Zhou Dana’s face turned from green to white and back again. His chest heaved violently, and even the finger he pointed at Chuntao and Aunt Zhou was trembling.
“Fine. Just fine!”
Grinding his teeth, he forced the words out through clenched jaws. “So you’re planning to set yourselves against the whole village, is that it?”
Aunt Zhou tucked the cleaver against her waist and stepped forward, placing herself between Chuntao and Nuannuan. Her voice rang out loud and clear.
“Zhou Dana, don’t go making wild accusations! We haven’t stolen anything, robbed anyone, or done anything wicked. You’re the one who brought people here to beat our dog to death. How does that mean we’re setting ourselves against the whole village?”
“Exactly!”
Zhou Xiaowei clenched his fists and stepped forward with his chin thrust out. “You want to beat our dog to death? As long as I’m here, you can forget about it!”
More and more villagers gathered around. Some couldn’t help murmuring among themselves.
“Zhou Zhijun just left to repair the reservoir, and they’re already coming to bully his wife and children…”
“As for Pandi’s trousers, she was the one who deliberately got in the dog’s way. How can she blame the dog?”
“If this keeps up, something serious is bound to happen.”
…
The words were quiet, but every one of them pierced Zhou Dana’s ears.
He had originally planned to use the excuse of beating the dog to put Chuntao firmly in her place, assert his authority as the village Party secretary, and vent the resentment that had been festering inside him.
Who could have imagined that the normally gentle-looking Chuntao would be as hard as a rock today?
And Aunt Zhou, usually so fierce, was standing there with a cleaver and refusing to yield an inch.
Even that stray dog that had appeared out of nowhere was ferocious enough to keep everyone at a distance.
He had failed to intimidate them, failed to beat the dog, and lost both face and dignity.
Zhou Dana shot a furious look at Zhou Pandi, who was cowering behind him, his expression full of exasperation.
If this daughter of his hadn’t spent every day causing trouble, how would he have ended up in such an awkward predicament?
When Zhou Pandi saw his glare, she shrank her neck, but still muttered indignantly, “Dad, the dog really bit me… We can’t just let this go!”
“Shut up!”
Zhou Dana barked the words. Zhou Pandi rolled her eyes, but finally closed her mouth.
He took a deep breath and suppressed his anger. His dark, menacing gaze swept over Chuntao, Aunt Zhou, and Zhou Xiaowei before finally settling on Big Yellow, who was baring its teeth.
“Fine.”
He drew out the word, every syllable carrying a threat. “We won’t beat the dog. Not for now.”
Chuntao had just let out half a sigh of relief when Zhou Dana continued coldly:
“But let me make one thing clear—starting today, if this dog dares to bite anyone in the village again, or frighten anyone, I, Zhou Dana, will be the first to deal with it!”
The moment he said this, the surroundings fell silent.
Aunt Zhou was so angry that she was about to curse him, but Chuntao gently tugged at her arm and shook her head.
Holding Nuannuan in her arms, she met Zhou Dana’s gaze. Her voice was quiet, yet remarkably firm.
“Big Yellow is a good watchdog. It understands people perfectly well. As long as no one comes here looking for trouble, it won’t hurt anyone.”
The corner of Zhou Dana’s mouth twisted into a cold smile. “Fine. That’s for the best!”
He flicked his sleeve and ordered the militiamen and squad leader coldly, “Let’s go!”
The men looked as though they had been granted a reprieve. They hurriedly gathered up the fishing nets, picked up their sticks, and followed Zhou Dana away with their tails between their legs.
Unwilling to let it go, Zhou Pandi turned back and glared at Chuntao before hurrying after them.
Seeing that there was no more excitement to watch, the villagers gradually dispersed, still discussing what had happened.
Huang Meili and her daughters had also blended into the crowd to watch. They had been hoping the Party secretary would teach Chuntao a thorough lesson, but no one had expected things to end this way.
Huang Meili felt as though a huge stone were pressing on her chest, leaving her unbearably stifled.
“Ma, the Party secretary is such a coward! If it were me, I’d beat that dog to death!”
Zhou Xiaoying tugged at Huang Meili’s sleeve and lowered her voice.
“Exactly! He doesn’t even dare beat a dog!”
Only after everyone had left did Aunt Zhou and the others turn and go back inside.
She set the cleaver down on the chopping board with a clang and let out a long breath. “Zhou Dana, when you beat a dog, you’d better remember to look at its owner first. Did he really think there was no one in this family?”
Zhou Xiaowei looked at Chuntao with admiration. “You were amazing just now. I never imagined you’d dare stand up to the Party secretary.”
