Cheng Ying forced herself to swallow a bite of youtiao, but before she could finish, the main door to her house burst open.

A sun-drenched youth strode in against the light, holding something close to his chest; Cheng Ying’s eyesight wasn’t great, so she didn't get a clear look.

They were sitting in the main hall, directly facing the entrance, making it genuinely hard to see the person coming in.

Chi Wu’s small eyes narrowed further. His mood was utterly foul.

Cheng Ying might have poor eyesight, but he had excellent vision. This meant she’d attracted some unwanted admirer—a peach blossom complication. He was increasingly glad about what he had done earlier that day.

As the visitor stepped inside, Cheng Ying suddenly recalled: the person who seemed like they could have an episode at any moment—why were they at her house? Who gave them the address? Wasn't it dangerous to let a mentally unstable person into the house?

Cheng Ying felt utterly bewildered; the events of this morning had left her head spinning.

She was a little slow to react. Truly slow, because before the "mentally unstable person" could speak, a bouquet of flowers appeared in their hands—plastic ones.

Finally, Cheng Ying saw clearly the plastic flowers the supposed lunatic was clutching.

Then the lunatic spoke: "Classmate Cheng Ying, I like you. I know you like me too, otherwise you wouldn't have confessed to me in front of so many classmates last night."

Cheng Ying shot back, "Have you taken your medicine? Is your eyesight failing? Was that me confessing to you?"

Chi Wu watched the spectacle, thinking, Serves you right for showing off, for singing love songs for no reason, for still thinking about her. See, trouble has arrived.

Then, he cast a wounded look toward the old lady.

The old lady was so shocked by the statement her ears rang. She had only just stepped out of the inner room when another one barged in through the main door. If this got out, her reputation would be ruined. Besides, there was Chi Wu still smarting from an earlier confrontation who hadn't even been properly consoled yet. How vexing this was! Especially seeing Chi Wu hanging his head, silent, looking utterly wronged from every angle.

The old lady was known for her diligence; she constantly kept bundles of feather dusters tied up around the house, the kind she could grab anytime to sweep away dust.

Of course, today, she casually picked one up to discipline the troublesome child.

The old lady’s blood pressure skyrocketed: "I’ll beat the shameless life out of you! Can you ever be more dependable? You’ve gone and attracted trouble right to our doorstep!"

As she spoke, she began whipping Cheng Ying. Cheng Ying shrieked and darted wildly around the room.

At this moment, Cheng Ying was genuinely grateful for her personal space, appreciating its utility. Otherwise, if she were like an ordinary woman, weak and depleted after a wedding night, she wouldn't even have the strength to dodge. Look how easily she was moving now! Despite the frantic scrambling, the old lady hadn't landed many solid hits, and they were much lighter than the blows she’d received inside the room earlier.

It seemed the old lady was holding back somewhat. Cheng Ying hated this lunatic. This person was pouring gasoline on a fire.

Chi Wu, watching from the side, noticed that the old lady’s strikes were far gentler than before. The most important reason the old lady was hitting Cheng Ying now was for his benefit.

The old lady must have concluded that Cheng Ying was now inextricably bound to him; otherwise, she wouldn't care how she disciplined Cheng Ying in his presence. Chi Wu was ecstatic; this whole situation was turning out perfectly.

This was exactly the effect Chi Wu wanted: "Grandma, how can you blame Yingzi? You know what kind of person Yingzi is. Even if you put her next to a pile of dirt, Cheng Ying would still pick the clean parts. Don't be angry, don't be angry. Let's send this person away first."

The old lady thought to herself, before today, her granddaughter had indeed been quite proper, but after today, she wasn't so sure. Still, Chi Wu’s words offered the old lady a necessary way out, and she immediately eased up.

Cheng Ying leaned against the door frame, heartbroken by this undeserved calamity. She felt more wronged than Dou E; misfortune had fallen from the heavens. They say impulse is the devil. Why had she been so impulsive last night? At her age, getting drunk just once, and then plagiarizing—and badly off-key, no less—and now all this trouble resulted. If time could reverse, Cheng Ying would rather have drunk horse urine back then; at least it wards off evil spirits.

She glared at the lunatic with deep resentment: "Can you leave now? Can you go cause trouble somewhere else? Please take your medicine before you come out next time!"

Cheng Ying’s words were too advanced. The lunatic looked sweetly bewildered; what did taking medicine have to do with anything?

Chi Wu turned his head away. He figured this person couldn't follow Cheng Ying’s pace. Only he could keep up with Cheng Ying’s rhythm. See, the destined match.

Then again, only he could truly understand Cheng Ying’s cutting remarks. How perfectly matched they were!

The lunatic was truly a lunatic. After the initial chaos subsided, he immediately stepped forward, seeing the goddess’s house in disarray—it was his moment to shine! "Classmate Cheng Ying, don't be afraid, I'm here for you!"

He then turned to the old lady: "This is about free love! We are in a free relationship. You are Cheng Ying's relative, but you cannot interfere with her romantic freedom!"

The old lady’s cheeks flushed violently. Free love—it was all this ‘free love’ nonsense that led her granddaughter to create such a scandalous situation. In the old days, she would have been drowned! It was all instigated by this shameless boy.

Looking at Cheng Ying only fueled her anger. The feather duster began to swing wildly, catching both Cheng Ying and the lunatic in its path: "I’ll teach you about free love! I’ll teach you telling me I can’t interfere! I’ll show you whether I can interfere! Damn it all, you old hag!"

