Li Cao's face turned red with anger. She glared at Qiao Qiao through gritted teeth and roared, "You, Qiao Qiao! You just said you saw it, how come you changed your mind in the blink of an eye? Do you think we're three-year-olds who can be fooled so easily?"

Xia Wan nodded seriously and said solemnly, "That's right, Qiao Qiao, what you did was not fair. You're just making a fool of your aunt! Now your aunt has been happy for nothing and has gained nothing. Did you deliberately want to see your aunt make a fool of herself?"

Li Cao, who was standing to the side, was furious. She was very clear-headed at the moment. She pointed her finger directly at Xia Wan and shouted angrily, "You little brat who doesn't know your place, how dare you stir up trouble and spread rumors here!"

Even if you weren't the one who hit someone, it must have been your brother. Neither of you siblings are getting away with this; you'd better pay me back right now!

As she spoke, she was genuinely afraid that Xia Wan would suddenly rush up and hit her, so she involuntarily took a big step back.

Xia Wan, however, remained calm and composed, giving Li Cao a thumbs up: "Auntie is truly knowledgeable; you used the idiom so well!"

Li Cao: "..."

Xia Tao: "..." My sister is so carefree!

Everyone stared at Xia Wan speechlessly, feeling both amused and exasperated, as she continued to speak with an air of self-righteousness.

"But how could this be my brother? My brother stood next to my father the whole time and didn't move an inch, let alone leave everyone's sight to hit someone. If it really was my brother who did it, do you think all the aunties and grandmas here wouldn't have seen it?"

At this point, Xia Wan sighed softly and then analyzed, "In my opinion, it's highly likely that when you were standing under the courtyard wall, you were hit by something that fell from the top of the wall."

Besides, my aunt's injuries aren't too serious, so let's not waste everyone's precious rest time here!

She spoke with unusual certainty, as if she had witnessed it all herself. As a result, the onlookers began to waver and started to believe what Xia Wan said.

Moreover, the spot where Li Cao was standing just now was indeed not far from the courtyard wall; perhaps she was just unlucky.

Li Cao had no idea whether the object had actually fallen from the wall. The only thing she knew was that she had to pin the blame on Xia Wan and his sister so that she could get compensation.

"Absolutely impossible, Captain! It was those two little beasts who injured me! You have to stand up for me!" Li Cao shouted at the top of his lungs, his voice sounding particularly sharp and piercing.

The captain glanced at Li Cao's persistent and annoying behavior with a look of impatience, and said irritably, "Alright, alright, stop yelling!"

"Look at your injury, it's not that serious. The village doctor just gave you some medicine; it shouldn't have cost much. Taozi, tomorrow you go and pay for your aunt's medical treatment and medicine, and that'll be the end of it."

Xia Tao coughed lightly twice, not caring much about the cost of the medicine, and replied, "Okay, Captain. But we have to make it clear in front of everyone that paying for Auntie's medicine this time is no problem, but the injury on her face really has nothing to do with us. What if that old woman tries to cheat me later?"

The captain glared at him: "You kid, shut up. Let's just let this go. Nobody cause any more trouble. If you keep making a fuss, we'll deduct your work points."

Li Cao was about to say something more, but was abruptly cut off by Old Lady Xia. Old Lady Xia swiftly reached out and stopped Li Cao, giving her a warning look.

At this moment, the captain's face was so gloomy it looked like it could drip water; clearly, he was truly enraged.

Grandma Xia knew that the most urgent task at hand was to find a way to get Xia Shitou out of trouble, and she absolutely could not anger the brigade leader at this critical juncture.

So she quickly put on a smiling face and asked cautiously, "Captain, let's not dwell on this matter. But could you help me think of a solution for my son, Shitou?"

Li Cao also looked at the brigade leader. Although she was wavering about whether to give up on her son, seeing that her mother-in-law was still thinking about her son, she felt hopeful again.

The captain remained unmoved. He coldly shook his head and then expressionlessly uttered, "Wait for news!" After saying that, he turned and left without looking back, not giving them a chance to speak again.

Seeing this, the crowd that had been watching the spectacle realized there was no more to see and dispersed. In the blink of an eye, only Li Cao remained standing alone in the large courtyard, looking exceptionally lonely and helpless.

Seeing this, Xia Wan, who had been observing coldly from the sidelines, slightly raised the corners of her mouth, revealing a meaningful smile.

She gave Old Lady Xia a thoughtful look, as if trying to see through her appearance to uncover the secrets hidden deep within her heart, before slowly turning around and returning to her room to rest.

As Xia Wan walked, she pondered to herself, feeling that Old Mrs. Xia was acting somewhat strangely today.

Based on past experience, when faced with such a profitable opportunity, Old Lady Xia would definitely think of asking for money to send to Beijing.

But this time, he didn't have such thoughts at all. Instead, he stopped Li Cao, who wanted money, and focused all his attention on Xia Shitou's grandson. Such behavior was really suspicious.

It's not that there's anything wrong with her doting on her grandson, but what's surprising is that she refused to cooperate with Li Cao in swindling money; such behavior is truly abnormal.

Could it be that this old lady has suddenly found another source of income? Or has she stopped sending money to Beijing?

At this moment, Qiao Qiao was lying lazily on the kang (a heated brick bed), her once pretty face now so gloomy it seemed as if it could drip water.

She thought to herself that she absolutely could not continue like this.

Since returning to Huaihua Brigade, she has never gained any advantage over Xia Wan and has always been at a disadvantage.

No, she had to come up with a foolproof plan to completely ruin Xia Wan's reputation and disgrace before she would stop!

She wondered when Liu Erzhu would make his move. She knew that this man was extremely cruel and ruthless. When that time came, she wondered how Xia Wan would still be able to maintain her arrogant attitude!

Thinking of this, Qiao Qiao's lips curled up slightly, revealing a sinister smile.