Chapter 1: She Is Unworthy

"Lin Yang, if you want to marry my sister, you'd better have the 'Three Rounds and One Sound' plus five hundred yuan for the bride price! Otherwise, forget about it. And another thing—I'll beat you every damn time I see you!"

"Daqiang, that's just too much. In all the surrounding villages, a bride price is only a hundred yuan. Can't you..."

"Hmph! Lin Laohai, cut the crap! There's a whole line of men wanting to marry my sister, stretching from the village committee all the way to the county supply and marketing cooperative. Keep a tight leash on that useless son of yours. If he dares to bother my sister again, I'll break his leg!"

Listening to the angry shouting, Lin Yang sat on the ground, his vision swimming in darkness. A sharp pain throbbed at the back of his head. He reached out to touch it, only to find a massive bump. It felt sticky, with fluid oozing out. It was as if someone had struck him hard from behind with a blunt club.

He looked up. Inside the stone courtyard walled with adobe stood several people. One of them was etched so deeply into his memory that he had dreamed of beating him to death countless times—Sun Daqiang! Right now, Sun Daqiang was wearing a blue cotton-padded jacket and a dog-skin hat, his face twisted in a fierce, menacing scowl.

Seeing Lin Yang look over, Sun Daqiang immediately pointed the shovel in his hand at him and barked, "What? You still got a problem with that? I warned you last time not to go looking for my sister again. Did you think I was blowing hot air? Believe it or not, I'll beat you to death right now!"

"Screw you! I'll kill you first, you son of a bitch!" Believing he was in a dream, Lin Yang pried a broken half-brick from the ground and charged straight at him.

Lin Yang's unexpected reaction made Sun Daqiang's face pale, and he instinctively stepped back. The next moment, someone grabbed Lin Yang tightly around the waist from behind, but he still hurled the brick in his hand directly at Sun Daqiang's head.

"You son of a bitch, go to hell!"

Although Sun Daqiang dodged the flying brick, he felt a sudden pang of fear looking at Lin Yang, whose eyes were bloodshot and who looked utterly deranged. He guessed that his shovel blow to the back of Lin Yang's head earlier had driven him mad, pushing him to fight to the death. He quickly took another two steps back, pointed a finger at Lin Yang, and roared in frustration, "You dare throw a brick at me? As long as I'm breathing, don't even dream of marrying my sister!"

"Marry your mother!" Lin Yang roared, twisting his body violently as he struggled to rush forward again.

The siblings Sun Daqiang and Sun Xiaorong had once brought ruin to his family, leaving him in a living hell. Right now, he had only one thought—to tear them to pieces, even if it cost him his life!

Just then, a figure stepped in front of him and struck him across the face with a sharp slap. The stinging pain burned on his cheek.

"Mother..." Looking at the middle-aged woman before him, Lin Yang's head buzzed, and his struggles slowly died down.

"So you still know I'm your mother? Haven't you embarrassed us enough already? Get your ass back home right now!"

Lin Yang still felt like he was dreaming, even though the burning pain on his cheek was incredibly real. At that moment, the person holding him from behind also spoke up to persuade him: "Son, listen to your father. Let's go back first. Don't be reckless!"

"Father?" A wave of sorrow hit Lin Yang's nose, and tears nearly spilled from his eyes.

It wasn't until his father, Lin Laohai, dragged him into the house and his eyes fell upon the calendar on the wall that his dazed mind finally cleared completely.

October 15, 1985!

"I... I've been reborn?!"

Lin Yang's eyes widened in sheer disbelief. The next second, the world spun violently around him. After a wave of intense weightlessness, he blacked out completely.

When he opened his eyes once more, countless memories that should have been buried forever flooded his mind like tea water choked into his lungs. He had grown up in this remote mountain settlement called Lotus Village, the source of the deepest memories of his life.

His father, Lin Dahai—whom the villagers called Lin Laohai—was an honest, simple, yet stubborn farmer. His mother, Zhao Guixiang, was a woman with a temper even tougher than his father's.

His parents had bickered and fought their entire lives. Whenever they had a disagreement, his stubborn father would grab a fire poker and limp into the room to pick a fight with his mother. The result, without fail, was his father getting thrashed so badly he didn't dare climb onto the brick bed until late at night.

Northern men were prideful, always trying to save face, but deep down, they cherished their wives. No matter how loudly or fiercely his father blustered, he could never bring himself to actually lay a finger on her.

But after his father passed away, his mother fell silent. The house lost its lively chaos, turning cold, desolate, and gloomy...

Back then, he had been young and ignorant, but later he came to understand. In his youth, he had been blinded by a foolish infatuation, insisting on marrying no one but Sun Xiaorong.

