Chuntao's heart leaped into her throat. She wanted to detour around the man by the road, but this dirt path was the shortest route from Li Village to Wang Village.
The sky was already growing dark. If she took the long way around, she wouldn't get home until midnight.
The mud on the road had frozen into a rock-hard crust of ice that was slippery underfoot. Chuntao didn't dare walk fast; she could only brace herself and shuffle forward step by step.
Yet the man walked along the edge of the road to meet her. The distance between them closed, and Chuntao's little heart thumped wildly like a trapped rabbit.
"Li Chuntao!" A sudden shout made her whole body shudder.
The man wore a knit hat with a face cover that obscured his brows and eyes. The lower half of his face, including his chin and cheeks, was tightly muffled, leaving only his nose exposed.
She couldn't make out his appearance, and he was deliberately lowering his voice to sound gruff. Who on earth was he? How did he know her name?
Chuntao's heart instantly tightened, and she didn't even dare to breathe heavily.
She pretended not to hear him, burying her head lower and hurrying her steps forward.
"I'm Zhijun's relative. I just ran into him at Nangang. He asked me to come wait for you and tell you to go find him at Nangang!"
Chuntao felt suspicious. Zhou Zhijun had no idea she had returned to Li Village, so why would he specifically send someone to pick her up?
Even if he really was looking for her, given his personality, he definitely would have come himself!
Chuntao had already figured it out: this man was definitely a liar. "I'm not going!"
Chuntao suddenly quickened her pace to get away, but the ice was too slippery. She stumbled and almost fell to the ground.
There was a village not far ahead. Chuntao figured she would be safe once she got there, secretly praying she would encounter a passerby to scare this man away.
But it was getting darker. Surrounded by a world of ice and snow, there wasn't a single soul in sight, only the sound of the howling wind.
"He's waiting for you there, why aren't you going?" The man followed her at a leisurely pace, his voice sounding strange.
Chuntao's breath almost stopped, and her legs trembled uncontrollably.
The man walked past her, then suddenly spun around and trailed just two steps behind her.
Every hair on Chuntao's body stood on end. She wanted to run, but the slippery road made it impossible to gather any strength!
Suddenly, the man closed the gap in two strides and grabbed the sack of flour on her back.
"What are you doing?" Chuntao turned around in a panic, but the sack was already firmly in the man's grasp.
"I'll carry it for you!" The man threw the sack over his shoulder with one hand, grabbed Chuntao's arm with the other, and dragged her forward.
"What are you doing? Let me go!" Chuntao struggled hard to shake off his hand, but the man was incredibly strong. He gripped her arm so tightly it hurt, and she couldn't break free at all.
"Zhou Zhijun is worried sick, he told you to go!" He leaned in close to Chuntao's ear, his tone vulgar and sleazy.
Zhou Zhijun had a fierce temper and could be rough around the edges, but Chuntao knew in her heart that he would never do something like this.
"I don't know you, let me go right now!" Chuntao's voice trembled, but she forced down her fear and shouted.
The man lowered his voice even more, letting out a sleazy chuckle. "You don't know me, but I know you. I really was sent by Zhou Zhijun to pick you up! I've known about you and Zhou Zhijun for a long time, he doesn't hide it from me..."
"Men and women, it's all the same thing. Your man is useless, and he's an old bachelor. I understand all of this!"
The man's words grew more and more outrageous, leaving Chuntao feeling icy cold all over. She didn't know this person at all, so how could he know about the secret affair between her and Zhou Zhijun?
"Who exactly are you? Let me go!"
"Who I am isn't important. What's important is that Zhijun is waiting for you at Nangang!"
"Let me go, I'll go with you!" Knowing she couldn't break free, Chuntao could only pretend to yield, planning to run to a house by the road once they reached the village ahead.
But before they even reached the village entrance, the man dragged her toward a side fork in the road. "It's closer this way!"
Chuntao's heart skipped a beat. Rather than being dragged away and assaulted by him, she might as well fight for her life!
"Help!" she suddenly screamed with all her might.
The man immediately panicked. He threw the flour sack onto the ground and reached out to cover her mouth.
On such a freezing day, everyone was hiding indoors. Who would hear shouts from outside? Even if they did, people might not be willing to come out and look late at night.
"What are you doing?"
