Wang Fengqiu’s target was the Brigade Leader. She dared not scream at Su Qianli, but she had no intention of letting the Brigade Leader off the hook.
She clung to his legs like a shrew, performing a routine of throwing herself on the ground and rolling about that was frankly expert-level. It made the Brigade Leader’s face turn bright red with fury. He truly wanted to kick her away, but his last shred of reason held him back; after all, if a report of him striking a woman reached the commune, he would be in for a world of trouble.
Tsk, tsk, tsk. Even Su Qianli felt sorry for the Brigade Leader.
It was his wife, Zheng Xiue, who rushed over from the back. She grabbed a handful of Wang Fengqiu’s hair and yanked her backward, snarling, "Wang Fengqiu, you’ve got some nerve, daring to lay your hands on my man!" Her tone was so fierce she might as well have been spitting fire.
Rumor had always said that Brigade Leader Su Jianguo’s wife loved him deeply. In that conservative era, for Zheng Xiue to take the initiative to go to his family and propose marriage took courage far beyond that of the average person. After Su Jianguo became the Brigade Leader, she became even more protective of him. If a mosquito flew near him, Zheng Xiue would check to see if it was male or female. If it was female, she would swat it dead without a second thought!
Looking at Brigade Leader Su Jianguo now, with the corners of his mouth twitching in a struggle to keep from smiling, it was clear how much he enjoyed his wife’s protection.
Su Qianli: ...Uh, too sweet! As a woman of the new era, she really didn’t want to be a bystander to such a display of affection; it was honestly too much to watch.
Su Qianli turned her head and happened to lock eyes with Wang Jian, who was watching his mother make a scene. She narrowed her eyes.
Wang Jian was instantly terrified. He shivered and immediately begged for mercy: "Su, Su Qianli, I won't do it again. Really, I’ll never do it again. Please, let me go." He was currently hanging in the air with no ability to resist, and his mother was getting beaten up. If Su Qianli decided to do something to him, no one could help him. Precisely because he saw his situation so clearly, he kept his eyes glued to the small stool in Su Qianli’s hand, terrified she might swing it at his head and send him off to meet his ancestors.
Su Qianli looked at Wang Jian with disdain—how could he be such a coward? Just as this thought crossed her mind, a foul smell hit her nose. She followed the line of Wang Jian’s trousers downward and saw a puddle of water forming on the ground.
Ugh, how unlucky!
On the other side, Zheng Xiue had already returned to the Brigade Leader’s side. Wang Fengqiu sat on the ground crying, and for the moment, no one stepped forward to comfort her. Instead, someone nearby exclaimed, "Wang Jian wet his pants! Hahaha, the idiot actually got so scared he wet his pants!"
Instantly, everyone looked at Wang Jian. His face turned as red as a monkey’s backside, and he roared, "Don't look! Turn around, none of you are allowed to look..."
Wang Fengqiu stood up immediately and blocked everyone's view of her son, trying to shield him from their mocking gazes, but the laughter was relentless. She knew it was useless, so she decided the best course of action was to get her son home. She turned her focus to Su Qianli, her tone taking a complete U-turn.
"Li, I’m begging you—let Wang Jian go. I’ll make him apologize to you, and I promise I’ll keep a tight leash on him from now on. Can you do that? Please, I’m begging you!"
This was the first time Wang Fengqiu had ever humbled herself. Since she had started hoarding money and refusing to pay for her husband’s medical treatment, everyone had despised her, but she had acted as if she felt nothing, instead biting back with even sharper words each time. Now, for the sake of her son’s pride, she chose to set aside her thorns.
Su Qianli had only intended to scare Wang Jian to show everyone that even though she was "sick," she wasn't someone who could just be bullied! Wang Jian’s state was the best possible evidence of that. After all, not everyone could hoist a large, heavy man like that up into a tree—the sheer shock of that alone was terrifying enough!
Su Qianli turned around and untied the rope. As she was about to leave after letting him down, she heard Wang Jian mumble a "Thank you."
People are strange sometimes. If you let them off lightly, they don't feel gratitude; instead, they assume that wasn't your bottom line and will only act more egregiously next time. But once you thoroughly beat them into submission, your forgiveness suddenly makes them weep with gratitude.
