Zhu Yuling was not one to suffer an insult, especially one that made her lose face in front of her ex-husband and his new wife. It would be strange if she could swallow that humiliation!
"You heartless wretch! To hit your wife for a vixen! I'm going to report you and let everyone know what kind of person you are!"
"You are divorced now. Uncle Shen's wife is Su Taohua!" Su Xiaotian retorted without backing down.
"What does a little kid like you know? What do you know?" Zhu Yuling snapped at Su Xiaotian.
Su Xiaotian stood beside Su Taohua, calmly observing the hysterical Zhu Yuling.
"From the day you divorced, you should have known this day would come," Shen Zizhen said.
When he was abandoned by his wife and children, Shen Zizhen had once contemplated suicide.
He felt that if he hadn't come to Hongxin Brigade and met these people, he might not have been alive today.
Zhu Yuling clearly hadn't expected Shen Zizhen to expose her lie so shamelessly.
She was momentarily stunned, and then her face contorted.
It was all this wretched girl's fault. If it weren't for her, Shen Zizhen would never have acted this way.
Shen Zizhen, having spoken those words, felt a sense of relief wash over him. He was instantly at peace.
He had divorced her, and they, along with their two children, had severed ties with him.
Spilled water cannot be gathered, nor can a broken mirror be mended. He had never thought of reconciling with them.
"Zhu Yuling, we are divorced. We have nothing to do with each other anymore. Why are you causing trouble here? Aren't you afraid of implicating yourself?" Shen Zizhen said coldly.
Zhu Yuling looked at Shen Zizhen, knowing he still resented her.
She stammered, "I was scared back then. How could I not be scared when I, a woman, encountered such a situation?"
She had not forgotten that her purpose in coming here this time was to win back this man's heart.
During this period, she had truly felt that without a man to support the family, many things were not as easy as she had initially thought.
Fortunately, this man was about to be rehabilitated, which was good for her. Perhaps living a peaceful life together in the future was another option.
However, her words brought a mocking smile to Shen Zizhen's lips.
Scared?
Yes, wasn't she scared?
After the incident, she had wished to cast all the blame onto him. That wasn't fear; it was kicking him while he was down.
If it weren't for this woman and her two children's active assistance, he might have been sent to the remote Northwest.
At that time, he had even felt that this woman before him might not be his wife, but an enemy, and those two children, not his flesh and blood, but adversaries!
"Let me guess, it's because Uncle Shen is being rehabilitated and is going to be allowed back to Beijing, right?" Su Xiaotian said with a grin, revealing the truth.
Her tone was light, but her words were anything but.
No one in the cowshed thought this was the truth.
They hadn't heard any rumors. How could it be possible?
But Su Xiaotian knew very well that Uncle Shen would be among the first to be rehabilitated.
The meeting regarding the resumption of university enrollment had already been held.
Universities needed teachers to enroll students.
Those professors who had been cast aside would be reinstated to their original positions one by one.
Unlike Grandpa Chi, who had overseas connections, Shen had committed no actual wrong. He was merely framed. He would surely be the first to return.
Everyone looked at Su Xiaotian in astonishment, disbelieving her words.
However, Zhu Yuling's eyes immediately darted around, her gaze flickering, and she didn't even dare to meet Shen Zizhen's eyes.
Yes, she had learned that Shen Zizhen was to be rehabilitated, which was why she had brought her children to the Northwest.
She heard that the authorities were going to resolve Shen Zizhen's treatment, compensate him for his lost wages, and perhaps even promote him or offer some other form of compensation.
Since Shen Zizhen could regain his former esteemed status, she had to seize the opportunity.
However, after they had worked so hard to come to the Northwest, they thought everything would proceed as planned.
But they discovered that things had changed.
This man, Shen Zizhen, who had been labeled a bad element, could even marry someone here.
No, they definitely hadn't registered their marriage. Shen Zizhen was a bad element, so the commune wouldn't issue him a marriage certificate.
It had to be this way. That was why this woman hadn't fought back when she was being scolded and hit.
Zhu Yuling suddenly felt as if everything had become clear.
