Volume 1, Chapter 5: Let the Three of Us Build a Good Life Together

Yin Tiantian wiped away her tears as she jogged all the way home. Behind her, Er Gouzi was rolling on the ground, clutching his crotch.

"Tiantian, my mother said that once the raw rice is cooked into porridge, you’ll have me in your heart!"

"Don't worry, Tiantian, I will take responsibility for you!"

She was trembling with fear, her mind flooded with the image of Er Gouzi bullying her just moments ago. In the struggle, she only remembered kicking him; she couldn't think of anything else.

"Father, Mother, Young Master, I’m back!" she called out, pretending that nothing had happened as she brought out the sesame cakes. "I bought you some cakes!"

Mother Shen had made a pot of noodle soup—clear, watery, and thin. It only made one feel hungrier after drinking it. The family had only eaten one meal that day, and their eyes were glowing with the hunger of the starved.

"Where did you get the money for these cakes?" Father and Mother Shen stared at the cakes, swallowing hard.

Cui Heng noticed her red-rimmed eyes and called out to her. "Tiantian, come here. Have you been crying?"

"No, no I haven't..."

There was a scratch on her face from a tree branch, and her collar was... Cui Heng’s gaze shifted, turning abruptly sharp. "Were you bullied?"

Knowing she couldn't hide it from him, and not wanting him to worry, Yin Tiantian defended herself, "I wasn't bullied. I actually gave Er Gouzi a good beating. I didn't come out on the losing end!"

"Yin Tiantian, get out here!"

In the courtyard, Wang Cuihua kicked over the gate that Father Shen had just propped back up, sending it crashing to the ground in a cloud of dust.

"You little slut, Yin Tiantian! How dare you hurt my son’s manhood? You pay for his medical bills!"

Her eyes rolled around, sharp and shrewish. "If anything happens to my son, I’ll drag you to the magistrate!"

What was a classic case of a villain filing the first complaint? This was it.

Yin Tiantian stepped out of the house. "Wang Cuihua, you know exactly what you instigated your son to do. If anything happens to him, it’s because you, his mother, are indecent. You caused this!"

Wang Cuihua put her hands on her hips. "Why don't you tell everyone what my son supposedly did! Do you dare?"

The dispute between the two households drew a crowd of neighbors. Wang Cuihua relied on the fact that Yin Tiantian was thin-skinned and would be too embarrassed to publicly disclose that Er Gouzi had harassed her.

"Always flaunting that vixen look to seduce men. My Er Gouzi is only fourteen, he’s still a child! You didn't even spare him. I think you’re just desperate for a man. There are several old bachelors in the village; if you’re that desperate, why don't they all sleep on your kang tonight?"

Her curses were so filthy that even though Yin Tiantian had lived two lifetimes, she couldn't learn such a way of railing against others.

"Wang Cuihua, keep your mouth clean!" Father Shen’s chest heaved with rage, pulling at his wounds and making him unsteady on his feet.

Seeing the family of old, weak, and sick people, Wang Cuihua straightened her back even further. "And if I don't keep it clean, what are you going to do? It’s a blessing that my Er Gouzi took a fancy to your little slut of a daughter. I’m even reluctantly accepting her into our family, and you’re still being picky! Who even knows if she’s clean?"

Yin Tiantian was so furious that her face turned bright red. She grabbed a stick from the yard and began raining blows down on Wang Cuihua without mercy. "Get out of here!"

"Why are you getting so worked up? I didn't say anything wrong! Fuzhu is already eighteen, and you two sleep on the same kang every day. At that age, full of vigor, how could you hold back? Maybe you’ve already been rolling in the sheets! Yin Tiantian is just a worn-out shoe; if it weren't for the fact that Er Gouzi likes her, I wouldn't have come..."

Wang Cuihua shrieked as she was beaten. She had a poor reputation in the village for always trying to get other people’s husbands to do chores for her family. The women watching the spectacle couldn't be bothered to intervene and instead cursed her for deserving it, while the men felt bad but didn't dare speak up for her, only fretting on the sidelines.

