Free Web NovelChapter 143: Chapter 143: Unexpected
Sun Jiaming watched Gu’er. He was also furious about how Zhou Mazi had treated her, but Zhou Mazi was her adoptive father, after all. With Li Hua there and him being a junior, he couldn’t just start hitting the man, no matter how angry he was. But today, Gu’er’s biological father had taken action. He was getting justice for Gu’er. From this perspective, Lin Shan seemed like a decent guy.
Although Li Hua had been held back, her heart was racing with anxiety and unease. Yes, she was afraid of Zhou Mazi. He beat her, and he used to beat Gu’er. Sometimes, she would think, ’If only I hadn’t married Zhou Mazi.’ ’If only Zhou Mazi were dead.’ Then she and Gu’er wouldn’t have to suffer his beatings and curses.
She especially remembered one time when Zhou Mazi had hit her so hard her head had split open. She was terribly dizzy and had to lie in bed for two days. She still had the scar on her head. Another time, he kicked her back so badly that she couldn’t move for days. Thinking of all this, it wasn’t that she didn’t feel any resentment. ’I serve this family from dawn till dusk. I even bore him a son. Why can’t he just be a little nicer to me? Why can’t he treat me like a human being?’
It wasn’t that Li Hua didn’t feel wronged, but she was used to quietly accepting her suffering. She was used to the idea that a woman must follow the man she marries, for better or for worse. Since she had married Zhou Mazi, she was his woman. Whether she lived or died, she belonged to the Zhou family. Zhou Mazi treated her poorly, beat her, and cursed her, but she could only resign herself to her fate.
Now that someone was beating Zhou Mazi, she couldn’t say she felt sorry for him. No, it didn’t seem like she felt sorry for him at all. She was just scared. Afterwards, Zhou Mazi would surely take his anger out on her. She would be the one getting beaten and cursed again.
’Sigh... so be it. If I get beaten, I get beaten. Gu’er has suffered so much over the years. I’ll just let her biological father get this off his chest.’
Thinking this, Li Hua sat back down, but she couldn’t stop the tears from flowing.
Zhou Mazi’s miserable howls continued from outside. Sun Jiaming had also gone out. He was worried Lin Shan might be at a disadvantage, so he went to keep an eye on things. No one else went out.
"Your father just beat someone up. I wonder if that Zhou Mazi will go to the city and report him. Your father is a district chief. If Zhou Mazi reports him, he’ll be in trouble."
At first, Chen Fengjiao had approved of her husband’s actions. Her daughter had suffered so much; it was right to get some justice for her. But then she grew worried. ’If something happens to his job, what are we going to do?’
Gu’er’s eyebrow twitched, and she looked at Chen Fengjiao. Chen Fengjiao’s eyes were filled with anxiety. A slight pang of pain went through Gu’er’s heart. ’I probably shouldn’t expect too much from my biological mother’s feelings for me. I haven’t even started calling her ’Mom’ or acknowledged her yet, and the first thing she’s worried about is my father’s job. Would she be like this if it were Lin Sui’er instead?’
’But I didn’t grow up with her. Even if she missed me and felt guilty, all these years with Lin Sui’er by her side would have been enough to dilute her feelings for me.’
Gu’er hadn’t expected her biological father to be a district chief. She knew what a district chief was. Although she had been a nobody in her past life, she had seen a district chief before. They were people she could never have associated with. A whole area, an entire district, was under the district chief’s jurisdiction. It was a position of considerable power.
Gu’er had thought her biological father was a factory worker or something similar; she never imagined he’d be a minor official.
’It would indeed be troublesome for a minor official to be reported. But he didn’t seem to care about that when he started hitting Zhou Mazi. It’s not that he didn’t know the consequences; he must have been clearer on them than anyone. But he did it to get justice for me. Does that mean he values me? He must also feel guilty for losing me all those years ago when he returned to the city, right?’