Just as Chuntao thought she was finished and was filled with despair, an old man's booming voice suddenly came from behind, and the beam of a flashlight shone directly over.
Hearing the shout, the man in the hat was so frightened that he instantly released Chuntao and bolted into a nearby ditch.
All the strength in Chuntao's body seemed to be drained. Her legs gave way, and she slumped down onto the rock-hard icy ground, shivering uncontrollably.
At that moment, two figures ran over, driving a boar ahead of them.
When they got closer, Chuntao recognized the voice—it was Old Man Han, who bred pigs, and the young man beside him was his son, Han Wenke.
He worked at the commune's veterinary station and was currently home for the New Year holidays. Late this afternoon, Old Man Han had gone to another village to breed pigs. Since the roads were too slippery, Han Wenke had accompanied his father.
"Girl, what happened?" Old Man Han asked in his booming voice.
Chuntao cried out with a sob, "Uncle Han..."
Old Man Han looked closely and recognized her. "Are you the Wang family's daughter-in-law, Chuntao?" Saying this, he quickly helped her up.
"It's almost the New Year. Petty thieves and hooligans are all out and about. Let's go, we're heading the same way anyway!"
Chuntao's hanging heart finally settled back into her chest. Han Wenke picked up the flour sack from the ground, and the group walked forward together.
As they neared Wang Village, the sound of footsteps came from the distance, and a flashlight beam swept over. When the person got closer, they saw it was Zhou Zhijun.
It turned out that Aunt Zhou had steamed vegetable and bean buns today and asked Zhou Zhijun to bring some over to Chuntao. He only found out when he arrived at the Wang house that Chuntao had gone back to Li Village.
Wang Xiaohong had watched the sky grow darker and was very worried. "My sister-in-law said she'd be back today, why isn't she home yet!"
The road from Wang Village to Li Village was long, and it was freezing out. Zhou Zhijun was also worried, so he went home, grabbed a flashlight, and came out to meet her. He had just walked out of the village when he ran into them.
"Xiaohong said you went back to Li Village. Since you weren't back yet, she was afraid something happened to you and asked me to come take a look!"
Chuntao was still in shock, her lips trembling so much she couldn't speak.
Old Man Han chimed in from the side, "It's freezing cold and pitch black, the roads aren't safe. You have to be careful when you go out in the future, try to head back earlier!"
Old Man Han and his son had originally planned to escort Chuntao back to Wang Village, but since Zhou Zhijun was here, they took a shortcut home.
Zhou Zhijun picked up the flour sack with one hand and held the flashlight with the other, letting Chuntao walk in front while he followed behind. "Why did you come back so late?"
Chuntao finally spoke in a low voice, "I wanted to leave right after eating, but I saw that my grandma had only sewn the two sleeves of the padded jacket she was making for my little niece. The body wasn't done yet, and her eyesight is bad, so I helped her finish it before coming back."
She didn't mention what had happened on the road. Her legs were just weak, and she slowly shuffled forward step by step.
"Ah!" Suddenly, her foot slipped, and she fell backward.
Zhou Zhijun took a stride forward and solidly blocked her fall from behind, using his flashlight-holding arm to catch and support her. "Careful!"
Chuntao stiffened and tried to pull away, but her body felt entirely limp and drained of strength. It took her a long moment just to find her footing.
Sensing her weakness, Zhou Zhijun simply switched off his flashlight and shoved it into his pocket. With one arm supporting her and the other hoisting the sack of flour onto his shoulder, he slowly guided her forward.
As they neared the village entrance, Chuntao gently slipped out of his grasp. "I can walk on my own."
Zhou Zhijun did not push the matter. He merely slowed his pace, staying close by her side to keep her safe. "The road is slippery, so be careful."
When the pair passed Wang Haichao's house, they spotted Wang Haihu and Wang Hailong huddled against the base of the wall, smoking. The embers of their cigarettes flared and faded in the darkness.
Catching sight of Zhou Zhijun and Chuntao, the two men's eyes shrank in alarm before they abruptly turned and ducked inside the house.
Chuntao's heart gave a sudden jolt. The thugs who had tried to assault her earlier, that distinct hooligan drawl in their voices—why did it sound so much like the Wang brothers? Could they really have been behind it?
She clenched her cold, reddened fingers, a layer of cold sweat instantly breaking out across her back.
