At this moment, someone outside cautiously poked their head in.

Old Lady Mo exclaimed, “Ah, speak of the devil, here comes Xiao Lu! Xiao Lu, come over here, there’s a young man who looks just like your wife’s husband.”

Lu Hang had already spotted Cheng Rushan, seeing him squatting in the dimly lit kitchen doorway, the faint light above his head casting a shadow right on him.

Lu Hang said, “Auntie, I’ve come to see you.”

Realizing he’d been noticed, Lu Hang immediately dropped his sneaky demeanor, thinking he looked cool as he flipped his hair back, hands in his pockets, swaggering over.

He was good-looking, tall, and handsome, but always leaned towards a rogue-ish style, with a raised eyebrow and a smirk, always laughing slyly, making everyone want to punch him.

Approaching, he leaned casually against the door frame, right foot resting lightly on his left, tugging at the corner of his mouth as he glanced sideways at Cheng Rushan. “Hey, you’re Jiang Lin Husband’s country bumpkin, right?”

His tone clearly said: Kid, know your place. I’m Jiang Lin’s city guy.

Cheng Rushan ignored him, speeding up his work and finishing up a few things.

Old Lady Mo was worried about tiring out the handsome young man, “Child, I’ll make you some egg noodles to eat, to give you strength.”

Her stove was still lit, with a pot sitting on top, and she opened the stove door to let the water boil directly into a small pot below.

She first mixed warm water with a large bowl of thick wheat milk, brought it over, and offered it to Cheng Rushan. “Here, drink up.”

Cheng Rushan felt her voice unusually gentle, almost as if she was expressing care for someone through him.

He smiled, “Thank you.”

His hands were covered in mud, but he didn’t mind Old Lady Mo’s rough hands, and he drank all the wheat milk directly from her hands.

Old Lady Mo beamed with joy and went to cook the noodles.

Lu Hang said, “Hey, are your ears not working? I’m talking to you.”

At this point, a country bumpkin couldn’t stand the sight of the world or the stage.

Even if he was handsome, he carried a strong earthy smell, looking simple and naive.

No one knew how linlin fell for him.

Cheng Rushan still ignored him.

Old Lady Mo couldn’t take it anymore and used the stove hook to pull Lu Hang away. “You little troublemaker, go away and don’t disturb the young man building the stove for me.”

Lu Hang protested, “Auntie, he’s stealing my wife. I’m Linlin’s man from the city, he’s Linlin’s man from the country… hey, why are you staring?”

Cheng Rushan, who had ignored him the whole time, suddenly looked up, his eyes flashing even in the darkness, sharp and intimidating.

Cheng Rushan, who had been ignoring him all along, suddenly lifted his head and glanced at him.

Even in the darkness, his eyes shone brightly, sharp and intimidating, causing unease in others’ hearts.

Lu Hang, refusing to admit his inadequacy, instead felt his anger and pride stirred.

He mockingly kicked towards Cheng Rushan, “Cat got your tongue? Say something! I’m warning you, give Linlin back to me. And keep Linlin in town from now on!”

Cheng Rushan lightly scoffed, still ignoring him.

At that moment, Jiang Xinglei, who was returning with wheat grass from outside, happened to witness Lu Hang’s provocation.

Without entering, he ran off to find Jiang Lin first.

Lu Hang was completely enraged, carelessly using his foot to kick Cheng Rushan’s arm, “Are you deaf… ah—”

Cheng Rushan held a knife in his left hand and flicked Lu Hang’s ankle with his right hand.

Lu Hang, caught off guard, lost his balance and stumbled towards the still-soft cement stove.

Just as he was about to leave a messy expression on the stove, Cheng Rushan’s lightning-fast hand grabbed his ankle and threw him down with a “thud.”

Lu Hang, weighing around 180 pounds and standing at 5’9″, never expected to be thrown down like a rag doll by Cheng Rushan.

He was furious and indignant!

He sat up and found that his carefully dressed clothes were covered in cement, looking very disheveled.

Even his precious red sweater was stained.

“Cheng Rushan, I’m going to chop you up!” Lu Hang roared in anger, raising his bowl-sized fist and aiming it at Cheng Rushan’s face.

Cheng Rushan tilted his head, and the handle of the knife in his hand struck his acupuncture point.

Lu Hang’s arm went limp, weak and sore.

Despite this, he refused to admit defeat, continuing to throw punches, considering himself someone who had trained with fighters and should be unbeatable in this factory area.

Cheng Rushan didn’t bother with fancy moves and was too lazy to engage further.

Lu Hang was enjoying himself, throwing punches and kicks without restraint.

Cheng Rushan swiftly countered.

He formed his fingers into a beak-like shape and pecked Lu Hang’s armpits, outer knee, elbows, and other sensitive spots, making Lu Hang feel numb and causing him to hop around in pain.

