Reborn in 72, I hunt to support my family and spoil my younger sister rotten.

Upon arriving in town, we could hear the hustle and bustle of the market from afar.

"We've arrived." Li Xiangyang reined in the donkey cart, which stopped in a secluded open space.

Li Xiaoyun peeked out towards the market and saw a bustling crowd.

"Let's go." Li Xiangyang jumped out of the car, but before he could even reach out to help her, Li Xiaoyun had already nimbly leaped out of the car.

The black cat nimbly jumped onto Li Xiangyang's shoulder, flicking its tail as if to say: Let's go, my "servant".

The market was bustling with activity, and the cries of vendors rose and fell.

"Soy sauce, vinegar, and the finest soybean paste..."

"Fresh radishes and cabbage..."

"Wool gloves, scarves..."

Various stalls lined both sides of the street, offering a wide variety of products such as cured meat, salted fish, soybean paste, cabbage, radishes, and sweet potatoes.

The fabric stall was crowded with people, and a few pieces of printed fabric attracted the attention of women who stopped to look at them.

“This fabric is beautiful,” Li Xiaoyun said, stopping in front of a fabric stall and pointing to a light blue printed fabric.

Li Xiangyang glanced at the price and secretly noted it down. This fabric would definitely suit her perfectly when made into clothes.

“Let’s go, let’s go take a look ahead,” Li Xiangyang said softly.

The two strolled slowly through the market, stopping occasionally to look at the unusual trinkets.

Suddenly, a fragrant aroma wafted over.

"Steamed buns, freshly steamed buns..." An old man was hawking his wares from a cart not far away.

Li Xiangyang glanced at Li Xiaoyun, whose eyes lit up, and pulled her over there: "Come on, let's go eat some steamed buns."

"Two meat buns." Li Xiangyang took out the money.

The old man smiled and handed over two steaming hot buns.

Li Xiaoyun took the bun, took a bite, and her eyes curved into crescent moons: "Delicious!"

Looking at the satisfied expression on her face, Li Xiangyang felt a sweet warmth in his heart.

The black cat shifted restlessly on Li Xiangyang's shoulder, its mouth watering at the meat bun in his hand.

"Greedy cat." Li Xiangyang smiled and broke off a small piece for it.

As the market grew more crowded, the two walked side by side down the congested street, occasionally being jostled close to each other.

Whenever this happens, the two of them blush without even realizing it, yet they tacitly maintain this delicate distance.

“There are so many people over there,” Li Xiaoyun said, pointing to a stall in front of her.

Li Xiangyang looked closely and realized it was a sugar painting vendor.

An old craftsman is pulling sugar, skillfully drawing the golden syrup into threads, then folding, stretching, and finally shaping it into various forms.

"Want one?" Li Xiangyang asked.

Li Xiaoyun shook her head: "Too expensive."

"It's nothing, just going to the market." Li Xiangyang had already stepped forward. "Master, I'd like a butterfly."

The old craftsman's skillful hands quickly produced a lifelike sugar butterfly.

"Here you go." Li Xiangyang handed the sugar painting to Li Xiaoyun.

Li Xiaoyun took it and examined it carefully, her eyes shining: "It's so beautiful."

At this time, the market was bustling with activity.

Suddenly a loud bang came from the east, followed by the old man's pleading.

"Oh, please stop kicking it! I carried all this with such difficulty..."

A thin, elderly man squatted on the ground, trembling as he tried to pick up the sweet potatoes scattered all over the ground.

His basket was kicked over, and the sweet potatoes inside rolled everywhere.

Three young men stood in front of the old man's stall. The one in the lead was wearing a black cotton-padded jacket and had a gourd of wine hanging from his waist. He was about to kick the sweet potatoes again.

"Please, please have mercy and don't step on me! I'll give you some!" the old man said in a trembling voice, trying to stop the black-coated man's feet.

"Pah!" the man in the black cotton-padded jacket spat. "You dare ask me for five cents for a basket of rotten sweet potatoes? Do you think I'm a sucker?"

