Chapter 53

As they say, “Speak of the devil and the devil shall appear,” it really is an ironclad rule.

Just as Lu Baiwei was telling her cousin about Zhao Tian Tian visiting Xiangyang Brigade yesterday, not far from there, she spotted Zhao Tian Tian among the large group of workers from Hongqi Brigade.

Clearly, Zhao Tian Tian had also noticed Lu Baiwei and Tang Yunling on their bicycles from a distance.

She waved enthusiastically and called out, “Ling Ling Jie, Wei Wei Jie, what brings you to our brigade today?”

Zhao Tian Tian was a bit intimidated by Tang Yunling, her future sister-in-law.

The young girl had returned home from Xiangyang Brigade the previous day, and didn’t dare speak up, fearing that her older brother might find out about her leading Liu Cuifang to Lu Baiwei’s house to cause trouble.

Wei Wei Jie was her future sister-in-law’s relative!

Had she known that Liu Cuifang had come to Xiangyang Brigade to stir up trouble for Wei Wei, she would never have guided her there just to earn a couple of milk candies.

Although Zhao Tian Tian was waving and greeting them warmly, she was feeling guilty inside.

“I’m going to your house to ask your brother to make a new bed,” she explained.

There were a lot of young women and educated youths in the large group working in the bean field in Hongqi Brigade.

As they rode past, Lu Baiwei noticed Zhao Tian Tian and saw Liu Cuifang, who had caused trouble for her the day before.

She subtly pointed out Liu Cuifang to Tang Yunling, indicating that Liu Cuifang wasn’t quite right in the head, so they should avoid her.

But who was Tang Yunling?

She wasn’t someone who would let others take advantage of her.

Determined to stand up for her cousin, she jumped off the back of the bike and purposely spoke loudly to Zhao Tian Tian.

“My brother-in-law’s nephew and niece came from the capital. Wei Wei is newly married to my brother-in-law, and it’s not appropriate for them to always sleep with the children. So we’re going to your house to ask your brother to make a bed so the kids can sleep separately.”

Did she really need to explain it so thoroughly?

Lu Baiwei almost facepalmed.

Liu Cuifang, who had been working in the bean field, overheard Tang Yunling and felt a surge of anger when she heard that Lu Baiwei and He Ting were sleeping in the same bed.

Shi Shi was still waiting for He Ting in the capital, right?

How could he actually be sleeping with this country bumpkin from Xiangyang Brigade?

Yesterday, Liu Cuifang had learned from Zhao Tian Tian that the only reason He Ting married Lu Baiwei was because of an arranged marriage set by their grandfathers.

On her way back from Xiangyang Brigade, Liu Cuifang had comforted herself, thinking that He Ting must have married Lu Baiwei out of respect for his grandfather, and that their marriage was just a formality.

He Ting was a man who was hard to pin down, how could he sacrifice his happiness for an arranged marriage?

When she heard that Lu Baiwei had really captured He Ting’s heart, Liu Cuifang almost wanted to rush out of the bean field and tear Lu Baiwei apart.

She took a deep breath and reminded herself that she couldn’t make a fool of herself in front of everyone from Hongqi Brigade.

Who would be so shameless as to announce that they were sleeping in the same bed?

This village girl who married He Ting must be doing it on purpose.

Thinking she had figured it all out, Liu Cuifang sneered and rolled her eyes at Lu Baiwei while pulling at a handful of grass.

—

Thinking she had figured out the truth, Liu Cuifang pulled a handful of grass and rolled her eyes at Lu Baiwei with disdain.

“So you came here on purpose to make me back off?”

“You want me to tell Shi Shi not to wait for He Ting anymore?”

“Hmph, I didn’t expect you, a country bumpkin, to be so calculating. No wonder Shi Shi lost to you.”

Tang Yunling had been waiting for Liu Cuifang to lose her composure.

Now, she finally had the chance to seize the moment and make her point.

“Always talking about Shi Shi, Shi Shi… Are you crazy?”

“Liu the educated youth, right? You’re such a filial child, huh? If I didn’t know better, I’d think that Shi Shi was your mother.”

Liu Cuifang was so angry, she nearly fell over.

But who was Tang Yunling?

Once she started speaking, no one else had the chance to say anything.

She launched into Liu Cuifang like a machine gun, firing one sharp remark after another.

“My cousin Wei Wei and He Ting are legally married, and you come in front of Wei Wei and talk about your friend, Shi Shi, waiting for He Ting in the capital? Are you trying to break up Wei Wei and my brother-in-law? Are you crazy?”

