Xue Fu was speechless and didn't want to answer the question.

Xue Fu thought that if they couldn't find this person, they should go find someone who would investigate and handle cases professionally.

She glanced at him coldly again and said to Zhou Jianguo, "The innocent are innocent. We're stuck here with each of us having our own version of events, and we haven't been able to resolve this for a long time. How about we call the police?"

Xue Fu thought that only the commune office in the village had telephone service, and the commune was already closed for the day. She thoughtfully added, "I can't register today, I'll go to the commune early tomorrow to make a call."

When Gu Chong heard her 'sharp tongue,' his eyebrows relaxed, and among the crowd, he had the most nonchalant expression.

He discovered that Xue Fu was not as delicate as she seemed, and that she was actually capable of handling things on her own.

She just likes to act cute.

Gu Chong felt a little regretful; he liked her acting coquettishly towards him and liked being relied upon by her. However, he was mostly happy.

Xue Fu is the kind of person who can live a good and wonderful life no matter where she is.

Xue Fu was very firm in her stance and even mentioned reporting it to the police.

This confident demeanor changed the attitude of Zhao Wen and several other educated youths.

Li Jing nodded in agreement when she heard this.

Li Jing glanced at He Luosheng, who hadn't said a word since entering the room, but whose gaze had been lingering on her. The emotions she had been holding back all night suddenly became somewhat aggrieved.

However, she kept this grievance to herself and didn't show it. Li Jing said, "Let's report it to the police."

When Li Jing first returned to the educated youth settlement after work and saw the pile of scraps of paper, she didn't want to make a big deal out of it.

She just wanted to know why. Had she done something wrong that provoked retaliation?

Although Li Jing didn't consider herself a pushover, she almost never made enemies. Who was so against her that they would do something so disgusting?

Li Jing thought that as long as this person came out to admit his mistake, apologize, and talk things out, she could let bygones be bygones and pretend that nothing had happened.

But no one admitted to doing it; instead, they all shirked responsibility.

Li Jing gradually grew disheartened.

When Xue Fu arrived, she also had doubts about Xue Fu.

Xue Fu, however, was not guilty at all and instead suggested reporting it to the police.

Li Jing also felt that Xue Fu was not the one who did it.

Zhou Jianguo's face darkened further. He glared at Xue Fu, the one who suggested calling the police, thinking that she was really capable of causing him trouble.

Making a scene would be bad for their village!

Zhou Jianguo was hoping their village would win an award this year! If they did, they could apply for tractors for the village, and at this crucial juncture, he didn't want these educated youths to cause trouble.

Zhou Jianguo found the educated youth even more annoying. They were arrogant all day long, confused by their studies, and a bunch of troublemakers.

However, when Zhou Jianguo glared at Xue Fu, he didn't see Xue Fu, but rather that cold-hearted boy Gu Chong.

He protected Xue Fu well, not letting anyone even look at her.

Zhou Jianguo had just glared at him when Gu Chong gave him a cold look, which made Zhou Jianguo snort in anger.

"Why call the police! Why call the police for such a small matter?"

These educated youths were incredibly petty; they even did something as thoughtless as tearing up books.

Zhou Jianguo said, "It's just a book, isn't it? There are plenty of textbooks in the village. Li Jing, you can go to the commune tomorrow to apply for a new one."

Li Jing frowned, disliking this perfunctory approach: "This isn't about whether it's written down or not, Captain. If we don't find this person, who knows if this kind of accident will happen again?"

Zhou Jianguo scoffed. He usually didn't put on airs with people, but today, to suppress their thoughts of reporting to the police, he was putting on airs.

Zhou Jianguo tapped each of them with his pipe, calling out the name of each educated youth as he tapped, and finally tapped Xue Fu, who was being protected by Gu Chong behind him.

If one person is difficult to manage, then tie them together on one rope so they can check and balance each other.

Zhou Jianguo sneered, "This is easy to handle. If this happens again, your application qualifications will all be revoked."

The first to object was Wu Tiejun: "Captain, how come this involves collective punishment? Why should we, who did nothing, be held responsible and suffer as a result? I won't do it."

Wu Tiejun was somewhat excited.

Zhou Jianguo has plenty of ways to deal with him.

"Then it's your choice: do you want to take time off to go to the police station?" Zhou Jianguo tapped his pipe in the air. "Don't blame me for not warning you, do you think the police station can handle things in half a day? They wouldn't even want to take on such a small matter as yours."

Zhou Jianguo glanced at the sky, which had darkened considerably, and impatiently told them to hurry up and choose.

But Zhou Jianguo knew in his heart that they would eventually compromise.

Putting aside the fact that going to the police station would require asking for leave and incurring work points, they were even more concerned about the time wasted by taking leave, since the exam was next week and they had very little time to study, and no one wanted to waste it.

Wu Tiejun became hesitant and stopped insisting.

Zhou Jianguo finally looked at Li Jing, his voice much gentler: "Li Jing, it's not that I want to slack off, it's just that manpower and resources have been delayed. The harvest is due next month, so please understand."

Li Jing opened her mouth, but deep down she wanted to continue the investigation.

But Zhou Jianguo looked at her so sincerely that she found it hard to refuse.

The attitude of the people at the educated youth settlement also changed. They hoped she could downplay the incident, and Zhao Wen stepped in.

"Li Jing, don't worry, this will definitely not happen again. Let's all learn from this. If this happens again, no matter what, whether it's wasting time or losing work points, I will definitely report it to the police."

With Zhao Wen acting as a peacemaker, Li Jing gradually became hesitant and wavered. She glanced at He Luosheng, whose gaze was inscrutable, and he shook his head slightly at her.

Li Jing lowered her eyes and agreed.

"good."

Zhou Jianguo: "Isn't that good? Li Jing, the educated youth, can just go to the commune to pick up her books tomorrow."

After Zhou Jianguo resolved the matter, he prepared to leave to go back for dinner, but a voice stopped him.

Gu Chong, who had been silent until now, finally spoke.

"This matter is over, but there's more to it than that." He immediately stood up for Xue Fu, "Where's the apology?"

He stepped aside so that others could see Xue Fu behind him: "This matter will only be over after you apologize."

Gu Chong's dark gaze swept across everyone's face. Those who were stared at felt that his gaze was chilling and terrifying, like that of a ferocious wolf hunting its prey. If they disobeyed him, they would be killed in one blow.

Xue Fu was moved by Gu Chong's words.

The focus had just shifted to Li Jing's matter, and Xue Fu thought that no one would remember her grievances.

Gu Chongzhen is really good.

Xue Fu stepped forward and stood in front of the crowd: "I've explained myself so many times, but you still won't listen and keep spreading rumors about me. Apologize, and we'll move on."

Xue Fu's gaze was particularly fixed on Wu Tiejun's face, who had been questioning her.

Wu Tiejun choked, his face turning from blue to purple.

But Gu Chong's gaze was piercing, and Zhou Jianguo was also standing beside him. Wu Tiejun recalled the family background he had heard about Xue Fu before, and now he suddenly realized why he had been so foolish as to oppose Xue Fu.

Wu Tiejun's heart sank even further.

He can't afford to offend him.

He wasn't the only one with this idea.

Wu Tiejun was the first to apologize.

"I'm sorry, Xue Fu. I shouldn't have doubted you so easily."

"I'm sorry, Xue Fu..."

As Xue Fu listened to the others' apologies, she couldn't tell if they were sincere or not; at least, she couldn't see any reluctance on their faces.