Chapter 15: Zhao Wen Goes on a Date

Zhao Wen was the first male heir of the Zhao family. Not only did Zhao Debao value him highly, but Liu Dani practically held him in the palm of her hand.

Seeing her grandson shed tears hurt Liu Dani more than being beaten herself.

“If anything gets in the way of my eldest grandson finding a wife, that’s unacceptable. Here, take some money—go out and enjoy yourself.” Liu Dani reached into her pants pocket and pulled out 10 yuan, then leaned in and whispered in Zhao Wen’s ear, “If that future granddaughter-in-law of mine can give our Zhao family a great-grandson early, Grandma will reward you handsomely.”

Zhao Wen’s eyes lit up, and he nodded in understanding.

Wu Cui lived in the neighboring Wu family village. Although technically separate, the two villages were right next to each other—only about a ten-minute walk apart.

Zhao Wen jogged the whole way and arrived at Wu Cui’s house in no time.

Knock knock knock.

As he knocked on the door, Zhao Wen glanced around nervously.

At this time of day, Wu Cui’s parents and two older brothers were likely working in the fields.

But Zhao Wen didn’t dare just push the door open. Last time he had snuck in to see Wu Cui, her eldest brother had caught him and almost beat him half to death.

If Wu Cui hadn’t threatened to kill herself, Zhao Wen might not have walked out of there alive.

“Who is it?” came Wu Cui’s sweet, delicate voice from inside the house.

Zhao Wen’s heart thumped like a rabbit pounding against his chest.

He pressed his ear to the door. Other than Wu Cui’s voice, there were no other sounds in the courtyard.

He pushed the door open, tiptoed inside, and quickly turned around to bolt it shut. Then he made a beeline for Wu Cui’s room.

“Xiao Cui, did you miss me? Wen-ge came to see you~”

As soon as he walked in, Zhao Wen launched into his sweet-talking mode.

Wu Cui was sitting at the desk by her bed, brushing her hair. She glanced up at him, and immediately pouted.

“Hmph!”

“You’ve got some nerve coming here! You liar! Didn’t you say a few days ago you were going to use your sister’s betrothal gift to come propose to me?

How come once you went home, you vanished without a word?”

Wu Cui threw the comb from her hand and collapsed onto the desk, sobbing loudly.

Her fingers clutched the edge of her sleeve, and her thin shoulders trembled as she cried—like she had been wronged beyond belief.

Zhao Wen paced back and forth, trying hard to explain, “Something unexpected came up at home. But look—I’m here now, aren’t I?

It’s all my fault. Please stop crying. It breaks my heart to see you like this.

I, Zhao Wen, swear I’ll marry no one but you in this life. Please, my dear girl, stop crying!”

Pfft.

The sobbing Wu Cui couldn’t help but laugh through her tears at Zhao Wen’s overly dramatic declaration.

“Good thing you still have a conscience—otherwise I’d make you regret it.”

Wu Cui twirled a strand of her hair with her right hand, looking at Zhao Wen with misty eyes, pouting playfully.

Any other man might have been annoyed by Wu Cui’s pretentiousness.

But Zhao Wen loved this kind of girl—no matter how she acted up or threw a tantrum,
she was always perfect in his eyes.

He opened his arms and pulled Wu Cui into his embrace from behind. Her body carried a faint fragrance that went straight through his nose, right into his heart.

Wu Cui lowered her head and leaned sideways into his chest, resting her whole body against him.

—-

Out in the wheat field, Zhang Xiulian and her daughter Zhao Lili were each holding a shovel, walking back and forth from one end of the field to the other.

Whenever irrigation water spilled into someone else’s field, they quickly shoveled soil to block the gap.

At this time of year, the wheat needed a lot of water—it was crucial to ensure the crops got a full drink.

Zhang Xiulian’s field spanned several acres and happened to be right next to the village’s new irrigation canal.

That made watering much easier than for most others.

“Lili, once we finish watering this section, we’ll head home. We’ve been out here since early morning—it’s almost noon, time to go eat.”

