Chapter 603: Breaking Ties: The Price of Family

His girlfriend sat quietly beside him, but her expression couldn’t hide a suppressed excitement.

She probably never expected that her ‘broke boyfriend’ who just washes cars would have such a remarkable older sister.

Half a million yuan—that’s a sum an average person might work ten or even twenty years to earn.

Yet her boyfriend’s sister could pull out that kind of money without batting an eye. She worked as a nurse in a clinic, making just five or six thousand a month. Today really opened her eyes to what it means to be rich like a celebrity.

“You’re refusing a gift of half a million for the bride price?”

Su Qianqian didn’t look at Su Jun, but turned to her uncle.

“Absolutely not. If you still have a conscience, if you still care about family and feelings, then do things according to the conditions my mother and I proposed—five million bride price, not a cent less. In the future, if you make money, half goes to us. Agree to this, and you’ll always be my sister. If something ever happens, your own family will have your back.”

Su Jun might not look that old, but when it came to these things he played the game perfectly.

He was pulling every emotional and family card he had.

“Uncle, Aunt, is this how you both feel too?”

Su Qianqian looked at the two elders for confirmation.

“That’s right! We stand with our son,” said his aunt, a rural woman whose appetite for money seemed bottomless.

What did they need all that cash for anyway?

Almost sixty years old—even if they spent wildly, five million could never be used up.

“Alright, since that’s your stance, I have one of my own. I’m deeply grateful you took me in after I lost my parents at a young age and raised me. Ever since you took me in, I remember Aunt handed me a bamboo basket as tall as my shoulder. I wasn’t allowed to eat until I’d filled it with pigweed.”

“I’d never done that before. I accidentally cut my hand, blood pouring out, the pain nearly unbearable. My heart was pounding with fear. That day I only managed half a basket—carrying it home was like carrying a mountain. My hand was still bleeding. I was starving, hurting, and terrified. I longed for a bit of kindness. The basket was so heavy, my hand was injured, the road home was far, and there were winding paths and hills. I fell twice, spilling a lot of the weeds.”

“It was nearly dark by the time I got home. Dad once told me wolves and wild boars roamed at night and could attack people, so I didn’t dare stop to pick up what I’d dropped. When I made it back, Aunt saw I’d only brought a small half-basket and immediately looked furious. She scolded me for being useless. I told her I’d cut my hand and the basket was too heavy and I’d fallen and skinned my knees and arms.”

“Her response? Not a single word of concern, just nonstop scolding for being weak and useless. That night, I wasn’t given dinner. I was hungry, exhausted, in pain. At that moment, I realized living in someone else’s house was nothing like living with your own parents. I knew you and Aunt were different from Mom and Dad. I was terrified of being kicked out, so from then on I worked harder than ever, doing my best to win your approval.”

As Su Qianqian shared her childhood memories, Zhou Can, sitting beside her, clenched his fists in anger.

His girlfriend had suffered so much as a child.

This aunt’s heart was stone cold.

“No matter how hard I worked, whenever there was good food, it always secretly went to Su Jun. If a chicken was slaughtered or there was meat, if I tried to take a bite, Aunt would glare at me and tell me girls shouldn’t eat meat, only vegetables. Snacks? Only for Su Jun—I never got any. Once, when an apple was missing from the household altar, Aunt blamed me and beat me, didn’t listen to a word I said, even though I saw Su Jun hiding behind the haystack eating it.”

“After I got into the best high school in the county, you said it was a waste for girls to keep studying. I never took a penny from you for tuition. College? I paid it all myself. I even gave you over twenty thousand. Two years ago when I was sick—my lowest point, when something happened during a performance—I asked you for a little money, but you wouldn’t lend me a cent. I overheard Su Jun and Aunt whispering about how I was a burden and bad luck. After that, all my calls home went unanswered.”

“Each of these memories is etched into me, unforgettable. You claim you raised me out of kindness, but that so-called ‘kindness’ deserves quotation marks. Now I’m getting married. I wanted to let bygones be bygones, give you some security for your old age. Honestly, after coming home, all I felt was disappointment and coldness.”

