Chapter Twenty-Four: Finding the Problematics
Everyone was incredibly embarrassed, wishing they could dig a hole and disappear into it.
Although Zhang Jinhua was somewhat helpless that He Mingzhou had blurted out everything, she was also relieved to see the truth come out.
After all, it's not a pleasant feeling to be slandered.
Having lived most of her life, this was the first time she had ever experienced the feeling of being unable to defend herself.
Especially since these people in front of you are all neighbors, people you see every day.
Because of her husband's high military rank, she was considered one of the most respected people on the island.
Unexpectedly, today Xu Haiyu was surrounded and criticized because of people.
This was truly unacceptable to Zhang Jinhua.
"It's good that the truth has come out."
Although Zhang Jinhua was not happy, he did not show it. After all, they were all from the same hometown and fellow villagers, and it wouldn't be good to really think that this matter would cause a big fuss.
She glanced at Xinli standing beside her, and thinking about her previous behavior, she finally understood how painful it was to be wronged.
Xin Li noticed Zhang Jinhua's gaze, smiled slightly at her, and took the initiative to pat her back to comfort her.
Zhang Jinhua was deeply moved.
What a wonderful child.
She was wronged just now, and today she's being slandered like this again.
Xin Li didn't get angry at all; she remained calm and composed throughout, more so than anyone else.
Now that the truth has come out, she has no intention of mocking those people or seeking revenge later. Zhang Jinhua feels extremely guilty.
They say you can judge a person by their eyes. She had already decided that Xinli was a good girl, so why did she contradict herself later?
Thinking about it carefully, it seems that all of this is because of Xu Haiyu.
Today's incident was also caused by Xu Haiyu. Zhang Jinhua didn't want to speculate on Xu Haiyu's thoughts, but whether it was today's incident or the previous watch incident, Xu Haiyu was in the wrong, and she still hasn't apologized to Xin Li!
"Xinxin, I'm so sorry to have wronged you."
Once Zhang Jinhua spoke, those who were ashamed could no longer pretend to be dead.
Especially since her husband is here, if they act the same way as before, wouldn't that be disrespecting He Mingzhou?
In everyone's hearts, He Mingzhou held a much higher position than Zhang Jinhua. He was a deputy division commander who got things done, and the island's current status was all thanks to people like him.
"I'm so sorry, little sister. We were too anxious before. We were worried that something had happened to Xiaoyu because we hadn't heard from her for a long time, so we questioned you like that. Please don't take it to heart."
"Yes, yes, and Sister Lu, we only spoke without thinking in a moment of panic. There are already few good things on our island, so just think of us as jealous."
Zhang Jinhua twitched her lips. She felt that the people's apologies were harsh, but she didn't want to make a big deal out of it.
Just as he was about to speak, Xin Li grabbed his wrist.
Zhang Jinhua was taken aback and turned to look at Xin Li.
Xin Li didn't look at her, but instead looked at the old Hai couple who had been shouting the loudest at the beginning.
"Can you tell me now?"
"Where did you hear all this nonsense? Do you really not know where Xu Haiyu is, or are you pretending not to know?"
When Lao Hai and his wife saw He Mingzhou approaching, they cowered and hid in the crowd, too afraid to show their faces.
Now that they've been suddenly called out by Xin Li, and there's no escaping it any longer, the two of them have no choice but to explain everything clearly.
"Zhang Chen told you that?"
Everyone was somewhat surprised by what Lao Hai and his wife said.
Zhang Chen said that the barefoot doctor on the island was someone everyone would go to for treatment if they had a headache or fever.
He always said that herbal remedies didn't cost much, and he often treated people for free.
Sometimes they even lose money.
Everyone has a very good impression of Zhang Chen.
I never imagined that one day he would do such gossipy things behind people's backs.
"Are you sure? That's Zhang Chen. He usually lives alone and doesn't like to socialize. Why would he tell you this?"
When Lao Hai and his wife heard that no one believed them, they immediately became anxious.
"Then can we still lie?"
"My back was uncomfortable. While I was looking for someone, I thought I was already at Dr. Zhang's door, so I just went to get some medicine. I casually mentioned that I was looking for Xiaoyu, and that's when Dr. Zhang told us about it."
He said he had only heard it secondhand and didn't know if it was true or not.
"We figured Zhang Chen doesn't like to interact with people, so how could something he said be false? He wouldn't make up something to deceive us, so we came here and started talking nonsense. You know what, how did this happen? We had no idea that Dr. Zhang Chen was just making things up after hearing it from someone else."
"This has really made us lose face. We won't be able to hold our heads up when we see Sister Lu and Xin Li anymore."
Hearing them say this, the others didn't dare to press them any further.
Who knows where the rumors actually came from?
If you keep asking questions, what if you accidentally ask your own family members? Wouldn't that be incredibly awkward?
In the exchange of glances, everyone saw the words "try to settle things peacefully" in each other's eyes.
So everyone's voices got softer and softer, and eventually they fell silent.
Zhang Jinhua had been neighbors with these people for so many years, and he could tell from their expressions that they were guilty.
She gave a soft snort, though she tried her best to suppress her temper, a hint of dissatisfaction still showed: "There's no need to worry so much. It's good that the misunderstanding has been cleared up. But I still hope that everyone will refrain from making pronouncements without knowing anything in the future. It's really embarrassing."
Everyone was so embarrassed that their faces turned bright red, and they didn't dare to utter a single word in rebuttal.
Xin Li, however, remained clear-headed and, when everyone forgot about the important matter, she directly reminded them: "Shall we go to that Doctor Zhang's house and take a look?"
Zhang Jinhua and He Mingzhou both looked at her: "What are you going to his house for?"
Xin Li said matter-of-factly, "Didn't Lao Hai and his wife say they heard the gossip from that Zhang Chen? Is it possible that the person involved told them the gossip directly? After all, we've searched almost the entire island and haven't found her. I don't think we've even looked for Zhang Chen's house yet, right? Maybe she's there."
Upon hearing this, everyone turned to look at Lao Hai and his wife.
"I really didn't know that. We were in the outer room at the time. Dr. Zhang gave us the medicine and then we left."
"If Xiaoyu was really there, why didn't she come out then? Zhang Chen knew we were looking for someone, so why did he hide it?"
"It can't be there, can it?"
Everyone had their own opinion; some wanted to go and see it, while others didn't.
Xin Li looked at He Mingzhou.
He immediately understood and said in a booming voice, "Go and see. We should finish what we start. Since everyone has come out to help, we should find the person first. Xiaoyu is so immature and did such a thing. She should apologize to everyone in person."
Since He Mingzhou had already said so, it was naturally difficult for others to refute him.
So the group headed towards Zhang Chen's house in a grand procession.
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