The graveyard, which had been bustling for an entire day, suddenly fell silent. Chen Mazi quickly made his way to the grave of the Yu family girl. Now that there was no one else on the mountain, he needed to dig up the gun and wait until nightfall to take it away.

After that, it wouldn’t matter to him even if this bunch of fools dug the entire mountain hollow.

He tucked the pistol into his waistband. The long hunting rifle had already been placed inside the cloth bag that also held his shovel, so to outsiders, it wouldn’t look suspicious.

Once everything was ready and he was about to go down the mountain, a sudden female voice rang out behind him.

For a split second, he thought of the ghost rumors surrounding this place. Though he had never believed in the supernatural, Chen Mazi felt a chill—thinking that maybe the Yu family girl had really crawled out from her grave.

He slowly turned around and saw a face that looked vaguely familiar.

It was the woman he had thrown to the ground earlier that day.

“When you were fooling everyone into digging on the other side during the day, I already knew you weren’t simple. You were hiding something bad—looks like I was right, huh?”

Chen Mazi wasn’t sure how much Li Jun had seen. His hand quietly moved toward the back of his waist where the gun was tucked.

“What did you come back for?”

Li Jun saw him putting something into the cloth bag. She couldn’t clearly see what it was, but recalling how he had spent the day directing everyone to dig near the gravesite, she suddenly came to a realization—this man must have dug up something valuable.

Back during the day, Li Jun had already sensed that this man was strong and dangerous. She knew she couldn’t go head-to-head with him.

So she chose a roundabout approach. “I can tell you’re different from other men. You’ve got real masculinity. To be honest, I’ve been captivated by your charm for a long time.”

Chen Mazi was nearly fifty, dirt poor, had never been married, and had never even had a woman.

He had never encountered someone like Li Jun before. A woman offering herself up for free—he would be a fool to turn her down.

Though he still harbored some suspicion toward her, he quickly became intoxicated by her.

And just like that, the two of them put on a live spring show right beside the grave.

Chen Mazi retained a sliver of caution, keeping a tight grip on the gun at his waist the entire time. Even when pulling down his pants, he didn’t dare let go.

After their intimacy, Li Jun nestled in Chen Mazi’s arms and said softly, “You rascal, you’re really something.”

Chen Mazi’s male pride was thoroughly satisfied. He pulled out two big unity bills^[1]“Big unity” (大團結): A slang term for a 10-yuan banknote in 1980s China, named after the image of people from various ethnic groups shown in unity on the bill. (10-yuan banknote) from his pocket and said, “Take it. Spend it however you like.”

Just like that, he casually handed her twenty yuan. This man was already much more generous than her ex-husband.

She had indeed judged correctly—this man really was capable.

It was only after her divorce that Li Jun learned how to use sweet words to manipulate people.

Her salary was low, and trying to support both of her children and her mother-in-law, Granny Liu, on that income alone—plus the occasional few yuan her ex-husband Liu Jianshe would send—was clearly not enough.

So, she started thinking about other ways to make a living.

What Li Jun didn’t realize was that her interaction with Chen Mazi had all been witnessed by a pair of innocent young eyes.

Her daughter, Liu Tong, was hiding in the shadows, secretly watching.

Before going down the mountain, Li Jun had entrusted her children to a neighbor, asking him to help take them home.

But Liu Tong was worried about her mother. She asked the neighbor to look after her little brother, while she quietly followed behind Li Jun up the mountain from a distance.

Although Liu Tong was still young and didn’t fully understand what her mother was doing, she knew not to rush out recklessly—especially after seeing that man hand her mother two big unity bills. She realized then that her mother was making money.

From that day on, Li Jun began secretly maintaining contact with Chen Mazi.

Although she never managed to get him to reveal the whereabouts of any gold or silver treasure, at least after every encounter, the man was generous. Sometimes he gave twenty or thirty yuan, sometimes seventy or eighty. Earning that much in a single day—this was more than Liu Jianshe’s monthly salary.

With money in hand, Li Jun began spending freely.

Even Jiang Ling was left clicking her tongue in surprise—Li Jun seemed to be trying to outspend her.

If Jiang Ling bought meat one day, Li Jun would go buy a chicken the very next.

Jiang Ling rinsed the dress her eldest and second sisters had jointly gifted her and hung it out on the drying rack in the yard.

The next day, not only did Li Jun buy herself new clothes, but everyone in her household—from Granny Liu to the two children—was dressed in new outfits.

In private, Jiang Ling couldn’t help asking Song Guanshu, “How did Li Jun suddenly get so much money? This doesn’t seem normal.”

Song Guanshu looked up from his book. “Upset that you lost the flaunting contest?”

“Of course not!” Jiang Ling forcefully yanked his book away. “She’s always been extremely stingy—if she can avoid spending, she absolutely won’t spend; if she can spend someone else’s money, she’ll never spend her own. She hasn’t gotten a promotion or a raise, her salary hasn’t changed. So what could have made her suddenly start throwing money around like it’s nothing?”