“My family’s old house was demolished—did you ask for my opinion? You took over our house site—did you ask me? When I came home to talk marriage, all you cared about was bride price. Did you ever ask how I was doing all these years? Did you ever show any care about whether my illness got better?”

Tears streamed down Su Qianqian’s face.

Zhou Can didn’t have any tissues, so he used his sleeve to gently wipe her tears.

“Since you never saw me as family to begin with, stop pretending we’re kin. Honestly, we’re not even relatives. When you adopted me, Aunt once whispered to Uncle that raising me would mean a big payout in bride price and getting my family’s property. The government gave you my orphan allowance every month, but you never said a word. I only found out when doing paperwork years later.”

Su Qianqian’s voice grew cold and resolute.

“Since you reject my terms, fine. My boyfriend will handle everything from here. His decision is my decision. If he feels like giving you five million, so be it. If he gives you nothing, you have only yourselves to blame. Don’t talk to me about family or feelings. I never felt warmth or love in this house.”

After years of holding back, she finally let all those feelings out.

She’d returned to her ‘family’ with good intentions and gratitude, wanting to honor her uncle and aunt as elders, and to leave them enough to live comfortably.

But their greed and scheming went too far.

And they seriously underestimated Su Qianqian—they thought she was still that easy, naïve little girl.

Character is what truly supports a person.

No one’s a fool forever. After enough betrayals and lies, eventually you wake up.

Good people are shaped by having to deal with the worst.

If even someone as gentle and kind as Su Qianqian could be pushed to this point, it shows just how nasty her uncle’s family had been.

From Zhou Can’s point of view, this was actually a blessing in disguise.

Every hardship is an opportunity to grow.

Even though Su Qianqian never spoke of it, Zhou Can could sense from her little comments and actions that she still cared deeply about her uncle and aunt. She’d been so happy about coming home for the engagement.

She went to great lengths preparing for this day.

Sadly, her kindness and gratitude were wasted on the wrong people.

This family’s actions had finally opened her eyes, and she’d decided to sever the illusion of family ties once and for all.

“Qianqian, leave the rest to me! I might not be good at handling good people, but dealing with cruel folks is my specialty.”

Zhou Can gently patted her back.

He glanced sharply at the uncle, aunt, and the others.

“Su Qianqian, are you even human? After all we’ve done for you, how can you say such ungrateful things? If you don’t agree, don’t even think about leaving. And that man—he has no right to make decisions for you. Remember, you haven’t married out yet. You’re still part of this family. You’re the daughter my mom and dad adopted!”

Seeing things going south, Su Jun slammed the table in anger and tried to get tough.

“Kid, you clearly don’t know the law. Even if she were your real sister, she’s an adult and free to live her own life!”

Zhou Can shot a cool, steady look at Su Jun.

He couldn’t care less about Su Jun’s tantrum.

To be blunt, Wei Fang alone could easily put Su Jun in his place. There’s a massive difference between someone with real fighting skills and someone without.

Don’t let Su Jun’s tall, sturdy build fool you—if it really came to blows, even two of him couldn’t take Wei Fang.

And Zhou Can was even tougher than Wei Fang. In a fight, Su Jun didn’t stand a chance.

“Wei Fang, load all the gifts into the car. We’re leaving!”

Zhou Can and Su Qianqian had bought a lot of gifts, and none of them were cheap.

They’d easily spent twenty or thirty thousand.

That’s just how Zhou Can was—he’d rather throw things away than leave them for these greedy people. Let the insatiable eat dirt.

“Folks, thank you for trusting and entrusting the matter to me. Here’s my stance: Goodbye, and I hope we never meet again!”

With that, Zhou Can gathered up the stacks of cash from the table and stuffed them back in the envelope, ready to go.

Dreaming of five million?

Sure. They can chase that sum in their dreams.

“Oh no, our money—our money!”

Auntie watched Zhou Can take the cash and grew frantic, wanting to snatch it back—but looking at Zhou Can’s imposing size, she didn’t dare.

She was the kind of woman who only bullied the weak and feared the strong.

“You can take the money but the girl stays. Su Qianqian is family. She hasn’t married out yet—how could you, an outsider, think you can just walk out with her?”

