Chapter 76 : It turns out that they are the ones who caused Li Minglang’s unpredictable behavior

Nangong Ruochen and his two close friends stood beneath a large tree outside the Li family courtyard. When they saw Yun Siying come out safely, they finally relaxed. But seeing her walking side by side with Xue Zhiqiang irritated them. Nangong Ruochen stepped forward and asked with concern, “Are you alright?”

The three of them had been worried about her going to the Li family’s house for dinner. After all, the last time Shu Chengzhi had dinner there, he ended up with an extra wife. So the three had stationed themselves near the Li family home, ready to act if anything went wrong.

“In order to avoid returning the 200 yuan betrothal gift from the Xue family, the Li family tried to scheme against me and Xue Zhiqiang. I played along and swapped my sweet soup with Shu Ruxue’s. This guy noticed something too and swapped his with Shen Subai’s. The people inside still haven’t figured anything out,” Yun Siying said coldly. The aura she gave off, even unintentionally, was intimidating.

Xue Zhiqiang, standing next to her, was deeply grateful he had switched the bowls. If he hadn’t, he might have spent half his life regretting the outcome.

“I’m glad you’re alright. If you hadn’t come out soon, I was going to climb over the wall,” Nangong Ruochen said, and seeing how she treated Xue Zhiqiang, the dissatisfaction he felt toward her faded.

“Siying, do you want us to help teach that family a lesson? It felt great teaching Li Minglang a lesson last time with Nangong, though I admit the smell was a bit much,” Han Yuecheng offered. He felt the Li family was full of filth and scum. As he rambled, he didn’t notice the warning glances his two friends were giving him.

Yun Siying was surprised but also touched. “So it was you who made Li Minglang fall into the toilet? I really like that method. Thanks for helping me vent my anger.”

Yun Siying’s reaction made Nangong Ruochen feel like they were the same kind of people, and that made him even more pleased, he decided to let Han Yuecheng off the hook for being reckless.

“Want me to go in now and stir up trouble for the Li family?” Han Yuecheng asked eagerly.

“Let’s go! Aunt Xu’s people should be arriving soon. I’m sure she’ll be delighted with the gift I left her,” Yun Siying said with a wicked grin.

Xue Zhiqiang shuddered. “You’re speeding up the process of giving them a son-in-law,” he thought. And apparently, he’d played a part in that. Oh well, he wasn’t exactly innocent either, having let others scheme for him.

Shu Ruxue likely knew about the Li family’s plan against them. As for Shen Subai, Xue Zhiqiang wasn’t sure. The two of them weren’t even married yet, but he’d helped them anyway. They should be grateful he didn’t switch the soup with Li Gang’s instead. Thinking about it, he felt like he’d been a pretty decent person after all.

After Yun Siying and her group left, Shu Ruxue and Shen Subai began to feel a little warm. They assumed it was just the heat and the fullness from dinner, so they didn’t think much of it. However, Shu Ruxue did know her parents’ intentions toward Yun Siying. Watching the group’s retreating figures, she secretly hoped to see Yun Siying humiliated, talked about behind her back.

“Dad, Subai and I are going to head back now,” Shu Ruxue said, pulling Shen Subai toward the Youth Courtyard. They followed not far behind Yun Siying, but now there were three more people in her group Nangong Ruochen and his friends.

Shen Subai had been invited to dinner by Shu Ruxue. He was reluctant at first, still feeling unlucky about the time his brother visited the countryside and ended up with an extra wife. But when he heard Yun Siying would be there too, and that the food would be lavish, he couldn’t resist. He thought he’d witness some drama. Surprisingly, it had all been rather calm.

Yun Siying hadn’t become rough or shabby after moving to the countryside, on the contrary she had grown more beautiful. Her eyes shone with vitality and spirit, no longer holding that same humble look.

Yun Siying had noticed the moment Shu Ruxue began trailing her. She didn’t need to guess, she knew Shu Ruxue wanted to watch her make a fool of herself. Curling her lips into a smile, Yun Siying said, “It’s quite cool by the river. Let’s go take a walk.”

“Alright! But Comrade Xue, isn’t it about time for you to head back?” Of course, the others had noticed the two people trailing behind them, and they knew Yun Siying was up to something. So they all played along very well even Xue Zhiqiang.

“Thanks for your concern, but I don’t want to go back just yet,” Xue Zhiqiang replied. He didn’t have many vacation days to begin with, and Yun Siying didn’t seem to have any special feelings for him. Seeing the way Nangong Zhiqing treated her, he realized the road to winning her over was going to be difficult. He had to seize every opportunity to spend time with her, there was no way he would leave now.

“Yun Siying, did they really put something in the syrup?” Xue Zhiqiang asked uncertainly, mostly just trying to find something to talk about with Yun Siying.

“If you had doubts, why did you help me swap the syrup with theirs?” Yun Siying asked, puzzled by his behavior.

“I just felt… you wouldn’t hurt me, so…” Xue Zhiqiang replied awkwardly. He had acted instinctively and only processed everything afterward.

“In reality, the Li family doesn’t like me at all. When they suddenly invited me over for dinner today, I suspected it was a trap, a Hongmen Feast so I had to stay alert. If you look back at Shu Ruxue and Shen Subai’s faces now, you’ll see that I was right.” Yun Siying looked at his expression. He seemed like a smart man. Could she have misjudged him?

Xue Zhiqiang actually turned around. The two people who had been trailing them closely were now flushed, their eyes unfocused, hands absentmindedly unbuttoning their clothes, their steps unsteady, still murmuring to each other. It was clearly not normal behavior.

“I’m leaving first,” Yun Siying said. She had no interest in watching a live erotic drama and quickly picked up her pace to walk ahead. The other four behind her also picked up speed, walking rapidly as if a pack of dogs were chasing them.

After turning two corners, the group finally slowed down. As they passed by some villagers, they greeted them enthusiastically. “Hello, Aunties!”

“Yun Siying! Where have you been?”

“Auntie, Uncle Li and Aunt Xu invited me over for a meal and promised not to interfere in my affairs anymore. They also made it clear to Comrade Xue that the marriage arranged by the Li family doesn’t count. I met Nangong and the others by the river on the way back from their house, and we’re heading back to the Youth Courtyard together,” Yun Siying said with a smile.

“Really? You’re not being tricked by them, are you?” The aunt looked skeptical after all Li Gang wasn’t someone who gave up easily.

“It’s true, Auntie. Look, I’m back safe and sound,” Yun Siying replied. She sighed inwardly at how simple and sincere people were in this era.

“That’s good then. It’s getting late. You’d better head back to the Youth Courtyard early,” the aunt said kindly, looking at the beautiful young woman with genuine concern.

“Thank you, Auntie. I’ll head back now.” Yun Siying smiled and walked off.

Back at the Li household, when Xu Ziying and the village aunts arrived, only Li Gang was at home. She looked around in confusion. “Old Li, where are Siying and the others?”

“They said they were going back to the Youth Farm. They’re probably still on the way. They forgot to bring the pickled mustard for Siying and Ruxue. You should take it to the two kids,” Li Gang said, giving Xu Ziying a meaningful look.

Xu Ziying understood immediately and said to the aunts behind her, “You all sit in the yard for a bit. I’ll just take some pickled mustard to the kids and be right back.”

The aunts looked at Li Gang, then said, “We won’t sit down. It’s still early, let’s head over to the big banyan tree at the village entrance to enjoy the evening breeze. It’s on the way, so we’ll go together!”

Xu Ziying went into the house and came out carrying two small ceramic jars. She said to them, “Let’s go! I haven’t been to the village entrance in a long time.”