At noon, the scorching sun hung high in the sky, making the heat unbearable. Especially since Li Lifen had been running back and forth for an hour or two, she was already drenched in sweat. She raised her hand to wipe her forehead, but her feet didn’t stop, rushing swiftly toward her home.
Early this morning, she had requested leave from the brigade leader and then went to Tiejia Village to settle the matter with the Jia family. Although she had told a little lie again, everything was finally settled, and she could finally sleep peacefully.
Thinking of this, Li Lifen let out a long, murky breath. She hadn’t eaten lunch yet and wasn’t sure if she had managed to tell her sister-in-law to help cook. She wondered how the food had turned out.
She walked with her head down, but the moment she saw her courtyard, she couldn’t wait to rush in for a sip of water. However, as soon as she stepped through the gate, she saw that the courtyard was packed with people, standing shoulder to shoulder. And leading them—was the Cheng family!
At the sight of this scene, Li Lifen’s vision darkened, and she almost fainted. Forcing out a smile, she said, “What are you all standing around in our yard for in the middle of the day?”
“Li Lifen! You better give us a good explanation—what the hell is going on here?”
Cheng Baokuan, the head of the Cheng family, was usually cheerful and easygoing, without a shred of aggression. But now that he was angry, he was downright intimidating.
At his stern rebuke, a flicker of guilt flashed through Li Lifen’s heart, but she still straightened her neck and gritted her teeth, saying, “Explain what? I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”
What was the Cheng family so worked up about? Could it be… that they had found out something?
No, impossible. She had taken care of everything—there was no way there would be any loose ends.
Thinking of this, Li Lifen planted her hands on her hips and yanked her husband out of the crowd. “They’re storming into our home, and you’re just standing here like a coward?”
“Lifen, this matter…” Liu Baoqiang’s gaze dodged left and right. He fumbled for words, but after a long time, he still couldn’t say anything meaningful.
Instead, Ding Ximei let out a cold laugh. “If that brat from the Jia family hadn’t come to our house today to break off the engagement, we’d all still be kept in the dark by you!”
“What?!”
Hearing this, Li Lifen immediately panicked. She instinctively swept her gaze around, only to see everyone looking at her with contempt. At that moment, the unease in her heart surged even stronger.
“Don’t spout nonsense! What does them breaking off the engagement have to do with me? They probably misunderstood something on their own, which is why they acted this way.”
In front of so many people, Li Lifen stubbornly insisted that this was the Jia family’s fault and had nothing to do with her. Otherwise, she really wouldn’t be able to hold her head up in the village.
“You’re still saying it’s all just a misunderstanding?” Ding Ximei took a step forward, pointing at Li Lifen in anger, her face flushed red. “Do you really think we’re all fools?”
“If you just admitted it outright, we might have thought you weren’t beyond saving. But now, it seems you won’t cry until you see the coffin.” He Shenghui sighed deeply, looking disappointed. “And to think we all used to ask you to help matchmake. You took plenty of benefits from it, too. How could you do something like this?”
“If we hadn’t caught on in time, wouldn’t that mean the Cheng family’s daughter would have been sold off by you?”
He Shenghui didn’t hold back at all, leaving Li Lifen momentarily speechless. Having her intentions exposed, her eyes darted around nervously, but in the end, she still retorted, “If I didn’t do it, why should I admit it? Do you have any proof that it was me?”
“Besides, if she didn’t want to get married, could I have forced her? I was just helping introduce a match—was that wrong? Fine, from now on, don’t come to me for anything. Really, good intentions never get rewarded.”
Li Lifen’s shameless attitude made many people’s breathing quicken with anger, but there were also some who started to believe her. After all, there wasn’t any concrete evidence—only verbal accusations. Now, with both sides insisting on their version of the story, it was difficult to judge.
Moreover, aside from her, there weren’t many others in the village who were capable of matchmaking for the younger generation. For a moment, the balance seemed to tip in her favor.
Seeing this, Ding Ximei quickly spoke up, “Who would dare go to you? What if you sold them off and they were still dumb enough to count your money for you?”
That statement struck right at the heart of the matter—it was exactly the outcome Li Lifen feared most.
Seeing that those who had started leaning toward her were now shifting back to the Cheng family’s side, she decided to go all out. Clutching her chest, she wailed loudly about being wronged.
