The sky was already approaching dusk as she left the Jin family's residence.
The sunset glow on the western horizon spilled across the ground, making even the small blades of grass by the roadside reflect tiny starbursts of light.
Fu Xin Ci led her horse by the reins, walking slowly towards home against the setting sun.
But as she walked, her eyes narrowed slightly, then returned to normal in an instant, as if nothing had happened, and she continued on her way.
The person following behind, eyeing the girl's slender waist, unconsciously swallowed.
He remembered what that person had said: if he ruined this little girl's reputation, she would be his from then on.
Not to mention the Meng family's wealth, he would be well compensated just for this girl's beautiful face and figure.
Fu Xin Ci did not look back, her pace slowing even further, appearing as carefree and innocent as a girl who knew nothing of the world.
The man's gaze grew more greedy. Seeing that the area was quiet and deserted, he realized it was the perfect opportunity to strike. He immediately slunk closer, his movements furtive.
"Little..." The word "sister" got stuck in his throat, which felt quite unpleasant, especially when he met the girl's cold eyes.
Then there was the sharp object pressed against his chest, as if any movement from him would cause it to pierce through his chest and emerge from his back.
"Miss Fu, Miss Fu, I... I was blind and didn't recognize your eminence..."
The soft sound of "swish, swish" was accompanied by a distinct smell of urine, making it impossible for her to ignore.
Fu Xin Ci frowned and coldly glanced at the man with a pointed mouth and monkey cheeks, at the widening wet patch between his legs.
She felt like shouting: with the courage of a mouse, he dared to come out and act like a hooligan? Wasn't he afraid of losing something when he got home?
Just as Fu Xin Ci was contemplating whether to hand the man over to the authorities, a clamor of hurried footsteps reached her ears.
Thinking of a possible scenario, and to avoid any unnecessary trouble, Fu Xin Ci used her vines to ensnare the man who was relieving himself in public and tossed him over the wall.
Then, as if nothing had happened, she continued on her way.
By the time He Xiao Ni, anxiously supporting a woman with high cheekbones, caught up, she only saw Fu Xin Ci's exceptionally graceful retreating figure.
He Xiao Ni was about to stomp her foot when Fu Xin Ci turned back, giving her a look that said, "I'll remember you."
He Xiao Ni was about to make a sarcastic remark when she heard a frightened shout from the courtyard to her left: "Dad, Mom, hurry! We have a thief in the house!"
"Where? I'll beat him to death!" A burly man, brandishing a stick, ran out of the house, followed by a middle-aged woman and two teenagers, a boy and a girl.
"In our outhouse," the seventeen or eighteen-year-old man's voice clearly dropped two octaves as he spoke.
"How did he get into our outhouse?" the middle-aged man asked, equally surprised.
"I..." The young man didn't know how to explain.
He couldn't very well tell his entire family that right after he finished using the outhouse and stood up to pull up his pants, a thief had fallen from the sky.
However, faced with his family's concerned gazes, he had no choice but to shuffle over to his father, whisper in his ear, his face flushed red, and recount what had just happened.
Upon hearing his eldest son's account, the middle-aged man became furious. He grabbed the stick in his hand and ran towards their outhouse.
"You bastard, I'll break your dog legs today!"
As night fell, He Xiao Ni quietly pushed open her own door and, stepping on the cool moonlight in the courtyard, tiptoed to her house's gate.
With a creak, as she opened the gate, she felt something strike the back of her neck. Her body lost control and she collapsed.
A vine then coiled around her, dragging her up.
In the early morning, a shrill scream erupted from the room where the Wei family mother and son lived: "Ah~ Ah!"
As everyone well knew, those living in this communal courtyard knew that the west wing was occupied by Wei Xiao Er and his widowed mother, Madam Nie.
But at the break of dawn, a terrified scream from a young woman came from their room, causing everyone to whisper amongst themselves.
In the west wing, He Xiao Ni woke up next to Wei Xiao Er, wearing only her underclothes.
She was stunned for a long while, unable to recall where she was. When she turned around and met Wei Xiao Er's pig-headed face, she screamed in terror.
"Ah, ahh!"
Wei Xiao Er, aching all over, had already been sleeping restlessly. Now, He Xiao Ni's scream, comparable to a pig being slaughtered, jolted him awake, filling him with rage.
He opened his eyes and was about to unleash his fury when he saw He Xiao Ni, who had retreated to the edge of the kang, on the verge of tears.
Then he remembered that yesterday, spurred on by this stinking girl, he had dared to have the audacity to accost the granddaughter of Magistrate Meng.
But what was the result? The little girl had a long, sharp steel spike in her hand, and he had been too scared to move, fearing she would send him straight through.
Fortunately, his ancestors had protected him at the crucial moment. He hadn't seen what technique she used, but the little tigress had thrown him into someone's courtyard.
It was on top of their outhouse. He thought he was saved, but who would have thought that he would collapse their outhouse and then get beaten severely again.
What was fortunate was that the man of the house was merciful and did not let his family members lay a hand on him, otherwise, he would have met his end last night.
The more Wei Xiao Er thought about it, the angrier he became. If it weren't for this damned girl's empty promises, would he have dared to provoke that Fu Xin Ci?
"Ah~ I'm going to beat you to death, you useless brat! If you hadn't incited me to go look for that person, how could I have ended up in such a miserable state?"
Although Wei Xiao Er's words were all accusations against He Xiao Ni, he dared not mention Fu Xin Ci's name.
That little girl was too terrifying. With a slight move, she had scared him into wetting himself.
He hadn't even seen what happened before he was thrown onto someone's outhouse.
"Mmm~" He really wanted to cry, but what could he do? "Mmm mmm."
Nie Shi, living next door, was groggily woken by her son's crying.
She opened her eyes and was also stunned. Her son had been beaten so badly yesterday that she had almost not recognized him.
She had watched over her son until midnight yesterday. She was too tired and had leaned on the edge of the kang to try and get some sleep.
Who would have thought that she would sleep until this hour, and still be in her own room? As Madam Nie was trying to recall the events, she heard a young woman's voice from her son's room.
"Wei Xiao Er, you still have the nerve to cry. You can't even do such a small task as I assigned you. Are you even a man?"
At this point, He Xiao Ni had recovered from her initial shock. Looking at Wei Xiao Er's useless state, she felt a surge of anger. Disregarding where she was, she began to speak without restraint.
Wei Xiao Er, however, had no desire to deal with her any longer and just wanted her to leave quickly. Because being with this person always led to a bad end.
He didn't want to be beaten, and he certainly didn't want to die. "Mmm mmm," could someone save this poor soul?