Chapter 23: One or Two, Not Three

"What will happen to my mother-in-law if I report it to the police?" Qian Xique asked hesitantly.

She is now very conflicted.

Now that Director Zhou is still in control, it is natural for her to have someone subdue her mother-in-law.

But she still had some concerns in her heart.

"If we had reported it to the police in the past, they would have to look at the situation and make the decision. At that time, it was beyond our control."

Remembering that he still had a side quest, Zhou Xian politely asked if there would be any punishment if he did not complete the side quest.

Although there was a line of small text below the side quest, she still wanted to confirm it.

The system said, "No, there is no penalty for the side quests in this system. It's just that if you don't complete the quest, there will naturally be no corresponding reward.

Rewards don't really matter. There are still many compensation rewards given by the system that have not been taken out.

Zhou Xian didn't understand the laws at the time, so she asked Tongzi to bring the case out for her to see. If she really had to go to jail, the best case scenario would be that Liu Chunhua would be detained for a few days for criticism and education and then released.

The worst case scenario is being sentenced to labor reform.

You can't just go in and never come out. The police don't keep freeloaders. You have to work in the labor camp and earn a cent.

This is different from earning cents by working, because since you are a prisoner, the cents you earn are pitifully few.

Although the result is the same: going to labor camp, the decision of the brigade and the decision of the public security bureau still have different effects on other people.

Qian Xique bit her lip and hesitated for a while, "If I don't report it to the police, will our brigade still take care of it?"

Looking up and seeing Zhou Xian looking at her, Qian Xique quickly said, "After all, we still have to live our lives. I'm fine, but I'm afraid of the girl..."

Zhou Xian understood her concerns. Now that she was married, it would be impossible for her to get divorced easily. It would be fine for the man, but a divorced woman's spine would be broken.

Those who gossip, no matter what the reason is, just think that divorce is the woman's fault.

Even if a man dies in an accident, the woman will be branded as a jinx.

Moreover, she had also heard about Qian Xique's family, which was heavily patriarchal. She estimated that she would not have a good life if she divorced and went back.

After Zhou Xian understood the situation, he not only did not become depressed, but became even more motivated.

As the director of the Women's Federation, isn't it your job to do your best to change these situations?

"It's your choice whether to report it to the police or not. If you do, your mother-in-law will be handed over to the police. If you don't, the brigade will handle it."

The Women's Federation is run by her and she is the only one left. In other words, everything is handled by her, Zhou Xian.

It's all the same anyway, just a name.

"Then, how should we deal with it?" Qian Xique looked at Zhou Xian and couldn't help but ask.

She was afraid that it would be the same as before, so she would just criticize and educate him a little.

If that's the case, this time the commotion has been so big, her mother-in-law will definitely hold a grudge against her, and if she comes back, she will probably torture her even more.

That's why she was so conflicted. Sending her mother-in-law in would put an end to it all. If she was alone, it wouldn't be a big deal, but she still has a daughter.

She doesn't care what happens to her father-in-law and her own man, but what about her daughter?

Zhou Xian only said that he would definitely not let it go after criticizing and educating like he did before.

Given Aunt Ma's situation at the time, she had to be punished by Chunhua no matter what. She was doing it knowingly, so the punishment was even more serious.

To be specific, they called Qian Xique into the room and discussed for a while. When he came out, Qian Xique had tears in his eyes and looked a little excited when he looked at Zhou Xian.

"Director Zhou, thank you."

Zhou Xian waved his hands, "It's too early to thank me now. It won't be too late to thank me after the matter is resolved."

Liu Chunhua is not a fool, and she didn't dare to openly oppose Director Chen before.

This time, he wanted to take advantage of her because she was a junior and young. She also tried to get all the members of the team to support her by finding some excuse that the family line could not be continued.

It just so happened that Zhou Xian used her to make an example of her once again, to let people know that even though she was young, she was not easy to bully.

Facing Qian Xique, she refused to say what the action was. However, from the conversation just now, Zhou Xian already knew what was going on, so she just asked Qian Xique to take the child back first.

Before leaving, Zhou Xian borrowed some malted milk from his mother, wrapped it in paper and handed it to Qian Xique. It wasn't a lot, but it was enough for two meals.

Qian Xique naturally refused to accept it, "This thing is too valuable, I can't accept it."

"It's for Niu'er. Take it. She's too weak. I can't give her much. It's just a token of my appreciation."

After taking a look at his daughter in his arms, Qian Xique's eyes were filled with tears. He accepted the money and said, "Director Zhou, this is a loan from me."

Ge Guifen was hesitant to speak, she glanced at the child, then at the malted milk, feeling extremely heartbroken.

Finally, his eyes fell on the child, a little over one year old, very skinny, unable to speak much, and could only call for his mother.

Perhaps feeling a little reluctant, Ge Guifen looked away and went into the house.

After the people left, Ge Guifen said, "Zhou Qianjin is really not a man. His mother was already in jail, and he didn't know how to say a word."

No matter what Liu Chunhua is like, she has nothing to say about her son. But he is different. His mother is not around, and he follows his wife around. He looks more and more pathetic.

After muttering a few words, Ge Guifen sent everyone in the family away and told Zhou Xian to go to bed quickly.

This time, Zhou Xian deliberately locked Liu Chunhua in a small dark room for a while before having someone bring her out.

It was brought to the platform that had just been built in the threshing ground.

The member in charge of building the platform stared at it for a long time and thought that if he had known it would be used so soon, he would not have dismantled it before. It was such a hassle.

