Chapter 6 – Revenge

This was truly heartbreaking to think about.

Back in the day, Lin Ting’s parents had personally arranged several truckloads of medical supplies to be delivered—at great personal risk—for the Korean War effort.

For two or three decades, they had dedicated their lives to agricultural science and education. They hadn’t exactly cultivated talents “all across the land,” but they had definitely trained many excellent students for the country.

And now, the Lin family had become the target of mass hatred—labeled as “capitalist roaders” and “stinking intellectuals.” Anyone who associated with them risked being dragged down too.

Those they had once helped had now become the very spears turned against them.

Justice and public order seemed to have been swallowed by a celestial dog.

Lin Ting quickly moved to comfort her mother.
“Mom, the dark clouds will pass. As long as our family stays together, there will always be light on the other side.”

Lin Yan chimed in,
“Exactly. As long as we have a clear conscience, it doesn’t matter what they do.”

“I’ve always believed that justice may be late, but it will never fail to arrive.”

Mother Lin’s eyes reddened, but they gleamed with firm resolve.
“You’re both right.”

“Intellectuals started getting sent down to the countryside as early as the ’60s. Compared to others, we’ve held out for a long time.”

Hearing her speak so reasonably reassured the whole family. But that night, lying in beds that had just been ransacked by thugs, none of them slept well.

Lin Ting gave up on sleeping altogether and sat down at her desk to collect her thoughts.

In three days, she’d be sent to the countryside. She had to stockpile supplies—food, clothing, and daily necessities.

As for Chen Li hiding banned books under their family’s pine tree and then turning around to report them? She hadn’t decided how to get revenge on him yet.

Then there was Zhao Dongming. She needed to make sure his family discovered his true identity and let them deal with him. That would be the smartest move.

Thank goodness she remembered who he really was. If not, she wouldn’t have known how to turn the tables when she did.

The rest of the night, she focused on planning how to deal with Zhao Dongming—after all, she had some solid leads on him. If she could pull it off, she might even take down his “patron” along the way: Cao Zhenping, the director of the Revolutionary Committee Office.

The next morning, Lin Ting ate breakfast, then left the house with a bunch of ration and supply tickets her mother had exchanged with others.

She didn’t head straight to shop. Instead, she changed her appearance—transforming herself into a peasant girl from the countryside visiting the city.

She darkened her skin with makeup, stuck a black mole in the middle of her forehead, and wrapped her hair in a gray plaid scarf. Even her own mother wouldn’t have recognized her on the street.

Her destination: the residential compound of the city’s shoe factory, where Zhao Dongming’s family lived.

His father was the workshop director, his grandfather a retired cadre from the same factory—so the Zhao family still had some status there.

Sure enough, it didn’t take long for her to ask around and find their address. But instead of heading straight to the house, she struck up conversations with a few chatty aunties who were eager to gossip.

“Comrade, how are you related to the Zhao family?” asked one sharp-eyed auntie, already glowing with curiosity.

“I’m Cao Zhaodi’s childhood friend,” Lin Ting replied.

A younger woman asked curiously, “Who’s Cao Zhaodi?”

Before Lin Ting could respond, another woman jumped in eagerly,
“That’s Zhao Director’s wife—Cao Jinhua!”

“She changed her name after marriage. You young daughters-in-law wouldn’t know her yet.”

Then one of the aunties tugged Lin Ting’s sleeve and asked,
“Never seen you before. What brings you here today?”

Lin Ting ignored the mocking tone—implying she’d come to mooch or beg.

She paused, then said slowly,
“My mother-in-law’s in the hospital here in the city. I stayed up all night with her and thought I’d stop by to borrow a bed from Zhaodi to catch up on sleep.”

She added with meaning,
“Zhaodi used to stay over at my house all the time—I figured she wouldn’t mind if I did the same now.”

One of the gossiping aunties frowned.
“Really? I thought the Cao family’s village brigade was doing just fine.”

“She had to borrow a bed from you?”

Lin Ting let out a deep, meaningful sigh.
“There’s a lot you don’t know… But forget it. I shouldn’t say too much and risk causing trouble for Zhaodi.”

She turned to walk away, only to be pulled back by several aunties.
“Hey now, you can’t just stop mid-story!”

“Finish what you were saying. Anyway, she’s not even home right now—her husband and father-in-law are both out. No one’s there to host you.”

Lin Ting shook her head and held firm.
“I can’t say more.”

“I won’t betray my best friend.”

“She’s had a hard life. But family shame shouldn’t be aired in public. If only I were more capable—I’d make things right for her myself.”

“But now that she’s married and has a good life, let the past stay buried.”

That only made the aunties more desperate to hear the gossip.

“Comrade, don’t worry. We’re all women here. We would never sell out another woman.”

“Exactly! Our lips are tighter than your front door!”

“We swear we won’t breathe a word.”

Seeing that the moment was ripe, Lin Ting gave a theatrical sigh and then, like a bamboo tube spilling beans, she started her tale.

“You don’t know this, but Zhaodi isn’t even Cao’s biological daughter. The old man picked her up off the streets and raised her.”

“She was beautiful growing up—tall, curvy, the kind of girl who turns heads. Her adoptive older brother, Cao, started harassing her whenever the adults weren’t home.”

“She had no choice but to frequently stay at my house.”

She paused for dramatic effect—someone immediately urged her to go on.

“Eventually, she got pregnant. No matter what she did, she couldn’t get rid of the baby. Around that time, someone noticed she was pretty and introduced her to a relative in the city—the Zhao family you all know.”

Then she warned them with a serious face,
“Don’t go spreading this. It’s a big secret.”

“Zhaodi has had a rough life. She’s finally living well now—we can’t ruin that for her.”

One of the younger wives clenched her fists.
“That Cao guy is a monster!”

“If Auntie Cao had reported him back then, he’d have been sentenced for lewd behavior!”

Someone else suddenly realized something.
“Wait—Cao… Isn’t that the same guy who works at the Revolutionary Committee?”

Lin Ting jumped on the chance.
“Yes! That’s him!”

“I heard that ever since he got that city job, he’s been terrified that Zhaodi might still be under his control.”

“Afraid she’ll speak out.”

Seeing that she’d planted enough seeds, Lin Ting prepared to make her exit.

“Actually, I don’t think I’ll stay over after all. If I run into that Cao guy, I won’t be able to protect myself.”

“Let’s just pretend we never had this conversation.”

With that, she made a quick getaway, leaving the aunties and daughters-in-law wide-eyed, gasping, and whispering among themselves.

Just then, Old Zhao returned from playing chess. He gave them a suspicious look.
“What’s all this sighing about?”