Song Guanshu swatted her meddling hand away and snatched his book back. “If you really want to know, you could go ask her.”

Jiang Ling pouted. “Forget it, then.”

Li Jun was only trying to coax the whereabouts of gold and silver treasure out of Chen Mazi, but Chen Mazi had genuinely fallen for her. Li Jun was the only woman in all these years who had ever come close to him and whispered sweet nothings.

After so many years of being alone, Chen Mazi believed he had finally found true love.

He knew his identity couldn’t withstand scrutiny. He had never planned to stay in Beicheng for long. Beicheng was too close to Hucheng, and Chen Mazi was afraid of being caught by the Hucheng public security. At the very least, he needed to escape to the south before he could feel truly safe.

Chen Mazi didn’t dare let the woman he loved know what he really did. He simply told her that he had made some money by doing small business deals.

In recent years, many people had quietly made a fortune doing business under the radar.

Li Jun believed him completely.

However, when Chen Mazi suggested taking her to the south with him, Li Jun hesitated. She had family and children in Beicheng—she wasn’t willing to abandon everything she had now.

Chen Mazi could not possibly stay in Beicheng for her. Love was precious, but life was even more so. And when it came to money, both could be cast aside.

But he had invested too much into Li Jun—bit by bit, he had already given her several hundred yuan.

Even though he had stolen a total of thirty thousand yuan, those few hundred were just a tiny fraction.

Yet for someone like him, who had come from poverty, that amount was equivalent to a large tile-roofed house in the village. When he was being swindled, he was generous; once he cooled down afterward, regret always followed.

He swung back and forth between generosity and remorse, but in the end, the money he gave Li Jun kept snowballing, growing larger and larger.

The cost of giving up was now too high—he didn’t want to let her go.

When he heard Li Jun firmly say that she wouldn’t leave Beicheng with him, Chen Mazi pulled out his gun and pressed it against her waist.

“You still don’t want to go now?” he asked.

At first, Li Jun thought the man was joking. But the cold touch of the gunstock and the vicious look in his eyes told her otherwise.

She had only wanted to earn a little money, not to gamble with her life.

Li Jun collapsed to the ground, her legs giving out. “My children are still young. If I go with you, they’ll be left without a mother.”

“If you don’t come with me, they’ll still end up without a mother. The choice is yours.”

“I… I… I’ll go with you. I just want to spend a couple more days with my children before I leave.” She gave a bitter smile. “Once I leave, there might never be another chance to see them again in this life.”

Chen Mazi did like Li Jun. He generously agreed, “Alright.”

Li Jun returned home in a daze. The first thing she saw was Han Ruixue and Section Chief Liu in the front room, flirting and bantering. Then she heard the silvery laughter of Jiang Ling coming from across the hall.

She felt like she was the unluckiest person in the world. Why was it that everyone else could live so well, while she was forever trapped in a darkness where sunlight could never reach?

Originally, Li Jun had intended to go to the Public Security Bureau and report Chen Mazi, have him arrested.

But now, she had changed her mind.

The next time she met with Chen Mazi, Li Jun was especially warm and affectionate. She used every trick she had, seducing him until he was completely intoxicated and unable to pull himself away.

Chen Mazi thought Li Jun had finally come around, and he was in a good mood.

He didn’t want to kill Li Jun. What he truly wanted was to live a life together with her.

Now that Li Jun had come around on her own, it saved him a lot of trouble.

Chen Mazi held her in his arms, speaking of the future. “I’ve got money in hand. Once we go down south, we’ll live a good life. There’s money down there—it’s way better than this godforsaken place. Whatever you want, we’ll buy it.”

Li Jun gave a soft hum. “Whatever you say, I believe you. Whether life is rich or poor, as long as I can be with you, that’s enough.”

Her words made Chen Mazi feel completely at ease, both body and soul. Then he heard her continue, “I have two enemies in the Beicheng family compound. If you help me take care of them, I’ll go south with you.”

Li Jun didn’t know what exactly this man did, nor did she know his past. But from the gun he carried, she guessed he was likely a desperate fugitive.

Chen Mazi thought it was nothing serious, not anything worth her speaking in such a solemn tone.

He already had several lives on his hands and didn’t mind adding a couple more.

“What are your enemies’ names? Where do they live? Tell me their routines.”

Chen Mazi had assumed it was the Miao Family’s Eldest daughter-in-law, the one who had recently fought with Li Jun. But when he heard the names and descriptions, it turned out to be completely different.

“Han Ruixue and Jiang Ling, is it? Got it. Pack your things. I’ll take care of them within three days. When the time comes, remember to leave Beicheng with me.”

Li Jun had planned it all perfectly. She would use this man to get rid of those two bitches, then report him to the Public Security Bureau. That way, she could kill three birds with one stone.

“Those two bitches aren’t bad-looking either,” she said, her tone thick with jealousy and malice. “Before you deal with them, you can do whatever you want with them.”