In that moment, Gu’er felt a sliver of acceptance for this father she had just met for the first time—a stronger sense of connection than she felt for her biological mother, Chen Fengjiao.
Her memory of Cui Tie was faint because she had been so young at the time. Her impression of Zhou Mazi, however, was seared into her mind. So now, the desire for a father who would treat her well and stand up for her was even stronger than her desire for a mother.
After a good while, the noise outside finally stopped. freewebnøvel.com
Lin Shan came in. Gu’er looked at him and saw a bruise on his face and a trickle of blood at the corner of his mouth. Zhou Mazi must have managed to land a punch.
Chen Fengjiao rushed over to him, asking worriedly, and took out a handkerchief to wipe his mouth. Lin Shan shook his head, indicating he was fine.
Then, Sun Jiaming helped Zhou Mazi back inside—or rather, dragged him in. Zhou Mazi had lost all his previous swagger; he had been beaten badly.
For a moment, Gu’er’s mind went blank. It was as if she were seeing Zhou Mazi at the time of his death again.
After she had moved to the city, Zhou Mazi would show up at her door once or twice every month or two, always to fleece her for something. One time, he even snatched the money she had painstakingly borrowed to pay for Zhang Juan’s school fees.
Back then, she had been weak and didn’t know how to fight back. On one side, Zhou Mazi would rob her, steal her things, and beat and curse her. On the other, Zhang Da would come home and give her another round of beatings and verbal abuse. Life was unbearable; all she could do was cry in secret.
It wasn’t until later, when Zhou Mazi got drunk, lost his footing, and drowned in a ditch, that things changed. When she heard the news, not only was she not sad, she heaved a sigh of relief. That was one less person in the world to beat and curse her. fгee𝑤ebɳoveɭ.cøm
Gu’er looked at the endlessly screaming Zhou Mazi.
In her past life, she had been terrified of this man. She would tremble whenever he appeared, fearing him from the bottom of her heart. As long as he was alive, she would forever be subjected to his abuse. Back then, Zhou Mazi had seemed like an unshakable mountain in her mind.
Only after being reborn did she understand that the man himself wasn’t so fearsome—it was because she had been too weak.
In this life, she had fought her way out of the Zhou family and won her freedom. Only then did she understand that she had to rely on herself for everything. Only by being strong could she stand tall and live a good life.
And so, Zhou Mazi was no longer her nightmare. She was no longer afraid.
Now, it was as if she were seeing him at his death again—so pathetic that no one had genuinely mourned or felt sad for him.
In truth, his whole life was a tragedy. He was cruel to others while he was alive, and because he lived his life that way, no one would miss him when he was gone.
Now that she had left the Zhou family, she was no longer afraid of Zhou Mazi. Sun Jiaming was there to protect her. She believed that even after she got married, Zhou Mazi wouldn’t be able to show up and bully her anymore. Sun Jiaming was no pushover.
But now, there was someone else willing to stand up for her.
That person was her father.
Gu’er looked at Lin Shan, a trace of childlike affection welling in her eyes.
’Will my father be like a great mountain from now on, sheltering me from the wind and rain so I’m no longer hurt? Will he give me a father’s love?’
Gu’er didn’t have an answer. She didn’t know if this father would disappoint her in the future, but for now, a sliver of longing bloomed in her heart.
"Are... are you okay?"
Li Hua supported Zhou Mazi. Seeing him in this state, she couldn’t help but tremble. Yet, deep inside, she felt an indescribable emotion. It was fear, yes, but also a tiny thread of satisfaction. ’This man, the man who bullied me for so many years, can be beaten by someone else? Beaten this badly, all he can do is cry out? Isn’t he supposed to be so strong, so powerful? So, all his viciousness was just for me?’
"You... you damn... OW! You hag! This is all your fault! OW! You jinx! It hurts like hell! OW! This isn’t over!"
Zhou Mazi kept crying out in pain.
In reality, Gu’er knew Zhou Mazi’s injuries were all superficial. Nothing that would break bones or tear ligaments.
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