As Song Wei glanced at the scene, she couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
Others in the crowd also joined in.
“Hahaha… Wang Xiaohua, loosen your grip! You’re about to strangle Luo Yecheng!”
Realizing she had been clutching Luo Yecheng’s neck too tightly, Wang Xiaohua quickly released him.
“Brother Yecheng, I’m so sorry! I was just too excited. Are you okay?”
Luo Yecheng trembled all over, furious beyond words.
“Get out!”
These two words were spat out through gritted teeth.
Initially, Luo Yecheng knew it wasn’t wise to offend the granddaughter of the village chief, especially in his current predicament. But with the entire crowd mocking him, it felt as if his pride had been ripped apart and trampled on.
Completely losing his composure, his bloodshot eyes reflected his utter humiliation.
Wang Xiaohua, momentarily hurt by his outburst, quickly comforted herself and cheered up.
“Brother Yecheng, I didn’t mean it! Please forgive me. Look, none of the other girls who used to like you—Jiang Xiaowan, Lin Xiaocao, or even Song Wei—care about you anymore. Only I truly care for you. I really, really like you!”
As Song Wei listened while munching on sunflower seeds, her amused smile gradually faded.
Wait, why am I suddenly involved in this?
From the crowd, Aunt Wang shouted, “Wang Xiaohua, stop spouting nonsense! Song Wei hasn’t liked Luo Yecheng for ages. Out of all the girls, only you are this foolish. You’ll regret this someday!”
Hearing this, Lin Zhen turned to Heidan and asked, “Your Sister Song used to like that pretty boy?”
Heidan scratched his head. “I don’t think so. Sister Song wouldn’t have such bad taste.”
Lin Zhen snorted. “That’s not just bad taste—that’s blindness!”
Weak and lacking character, that Luo Yecheng wouldn’t last a second against him in a fight.
Song Wei pursed her lips. Wang Xiaohua seemed determined to drag everyone into her mess indiscriminately.
Unable to handle the humiliation any longer, Luo Yecheng forcefully pushed Wang Xiaohua out of his room and slammed the door shut.
Wang Xiaohua, concerned and anxious, knocked repeatedly, but a furious “Get out!” came from inside.
Shrinking back, she stomped her foot in frustration.
“Fine! Take your time to think about it, Brother Yecheng. I’ll come back another day.”
Turning around, she glared at the crowd, her face red with anger.
“It’s all your fault! Why did you have to crowd around and embarrass him? Now he’s mad at me. What if he decides not to marry me?”
Song Wei smirked. She knew folks in the northeast could be bold and brazen, but Wang Xiaohua was on another level. This wasn’t bravery—this was full-on delusion.
And where was the village chief’s family during all this?
Even after Wang Xiaohua stormed off, her antics left the crowd buzzing.
“Why hasn’t the village chief’s family shown up?”
“They’re probably mortified. If that were my granddaughter, I’d stay hidden too. Wang Xiaohua’s set on being with Luo Yecheng, and no amount of reasoning will change her mind. The family’s already tried scolding and even beating her, but she just won’t listen.”
“Honestly, if it were my daughter, I wouldn’t be able to resist slapping some sense into her. Not only is she embarrassing herself, but she’s dragging her entire family down with her.”
Others nodded in agreement.
“I need to warn my granddaughter about this. If she dares to act like Wang Xiaohua, I’ll kick her out of the house. We can’t afford to lose face like that.”
“Seriously, though, what is it about Luo Yecheng that’s got her so hooked? Do you think they’ve… you know, fooled around in the haystack? Maybe that scrawny guy has hidden talents.”
“Nah, if they had, she probably wouldn’t be this obsessed with him.”
Hearing this, the older men walking by shook their heads in exasperation.
“These shameless women! Get a group of them together, and they’ll talk about anything.”
Song Wei helped Heidan climb down from the wall.
Though some of the crowd had dispersed, many stayed, their attention now shifting to Lin Zhen.
“Lin Zhen, can your leg still walk? Are you going back to the army?”
Lin Zhen jumped down from the wall, landing steadily despite relying on one leg.
“I’m fine. I can’t return to the army, but I’ll farm instead. I won’t starve.”
His straightforward and confident response earned him respect.
“You’re retiring? What a shame. Serving in the army is so honorable, and the benefits are good too. Farming won’t earn you much.”
Lin Zhen shrugged. “As long as I can eat, that’s enough.”
“Well, with your build, you’ll manage. Once your leg heals, you can easily earn ten work points a day—not just enough to eat, but to save up, too.”
Someone mentioned Heidan. “So now that you’re back, is Heidan going to live with you? But you know, Heidan broke Song Wei’s watch, and she said he has to work it off. Honestly, he’s been living better with her than he ever did with the Lin family. You should’ve seen how scrawny he was before…”
The talkative women eagerly filled Lin Zhen in on Heidan’s situation.
Lin Zhen hadn’t known about the broken watch. All he’d heard from Heidan lately was endless praise for “Sister Song.”
Instead of getting annoyed, Lin Zhen patiently listened to the chattering women. His gaze occasionally drifted to Song Wei, who was now happily munching on sunflower seeds as if none of this concerned her.
Lin Zhen frowned. Wait a minute… weren’t those pine nuts earlier? When did they turn into sunflower seeds?
Heidan came out of the house, lugging a stool.
“Brother, sit down! You need to rest your leg so it heals faster.”
Lin Zhen felt a pang of guilt. His little brother really did care for him.
He should not go easy on the Lin family when he deal with them, he thought.
Lin Zhen sat down, but his towering frame made the stool look comically small, his long legs awkwardly squeezed together.
Heidan’s joy quickly turned to dread as he overheard the women discussing when Lin Zhen would take him back to live with him.
It hit him like a bolt of lightning.
He regretted bringing out that stool.
Gone was the excitement of his brother’s return. How had he forgotten? If Lin Zhen took him back, it meant leaving Sister Song!
“I’m not going back! I’m living with Sister Song, and I’m doing just fine!”
Heidan ran to Song Wei, clutching her arm tightly and shooting a wary look at his brother.
In an instant, his earlier warmth—sharing persimmons and fetching a stool—vanished.
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