"Do you think this island is unmanaged? How dare you rabble like you live under the sun!"

A thunderous shout rang out.

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw Zhou Jiuzhen walking quickly from the end of the crowd, followed by a group of soldiers.

He had broad shoulders and a narrow waist; his military green uniform fluttered in the wind, and the stars on his shoulders gleamed coldly in the sunlight.

What was most eye-catching was the rifle in his hand. The gun body was polished to a shine, and the muzzle was slightly drooping, yet it carried an undeniable intimidating power, directly confronting Boss Lai who was standing on the wooden platform.

Boss Lai's face turned ashen, but he still glared angrily at Zhou Jiuzhen, who was charging toward him with murderous intent. "You're a regimental commander, are you not reasonable? Are you out of control?"

Zhou Jiuzhen raised his gun and aimed it at Boss Lai. His upward gaze sent chills down the spines of the people on the stage, causing them to break out in a cold sweat.

The moment the trigger was pulled, Boss Lai screamed and fell headfirst off the wooden platform.

The next second, a series of gunshots rang out across the entire sea.

He turned the gun around and fired several shots at the "one" on the toll sign that read "one cent per person".

In an instant, a hole was punched through the red-painted character "一" (one).

All the villagers on the dock covered their ears, but their faces were full of relief after venting their anger.

"I can't do anything about you, a businessman, who exploits legal loopholes to seize the property of the people. But today, you're openly violating public order and good morals by collecting tolls and threatening the lives of the people. Our military is determined to handle this!"

"I, Zhou Jiuzhen, am right here today. If you dare to collect protection money or take even a penny of the people's property, I will take off this military uniform and bring you down!"

Boss Lai was already trembling with fear, covering his head, and said in a trembling voice, "I'm not being unreasonable, I'll just give your village a week..."

After saying that, he didn't need to give any orders to his men. He just grabbed the wooden sign that had been shot through and led his group of men away in a sorry state.

Seeing the man flee, the head of the fishing commune breathed a sigh of relief, stepped forward and grabbed Zhou Jiuzhen's hand, his face full of gratitude, "Commander Zhou, thanks to you, if this dock had to charge tolls, our fishing business would have been impossible to continue."

Qiao Hui felt extremely guilty and ashamed to face his fellow villagers. "It's all my fault for not reading the contract carefully. Now I probably won't be able to keep the clams I've been raising for more than half a year."

He looked at Ling Huanwu beside him, his face full of guilt, "Comrade Ling, this time your investment is going to go down the drain."

The villagers remained silent; it would be a lie to say they weren't angry.

But every village on the island has fallen for this Boss Lai's tricks, so how can they blame others without distinguishing right from wrong?

The villagers went to the clam farm to check on the situation. They found that a clam field had been trampled into mud and full of potholes by the group of people. Looking around, a small part of the clams that had not yet been harvested in the mudflats had also disappeared.

"They're thugs! How can they do this? Are they just going to act with impunity because of a court judgment?"

The aunties wiped away their tears as they cleaned up the mess.

The village chief and Qiao Hui discussed going door-to-door to persuade the villagers to contribute money to pay off their debts.

Ling Huanwu and Zhou Jiuzhen also went along to persuade the villagers to contribute money.

Just as a few villagers here agreed, another villager turned around and disagreed, and then the villagers who had previously agreed went back on their word and refused to agree.

After working tirelessly until the afternoon, the group was parched but still couldn't get everyone in the village to agree on contributing money.

It's lunchtime.

The village chief and Qiao Hui walked ahead to go home for dinner.

Zhou Jiuzhen glanced at the time and quietly nudged Ling Huanwu's arm with his index finger. "Comrade Ling, would you like to eat at our unit's canteen? Our cooks make delicious stir-fried garlic sprouts with cured pork."

"Oh, by the way, would you like to stop by and see my three little nephews? They're so adorable! They'll definitely... love you, their aunt!"

Sensing the man's expectant gaze, Ling Huanwu touched her stomach; she was indeed a little hungry, and nodded in agreement.

The very next second after she agreed, Zhou Jiuzhen crashed into a tree by the roadside, leaving the villagers who were still working nearby dumbfounded.

He covered his bleeding nose, but his face was beaming with a wide smile. "Comrade Ling, so you're agreeing to marry me and become the aunt of the triplets, right?"

"Right? Right?"

Zhou Jiuzhen shook her arm, insisting that she give him an answer.

Ling Huanwu was both amused and exasperated. This eighteen-year-old Zhou Jiuzhen was quite the cunning and ever-changing fox!

Just moments ago he looked fierce and menacing at the dock, but now he's clinging to her like a baby, wanting answers. Ling Huanwu really wanted to send him to a rural youth settlement to catch rats.

"I didn't promise you that. I only promised to see the three little ones and then eat at the cafeteria..."

In an instant, Zhou Jiuzhen's face fell.

Upon arriving at the family compound, Ling Huanwu went to the room where Zhou Shuyao had lived to see the triplets.

Zhou Jiuzhen went back to his stone house to look for his household registration book.

He plans to take his household registration booklet to the military base to file a marriage application.

While searching, he took out the household registration booklet and found a piece of paper with an official seal at the bottom of the drawer.

Just as she was about to pull it out to read, an aunt from the family compound ran up to her and shouted, "Something terrible has happened, Commander Zhou! Your sister-in-law has gone mad..."

Zhou Jiuzhen quickly turned around and rushed out, but he didn't see that the piece of paper he pulled out was a marriage certificate, with his and Ling Huanwu's names clearly written on it.

West of the family compound.

When Zhou Jiuzhen rushed over, he saw Song Yaoyao sitting on the bed like a madwoman, protecting the triplets behind her. She grabbed whatever she could reach in the room and threw it at Ling Huanwu.

The women from the surrounding residential compound pointed and whispered about her, all feeling they had misjudged her. "This Comrade Song is truly ungrateful. Comrade Ling saved her yesterday, and she actually dared to let him go."

Song Yaoyao completely ignored everyone's accusations and roared hoarsely at Ling Huanwu, "Get out! Don't try to take my children! They are mine, and you are not allowed to touch them!"

When Zhou Jiuzhen arrived, he saw a mess on the ground. Seeing a thermos flask hurtling towards Ling Huanwu again, he immediately shielded her, saying, "Sister-in-law, what's wrong with you? Take your anger out on your man!"

His words only made things worse, causing Song Yaoyao to break down even more.

While she was confined to her room during her postpartum period, she was forced to listen to the gossip of the aunties outside all morning.

They said that Commander Zhou deliberately denied that Ling Huanwu was his wife in order to win her back, and even proposed to her romantically on the beach.

These juicy rumors were like knives stabbing into her heart, stirring it up wildly.

Why is it that her aloof and indifferent husband from the previous life has become a doting husband in this life?

But she was abandoned by Zhou Shuyao, and her dream of becoming the richest woman was shattered.

At this point, Song Yaoyao had already gone all out. In front of everyone, she started spewing nonsense at Zhou Jiuzhen, "Zhou Jiuzhen, you're a cuckold! Ling Huanwu is already a piece of trash that your brother has used up, and you still treat her like a treasure. You're just..."

Before she could finish speaking, Zhou Shuyao, who seemed to appear out of nowhere, rushed over and slapped Song Yaoyao hard across the face.