The sudden knocking on the door startled Xiao Mandong from her sleep. She sat up abruptly, taking a long moment to collect her thoughts.
"You little wretch, what a disaster you are! Look how you've burned Jianguo! How could we have married such a jinx? No sooner had we finished the wedding banquet than someone died. If it weren't for you, our Jianjun would have been promoted long ago, and he wouldn't have been sent on such a dangerous mission, and he wouldn't have died. And now, right after something terrible's happened to our family, you can't even keep the peace? Come out here!"
Hearing her mother-in-law's all-too-familiar scolding, Xiao Mandong was certain: she had truly been reborn.
She didn't know exactly what Lu Jianguo and Wang Xiumei had told Ma Lanying, but it didn't matter—she was no longer going to take the blame.
"Mother, don't be too hard on your daughter-in-law. You and Jianguo just got married and then went straight to the army. She's bound to be upset. I won't hold it against her—we're all family after all," Wang Xiumei said, her voice dripping with feigned aggrievement and tearful grievance as she complained to Ma Lanying.
"Xiumei, I promise I'll get justice for you today. This Xiao Mandong thinks she can throw her weight around just because she has a lousy job. Heaven only knows what wrong our Lu family committed to end up with such a jinx. Today I'm going to teach her a lesson she won't forget—I'll make her see I don't take any nonsense!" Ma Lanying's fury was boiling over. This curse of a woman had barely stepped through the door before bringing death into the house—she had to be taught a harsh lesson!
Xiao Mandong glanced at the clock and stayed seated on the kang, not moving. The village cadres wouldn't arrive for a while yet. She couldn't confront them too early—she was no match for this family alone.
Ma Lanying banged on the door for a long time, but no one answered. She flew into a rage and her curses grew increasingly vile. At first, she held back from smashing the door—she didn't want to spend money on repairs.
But eventually, anger got the better of her: "Xiao Mandong, are you dead in there? Open this door right now! Jianguo, kick it down!"
Lu Jianguo raised his foot to kick the door, but Xiao Mandong yanked it open at that very moment. He couldn't stop his momentum and landed in a full split, crashing down hard onto the threshold.
Clutching his groin, Lu Jianguo gritted his teeth. Cold sweat instantly broke out on his forehead. It was a long moment before he let out a wail.
"Jianguo! Are you all right? Go get Old Man Sun right now!" Ma Lanying was frantic with worry and quickly sent Wang Xiumei to fetch the doctor.
Old Man Sun was the village's barefoot doctor. Wang Xiumei sprinted off without delay.
Lu Jianguo's face was covered in sweat, snot, and tears from the pain.
For the moment, Ma Lanying forgot all about Xiao Mandong. She helped Lu Jianguo inside the house.
Not long after, the barefoot doctor arrived. After examining him, he said it probably wasn't too serious and that they should let him rest and see how he was in a few days.
After seeing Old Man Sun off, Ma Lanying finally remembered Xiao Mandong: "You little wretch, you're nothing but a plague! Look what you've done to Jianguo! His back is covered in blisters so he can't lie down, and now you've hurt his manhood so he can't even lie on his stomach! Are you trying to kill him?"
She raised her hand to slap Xiao Mandong across the face.
"Stop right there!" The village head's voice rang out.
Xiao Mandong finally breathed a sigh of relief. The timing was perfect.
Their Kaoshan Village was a big settlement of four thousand people, with six village cadres total: the village head, the accountant, the party secretary, the women's director, the militia company commander, and the deputy head. Today, everyone had come.
Ma Lanying quickly withdrew her hand. A mother-in-law hitting her daughter-in-law, while common in the countryside, was usually done in private—never in front of these officials. "Village Head… what brings you here?"
"We're here on behalf of the village committee to express our sympathies. What's all this commotion? Just when Jianjun's tragedy happens, can't you keep the peace? Tomorrow commissary officials are coming for our village evaluation. Mind what you say," the village head said. He glanced at Xiao Mandong—her face was pale and bloodless, frightening to see. She was skin and bones, leaning against the doorframe as if she might collapse any moment.
"Mandong, are you feeling any better from the heatstroke today? Take some more time to rest. With your in-laws back and your job to consider, don't worry about the farmwork."
At the village head's words, Xiao Mandong's eyes reddened instantly. All afternoon, no one had asked her how she was doing. Right now, her only hope rested with the village head: years ago, her grandfather had saved his mother's life, a secret nobody knew. The village head had even helped arrange her marriage. They'd said a husband in the army, with a good family background, could help hide her own problematic class standing, so others wouldn't bully her because of her origins. But it turned out the ones doing the bullying were the Lu family.
Her voice choked with tears, Xiao Mandong spoke: "Village Head, I caught my husband and my sister-in-law in adultery. I beg you, get justice for me!"
The village head was stunned. "You... what?"
"You're lying! You're slandering me—I'll kill you!" Wang Xiumei hadn't expected Xiao Mandong to actually say it in front of so many people. She lunged to grab her, but Xiao Mandong, weak as she was, staggered aside to dodge.
The village head stepped in front of Xiao Mandong. "Jianjun's wife, what do you think you're doing? Trying to strike someone right in front of us? What do you take us for?"
Wang Xiumei looked at the village head, her eyes full of grievance: "Village Head, when I brought Mandong some hot water today, I almost slipped. Jianguo just steadied me, and she gets it in her head that something was going on between us. My husband just died in the line of duty! How can she accuse me like this? How am I supposed to go on living?"
Ma Lanying finally snapped out of her shock. "You wicked girl! How dare you slander my son like that! I'll tear your mouth apart!"
"Enough! Let me see anyone dare lay a hand on her! Mandong, keep talking," the village head said, shielding her behind him.
"I don't want to live! Making such false accusations against me..." Wang Xiumei collapsed to the ground, wailing, trying to cut off what Xiao Mandong had to say.
"You can wail until you die—I'm still telling the whole truth today. If I don't get a satisfactory resolution, tomorrow I'll go to the county committee, to the public security bureau, to the army! I refuse to believe there's no one who'll hear my case!" Xiao Mandong's tone was resolute. Today, she had to seize this chance to escape the Lu family.
Hearing Xiao Mandong's determination, Wang Xiumei threw caution to the wind: "Xiao Mandong, you think just because you say it, it's true? Where's your proof? Without evidence, it's all lies!"
She and Lu Jianguo had already agreed—if they just denied everything, no one could touch them. Mandong was the only witness, and with her bad class background, who would believe the daughter of a capitalist?
"Xiao Mandong, you are utterly ungrateful! Our family took you in when you had nowhere else to go, and this is how you repay us? Don't you realize that what you're saying will ruin Jianguo for life?" Ma Lanying was determined not to let this stain stick to her son.
When her husband had returned from the army, the military leadership had said if they ever ran into trouble, they could come to him for help. And so her husband had asked for an enlistment slot. Though the leader hadn't agreed outright and said it would have to be approved, her husband had said it was just a formality and it would go through in the end.
Actually, she knew her son had feelings for Wang Xiumei. She had thought that if she could just let it slide to ensure her eldest son’s lineage had an heir, she would turn a blind eye. But she never expected that little wretch would find out.
Xiao Mandong looked at Wang Xiumei. “Sister-in-law, you don’t actually think denying adultery will make everything fine, do you? Do you think hospitals are just for show? If they can’t figure it out, how do the police solve rape cases?”
