Chapter 58 Rumors and Gossip
"Oh—" the person next to him suddenly realized, "So that's why he was so desperate and went after that capitalist's daughter?"
"Nonsense!" someone immediately retorted. "Lu Huaiyuan and that guy surnamed Gu have been having an affair for a long time! He even admitted it himself at the educated youth settlement last time!"
"Exactly! You're related to Li Xuemei, so you're taking their side? Why did Xia break off the engagement in the first place? Wasn't it because they were having an affair?"
Seeing that he couldn't win the argument, the man who spoke first became anxious and changed the subject: "So it's true that she was drugged, right? How could the Liu family's daughter be alright after being drugged? I saw her this morning, she came back from the woods with that soldier, and both of their clothes were wet. Nobody would believe she was alright!"
These words immediately ignited the entire audience.
"Oh my, really?"
"That soldier is much more handsome than Lu Huaiyuan! And he's capable too. I think this is a stroke of good fortune for the Liu family!"
"Good fortune? I think she's just been played for a fool! Do you think a high-ranking official from the city would take a fancy to a country girl like her?"
...
They were talking animatedly when they looked up and saw Liu Zhixia walking towards them. They fell silent instantly.
Liu Zhixia seemed not to have heard the foul language from before, and walked straight over with a bright smile: "Good morning, ladies. You didn't sleep all night yesterday fighting the fire, you must be exhausted. Why aren't you home resting?"
Her tone was calm, yet it carried an invisible sense of pressure.
"Oh...oh! Yes, yes, it's time to go back, I'm exhausted!"
"Let's go, let's go home and sleep!"
The crowd scattered as if a ghost were chasing them.
After everyone had left, Liu Zhixia took a few steps forward.
Under a large tree not far away, Shen Yi was standing there. Clearly, he had also heard everything that had just happened.
Their eyes met, and an indescribable awkwardness filled the air.
"Are you alright? How are you feeling?" Shen Yi spoke first, his gentle smile dispelling some of the awkwardness.
Liu Zhixia nodded: "Yes, it's all over now."
After a brief silence, she mustered her courage and extended an invitation: "You saved my sister-in-law and me. Tonight... could you come to our house for a simple meal? We'd like to thank you properly."
Shen Yi recalled the rumors from earlier, hesitated for a moment, and then declined: "Let's forget it. I came here to celebrate Lu Kai's birthday, it's not convenient to go to your house."
Liu Zhixia felt a slight pang of sadness, as if something had gently pierced her heart.
"I see..." She forced a smile. "Well... when you leave, I'll prepare some extra pickled vegetables for you to take with you, okay? I made them myself, so consider this a thank-you gift. You can't refuse that, can you?"
Shen Yi gave a soft "hmm".
"Then... I'll head back now."
After Liu Zhixia finished speaking, she turned and left.
As soon as she left, Xu Zhigang came running over excitedly, carrying a large pile of things: "Hey, why did Comrade Liu leave? Did she invite us to dinner tonight? Look, I brought all the ingredients! They were given to us by the villagers to thank us for putting out the fire!"
Seeing Xu Zhigang's silly grin, Shen Yi's somewhat annoyed mood eased a bit, but he still shook his head: "I'm not going to the Liu family."
"Seriously? You're willing to refuse Comrade Liu's excellent cooking skills?"
Shen Yi's gaze darkened and turned serious: "Last night's events have already caused her to be misunderstood. We can't add to her troubles. If we leave, she'll still have to live here."
Upon hearing this, Xu Zhigang sighed, "Alright, you're right. Well then... we'll just have to go back and eat noodles!"
Shen Yi smiled, but his gaze couldn't help but drift towards the direction Liu Zhixia had left.
Looking at her somewhat lonely figure, his chest felt as if something was blocking it, leaving him feeling empty.
As soon as Liu Zhixia returned home, she was greeted by the expectant gazes of her entire family.
Shen Hongmei proudly announced, "Little sister, your eldest brother has already gone to buy meat and wine! Eat as much as you want today, the eldest branch of the family will pay!"
Liu Zhixia smiled awkwardly: "Comrade Shen and the others... won't be coming tonight."
"What?" Shen Hongmei was stunned. "Not coming? Why?"
"He's probably afraid of what the villagers will say. When he leaves, I'll just make some pickled vegetables as a thank you gift."
"Gossip? What does he care about gossip!" Shen Hongmei slapped her thigh angrily, her voice so loud the whole courtyard could hear, "What does he mean? He's not going to take responsibility? You two were kissing last night!"
"They...they kissed?!"
The whole family froze instantly, and shocked gazes were all directed at Liu Zhixia.
"Sister-in-law, what nonsense are you talking about!" Liu Zhixia was both embarrassed and anxious, and quickly covered her mouth.
Seeing her family's frozen expressions, she could only force herself to remain calm: "Don't listen to your sister-in-law's nonsense, there's nothing between Comrade Shen and me! Um... I'm going to the mountains to pick some vegetables for dinner tonight!"
After saying that, she grabbed the vegetable basket and ran out without looking back.
Watching her daughter's retreating figure, Zhang Xiuying muttered to herself, "The mountain has been burned bare, where will we find vegetables?"
Knowing she had made a huge mistake, Shen Hongmei shrank back and said, "Oh dear, I feel so dizzy, I need to go back to my room and rest for a while..."
Just as she tried to slip away, Zhang Xiuying grabbed her and dragged her into the house, slamming the door shut.
Feeling troubled, Liu Zhixia went up the mountain.
Looking at the devastated mountains and forests, she was preparing to descend when a furtive figure came into view.
Anyone who dares to wander around in the mountains at this time is most likely Wang Laizi!
She immediately put away her shopping basket, held her breath, and carefully followed after him.
Wang Laizi was hiding in a cave, gnawing on a cornbread while cursing:
"Damn it! You won't even give me an egg! And you want to marry the brigade leader's son? Gu Mansheng, you bitch, are you playing me for a fool? I didn't even get a woman, and now I have to take the blame for you!"
Liu Zhixia, having discerned his hiding place from the shadows, refrained from making any rash moves.
In a direct confrontation, she was no match for Wang Laizi.
Just as she was about to quietly slip away, a pebble suddenly flew out from behind her and hit the rock next to Wang Laizi with a "thud"!
Wang Laizi suddenly looked up and met Liu Zhixia's eyes!
Damn it!
She didn't even notice that someone was behind her.
It's obvious without even thinking that it must be Gu Mansheng!
She probably wanted to bring food to Wang Laizi, but she bumped into her instead.
Wang Laizi reacted extremely quickly, grabbing the axe beside him and rushing towards her!
Liu Zhixia turned and ran!
She plunged headfirst into the dense grass and instantly vanished into the space.
Wang Laizi chased after her to the place where she disappeared, but found no trace of her. Enraged, he stood there cursing, "You bitch, get out here! When I catch you, I'll strip you naked and hang you at the village entrance!"
Only after the cursing subsided did Liu Zhixia dare to emerge from the spatial dimension and, relying on her memory, desperately run down the mountain.
Just as the village entrance was in sight, a dark figure suddenly pounced out from the bushes beside her and pinned her to the ground!
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