Chapter 12 The two of them are like rats crossing the street

Fang Juan almost burst into tears as she listened to the crowd’s murmurs. In the past, Ji Tangtang had always been timid and clumsy with her words. Whenever she accused her of “undermining socialism,” Ji Tangtang would already be on her knees, crying and begging her for mercy. But today? Not only did she not kneel and plead like before, she had slapped her twice and retorted with sharp words…

How could this be happening?

Instinctively, she turned her head to look at Ji Tingting, hoping she would step in to help.

But Ji Tingting, at this moment, felt both flustered and disgusted. Flustered, because Ji Tangtang’s sudden change in personality was slipping completely out of her control. Disgusted, because Fang Juan was useless—just a few words from Ji Tangtang, and she was already beaten down with nothing to say. What use was she? And now, looking at her with those pleading eyes, what did she expect? Right now, it was clear Ji Tangtang had the upper hand. Instead of quickly apologizing and smoothing things over, Fang Juan turned to her—how would others see her then?

She regretted it. If she had known, she would never have stepped forward earlier. But since she already had, she could only grit her teeth, force down her irritation and remorse, and scold Fang Juan in a reproachful tone:

“Juanzi, you were indeed too impulsive today.”

After saying this to Fang Juan, she turned toward Ji Tangtang and added,

“Cousin, Juanzi just lost her temper and said the wrong thing. She was in the wrong, but hitting her wasn’t right either. We’re all from the same village—how can you just raise your hand and hit someone?”

“All from the same village, and she slaps a label on me the moment she opens her mouth?” Ji Tangtang sneered, the corner of her lips curling coldly. “If you hadn’t spoken up, I might’ve thought you both bore me some deep grudge—can’t wait to see me dead.”

Her features were already strikingly beautiful, but after being nourished by the spiritual energy of the spring these past few days, her skin had become pristine and flawless. At that moment, her cold, mocking smile didn’t diminish her beauty—instead, it lent her an air of chilling elegance and nobility.

Nie Guohao stared at Ji Tangtang in a daze, his heart pounding as though it would leap out of his chest. Beautiful—and with character. This was the true fated woman he had been waiting for all his 25 years.

But thinking of how his destined girl had been bullied, he coughed lightly, straightened his back, and swept a proud glance at Ji Tingting:

“You fake little white rabbit, stop putting on an act. I’ve seen enough of this routine. The two of you are obviously in it together—one slaps on a label, the other plays the ‘good person.’ If it weren’t for this comrade being sharp enough, you might’ve fooled someone timid into handing over her whole basket of herbs.”

The surrounding villagers suddenly looked enlightened. So that was it—they were after her herbs!

“Shameless!”

“And they’re even cousins! Ganging up with an outsider to bully their own cousin—such black hearts!”

…

Some, unable to stomach it, began pointing at Ji Tingting and cursing her outright.

Ji Tingting clenched her teeth as she listened to their scolding and saw Nie Guohao clearly standing up for Ji Tangtang. Her determination to crush Ji Tangtang beneath her feet only grew stronger. Why were these villagers insulting her? Wasn’t it all because that purchasing clerk had spoken up for Ji Tangtang? And why had he? Because of her face! Once she ruined that face, she’d see how Ji Tangtang could still seduce people.

In her mind, she was already convinced that Ji Tangtang’s newfound beauty came from her own failed scheme backfiring. All she could think about now was how to destroy Ji Tangtang’s reputation and trample her completely—so much so that she didn’t even notice Fang Juan’s increasingly desperate looks begging for help.

Seeing that she couldn’t rely on Ji Tingting, Fang Juan could only stamp her feet and shout back at the villagers:

“Who’s shameless? Don’t you slander me! I was only thinking of collective property. Isn’t the mountain collective property? What right does she have to go digging herbs there?”

Her words were like poking a hornet’s nest.

In those days, life was hard—work points alone couldn’t keep anyone fed. Many villagers survived by foraging wild vegetables, fruits, or game from the mountains. Yes, the mountains were technically collective property, but no one policed hunting or gathering—it was up to one’s own ability. Even the Fang family themselves often slipped into the mountains after work.

To say all mountain resources belonged solely to the collective, and individuals couldn’t touch them—that would cut off everyone’s livelihood!

The crowd erupted in fury, hurling curses at Fang Juan and even damning her ancestors. Some spat at her and Ji Tingting, others threw stones.

The two girls, pelted and jeered at like rats crossing the street, had no choice but to flee in disgrace.

After they ran off, the villagers didn’t disperse. Instead, they stayed behind, curious to see how much Ji Tangtang’s basket of herbs was worth.

She had 30 jin of codonopsis, sold at 1.2 yuan per jin, totaling 36 yuan.
The gastrodia weighed 13 jin, sold at 2.3 yuan per jin, totaling 29.9 yuan.
The cheapest was motherwort, 10 jin at 0.08 yuan per jin, making just 0.8 yuan.
But the two lingzhi mushrooms, after Nie Guohao reported to his superior, sold for a whopping 391.9 yuan.

Altogether, her basket of herbs fetched 458.6 yuan.

Many households wouldn’t earn even 400 yuan in a whole year of hard work. And she, with just one basket of herbs, had made over 400 yuan! Who wouldn’t be envious?

Suddenly, many people understood why Fang Juan and Ji Tingting had acted as they did. In front of such a fortune, who wouldn’t be tempted?

Nie Guohao noticed a few thuggish-looking men in the crowd eyeing Ji Tangtang with ill intent. His mind stirred, and he smiled at her:

“Comrade, you’re going to buy medicine for your father, right? My second uncle works at the clinic. Wait here—I’ll find someone to cover my shift and personally escort you there.”

But Ji Tangtang wasn’t actually planning to buy medicine, so how could she let him accompany her? She quickly declined:

“No need. I have a friend who works at the Public Security Bureau—he knows people at the clinic too. I’ll have him take me.”

With that, she tucked the money into her bag, slung her basket onto her back, and strode away briskly.

“Comrade, wait!” Nie Guohao called anxiously, running after her. But Ji Tangtang didn’t slow her pace, and within moments she had vanished into the crowd.

He sighed regretfully—he hadn’t even had time to ask her name or where she was from. How could she leave so quickly, faster than he could catch up? Yet alongside his regret, he felt an odd sense of pride. With such quick steps, surely those ruffians wouldn’t be able to catch her. The girl he fancied was truly extraordinary. He had never seen a woman walk so swiftly before!

Meanwhile, a few of the thugs slipped out of the crowd to chase after Ji Tangtang.

But though she no longer had her cultivation, she hadn’t lost her martial skill. With just a few agile movements, she easily shook them off.

The ruffians, staring at the bustling street but finding no trace of her striking figure, spat curses under their breath.