Lu Hang became more daring as he was thwarted, shouting wildly, “You brat, don’t accuse me of bullying you!”

When Lu Hang attempted a flying kick, Cheng Rushan bent his elbow and propped Lu Hang’s leg, sending him crashing outside the door with a thud.

Old Lady Mo clapped her hands in approval, “Well done, well done, what a fight!”

Lu Hang asked, “Old lady, whose side are you on?”

Old Lady Mo replied, “His.”

Lu Hang insisted, “Let’s go again!”

He got up and rushed back, determined to bring down Cheng Rushan.

Cheng Rushan calmly said, “I’ve been holding back. Are you sure you want to continue?”

He didn’t bear any malice towards Lu Hang.

After all, despite his bad reputation, Lu Hang had openly provoked him without bringing a gang or weapons for a sneak attack.

Lu Hang’s eyes reddened as he shouted, “Let’s continue!”

It was about a man’s pride and the woman; he had to continue!

He threw a punch, and Cheng Rushan stopped using finesse, hitting back with a direct punch.

The fists collided with a loud “bang.” Cheng Rushan remained steady, while Lu Hang cried out in pain.

He yelled, “I won’t accept defeat even in death!” and kicked towards Cheng Rushan again.

Cheng Rushan countered with a kick, and the sound of Lu Hang’s ankle crunching was sour to the ears.

Lu Hang writhed in pain on the ground but refused to give up, his eyes burning with determination. “I’m telling you, you won’t defeat me.”

Cheng Rushan replied calmly, “You seem to have symptoms of mental illness. You should be sent to a psychiatric hospital.”

No longer holding back, when Lu Hang swung his elbow forward, Cheng Rushan placed one hand under Lu Hang’s elbow and gripped his shoulder with the other.

With a forceful twist against Lu Hang’s momentum, he dislocated Lu Hang’s arm.

“Ahh!” Despite considering himself tough, Lu Hang clutched his arm in agony and collapsed against the door frame. “If you don’t kill me today, Linlin will be my wife, and we…”

Cheng Rushan pressed a hand against Lu Hang’s throat, pinning him to the ground.

His knee followed to restrain any further resistance. “Your wife, huh?”

Lu Hang struggled to breathe under Cheng Rushan’s grip, his face quickly turning purple.

Old Lady Mo intervened, “Don’t kill him. Murder has consequences.”

Cheng Rushan was only intimidating him, being measured.

He loosened his grip slightly. “Speak. I’m not deaf.”

Lu Hang stammered, “You’re… you’re formidable. How about… how about you marry her as a country husband, and I…”

His neck was choked again, his eyes bulging.

Cheng Rushan snorted coldly, raising an eyebrow.

His expression wasn’t furious or cold but rather mocking and playful. “You think you’re worthy?”

Lu Hang pleaded, “I… I don’t ask for much. How about… I get you and Linlin jobs at the textile factory, and I… can I have her for three days a week… oh, two days…”

He choked again, his tongue nearly falling out.

Cheng Rushan picked up a nearby knife, wiped it on the edge of a bucket, and casually examined it. “This knife is quite fast too.”

Lu Hang’s eyes bulged with fear. “Please…”

Cheng Rushan relaxed his grip, and Lu Hang quickly withdrew his tongue.

Cheng Rushan said calmly, “No worries. I could also fill your mouth with cement to make sure you never speak again.”

“Brother… spare me!” Lu Hang’s face turned pale. “I admit Linlin is your wife. I… I was just interested. I… I was like a toad wanting to eat swan meat…”

Old Lady Mo chuckled heartily, clapping her hands. “You’re still a toad! You’re clearly just a dumb donkey, haha.”

Lu Hang remained silent.

Cheng Rushan reached into Lu Hang’s pocket and pulled out a plastic wallet.

Opening it, he found a single photo of Jiang Lin inside.

He examined it, noticing similarities and differences with his own perception of her.

The girl in the photo looked discontented, with dull eyes and a slightly downturned mouth, emanating an aura of displeasure even through the picture.

Lu Hang’s heart raced with nervousness, afraid Cheng Rushan might take it away.

Fortunately, he had several more at home—some torn from Jiang Lin’s school records, others from rural documents…

Cheng Rushan compared the photo to his own.

Despite showing the same face, they looked like different people.

Lu Hang exclaimed, “Damn, yours is real, mine’s fake!”

Cheng Rushan chuckled, returning Lu Hang’s photo without confiscating or destroying it.

Lu Hang pleaded, “That’s mine! Don’t swap it!” He pointed at the photo of Jiang Lin with a gleaming look in Cheng Rushan’s wallet.

Summoning courage, he said, “You… you’ve got it wrong. That one’s mine.”

