Chapter 18
"Ah! Isn't this Chu Jiujiu? What happened?"
When the villagers saw the child fall, they immediately swarmed over, saying, "Quick, pick up the child and go find Doctor Huang."
"That's terrible! He hit his head!"
A man put down his backpack and carried Chu Jiujiu on his back with the help of others. Several people surrounded him and ran to Doctor Huang's house. Mrs. Zhang tried to escape in the chaos, but Han Shengyi did not let her go. In the rain, his voice was a little unreal, but loud enough for people to hear.
"You can't leave. You're the one who made her like this."
When the remaining villagers heard this, they immediately looked at Mrs. Zhang. Mrs. Zhang's face was covered with rain. She pulled her arm hard, but couldn't pull it out. "Who hurt her? I didn't do it!"
"It's you! You hit her, you kicked her! You're in cahoots with the human traffickers!"
Han Shengyi usually spoke softly and never shouted, but at this moment, in order to let everyone hear, he almost roared out this sentence. Everyone was still wondering whose child this child was, and now when they heard the word "human trafficker", they suddenly remembered that before Chu Jiujiu fainted, she seemed to have shouted to catch the human traffickers.
Oh my goodness! Something big has happened! The human traffickers have colluded with Mrs. Zhang and have actually entered the village!
The villagers surrounded Mrs. Zhang. As for Niu Ailing, she had long since run away. Han Shengyi saw them surrounding Mrs. Zhang and knew that this matter would not be easily resolved. He felt a little relieved and then quickly ran to Doctor Huang's house.
Doctor Huang is the only doctor in Qingzhu Village. His scientific name is barefoot doctor. He wandered to Qingzhu Village and settled down here. He has been alone ever since. In order to provide convenient medical treatment to the villagers, he usually lives in a small room in the courtyard of the team headquarters.
A group of people came in hurriedly carrying a child on their backs, which immediately alarmed the leaders of the production team. The team leader, deputy team leader, and women's director all surrounded Doctor Huang's room. The raindrops hit the roof with a crackling sound, making the atmosphere quiet and noisy.
Chu Jiujiu was placed on Doctor Huang's bed. Doctor Huang felt her pulse, then opened her eyelids and looked into her eyes, his expression very solemn.
The captain was so frightened that his heart almost stopped beating, "No, it can't be..."
Doctor Huang straightened up and shook his head sadly: "I can't see what's wrong."
Captain: “…”
Others: “…”
The grown men didn't dare approach the wet little girl, but the head of the women's department had no such concerns. She sat beside Chu Jiujiu's bed and asked Doctor Huang, "She's fine, why isn't she awake yet?"
Doctor Huang was packing up his things as he replied, "You hit your head. Your brain is so fragile, it's normal to be dizzy for a few days after a hit."
The Women's Director: "What? How many days will he be unconscious?"
Doctor Huang stroked his stubble and said, "Maybe he'll faint for a while."
Everyone: “…”
Are you sure about this?
Chu Jiujiu was dizzy and didn't know what was going on. The captain frowned and turned to ask the person who brought Chu Jiujiu over, "What's going on?"
The villagers present spoke one after another and quickly recounted the situation. "We don't know either. We got off work after the rain and just as we were walking over, we heard a child yelling, 'Catch the human traffickers!'"
"Yes, when we heard that, we were so shocked that we ran over to see what was happening. We didn't see the traffickers, but we saw Mrs. Zhang and the kid fighting. Mrs. Zhang pushed the kid, and he fell to the ground and couldn't get up."
"No, I kicked him."
"Huh? I remember it was pushing."
The captain was confused when he heard this. Coincidentally, Han Shengyi ran in, panting. When he saw Chu Jiujiu lying quietly on the single bed against the wall, his heart tightened. Just as he was about to go over to take a look, a villager stopped him.
He didn't know who Han Shengyi was and thought Han Shengyi was a child from the village.
"By the way, Captain, ask him. He's right there and can see things more clearly than we can."
The captain looked at Han Shengyi in surprise. The Han family had been in Qingzhu Village for two years. Grandpa Han was either out in the fields or bedridden, laughing whenever he saw anyone, looking almost like he had Alzheimer's. Grandma Han always had a stern face, making people feel apprehensive. As for Han Shengyi, his presence was minimal. Every time the captain saw him, he had to recall who he was.
