She had only lived for seventeen years.
In the Tang Family, she was a child who worked herself to the bone without a single complaint, surviving in the cracks of everyday life, desperately searching for the faintest traces of parental love, and deceiving herself into working even harder.
In the Zhu Family, she was a wife who was toyed with and abused; every single minute and second was an insult and a torment to her.
The Tang Family was a pit of fire; the Zhu Family was hell.
When Tang Niuniu died, her body was reduced to skin and bones, with a lonely, bloated belly carrying a sinful, unwanted child.
Death even felt like a relief to Tang Niuniu.
In just a flash, the image of that numb, shattered girl flickered through Tang Ning's mind. Before her stood a man with an honest, earthy face, still earnestly trying to persuade her of something.
People around them chimed in.
They seemed to be urging her to accept her fate, arguing that starving with a healthy man was far better than living in luxury with a fool.
That damn system was chattering away incessantly as well.
"Host, trust me. Listen to him and find a foothold in the Zhu Family for now while waiting for the right opportunity. Don't be afraid if you lack romance skills; I will teach you step by step later. As long as you are obedient, you can get—"
"Everything I want."
Tang Ning parted her lips lightly, her parched lips cracking with a dull, stinging pain.
"Yes, exactly!" The romance system thought it had finally persuaded this seemingly muddle-headed host and was about to press its advantage when it heard her say:
"But why can't I fight for everything I want with my own hands?"
Tang Ning opened her eyes, her dark gaze filled with an inexpressible determination.
Her rough hands clenched into fists, then relaxed.
"Listen clearly: I have zero interest in your so-called romance and men. Heaven gave me a second chance at life, and I'm not going to waste it on this bullshit. I will cherish this opportunity and do my absolute utmost to serve my country. So, romance system, give it up."
She curved the corners of her lips, bent down, casually picked up the sickle lying against the base of the wall, and swung it straight at Zhu Changling in front of her!
No one expected this turn of events. Zhu Changling instinctively raised his arm, letting out a scream as the sharp blade—which he had sharpened only yesterday—sliced a gaping gash across his arm!
Da Shazhu covered his ears and cowered in the wheat straw stack, howling at the top of his lungs.
Li Guilan clutched her chest and wailed.
Zhu Changling stared at the bloody gash on his arm, trembling all over from the pain.
In the span of just a few minutes, Tang Ning completed a triple kill on the three members of the Zhu Family.
She had gone on a rampage.
These beasts who had pushed Tang Niuniu around and subjected her to arbitrary abuse were nothing special once someone actually fought back.
The hearts of the people in Zhu Family Village hung in the air like kites on a string, swaying up and down, drifting aimlessly.
Seeing this, it wasn't that no one wanted to intervene, but rather that no one dared.
Tang Niuniu stood there with a blood-dripping sickle held across her chest, a blank, dead-eyed stare on her face. She was clearly out of her mind. Who would dare provoke a lunatic?
Everyone in Da Shazhu's family was stronger than her, and look at what state they were in now!
A lunatic who didn't even fear death was the most terrifying thing of all!
Tang Ning walked step by step toward the courtyard gate. Everyone in her path scattered out of the way. Just as she was about to lift her foot to cross the threshold, another person stepped out.
To be precise, he was pushed out.
Tang Xingfa was filled with doubt and fear, not daring to get too close. He felt as though he were dreaming—was this really his once-meek and obedient daughter?
"Niuniu..." he called out. Seeing his daughter lower her gaze, that sullen, silent demeanor looked unmistakably like the daughter he could beat and scold at will.
As if regaining some of his former authority as a father, Tang Xingfa reached out and pointed at her.
"Niuniu, what are you doing? Is this how your father taught you to behave as a child—"
"Shut up."
Tang Ning casually waved the sickle, and that "father" instantly shrank back, terrified the blade might clip his hand.
"From the moment you sold me to a fool as a wife, you stopped being my father. And another thing," she turned her head, swept her gaze across the crowd, and said slowly, "From now on, my name is not Tang Niuniu. I am Tang Ning."
...
On the early winter night, the chill gradually crept in, and there were hardly any figures left on the streets of Daxing County.
Sun Peng, a duty officer at the Public Security Bureau, was warming himself by the fire, enjoying the fragrance of a few scattered peanuts and sweet potatoes by the stove, and couldn't help sniffing.
"Brother Lin, come over and have some. They're almost done."
He called out to Lin Shengwen, who was hunched over a table writing reports.
Without even raising his head, Lin turned the page of the document in front of him and lowered his head again.
"No need, Little Sun, you eat them."
Sun Peng chuckled softly, feeling a bit foolish, and reached out to shell a peanut.
This Lin Shengwen had been transferred from the city. Daxing County was a small place where nothing ever happened beyond domestic trifles all year round. Who knew what kind of background this fellow named Lin had? As soon as he arrived, he went through every single case file and document, writing and taking notes endlessly.
Word had it that Lin had powerful connections—even the bureau chief treated him with polite respect. But why would someone with connections run off to a poor, remote place like this?
Sun Peng couldn't figure it out. Feeling that he and Lin Shengwen were not cut from the same cloth, he simply buried his head in eating his peanuts.
So fragrant.
Once the sweet potatoes were done, they'd smell even better, and they'd be sweet, too!
"Bang, bang, bang."
The iron gate of the Public Security Bureau emitted a dull, heavy thud.
Sun Peng froze. Before he could even react, a figure flashed past him, and that fellow Lin was already striding toward the door.
"Keep up."
Sun Peng stood up, too busy to keep muttering to himself. He tossed a few peanuts from his hand into his mouth, clapped his hands together, and hurried to follow.
The knocking continued, intermittent and weak, sounding like someone suffering from a grave illness who might draw their last breath at any second.
Lin Shengwen pulled back the door bolt, and a dark figure came stumbling forward as if about to collapse. He reacted swiftly and caught the person with a steady hand.
"Comrade, what do you need?"
The oversized, worn-out cotton-padded jacket had created an illusion, but once he had the person in his grip, Lin Shengwen realized how paper-thin and weightless she was.
Another wretch suffering through hardship. He unconsciously softened his tone.
Tang Ning's body had reached its absolute limit. Between malnutrition, hunger, freezing cold, and physical beatings and bindings, she had managed to dig the route to the county town out of the original owner's memories and walk all the way to the Public Security Bureau purely on willpower.
At this point, she had barely any breath left in her. The moment someone supported her, the soles of her feet turned to jelly, and she couldn't even stand.
"This is severe starvation. Bring her inside quickly."
Sun Peng often went down to the countryside and knew what state people were in after prolonged hunger and freezing.
The two men supported Tang Ning back into the office. After she forced down a hot sweet potato and gulped down a whole enamel mug of tea, Tang Ning finally caught her breath.
With the aid of the light, the two grown men finally got a clear look at Tang Ning: a tiny, emaciated young girl whose face was severely swollen and bruised purple, while every exposed inch of her skin bore evidence of brutal abuse.
She glanced at the man staring at the sweet potato peel with a complicated expression, then shifted her gaze to the other.
He was obviously the one in charge.
"I want to report a crime."
"Go ahead, tell us." Why else would someone show up at the Public Security Bureau looking like this in the middle of the night?
Sun Peng could already imagine a hundred different domestic dramas playing out in his head.
"Tang Xingfa and Zhu Changling from Group One of Zhu Family Village are engaged in human trafficking."