Xiao Mandong stood outside the crowd and heard the words loud and clear.
Dig up their father’s grave?
She narrowed her eyes and stared at the man named Dashan. This wasn’t persuasion at all—it was a blatant threat.
Xiaoli pulled her brother backward, tears streaming down her face. What was she supposed to do? It had taken everything she had to escape with her brother. If they went back, they would never get away again. And even if she returned, she couldn’t protect him. What if they really did sell her brother to a coal mine…
She didn’t dare imagine what would happen next.
And if that beast Dashan really dug up their father’s grave…
She bit her lip so hard that the taste of blood filled her mouth.
If she could protect her brother, surely their father wouldn’t blame her, would he?
Xiaoli suddenly slapped away Dashan’s reaching hand, grabbed her brother, and charged into the crowd.
Bowen had no idea where his sister was taking him, but Xiaoli had told him that if she ever ran, he was to run with her. So Bowen followed close behind and plunged into the chaotic crowd.
Xiaoli dragged her brother forward, bumping into people as they forced their way through. Several people staggered and cursed.
“Hey, hey, hey… What’s wrong with this girl? Hurry home and take care of the children! Ow, that hurts!”
“Ow! You stepped on my foot…”
Some people watched the spectacle. Some whispered among themselves. Others frowned and backed away.
Yet not one person offered a helping hand or said a word.
Xiao Mandong watched everything unfold and felt that something was wrong. What if those two really were bad people? If she stood by and did nothing, wouldn’t that mean she had wasted the second chance at life heaven had given her?
Dashan was about to catch Xiaoli.
Xiao Mandong took a bottle of medicine from her space and forced her way out of the crowd. Just as Dashan grabbed Xiaoli, Xiao Mandong charged straight into him.
Bang!
The two collided. Xiao Mandong landed hard on the ground, and the medicine bottle flew from her hand. It hit the ground with a crack and shattered into pieces.
The liquid spilled everywhere, and the air instantly filled with a strong medicinal smell.
The force of the collision sent Xiaoli tumbling to the ground as well. Taking advantage of the moment, the old woman lunged forward and pinned Xiaoli down.
Dashan staggered back several steps. Once he regained his balance, he glared at Xiao Mandong and cursed, “Are you fucking blind? Why did you run into me?”
Xiao Mandong ignored him. She lowered her head and stared at the shattered bottle on the ground. Her expression slowly darkened. Then she raised her head and fixed Dashan with a cold stare.
“That was an extremely precious medicine. It cost five hundred yuan. Pay me!”
Dashan froze. “What?”
Xiao Mandong pointed at the broken glass bottle on the ground. “You smashed it. It’s life-saving medicine. Five hundred yuan.”
Dashan’s face turned green. He let out a cold laugh. “Are you so poor you’ve gone crazy?”
Seeing that Xiao Mandong was only a woman, he didn’t take her seriously at all. He grabbed Xiaoli by the arm.
“Come on. You’re coming home with me, you crazy woman.”
Xiaoli struggled with all her might and cried out, “I’m not going! I’m not going with you! I’m not your wife at all. I’m not even married—where did these children come from? Somebody help me!”
Before she could finish, Dashan slapped her across the face.
“Shi Xiaoli, are you done yet?” he snarled. “Your household registration is still in the village. Do you think you can guarantee you’ll never go back for the rest of your life?”
When Bowen saw his sister being struck, his eyes turned red. He charged over and slammed his head into Dashan.
Bang!
Dashan was knocked backward and fell beside the shattered medicine bottle. His hand landed on the broken glass, and blood immediately began pouring from his palm.
Like a furious lion, Dashan scrambled to his feet and swung his fist at Bowen’s face.
“You little fool! You actually dare to hit me? I’m going to beat you to death today!”
His fist struck Bowen squarely in the face. Bowen staggered backward, blood instantly streaming from his nose.
Bowen didn’t dodge. He simply repeated over and over, “Don’t hit my sister… Don’t hit my sister…”
Dashan swung another punch, knocking Bowen to the ground.
Crying, Xiaoli threw herself over her brother and held him tight. “You beast, stop it! Brother… Brother… Sob…”
“Beat him to death! You worthless, ungrateful bastard!” the old woman shouted from the side, glaring viciously.