To put it bluntly, Han Shengyi's life is similar to that of a mouse. He cannot be seen during the day and only his shadow can be seen at night.
This was the first time the captain saw him appear among the villagers. He suppressed his surprise and nodded to Han Shengyi. "Shengyi, tell me the situation again. Take your time. There's no rush."
Han Shengyi subconsciously glanced at Chu Jiujiu lying on the bed. At this time, everyone was looking at Han Shengyi, and no one noticed that Chu Jiujiu opened her eyes a little, and then quickly closed them again.
Han Shengyi: “…”
The huge rock in his heart fell down, Han Shengyi's body relaxed, and his mind started to work rapidly.
He spoke clearly, "On my way home, I heard someone shouting for help. I ran over and found Chu Jiujiu with a middle-aged man covering her mouth. I rescued Chu Jiujiu, but he told me to return her to him. Chu Jiujiu said he was a human trafficker and that Mrs. Zhang had sent him to sell her to this man."
When everyone heard this, they were all surprised and angry. Human trafficking is illegal, how could Mrs. Zhang do such a thing!
Han Shengyi paused and continued, "Chu Jiujiu didn't want to go, so Mrs. Zhang beat her up and insisted on selling her."
“That’s too much!”
"Mrs. Zhang is such a scoundrel!"
Everyone was filled with righteous indignation, and the captain's forehead was throbbing with veins. He hurried out of Doctor Huang's room and shouted, "Where is Mrs. Zhang?!"
"Here, here." A villager pushed Mrs. Zhang over here, and Mrs. Zhang was still making excuses.
"It's not me, it's really not me, damn it, how could I sell a child!"
Everyone went out to watch the fun, even Doctor Huang walked out. Han Shengyi walked to Chu Jiujiu and looked at her with her eyes closed, his expression difficult to read.
The captain outside was very angry. He yelled at Mrs. Zhang, "Shut up!"
"Where is the human trafficker? Where did that human trafficker go?"
The villagers replied, "Captain Zhao led his men in pursuit."
The captain pointed at Mrs. Zhang with a look of frustration, "You, what can I say? It's not like we're so poor we can't even afford to eat. Selling children is illegal and you should be sent to a labor camp, don't you know that?"
When Mrs. Zhang heard this, she trembled with fear. She had heard about the labor camp, where people had to survive by eating grass roots. She didn't want to go to such a place.
"I, I didn't sell her! She's my daughter-in-law. Yes, she found her. Besides, she's not selling her. That family was looking for a daughter-in-law. I found a good family for my granddaughter in advance. How can this be called selling a child?"
If you are not from the same family, you will not enter the same house. They are indeed a close relationship, even their ideals are the same. The captain's nose was almost crooked with anger. He was about to speak when suddenly, someone outside shouted, "Here he comes, Chu Shao is here!"
The captain's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly asked the villagers to move Mrs. Zhang aside. He hadn't even noticed how nervous he was before he went out to greet Chu Shao. There was no other way. Chu Shao was a low-key person, but if something really happened, he would fight to the death.
Chu Shao was dripping with raindrops, and his eyelashes were still covered in rain. He said nothing, just walked quickly forward. The captain saw his expression and knew something bad was going to happen. He quickly said, "It's okay, Chu Shao. Jiujiu just hit his head. Doctor Huang has already examined him and said it's nothing serious."
Chu Shao pursed his lips tightly, walked around him, and went into Doctor Huang's room. Chu Jiujiu was still lying there, soaked to the skin, covered with a thin sheet, her face extremely pale, not knowing whether it was from pain or fear.
The head of the women's department glanced at him and laughed dryly, "Doctor Huang said she'll wake up in a while. It's okay, I'll take care of you. Go out, all of you, I'll change her clothes. It's not good to catch a cold."
Chu Shao's legs seemed to be nailed to the ground, motionless. The director of the women's department was frightened by his expression at this moment. She always felt that this child was gloomy and seemed to want to kill someone. She wanted to persuade him again, but someone got there first.
"Don't worry, she's fine."
A faint young man's voice sounded from the other side. Chu Shao looked up and found a familiar face standing at the end of the bed.
