Carefree Farmwife: Training the Husband, Raising the Bun - Chapter 7

Back then, the villagers all said Madam Li had brought home a vixen spirit. Thinking about it now, it wasn’t impossible that Li Erguo had some shady intentions. But… rape and murder!? That was far too…

Facing Ying Su’s sharp gaze, Zhang Duomei braced herself and said stiffly, “Don’t spout nonsense! What rape and murder? How can a woman say such shameless words? Besides, aren’t you standing here perfectly fine? Who exactly did my Erguo supposedly rape and murder?”

A careless smile tugged at Ying Su’s lips. Even though she wore ragged clothes, her long wet hair clinging to her back with water still dripping from her, she was stunning enough to dazzle everyone’s eyes. Crazy or not, once her madness faded, her beauty was impossible to ignore.

“Vixen!” A sharp-eyed woman in the crowd cursed.

“Auntie, I know I’m beautiful, but you didn’t have to praise me so loudly! Now everyone has heard it, and I’ll feel embarrassed.” Ying Su glanced at the woman lightly.

The woman’s face flushed red, then pale, nearly choking on her own anger. She wanted to retort, but Ying Su cut her off. Step by step, she approached Li Erguo and spoke leisurely,

“Li Erguo raped Shen Cuihua inside this very thatched hut. Oh, that’s not quite right. It was an attempted rape, but he ended up strangling Shen Cuihua to death instead. Afterwards, he dumped her body in the Dongjun River behind the hut. That’s why I’m soaked through.”

“Nonsense!” Zhang Duomei shouted loudly in rebuttal.

“If you want to fart, just fart, why say it so loud? Afraid people won’t smell it?” Ying Su sneered and fanned the air in front of her nose. “Ugh, your mouth really stinks.”

Zhang Duomei’s face burned crimson, unable to speak. Zhang Lizheng, standing by, couldn’t tolerate it anymore and barked, “Woman, your words are vile! You say Li Erguo raped and dumped a body into the river, where’s your proof”?

“ And if he did such a thing, why are you standing here alive and well, while Li Erguo’s the one with broken limbs? If you can’t explain yourself clearly, I’ll punish you properly for being such a malicious woman!”

Ying Su chuckled. “And what business is it of yours if my words are vulgar? Do I eat your food or drink your water? If you want to discipline someone with a filthy mouth, the one’s standing right there.” She lifted her chin toward Zhang Duomei.

Zhang Duomei’s neck flushed red with shame. She glared fiercely at Ying Su, nearly exploding.

“As for evidence of Li Erguo raping and killing Shen Cuihua, I don’t have it. But I can tell you why I’m standing here unharmed while Li Erguo’s the one crippled.” She suddenly handed the little bun over to Madam Li, then bent closer to Li Erguo with a strange smile on her lips.

Li Erguo trembled all over, his voice shaking with terror. “D-Don’t come any closer! Don’t come closer…”

Ying Su’s smile deepened. Zhang Duomei quickly shielded Li Erguo. “What do you think you’re doing!?”

No one saw what Ying Su did, only that Zhang Duomei’s body suddenly lurched forward, sending her sprawling face-first into the dirt. In the next instant, Ying Su’s hand was clamped around Li Erguo’s throat with precise force, tight enough to make breathing difficult, but loose enough to let him speak.

“What are you doing? Shen Cuihua, let go of Li Erguo!” Zhang Lizheng’s face turned ashen. In all his years as village head, he had never seen a woman so brazen.

“Ghost! Help me! Shen Cuihua’s body is possessed by a ghost!” Li Erguo felt the icy grip around his neck and instantly pictured Shen Cuihua’s disheveled form emerging from the river.

“What nonsense. Am I not standing here alive? How could I be possessed by a ghost?” Ying Su said lazily.

Zhang Duomei scrambled up, cursing and lunging at Ying Su again, only to be dodged easily and rewarded with a kick. She fell, howling in pain, and began wailing to Zhang Lizheng for justice.

No one in the crowd dared approach. The sudden turn of events had terrified them all.

Li Erguo’s face flushed as he choked, “Save me! Save me! Shen Cuihua is already dead, I threw her body into the river with my own hands! But she… she… she climbed back out alive. She’s not human! Duomei, help me! Shen Cuihua’s already dead, already dead…”

Hearing his self-incrimination, Ying Su gave a cold smile. “That’s right, I’m not Shen Cuihua. Shen Cuihua was strangled to death by you long ago. I’m here to avenge her.”

The villagers shivered as one, chills running down their spines.

Zhang Lizheng, more experienced than the rest, recovered first and ordered the men to pull Ying Su away. But the villagers were already half-convinced she really was possessed by a ghost. No one dared move. A few bold men hesitated to step forward, only to be dragged back by their wives.

“This is broad daylight! Where would a ghost come from? Don’t let yourselves be fooled by Shen Cuihua!” Zhang Lizheng barked angrily, his face dark.

Ying Su cursed silently. As expected, this old fox wasn’t easy to deal with. One word, “fooled” and he wanted to dismiss everything. Not a chance.

“You strangled Shen Cuihua to death. Now I’ll strangle you. A life for a life seems fair.” Ying Su’s voice turned cold as she glared at Li Erguo.

With a thud, Li Erguo collapsed to his knees. “Please, spare me! I didn’t mean to. I never thought you would actually die from my choking, it was all my fault. Please, let me go. I won’t dare again…”

A foul stench filled the air as wetness trickled down his pants.

Ying Su arched her brow and pulled her hand away in disgust. She turned to Zhang Lizheng. “Did you hear clearly? Li Erguo confessed with his own mouth. He tried to rape Shen Cuihua, killed her, and dumped her in the river.” 

“Isn’t that stronger proof than anything else? Don’t even think of claiming you didn’t hear it. The whole village is watching! If you can’t handle this, I’ll take it to the county yamen myself.”

Zhang Lizheng’s chest heaved with rage. He cursed Li Erguo for being useless, but he also felt a flicker of caution toward Shen Cuihua. “Cuihua, let’s talk this over properly. The magistrate is far too busy to care about our village’s petty matters. I can handle this myself.”

Ying Su didn’t bother with courtesy. “Good. Then handle it fairly. I know Zhang Duomei is your kin, but as the village head you should uphold justice, not favoritism. Just now Zhang Duomei openly tried to snatch my child, everyone here saw it.” 

“They say birds of a feather flock together, and sure enough, those two are a perfect pair, wicked through and through! Don’t tell me you’re the same as them.”

Her sharp words left Zhang Lizheng with no room for bias.

“Lies! You little whore must’ve bewitched my Erguo into saying such nonsense. Yes, that’s it! You vixen used sorcery on him! Uncle, you must seek justice for us! This slut seduced Erguo and even cast witchcraft on him!” Zhang Duomei babbled wildly, panicked by how things had turned.

Zhang Lizheng shot her a fierce glare, then turned back to Ying Su. “Even though Erguo admitted to it, I still have questions. According to both you and him, you should already be dead. So why is it that…?”