"Shen Zizhen, don't deceive yourself. You can't possibly have registered your marriage with this woman!" Zhu Yuling's tone was firm, and she pointed at Su Taohua's nose, scolding her.
Since there was no marriage certificate, this marriage was invalid.
"We are legally married, Zhu Yuling. Don't make yourself look too foolish!" Shen Zizhen had lost patience with talking to Zhu Yuling.
"Impossible, Dad, this is impossible!" Shen Feiwen immediately spoke up, his tone extremely displeased. "Dad, are you going to abandon us for this woman?"
"You abandoned me. Feiwen, you are grown now. You need to accept reality and take responsibility for your actions back then."
Shen Zizhen's words were unacceptable to Shen Feiwen. He glared at Su Xiaotian.
Then, while everyone was distracted, he rushed forward and reached out to hit Su Xiaotian.
Before anyone could react, they watched in disbelief as Shen Feiwen lunged towards Su Xiaotian.
"Stop!" Shen Zizhen was the first to react and quickly reprimanded Shen Feiwen.
However, Shen Feiwen was unusually agile this time. In the blink of an eye, he had reached Su Xiaotian.
Su Taohua immediately lunged forward, intending to shield Su Xiaotian with her body.
However, Su Taohua was not fast enough, let alone the others. They watched helplessly as Shen Feiwen's palm flew towards Su Xiaotian.
But to everyone's astonishment, they didn't hear Su Xiaotian cry out in pain. Instead, they heard a heart-wrenching scream from Shen Feiwen.
Oh?
What was going on?
It wasn't Xiaotian?
How could that be?
But when everyone saw that Su Xiaotian had somehow evaded Shen Feiwen's slap and successfully kicked him to the ground, they could hardly believe their eyes.
Then, something even more surprising happened.
Su Xiaotian, somehow, had managed to pin Shen Feiwen under her feet.
Shen Feiwen, a grown man, was being stepped on by a young girl like Su Xiaotian. He could only groan and was unable to break free.
"You wretched girl, let me go quickly, or I won't let you off!"
True to his stubborn nature, even when pinned down, Shen Feiwen was still mouthing off.
Su Xiaotian looked down at him with disdain in her eyes.
"Let me go, do you hear me! You dead girl..." Shen Feiwen struggled desperately, but it was all in vain.
Su Xiaotian's small foot felt as heavy as a thousand pounds, pinning him firmly, unable to move.
"I'm not hitting you out of respect for Uncle Shen, but if you keep your mouth running like a leaky faucet, don't blame me for being impolite!" Su Xiaotian said with a smile, and then pressed down on Shen Feiwen's shoulder.
Shen Feiwen cried out in pain again.
However, his pained cries were met with contempt from others.
Was he even a man? It was just a little girl stepping on him, what was the big deal?
"Xiaotian, why don't I help you? So this bony fellow doesn't hurt your feet," Su Xiaowu stepped forward and asked humbly.
His little sister looked so cool, didn't she?
Even cooler than the actors in the movies they saw two years ago.
Su Xiaotian glanced at Su Xiaowu, her gaze clearly conveying her meaning.
It clearly said, "Do you have the ability?"
Su Xiaowu immediately deflated.
Chi Yiyuan looked at Su Xiaotian with admiration.
He knew Xiaotian was capable, but he didn't realize she was this capable.
He, a man, couldn't compare to a girl like Su Xiaotian. He felt like a failure.
However, his family members were all weak when it came to martial arts.
"Let me go, are you looking for death!" Shen Feiwen cried out in pain and shouted sternly, "Mom, save me! This dead girl is going to step on me to death!"
Hearing her son's cries, Zhu Yuling turned and glared at Shen Zizhen in anger.
"Shen Zizhen, are you even human? You're just watching your son suffer for the sake of this vixen's niece?"
At this moment, Shen Zizhen began to doubt whether Shen Feiwen and Shen Wenyuan were truly his children.
He looked at Zhu Yuling calmly, making her tremble: "Why are you looking at me like that?"
"Zhu Yuling, look me in the eye and tell me, are they my children?"