It’s Han Shengyi.
He is also the person Chu Jiujiu trusts and likes the most in the entire Qingshi Village, except for Chu Shao himself.
Chu Shao fluttered his eyelashes, retracted his gaze, and turned to leave. The director of the women's department was shocked. She had never heard that Chu Shao and Han Shengyi had a good relationship. Why did she listen to him so much?
Chu Shao walked out first, and Han Shengyi walked out right after him. The women's director stood in the quiet room. She closed the door, sighed softly, and then walked to Chu Jiujiu's bed.
She asked her husband to go home and get some clothes. While waiting, she stayed with Chu Jiujiu and listened to the noise outside.
We must teach Mrs. Zhang a lesson!
The director of women's affairs was filled with rage, and Chu Jiujiu, who was being guarded by her, also quietly clenched her fists.
Grandpa, seize the opportunity and get the house back!
…
Chu Shao walked out of the room and went straight to Mrs. Zhang. The adults looked at him and before they could react, Chu Shao suddenly stretched out his foot and kicked Mrs. Zhang in the stomach.
Mrs. Zhang's facial features shifted in pain, and he was about to kick her a second time. Everyone finally reacted and pulled him back, "Stop, stop! Chu Shao, she's your grandmother, you can't do that!"
Chu Shao's muscles tensed, and he elbowed the person who was pulling him. "What kind of grandmother would do this? She beat my sister while I was away and even wanted to sell her off! If no one saw me today, how could I find her when I came back? How could my sister survive if she went to someone else's house?"
He looked so scary now, his veins were bulging, his eyes were wide open so that you could see the bloodshot, and every word he roared was like a gong, striking everyone's heart and eardrums. No one dared to pull him back. Chu Shao turned around and grabbed Mrs. Zhang's collar. Mrs. Zhang was so frightened that she couldn't say a word and could only look at him in fear.
"Listen up! Give me back my things, give me back my house, and we'll move out. From now on, no one from your family is allowed to appear in front of Jiujiu."
"If anything is missing, I'll kill you. If anyone from your family shows up once, I'll kill all thirteen of you!"
Mrs. Zhang's lips trembled, and her legs felt as weak as noodles. In her opinion, Chu Shao was more terrifying than a ghost. The captain heard it and put his hand on Chu Shao's shoulder, "Chu Shao, this joke is too much..."
Chu Shao slapped his hand away, his eyes red, "If you don't believe me, try it and see if I'm kidding!!!"
The captain's body stiffened after being yelled at, and the scene suddenly became silent. Chu Jiujiu was lying in the house and could hear the noise outside clearly. She was also scared, fearing that Chu Shao would really do something irreversible in a moment of impulse.
Fortunately, no one tried to persuade him, and he slowly calmed down on his own.
Looking at Mrs. Zhang who had collapsed on the ground in fear, Chu Shao lowered his eyes and half raised his head. He turned around and strode towards the captain. The captain took a step back reflexively, but he didn't expect that with a bang, Chu Shao knelt down in front of him.
The captain's eyes widened as Chu Shao said in a hoarse voice, "Uncle Chen, you've seen it too. Please, make a decision for us. Let me and my sister move out. If I stay at the Zhang family any longer, I'll be left without my last family."
A man's knees are as precious as gold. Chu Shao would never do this if he wasn't really desperate.
The captain was shocked and looked anxious. "Kneel down like a kid! Why are you kneeling just because I tell you to? We're not in the old society anymore. We don't practice that anymore. Get up!"
Chu Jiujiu heard some strange noises outside and was about to frown when she heard the captain say that Chu Shao had knelt down. Chu Jiujiu was stunned and immediately opened her eyes, lifted the quilt, and ran out without even wearing shoes.
The captain pulled Chu Shao's arm, but Chu Shao couldn't get up. A pair of even thinner arms pulled him, but he still couldn't get up. Feeling something was wrong, he looked up and found that Chu Jiujiu had woken up at some point. She pulled Chu Shao's arm hard, her face and eyes flushed red.
"Get up! Get up! I don't want the house anymore, I don't want anything! Don't kneel down, don't kneel... wuwuwu..."