Yin Tiantian was weaker than Wang Cuihua and eventually had to stop to catch her breath. Wang Cuihua immediately began provoking her again. Cui Heng, leaning against the wall, moved toward the doorway and bent down to pick up two pebbles.

"Ow!"

Wang Cuihua, currently gloating, felt a sharp pain in her knee and fell face-first into the dirt. Yin Tiantian climbed on top of her to continue the beating. Just as Wang Cuihua was about to flip her over, she was struck in the head again, leaving her too dizzy to fight back.

"Alright, alright, I give up!" Wang Cuihua was the type who knew how to bend and stretch—if she couldn't win, she would admit defeat and wait for an opportunity to take revenge later. Right now, she was no match for Yin Tiantian, so she surrendered to avoid more beatings.

Er Gouzi had been nowhere to be seen the entire time.

Yin Tiantian chased her out and shouted at the door, "If you want to bully me, don't just send your old woman to take the beating while you hide behind others like a coward! Bah! You spineless worm, don't let me see you around here again!"

Er Gouzi had already snuck away. Yin Tiantian, feeling satisfied after her outburst, turned back and met Cui Heng’s gaze, immediately wilting.

Her expressions changed so drastically that the corner of Cui Heng’s mouth twitched. It seemed she had two faces: gentle and sweet toward him, and… well…

"Young Master, do you think I’m very fierce?"

The girl’s expression was anxious. Cui Heng had never seen such a brutal scene, but he had seen schemes hidden behind smiles, where everyone wore a mask of hypocrisy while stabbing others in the back. Compared to that, Yin Tiantian was simple and adorable.

"No."

Yin Tiantian’s expression dropped. The Young Master must think she was fierce but was too polite to say it to her face.

"Very cute."

What?

Yin Tiantian lifted her drooping head. She observed Cui Heng’s expression carefully, and seeing that he truly wasn't disgusted, joy slowly spread across her face.

"Young Master, I..." Yin Tiantian blushed.

Outside, people were peering into the courtyard, wanting to see what the young master from the Marquis’s residence looked like and if he had three heads and six arms.

Cui Heng frowned, and Yin Tiantian turned and shouted, "What are you looking at? Are you looking for your father or your mother?"

Cui Heng: "..."

Cui Heng couldn't help but laugh out loud. Yin Tiantian’s face turned even redder.

Er Gouzi poked his head out, feeling aggrieved, and stood at the entrance. "Tiantian, come out for a second!"

Yin Tiantian glanced at him but didn't move. "What is it?"

It was dark, so she couldn't see Er Gouzi’s flushed face, but she could hear his shocking proposal.

"Tiantian, I’ve thought about it. I don't mind that you have another man. Your man is physically weak and has a crippled leg; he won't amount to anything in the future. The three of us can live together—I can work and support you both!"

Er Gouzi rubbed his hands together. "My mother said we have many brothers in our family. My eldest brother isn't married yet, and my third and fourth brothers are only two years younger than me—they’ll be of age to marry soon. We’re poor and can’t get enough to eat, so she doesn't mind me marrying into your family."

"Your family is short on men. I’ll come to your house and be a son to the old Shen couple. These days, it’s quite common for two brothers to share one wife..."

Yin Tiantian was so shocked by the values of the Widow Wang family that she was left speechless. She had thought that the things she encountered in the Marquis’s residence in her previous life were eye-opening enough, but she hadn't expected to see something even more outrageous in this life.

"You just want to marry in to get free food, free drink, and a free ride, don't you? What a nice way to put it! Get lost!"

The gate was broken and hadn't been fixed yet, so Yin Tiantian didn't want to waste any more breath on him and turned to head inside.

Er Gouzi chased after her. "I won't be eating for free! I have strength, I can do manual labor! You bought so many things in town today—can that useless man of yours help you carry them? He can’t even stand up, let alone help you!"

"My mother said that kind of man might not even be able to perform! If you can't have a son in the future, the Shen family line will end, and they’ll blame you then!"

Yin Tiantian didn't stop, and Er Gouzi ran ahead to block the entrance to the main room. "I can give you a son and keep the Shen family line going! I can protect you from being bullied, and I can work hard to ensure your whole family is fed! I’m being sincere, Tiantian, think about it!"