teary gaze to He Ting, hoping for sympathy. “Brother He Ting, Zhou Yan Feng is bullying me.”

While Feng Shishi looked pitiful and sought help, He Ting was busy carrying bags of grain into the house, completely ignoring her.

Frustrated, Feng Shishi tried to grab He Ting’s sleeve, but at that moment, a tall man with neatly combed, glossy black hair appeared, carrying a large canvas bag. He stood by the red-brick house, peeking inside.

Paying no attention to the attractive Feng Shishi, the man looked at He Ting, then at Zhou Yan Feng, and finally settled his gaze back on He Ting.

“You must be my niece’s husband, He Ting, right?” the man asked, a hint of familiarity in his tone.

He Ting found the man’s face familiar and was about to ask who he was looking for when the man directly addressed him as “niece’s husband.”

Even Zhou Yan Feng, fresh from delivering his tirade, looked stunned.

He Ting hesitated before testing the waters. “Fourth Uncle?”

“Yes, yes, that’s me!” the man replied, laughing cheerfully.

Tang Jinghai grinned from ear to ear. “My brother told me you’re handsome, upright, and a truly outstanding man.”

“And sure enough, my niece’s husband is a real gentleman!”