The others widened their eyes at her words. "Who said that?"
"Could it be they really aren't aware?"
"It's possible. Zhou Ergan said it right at the denunciation meeting the other day!"
"Zhou Zhijun, a lonely, rough man, helped Liu Cuilan for four years without laying a finger on her. That was definitely for Li Chuntao's sake!"
"Now that Jieshi is back, and he's an invalid..."
"Oh right, I also heard from Baldy Zhang that when he went to find Zhou Ergan's wife yesterday around noon, he saw Zhou Zhijun in the deep gully at the north end of East Ditch.
They even heard a woman crying, but Zhou Zhijun wouldn't admit it! He said he was relieving himself!"
"Could he admit to something like that? That's a crime that could get you paraded through the streets at the very least, or thrown in jail at worst!"
"Doesn't that line right up? He must have been doing that with Li Chuntao in the gully.
They did it till dark and it started raining, so Chuntao went back wearing his clothes!"
"You tell me, a tender young wife like Chuntao, and a lonely, rough man like Zhou Zhijun... that's just like dry wood meeting a fierce fire..."
Zhou Zhijun planted his long legs on the ground, his eyes murderously fierce, his face as cold as an icicle in the dead of winter. He gripped the bicycle handles tightly and gave a heavy, deliberate cough.
The group, who had been gossiping with gusto, whipped their heads around. Seeing it was Zhou Zhijun, their faces turned ashen with fear.
Zhou Zhijun was tall and powerfully built, an ex-soldier with skills. He never wore a smile on his face normally, and the women in the village were all intimidated by him. No one dared crack jokes with him.
They never imagined that today, their gossip about him and Li Chuntao would be overheard by him.
At that big meeting the other day, when Zhou Ergan accused him of having an affair with Li Chuntao, Zhou Zhijun nearly crushed his arm. Remembering that scene made their hands holding the bowls tremble.
The woman who had been talking the most animatedly just moments ago now had her bowl rim practically pressed against her face, her eyes darting around, not daring to look at him.
Zhou Zhijun didn't speak. He just narrowed his eyes, his gaze so cold it could shed ice shards.
He leisurely got off his bicycle. The kickstand snapped down onto the ground with a sharp 'clack' that made the group flinch.
In one stride, he was in front of the woman, his voice frigid and hard. "Say what you just said again!"
The woman shuddered in fright, nearly dropping her bowl. She stammered, "Zh-Zhijun, brother... we were just t-talkin' nonsense..."
"Nonsense?"
He reached out and grabbed her wrist. "About me?"
The woman grimaced in pain. "Brother Zhijun, I really was just talkin' rubbish..."
"I, Zhou Zhijun, walk straight and sit upright. Li Chuntao is Jieshi's wife. Aren't you afraid your wagging tongues will rot?"
A man cautiously tried to smooth things over. "Zhijun, it was all just a joke..."
"A joke?" Zhou Zhijun's eyes flashed dangerously. He abruptly released the woman's wrist. "Is this filthy kind of talk fit to be a joke?"
His gaze swept over their terrified faces, his voice as cold and hard as iron from an ice cellar. "I'll pretend I didn't hear today's talk.
But if I hear anyone spouting such nonsense again, don't blame me for turning my back on old acquaintances.
I was a soldier. My fists are hard, and I don't know the meaning of holding back!"
With that, he turned, grabbed his bicycle, swung his long leg over it, and pedaled off toward home.
The group watched his retreating back, let out a collective sigh of relief, and dispersed, heads hanging low.
Chuntao sat in the yard holding a coarse ceramic bowl, her chopsticks pushing the food around without taking a single bite.
Suddenly, she saw Zhou Zhijun ride past the front of the compound on his bicycle. He was wearing the same blue labor-cloth jacket from yesterday.
Chuntao's body went rigid. Her heart felt as if seized by something, its rhythm instantly thrown into disarray.
The scene from yesterday in the deep gully of East Ditch flooded her mind uncontrollably.
The man's tall frame trapping her, his heavy breath hot on her face...
His rough, large hands... the heat radiating from his body could burn a person alive.
He had been like a starving wolf, making her both terrified and flustered, wanting to flee but unable to break free.
And then those shameless words of his when she returned his clothes, saying he'd find a safer place in a couple of days to really...
"Sister-in-law? What are you daydreaming about?" Wang Xiaohong came out of the kitchen with her bowl. "What's got you so lost in thought?"
Chuntao's cheeks flushed crimson. She hurriedly lowered her head and took a quick sip of the cold cornmeal porridge. "N-nothing."
The news of her wearing Zhou Zhijun's clothes last night had already spread through the village.
When she went to cut grass in the fields, several women were standing by the roadside stitching shoe soles, gossiping. When they saw her approach, their voices dropped, but their looks were strange.
Zhou Zhaodi was there too. Unlike the others, she raised her voice even more when she saw Chuntao coming.
"Playing the chaste and virtuous martyr? You're just a loose woman! Stuck with a useless man every day, must be itching to death. Can't you go fool around elsewhere?"
Though Zhou Zhaodi didn't name names, her beady eyes were fixed on Chuntao's face.
She had no grudge against Zhou Zhaodi. Why did she have to make things difficult for her?
Resentment, anger, and humiliation welled up in her heart. She was past caring about fear now. She lifted her eyes to meet Zhou Zhaodi's gaze. "Who are you saying that for?"
Her voice wasn't loud, but it carried a firmness not usually there.
Zhou Zhaodi was taken aback. She hadn't expected the usually meek Chuntao to talk back. She snorted coldly. "Whoever answers is who I'm talking about. Am I wrong?
Putting on an act like a pure little flower in front of people, but doing dirty deeds behind their backs. Who in the whole village doesn't know?"
"Zhou Zhaodi, I've done nothing to feel guilty about, and I'm not afraid of wagging tongues.
But you, with 'loose woman' and 'fooling around' always on your lips—people who don't know better might think it's all you have on your mind!"
Things were unclear between her and Zhou Zhijun, but it wasn't by her choice. It was Zhou Zhijun who was obsessed and wouldn't let her be.
Hearing this, Zhou Zhaodi stamped her foot in anger. "You little slut, you dare talk back? Looks like you haven't been screwed hard enough!"
"You need proof for what you say!" Chuntao's eyes reddened, but she bit her lip hard, refusing to let the tears fall.
"Wang Jieshi may be unwell, but I've never wronged him." It was Wang Jieshi who wronged her first!
Zhou Zhaodi's face was full of scorn. "Still won't admit it? What were you and Zhou Zhijun doing in East Ditch yesterday?
Your clothes must have been torn, right? You came back wearing his jacket. You think I don't know?"
Just then, Liu Cuilan came charging over, fuming. "You shameful, disgraceful hussy! Daring to steal another woman's man? I'll beat you to death!"
Before Chuntao could react, a sharp crack rang out as a slap landed on her face.
