"Who is it?"
Wang Haichao's back was viciously kicked from behind. He let out a sharp cry and released Chuntao.
Turning his head, he saw a man standing behind him. His tall figure blocked the moonlight from outside, his shadow enveloping Wang Haichao completely.
"Zhou... Zhou Zhijun..." His voice trembled like a vibrator.
Zhou Zhijun said nothing. He grabbed Wang Haichao by the collar, lifted him up, and pinned him against the wall by the door.
His voice cut like an icy blade, "Wang Haichao, do you have a death wish?"
A fist struck Wang Haichao's face. With his howl of pain, blood flowed from his nose and mouth.
Wang Haichao understood the principle that a wise man doesn't fight when the odds are against him.
"Zhijun... brother... I was confused for a moment... I won't dare, never again..."
"Wang Haichao, keep your filthy thoughts to yourself, or I'll make sure you're useless!"
Zhou Zhijun's right knee suddenly jerked upward. Wang Haichao's face turned ashen with fear, his mouth opening to scream. Just as the knee made contact there, it stopped, applying no further force.
Wang Haichao was stunned too. Immediately, his legs went weak, unable to support him. As Zhou Zhijun released his grip, he slid down the wall and slumped onto the floor.
A close call! Cold sweat broke out all over his body, beads rolling down his forehead.
If Zhou Zhijun had pushed just a bit harder, he would have been finished. He had finally gotten a woman; what would be the point of living if he became useless?
He lay limp on the floor, gasping for breath. On the surface, he had submitted, but in his heart, he remembered this debt.
Having lived in the same village for decades, Zhou Zhijun knew exactly what kind of man Wang Haichao was.
Seeing him return today, Zhou Zhijun had worried he might take advantage of Liu Cuilan's absence to bully Chuntao.
Zhou Zhijun hadn't slept, keeping his ears pricked for any sound from the yard.
Fearing that Chuntao, with her soft and timid nature, might suffer in silence if bullied, he left his house and went to the back of Chuntao's home.
Suddenly, he heard Chuntao's terrified cry from the kitchen. His heart sank, and he rushed over in a few strides.
His eyes were bloodshot, his face dark as soot. With a fierce exertion, he kicked Wang Haichao squarely in the back.
A man of Zhou Zhijun's height and robust build, that kick made Wang Haichao wish he were dead.
Wang Haichao lay sprawled on the floor, pale-faced. Zhou Zhijun gave him a cold glance, his look of disdain as if viewing a pile of dog filth.
Then his gaze turned to Chuntao behind the stove. The fierceness in his eyes immediately softened, replaced by a hint of gentleness.
Chuntao was curled up in a pile of firewood, trembling. Two buttons on her coarse cloth jacket had been torn open, her hair was disheveled, with bits of straw stuck in it.
He strode to Chuntao's side in one step. Seeing this, Wang Haichao thought to seize the chance to slip away.
"Wait!" Zhou Zhijun's voice was icy, a loud shout.
Wang Haichao's steps halted; he didn't dare move forward. "Zhijun, brother... it's the middle of the night... time to sleep, I'm going to bed!"
Zhou Zhijun looked at him, his cold gaze scraping over Wang Haichao's face like a knife. "Sleep somewhere else!"
Wang Haichao was taken aback, then nodded repeatedly. "Okay... okay, alright! I'll... I'll sleep somewhere else!"
His words yielded, but inwardly, he was already gnashing his teeth in hatred.
Zhou Zhijun, just you wait! I, Wang Haichao, am not someone to be trifled with either!
His younger brothers had made a bed on the floor in the yard. Lying there, not yet asleep, they were discussing the matter of Wang Haichao and Liu Cuilan when they saw him return, his complexion off.
"Big brother, what's wrong? Why are you back in the middle of the night?" The third brother, Wang Haibao, scrambled up from the ground, looking at Wang Haichao.
