Cheng Ying was seething inwardly; the more she looked at Chi Wu, the angrier she felt, because this whole situation was a trap set by the young man.

Now, it seemed she had walked right into it, and couldn't get out. The snare was tight, with every indication of being long-term. This realization soured Cheng Ying’s mood.

Chi Wu dared not speak further of his own affairs. “If it’s upsetting you, we simply won't invite them over next time. Great Aunt won’t involve you in it then.”

Cheng Ying was frustrated. Why was Cheng Tie so irritating? “Did you see me invite them in? I have no idea why Cheng Tie is so fixated on this spot, why he insists on bringing people here. Who did I offend? Do you think I enjoy this?”

Chi Wu felt that anyone who made his wife frown deserved a reckoning. “Don’t worry, I have a way to stop them from coming again. You won't have to deal with them, and you won't have to distance yourself from Cheng Tie either.”

Chi Wu’s declaration was bold, and he had clearly considered all his wife’s worries. How considerate of him.

Cheng Ying scoffed. “Do you really have the ability to pull that off? Don't end up like the weasel that ends up with an itchy tail by stirring things up.”

Chi Wu replied, “Just trust me. Relax and stay put, enjoy yourself. Leave everything to me.”

Cheng Ying wasn't optimistic about this matter. If Cheng Tie hadn't been so desperate for a private place, he wouldn't have brought people here. It was hard to believe he’d give up this rare spot for a tryst.

The next day, the young woman came over again, ostensibly to visit Cheng Ying, but really, she was waiting for Cheng Tie.

Chi Wu kept Cheng Ying inside the room and spoke impatiently toward the door. “Hold on, hold on! Yingzi is busy, I’ll open up in a moment.”

Cheng Ying whispered, “What kind of ridiculous plan is this? You block people from entering, and you call that ‘not causing trouble’? Never mind Cheng Tie, if this word gets out, you’ll have the whole village against you.”

Chi Wu pulled Cheng Ying back, preventing her from opening the door. “Just a moment longer.”

Cheng Ying glared at him. This brat was utterly unreliable.

As Cheng Ying was about to get out, Chi Wu swiftly pulled her close and bit her lip—not too hard, but enough that it would definitely leave a visible mark.

Cheng Ying was taken by surprise with a sharp “Ouch!” It hurt quite a bit, and her eyes welled up, brimming with glistening tears. There was definitely a mark.

Chi Wu, with his famous speed, was already out opening the door.

Cheng Ying was furious. The door opened, the curtain was lifted, and naturally, she couldn't just stay inside.

When the young woman saw Cheng Ying’s expression, and then looked at Chi Wu, who seemed reluctant to let her go, even though she was an unmarried girl, she understood the implication. She turned and fled with a flushed face.

Her cheeks were redder than Cheng Ying’s, who was supposedly the guilty party.

It was good that local customs were conservative, Cheng Ying thought. She felt that even after doing something wrong, she wasn't as mortified as this young woman. Truly an innocent, simple girl. Why had she ended up entangled with a scoundrel like Cheng Tie?

What followed was Cheng Ying settling accounts with Chi Wu. She rolled up her sleeves and lunged toward him. “You utterly wicked person, how dare you plot against me!”

Chi Wu held up both hands defensively. “Don’t come over here! I was helping you. See? The effect was good, at least the person left and stopped bothering you.”

Cheng Ying felt gloomy. Was her reputation that fragile? Looking at Chi Wu’s stance, she felt like a ferocious tiger. “That’s killing the enemy by sacrificing a thousand of your own men. You’ve ruined my reputation in the process!”

Chi Wu finally found an outlet for the resentment he’d been harboring toward the young couple. “We are husband and wife; it’s only natural things should be like this. How can they just hang around someone else’s house for half the night and not expect to be sent away? Don’t they expect anyone to live their own life?”

He looked at Cheng Ying as he spoke, implying that he only acted out because she wouldn't let him be close to her freely.

Chi Wu didn't dare voice the rest of what he was thinking.

Having watched Cheng Tie and the young woman exchanging meaningful glances, Chi Wu had been inwardly complaining that they were deliberately coming over to annoy him.

Cheng Ying couldn’t dwell on it too much; she blamed herself for trusting this troublesome brat, Chi Wu, and getting herself entangled.

When Cheng Tie finally showed up, he sat glumly in Cheng Ying’s house. He waited for half the night for the young woman, but she never made an appearance.

Cheng Ying and Chi Wu sat comfortably on the kang (heated brick bed), shelling melon seeds and watching television. The sheer bliss of it.

In their hearts, they both thought: We did this deliberately to teach Cheng Tie a lesson. After Cheng Tie left, Cheng Ying said, “We just broke up a loving couple, haven’t we? Isn’t that a bit wicked?”

Chi Wu retorted, “They are a blight, not a loving couple. How are we wicked? Maybe we were doing a good deed. Besides, who knows what they planned to do? Did they say they were meeting here? It has nothing to do with us, okay?”

Chi Wu washed his hands of the entire affair completely.

Cheng Ying finally stopped worrying. He had a point: the two of them were using her home as a clandestine meeting spot without saying a word, so why should she have to keep quiet and constantly accommodate them? Cheng Ying finally felt she had solid ground to stand on.

Unfortunately, a few days later, the young woman started coming around again.

Cheng Ying’s face fell. “This snow keeps falling on and off; who knows when it will stop? The Lunar New Year is only half a month away. If something scandalous happens in our house during this time, what will we do?”

Chi Wu was indignant. How could such trash warrant his wife worrying? “That girl is indiscreet. She can’t even see the nature of this situation and still comes to our house. You can tell right away she’s no good.”

That was going a bit far. The young woman hadn't done anything wrong. She hadn't even given Chi Wu a second glance, yet he had disparaged her so severely.

