Chapter 55 Making it a fait accompli
Shen Yi already knew the surrounding terrain very well.
Holding the burning hot person in his arms, he rushed towards the nearby stream without hesitation and jumped in with a "plop"!
The icy river water instantly extinguished the evil fire within Liu Zhixia, jolting her back to her senses.
"Comrade Shen, I just..." She blushed and stammered.
"Don't worry," Shen Yi's voice was steady and strong in the night, "Soak a little longer, and you'll be fine once the medicine wears off. You don't have the strength right now, so just lean on me, and I promise you won't be washed away."
Liu Zhixia then realized that she was still being held tightly in his arms. Her face flushed red, and she could only softly hum in response, surrendering her entire weight to him with peace of mind.
She didn't know how much time had passed, but when Liu Zhixia regained consciousness, she found herself lying on the shore, wearing a clean coat, with a warm campfire burning beside her.
"Awake? How are you feeling?"
Shen Yi returned carrying a bundle of firewood. Seeing that she was awake, he threw the firewood aside.
Liu Zhixia nodded: "I'm fine now."
She looked up and saw that the smoke from the distant mountains and forests had stopped.
“The wildfire is out,” Shen Yi explained. “The villagers are all coming back one after another. I’m afraid that carrying you back will cause gossip, so I’ll have to ask you to sleep here for a while.”
Liu Zhixia looked at her wet clothes, then at Shen Yi, who was equally disheveled, and immediately understood.
The fact that she had been drugged would be devastating to her reputation if word got out. Shen Yi's approach was the best way to handle it.
“Thank you,” she said sincerely, “you saved me again.”
"It's alright. Can you get up? I'll take you home."
"Oh, right!" Liu Zhixia suddenly remembered, "How is my sister-in-law?"
“The situation was urgent at the time, and I didn’t have time to catch Wang Laizi. I ran to your side, and Wang Laizi took the opportunity to run away. Later, I saw that your fever had subsided, and I wanted to take you home, but there were too many people, so I brought you back. On the way, I met your sister-in-law, who was worried about you. I explained the situation to her, and she went back to get a piece of clothing and brought it over before going home.”
Liu Zhixia finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"Let's go, let's go back quickly. The wildfire is out, and Mom and Dad must be back by now. They're probably going crazy with worry."
"Um."
Shen Yi led her back to the village via a shortcut, avoiding the crowds.
The villagers had been working through the night to fight the fire and were now exhausted; no one would take a detour.
However, as soon as they got near the educated youth settlement, the two found that it was surrounded by people!
"I'll beat you to death, you beast!"
Lu Jianping's roar came from the courtyard.
Immediately following, Lu Huaiyuan declared confidently, "Father! Zhixia and I have already slept together! You must agree to this marriage!"
Liu Zhixia abruptly stopped in her tracks.
She looked at Shen Yi in disbelief, and Shen Yi was looking at her with the same shocked expression.
Did I hear that right?
Lu Huaiyuan was talking about... Zhi Xia?
Just as the two were wondering what was going on, Zhang Xiuying's heart-wrenching roar came from inside again: "You beast! I'm going to report you for rape! You're a rapist! You want to marry my daughter? Dream on! Even if my Liu family is wiped out, we will never have a son-in-law like you! You just wait to be shot!"
It really sounds like a mother's voice!
Liu Zhixia lost her mind instantly and was about to rush inside, but Shen Yi grabbed her tightly!
"Calm down!" Shen Yi's voice was deep and powerful. "I'm sure you've been with me all night. He can't possibly succeed. Let's go in and see what tricks he's up to."
The calm and composed voice seemed to possess some kind of magic, instantly soothing her anxiety.
The two quietly hid in a corner, continuing to listen to the sounds coming from inside.
Lu Jianping sighed helplessly, "Liu family, things have come to this point, there's no point in saying more. Huaiyuan said we would take responsibility, and this is for the sake of your daughter's reputation. How about... we just settle this marriage?"
"I'll kill your mother!" Enraged, Zhang Xiuying grabbed an axe from the corner of the wall and was about to chop at Lu Jianping!
The aunties around her tried their best to stop her, but everyone's eyes were like knives, fiercely piercing Lu Jianping and his son!
Lu Kai's mother, Aunt Zhou, was furious!
The daughter-in-law he had already chosen had actually been taken by that pig Lu Huaiyuan!
She rushed forward, pointing her finger at Lu Jianping and yelling, "The Liu family raised such a fine daughter, and your son has ruined her! And right here in the woodshed! Don't tell me she did it willingly! Lu Jianping, we're all from the Lu family, so let's not talk about favoring one side over the other. If you think you can just let your son marry Zhixia and take responsibility for her, then not only will the Liu family be unhappy, but the people in our village won't be happy either!"
She turned to the crowd and shouted, "If this works, then any young man who takes a fancy to a girl can just take her to the woodshed and do it, right?"
"That's right!" the crowd chimed in.
Enraged, Lu Jianping swung the wooden stick again and struck Lu Huaiyuan hard.
Li Xuemei, however, jumped out indignantly: "Sister Zhou, how can you be so sure that Liu Zhixia didn't do it willingly? There are educated youth living next to this woodshed. If she really didn't want to, wouldn't she have called for help?"
Just then, a clear, cold voice rang out.
"Since Comrade Liu came voluntarily, why did he have to come to this dirty and messy woodshed?" Shen Yi stepped out from behind the crowd, his eyes indifferent, yet carrying an invisible sense of oppression.
When Lu Huaiyuan saw Shen Yi, who was in a disheveled state, his eyes immediately filled with the smugness of a victor.
So what if he's a battalion commander? So what if he's good at fighting?
The woman you've set your sights on is now mine!
He looked at Shen Yi with a domineering air: "This is our private fun, what's it to you?"
Before he could finish speaking, a dark figure darted out from beside Shen Yi!
It's Lu Kai!
He punched Lu Huaiyuan to the ground, then straddled him and punched him hard in the face!
If Xu Zhigang hadn't held him back so tightly, he could have really beaten someone to death!
"What are you doing!" Li Xuemei screamed and rushed over to hug her son tightly, yelling at Aunt Zhou, "So it was your son who tried to steal my son's girlfriend! It's too late now! Liu Zhixia is already my son's woman! If she doesn't marry him, do you want your son to marry a used woman?"
"You old shrew!"
Just as a fight was about to break out, Shen Yi grabbed the enraged Lu Kai and held him down.
"Calm down!" His voice wasn't loud, but it carried an undeniable authority. "This matter, listen to me!"
The surroundings suddenly became quiet.
Lu Jianping stared at him blankly, a question rising in his mind for the first time.
How could this usually amiable young man possess such a composed demeanor? Even the team leader felt inexplicably uneasy.
No wonder this kid is a battalion commander at such a young age.
Shen Yi walked up to Lu Jianping and said calmly, "Captain Lu, how about I uphold justice in this matter?"
Lu Jianping glanced at him reluctantly, but finally nodded.
Shen Yi's gaze swept across the entire room, finally settling on the tightly closed door of the woodshed.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com