Chu Jiujiu couldn't pull him away, and finally broke down crying. She hugged Chu Shao's arm tightly, refusing to let go, as if Chu Shao was her last warmth and support in this world.
"I'm sorry, wuuuuuuu, I'm sorry. It's all Jiujiu's fault. I don't want Jiujiu anymore. It doesn't matter if I sleep on hay, get bit by bugs, or go hungry. Don't kneel down to others..."
The women's director chased out and heard Chu Jiujiu's extremely sad cries. She felt very sad. They were both children, so why did the two children of the Chu family have such a hard time?
The men were all moved by this scene, and the women were even more upset. Chu Shao helplessly hugged Chu Jiujiu, opening his mouth but not knowing what to say. Han Shengyi walked up and pulled Chu Jiujiu's arm, and Chu Shao stood up with her.
The captain looked at Chu Jiujiu who was crying and the thin Chu Shao, and sighed deeply.
"Go call Old Man Zhang and his two sons."
The captain walked away, his hands behind his back. Chu Jiujiu's eyes were red, and she didn't understand what this meant. Chu Shao wasn't good at comforting people, so he just wiped the tears from her face. The women's director quickly took out the sheet and draped it over Chu Jiujiu. Chu Shao thanked her, paused for a second, and also thanked Han Shengyi.
Han Shengyi smiled at him, as if to say it was a piece of cake.
When they arrived at the team's meeting room, Chu Shao held Chu Jiujiu in his arms. Chu Jiujiu had experienced being kidnapped by human traffickers, being hit, and crying bitterly today. She was now completely exhausted. She lay listlessly on Chu Shao's shoulder, closed her eyes, and sobbed every once in a while.
The captain looked at the two children cuddling each other and felt so worried that he wanted to smoke.
The two deputy captains were present, as was the women's director. They all wanted to see how the captain would handle the matter. After a while, the Zhang family father and son arrived, including Niu Ailing, who was betrayed by Mrs. Zhang, and Zhao Shiliu, who was sewing shoe soles at home.
Zhao Shiliu looked calm, but Niu Ailing was trembling, and the words "Yes, it was me" were almost written on her face.
When they came in, they first glanced at the captain with an annoyed look on his face, and then looked at the Chu brothers and sisters who were sitting in silence.
Old man Zhang smiled innocently: "Captain, what do you mean..."
The captain slammed the table, waking Chu Jiujiu up immediately.
"What else can I say! Your wife and your daughter-in-law are colluding to sell Chu Jiujiu to someone else as a child bride!"
Old man Zhang's eyes widened, "Impossible—"
Before he finished speaking, Mrs. Zhang on the other side said, "No, I didn't have any partnership. Niu Ailing did it all by herself. I just found out about this today!"
Niu Ailing had never seen such a situation before. She panicked and simply knelt down in front of the captain. "No, no, no, I just want to find a good husband for my niece. My mother-in-law agreed. When she heard about it today, she took the initiative to come with me to find Chu Jiujiu. I, we all have good intentions!"
Mrs. Zhang saw that she was still trying to drag her down with her and really wanted to kick her, but unfortunately she was too far away to reach her. She could only say with a red face, "Don't listen to her nonsense. As soon as I got home today, she rushed out and told me that she sold Chu Jiujiu for 250 yuan. When I heard that, I thought, "Selling a child is not the right thing to do. I wanted to find Chu Jiujiu and bring her home. Unlike her, she is the one who really wants to sell the child!"
Zhang Qingguo lowered his head and dared not speak. Hearing this, he was suddenly stunned for a moment, looked up and asked: "Two hundred and five? Isn't it two hundred and two?"
Niu Ailing's eyes went dark. She didn't give Zhang Qingguo away, but he jumped out on his own.
The captain noticed it, "Even you're involved?! Great, you two really are a family!"
Zhao Shiliu quickly waved his hands when he heard this, "No, no, no, Captain, our family doesn't know."
When Niu Ailing saw her, she instantly remembered what she had said. She stood up and rushed towards Zhao Shiliu, "How could you not know? Even if you had told me that someone out there bought a child bride for 150 yuan, I wouldn't have done it!"