Cheng Ying remained silent. The key was that the girl and Cheng Tie clearly weren't a couple with a future. The sooner they broke up, the better.

Chi Wu declared, “Watch me. I refuse to believe I can’t even have some peace in my own home.”

Cheng Ying watched Chi Wu getting angry and was quite worried. She didn't dare bring up the issue again. “You aren’t going to beat Cheng Tie over something this small, are you?”

Chi Wu gave her a scornful look. “Do you think I’m an idiot? There are two of them in their family; can I beat them both? Relax, we’ll use strategy.”

In the village, fights usually involved brothers ganging up. Chi Wu’s concern was entirely necessary, given the local customs. It was why everyone in the village desired many sons.

Cheng Ying didn’t entirely trust Chi Wu but needed to extract herself from the situation first. “Dare to scheme against me, and I’ll destroy you!”

Chi Wu assured her, “I won’t. Besides, that route won’t work anyway. We still have to target Cheng Tie; he’s the main culprit here.”

Cheng Ying replied, “I’m counting on you.” Then she went into the house, passing the burden of worry onto Chi Wu.

She only hoped Great Aunt wouldn't find out until later, and wouldn't think she was involved. It wasn't that she feared the aunt, but she was too lazy to deal with their family’s petty troubles.

She was even more annoyed that Cheng Tie and the girl were using them without a word, as if Cheng Ying and Chi Wu were fools.

When Cheng Tie and the young woman came over again, Chi Wu became overly enthusiastic.

Cheng Ming understood the relationship between his older brother and the girl. He didn't approve either. His brother was so obedient, listening to everything their mother said. Why insist on hiding this affair, deliberately provoking trouble when he knew the elders disapproved?

So, usually, when he saw the two of them together, Cheng Ming would slip away, afraid of getting dragged into it later.

Unfortunately, today he was out of luck and couldn't escape.

That annoying Chi Wu insisted on being overly warm and kept him from leaving.

Moreover, Chi Wu acted as if he’d taken the wrong medicine today. He, who usually disliked crowds and seldom spoke, was now prying information out of the young woman. Was this really Chi Wu? Wasn't he afraid Yingzi would smack him the moment she saw?

Chi Wu cordially engaged Cheng Tie in conversation, pulling him close. “Mingzi, there are quite a few boys at your school, right?”

Cheng Ming didn't want to deal with him. This kid clearly had ulterior motives. “Nonsense.”

Chi Wu’s face darkened, and he shot Cheng Ming a gloomy look.

Cheng Ming felt immense pressure. When Chi Wu spoke, Cheng Ming answered hesitantly, no longer daring to retort.

Chi Wu chatted with Cheng Ming about his university days. Cheng Ying listened with great interest. “Wuzi, you were so active at school? In high school, you hardly ever bothered talking to people.”

Chi Wu gave Cheng Ying a disdainful look. Who am I doing this for? Am I naturally talkative? Isn't this to resolve this pair of adulterous wretches without shedding blood?

Chi Wu naturally drew the young woman into the conversation. “Second Sister, do you have a sweetheart? Otherwise, ask Cheng Ming to introduce you to someone from his school. They’ll all be doctors in uniform in the future.”

Cheng Tie’s face turned beet red. How could this kid be so clueless? Didn't he see they were a couple? Why was he so enthusiastically playing matchmaker?

Cheng Ying suddenly understood: Withdrawing the firewood from under the cauldron—a brilliant move! No, wait, this is undermining unity among the masses! Even better, this is attacking the enemy’s heart, making them fight internally. A masterstroke!

Cheng Ying chimed in from the side. “That’s right, Second Sister, do you have someone? I can introduce you. The boys at our school are handsome!”

Chi Wu’s face immediately fell. “Look, look carefully.”

Both Cheng Ying and Cheng Ming looked at Chi Wu’s expression of jealous grievance. Cheng Ying felt that their internal front was about to collapse first.

Cheng Ming had figured out their strategy: they wanted the other party to start infighting. Unfortunately, their current teammate wasn't helping much.

He whispered to Chi Wu, “Solve the external conflict first.”

Chi Wu turned his head away with a “Hmph,” his expression still sour. He even shot Cheng Ming a sideways glance—what was he doing, supposed to be watching his wife?

Cheng Ming rubbed his nose. Who can watch your wife? Whoever can.

Cheng Ying gave Cheng Ming a thumbs-up and then continued to egg them on. “Second Sister, the doctors who graduate from our school intern in the provincial capital. Assignment later won't be hard either. It’s really a good opportunity, especially since we have this advantage. How about it? Want me to introduce you? I guarantee they’ll be better than anyone in the village. At the very least, they’ll have a university degree!”

This was a soft knife, steadily lodged right in Cheng Tie’s side.

The ‘Second Sister’ blushed crimson hearing the two of them. The girl was speechless; I’m already in a relationship. In the village, no one dared to say such things openly.

Cheng Tie stared at the three exasperating youths with a face turning purple and green.

Cheng Ming said, “Brother, do you have anyone suitable? A female doctor would be nice too. During the summer break, I can bring a classmate home to visit, and you can see how it goes.”

This was clearly an attack on both fronts.

Cheng Tie flung his sleeves and walked off. “I wouldn’t dare aspire that high; I’m just a normal education student.”

This pettiness was exactly like his father’s.

Cheng Ying remarked, “I see it now. Big Brother takes after Great Uncle.”

Cheng Ming glared fiercely at Cheng Ying.

The young woman standing nearby said, “Yingzi, you all carry on. I’ve been out too long; I should head back.” She then quickly followed Cheng Tie out.

This was surely meant to make the two of them RS [The original text appears cut off here, likely implying 'react' or 'clash'].