Chapter 18: Teasing His Mother with Her Innate Divine Strength

Jiang Zhimiao had already secretly heightened his vigilance. At this moment, he deeply loathed his own weakness—unable to curse, incapable of fighting, and… he couldn’t even walk yet!

Sure enough, two burly men strode directly to Lin Guilan’s stall. Being straightforward by nature, Guilan assumed they were customers coming to buy her goods. Without even looking up closely, she merely noted that two people had approached.

“What would you two like? I made these at home and brought them over—they’re still warm.”

“So you must be the young bride of the Jiang Family?”

The thin man looked at Lin Guilan with a lewd grin, revealing his blackish-yellow front teeth as he spoke. The sight made Jiang Zhimiao even more uncomfortable.

Guilan sensed something amiss. She raised her head and frowned. “Who I am has nothing to do with what I’m selling. If you’re not here to buy anything, leave now and don’t interfere with my work.”

“Feisty little wench,” the fat man chuckled crudely, reaching out to touch Guilan’s face. “A married woman like you, how shameless to be out here flaunting yourself. Could it be that your husband isn’t man enough to provide for a tender thing like you… Why not come with us brothers? You can take turns serving us one day each, hehe…”

Guilan’s expression darkened completely. She tossed the ladle in her hand aside. “You’re here to pick a fight, aren’t you? How dare you speak so filthily! Aren’t you afraid I’ll report you to the authorities?”

Aunt Zhao nearby noticed the situation turning sour and hurried over, shielding Guilan behind her. “You two gentlemen, you seem like decent folk. You shouldn’t bully a woman here—it’ll sound terrible if word gets out. Besides, this place is bustling with people…”

Before Aunt Zhao could finish, the fat brute shoved her aside. The man was immensely strong, and Aunt Zhao, being thin and frail, was immediately pushed away, nearly stumbling to the ground. Luckily, Guilan reacted swiftly and caught her. “Where did this old hag come from? At your age, we brothers have no interest in you. The Jiang Family’s young bride is the one who’s as beautiful as a flower…”

The thin man leered as he moved closer, but his words were cut short when Guilan struck his forehead with her ladle. The blow was solid, stunning the thin man momentarily.

“Get lost! Leave now, and I won’t make a bigger issue of this!”

“You bitch, how dare you hit me!” The thin man clutched his head, his face twisting into a fiercer scowl. “No woman has ever dared to hit me in my life!”

Perhaps driven to desperation, the thin man lunged to grab Guilan. Jiang Zhimiao couldn’t quite articulate his thoughts at that moment; it was almost instinctual. He sprang up from the low stool and, before he realized what he was doing, positioned himself in front of Guilan. His chubby little hands stretched out in a blocking gesture.

The thin man felt something bump against his leg. Looking down, he saw a child no bigger than a radish stub, hands pressed against his thigh. The child looked up, his round eyes filled with rage. Though his anger was evident, the force against the man’s leg felt no more than a tickle.

The thin man burst into loud laughter. “Where did this little brat come from…” His eyes shifted, and recalling how Lin Guilan had made him lose all face, a sudden surge of malice rose within him. He raised his foot and viciously kicked toward Jiang Zhimiao.

In the blink of an eye, Lin Guilan swiftly scooped up her son, lifting him high into the air. At first, she looked at Jiang Zhimiao with pleasant surprise: “Son, you’ve learned how to walk!”

Jiang Zhimiao also belatedly realized that he had indeed learned to walk, but seeing the delighted look in his mother’s eyes… Mother, is that really the main issue right now? The problem is these two bullies are really hard to deal with!

Seeing the anxious look in her son’s eyes, Lin Guilan securely held Jiang Zhimiao with one arm. When she turned her gaze back to the two men—one fat and one thin—her eyes had turned completely cold.

“You shouldn’t have laid a hand on my son. My son is the most important person in my life. I originally intended to just report you to the authorities and find out who was behind this, but now you’ve…”

“Sealed your own fate.”

The two burly men, one fat and one thin, were momentarily stunned. Then they exchanged a glance and burst into laughter.

“Little lady, quite the tough talker, huh? What, you think you can teach us a lesson? Maybe you’d have that skill in bed.”

Lin Guilan seemed not to hear their insults. Her expression remained calm as she looked at Aunt Zhao, her voice steady and composed: “Aunt Zhao, please bear witness for me today. These two deliberately caused trouble. When we go to the authorities, you just need to truthfully recount what happened today.”

Aunt Zhao’s face was full of worry, unable to understand why Guilan remained so composed at a time like this. Unfortunately, her old bones weren’t what they used to be—being pushed earlier had left her ribs aching. She had been thinking of slowly making her way to get help, wondering if there would still be time.

Aunt Zhao opened her mouth, standing frozen in place like a puppet. Before she could figure out what to say, she saw Lin Guilan carefully place Jiang Zhimiao on the ox cart. Then the woman quietly pulled a kitchen knife from under the cutting board.

Lin Guilan was in the food business, preparing many items fresh daily at her stall, so she naturally carried her kitchen knife with her.

“Oh, the little lady’s pulling out a kitchen knife to scare us,” the thin man laughed even louder. “Let me tell you, big brother here was raised on fear… AHH!!!”

Aunt Zhao only heard the thin man’s scream. She rubbed her eyes, almost doubting what she saw. Lin Guilan had already twisted the thin man’s arm, pinning him to the ground. The previously arrogant thin man was now curled up on the ground like a shrimp. Lin Guilan had one hand twisting his arm behind his back, one leg pressing down on him, while her other hand held the kitchen knife against the man’s neck.

Aunt Zhao rubbed her eyes again, nearly convinced she was hallucinating from fear. She hadn’t clearly seen how Guilan had moved—just a blur of motion—and then the scene had transformed into this.

Had Guilan… subdued the villain?

“Aunt Zhao, there’s rope in the ox cart, originally for tying goods. Please throw it over to me!”

Jiang Zhimiao was also stunned. What had his mother… just done? How had the situation suddenly reversed? Were there hidden masters among commoners? No… was the hidden master actually his mother?

But Jiang Zhimiao reacted quickly. After all, he had already time-traveled—what in this world could still be considered unbelievable? Especially when the one born with divine strength was his mother, his own mother!!!

So there was no need for Aunt Zhao at all. Jiang Zhimiao directly grabbed the thick rope beside him, his small hands struggling to grip the heavy rope as he mustered all his strength—truly exerting every ounce of energy—and threw it toward his mother.

But… he had to admit he was still too weak. The rope only flew a very, very short distance—well, one could say it had just barely left the ox cart, with a section still dangling inside.

Lin Guilan was also somewhat surprised, then amused and exasperated. She hadn’t expected her son to be so eager to help, even if his strength fell a little short. Her hands remained steady, and she managed a slightly strained smile.

“Miao Ge’er is so amazing! Already knows how to help his mother!”

The fat man, meanwhile, had been stunned by the sudden series of shocking events. He couldn’t comprehend how a delicate, pretty woman had suddenly transformed into a fierce, cleaver-wielding virago, nor how his buddy had been subdued by a young woman. Though that lanky guy had always been useless—tall but hollowed out by a life of debauchery—the fact that they were always together meant this would tarnish his own reputation if word got out!

Gritting his teeth, the fat man suddenly charged straight at Lin Guilan.