Only then did Chuntao realize that her legs were trembling slightly. Once the force that had carried her through the confrontation faded, the fear she had held back began to rise little by little.
She lowered her head and looked at Nuannuan, sleeping peacefully in her arms. Then she reached out and stroked Big Yellow as it came over to rub against her palm.
“I’m not amazing,” she said softly. “I just couldn’t back down. If I had, Big Yellow would have died, and people would have bullied this family even more.”
Aunt Zhou cast Chuntao an approving look, then turned toward the gate, her expression growing solemn.
“We’d better be careful. He may not dare come openly, but who knows what dirty tricks he might try in secret.”
Chuntao’s heart sank.
She looked toward the gate, a trace of uncontrollable panic hidden in her eyes.
Big Yellow was an intelligent, loyal dog and stayed by Chuntao’s side every day without straying.
With that, Chuntao was safe, and Big Yellow was safe too. Even if Zhou Dana and his people wanted to cause trouble, they had no chance to act.
Chuntao was afraid someone might poison the dog, so at night she simply had Big Yellow sleep inside the house.
In the blink of an eye, the day before the Qingming Festival arrived. Chuntao planned to return to Li Family Village to visit her grandmother’s grave.
Big Yellow would be going with her, which made Aunt Zhou feel more at ease.
But Li Family Village was more than twenty li away—over forty li there and back. Chuntao’s body had been weakened by her difficult childbirth, and Aunt Zhou was afraid the long journey would exhaust her, so she asked Zhou Xiaowei to take her there by bicycle.
There was plenty of farmwork to do, and Chuntao had initially felt embarrassed about troubling Zhou Xiaowei. But when she thought of the two children waiting at home and how she needed to hurry back, she nodded and agreed.
Zhou Xiaowei was young and full of boundless energy. He pedaled the bicycle with Chuntao riding behind him, heading straight for Li Family Village without stopping.
It was the season for spring sowing, and many people were working in the fields. Along the roadside, others carried paper offerings to visit their ancestors’ graves.
The people of Li Family Village had heard about Chuntao long ago. When they saw Zhou Xiaowei cycling in with her, they found it quite a spectacle. One after another, they stopped what they were doing and turned their eyes toward the pair.
“The man Chuntao found is pretty young. They look like a good match!”
“Didn’t they say he was more than ten years older than her? You’d never know by looking at him!”
“Chuntao has had such a hard life. Leaving the Wang family finally gave her a chance to get back on her feet…”
…
“Chuntao, it’s been nearly a year since you came back, hasn’t it?” a woman called out with a smile, though her eyes kept drifting toward Zhou Xiaowei.
The man beside her added, “Your brother and sister-in-law are working in the fields!”
Chuntao had returned this time only to visit her grandmother’s grave. She had never intended to see Li Dazhuang and Wang Lanhua. It wasn’t that she was afraid of them—she simply didn’t want any unnecessary trouble.
“I came back to visit my grandmother’s grave.”
The moment she mentioned her grandmother, Chuntao’s voice trembled, and her eyes reddened.
The woman’s smile faded. Her voice lowered, tinged with sorrow.
“Your grandmother passed away on New Year’s Eve. Before she died, she kept mentioning you.”
At those words, Chuntao could no longer hold back her tears. They spilled down her face in an instant.
Zhou Xiaowei quickly pulled out a handkerchief and offered it to her, but Chuntao didn’t take it. She raised a hand to wipe away her tears and forced herself to steady her emotions.
“Sister-in-law Yumei, where is my grandmother’s grave?”
The woman sniffed and said, “Chuntao, your grandmother was already over seventy. Passing away at that age means she went to enjoy her blessings, so don’t grieve too much… Her grave is on the eastern hillside. Head that way and you’ll see it.”
The two of them arrived at the eastern fields, where Chuntao spotted the new grave on her family’s land in the distance. It was already overgrown with weeds, and tears began streaming down her cheeks once more.
As soon as they reached the edge of the field, they saw Li Dazhuang and Wang Lanhua hoeing weeds.
“Brother, Sister-in-law,” Chuntao called, her voice thick with emotion.
They both looked up sharply, their faces filled with surprise.
“Chuntao, what are you doing back?” Li Dazhuang straightened, leaning on the handle of his hoe, his face slick with sweat.
Wang Lanhua stood up as well. A flash of spite instantly crossed her eyes. She abruptly pointed at Chuntao and shouted harshly, “Li Chun Tao, what are you here for? Get lost!”
