Yun Qiao turned his head to glance at the crowd and found that Liu Tingnu had got a bamboo pole from somewhere and was waving it across her body like a monkey. She almost poked the onlookers several times, which startled everyone and made them frown even deeper.

"If this gets out of hand any further, it's going to be a big deal. Has anyone informed Liang Yin's family?"

Feng Juan said, "Someone has notified them, but Cui Jing is at the Military Region Hospital. Commander Liang's office is far away, so it will probably take a while for someone to arrive."

"So no one cares about this now?"

"That depends on whether the Women's Federation cadres can come soon."

"It looks like it can't be solved in a short time." Yun Qiao turned to look at Feng Juan and said, "Mom, why don't we go home first, light the fire tongs and come back later. There are too many people here to watch the fun, and the air is a bit stuffy."

Besides, it’s not fun to be in a commotion. If the fighting escalates, you might get accidentally injured. It’s better to leave early.

Feng Juan asked her, "Are you feeling unwell?"

Yun Qiao hummed, "A little bit."

"Okay, let's go home first." Feng Juan nodded. "We're all neighbors living in the same compound, so nothing will get lost."

Gao Qian said, "It's okay if it's lost. Liang Qizhi stole it from you. If it's really lost, ask her to replace it. She's Commander Liang's daughter. She wouldn't deny even a pair of fire tongs."

Away from the noisy crowd, Yun Qiao's ears immediately became quiet and he breathed a sigh of relief.

At my father's house, the food is ready and warming on the stove.

Feng Juan lifted the lid of the pot and brought out the food. The two women sat down and had lunch together.

After dinner, Feng Juan cleared the dishes and washed the pots when Yun Qiao heard someone knocking on the door.

"Who is it?" Yun Qiao asked, standing up and going to open the door.

"Is this the home of Dr. He Tingjun and Dr. Qin Yunqiao? I'm Liang Yin, here to return something."

As the voice outside the door fell, Yun Qiao also opened the door.

Liang Yin was about thirty years old. She looked tall and plump, with a round oval face and two patches of highland red on her cheeks, which made her look more simple.

With an apologetic smile on her face, she not only returned the fire tongs but also gave Auntie a bag of cakes. She said, "I'm so sorry. I was in a hurry and took her things without her consent. I consider this little mung bean cake as an apology to her."

"It's okay, you've got the food." Yun Qiao only accepted the fire tongs and confiscated the cakes.

Liang Yin stuffed it into Yun Qiao's arms and said, "Take it. I've already brought it here. It's hard to take it back the same way."

"Well, thank you." Yun Qiao had no choice but to accept it and asked, "Is the matter resolved satisfactorily?"

Liang Yin nodded. "Treat her as a rumormonger and punish her with a month of ideological re-education."

Undergoing ideological re-education, in other words, is thought transformation. Although the punishment was only one month, which may not seem like a long time, it actually dealt a huge blow to the person's spirit.

Sometimes, it is not just physical torture that is torture, but mental torture as well.

After seeing Liang Yin off, Yun Qiao closed the gate of the courtyard.

She walked into the house with a pair of fire tongs in one hand and a mung bean cake in the other.

Feng Juan was still washing dishes in the kitchen when she saw Yun Qiao placing the fire tongs in the corner. She said, "The fire tongs have been delivered."

Yun Qiao hummed and said, "Liang Yinzhi sent some. Not only did she bring some fire tongs, she also gave you a bag of mung bean cakes. She said it was to apologize to you."

"Oh, then take it." Feng Juan said, "Miss Liang Yin has always been thorough in her work."

Yun Qiao was a little surprised when he heard her familiar tone: "You know her?"

"I guess so." Feng Juan explained, "She's about the same age as your brother. More than ten years ago, Commander Liang wanted to be a matchmaker for your brother and introduce Liang Yin to him, but your brother had absolutely no intention of getting married at the time and simply refused. Later, Liang Yin married in Inner Mongolia and passed through Beijing on her way to visit relatives. She sent a few gifts home, but I was often ill at the time, so I didn't have a deep impression of her."