Chapter 23 Proving Innocence
Lin Anyuan's words left everyone stunned.
Although the obese woman had heard of Lin Anyuan's reputation, she couldn't care less about that now, as her daughter's life was at stake. "Wasn't it your woman who instigated Erniu to go to my house to break off the engagement? My Lamei couldn't think straight and that's why..."
"When did I say that? Let Zhang Erniu come out and confront me!" Ye Wan interrupted her.
Even a clay figure has a temper.
Several women started talking all at once.
"It's all over the village. Zhang Erniu stopped you from talking. Someone saw it. If you hadn't said it, would Erniu have done something like that?"
"The Zhang family owns a lot of land and is quite wealthy. Zhang Erniu is also a good young man, so he got the idea to do something crooked."
"Judging from his appearance, he's definitely not a good person..."
The village chief frowned and said, "Lin Anyuan, I have no objection to you living in the village for the past three years, but this matter was caused by your woman, and it involves a life. You need to give an explanation."
"So that plum blossom and red plum blossom girl, she's dead? And you want my family to hold a funeral for her?"
Lin Anyuan supported himself with a hoe, looking somewhat nonchalant.
"You, you..." The village chief was almost furious.
The gossiping people around quieted down and started pointing and whispering about Ye Wan and Da Ya.
Ye Wan found it absurd, and with a cold face, she raised her voice, "Zhang Erniu, if you're a man, stand up and speak up! A promise is a promise. When did I instigate you to break off the engagement?"
Zhang Erniu was awkwardly pushed forward, not daring to look up at Ye Wan, and stammered, "Auntie, you said it!"
Ye Wan suddenly became furious and wished she could kill the kid.
"What did I say? You stopped me from asking if Daya was home, and you even offered to give her a rabbit. Didn't I say thank you? But don't forget you're engaged."
"Doesn't that mean I have to break off the engagement?"
Zhang Erniu looked up at Ye Wan, then suddenly knelt down with a thud. "I like Daya, that's why I broke off the engagement. It has nothing to do with you, Auntie!"
"Aunt, I'm sorry for you and Lamei. I only ever thought of Lamei as my younger sister!"
Since the matter had already become common knowledge, Zhang Erniu felt he should take responsibility and act like a man.
Ye Wan was disgusted, and Da Ya was also shocked.
"Damn it! I told you, she's so young and already knows how to seduce men. If she hadn't deliberately seduced him, this wouldn't have happened. Village chief, you have to give me an explanation!"
Lin Anyuan suddenly burst out laughing, and everyone looked at her.
Ye Wan looked at him, thinking that Lin Anyuan would once again stand idly by.
"What explanation do you want? Your son-in-law can't control himself, so he's trying to pin the blame on my daughter?"
The obese woman spoke viciously, "It takes two to tango. If it weren't for your eldest daughter deliberately seducing you... ah!"
Before he could finish speaking, his front tooth was knocked out.
“Your daughter is fat and stupid, and your son-in-law has fallen for someone else. How dare you blame others? Go back and take a piss, look at yourself in the mirror. Your husband will be scared to death by you tonight.”
After Lin Anyuan finished speaking, he looked down at Zhang Erniu with a cold smile, "You should take a piss and look at yourself in the mirror."
Zhang Erniu couldn't help but tremble.
Even though Lin Anyuan wasn't much older than him and looked so thin, he was still afraid, probably because Lin Anyuan had killed people.
"Lin Anyuan! If you want to stay in this village, you're not allowed to hit people!"
The village chief was furious, his face turning red and his neck bulging. He was hitting someone right in front of him; did he have no one left and even want to kill someone?
Lin Anyuan said in a serious tone, "Oh, I didn't hit a person, I hit a fat pig."
"puff."
Someone couldn't help but burst out laughing. The obese woman, covering her mouth and groaning, really did look just like a pig.
Ye Wan couldn't help but laugh. Sure enough, it was more satisfying to be a sarcastic man when he was criticizing others. It was better than a gourd with its mouth sawed off.
Just before the village chief lost his temper, Da Ya, who had been quiet all along, suddenly spoke up, "Village chief, I don't know where these rumors came from. Apart from the time Zhang Erniu saved me, we have never had any connection."
Zhang Erniu, kneeling on the ground, looked at Daya with a somewhat disappointed expression.
He had run into Daya many times, but did she only remember that one time?
"You say it's not true, but if it weren't for you, you little vixen, how could my Lamei have tried to kill herself!" The fat woman covered her leaky mouth and glared at Daya with resentment.
Zhang Erniu actually took a liking to a skinny girl who was practically skin and bones.
"Can cutting my hair prove my innocence?"
Da Ya stared at everyone who was pointing and whispering without changing her expression.
"Sure, go ahead and cut it!"
"Big sister, no!"
Er Ya shrieked to stop her.
Our bodies, hair, and skin are given to us by our parents. A woman's hair is like her second face. Cutting her hair is like ruining her face. How can she get married in the future?
Unfortunately, Da Ya had already picked up the scissors and cut off her waist-length hair, leaving it only at her shoulders.
The strands of black hair scattered on the ground stunned everyone.
"Ah! Big sister! Are you satisfied now? Are you satisfied? You are not human! Zhang Erniu, you are not human, I'm going to kill you!"
Er Ya cried out and started kicking Zhang Er Niu, who was kneeling on the ground.
Everyone knew that Daya was finished.
It will be difficult to get married again.
"That's enough for today. Anyone who dares to talk nonsense will be kicked out of the village."
The village chief hadn't expected things to escalate like this. His original intention was to have Lin Anyuan pay some compensation and then let the matter rest.
Who would have thought that this seemingly gentle girl actually has such a strong personality?
Now, Lin Anyuan's eldest daughter, who already had a bad reputation because of her father, is now completely unable to get married.
Seeing Lin Anyuan's almost murderous gaze, everyone quickly left, even Zhang Erniu, who was kneeling on the ground, was dragged away by his parents.
Only Er Ya's shrill cries remained in the courtyard.
Ye Wan looked at Daya's frail figure and opened her mouth, wondering if she should blame her for this.
"Don't worry about it, I'm not thinking about getting married." Daya smiled slightly, put away the scissors, and told Erya not to cry.
Er Ya cried uncontrollably, blaming Ye Wan, "Why are you so foul-mouthed? You should just shut up! My older sister's hair was so beautiful, and now it's ruined. What is she going to do? What is she going to do?"
Children from poor families mature early and become independent early. Even at eight years old, Er Ya knew that marrying into a good family was a woman's only way out.
"Er Ya, stop talking. You can't blame others, and you shouldn't blame your own family. I said I won't get married. Let's get through this first and not think about anything else." Daya held a strand of black hair in her hand.
Does she care? Of course she does, after all, she's still just a young girl.
But if she didn't do that, her family would have to pay compensation, and their lives would only get a little better. She didn't have the face to ask Ye Wan to pay for it.
If we don't prove our innocence today, Ye Wan, Er Ya, and San Ya will be verbally abused and pointed at in the air whenever they go out in the future.
That night, Ye Wan didn't go to the three girls' room to lie on the same kang (heated brick bed) with Lin Anyuan, and she couldn't sleep all night.
Just a few rumors and gossips have driven someone to this state.
This world is unfair to women, so unfair.
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