Chapter Sixty-Two: Arranging Lin Baozhu

As soon as Lin Baozhu stepped into the courtyard, she heard her mother cursing at the stove: "Heavens are blind! Even sluts can be in the newspaper? Shameless things, they even come to show off in front of me, the smell of shit hasn't even dissipated yet! Bah! Look at how smug they are! A whole family of sluts, what's there to be proud of?"

Lin Baozhu carried the basin to fetch water, and listening to her mother's complaints, she chuckled: "Mother, what's there to be angry about? It's just a newspaper article! Tomorrow I'll get you in the provincial newspaper and the Beijing newspaper, so the whole country will know who you are!"

Even though she knew she was just trying to make her happy, the knot in her heart did loosen up quite a bit, and she laughed and said, "Then Mother is waiting, and I'll definitely dress brighter than that old hag."

*

At this moment, two reporters, one carrying a notebook and the other a camera, entered the village surrounded by children. They first snapped a few photos of the villagers working hard in the fields, while the children around them watched with wide, innocent eyes, filled with curiosity.

The reporter with the notebook bent down and smiled, "Little friends, do you know Lin Baozhu?"

The children eagerly raised their hands: "We know her! She's our village's pig-hunting hero! She's amazing!"

"Yes! My mom says she's incredibly strong; she can carry an ox on her back!"

"Baozhu has hunted wild boars! And wild goats too!"

"He's the most learned person in our village!"

"She had bad luck... She was engaged to someone, but the man got a job as a factory worker and then dumped her..."

The children chattered away, spilling the beans about all the nasty things the Bi family had done. The two reporters listened, stunned, and quickly took notes. They never imagined there was such a story behind this "pig-fighting hero."

Just then, the children's voices quieted down, and they all turned to look in one direction. The reporter also looked up. There, a woman in a brand-new red dress was walking towards them with her head held high and an expectant smile on her face.

“Reporter,” a child exclaimed, pointing at the red dress, “she is Zhao Xiaoyu, the educated youth!”

Hearing the children introduce themselves to the reporters, Zhao Xiaoyu straightened her clothes, put on what she thought was a sweet smile, and said, "Hello, I am Zhao Xiaoyu, a sent-down youth who came to build the countryside in response to the call."

The two reporters exchanged a glance, and one of them smiled and said, "We are reporters from the city, here to conduct an exclusive interview in Dagaba Village."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Xiaoyu felt a strange sensation. She hadn't expected that her casually written opinion would attract the attention of reporters in the city.

My God, God really is looking out for her.

Thinking of this, the smile on her face widened a bit.

"Ask me anything you want. I'm a high school student. After graduation, I went to the countryside. My philosophy of life is..."

"Comrade!"

Before Zhao Xiaoyu could finish speaking, the reporter interrupted, "Thank you very much for your contributions to the country, but we have limited time. Could you please take us to Comrade Lin Baozhu? We want to conduct an exclusive interview with her..."

Zhao Xiaoyu's enthusiastic smile froze instantly, her eyes widened suddenly, and a strong sense of indignation surged into her heart: "Interviewing Lin Baozhu? Just because... she killed a few wild boars?"

She almost cried out, "Why? I'm more educated, more capable, and more educated than her! If anyone should be interviewed, it should be me, and I even wrote a letter of opinion to the county government..."

She was furious. Why did that bitch Lin Baozhu always go against her?

I should have been the one interviewing this time, so why did she take the spot?

Just as Zhao Xiaoyu's face contorted with rage, the photographer instinctively pointed his lens at her—"Snap!" The shutter clicked sharply, freezing the image mercilessly.

The sound was like a bucket of cold water poured over her head, and Zhao Xiaoyu froze. Almost instantly, she dropped her sinister expression, quickly replacing it with an almost innocent and obedient smile, even softening her voice considerably: "Baozhu…sigh, she's notoriously lazy in our village. Although she's quite strong, she always chooses the easiest jobs. Taking advantage of having many brothers, she's developed the airs of a wealthy young lady. Yesterday she even…" Her tone was regretful, and she was about to launch into a long tirade—

"Hey!" A childish shout rang out! A small figure shot out from the crowd like a cannonball and slammed into Zhao Xiaoyu's stomach!

"Ouch!"

Caught off guard, Zhao Xiaoyu was knocked flat on her back and fell to the ground. Just then, a gust of wind blew by, lifting a corner of her bright red dress. To her utter embarrassment, a pair of red underwear with a conspicuous green patch was clearly visible beneath the hem!

The cameraman carrying the camera was startled and instinctively turned around, secretly wiping the cold sweat from his forehead. Good heavens, thank goodness he didn't see anything, otherwise he would have been sued for indecent assault.

The one who hit her was Hu Zi. He was standing next to Zhao Xiaoyu with his hands on his hips, pointing at her with one finger...

"Zhao Xiaoyu! You dare say another bad word about my aunt? I'll piss my mouth on you! Back when my aunt and Bi Yuntao were still engaged, you two were already secretly hooking up. You even pushed my aunt off the mountain, almost killing her! If it weren't for Uncle Qin saving her, the grass on her grave would be huge by now!"

Later, that bastard surnamed Bi turned around and accused my aunt of losing her virginity because she had been hugged by a man, driving her to the brink of suicide by banging her head against a wall! She was barely saved… and now, you're throwing mud at her in front of reporters! How can you be so shameless?!

Tiger unleashed a torrent of words, his little face turning ashen with anger. The reporters listened, dumbfounded, then their professional instincts kicked in, and their eyes gleamed with an unexpected surprise! They hadn't expected their interviewee to have such a dramatic and compelling story! If these experiences were cleverly combined with her current achievements, the report would definitely be a sensation!

Zhao Xiaoyu scrambled to her feet, her expression a mixture of surprise and curiosity in the reporter's eyes. Panicked, she cried out in denial, "Reporters! Don't listen to a child's nonsense! Lin Baozhu accidentally fell! The person who saved her... was seen hugging and cuddling in the street! Rumors started spreading in the village, and the Bi family... the Bi family only broke off the engagement because of the rumors. It has nothing to do with me..."

"Pah! Your mother-in-law was criticized for having an affair a couple of days ago, and she still has a half-shaved head. Anyone can find out about this. What's the point of you lying here? If you're so capable, get the whole village to lie with you. You idiot!"

He held his head high and said to the reporter, "My aunt is working in the fields. I'll take you there, reporter."

Having said that, she turned and walked towards the edge of the field without looking back, followed by a group of children who had come to watch the commotion, laughing and joking. Zhao Xiaoyu stared at the backs of that group, the resentment in her eyes almost tangible, a cold hatred surging within her: "Lin Baozhu...you bitch! You always try to take everything from me! You just wait!!!"