Seeing that Chen Shuning was really going to drag her to the brigade headquarters to reason with her, Yang Wanqiu panicked. Forgetting her burning face, she hurriedly tried to pry Chen Shuning's hand off her clothes and tried her best to back away.

She still tried to argue, "Shuning, what are you doing? How can you hit someone like that? I didn't say anything to you, so why are you hitting me?"

Yang Wanqiu did have the advantage of height. Although her leg injury hadn't fully healed, it wasn't hurting as much anymore, so she easily broke free from Chen Shuning's grasp.

Hiding behind Liu Shumei beside her, Yang Wanqiu finally dared to cover her face and cry. This time, she really cried because the slap on her face really hurt.

This wasn't the first time Yang Wanqiu had deliberately tripped her up, either openly or secretly. Although Chen Shuning could overlook the past events because she hadn't personally experienced them, she couldn't truly empathize with them.

But Yang Wanqiu kept provoking her after that, so she shouldn't blame her for being impolite. After all, she wasn't the kind and easily bullied pushover like the original owner.

Chen Shuning stood with his hands on his hips, glaring at Yang Wanqiu and sneered, "Why? Why do you say why? How can you, Yang Wanqiu, be allowed to slander me with baseless accusations, but I'm not allowed to retaliate and hit you?"

"Yang Wanqiu, who do you think you are? Do you think the laws of China are made for you? Are you some kind of bandit?"

"When did I say that you instructed Zhong Lingling to frame me? What did I say that? Chen Shuning, how could you hit someone over such a misunderstanding? I think you're the bandit, no, you're even more domineering than a bandit."

Seeing Yang Wanqiu's pale face, Chen Shuning was no longer angry. In fact, she felt she hadn't had enough of hitting her yet. However, not wanting to leave an aggressive impression, Chen Shuning stopped after only one slap.

Now that Yang Wanqiu has presented her with her own reasons, she shouldn't blame her for being impolite.

Without saying a word, Chen Shuning reached out and pushed Liu Shumei aside, then grabbed Yang Wanqiu's collar again, and with his other hand, he slapped Yang Wanqiu's face with all his might.

Five or six slaps followed, until Chen Shuning felt his hands go numb before he stopped.

With a violent shove, Chen Shuning threw Yang Wanqiu to the ground. He didn't stop yelling as he hit her, "Yang Wanqiu, you better explain yourself! How did I become a bandit? Did you see me kill or set fires, or did you see me oppress the people? If you don't explain yourself clearly today, I'm going to report you to the Revolutionary Committee."

Your maternal grandfather was a bona fide capitalist, and your father's affair was common knowledge in the residential area. Logically speaking, someone like you should have been sent to a labor camp. It was only because the comrades in the neighborhood took care of you that you were allowed to go to the countryside for construction. With your family background, you don't know how to thank the organization for giving you the opportunity to work hard.

Instead of doing labor every few days, you also sow discord, frame revolutionary comrades, and undermine unity. I think you are a bad element hiding among our revolutionary masses. The comrades of the Revolutionary Committee should investigate whether you are an enemy agent or a spy infiltrating our ranks.

And you say you didn't say anything? Yang Wanqiu, do you really think everyone is a fool? Even though you didn't say it explicitly, wasn't your meaning obvious enough?

"Yang Wanqiu, I think I've been too lenient with you, which is why you keep causing trouble for no reason."

Although Yang Wanqiu was angry when she was slapped at the beginning, she thought of using that slap to define Chen Shuning as a bully who bullies the weak.

However, in her previous life, Yang Wanqiu was not only beaten by her husband, but also by her mother-in-law and sister-in-law. This made her vow after being reborn that she would never live such a life again. Therefore, Chen Shuning's slaps directly reminded Yang Wanqiu of her tragic life in her previous life and really ignited her anger.

Yang Wanqiu, who was no longer so reserved when she spoke, said without holding back, "You know better than anyone whether I'm innocent or not. Everyone in the educated youth settlement knows that Zhong Lingling and you are close, while I have no grudges against her and we don't even exchange a few words normally. If she's accusing me of something, why else could it be because you instructed me to do it?"

Chen Shuning, I never expected you to become so vicious. You're just jealous that Dong Weiguo likes me, not you. You're just jealous, so you're causing me trouble everywhere.

"Chen Shuning, we were classmates, you know my mother severed ties with that family a long time ago. You clearly know this, why bring it up again? Besides, I severed ties with Yang Manfu before I went to the countryside. He's the one who wronged me and my mother; I'm a victim in this matter too. Chen Shuning, how can you use this to accuse me of being an enemy agent? You've really gone too far."

Yang Wanqiu was truly furious at this moment. You must know that at this time, if anyone is rumored to be a potential enemy agent, the police will arrest and investigate them.

Moreover, this period was precisely the time when the crackdown on enemy agents was most severe. It was better to kill a hundred innocent people than let one guilty person go free. If someone was really brought in on this charge, most of them would never return.

Those who were punished ranged from being sent to labor camps to being executed.

Moreover, considering the relationship between Chen Shuning and He Chaoyang, Yang Wanqiu was genuinely afraid that they might use some underhanded tactics, which would leave her with no way to defend herself.

The more Yang Wanqiu thought about it, the more frightened she became. She truly regretted provoking Chen Shuning. How could she forget that the current Chen Shuning was no longer the naive Chen Shuning who let her play tricks on him, yet still treated her as a good friend?

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!