Zheng Xiaoyue sobbed, "It's not your sister-in-law's fault. I was too weak. I shouldn't have gone to the movies with him if I didn't have feelings for him in the first place. If I had just rejected him, none of this would have happened."
"How can you blame yourself? People with heart conditions always find opportunities to do evil. Don't worry, your brother and I won't let him off easily. Don't be afraid, let's go home."
Just as Zheng Xiaoyue was about to leave, she saw Jiang Tao again and grabbed her sister-in-law: "Sister-in-law, brother, this comrade has been a great help. If it weren't for him, who knows what outrageous things Zhou Dao might have done."
Zheng Yang then looked at Jiang Tao and immediately stepped forward, extending both hands: "What is your name, comrade? I am Zheng Yang, Xiaoyue's older brother. Thank you so much today."
Jiang Tao extended his hand to shake Zheng Yang's: "Don't be so polite. I'm a soldier. Protecting comrades who are being bullied is what I should do. My name is Jiang Tao."
"Hello, hello, may I ask where Comrade Jiang lives? We'll come to thank you later." Zheng Yang was genuinely grateful to Jiang Tao.
Jiang Tao saluted: "Don't mention it, I'm also from Yanjing, I live on that street in Houhai."
Jiang Ruyu thought for a moment. The people living on that street in Houhai were all people with some power. That area was full of courtyard houses. These days, no one could live in that place unless they were an official.
"So you're from Yanjing too! I didn't even notice your accent."
“I joined the army early and haven’t been back much these past few years, so my accent has faded.” Jiang Tao glanced at Zheng Xiaoyue and then smiled, “I see this lady is quite frightened, so I won’t disturb you any longer. I’ll be going now.”
Zheng Yang shook Jiang Tao's hand and thanked him again: "Today was too rushed. I will come to thank you in person after I have finished dealing with things."
For reasons unknown, Jiang Tao did not refuse: "Sure, I'm here to visit my family. I'm not home yet, so I won't delay any longer. I'll be going now. See you later."
"Okay, see you later."
After seeing Jiang Tao off, the three of them returned to the courtyard. Zheng Xiaoyue was feeling much better by now.
Seeing that her brother and sister-in-law looked upset, she comforted them, "Brother, sister-in-law, don't be sad anymore. I really wasn't bullied. When he tried to bully me, I ran away. There were a lot of people outside when I came out, so he only dared to pull and tug at me. He didn't really bully me."
Jiang Ruyu was the most upset. She was the one who introduced the man, but he almost harmed her sister-in-law. How could she not feel upset and ashamed?
"Xiaoyue, you stay home and rest. I'm going out for a bit. You watch over Tiantian and Huanhuan. Zheng Yang, you're coming with me."
She needs to go find Sister Tian, as she's the middleman in this matter, and she needs to inform her so she can communicate with the man's side.
The couple went to the state-owned cotton mill's residential compound in a huff. Jiang Ruyu only knew that Tian Aihong lived there, but she didn't know which family she lived in. She would have to ask around and also inquire about Zhou Dao to see if she could find out anything.
Zheng Yang also had this idea. After the couple arrived at the State-owned Cotton Mill's residential compound, they happily inquired about the situation. When asked, they said they had heard that this comrade was a good catch and that someone had introduced him to a relative, so they came to ask if he was suitable.
I asked five or six people and they all said nice things. But when I asked a young woman, she turned cold as soon as she heard Zhou Dao's name and refused to talk. She walked a few meters away but then came back and said, "Zhou Dao is a scoundrel. He has all sorts of messy relationships with women at the hospital. We've been neighbors here for years, and you won't get any information from him."
Jiang Ruyu didn't have time to ask any more questions before the woman left, clearly not wanting to say more.
These words alone were enough for Jiang Ruyu and Zheng Yang to go find Tian Aihong.
After asking several people, we found Tian Aihong's home. Tian Aihong's husband was a production workshop team leader at a state-owned cotton mill, and her family lived in a 50-square-meter apartment building.
As they walked up the stairs, Tian Aihong's house was the first one at the top. The door wasn't closed, and Tian Aihong was just about to cook when she suddenly saw Jiang Ruyu and his wife, who greeted her with smiles: "Oh, what brings you two here? Come in and sit down. Have lunch here; we're about to start cooking."
Jiang Ruyu wasn't there to interrogate her. Tian Aihong was just an intermediary; she wouldn't intentionally introduce someone with questionable character to Jiang Ruyu. She was simply there to explain the situation to her.
"Sister Tian, don't bother with that. I'm here on important business. The man introduced today is named Zhou Dao. I'd like to ask if you're familiar with him?"
Tian Aihong then took a closer look at the couple's faces. Seeing that they both looked unwell, her heart skipped a beat. Could there be something wrong with that Zhou family boy?
"I... I just know that this kid is a good catch, and his parents are honest people. They live in the courtyard next to ours. It was after you told me that I happened to run into Aunt Zhou."
She was worried that her son was getting old and still wasn't married. I knew Zhou's parents well; they were both very kind people. I only met their son occasionally and didn't really know his personality.
What's wrong? Did this kid say something inappropriate? Or what?
Jiang Ruyu's expression wasn't too good: "This Zhou Daoren has moral problems. He just met my Xiaoyue, and he tried to take advantage of her in the movie theater. My Xiaoyue was so scared that she ran away, but he followed her and tried to force himself on her. Now that Zhou kid has been sent to the police station."
Tian Aihong was completely bewildered. She had only acted as a matchmaker, how could she have encountered such a situation? What was she going to do now? She couldn't explain herself to either side.
"Then, then, how is your sister-in-law? Is she alright? And that Zhou boy, oh dear, what's going on here?" Tian Aihong slumped in her chair, unable to speak coherently for a moment.
Jiang Ruyu didn't want to make things difficult for her: "Sister Tian, this has already happened. We're not here to ask you for anything, we just want to tell you the whole story. Also, we've already found out that this Zhou Dao has done this before. His relationships with women at work are very messy. You didn't know about this, did you?"
Tian Aihong genuinely didn't know that Jiang Ruyu was a good person, the man she married was capable, and she herself had been promoted. She just wanted to build a good relationship with her. Who would bother to cause trouble for themselves, especially something so unethical?
"I really didn't know. If I had known, I would never have introduced her to your sister-in-law. You made it so clear the other day that you treat your sister-in-law like a younger sister. How could I introduce her to someone I knew was no good?"
"You still need to communicate with the other party's parents about this matter. My Xiaoyue was terribly frightened. If it weren't for the kind-hearted people and a military officer who came back to visit his family, I don't know how scared she would have been. We won't let this matter go easily. I hope you can understand." Jiang Ruyu mainly came to explain this matter and his family's attitude. If the Zhou family takes their anger out on her, Tian Aihong can't blame her.
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