The man in the gray cotton-padded jacket next to him, swaying the bottle of liquor in his hand, drunkenly said, "Exactly, a basket of rotten sweet potatoes doesn't even deserve it!"

Passersby quickly walked past with their heads down, afraid of getting into trouble.

Several children wanted to pick sweet potatoes, but were stopped by the adults.

"Hurry, hurry! Those are thugs from Yangjia Village, we can't afford to mess with them."

"Is that the son of the brigade accountant?"

"Shh, keep your voice down, his dad's not someone to mess with..."

The third young man, wearing a blue cotton-padded jacket, crushed a sweet potato with his foot, making a "crunch" sound.

The old man felt as if his heart was being torn apart, but dared not utter a sound.

"Ah!" the old man suddenly cried out.

It turned out that the man in the black cotton-padded jacket had kicked the old man in the shoulder, causing him to stumble and fall to the ground.

The remaining sweet potatoes in the basket also spilled out.

"Hehe, now it's all rotten, worthless, don't you think?" the man in the black cotton-padded jacket said with a sinister grin.

"My husband, look what a terrible mess we've made!" a woman sobbed softly.

"Shh, don't talk. These guys bully honest people; we can't afford to mess with them..."

Passersby quickly made way for them, yet were reluctant to leave, peeking out from a distance.

The atmosphere in the market became oppressive.

"This is outrageous! Isn't anyone going to do anything about it?"

Upon seeing this, Li Xiaoyun couldn't help but speak, her voice filled with anger.

Li Xiangyang was equally furious.

These people are truly beasts.

If Li Xiangyang were alone, he would have already rushed up and taught those thugs a lesson, but he was with Li Xiaoyun after all...

He couldn't help but clenched his fists.

"Those who commit many unrighteous acts will surely perish," Li Xiangyang said in a deep voice. "Such people will get their comeuppance sooner or later."

His voice wasn't loud, but it reached the ears of the three men.

The man in the black cotton-padded jacket raised his head, his gaze sweeping across the crowd before quickly locking onto the person who had spoken.

When he saw Li Xiaoyun, his eyes lit up and he licked his lips.

"Oh, what a beautiful young lady!"

The man in the black cotton-padded jacket shouted, abandoning his attempt to bully the old man, and walked over, "Judging by your attire, you must be an educated youth sent to the countryside?"

The other two also gathered around with smiles, their eyes frivolous.

The man in the gray cotton-padded jacket shook the wine bottle, while the man in the blue cotton-padded jacket kept touching his waist.

"Young lady, you've got quite a sense of justice," the woman in the black cotton-padded jacket said with a sly smile. "Want to play with us for a bit? Let me show you the enthusiasm of us country lads."

"That's right, you're an educated youth from the city, so we have to let you taste our local wild game." The man in the gray cotton-padded jacket said, his breath reeking of alcohol.

Li Xiangyang shielded Li Xiaoyun behind him, his voice as cold as ice: "If you know what's good for you, get lost."

"Oh, you even brought a bodyguard?" The man in the black cotton-padded jacket squinted. "Kid, I'll say the same thing to you. If you know what's good for you, get lost. This young lady is mine today, and nobody's taking her away."

“Yes,” the man in the blue cotton-padded jacket said ominously, “if you don’t behave, you’ll regret it.”

The surrounding crowd took a few steps back, their eyes filled with sympathy, but no one dared to step forward.

Li Xiaoyun clutched the hem of Li Xiangyang's clothes, her fingers icy cold.

Li Xiangyang could feel her trembling.

But Li Xiaoyun didn't back down. Instead, she straightened her back and said, "Aren't you afraid of retribution for bullying people like this?"

"Hey, little lady," the woman in the black cotton-padded jacket grinned maliciously, "the Yang family is like God in this area. Tell me, how will this retribution come?"

As he spoke, he reached out to pull Li Xiaoyun.

A cold glint flashed in Li Xiangyang's eyes, and he grabbed the wrist of the man in the black cotton-padded jacket.

"I told you to get lost, are you deaf?"