Zhu Yuling dared not meet Shen Zizhen's gaze. She turned her head away, pretending to look at her son, and said, "Shen Zizhen, hurry and save Feiwen."
"First, tell me, is he my son?" His tone grew increasingly stern, and Zhu Yuling dared not look at him.
For some reason, Shen Zizhen felt that Su Xiaotian's words were more trustworthy.
During his time at Hongxin Brigade, he had interacted with Su Xiaotian a lot and knew that Su Xiaotian was not one to speak without reason. She must have discovered something to say that.
Shen Zizhen gripped Zhu Yuling's arm, causing her mouth to twitch in pain.
But she knew she couldn't admit anything now. If she did, her life would truly be over.
Her eyes darted around, and she started to cause a scene with Shen Zizhen.
"Shen Zizhen, since you are so heartless and unrighteous, don't blame me for being impolite! I'll fight you!"
Saying that, Zhu Yuling lunged her free arm towards Shen Zizhen's face.
Shen Zizhen, caught off guard, was indeed hit. Zhu Yuling scratched a red mark on his face, which stung fiercely.
"What are you doing?" Although Shen Zizhen didn't have much strength, he was still a man, and he quickly grabbed Zhu Yuling.
Seeing Zhu Yuling scratch Shen Zizhen's face, Su Taohua, uncharacteristically, rushed to Zhu Yuling's side and started fighting with her.
"You slut! How dare you hit me! I'll let you seduce people, I'll let you seduce people!" When Zhu Yuling was caught off guard, Su Taohua grabbed her hair.
Enraged, she broke free from Shen Zizhen's grip and started fighting with Su Taohua.
Shen Wenyuan, standing nearby, looked left and right. With her brother being pinned by Su Xiaotian on one side and her mother being beaten on the other, she didn't know who to help.
"Wenyuan, hurry and help me!" Shen Feiwen, not caring that his mother was also being beaten, immediately called out to Shen Wenyuan for help.
Shen Wenyuan looked at Su Taohua and then at Su Xiaotian. She felt that Su Xiaotian would be easier to deal with than Su Taohua. So, she moved towards Su Xiaotian.
Su Sangong was about to stop Shen Wenyuan!
Chi Yiyuan was about to step forward to help!
But upon hearing Shen Wenyuan shout, "Catch the hooligan!"
Both of them immediately stopped in their tracks.
In this era, other mistakes were forgivable, but being accused of being a hooligan could lead to severe consequences.
Su Xiaotian snorted, "Don't you interfere. Let her come!"
Shen Feiwen was already under her feet. What could one Shen Wenyuan do?
Yu Ruiyuan heard Shen Wenyuan shout "hooligan" and knew that the boys couldn't step forward to help, as they might be falsely accused.
But there were only a few women present. Su Taohua was already fighting with Zhu Yuling. The only one who could help Xiaotian was her.
She had never fought anyone in her life and didn't know how to fight. Therefore, when she went to help, she was flustered.
"Grandma, don't come over. I can handle this myself!" Su Xiaotian quickly called out. "Third Brother, please take care of Grandma Yu for me!"
Su Sangong knew that Yu Ruiyuan didn't know how to fight and, hearing Su Xiaotian's words, quickly pulled her aside.
"San Wa, I have to go help Xiaotian. She's just a little girl, what if she gets hurt?"
Yu Ruiyuan's voice was anxious.
She believed Su Xiaotian could handle one person, but they said two fists are no match for four hands. With Shen Wenyuan added, she was afraid Xiaotian would be at a disadvantage.
"It's okay. If she really can't win, I'll go help!" Su Sangong had a new understanding of Su Xiaotian's combat prowess at this moment.
Perhaps it was better to watch first. If she really couldn't win, he would help her hold down Shen Feiwen.
He couldn't be accused of being a hooligan for dealing with a man, could he?
Shen Wenyuan rushed forward to help, but her arm was firmly grasped by Su Xiaotian's small hand and twisted behind her back.
Su Xiaotian was slightly shorter than Shen Wenyuan, so Shen Wenyuan was forced into a strange semi-squatting position by Su Xiaotian's pressure.