The scene turned chaotic as her senseless crying stirred up more confusion. No one knew which side to believe anymore.
At that moment, a shadow suddenly dashed in from the courtyard entrance, charging straight at Li Lifen.
“You wretched woman! How dare you deceive me—give me back my money!”
The newcomer was a tall, strong middle-aged woman. She pinned Li Lifen down with her weight, keeping her from getting up, while her big palm came down hard on Li Lifen’s face.
“A madwoman is attacking! Help!”
Li Lifen dodged to the side, trying to evade the woman’s blows while shrieking at the top of her lungs.
Seeing the two women brawling, the village party secretary quickly ordered people to pull them apart. After questioning them in detail, they finally learned that the woman was Jia Qingbao’s mother. And through her words, the truth of the matter was finally laid bare for all to see.
At this point, no matter how much Li Lifen wanted to argue, it was too late.
“You’re the one who’s gone mad for money! Our Jia family must have the worst luck in eight generations to have encountered a wretched matchmaker like you!”
Madam Jia was so furious that her chest heaved violently. She had originally been overjoyed that she had found such an ethereal beauty as a wife for her son. Who would have thought that Li Lifen would suddenly come knocking, claiming that the girl had injured her face while at work?
She had panicked upon hearing that and immediately wanted to go to Ping Le Village to see the girl herself. But Li Lifen had blocked her, insisting that the girl was in no mood for marriage at the moment and that the engagement was most likely off.
Madam Jia had felt regretful, but her main intention in arranging this marriage was to secure a daughter-in-law who was even more beautiful than that woman from the cultural troupe, so she could keep her son from straying. If the girl was now disfigured, wouldn’t marrying her be a complete waste?
So, she hadn’t pressed further and had even followed local custom by not reclaiming the entire matchmaking deposit, leaving some as a commission for Li Lifen’s trouble.
But who would have thought that not long after she sent Li Lifen away, her son—who usually spent his lunch breaks at the commune—would suddenly return home, bringing an earth-shattering revelation: the engagement was fake. The girl had never agreed to it. Everything had been orchestrated by Li Lifen alone.
Their family had been deceived!
To make matters worse, Jia Qingbao made it clear that he would not be getting married. If they continued to pressure him, he would resign from his job at the commune, return to the village to farm for the rest of his life, and never again concern himself with his younger siblings’ futures.
His words struck their family like a bombshell. The two elders of the Jia family exchanged a look, then tried every tactic they could—coaxing, throwing fits, guilt-tripping him with filial piety—but unlike before, none of it worked!
With no way to deal with their son, the couple redirected their fury toward Li Lifen. Lying was one thing, but she even had the audacity to pocket their money!
So, without wasting any time, they rushed to Ping Le Village, determined to settle the score with this deceitful swindler.
“I’m disfigured? How come I don’t know about this myself?”
Cheng Fangqiu shuddered in disgust, instinctively raising a hand to touch her own smooth face.
Ding Ximei, on the other hand, was so enraged that she nearly lost control, almost lunging forward to slap Li Lifen. “You actually cursed my daughter? How could you be so vicious?”
“I was just speaking casually.”
Li Lifen clutched her stinging cheek, her gaze flickering unnaturally. At the time, she had only wanted to quickly resolve the matter, so she had deliberately targeted the one thing the Jia family cared about most—the girl’s appearance. She had never truly meant to curse Cheng Fangqiu to be disfigured.
As a woman herself, how could she not understand how important a girl’s looks were?
“You should apologize to Comrade Cheng.”
Zhou Yinghuai stood behind Cheng Fangqiu like an impenetrable shield, his gaze toward Li Lifen filled with an icy chill, causing the temperature around him to drop several degrees.
The aura he exuded made Li Lifen shudder involuntarily. She stammered out a weak “I’m sorry.”
This was essentially an indirect admission of guilt. Not that it mattered anymore—ever since Madam Jia had arrived, Li Lifen’s series of reactions had already made it clear that she was guilty, her conscience uneasy.
Madam Jia, having been pulled away, was still fuming. Seeing that everyone’s attention had shifted elsewhere, her anger only burned hotter. However, her gaze couldn’t help but linger on Cheng Fangqiu’s face for a moment.
Li Lifen wasn’t completely lying—this girl was indeed stunning.