Su Jun was cunning—he figured as long as they kept her, they’d have Zhou Can in their grasp.

That way, all the money Su Qianqian earned would wind up in their pockets eventually.

“We want to leave, and no one’s stopping us.”

Zhou Can shot Su Jun a mocking look, grabbed the cash with one hand, Su Qianqian with the other, and strode for the door.

You don’t come to a place like this carrying cash unless you’re ready for the worst.

Su Jun’s family dreaming of keeping her by force? Ridiculous.

“Dad, quick—go call everyone!”

Su Jun said, stepping in to block Zhou Can and Su Qianqian’s way.

“Try to take her by force, huh? Let’s see if you’re really up to it. Do you even know who we are? Our Su family is a huge clan around here—six out of every ten people are related to us. If you’re a dragon, you’ll have to coil up here. If you’re a tiger, you’ll have to lie flat.”

Su Jun sneered, not taking Zhou Can seriously at all.

There are plenty of big extended families in the countryside, strong and tight-knit. When something happens, they band together with impressive solidarity.

Now, the law is more transparent. Back in ancient times, clans wielded enough power even officials had to respect them as local authorities.

Even today, the harshest places breed the toughest people.

The poorer and more backward the place, the tighter the clan’s grip.

Su Jun reached out to grab Su Qianqian. She panicked and shrank into Zhou Can’s arms, terrified.

Zhou Can’s eyes turned cold. He didn’t pull his punches.

With one swift kick, he sent Su Jun flying.

And that was him holding back—if he hadn’t, Su Jun would be half dead.

In combat, the first thing you learn isn’t how to hit, but how not to kill or cripple. Some places are strictly off-limits—that’s the number one rule.

“Help! Help! He’s hurting people—somebody help!”

Auntie was stunned at seeing her son flattened by Zhou Can.

Once she snapped out of it, she ran over shrieking, helping her son up.

Su Jun’s girlfriend was already pale with fear.

She never imagined Zhou Can would be that strong. Her own tough-looking boyfriend seemed like a helpless chick in comparison.

Wei Fang quickly loaded all the gifts into the car.

Zhou Can took Su Qianqian and got her settled in the car.

Things weren’t supposed to go this far, but the situation forced their hand.

If Zhou Can hadn’t been tough, and Su Qianqian had been kept here, it would have been a nightmare to untangle later.

There was no way to compromise with such outrageous demands.

Barely in the car, they saw villagers already gathering, wielding hoes, sickles, whatever they could grab.

“Don’t let them leave! Coming to our Su family to steal someone away—they need to learn respect.”

The mob crowded around with fierce hostility.

Zhou Can popped open the trunk and pulled out a steel army shovel—always good to have on hand when things got dicey.

“Listen up, everyone—Su Qianqian is an adult. She leaves if she wants, and no one has any right to stop her. If anyone tries to get rough, be prepared for the consequences.”

Facing the crowd, Zhou Can didn’t show a hint of fear.

Best case, nothing escalates. If it has to, he’ll do whatever it takes.

Survival of the fittest is the law of the wild.

“No matter what, she stays!”

Uncle looked uncharacteristically tough.

The other villagers followed his orders.

“Leave her, or we smash your car!”

“We’re country folk—don’t push us or you’ll get a beating you’ll remember!”

“Keep it down!”

A dozen villagers brandished their weapons and closed in.

“Go ahead, smash my car. Try it.”

Zhou Can’s voice was ice cold and his gaze could cut glass.

There’s a saying—a dragon can’t overpower a local tyrant.

But today, he would.

“Heh, you still dare act tough here? Smash it!”

One man shouted, swinging his hoe at the car.

Bang!

The hoe hit the front fog light.

The headlight shattered instantly.

That was the moment Zhou Can had been waiting for. He charged forward, army shovel in hand, and this time he showed no mercy—he slammed it down on the attacker’s head.

“Agh!”

The man collapsed on the spot.

“Don’t force me to kill. Get lost!”

Zhou Can looked every inch a death god—his presence alone made the villagers shrink back in fear.

You have to hit hard to control a scene like this.