Wang Haichao's back still throbbed with pain. He plopped down onto the bedding.
He cursed, "Zhou Zhijun, you bastard! I'll pay you back for that kick sooner or later!"
Hearing this, the others widened their eyes at him. "Big brother, what happened?"
"That Zhou Zhijun is just a reckless fool, what did he do to you?"
Wang Haichao gritted his teeth and told his brothers what had just happened. Wang Haibao leapt up from the ground.
Grabbing a nearby stick, he shouted, "Picking on us? Come on, brothers, let's go teach him a proper lesson, see if he still dares to meddle!"
The fault originally lay with Wang Haichao. Besides, their reputation in the village wasn't great either; causing a scene wouldn't do them any good.
Wang Haichao said in a low voice, "Revenge is a dish best served cold. We'll deal with that Zhou Zhijun sooner or later, but not now!"
The second brother also chimed in, "Big brother is right. Zhou Zhijun served in the army for a few years, has some skills. If we want to deal with him, we can't go head-to-head. We'll get him behind his back!"
After Wang Haichao left, Zhou Zhijun remained silent. He just squatted down, reached out his rough, large hands, and straightened Chuntao's clothes for her.
Moonlight shone in through the kitchen door, casting a silvery glow. Zhou Zhijun's hands trembled slightly as he fastened the buttons.
His eyes couldn't help but steal a glance inside. The bruise on her proud peak hadn't faded yet—it was from that night in the melon field.
That night was the first time in his forty years he had touched a woman. And it was the little woman he had yearned for over the past four years.
The feeling was too intense. It was as if a wild beast raged inside his body, charging recklessly; he simply couldn't control it.
When he pounced on her, he was determined to take her, to make her a real woman.
But at the final step, his heart softened! Gritting his teeth, he suppressed the fire within and let her go.
Actually, Zhou Zhijun regretted it. If he had taken her that night, let her know a woman's pleasure, perhaps she wouldn't resist him now.
He thought, if he got another chance, he definitely wouldn't let her go! He must do what a man ought to do.
These past few days, with Liu Cuilan and the others away from home, the opportunity had finally come, but then her monthly visitor arrived.
He finished buttoning her up, then carefully picked the bits of straw from her hair one by one.
Chuntao's small face was pale, even her lips had lost their color.
She curled her body, hugging her knees, trembling incessantly. Her eyes stared fixedly at the stove hole, showing no reaction to Zhou Zhijun's proximity, as if scared senseless.
He didn't speak. He simply bent down, picked her up, carried her to the bed in the main room, and laid her down.
Then he fetched half a basin of warm water to wipe her face. At this moment, Chuntao seemed to suddenly come to her senses and burst into tears with a "wah."
"It's alright now!" He bent down and held her tightly in his arms, letting her tears soak his chest.
She suddenly stopped crying and pushed him away forcefully. "Go away! None of you men are any good. You see I'm easy to bully, so you come to bully me..."
Without a word, Zhou Zhijun poured a bowl of hot water, placed it on the bedside table, and left.
Chuntao quickly wiped her tears, got out of bed, and, legs still weak, walked to the door and bolted it.
These men were like hungry wolves spotting a little lamb, ready to take a bite the moment she let her guard down.
She lay in bed, not daring to turn off the light. Her eyes fixed on the rafters in the ceiling, tears silently streaming down the corners of her eyes.
Wang Jieshi wouldn't even touch her with a single finger. On their wedding night, he ran off with someone else. She was labeled an "ill-omened" person by the village, unable to hold her head up wherever she went.
Liu Cuilan also blamed Wang Jieshi's running away and Wang Laohan's illness and death on her, saying she had brought bad luck, and found fault with her no matter what.
And then there were those shameless men who eyed her like a piece of holiday meat, always waiting for a chance to take a bite when she let her guard down.
This endless, wretched life filled her with thoughts of escape—to run away and beg, or simply to end it all.