Cheng Rushan’s smiling eyes turned cold instantly as he stared at Lu Hang, more menacing than before.

He said coldly, “In the past, if you liked her, I didn’t mind. Now she’s my wife and the mother of my child. If you dare utter another inappropriate word or action, I’ll send you to the psychiatric hospital.”

He stared threateningly at Lu Hang. “Don’t test me. Patience is the one thing I have plenty of.”

Lu Hang couldn’t help but shiver, feeling like he had fallen into a bottomless black pit, terrified and overwhelmed by the intense gaze of Cheng Rushan’s pitch-black eyes.

It seemed Jiang Lin was the light in that bottomless pit, not to be coveted by anyone else.

“I… I… Linlin!” Lu Hang saw Jiang Lin and Jiang Xinglei running in from outside.

He quickly waved and smiled broadly.

Cheng Rushan sighed inwardly, “…”

He instantly withdrew his cold demeanor. Was it necessary to take someone like Lu Hang seriously?

Cheng Rushan had actually investigated.

In the past few years, Lu Hang had only corresponded with Meng Yiyi and sent money.

Although he had sneaked into the countryside to see Jiang Lin, they had never met.

After returning to the city to continue his life, there was no exclusive relationship with Jiang Lin.

This sudden fervor upon meeting her was either foolish or completely clueless.

He released Lu Hang, deciding not to bother with fools.

Lu Hang scrambled to his feet, holding his own photo as he ran towards Jiang Lin. “Linlin, look at this outdated photo of me. Can you give me a current one?”

Jiang Lin glanced at his muddy appearance, swollen face, and a purple bruise on his neck that looked like it was from hanging.

He looked utterly disheveled.

Rolling her eyes, she ran over to Cheng Rushan. “Are you alright?”

Cheng Rushan pocketed his wallet and smiled, “I’m fine. Lu Hang said he wanted to get to know me.”

Jiang Xinglei, seeing Lu Hang’s sorry state, whispered, “You see how formidable my brother-in-law is? I know how to read signals. When he walked towards me earlier, I immediately sensed danger and apologized. Sure enough, my brother-in-law didn’t lay a finger on me.”

Lu Hang had clearly taken a beating.

Muttering to himself, Lu Hang grumbled softly, “Brute. If I had brought my brothers, would he still have stood his ground? I’m just saving face for Linlin, after all…” His pride wouldn’t allow him to admit defeat.

“You better drop it,” Jiang Xinglei wasn’t afraid of him at all. “Even if you brought your brothers, they’d just end up getting beat up too.”

Lu Hang fell silent.

Cheng Rushan turned to Old Lady Mo, “Grandma, this is my wife.”

Old Lady Mo chuckled, “What a handsome couple! She looks just like me when I was young.”

She scooped out the egg noodles and placed them in a small enamel basin, beckoning to them, “Children, come, eat some noodles.”

Jiang Lin declined politely, “Grandma Mo, we’ve already prepared dinner at home. We’re heading back now.”

Old Lady Mo said, “This one is yours, and this one is mine. Dig in!” It seemed she would regret it if Cheng Rushan didn’t eat.

Cheng Rushan washed his hands and sat down to eat the noodles.

Old Lady Mo had boiled plain noodles with clear broth and two eggs, no oil or salt added.

He insisted Jiang Lin should not eat and finished the bland noodles himself.

After eating, he smiled, “Grandma, these noodles are delicious. Thank you.”

Old Lady Mo’s dry face bloomed into a big smile. “From now on, I can use a big pot to cook noodles, much faster.”

She then fetched five yuan from inside and handed it to Cheng Rushan. “Child, here’s your wages.”

Cheng Rushan chuckled, “Noodles as wages, huh?”

Old Lady Mo insisted he take it.

Cheng Rushan took one yuan. “This is enough, more wouldn’t be appropriate.”

Old Lady Mo didn’t press further and put the rest away.

She turned to Jiang Lin and smiled, “You’re prettier than a little donkey.”

Jiang Lin glanced at Lu Hang.

Lu Hang looked like he had no idea what they were talking about.

Cheng Rushan finished smoothing the stove with cement and tying a stone with hemp rope to the chimney.

This should solve any problems with starting fires.

Cheng Rushan bid farewell to Old Lady Mo, and they all headed home together.

At the crossroads, Jiang Lin turned and glared at Lu Hang. “Are you out of your mind?”

Lu Hang replied, “Seems like I am.”

He couldn’t move a step once he saw her.

It was like we were positive and negative magnets, attracting each other.

Cheng Rushan glanced at him. “Come, I’ll treat you to a drink.”

Lu Hang eagerly followed, though one foot hurt so much it felt broken.

He knew it wasn’t, just painful from the beating.

He figured resting for a couple of days would help.