Chapter 126 Ancestral Secret Recipe
Lu Xiaohui retorted defiantly, "I already said we should make a little to try first! You were afraid the Shen family would beat us to it, so you forced us to make more! Now the food is wasted, is that my fault?"
Li Xuemei quickly shifted the blame: "Exactly! The formula hasn't even been verified, yet you're telling us to go all out and rush it. You're the one who has to take the blame!"
Lu Huaiyuan was completely bewildered: "Wait! Isn't this recipe Xiaoman's family heirloom? How do my older sister and mother know about it?"
The two immediately fell silent, guiltily shutting their mouths.
Gu Mansheng's eyes flickered, and she was somewhat flustered.
Although Lu Huaiyuan wasn't very smart, he could tell that this so-called "ancestral secret recipe" was completely illegitimate!
He felt his vision go black: "It's over... So much grain is ruined! If Dad finds out, he'll be furious! This has nothing to do with me, you guys figure it out yourselves!"
After saying that, he ran into the house as if his life depended on it, leaving the mess to the three women.
The villagers covered their noses and dispersed with unpleasant expressions.
Just as Liu Zhixia and Zhang Xiuying were about to leave with the crowd, Gu Mansheng saw the faint smiles on their faces, and her anger finally erupted.
"Liu Zhixia! You did this on purpose!"
Gu Mansheng lost all reason and rushed in front of Liu Zhixia, screaming.
Liu Zhixia blinked innocently: "Gu Zhiqing, this is your 'family secret recipe,' what does it have to do with me? You made the pickled vegetables yourself, you bought the jar yourself, why are you blaming me? I'm not taking the blame for this."
"Exactly!" Zhang Xiuying added with a sneer, "Since it's your 'ancestor's' recipe, if it's ruined, it's because your ancestors didn't protect you, not my daughter! Instead of wasting time cursing, you should be thinking about how to explain that pile of rotten vegetables to your father-in-law!"
Seeing Liu Zhixia's calm expression, Gu Mansheng finally realized what was going on.
No wonder she wasn't worried at all about losing the recipe!
So that was a complete scam!
"Liu Zhixia! How cruel you are! You knew the formula was fake and didn't even warn us? You just watched us waste so much food, have you lost your conscience?"
Liu Zhixia looked completely innocent: "Gu Zhiqing, I don't understand what you're saying. How am I supposed to know if your 'family recipe' is real or not? You can eat whatever you want, but you can't say whatever you want."
Aunt Zhou couldn't stand it anymore: "That's right! I already said the taste was wrong, but you insisted that we country folk don't know what we're doing. Now you're blaming Xia Xia for making something bad? It's like blaming the latrine for not being able to poop!"
"I……"
Gu Mansheng was so angry that she was trembling all over, with nowhere to vent her anger.
But she wasn't willing to give up! She'd lost money and face, and she had to get revenge! Today, she was determined to make Liu Zhixia cough up some money to make up for her losses!
She turned around abruptly and yelled at Lu Xiaohui, "Aren't you coming over here? Are you trying to hide like a coward?"
Lu Xiaohui shuffled over hesitantly, her heart pounding: "Sister-in-law... don't be impulsive, don't say anything rash right now..."
Gu Mansheng sneered, "What's the use of trying? You got this formula from Shen Hongmei. Since it's something from the Liu family that caused the problem, the Liu family has to compensate us!"
These words caused an uproar in the audience.
Aunt Zhou's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets: "What? Shen Hongmei gave it to you?"
Liu Zhixia looked bewildered: "Shen Hongmei has nothing to do with the Liu family anymore. If the thing she gave you is broken, go find her. Why are you looking for me?"
Gu Mansheng panicked: "How can it be nothing? You admitted it yourself that it was your formula!"
Liu Zhixia blinked, as if suddenly remembering something, and slapped her forehead: "Oh! So that's what you mean?"
She suddenly realized, "You mean the piece of paper that Shen Hongmei instigated Da Bao to steal from my mother? I wrote it down randomly because I wanted to catch a thief in the house. I originally wanted to catch them in the act that day, but Lu Xiaohui suddenly appeared and helped Shen Hongmei hide the thing, so we didn't find it."
Upon hearing this, Aunt Zhou was so angry that her hand trembled as she pointed at Lu Xiaohui: "So! You really did help hide the stolen goods that day? I thought you were a good person!"
Liu Zhixia looked at Lu Xiaohui with a regretful expression: "Sister Xiaohui, I never expected you to actually take it. If you had admitted it back then, I would definitely have told you it was fake. But you clearly knew that Shen Hongmei was going to steal something, so why did you help her?"
Zhao Dongmei sneered, her eyes sharp: "She's not helping Shen Hongmei at all, she's clearly helping herself! She was definitely the one who reported the Liu family for speculation last time! On one hand, she wants to bring down the Liu family, and on the other hand, she wants to steal their pickled vegetable-making techniques to make a fortune. She's even paved the way for the state-owned factory. Isn't all this just because she's afraid the Liu family's business will grow too big and block their way?"
Lu Xiaohui's face turned a deep purplish-red, and she shouted, "Don't accuse people without evidence! Whistleblower information is confidential, why are you blaming me?"
Zhao Dongmei rolled her eyes: "The villagers hate tattling the most. That day, everyone was waiting at the entrance of the brigade office, wanting to see which scoundrel it was. But after waiting for a long time, no outsiders came in. Later, the secretary said the matter was resolved. Isn't it obvious? The whistleblower was one of your own Lu family members!"
Lu Xiaohui was completely dumbfounded.
No matter how much we planned, we never expected these villagers to be so "dedicated"!
So... the whole village already knew it was her?!
Liu Zhixia's family wasn't surprised. Although the villagers were honest, they were most wary of backstabbers; no one wanted a ticking time bomb in their midst.
Lu Xiaohui's head was buzzing, and she muttered to herself, "No wonder...no wonder the villagers have been avoiding me lately, they already knew..."
"Shut up!"
Li Xuemei was so frightened that she covered her daughter's mouth.
It's one thing for everyone to tacitly agree to something, but it's quite another to admit it outright! Isn't this just handing someone leverage over us?
Lu Xiaohui also realized what was happening and looked around in horror. The villagers who hadn't dispersed yet looked at her with disdain and wariness.
It's over! It's completely over!
Aunt Zhou pointed at Lu Xiaohui, exasperated: "Well, you did! I searched you so thoroughly back then, and you still managed to hide the things! And then you took the Liu family's recipe and started your own business, and even dared to accept a big order from a state-owned factory? If you say Lu Jianping didn't know about this, you're kidding me!"
Xu Zhihong added with a grin, "Sister Xiaohui, so after all this fuss, it turns out that the dozens of jars of 'speculation and profiteering' evidence you reported were hidden in your own yard?"
"Hahaha!"
A burst of laughter erupted around them; the boomerang had made an incredibly loud noise!
Before Lu Xiaohui could open her mouth to explain, Gu Mansheng yanked her away and barked at Liu Zhixia like a mad dog: "Now that things are clear! Shouldn't you pay compensation?"
Liu Zhixia looked at her like she was an idiot: "Gu Mansheng, a brain is a good thing. First of all, I didn't sell you the formula; secondly, I never said the formula was real. Anyone with a little knowledge knows it's fake. Who knew you guys were so stupid that you not only believed it but also made so much at once? Is it my fault?"
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