Zhao Shiliu was so frightened that her face turned pale. She quickly hid behind her husband. Someone held Niu Ailing down. Zhao Shiliu poked her head out from behind Zhang Laoer, wiping her tears, with a look of grievance on her face. "Sister-in-law, we sisters-in-law are just chatting about family matters. I have said so many things in the past, but how come you only remember this one sentence? You are so cruel and you believe everything you hear. This, this is not my fault. If I said someone else was killed, would you kill someone else?"
Niu Ailing was extremely angry, but what Zhao Shiliu said made sense. Everyone felt that Zhao Shiliu was just saying it casually, and it was Niu Ailing who had ulterior motives and took these words to heart.
Only Chu Jiujiu opened her pair of clear black and white eyes and stared at Zhao Shiliu.
Zhao Shiliu felt guilty when she looked at her. She lowered her head, pretended to be crying, and didn't look at her.
Just at this moment, the middle-aged man who wanted to buy Chujiu was caught back. His hands were tied together with a rope, and a burly man pulled the end of the rope and pulled him into the meeting room.
After entering, he nodded to the captain, "Captain Chen, the person has been captured."
Captain: "Thank you for your hard work. Let's move forward."
Captain Zhao shook his head. "It's okay. You guys continue."
The middle-aged man was timid and didn't have any of the arrogance he had when he kidnapped the child. He squatted on the ground and didn't even dare to raise his head. The villagers glared at him, even angrier than they were at Niu Ailing.
At this time, the villagers regarded the village as their home. No matter how bad Niu Ailing was, they still treated her as one of their own. As for the middle-aged man from outside who wanted to buy the children of the village, they were of course even more angry.
The captain looked at him seriously and asked, "Let me ask you, who wants to sell the child to you?"
The man secretly raised his head, then quickly lowered it, pointing in the direction of Niu Ailing.
"Is she the only one? Is there anyone else?"
The man shook his head.
The captain lowered his voice and asked again, "Are you sure? Did she say there were other people in her group?"
Niu Ailing looked at him nervously.
The man then hesitantly said, "She, she said her husband agrees too."
Zhao Shiliu was about to applaud, but Zhang Qingguo had a depressed look on his face. He did not defend himself, but just felt that he was really unlucky.
The Zhang family members all looked unhappy, but until now, they did not understand how serious the consequences of selling their children were. They knew that they were going to be in trouble, but they did not know how badly they would be in trouble.
After asking clearly, the captain stood up and said to Captain Zhao, "In that case, Qianjin, you take the three of them to the commune."
Niu Ailing immediately became anxious when she heard this, "Captain, why do we still have to go to the commune?"
The team leader turned around and barked, "Why do you still want to go to the commune? You're selling children, he's buying children, it's all illegal! We need to let the higher-ups convict you. They decide how many years you're sentenced to."
a bolt from the blue.
The Zhang family finally understood, and Mrs. Zhang burst into tears, "No, Qingguo is a father, and he has three children. We old couple also need Qingguo to raise them. Captain, please be kind and let Qingguo go!"
Old man Zhang also nodded tremblingly, "Isn't this the work of the eldest brother's wife? You should arrest her, but don't lock up Qingguo as well."
The captain said: "Nonsense! I didn't make the national laws, so I don't have the final say on these matters!"
Seeing that the captain wouldn't help, Mrs. Zhang went to ask Captain Zhao again, "Qianjin, Qianjin, please be kind and let Qingguo go. We almost became a family. You can't just stand by and watch him die!"
Hearing this, Captain Zhao looked up at Chu Shao and Chu Jiujiu for some reason, then pushed Mrs. Zhang aside and said, "Auntie Zhang, please don't delay us from doing our business."
As he spoke, he even moved the gun on his body, implying a warning. Mrs. Zhang immediately let go of him as if she had been electrocuted. She watched in a panic as Captain Zhao also tied up Zhang Qingguo and Niu Ailing. Zhang Qingguo helplessly called out to her, "Mom." Mrs. Zhang suddenly turned around and ran towards Chu Jiujiu.
As soon as Chu Shao saw her coming, he stood up alertly. He blocked Chu Jiujiu behind him and shouted, "What are you doing?!"
