stjorthotic Chapter 70 shows his deep affection for Xianglian!
Chapter 70 shows his deep affection for Xianglian!
Qin Rushan ignored this.
He bent down and picked up a package from the bushes.
That was his most treasured old military uniform. It was a Type 65, washed until it was almost white, but folded neatly, and even the top button was polished to a shine.
He took off his tattered, sweat-stained vest, revealing his muscular upper body.
Those were muscles honed by years of labor and training, hard as an iron plate, with several old scars lying haphazardly on them.
Put on the shirt and button it up one by one.
The belt was tightened, outlining his lean and muscular waist.
Finally, he put on his military cap and straightened the brim.
The man who was leaning against the tree, looking as lazy as a wolf, is gone.
Instead, there was a soldier, as upright as a pine tree, exuding a chilling aura.
The old charlatan clicked his tongue in disbelief.
He was all roguish just now, but now he exudes murderous intent.
now it's right.
This is the "general," "benefactor," and "tough guy who can quell evil spirits" that Niu Guihua has been dreaming of finding.
"Alright, the stage is set up."
The old charlatan shook the empty wine jug. "Now, let's see how this 'great Buddha' of yours gets into the temple."
Qin Rushan strode out of the woods.
The midday sun shone on him, making his old military uniform gleam white. He walked with a powerful stride, each step seemingly on the beat of a drum.
"Osmanthus fragrans".
Qin Rushan chewed on those three words, a ruthless glint in his eyes, "Let's see if you dare to accept this betrothal gift."
Outside the woods, the noisy chirping of cicadas was incredibly irritating.
Meanwhile, in Xiahe Village, Niu Guihua, brimming with dreams of getting rich, was running around the village like a headless fly, asking every old man she could find:
"Hey, Auntie! In all these surrounding villages, are there any bachelors who've served in the army, made great contributions, and preferably have a fierce aura but are still single?"
The sun hung scorching in the sky, making the dirt roads of Xiahe Village steam.
Niu Guihua was covered in sweat, and the back of her polyester jacket was soaked, clinging tightly to her skin.
She wandered around the village for most of the time, stopping everyone she met to ask questions, talking until her spittle was almost dry, but she still couldn't get any answers.
The old women in the village, who always loved to make fun of her, now curled their lip to the back of their ears.
"Oh, Aunt Guihua, are you trying to become an empress dowager? And you're looking for an official? Someone who's killed enemies? In our poor mountain village, all we have are pig butchers. Want one?"
"Exactly! Don't you even know what kind of reputation your Xianglian has? She just got divorced, and then she almost ended up in jail again. That's what you call a 'second stint'! What decent young man would dare to get involved with that kind of bad luck?"
The words were harsh, like a bucket of shit being dumped on Niu Guihua's head.
Niu Guihua was so angry that she trembled all over. She put her hands on her hips and wanted to curse back, but when she thought of the "ominous sign" that the old Taoist priest had said, she swallowed the profanity back down.
Now she is only focused on finding a tough guy to protect the house. As long as he can keep the iron box in the kang (heated brick bed), she will accept him even if he is a cripple or blind man, as long as he is tough enough!
Niu Guihua stood beside the millstone at the village entrance, her throat burning as if it were stuffed with a wad of dry cotton.
Half of the onlookers had dispersed, and Er Gou squatted in the shade by the wall, a blade of grass dangling from his mouth, looking rather unserious.
He didn't even glance at Niu Guihua, but stared at the ant nest on the ground, and snorted sarcastically, "This is like looking for a donkey while riding one, just wasting time."
Niu Guihua, with her sharp ears, suddenly turned around.
She darted over to Er Gou and grabbed his sleeve, yelling, "Er Gouzi! Spit it out! Who do you think you are? If you dare to lie to me, I'll tear your mouth apart!"
Er Gou wasn't annoyed at all. He even deliberately shrank back a bit, slowly took out half a handful of sunflower seeds from his pocket, cracked one open with a "crack," and then gestured with his chin towards the dark forest to the north.
"In this entire area, besides that living devil from Zhao Family Village, who else could meet your requirements?"
Er Gou gestured towards the woods to the north.
The women who hadn't left yet immediately fell silent, and the area around the millstone became deathly quiet.
Everyone knew exactly what was going on.
Er Gou spat the sunflower seed shells on the ground: "He was a real reconnaissance soldier who retired from the army. I've seen real blood on his hands. I heard that in the army, he was...tsk tsk, a ruthless killer. On the day he was discharged, you could smell the blood on him from three miles away."
He glanced sideways at Niu Guihua: "If you're looking for someone with a tough life, a strong aura, and the ability to subdue demons and monsters, who else has that ability besides this guy? Only he has a tough enough life to handle this mess your family is in."
Niu Guihua was shocked by Er Gou's words, as if she had been hit hard on the head.
Qin Rushan?
That jinx?
Niu Guihua's mind instantly conjured up the image of Qin Rushan smashing the millstone with an axe in the Zhao family's courtyard that day.
Those muscular physiques, those bloodshot eyes, and that ferocious energy that could devour a person alive.
She couldn't help but shiver, her throat tightening.
"He...isn't he a madman? I heard his brain was damaged in the army. What if he goes berserk and kills my whole family?"
Er Gou rolled his eyes and tossed the sunflower seed shells in his hand away: "Auntie, you're just ignorant. What is that? That's the aftereffect of fighting on the battlefield! That's called heroic spirit! Didn't you want someone with a strong murderous aura? In all around here, besides him, who else has such a strong murderous aura?"
