Chapter 101 Even if there were no great achievements, there was still hard work.

"Nonsense!" Secretary He slammed his hand on the table, making the teacups jump. "You think you can just walk into the police station whenever you want? Lu Jianping, didn't you even bother to find out your reputation in the brigade? Do you really think you can get a position just by pulling strings?"

Lu Jianping shrank his neck, not daring to breathe.

Gu Mansheng, oblivious to the danger, interrupted: "Secretary, you're wrong. My father has been the team leader for so many years, and the brigade has improved day by day. Even if he didn't make any great contributions, he certainly worked hard, right?"

Lu Jianping smiled slightly, secretly praising his daughter-in-law for being able to step up in a crucial moment.

“Besides,” Gu Mansheng’s tone shifted, her eyes turning vicious, “my father received a formal complaint from a member of the Liu family! Who would have thought such a thing could be fake? In my opinion, the one who should really be held responsible this time is Shen Hongmei!”

Shen Hongmei was completely dumbfounded.

"What?! Me?! When did I report it?!"

She jolted awake and rushed over, grabbing Gu Mansheng's arm tightly and screaming, "Explain yourself! Who reported this?!"

Lu Jianping's heart skipped a beat.

The one who actually reported it was his daughter, Lu Xiaohui. If the Party Secretary finds out about this, it will be a disaster!

His eyes darted around, and he immediately snapped at Gu Mansheng, "Shut up! Don't talk nonsense! Protecting the whistleblower's information is a principle! This was my mistake; I didn't verify the information properly!"

Then, he looked at Shen Hongmei meaningfully and added, "Don't worry, we will definitely not tell anyone!"

Shen Hongmei's mind went blank.

What's the difference between this and shouting through a megaphone, "She's the one who reported it!"?

"You, Lu Jianping! You yourself dislike the Liu family and cause trouble, and now you actually want to pin the blame on me?"

Shen Hongmei went completely mad. She snatched the axe from Liu Xiangyang's hand and charged aggressively towards Lu Jianping!

"What...what do you want to do!" Lu Jianping exclaimed in fright, backing away repeatedly. "Let's talk this out! Don't do anything reckless!"

"Reason? I'll talk to you about reason today!" Shen Hongmei roared, brandishing her axe. "Tell me! When did I report you to the Lu family? If you can't explain yourself, I'll chop you up today!"

"Didn't I already say I didn't say it was you?!" Lu Jianping stamped his feet in frustration. "But we must keep the whistleblower's identity confidential! Don't you understand the importance of confidentiality?!"

Seeing Shen Hongmei's desperate stance, Liu Zhixia already had a good idea of ​​what was going on.

Zhang Xiuying leaned close to her ear and whispered, "It seems that this time, it really wasn't her who did it."

Liu Zhixia's lips curled slightly as she stared at Lu Jianping with a half-smile.

Lu Jianping felt uneasy under her gaze, and cold sweat poured down his back.

“Captain Lu,” Liu Zhixia began slowly, “we won’t pursue the informant’s information. However, now that the facts have proven our Liu family’s innocence, the informant is suspected of making a false accusation. Even if we can’t disclose this to the public, you should at least tell the Party Secretary so he’s aware of the situation, right?”

Lu Jianping's eyes darted around, and he was about to decline, "Well... it's not entirely impossible..."

“Oh, right,” Liu Zhixia cut off his escape route, “this whistleblower should also go and explain to the secretary why he fabricated facts to report us, shouldn’t he?”

She stared at Lu Jianping's face, which instantly turned ugly, and her smile deepened: "After all, this is a 'secret.' If we don't clarify things face-to-face, who knows if you'll just make up some random name to fool us?"

“That’s right!” Secretary He nodded in agreement, his tone stern. “I can keep the whistleblower’s information confidential, but Lu Jianping, once this matter is settled, you must bring him to me and give me an explanation!”

Not far away, Lu Xiaohui, who had been eavesdropping, suddenly changed her expression and quietly tugged at Li Xuemei's clothes. The two of them, like frightened mice, slunk away.

