Listening to the neighbors' chatter, Chen Jie laughed.
Oh, isn't this just blatant double standards? Lu San beats people up and nobody tries to stop him, but as soon as I hit him twice, everyone starts running their mouths.
What it boils down to is they think I, Chen Jiusi, used to be a pushover, easy to deal with.
This Lu San is a well-established bully; nobody wants to provoke him, let alone criticize him openly.
*As these thoughts crossed his mind, Chen Jie let out a cold laugh.* *So this is how it works—ordinary folks hold bad people and good people to entirely different standards.* *Why bother being a damn good person then?*
*Today, I'll show all of you—I'm not anyone's flipping saint either!*
Thinking this, Chen Jie said, "Fine, since everyone's pleading, I won't disregard your collective sentiments."
Hearing Chen Jie relent, the neighbors exchanged glances.
They immediately started spouting cheap rhetoric.
"Exactly, I've always said Jiusi is the most understanding one here. You know, life isn't easy for Lu San and his wife; we should let bygones be bygones and show some mercy."
"Yeah, honestly, this whole mess started because of the Su family's girl. If she hadn't provoked Lu Qinsi, none of this would've happened!"
"Exactly, exactly! I've told you all before—this Su girl is bad luck. Her father died before her marriage, and her mother-in-law passed away soon after. Isn't she just some damned jinx?"
"Oh, absolutely! Look at Jiusi—he married her, and the sizeable fortune left behind by his granduncle vanished. I'd say she even brings misfortune to her husband!"
*As the crowd babbled on, Chen Jiusi had previously listened and actually found merit in their words, often going home to beat Su Yunjin afterward.*
*That's why they dared to speak this way again, figuring it's a handy diversion and it might even curry favor with the Lu family. Why not, right?*
Meanwhile, Su Yunjin's face had gone pale inside the courtyard upon overhearing these words, her fists clenched so tightly her nails nearly pierced her skin.
*Her father's and mother-in-law's deaths already burdened her heavily. Now hearing the neighbors spewing their venomous gossip—they truly were stabbing her soul with a knife.*
*Could she really be the damned jinx people said she was?*
"Exactly, Jiusi, maybe you should just cast her out. This woman's nothing but bad luck..."
The group began urging Chen Jie to divorce his wife.
*By this point, Chen Jie was brimming with rage over these busybodies. Lu San and his wife bully my Yunjin, and now you guys want to humiliate my Yunjin too? Really? They say kindness invites exploitation, and damned if they're not proving it right now!*
"All of you shut the hell up!"
Chen Jie roared, making the crowd go completely silent. A particularly nosy woman muttered under her breath, "Oh, so now we can't even talk?"
"Damn your mother! Come here—get out here right now!"
With fury written all over his face, Chen Jie pointed his stick at the woman. She blanched, hiding behind her husband in panic.
Her husband had initially wanted to speak up for his wife, but seeing the murderous glare in Chen Jie's eyes and the stick in his hands, he instantly chickened out.
Accompanied with a forced laugh, he said, "Jiusi, we were wrong. We won't say another word—promise!"
Chen Jie swept the neighbors with his stick and declared, "Let me tell you all something! Su Yunjin is my legitimate wife, recognized under the heavens and the law. If I hear anyone slandering her behind her back again, I'll beat you, every damn time. Test me if you dare."
"And you, Lu San! Didn't you swear you'd break my leg? Screw that!"
Chen Jie swung his stick hard at Lu San's right kneecap, shattering it instantly. Lu San let out a bloodcurdling scream—"Ahhhh!"—before passing out from the sheer pain.
Chen Jie abruptly turned to glare at the assembled neighbors, his eyes bloodshot. The crowd shrank back, visibly trembling.
"Pah!"
Chen Jie spat on the ground. "This is what you get for messing with Chen Jiusi."
Brandishing his stick, he pointed at the shocked and frightened neighbors, causing each of them to bow their heads in submission.
Chen Jiusi carried himself like a madman—his demeanor scared everyone out of their wits.
*In a rural village such as this, those who were meek and unable to assert themselves were often preyed upon ruthlessly by others.*
Chen Jie flung his bloodstained stick to the ground with a resounding thud and stared coldly at Lu Qinsi, who had been reduced to a trembling mess. "If I ever catch you bullying my wife again, I'll end you!"
With that, Chen Jie turned and walked toward the house.
*The sheer force of Chen Jie's aura left everyone stunned, frozen where they stood. Meanwhile, inside the courtyard, Su Yunjin's eyes widened, tears rolling down her cheeks.*
*He stood up for her—a thought that filled her heart. He really stood up for her.*
Ruirui, her young niece, gawked with wide eyes and exclaimed, "Brother-in-law is so awesome!"
*At that moment, Ruirui's eyes were sparkling with admiration. All those people who had bullied her sister were now scared stiff by her brother-in-law—a genuine hero in her eyes.*
Drop. Drop.
Ruirui felt something wet hit her cheek. She looked up to see tears cascading from Su Yunjin's watery eyes.
"Sister, you're crying?"
Ruirui asked, to which Su Yunjin wiped away her tears and said, "I'm not."
Then she turned and ran into the house—she didn't want Chen Jie to see her crying.
Ruirui wiped the tears from her face and stuck out her tongue to taste them. Bitter—they were tears.
Chen Jie headed toward the small courtyard, leaving a stunned silence in his wake. As soon as he was far enough away, the neighbors began whispering again.
"Has Jiusi become this ruthless all of a sudden?"
"Yeah, I was scared out of my mind just now."
"Definitely. It's like he's a completely different person. He used to grit his teeth whenever Su Yunjin was mentioned, but now he's defending her instead?"
The crowd chattered in disbelief, shaken and confused.
At that moment, someone noticed Chen Jie turning back. The crowd immediately fell silent.
Surprisingly, Chen Jie picked up the two fish that Lu San had brought. "They're pretty plump," he muttered.
Then, carrying the fish, he headed toward his house. As he passed the crowd, he called out, "It's getting dark—are none of you heading home?"
And with that, he walked into the yard.
Hearing his words, the crowd immediately began to disperse. "Let's go, let's go—time to head home."
Watching Chen Jiusi retreat into the courtyard, Chen Xiaohu's eyes lit up. Supporting Chen Erba, he asked, "Dad?"
Chen Erba nodded, saying, "For a moment there, I thought I saw a glimpse of my cousin. Looks like Jiusi has really grown up. Let's go home."
"Okay!"
With that, Chen Xiaohu helped Chen Erba back home.
Meanwhile, inside the yard, Chen Jie closed the gate and saw Ruirui standing nearby. "Where's your sister?"
Still a little frightened of him, Ruirui pointed toward the house. "She went inside. Sister was crying."
"Crying?"
*Chen Jie froze, thinking back to the neighbors' hurtful words. He sighed.* *Of course—who wouldn't cry after hearing such cruel things?*
"Alright. Let's leave her be. Ruirui, how about fish soup tonight?"
"Fish soup?"
Ruirui's eyes grew wide with excitement, her mouth watering at the thought of the delicious soup she was already imagining in her head.