Besides, although Qin Rushan is fierce, look at him—aside from that one time he tried to save his sister-in-law…and Xianglian, who has he ever deliberately provoked? The Zhao family brought this upon themselves!
Er Gou leaned forward, lowered his voice, and said mysteriously, "Besides, I heard that Qin Rushan came back with a huge sum of demobilization pay when he retired from the army. He lives alone in Zhao Family Village, with no parents or burdens. Wouldn't all that money be yours? Just think, if he really marries into your family, that money..."
"Gulp."
Niu Guihua swallowed hard.
money.
Money again.
The word seemed to have a magical power, instantly suppressing most of the fear in Niu Guihua's heart.
A strong aura of malevolence is good; the stronger it is, the more it can suppress the souls of those "Japanese devils"! It's even better if she has no father or mother; in the future, won't that family fortune belong to her daughter, which is also Niu Guihua's?
"But..." Niu Guihua hesitated, after all, the trauma Qin Rushan inflicted on her with that axe that day was still too deep. "That kid hates our family to the core, would he be happy about it?"
"Of course I'm happy! Why wouldn't I be?" Er Gou slapped his thigh. "Auntie, you don't know, Qin Rushan is deeply in love with Xianglian! It was all a misunderstanding before! As long as you agree, it's definitely going to work out! This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, so you should think it over."
After saying that, Er Gou stopped talking nonsense, got up, patted his butt, and left, leaving Niu Guihua there struggling with her inner turmoil.
The women nearby were in an uproar.
"Oh dear, if Niu Guihua really goes after Qin Rushan, then this is going to be quite a show!"
"A greedy devil paired with a living Yama (the King of Hell)—if these two were to get together, they could tear the Li family's house down!"
Niu Guihua ignored these idle gossips.
Her mind was filled with the old Taoist priest's eerie words, "The iron box cannot be saved."
As long as she can keep that box of her secret stash of money, she'll go and pay her respects to Qin Rushan, no matter if he's a living devil or even the real devil himself!
Niu Guihua gritted her teeth, turned around, and ran towards Zhao Family Village.
Sweat streamed down her wrinkled old face, and the polyester jacket clung uncomfortably to her body. She didn't bother wiping it away, her legs moving incredibly fast, afraid that if she hesitated even a moment longer, the metal box would fly away.
……
At the westernmost end of Zhao Family Village, three solitary mud-brick houses stand forlornly. Half of the courtyard wall has collapsed, revealing wildly growing weeds inside, giving the place a desolate feel.
Before even entering the courtyard, a crisp "crack" sound was heard.
Niu Guihua was so startled that she stopped in her tracks and peered inside, clinging to the half-collapsed mud wall.
Qin Rushan was shirtless, his bronze-colored muscles glistening in the sun. Although the wounds on his back had scabbed over, they still looked gruesome.
He was holding that deadly axe in his hand, and he chopped down hardwood as thick as a thigh. The wood split open with a crack, and the flying sawdust almost got into Niu Guihua's eyes.
That's terrifying! That's what you call a perfect match between expertise and job requirements!
Niu Guihua swallowed hard, suppressing the trembling in her heart, and forced a smile that looked more like a grimace as she pushed open the rickety wooden gate and went inside.
"Oh, Rushan! Already busy? You're quite the expert. With that kind of strength, which young man around here can compare?"
Hearing the commotion, Qin Rushan didn't stop swinging his axe and brought it down heavily again.
"Who let you in?"
He turned around, his narrow eyes flashing with a cold light, like two small knives scraping across Niu Guihua's body.
Niu Guihua felt a chill run down her spine from that gaze, but thinking of the "Japanese devils" in her house and the money in the kang (heated brick bed), she straightened her back.
"Hey, look at you, why are you so angry?"
Niu Guihua chuckled awkwardly and took two steps forward, wanting to get closer but not daring to get too close. "Auntie, I just saw that it's not easy for you to live alone, so I specially came to bring you some good news!"
Qin Rushan slammed the axe into the wooden stump, the blow penetrating three-tenths of an inch into the wood.
He grabbed a tattered towel draped nearby, wiped the sweat from his face haphazardly, and a mocking smile curled at the corner of his lips.
"A happy occasion? What good things could possibly come out of your mouth, Niu Guihua? Are you plotting something against someone again?"
He walked to the well, filled a bucket with cold water, and poured it over his head.
Water droplets rolled down his sharply defined muscles, and his wild and masculine aura made Niu Guihua nod in approval—with a physique like that, let alone suppressing the Japanese devils, even ordinary demons and monsters would have to give way.
"Look at what you're saying! Your auntie was... she was confused back then!"
Niu Guihua slapped her thigh hard. "Today I'm truly sincere! Rushan, you know my Xianglian, her looks and figure are unparalleled in the surrounding area. I was blind to have separated you two before. Now I've realized my mistake, and I'm going to marry Xianglian to you! How about that? Surprised?"
After saying that, Niu Guihua stared wide-eyed, waiting to see Qin Rushan's ecstatic expression.
To everyone's surprise, Qin Rushan didn't even lift an eyelid.
He slowly wrung out the towel, draped the old military uniform over his shoulders, and sneered as he buttoned it: "Marry me? Didn't you say you were going to send me to be shot the other day? What, Zhang the Butcher's deal fell through, and now you've got your eye on me, this wretch?"