Su Qianli left, and the matter was effectively closed. No one dared to discuss it further—not even Wang Jian. After all, it was Su Qianli who had taught him a lesson in the middle of the night, and everyone understood the subtext. Su Qianli was a young woman, after all, and her reputation couldn't be tarnished.
Though, did Su Qianli even have a reputation left to speak of?
Regardless, nobody spoke about it. The elders repeatedly warned their juniors: do not provoke Su Qianli, or you’ll end up humiliated in front of the entire village. Once again, Su Qianli had forced the villagers to reach a new understanding of her madness!
The next day, Su Qianli woke up early. The events of the previous night hadn't affected her sleep in the slightest, and she felt refreshed. She prepared to go up the mountain to see if she could catch some game. The original host was an expert hunter, but she was not, so she needed to test whether those skills had been retained.
Upon reaching the mountain, Su Qianli followed her memories to check a few traps the original host had set. As it turned out, there was nothing. With no other choice, she ventured deeper to try her luck, silently praying she might encounter a ginseng root; after all, that was how it went in so many novels. It wasn't greed!
As she walked, a rustling sound suddenly erupted from the grass.
Su Qianli cheered inwardly. She didn't know if it was a pheasant or a rabbit, but as long as it was meat, she didn't care. She couldn't wait and used her small stool to push the grass aside. The moment she saw what was inside, she immediately slammed the grass back down and scrambled backward three steps, unable to stop herself from rubbing her arms where goosebumps had broken out.
Don't let your mind wander into the gutter!
Taking full responsibility as a Marxist thinker, Su Qianli had to say it was truly terrifying—she had just seen a snake over a meter long! In her past life, she had been deathly afraid of soft-bodied creatures, and now she’d nearly touched one. Her breathing went haywire; if her legs hadn't been so weak, she would have sprinted away immediately.
Finally, Su Qianli felt her body recover a little. She lifted her feet to leave, but suddenly heard a faint voice cry out, "Help... help me..."
Su Qianli was startled. Was there someone nearby? Who was it? It didn't sound like they were very old. As she looked around, the voice came again: "I’m... inside the snake’s... belly. Please, you... help me..."
"Uh..." Su Qianli wanted to ask if she could refuse.
But then she remembered that the snake she’d seen was only as thick as an arm, and while there was a lump in the middle of its body, it couldn't possibly hold a person! So, what was inside the snake?
Su Qianli voiced her confusion, "What exactly are you?"
"A... guinea... pig..."
She didn't know why, but even though the voice was weak, Su Qianli could hear the teeth-grinding resentment in it. She wanted to ask more, but was interrupted.
"Just... say... if you can help or not?"
Oh ho, the little guy was angry. It made sense; even Su Qianli felt she was being too hesitant. Was it that she didn't want to be fast? She was afraid of the snake too! Getting close meant risking her own life. But Su Qianli felt a bit of reluctance—a guinea pig that could communicate with her? This might be a surprise gift from the heavens!
So, Su Qianli forced herself to ignore her body’s resistance and crept closer to the snake. The guinea pig sensed the human approaching and finally felt a flicker of joy—it didn't have to die after all. But before it could be happy for even three seconds, someone screamed and jumped into the air, "Ah! Mama mia, it bit me!"
The guinea pig was speechless. "It and I... fought... three hundred rounds... it’s long since... lost all its strength... how could it... possibly bite you!"
Su Qianli: ...How was she supposed to explain that she was just being a coward? No, she couldn't admit it.
Su Qianli gave herself a pep talk. With a hardened heart, she used the small stool to nudge the snake out. Throughout the process, she kept a close eye on the snake’s movements and, realizing it truly wasn't reacting, finally relaxed. She began searching for something sharp to slice open the snake's belly, but her resources were limited. She eventually found a rock and used a sharp corner to strike at the snake's midsection. After a few hits, the snake was severed in two. She squeezed the body, and a small guinea pig slid out from the opening.
The little thing was covered in slime, its eyes half-closed. Before it could say a word, it passed out completely. She didn't know what it had been through, but for now, she could only take it back and wait for it to recover.
Just as Su Qianli was wrapping the little guinea pig in some leaves, something slipped off its body. Su Qianli’s eyes widened, her face full of absolute disbelief.