The 1960s: The Story of a Country Girl's Journey to the City

The midday sun of summer made the trees by the river droop, and the grass by the roadside lay half-dead and withered. Several pieces of colorful cloth hung from the big trees at the bridgehead, and when a gust of wind blew by, the pieces of cloth on the trees swayed listlessly.

People who had been working in the fields were walking back in small groups. As they approached the bridge, they squinted to see what was hanging on the tree.

Someone with sharp eyes shouted out:

"Hey! Who hung their underwear on a tree, and so high up at that? Look, it's even made of floral fabric! They must be rich!"

"Yeah, there are several. Let me count, there are five. They're all different sizes. They must be a family. Tsk, tsk, they really know how to find a spot."

A group of people stood around the big tree and wouldn't leave, pointing and discussing the origin of the underwear.

"Hey Guilan, this isn't yours, is it? The number matches the number of people in your family, so why is it hanging here? Isn't it enough to cause trouble at home, you have to show it to the whole village too? Haha..."

A woman with a long, narrow face looked at her sister-in-law not far away with ill intent. These two fought every day before they separated their households, and they still couldn't live in peace after they separated.

"Bullshit! Which eye of yours saw that it was hung up in my house? You can't expect anything good from a dog's mouth."

As the old woman spoke, she rolled up her sleeves, ready to start a fight.

"Who are you calling a dog? You worthless bastard, you've forgotten who you are since you haven't been beaten in a few days."

The woman who had been provoking her was not to be outdone. She rolled up her sleeves and prepared to fight, and it looked like the two of them were about to start scratching each other.

"What are you arguing about? You two are fighting without even knowing whose it is. Aren't you stupid?"

Lin Baoya peeked out from behind the big tree and saw that most of the people who had finished work had arrived, especially her adoptive grandparents, her eldest uncle's family, her second uncle's family, and her adoptive parents. Hmm, it was time for her to make her appearance. The show would be more interesting if the whole family was together.

"Father, Mother..." Lin Baoya, with red eyes, stammered as she emerged from behind the tree, looking extremely aggrieved and on the verge of tears.

"The clothes I washed got blown onto the tree by the wind." As she spoke, tears started falling down her face.

"Who told you to wash clothes? You're still sick, aren't you supposed to be resting at home?" Lin Dahai immediately became anxious. His daughter had fallen into the water a few days ago and had a fever for three days before recovering. She was still weak, so why was she washing clothes by the river?

He suddenly turned around to look at his mother, and Granny Lin, feeling her son's gaze, glared back defiantly:

"Why are you looking at me like that? I wouldn't dare order her around!"

"Father, it's not Grandma, it's... Auntie."

Lin Baoya glanced timidly at Li Jinxiang in the crowd.

"What? She asked you to wash this for her?" Su Ruyi pointed at the underwear on the tree, trembling with anger. No matter how heartless she was, she was furious to see her daughter being treated like this.

"No, there's another basin. It got washed away by the river when I was chasing after these clothes." Lin Baoya glanced back at the large wooden basin floating in the middle of the river, then lowered her head again to wipe her tears. That left only the basin; the clothes had long been thrown into the water and floated away. She had been waiting here for ages, waiting until the flowers had all withered.

"Agh! Li Jinxiang, I'll fight you to the death!"

"Ouch! My clothes!"

Li Jinxiang and Su Ruyi both suddenly attacked. Li Jinxiang tried to rush into the river to retrieve her clothes, while Su Ruyi rushed forward, grabbed Li Jinxiang's hair, and slapped her across the face, shouting, "I'll teach you to treat my daughter badly! I'll teach you to treat my daughter badly!"

Normally, the slender Su Ruyi would be no match for the tall and strong Li Jinxiang, but this time Li Jinxiang was caught off guard and was worried about her own clothes, so Su Ruyi took the initiative. By the time she reacted, Su Ruyi was completely overwhelmed. Lin Baoya closed her eyes and realized that her cheap mother was not good at fighting, so she had to step in herself.

"Don't hit my mother, don't hit my mother, help me..." He shouted as he hit Li Jinxiang, pinching her hard under her armpits and on her chest whenever he found an opportunity.

"Grandma, Auntie, quick! My mother is being beaten to death by my aunt! Help!"

Lin Baoya looked at the people coming from behind and shouted at the top of her lungs; the sound of her voice was utterly miserable.

When Aunt Liu Erli saw her sister-in-law being beaten by Li Jinxiang and her niece crying and calling for her, she rushed over without thinking. Aunt Yu Pandi followed closely behind and joined the fray.

When Lin Baoya saw them arrive, she withdrew herself. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Lin Siya trying to rush in, so she grabbed her, swung her arm, and slapped her hard across the face.

She was new here and hesitated a bit before hitting Li Jinxiang. After all, Li Jinxiang held the title of elder, so if she was going to hit her, she would have to find a secluded place. But she had no qualms about hitting this guy. If she hadn't pushed the original owner into the river, how would she have ended up in this era where there was nothing?

Before long, the fight between the two turned into a chaotic brawl. His own adoptive father was also grabbing his uncle and beating him mercilessly, while the two sons of the eldest son's family were being held back by the village lads, unable to get close. Yes! They were definitely taking sides. Bao Ya was such a beautiful girl; even though he couldn't marry her, he couldn't let her be treated like this.

The Su family naturally sided with their daughter and son-in-law, while the Lin family was a bit confused. When their own family members were fighting, who should they help?

"Stop it! Are you trying to drive me crazy?! Stop it, please stop!"

Old Man Lin shouted at the top of his lungs, his voice cracking, but no one listened.

Old Mrs. Lin sat on the ground and cried loudly, but no one paid attention to her, mainly because the battle over there was too intense.

Lin Baoya pretended not to hear, her little fists flailing wildly as she pinned Lin Siya down and punched her, venting her frustration from the past few days. She didn't want to come here; all the confusion and helplessness she felt upon arriving were channeled into her fists.

Finally, the farce subsided after the captain arrived.

They stopped him, gave him a few words of advice, and then he went back home. There was no need to intervene in the case. It was a fight among the Lin family members; they could resolve it behind closed doors at home. The village officials all understood that even an upright official finds it difficult to settle family disputes, and meddling too much would make one disliked by both sides.

As Lin Baoya walked back, she reflected that she shouldn't have cried. She'd been so hesitant and whining before, and then fought so bravely – had she ruined her image? If she ruined her image right from the start, how could she continue? It seemed she needed to plan more carefully in the future. She'd wasted a valuable piece of ginger; it was too spicy. She needed to go back and wash it with water; she wondered if it would cause an allergic reaction in her eyes.

Lin Qiao felt refreshed after throwing a few punches. The gloom in her heart these past few days had vanished. Suddenly, she thought that being a country girl wasn't so bad. There weren't so many rules, and she could even hit someone when she was unhappy. It was more comfortable than spending her stepfather's money freely in her previous life. It seems that to live, one must follow one's heart.

Looking down at her hands, she realized this body was indeed a formidable fighter. She made up her mind; from now on, she would be Lin Baoya.