Mrs. Zhang spoke incoherently: "Jiujiu, your uncle is innocent. It's all your aunt's fault. Your uncle didn't want to sell you out. Jiujiu, please plead for your uncle, quickly..."
Chu Shao felt sick when he saw her face. He twisted Zhang Po's shoulders and tried to push her away, but Zhang Po pushed forward and he couldn't push her away. At this time, Chu Jiujiu poked her head out from behind Chu Shao.
Looking at Mrs. Zhang, she asked softly, "Grandma, do you still remember that you almost beat me to death today?"
Mrs. Zhang widened her eyes and opened her mouth, but before she could utter a word, she realized belatedly that everyone in the room was looking at her and listening to what Chu Jiujiu was saying.
Selling children is illegal, beating children and almost causing a death seems... also illegal, right?
Mrs. Zhang was so frightened that she even forgot that she didn't hit Chu Jiujiu. She didn't dare to plead with Chu Jiujiu anymore. She could only watch with bloodshot eyes as her eldest son and daughter-in-law were taken away by Captain Zhao.
Mrs. Zhang sat down and was about to cry, but before she could cry out loud, another piece of bad news came.
"Your family is truly despicable. Chu Shao and Chu Jiujiu can no longer live in your house. Clear out Zhang Fengjuan's house and let these two children move in. You don't have to take care of the children anymore. It's better for the villagers to help out a little than to live in fear in your house."
Upon hearing this, the conference room suddenly exploded. There was a group of villagers watching outside, and they were also whispering.
The deputy captain frowned and said, "Captain, this isn't good. It's not safe for two children to live alone."
Another deputy captain, Chen Jiefang, snorted, "We live in the village. We know everyone, young and old. What's unsafe about that? Living with the Zhang family is safe? Didn't you see that the kid was almost sold?"
Amidst all the discussion, Zhao Shiliu suddenly burst into tears, "Why, Captain? Why are you giving our house to them?"
The captain originally had no bad impression of Zhao Shiliu, but upon hearing this, he frowned, "What do you mean by 'your house'? That's Zhang Fengjuan's house. Zhang Fengjuan has only been dead for half a year, and you've been living here for a few months, so you think this house is yours? I've never seen anyone as shameless as you! Move out now! If you don't, I'll get someone else to help you move!"
Chu Jiujiu opened her mouth, she seemed to see a dazzling halo from behind the captain.
Before, dealing with human traffickers was a big deal and the villagers didn’t dare to interrupt. But now when it comes to family matters, they all speak up.
"Yes, when you were helping someone raise their child, you could live in this house. Now that the child doesn't want you to raise him, you must return the house to the child."
"Tsk tsk tsk, Zhao Shiliu, if you want this house so badly, why don't you change your surname to Chu? Once you become a member of the Chu family, you can probably move in."
"Chu Shao doesn't want it either, hahahaha."
Zhao Shiliu looked around and found that no one supported her. She couldn't help but look at Mrs. Zhang who was sitting on the ground, "Mom, please do something about it. Our house is going to be taken away!"
Mrs. Zhang was stunned for a moment before she finally understood what had happened. She jumped up from the ground and said, "Zhang Fengjuan is my daughter. Now that she's dead, all her things belong to me. Chu Shaocai is so young. If I give them to him, he'll lose them. Captain, this is my family affair. You have no right to interfere!"
A woman squeezed in from outside and spat at Mrs. Zhang: "Pooh!"
"How dare you say that? When Zhang Fengjuan was alive, why didn't I ever hear you call her your daughter? Now that she's dead, you're still saying these things. Look at what you've done to her child. If Zhang Fengjuan were still alive, she'd definitely take you down with her!"
Mrs. Zhang wiped her face and looked at the newcomer in astonishment, "You..."
The person who came was Aunt San. No one had ever seen her so combative, so they all stared at her blankly.
"Everyone, judge for yourself. Is Mrs. Zhang still a human being? If you were Zhang Fengjuan, and after you died, your child fell into Mrs. Zhang's hands, starving and even sold as a child bride, wouldn't you want to eat her flesh and drink her blood?"
Everyone nodded in agreement.
"You're the child's grandmother, but you're no match for us, your distant neighbors. The two children can't survive in your house. With our help, they'll definitely grow up better after they're released. When they're successful, they'll come back to honor everyone. They treat the entire village as their family, and only your family is their enemy!"