“If your friend really likes my brother-in-law, why doesn’t she come down to the countryside with him?”

“So liking someone is just about saying it out loud? You don’t have to share the hardships together?”

Liu Cuifang was speechless.

She wanted to say that she had been with He Ting when he came to the countryside.

But she couldn’t say that, because if she did, the secret of how she had gotten close to He Ting through Shi Shi would be exposed.

Tang Yunling seemed to know exactly what she was thinking, and as the “expert at exposing deceit,” she didn’t care whether Liu Cuifang would be embarrassed in front of the people of Hongqi Brigade.

“My brother-in-law already said that the only relationship between him and your friend Shi Shi is that they grew up as neighbors in the same courtyard, and there’s nothing more to it. But you, it seems like you can’t understand plain words. You keep saying she likes my brother-in-law and is waiting for him in the capital.”

“You used your friend’s name to get close to my brother-in-law, ruining her reputation. The one who’s really interested in my brother-in-law is probably you, right?”

“Hah, so this was your intention all along.”

“No wonder you keep barking in front of my cousin Wei Wei’s house…”

With her secrets exposed, Liu Cuifang felt utterly humiliated. Tang Yunling went all out, and the large group of workers from Hongqi Brigade, who were passing by, stopped to watch. Liu Cuifang felt completely embarrassed.

She wasn’t as bold and arrogant as she had been in front of Lu Baiwei. Now, she was almost crying with frustration.

“You’re talking nonsense, you’re slandering me!”

Liu Cuifang was so angry that she wiped away her tears with her sleeve.

The person who had been bullying Wei Wei was now being bullied into tears herself.

Tang Yunling felt a sense of satisfaction in her heart.

She was about to press the attack a bit more when a young man, carrying a wooden beam on his shoulder, shouted from the hillside.

“Ling Ling, you’re here!”

—

“Ling Ling, you’re here!” 

As soon as Tang Yunling saw the young man carrying a wooden beam and smiling at her, she forgot all about her argument. She left Liu Cuifang behind and cheerfully waved at her fiancé, Zhao Yongsen. 

“Brother Sen, I brought my cousin here to borrow a bed from you!” 

—

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Zhao Yongsen glanced at Liu Cuifang, who was wiping her tears with her sleeve, then nodded at Lu Baiwei as a greeting. 

“Alright, let’s head to my house now.” 

“Got it!” 

Tang Yunling ran up to him joyfully, grabbing the wooden beam from his hands to help him carry it. 

Every time she saw Zhao Yongsen, she always rushed to help him with whatever he was doing, regardless of whether it was heavy lifting that typically fell to men. 

Lu Baiwei was used to how her cousin acted around Zhao Yongsen and simply pushed her bicycle, following behind them. 

Liu Cuifang, however, was left fuming as she watched them walk away. With her secret exposed, how could she ever again use Feng Shishi’s name as an excuse to see He Ting? 

Wiping her tears dry with her sleeve, she turned to Zhao Tiantian, who was working nearby, and asked, “Tiantian, who was that sharp-tongued woman? She seems to know your brother pretty well.” 

As expected, Zhao Tiantian’s sister-in-law didn’t like Liu the educated youth. 

And why should she? Liu Cuifang had brought trouble to Lu Baiwei, who was Tiantian’s future sister-in-law. 

Tiantian’s sister-in-law wasn’t one to tolerate such behavior. 

Naturally, anyone Tang Yunling didn’t like, Zhao Tiantian wouldn’t like either. 

Tiantian wanted to avoid Liu Cuifang, but being a bit thin-skinned, she felt it would be rude to ignore her entirely. 

As she pulled weeds from the soybean field, Zhao Tiantian responded curtly. 

“That’s my sister-in-law.” 

“She’s engaged to my brother and will marry into our family after the New Year.” 

“And don’t blame her for what she said. What you did yesterday was wrong.” 

“You said you wanted to go to my sister-in-law Baiwei’s house, and I kindly showed you the way. But you went there just to cause trouble.” 

Zhao Tiantian frowned in disapproval. “You created trouble for my sister-in-law’s cousin. How do you expect me to get along with her after she marries into the family if you keep doing things like that?” 

So that sharp-tongued woman was the relative of that village girl. 

And she accused her of trying to steal He Ting? 

Hah, fine then! 

Let her talk big all she wants. 

When her carpenter fiancé inevitably dumps her, we’ll see if she cries or not.