Who would have thought that Liu Chunhua would appear on stage so soon after Ma Erya.

Zhou Xian asked two militiamen to carry Liu Chunhua onto the platform. After all, Liu Chunhua was so frightened that her legs were weak and she couldn't walk on her own.

Members who came to watch the fun had already gathered in the audience. Zhou Xian’s previous remarks had frightened many people, especially those mothers-in-law who bullied their daughters-in-law at home. They had restrained themselves a lot in the past two days.

Many female comrades also believed Zhou Xian's words, thinking that she was well-educated and would never lie. They thought that it was not their fault that they could not give birth to sons, but that men were incompetent and could not help women give birth to sons.

For a time, the momentum of the women of Taohua Brigade was unstoppable.

Now that Liu Chunhua was brought to the stage, mothers-in-law who were in a similar situation to Liu Chunhua also stretched their necks to see how this would be handled, and most importantly, whether they would be implicated.

Liu Chunhua was tied to a pillar and looked extremely haggard, even worse than Ma Erya at the beginning. There was no trace of the domineering demeanor she had that day.

She raised her eyes and glanced under the stage, and saw her husband, her good-for-nothing son, and her daughter-in-law Qian Xique.

When Liu Chunhua met Ma Erya's gaze from the audience, her eyelids twitched. That day, she was still in the audience shouting "Down with Ma Erya", but she didn't expect that not long after that, it was her turn to go on stage.

Liu Chunhua couldn't even feel angry. This was what it felt like to look down from the stage.

She also didn't expect that this girl Zhou Xian would really dare to do it.

At this moment, Zhou Xian also came on stage, holding a homemade earthen trumpet in her hand. After clearing her throat, she began to speak with the trumpet.

"Dear members, I didn't expect that we would have such a meeting just a few days later. I think everyone knows the purpose of holding this meeting today. Comrade Liu Chunhua next to me practices class rule at home and treats her daughter-in-law as a slave of the old society, shouting and killing her. According to my understanding, this is not the first time Liu Chunhua has done this. She even pretended to obey the Women's Federation cadres who persuaded her before. As the director of the Women's Federation of Taohua Brigade, I must strengthen her education, especially her thinking, which must be transformed."

Everyone below looked at Zhou Xian, then at Liu Chunhua.

Zhou Xian also turned his head and glanced at Liu Chunhua, then picked up the loudspeaker and spoke.

"Regarding Liu Chunhua's behavior of not changing despite repeated admonitions, I also sought the opinion of the person involved, her daughter-in-law, Comrade Qian Xique. Comrade Qian Xique said that we would not report it to the police, but Liu Chunhua must be punished for her behavior so that she would realize her mistakes."

While Zhou Xian was speaking, everyone's eyes turned to Qian Xique again.

Qian Xique, who was being watched by everyone, did not hide, but stood there holding his daughter.

Liu Chunhua's man felt embarrassed and went home after watching for a while.

Zhou Qianjin lowered his head in embarrassment and never dared to look up. Even when Qian Xique moved, he moved with him, always following behind Qian Xique.

Zhou Xian coughed twice, drawing everyone's attention back. "So I have two plans. One is to send Liu Chunhua to a farm for labor reform. She can come back when she is fully reformed. The other plan is to give her another chance like Aunt Ma, keep her in our team, supervise her, and educate her ideologically."

Zhou Xian also held two bamboo tubes and placed them on the table with marks on them. One represented that Liu Chunhua was sent to labor reform, and the other represented that she would stay in the brigade for ideological education.

Now it is up to the members to vote.

Even Zhou Jiefang looked at his daughter in surprise.

This is a great trick.

Despite Zhou Xian's age, many people still think that she is not prudent in her work, especially since she arrested her aunt Liu Chunhua and locked her up in a small dark room.

In just a short while, many people were talking about her.

As a result, Zhou Xian has now given the right of choice to the members. If anything happens, everyone will have a part in it. Let's see how anyone can still talk about his daughter behind her back.

Of course, before the vote, Zhou Xian still gave Liu Chunhua a chance to speak.

In order to avoid going to a labor camp, Liu Chunhua cried her eyes out. Although her crying was not as heartbreaking as Ma Erya's, it was also a cry of genuine emotion.

Those who had the right to vote looked around at each other and huddled together to mutter for a while.

They all have the same surname, and they didn't want to be too drastic, so they finally decided to let Liu Chunhua stay in the team to receive ideological education.

Of course, this educational work is also done by Zhou Xian, the director of the Women's Federation.

When she saw the results, hope burst into Liu Chunhua's eyes.

It would be best if you don't have to go to labor camp.

Zhou Xian could see what she was thinking, and continued, "Liu Chunhua, everyone is willing to give you a chance, you must cherish it. This is your last chance. If you still don't want to learn your lesson, pretend to obey but secretly disobey, and secretly practice class rule, I will send you directly to the labor camp for reform."

Zhou Xian paused for a moment, then said loudly to everyone, "I have to say something up front. Some things can only happen once or twice, but not three times. This is the second incident of persecution of women in our Taohua Brigade. If it happens again, I will not give those members who have made mistakes a chance to reform. If you have anything to repent, save it for when you go to the labor camp."

Two chances are enough. If there is a next time, they will be unlucky.

If she lets him off like this every time, then everything she, the director of the Women's Federation, has built up with great difficulty will be lost.

No one will be convinced by her words and deeds in the future.