The villagers were moved by her and responded one after another: "That's right!"
When Aunt San saw that it was almost done, she smiled and stopped talking.
In reality, she knew it was just a casual remark. Life was tough these days, and no one had extra food. While some might be willing to help with the labor, few would be so generous if given food. But that didn't matter. She just wanted the team leader to see that everyone in the village supported him, so he could make his decision with confidence.
Chu Jiujiu looked at Third Aunt with starry eyes. She was so amazing! Third Aunt was so capable. How did she manage to win the support of the entire village in an instant?
Chu Jiujiu didn't know that her third aunt had worked as a volunteer receptionist in the town two years ago, specifically receiving those revolutionary young men who traveled around. She had heard so many speeches and slogans that she had learned the whole thing.
Chu Shao looked at Mrs. Zhang crying and making a fuss. He suddenly walked over and looked at her straight in the eyes. "Do you remember what I just said?"
Mrs. Zhang felt a lump in her throat. She had forgotten about it, but after hearing what he said, she remembered it again.
"I want the house and everything back."
Chu Shao didn't have that murderous aura that could draw blood at any moment, so Mrs. Zhang wasn't that afraid of him. She said, "No! These are our retirement money, you can't take them!"
There is no such thing as daughters providing for one's old age in rural areas. Once a daughter is married, she becomes someone else's family member, and only sons need to provide for one's old age. But Mrs. Zhang threw a tantrum, insisting that all this money should be kept for her and Old Man Zhang's old age. Chu Jiujiu stuck close to Chu Shao and suddenly said, "Didn't you take 300 yuan from my house? I'll leave you some and return the rest to us. That will be your old age money."
Mrs. Zhang's eyes froze, and she flatly denied it, "Where did the three hundred yuan come from? I don't have any!"
Chu Jiujiu said innocently, "Qiuhua said so. She said you took a red box from my house with three hundred yuan in it."
"That's Qiuhua's nonsense, it's not true!"
Chu Jiujiu blinked and said, "Then send someone to find Qiuhua and ask her if she really has the money. Qiuhua told me that she also knows where the red box is. Ask her to find it for me and see if it belongs to my family."
Zhang Qingguo and his wife were taken away. Mrs. Zhang was not close to Qiuhua, and she really didn't know if Qiuhua would listen to outsiders. Just when Mrs. Zhang was getting anxious, she saw Chu Jiujiu looking up and happily saying to Chu Shao, "It's three hundred yuan. If she doesn't give it back to us, we will sue her and have her arrested too. This is called misappropriation of other people's property. The state stipulates that if it exceeds two hundred and ten yuan, you can be sentenced to many years in prison."
When Mrs. Zhang heard that she was going to be sentenced again, her eyes went dark. She had almost been sentenced many times today. After Chu Jiujiu finished speaking, she pretended to go find Qiuhua. Mrs. Zhang got anxious and shouted, "No! It's really not three hundred yuan, it's two hundred yuan!"
Chu Jiujiu immediately retracted her steps and looked at the captain. "Uncle, you heard it, there are two hundred yuan."
Mrs. Zhang: “…”
Chu Shao took a step forward and put Chu Jiujiu behind him. He said to the team leader, "Uncle Chen, my mother does have a red box with our family's money and bills in it. There's also an account book that records how much money my mother spent and how much she had left. You can tell the exact amount by looking at the account book."
Mrs. Zhang and Old Man Zhang were illiterate. They looked at Chu Shao blankly without much reaction. But Zhao Shiliu was shocked. She remembered that there seemed to be an account book.
The captain nodded and said, "Then bring the account book over and calculate the money according to the account book. Chu Shao, they are your grandparents after all. So, I will give you a share. The house belongs to you, and the money... give them a portion."
After all, the team leader has to consider everyone, give a good reward after a bad one, and not push anyone into a desperate situation. This is his principle of conduct as the team leader of the production team.
I thought Chu Shao would be unwilling, but unexpectedly Chu Shao nodded and said, "How about this, my mother spent 150 yuan to buy furniture and things, we don't want them anymore, we just want the house, money and tickets."
Anyway, those things have been used by the Zhang family, and he doesn't want to see them again.