The old lady was genuinely provoked, even dredging up her old curse from years ago.

The old lady was so furious, Cheng Ying felt the injustice acutely—this whole mess was the lunatic's fault! He deserved a beating. With a flick of her will, a feather duster identical to the old lady’s materialized in her hand—the one she had hidden away years ago to avoid being hit.

She then joined the old lady in striking the lunatic. As for the blows the old lady landed on Cheng Ying, Cheng Ying, consumed by rage, had already tuned them out. Besides, when beating one's own kin versus beating an outsider, could the old lady use the same force? The old lady was perfectly capable of controlling that degree of intensity.

Cheng Ying shouted, "I’ll teach you to come out without medicine and cause trouble! I’ll teach you to yell nonsense at our house!" The beating felt wonderfully cathartic! All the pent-up frustration from the morning evaporated; she didn't even need to take her anti-anger pills.

Every time the lunatic took a hit, Chi Wu flinched, swallowing hard. It felt as if the blows were landing on him. He figured this would be his fate when his own secret eventually came to light.

The lunatic was chased out of the yard by the old lady and Cheng Ying, his body stinging fiercely. What a ferocious family this was! How difficult could pursuing a woman be?

Cheng Ying stood at the doorway, hands on her hips: "See me once, I hit you once!" The old lady, holding the duster with one hand, stamped her feet in a wide stance: "Scram!"

The sunny, handsome young man, holding his aching body, had never encountered such a fierce household. It wasn't necessary to beat him like that just because they weren't interested. But Cheng Ying, blazing with righteous anger, was so incredibly attractive—even more so than at school. Her posture, hands on hips, how captivating! And her waist was so slender! Cheng Ying’s back seemed to radiate a thousand rays of brilliant light.

The lunatic’s eyes were practically glued to her. His heart was intoxicated. Of course, the physical pain was real.

The lunatic fled while glancing back, then suddenly froze, gazing entranced at the figure before him.

Cheng Ying shuddered. This was either a pervert or a masochist. Oh my goodness, the world really is small; you run into everything.

The old lady looked at her granddaughter with a grim expression and walked back inside, wishing she could bore two holes right through Cheng Ying’s face.

Cheng Ying felt a pang of fear. She knew her grandmother well. The old lady had lectured her countless times on this matter: a woman must never suffer a loss in this area—it affects her whole life. And she, Cheng Ying, had thrown it all away in a moment of confusion. She felt she had failed the old lady’s earnest teachings.

Cheng Ying followed silently. At this point, this was no longer something she, a girl about to enter university, could control. People must live according to the customs and rules of the place they are born; this is called adapting to the trend, and it is survival of the fittest. Given what happened today, if Cheng Ying didn't return to the village to arrange an engagement and hold a banquet, she would never be able to hold her head up again, and her grandmother would bring shame upon the ancestors of the Cheng family.

This was the 1980s. Although society was slightly more open, this was still the countryside. Only city kids talked freely about "free love." Cheng Ying understood perfectly. Forget arranged marriages; even exchange marriages still occurred. What could you possibly achieve by fighting against the entire society just because you had a little money? Had you lived a comfortable life long enough? You are a social animal; you must adapt to the crowd and do what the majority approves of.

The old lady said with a tight face, "You two wait and get engaged. I’ll tell your parents."

Cheng Ying didn't want her elderly grandmother to have to face the stern face of the Chi family's old lady. Although she didn't want to be engaged to the unlucky boy, for now, the only way to settle this matter was to get engaged first; things for later could be dealt with later. "Grandma, no need. We’ll tell them ourselves."

The old lady gritted her teeth. Doesn’t this girl have any shame? Can a girl bring up these matters herself? This granddaughter had truly been spoiled rotten. "It’s none of your business. Get back inside!"

Cheng Ying pleaded, "Grandma, don't be angry. Let me stay with Wu Zi for a moment. We’ll tell our parents together, and leave the rest to them. You just wait for the village banquet and don't worry about anything else." She couldn't bear making her grandmother, at her age, pay the price for her impulsive actions last night.

Chi Wu understood perfectly. He had chewed over this issue in his mind more than once; he saw everything clearly. Yingzi didn't care about her own face, but she cared deeply about the Old Lady’s honor. You could call her a country bumpkin to her face, and she wouldn't care, but you couldn't say one bad word about the Old Lady; Cheng Ying dared to bang tables at anyone for that.

Chi Wu wasn't just trying to curry favor with Cheng Ying; he truly felt ashamed to let the Old Lady face judgment because of this. He knew his own grandmother. Chi Wu said gently, "Grandma, Yingzi and I are grown up now. Trust us. If we can’t handle it, you can step in. You’ve been worried all morning; your eyes are bloodshot. Please go inside and rest. I don't need anyone else; I’ll tell my own family."

The old lady looked at Chi Wu; the boy usually handled things reliably. Furthermore, this task indeed fell to Chi Wu. She also wanted to see where Chi Wu placed her in his priorities regarding this matter. She slapped her forehead. "Rest my foot! I forgot! Your Dry Uncle just had a seven-pound boy. I was bringing food for your Dry Aunt. Get out of here, both of you! Don't cause any more trouble before the engagement is settled!" With that, she hurried away.

It seemed the old lady wasn't planning on cooking after all; she had gone out to buy food.

PS: Asking for Pink Tickets, please vote. For the sake of the Old Lady’s feather duster. RP