"You, you..." Shen Wenyuan was so terrified that she couldn't speak.
When had a little girl become capable of fighting two people without being at a disadvantage?
"If you want to cause trouble in Hongxin Brigade, you have to see if I, Su Xiaotian, allow it!" Su Xiaotian's words were truly domineering!
Her older brothers couldn't help but want to applaud Su Xiaotian.
The worried hearts of Yu Ruiyuan, Du Tonghe, Chi Ge, and others finally settled.
Shen Zizhen watched the two women fight, unsure if he should step in to help.
Su Taohua had been holding back against Zhu Yuling earlier. Now that they were fighting without regard for appearances, Zhu Yuling, who had lived a life of luxury, was no match.
In the end, Su Taohua straddled Zhu Yuling and began to pull her hair.
Zhu Yuling cried out in pain, wailing even more miserably than Shen Feiwen and Shen Wenyuan.
"Shen Zizhen, are you just going to watch me get beaten? I won't let you two dogs go!"
"Going to report me again? Zhu Yuling, this isn't the first time you've done something like this." Shen Zizhen decided not to intervene anymore. After all, Su Taohua wasn't at a disadvantage.
In fact, when Su Taohua stepped forward to protect him, his heart felt a little warm.
How long had it been since he had felt protected? It felt so good!
"I'll teach you to have a foul mouth, I'll teach you to curse people!" Su Taohua slapped Zhu Yuling a few times before letting her go.
After hitting her, Su Taohua looked at Shen Zizhen with a hint of timidity in her eyes.
In a fit of anger, she had resorted to fighting, but after it was over, she realized she shouldn't have.
Would Shen Zizhen think she was vulgar?
Zhu Yuling, who was losing the fight, quickly scrambled to her feet, not forgetting to retreat!
She was scared of being beaten!
This was truly a barbaric place!
At this moment, she completely forgot that it was their family of three who had initiated the fight.
The others were merely defending themselves.
Just then, Wang Xianghua arrived with a group of people. Seeing Su Xiaotian fighting two opponents and gaining the upper hand, she was also startled.
When had this delicate and soft little girl like Xiaotian become so fierce?
No, no, this wasn't good. A girl should be delicate and protected by her brothers.
With this thought, she glared at the boys who were watching from the side.
She really didn't know what these older brothers were for. Didn't they know to step forward and help?
Su Sangong and the others were speechless. It wasn't that they didn't want to help, but Xiaotian was too powerful, and they didn't need to intervene.
Su Sangong quickly plastered a smile on his face and said, "Mom, it's not that we didn't act, but this woman said we were being hooligans!"
They couldn't be accused of being hooligans!
Wang Xianghua was astonished. Was that even possible?
This was really not good. Fighting was fighting, what did it have to do with being a hooligan?
"Just like this? Worth being a hooligan for?"
These words made Shen Wenyuan explode with anger.
What did she mean by that? As a city girl, why wasn't she worth being a hooligan for?
She was good-looking and young. How many young men in Beijing wanted to date her?
But as she tried to curse, in her struggle, Su Xiaotian pushed her down even further, and the pain intensified.
Wang Xianghua looked at Su Taohua, who was dusting herself off, and then at another stranger covered in dirt. She understood.
These two had also fought, and it seemed Su Taohua had won.
She was relieved!
Su Taohua looked around, then brandished the stick with chicken manure she had brought from the chicken farm and walked towards Zhu Yuling.
"Who are you people? How dare you cause trouble in our Hongxin Brigade!"
As she approached Zhu Yuling, she swung the stick more forcefully. Some specks of chicken manure flew out and landed on Zhu Yuling.
Zhu Yuling flinched back two steps as she saw the flying manure.
When had she ever seen such a vulgar person? She was even worse than that woman Su Taohua!
Why had she been so foolish as to come to such a run-down place?
All the women here were formidable, from the old to the young, all were vulgar and uncouth!
Could she still regret it and leave now?
[Author's Note]
Today is a little better. I didn't have to work too late. I've updated 5,000 characters! Please support me, and don't forget your recommendation tickets and other votes!