The captain looked at him admiringly, "Not bad, that's good too."
Zhao Shiliu: “…”
The furniture Zhang Fengjuan bought was all second-hand, and there weren't many things. They were all still at Mrs. Zhang's house. How could those junks be worth 150 yuan? She wouldn't believe it even if she was beaten to death!
But after a while, the red box was brought. Looking at Zhang Fengjuan's handwriting, Zhao Shiliu couldn't believe it.
She really spent a hundred and fifty?!
In fact, out of the 150 li, 70 yuan was used by Zhang Fengjuan to bribe township leaders. This was why she and Chu Shao were able to quickly settle down in Qingzhu Village, and no one questioned them at that critical juncture.
But Zhang Fengjuan was not stupid, so she would not write down such things openly.
Zhao Shiliu was not happy with this. "If they take away my house, where will we live?"
Deputy Captain Chen Jiefang interrupted, "Your eldest brother and sister-in-law have been arrested. They won't be back for a few years. It's perfect for you guys to move back."
Someone outside continued, "Yes, your eldest brother left behind three children who have no one to take care of them. You can move in and take care of them."
Zhao Shiliu: “…”
She was about to faint from anger.
I didn't get the money, but I lost the house. Now I have to raise other people's children! There are three children in their family, plus four in my own family. How can I raise them?
Seeing her speechless and devastated, Chu Jiujiu felt particularly relieved. She hid behind Chu Shao and smiled. Except for Han Shengyi, who was leaning against the back door, no one noticed her strange expression.
The house was set in stone and had to be returned. Mrs. Zhang had already given up and was holding on to the two hundred yuan, refusing to give it up. She had already transferred the tickets and money in the red box, so even if she got the box, it would be useless.
Mrs. Zhang sat on the ground and made a scene, howling so hard that it gave everyone a headache. Finally, Chu Shao ran out of patience, pushed her hard, and asked her viciously whether she wanted money or her life.
If she didn't give him the money, he would not move out and would continue to live with them.
When Zhao Shiliu heard this, she almost laughed out loud. That's great, she doesn't have to pay back the house! Who knew that when Mrs. Zhang saw Chu Shao like this, she felt like she saw a ghost. She trembled with fear and even wet her pants.
Finally, she tremblingly took out 182 yuan, a few cloth coupons, and a dozen grain coupons. As for the other sugar and oil coupons, and other money, she said she had spent them all. The team leader waved his hand and said it didn't matter. He could just give their family's supplies to Chu Shao when the next distribution came.
The moment the money was taken away, Mrs. Zhang screamed like a pig being slaughtered, and finally felt the pain in her flesh. Chu Shao looked at her gloomily, but she was no longer afraid. She was sad as if her parents had died. Even when Zhang Qingguo was taken away, she didn't cry so miserably.
The onlookers felt it was too much to bear. Finally, everything was done. The team leader was exhausted, both physically and mentally. He asked the villagers to go back and told Zhao Shiliu and his wife to move quickly. Chu Jiujiu couldn't suppress the smile on her face. She stood happily beside Chu Shao, who looked at the crowd for a while and suddenly called out to someone.
The man was stunned and couldn't help pointing at himself, "You called me?"
Chu Shao nodded and asked him, "Uncle, do you want to exchange houses with us?"
The man is almost forty years old. He has three children and the five of them live in two small houses. He has always wanted to move to a bigger one, but firstly, he doesn't have enough money, and secondly, his family background is not good, so no one is willing to exchange with them.
His house was right next to the team headquarters, and it was surrounded by densely packed neighbors, completely enclosing his house, making it impossible to add to it. But Chu Shao was attracted by his home's location: surrounded by people, and with the team headquarters as a secondary insurance, this way, when he was not at home, he would not have to worry about Chu Jiujiu getting into danger.
Chu Shao had sent him something before and knew the layout of his house: a gray-tiled house with a main room and two small rooms converted from the main room. Outside, there was a utility room, a vegetable patch, and a private well. Five people couldn't live there, so it was perfect for just the two of them.
The man was stunned for a long time, and finally the villagers next to him poked him, and he seemed to wake up. He didn't say whether he agreed or not, but looked at the team leader.
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