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The faces of the Lin family were full of mixed emotions—fear, anger, unease…
Lin Yan stepped in front of Lin Ting and said coldly, “If you’ve got something to say, say it to me.”
“My sister doesn’t know anything.”
Zhao Dongming raised his club and swung it at Lin Yan’s knee. But Lin Ting reacted fast and pulled her brother aside—Zhao missed and hit the television set, smashing the screen to pieces. The men behind him all had looks of regret on their faces, as if they had just missed out on ten thousand yuan.
Lin Ting swallowed her rage and gave a placating smile.
“Comrade Zhao, I’ll go into the room with you. No need to get so angry.”
She gave her family a reassuring look and followed Zhao Dongming into a room.
Once inside, Zhao locked the door from the inside.
Lin Ting stood with arms crossed, keeping a safe distance from him.
Zhao’s eyes held a strange glint. “Are you afraid of me?”
Lin Ting fought the urge to roll her eyes. “Afraid of you? Not at all.”
If this weren’t such a sensitive moment, I’d have already beaten you senseless.
Zhao Dongming stepped closer and lowered his voice.
“You coming in here with me—doesn’t that mean you’ve agreed?”
Lin Ting took two steps back and said coldly,
“You haven’t even said what you want. What am I supposed to agree to?”
Zhao reached for the buttons on her shirt. “You’ve got a fiancé already. Why pretend to be pure?”
“Slap!”
A loud slap landed across Zhao Dongming’s face. He stared in disbelief.
“You dare hit me?”
He raised his hand to hit her back—but Lin Ting slapped him again, even harder.
Her rage had finally found an outlet.
“Open the door!”
“Xiaoting! Are you okay?” Her mother shouted from outside.
Lin Ting quickly replied, “I’m fine, Mom. Don’t worry.”
If someone’s not fine, it’s definitely not me.
She grabbed Zhao Dongming by the collar and, in a voice only they could hear, whispered:
“What do you think would happen if those guys outside found out you’re an illegitimate child?”
Zhao’s lashes trembled. He was shocked. “What nonsense are you talking about?”
Lin Ting smirked.
“That so-called relative on the Revolutionary Committee—isn’t he your real father?”
“What would the Zhao family do if they knew the truth?”
“Without your precious little ‘umbrella,’ do you think you’d still be strutting around like this?”
“Struggle sessions, labor reform, sleeping in cowsheds… Interested in a taste of that?”
To be honest, she had to thank Chen Li from her past life—he’d spilled a lot of juicy gossip. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have had anything to use against Zhao.
Zhao stopped pretending and hissed,
“If you dare breathe a word of this, your whole family is dead!”
Lin Ting stared him down without flinching.
“If you dare touch even a hair on my family’s heads, I’ll make sure you die in pieces.”
In her past life, Zhao had climbed the ranks by stealing her father’s research.
In this life, she would make him pay it all back with interest.
Zhao realized she wasn’t bluffing. His tone softened.
“I’m your father’s student. I only came today to help safeguard his research.”
“If I’ve done anything to make you uncomfortable, I apologize.”
Lin Ting’s voice was ice cold.
“Take those thugs and get out of my house—now.”
“Or you won’t be able to afford the consequences.”
Zhao took a deep breath, then turned and opened the door.
“Brothers, that’s enough for today. Let’s go!”
Lin’s mother rushed in and grabbed Lin Ting, examining her carefully.
“Xiaoting, are you okay?”
“I’m fine, Mom.”
“Did Zhao Dongming hit you just now?” she asked.
“No, I hit him.”
Mother Lin froze, stunned.
Lin Yan blinked, just realizing what had happened.
“No wonder I saw him storming out with two red handprints on his face!”
Fu Wan’ning looked puzzled. “And he just let you hit him like that?”
Lin Ting shook her head.
“I know his secret.”
“He’s afraid I’ll tell—so he had to swallow it.”
Wan’ning was curious. “What secret?”
Lin Ting didn’t answer right away. She went out and closed the courtyard gate first.
“Zhao Dongming is an illegitimate child. His biological father is that so-called ‘relative’ on the Revolutionary Committee.”
The whole Lin family was stunned.
Mother Lin asked, “How do you know this?”
“Chen Li told me,” Lin Ting replied truthfully.
Lin Yan fumed,
“A bastard like him dares to act like he’s above us?!”
Lin Ting motioned for him to calm down.
“I’ve already got a plan. Just wait for my news.”
Mother Lin looked worried.
“Whatever happens, you need to be careful. Don’t let anyone find out you’re the one behind this.”
Those thugs wrecked our home. I’d love to take revenge too—but not at the cost of your safety.
“I know, Mom.”
They finally had time to assess the mess in their home.
Mother Lin sighed.
“The kitchen’s been nearly emptied. If I’d known, I wouldn’t have bought so much food.”
Lin Ting lowered her voice.
“Mom, I hid some of it.”
She brought out a huge burlap sack from her room.
“Look, this is all from the kitchen.”
Seeing the rice, flour, and oil all there, Mother Lin’s eyes welled up with tears.
“Good girl. If it weren’t for you, we’d be starving tonight.”
After all, the family had just been raided. Even if they had money, going to a state-run restaurant now would attract attention. It was best to lay low.
Lin Ting also pulled out everyone’s hidden belongings.
“Check if there’s anything you want to use now—if not, I’ll find a place to store it again.”
Fu Wan’ning was overjoyed to see her beautiful clothes, cosmetics, and skincare items intact.
“I don’t know if they’ll come back. You’d better hide it all again for now.”
“Got it.”
Mother Lin took out just a bit of rice and preserved meat to cook some lard rice, and three eggs to make steamed egg custard for her granddaughters.
Everything else, she had Lin Ting stash away.
Professor Lin didn’t return until dusk.
He already knew they’d been raided.
Even though the house had been tidied up before his return, the signs of destruction were still everywhere.
After feeling a wave of bitterness, he quickly shared the latest news.
“They didn’t find any evidence.”
“My work has always been aboveboard. They didn’t get anything they can use against me.”
“The worst that could happen is being sent to the countryside. Commander Ling has already promised to try and get us sent to the same place as Xiaoting.”
Mother Lin quickly asked,
“Xiaoting signed up to go to the northeast. Should we tell Commander Ling?”
Professor Lin shook his head.
“No need. He knows people in the Youth Office. He can just access the records when the time comes.”
“For now, let’s avoid contact with outsiders. We don’t want to drag anyone else into our mess.”
Mother Lin’s throat caught. She sighed softly—