Liu Zhixia narrowed her eyes, watching the mother and daughter's hurried departure, and sneered inwardly.

It really was her! Lu Xiaohui!

She glanced again at Gu Mansheng, who was watching Shen Hongmei with schadenfreude. That fool was still completely oblivious, believing it was really Shen Hongmei who did it.

But... how did Lu Xiaohui find out about their business selling pickled vegetables?

Liu Zhixia's gaze fell on Shen Hongmei once again.

It seems that although this silly woman didn't report it directly, she must have been gossiping about it a lot!

Secretary He made the final decision: "Today's farce ends here! The Liu family should take stock of their losses. Lu Jianping will compensate for all the damaged items at cost! As for the false accusation, I will investigate thoroughly and report the truth to the commune!"

He looked at the Liu family elders: "Brother Liu, sister-in-law, can you accept this outcome?"

Liu Shouren nodded vigorously: "Yes! We believe what the secretary says!"

Zhang Xiuying pointed at the few lackeys who had joined in the commotion and added without hesitation, "And these guys too! They're always following Lu Jianping around like accomplices, they must all be punished! Let them learn their lesson!"

"Alright! I've got it all written down!" Secretary He readily agreed. "Since everything's settled, everyone can go home now!"

After saying that, he left with Lu Jianping, who was covered in dust and dirt.

The crowd of onlookers gradually dispersed.

Several kind-hearted villagers stayed to help, and they quickly tidied up the ransacked house. Although it was messy, thankfully nothing was broken.

After tidying up, the villagers saw the complicated and embarrassed expressions on Liu Xiangyang and Shen Hongmei's faces and knew that there was still a tough battle to be fought behind closed doors in the Liu family, so they tactfully said goodbye and left.

The moment the gate closed, the once noisy Liu family courtyard fell into a deathly silence.

As soon as the outsiders left the courtyard, Liu Xiangyang exploded.

He stared intently at Shen Hongmei and shouted sharply, "Did you tell Lu Xiaohui on me?"

Shen Hongmei glared at him: "Liu Xiangyang! I'm your wife, and you treat me like a thief?"

"I'm wary of you?" Liu Xiangyang sneered. "Your mother just reminded you not to blabber today, and this afternoon Lu Jianping brought people to search the house! This happened right after he left, and you're telling me it has nothing to do with you? You're kidding me!"

Shen Hongmei sternly retorted, "Believe it or not! In your Liu family, I'm just an outsider! I'm not allowed to touch the money, I'm not allowed to get involved in the business, and even the basic necessities like oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar have to be kept separate! Now that someone's been targeting me, they're trying to pin the blame on me?"

Liu Xiangyang's face was ashen, and his chest heaved violently.

He stared at Shen Hongmei for a long time, then suddenly turned around and walked up to the two elders.

With a "plop" sound!

Liu Xiangyang knelt down heavily, his voice frighteningly calm: "Father, Mother, I want a divorce from her."

The room was deathly silent.

Immediately afterward, Shen Hongmei screamed, "Liu Xiangyang, are you crazy? I gave birth to your son! And you want to divorce me over this trivial matter?"

"Troublesome matters?"

Liu Xiangyang's eyes were icy cold as he looked at her as if she were an enemy: "For a piece of meat, you almost sold your little sister to the Lu family; your little sister helped the whole family earn money, and instead of being grateful, you complained that you didn't get enough; when did you ever embezzle the money your parents gave you for shopping to help your family?"

He stood up abruptly and roared, "And your family too! Planting rice and harvesting wheat, every time it was me who had to work my butt off! All the work points went to you, and I didn't even get a bite to eat! I went there hungry and came back hungry, and then we had to use our family's grain to help them!"

“Shen Hongmei, I tolerated it before because of Da Bao and because you are my wife.”

"But this time you dare to touch my family? No way!"

Liu Xiangyang said, enunciating each word clearly: "This marriage is definitely over!"