Just as Dashan was about to kick Xiaoli, Bowen suddenly wrapped his arms around Dashan’s leg and heaved with all his strength.
Dashan lost his balance and fell flat on his back.
The people around them let out a collective gasp. No one had expected Bowen, who looked so thin and frail, to possess such strength.
Before Dashan could get up, Bowen had already pounced on him. He planted himself on Dashan’s chest and began pounding his face with his fists.
“Don’t hit my sister! Don’t hit my sister…”
One punch, two punches, three punches…
“You little fool, get off me!” The old woman panicked when she saw her son being beaten. She glanced around, picked up a brick from the ground, and moved to strike Bowen.
At that moment, Xiaoli also scrambled to her feet. She grabbed the old woman by the hair and dragged her to the ground. The old woman didn’t let go of the brick and swung it at Xiaoli, but Xiao Mandong quickly stepped forward and seized her wrist.
“Ow, ow, ow…”
The brick fell from the old woman’s hand.
“You little slut, why are you sticking your nose into other people’s business? Let go of me!” the old woman shrieked. With her free hand, she swung at Xiao Mandong’s face.
“You shameless little bitch! I’m disciplining my own daughter-in-law—what the hell does it have to do with you? Just you wait!”
But as she cursed, she met Xiao Mandong’s icy gaze. Her voice grew quieter and quieter until, in the end, she sheepishly fell silent.
The old woman rubbed her aching wrist and didn’t dare approach again. This woman was far too strong. She didn’t want to create any more trouble; she simply needed to get the little bitch back home as quickly as possible.
Xiaoli turned around to thank Xiao Mandong, only to see Bowen still beating Dashan. By then, Dashan lay motionless, his face a bloody, unrecognizable mess. Xiaoli hurried over.
Terrified, she cried again and again, “Brother! Brother, stop hitting him!”
Only then did Bowen stop. He panted heavily, his eyes round and wide, like a wild beast guarding its young.
Xiaoli suddenly remembered something and looked back at Xiao Mandong. Tears welled up in her eyes once more.
She wanted to say thank you, but the words reached her lips and died there.
She was afraid—afraid that one simple thank-you would bring trouble to this kindhearted woman.
Dashan and his people were capable of anything.
All she could do was clench her fists and hold on to her enraged brother.
Dashan lay on the ground, his face swollen like a pig’s head and blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. Several minutes later, he finally managed to stagger to his feet.
He spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva and dropped all pretense of kindness.
“Shi Xiaoli, are you coming back or not?”
Shi Xiaoli was examining her brother’s injuries and said nothing.
Dashan narrowed his swollen eyes and let out a cold laugh.
“Fine, fine. You’ve got guts. You think running away means this is over? Do you think I don’t know who wrote you that introduction letter? The brigade accountant, right?”
Dashan took another step forward.
“Everyone in the village is related to me. If you don’t come back, just see what I do to him.”
“It wasn’t him!” Xiaoli’s face changed drastically, and she instinctively denied it. “I stole a blank letter of introduction from the brigade and filled it out myself.”
That night, she had knelt before Uncle Zhang, the brigade accountant, and kowtowed repeatedly. Only then had he given her the blank letter of introduction.
Uncle Zhang hadn’t dared to give it to her—he was afraid Dashan would retaliate. But now… No matter what, she couldn’t admit the truth. She couldn’t bring trouble to Uncle Zhang.
“Shi Xiaoli, your grandmother hasn’t even been dead a hundred days. How about I dig her up when I get back and arrange a ghost marriage between her and that old bachelor who died last year?”
When Shi Xiaoli heard Dashan’s words, she lost control. She stood up and slapped him across the face.
“Wang Dashan, you’re a beast! A beast! You’ll die a horrible death!”
Only after striking him did she realize what she had done.
She stared at Dashan’s swollen cheek and the venom in his eyes. Her hands began to tremble uncontrollably.
She had hit him… Would he beat her to death?
Xiaoli instinctively grabbed her brother and backed away…
Bowen didn’t understand what a ghost marriage was, but he knew Dashan was bullying his little sister again. He started to rush forward, only for Xiaoli to cling tightly to him.
“Brother, Brother, don’t go!”