Perhaps… she could still have a chat with her later. If she was willing to marry into their family—
But then, her son’s harsh words rang through her mind again, instantly snuffing out that thought.
Snapping back to the situation at hand, she redirected all her focus to the “battlefield” and shouted, “So your village thinks you can bully us just because there’s only two of us here, huh? Fine, we’ll go back and bring more people. Let’s see who can outfight whom!”
The village party secretary immediately stepped forward upon hearing that other villagers might get involved. “Fighting is illegal. Whatever the issue, resolve it properly without resorting to violence.”
“Pah! If we don’t teach a swindler like her a lesson, she’ll never know what regret means!” Madam Jia stood with her hands on her hips, exuding an air of dominance.
Zhou Yinghuai shot a glance at the puffed-up, rooster-like Madam Jia and coldly agreed, “She does deserve a good lesson.”
“Exactly!”
Encouraged by his support, Madam Jia immediately rolled up her sleeves, ready to charge at Li Lifen again. But before she could get close, she was held back by others. Furious, she shouted, “So you’re all still protecting Li Lifen? Fine! Old Jia, let’s go back and get reinforcements!”
With that, she and her husband prepared to leave.
But the next second, Zhou Yinghuai’s words made them freeze in place.
“Go back and bring more people? And then what—get yourselves thrown into the police station by the public security officers?”
His brows arched slightly, his tone dripping with disdain for their lack of legal awareness.
Cheng Fangqiu nodded in agreement. “Assault is a crime. Even if you’re in the right, you’ll end up in the wrong if you resort to violence. Besides, do you really want to escalate this into a scandal between two communes? You want to be the laughingstock of both villages?”
After speaking, she added, “Our family is also a victim in this. We won’t cover for Li Lifen.”
Jia Father and Jia Mother exchanged a look. Their anger hadn’t faded, but they had to admit that what Zhou Yinghuai and Cheng Fangqiu said made sense.
After a moment of hesitation, they finally relented. “Then what do you suggest? We’re definitely getting our money back.”
Li Lifen, still reeling from the slaps, had curled into her husband’s arms, her face throbbing with pain. Now that her scheme had been exposed and there was no way out, she lowered her head, unwilling to meet the scornful gazes surrounding her.
Hearing Jia Father and Jia Mother’s demand, she replied weakly, “I’ll return it… I’ll return everything.”
Seeing her immediate concession, Jia Father and Jia Mother let out a cold snort. “You should have done that from the start.”
Cheng Fangqiu ignored their exchange and turned directly to the village party secretary and brigade leader. “I want her to apologize to us publicly and swear that she will never act as a matchmaker again.”
The moment those words left her mouth, Li Lifen’s head snapped up. “I can apologize, but why should I stop matchmaking?”
Their family barely made enough to get by on farmwork alone. The only reason they lived relatively well in the village was thanks to the benefits she gained from matchmaking.
Now Cheng Fangqiu wanted to cut off her livelihood?
That was even worse than being beaten by Madam Jia!
“After what you’ve done, you still think you have the right to continue matchmaking?” Zhou Yinghuai scoffed, his handsome face tinged with faint mockery.
Li Lifen’s face burned with shame. “What does this have to do with you, Comrade Zhou?”
The implication was clear—what right did Zhou Yinghuai have to interfere in her affairs?
“He’s my partner. What’s wrong with him speaking for our family?”
Cheng Fangqiu stepped forward, positioning herself in front of Zhou Yinghuai in a clear protective stance.
Zhou Yinghuai lifted his gaze to look at the person standing before him. Clearly, she was the one who should be protected, yet she was now standing up for him. This scene filled him with an indescribable sense of satisfaction, and the corners of his lips couldn’t help but lift slightly.
Partner?
Li Lifen was stunned. She had only been away for a morning, yet it felt like she had missed a lot.
She instinctively looked at Zhou Yinghuai again, but the sharp look in his eyes startled her, making her hastily avert her gaze. After all, he was a technician from the provincial capital, and even the commune leaders treated him with respect. She was better off not offending him.
More importantly, she had nearly sold his partner to the Jia family. The matter was still unresolved, and if she kept pushing her luck, she might end up with even greater losses.
“Li Lifen is indeed in the wrong. I think Comrade Cheng’s suggestion is reasonable.”
The brigade leader, Meng Xinfeng, darkened his expression and directly made the decision to accept Cheng Fangqiu’s request.