Zhang Xiulian straightened up and tossed her straw hat onto her daughter’s head.

It had been a long time since she last did farm work, and she wasn’t used to it anymore.

Her back ached like it might snap, and her legs felt as heavy as if they were made of lead.

If it weren’t for her daughter helping the entire time, she would’ve collapsed long ago.

In her past life, she had done nearly all the fieldwork alone.

Zhao Debao lazed around all day, playing cards, chatting at the village entrance, never lifting a finger.

During busy farming seasons, Zhang Xiulian would work from dawn till dusk.

Other families worked together—she had only herself. She had to wake earlier and sleep later than everyone else.

Throughout the entire wheat harvest season, her skin would peel off layer after layer from the sun.

Even with all that physical labor, she still had to go home and cook, do laundry, feed the livestock…

And she was still regularly beaten by Zhao Debao.

Sigh… In my previous life, I must’ve dug up Zhao Debao’s ancestral grave to be doomed to serve him like a slave this time around.

But now that she had another chance at life, she would no longer silently suffer.

Next time there was work to be done, Zhao Debao would come—if not willingly, she’d drag him out herself!

Thinking of all this made Zhang Xiulian grit her teeth in anger.

“Come on, sweetie. We’re done. Let’s go home—Mama will make you something delicious.”

Just as they reached the front gate, Zhang Xiulian heard a burst of noise coming from the courtyard—

Laughter filled the air—joyful, unrestrained laughter.

It came straight from the belly and made anyone who heard it feel cheerful too.

When she pushed open the door, she saw a plump middle-aged woman in the yard, wearing a poop-yellow perm, hands on her hips, throwing her head back and swaying around dramatically.

Zhao Debao and Liu Dani stood nearby clapping and laughing heartily, mouths wide open.

Zhao Lili narrowed her eyes. Her brows furrowed into a sharp crease as she pointed at the woman’s back. “Mom, isn’t that your new outfit? Why is she wearing it?”

Following her daughter’s finger, Zhang Xiulian’s gaze landed on the woman’s clothes.

The gray suit that had originally been well-fitted and tailored was now stretched tight across the woman’s rolls of fat, bulging and straining at the seams.

Especially at the crotch and thighs—the pant seams looked like they were seconds away from bursting!

Zhang Xiulian’s expression darkened. Her breathing grew heavy, and she slammed the iron shovel in her hand onto the ground.

Bang!

Dust exploded off the floor, and even the weeds seemed to tremble from the impact.

“Which shameless tramp is this, sneaking into my house to wear my clothes? Which one of Zhao Debao’s mistresses are you, coming to the house in broad daylight!?”

Without another word, Zhang Xiulian charged at the fat woman’s back like a madwoman.

She shoved her hard from behind. Caught completely off guard, the woman lost her balance.

Thud!

She fell flat on her face.

Zhang Xiulian jumped on top of her in one swift move, clenched her fists, and began raining punches down on her back and head.

Years of farm work had made Zhang Xiulian as strong as a man. Her fists were like sandbags—hard even for Zhao Debao to withstand.

If she hadn’t already been working all morning, her blows would’ve been even more overwhelming.

“You dare wear my clothes? You dare steal my man? I’ll beat you to death, you home-wrecking witch!”

Zhang Xiulian chanted like a mantra as her fists continued to fly.

The fat woman was clearly stunned. It took her several seconds before she started crying and shouting, “Zhang Xiulian, you bitch! How dare you hit me!”

She pushed against the ground and tried to lift herself up, but just as she turned her head, Zhang Xiulian shoved her forehead down again.

“Pah! Just looking at your disgusting face makes me sick!”

Then she grabbed a handful of the woman’s hair and yanked it back hard.

The woman shrieked in pain, “Zhao Debao! Are you dead? Come help me!”

A dumbfounded Zhao Debao finally snapped out of his daze.

He rushed over, grabbed Zhang Xiulian around the waist, and forcefully pulled her off the fat woman.