Chapter 3: Forced Marriage
Fang Zichen was woken up in the morning by a series of loud bangs on his door.
There were people outside, their voices noisy—likely a large crowd.
After a moment of grogginess, he realized. The Ma family, the ones who wanted to peel a layer of his skin, had arrived.
[扒一层皮 (bā yī céng pí): lit. to peel off a layer of skin; fig. to exploit or extort someone mercilessly]
But could the Ma family really have this many people?
The commotion outside was chaotic, with at least twenty or thirty people chattering away.
"Open the damn door, you bastard!" someone shouted, followed by a loud bang as the door was kicked.
Frowning, Fang Zichen went to open it.
As soon as the door swung open, the Ma family members crowded around the entrance, leaving no gap, as if afraid Fang Zichen might escape.
"Who are—"
"So you're the bastard who took advantage of Zhao Ger?"
Madam Ma ignored the fading smile on Fang Zichen's face. She craned her neck to peer inside the house—empty, with just a plank bed and not even a three-legged stool.
And this young man, though handsome, had messy hair and wore what looked like the village chief’s eldest son’s clothes.
This guy was dirt poor.
She wondered if they could even squeeze any silver out of him.
"What do you want?" Fang Zichen asked.
Madam Ma pointed at Zhao Ger. "Do you still recognize him?"
Fang Zichen followed her finger and saw Zhao Ger, still wearing the same wrinkled clothes from when he fell into the water yesterday.
Zhao Ger instinctively looked up, locking eyes with Fang Zichen.
His pupils shrank violently, his face shocked, and he took an unconscious step forward. His lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but seeing Fang Zichen’s cold, unfamiliar expression, he lowered his head again.
"I'm Zhao Ger's mother-in-law. That’s his grandfather, his father-in-law, and his second and third uncles," Madam Ma introduced, then demanded, "Did you take advantage of my Zhao Ger yesterday?"
Fang Zichen: "You’ve got it wrong, I—"
"Wrong? What’s there to misunderstand?" Madam Ma’s voice rose sharply. "Plenty of people saw it by the river last night. You think you can deny it?"
"I didn’t!" Fang Zichen said.
"Then did you hold Zhao Ger? Did you kiss him? Did you touch him?"
Fang Zichen admitted honestly: "Yes, but—"
"Good that you admit it," Madam Ma cut in. "Now, what are you going to do about it?"
Fang Zichen felt a throbbing pain in his temples—maybe from lack of sleep, maybe from Madam Ma’s aggressive stance.
"Madam, I admit I kissed and held him, but it was to save him, not to take advantage."
"You say that, and we’re just supposed to believe you?" Zhao Ger’s father-in-law, Ma Dazhuang, shoved Fang Zichen’s shoulder. "Kid, dare to do it but not own up to it? Taking advantage is taking advantage. Don’t try to spin it."
"Exactly," Ma Erzhu added. "What ‘saving’? Everyone knows someone who's drowning doesn't die if they’re pulled out in time. Zhao Ger only sank for a moment, wouldn’t he have woken up on his own without your kiss? Stop lying about ‘saving’ him."
Sure, not everyone who fell into water died, but Zhao Ger had clearly lost consciousness.
Fang Zichen’s face flushed red with anger at their twisted logic. "Then what do you want?"
"Our Ma family won’t accept a fulang who’s lost his purity," Old Master Ma declared.
Fang Zichen glanced at him, smirking. "And then?"
"You marry him," Old Master Ma said.
Fang Zichen: "..."
Last night, he’d thought he got the short end of the stick.
Now… the tables had turned.
But he didn’t want a spouse now—still at a disadvantage.
"You must be joking!"
Old Master Ma: "What, young man? You don’t want to marry him?"
"Isn’t my attitude obvious?" Fang Zichen replied.
"That’s not up to you."
Fang Zichen’s patience wore thin. He looked at Zhao Ger, hoping he’d step up and clarify.
But Zhao Ger seemed resigned, neither struggling nor speaking, head bowed low, oblivious to Fang Zichen’s gaze.
Fang Zichen couldn’t see his expression but noticed a child hiding behind Zhao Ger, barely reaching his knees. The child had big, round, bright black eyes and a small, high-bridged nose just like Zhao Ger’s—quite handsome features, but he looked like a starving refugee, with a large head and a small body.
The child seemed curious, peeking timidly at Fang Zichen from behind Zhao Ger’s legs. When Fang Zichen looked back, the kid ducked away like he’d seen a ghost.
Fang Zichen ignored him, the Ma family was still shouting.
Being polite wasn’t working.
With shameless, aggressive people, reasoning was useless. The only way to shut them up was to be even more shameless and aggressive.
Madam Ma cornered Fang Zichen at the door. "Well? Are you marrying him or not?"
Fang Zichen stayed silent, staring unblinkingly. His smirk made Madam Ma’s scalp tingle—was he agreeing or refusing?
Both sides fell quiet, the atmosphere tense.
Madam Ma, used to bullying others, figured Fang Zichen was alone while her whole family was here, she had nothing to fear.
So she snapped, "You took advantage of Zhao Ger. Today, you’ll marry him whether you want to or not."
Fang Zichen asked flatly, "And if I don’t? Gonna hit me?"
"I’ll come to your house every day and make a scene. If you don’t want to live in Xiaohe Village anymore, go ahead and try."
Such big talk!
Fang Zichen almost laughed in anger. Madam Ma’s sharp, mean face only made him angrier, especially with how she kept jabbing her finger at him.
He stepped closer, raising his hand and pointing at his palm.
"You see this hand? It’s big and strong. One slap, and your face will be crooked. Wanna test it?"
"You—you’d hit a woman? Are you even a man?" Madam Ma stumbled back.
"I don’t hit women," Fang Zichen said. "But I do hit shrews." He didn’t sound like he was joking. Madam Ma felt that if she dared say another word, that slap would land without mercy.
"How dare you!"
Old Master Ma pounded his cane on the ground. Used to ruling his family like a tyrant, he wielded his cane like imperial authority. Fang Zichen wasn’t intimidated, eyeing him and then his cane.
"Kid, don’t get too cocky. In Xiaohe Village—"
Before he could finish, Fang Zichen strode forward, snatched the cane, and with a sharp crack, he snapped it clean in two.
Expression cold, Fang Zichen tossed the broken pieces at Old Master Ma’s feet in open defiance.
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