His father borrowed five hundred yuan and sold everything of value in the house, barely scraping together enough for the "Three Rounds and One Sound." To pay off the debt as quickly as possible, his father immediately followed some fellow villagers to work in an illegal coal mine. A cave-in occurred; his father vanished without a trace, his body never recovered.

The mine owner paid a thousand yuan in compensation, half of which went to clear their debts. Sun Xiaorong feigned concern, using sweet words to coax him into giving her the remaining five hundred yuan—money paid with his father's life. No sooner had she taken the cash than she slipped into the woods with a classmate from the county, only to be caught red-handed.

Though the bride price had been delivered, they had not yet held the official wedding ceremony. After such a disgrace, Lin Yang naturally refused to marry a loose woman. When he tried to get the bride price back, Sun Daqiang hired thugs to break both of Lin Yang's arms.

He went to confront Sun Daqiang in the middle of the night to fight to the death, but there was no way he could overpower a dozen seasoned street punks. Sensing something was wrong, his mother went looking for him, only to be struck on the head by the thugs in the chaos. She was rushed to the hospital but could not be saved.

Sun Daqiang pulled some strings, claiming that Lin Yang had provoked the fight first and that his mother had caused a scene afterward, making her death a mere accident. In the end, they were only fined. A thug who took the fall for a bribe spent a few months in prison, and the matter was swept under the rug.

Lin Yang swore to take revenge. But back then, he was weak and alone, no match for Sun Daqiang's family, so he had no choice but to leave home to make his way in the world. Driven by sheer ruthlessness, he amassed a fortune of over a million yuan in less than ten years.

Yet by the time he returned for vengeance, Sun Daqiang had already been imprisoned for another crime. Just before Lin Yang was reborn, Sun Daqiang had been released. Lin Yang had planned to pay respects to his parents' graves first, then have Sun Daqiang kidnapped so he could end the bastard's life with his own hands. But before he could carry out his plan, he was reborn.

Failing to avenge his mother with his own hands had been the greatest regret of Lin Yang's life. But now, it seemed there was still time for everything!

"Son, your mother promises you, I will definitely help you scrape together the 'Three Rounds and One Sound' and the five hundred yuan bride price."

"I'll go to your uncles this afternoon and borrow some from them, then ask around to make up the rest. One way or another, we'll bring Sun Xiaorong into our family!"

"Eat something first, and stop arguing with your father! That's just his temper, but he really means well."

As his mother spoke, she pulled two cornbread cakes from the cupboard and pressed them into his hands. Clearly, she had saved them specifically for him.

Although the work-point system had been abolished by 1985 and land had been allocated to every household, they still had to pay agricultural taxes and grain quotas after the harvest. Life remained incredibly tight.

Holding the cornbread, Lin Yang felt its heavy weight, and a wave of profound sorrow washed over him. If he hadn't been so blinded by foolish infatuation back then, he wouldn't have brought about his parents' deaths.

Seeing him stand frozen, Zhao Guixiang urged, "What are you staring for? Eat!"

With trembling hands, Lin Yang raised the cornbread and took a small bite. His mouth was filled with the coarse texture of cornmeal, yet he found it exceptionally sweet. This was the taste of his childhood! Tears nearly welled up in his eyes.

His father walked in and sat heavily on the edge of the brick bed. Taking a couple of puffs from his pipe, he exhaled a thick cloud of smoke, giving Lin Yang a surreal sense of stepping back in time.

"Come with me to your uncle's and your second uncle's houses tonight. They don't have much money either, but they can lend us a little."

"Tomorrow, we'll make a trip to your maternal uncles' homes. We'll find a way to pull it together!" Lin Dahai muttered to himself, his head slightly bowed.

Lin Yang was deeply moved. Though he wanted to weep, a smile spread across his face. Such a scene had only ever appeared in his dreams. Now, it was happening right before his eyes!

His mother fell silent for a moment, then looked at his father. Her voice lacked its usual dominance, carrying instead a tentative, hushed tone. "Dear, if it really comes down to it, let's sell the hunting rifle."

Lin Yang's pupils contracted sharply, and his hands trembled involuntarily. He knew that the rifle was his father's prized possession, something he rarely even brought out. Even as his own son, Lin Yang had only seen it a handful of times.

His father took another puff of his pipe and nodded silently. Then, he stood up and limped out, his back, already bent by the weight of life, looking even more stooped.

Lin Yang knew that the rifle represented his father's honor. It was only after his father's death, when sorting through his belongings, that he discovered his father had gone through the crucible of blood and fire, fighting face-to-face against the Americans.

Born anew, how could he let his father's honor be tarnished? Nor would he allow the tragedy of his past life to repeat itself! In this lifetime, he would not only change his own fate, but also ensure his parents never suffered again, giving them a prosperous life that everyone would envy!

At this thought, Lin Yang took a deep breath and said resolutely, "Father, Mother, I'm not marrying Sun Xiaorong. She is not worthy of entering our family's door!"