Chapter 66
Xu Jie was lying on the ground, his clothes were all burned. In addition to the smell of coal, there was also a smell of roasting meat in the boiler room. When she opened the door before, she didn't look inside and didn't know that there were so many small pieces of coal piled on the ground. Some of the coal blocks were still red. Chu Jiujiu didn't dare to go in at all.
After waiting for a while, she felt that the heat inside was not so severe, so she walked in. Xu Jie lay on the ground motionless. Chu Jiujiu was not afraid that he was pretending. The sound of coal had not stopped just now, and Xu Jie's voice stopped. He must have fainted from the pain or was hit. Otherwise, he could hold back his voice in such a situation. Chu Jiujiu respected him as a man.
The Chu family also burns coal in winter. Chu Jiujiu knows how hot coal is when it burns. She accidentally touched the chimney behind her and her finger was burned and a small blister appeared. Xu Jie was attacked by the coal in there for such a long time. Could he... really be dead?
Chu Jiujiu quickly squatted down. She didn't get close to Xu Jie, but just watched from the side. Seeing that his body was still moving, she knew that he was fine.
It’s good that he’s not dead. If he were dead and she were still standing here, it would be difficult for her to explain it to herself.
Half of Xu Jie's face was exposed, the other half pressed to the ground. Chu Jiujiu squatted beside him and carefully observed the wounds on his body. He found that the burns were all red and swollen, but not as scary as Wen Xiuwei's, because the coal fell on him and he quickly shook it off. Chu Jiujiu frowned and simply turned Xu Jie's head over.
After the other half of the face was revealed, Chu Jiujiu immediately saw the burn marks caused by the high-temperature coal blocks. It was not as scary as Wen Xiuwei's face on the marriage certificate, nor as big as the wound on her face. Chu Jiujiu was stunned for a moment, and suddenly, she raised her head and looked at the boiler that was still working.
A small piece of coal could not cause such severe burns on a person's face unless the person's face was pressed against the boiler.
Chu Jiujiu thought that Wen Xiuwei was burned because Xu Jie pressed her against the boiler when she resisted. In fact, it was not the case. Wen Xiuwei caused the burns herself.
She was followed by Xu Jie three or four times, and finally he got serious. He was the son of the captain of the Xujiawan team, and she had no way to compete with him. If the boiler room had not suddenly started to splash, he would have succeeded long ago.
After the boiler room splashed, Xu Jie was scared away. Wen Xiuwei was about to run out, but when she thought of her despair just now and her future dire situation, she made up her mind and chose a different direction from Xu Jie.
It wasn't Xu Jie who did it, but it's even more hateful than if it was Xu Jie who did it.
Chu Jiujiu didn't know the truth, but she had already found the culprit. In anger, she stretched out her leg and kicked Xu Jie several times. What she didn't know was that Xu Jie was lying on the ground with a large piece of extremely hot coal under his stomach. If Chu Jiujiu hadn't kicked him, he would have been burned to death by the coal. But now, Chu Jiujiu kicked him and dislocated him. His life was no longer in danger, but his vitals were completely lost.
Xu Jie had truly lost consciousness. Even in this situation, he hadn't woken up. Chu Jiujiu, after kicking him, also became nervous.
Xu Jie was so seriously injured, and if she left here, as long as someone saw her, Xu Jie's family would follow the clues and find her. People always sympathize with the weak, and her intact appearance was really suspicious.
Chu Jiujiu paced anxiously in the boiler room. She looked around, then squatted down and began to smear coal ash on herself. It was not enough to just smear the coal ash. She stared at a piece of coal for a long time. Finally, she made up her mind and reached out to grab the coal. However, she jumped up in pain as soon as she touched it.
No, no, it hurts too much. She doesn't want to hurt herself for a scumbag like Xu Jie!
She didn't know what to do here, and Wen Xiuwei outside was almost going crazy with anxiety.
In other villages, moving fertilizer was a man's job, but in Xujiawan, it was all women. Wen Xiuwei moved two bags, but because she was worried about Chu Jiujiu, she returned quickly. But she waited and waited, but Chu Jiujiu didn't come back. She went back to the educated youth site to look for her, but couldn't find her either.
Chu Jiujiu never runs around, so Wen Xiuwei immediately panicked. She hurried back to the field to ask the old ladies. One of the old ladies raised her eyelids and told her that Chu Jiujiu and Xu Jie had left.
The two people left one after the other. In the old lady's view, they left together. The old lady said this without any other thoughts. But when Wen Xiuwei heard it, it was like a bolt from the blue.
As early as the day she met Xu Jie, she had inquired about who he was. After learning that he was the son of the team leader and a pervert that everyone in the village knew but no one dared to speak of, Wen Xiuwei had been extremely cautious in the village. However, she had not expected that he was no longer targeting her, but had become his target, Chu Jiujiu.
This frightened her more than being targeted, even though it sounded unreasonable.
Chu Jiujiu was just a kid she played with well. They had a good relationship, but not to this extent. Wen Xiuwei always thought that her relationship with Chu Jiujiu was like that with her former neighbor's child. When they were close, she could play with her every day, but if she had to leave, she wouldn't miss this former playmate that much.
But now, Wen Xiuwei was trembling with fear. When she thought about what Xu Jie would do after catching Chu Jiujiu, she felt like the sky was falling. There couldn't be anything more terrifying than this. With her eyes wide open in panic, Wen Xiuwei turned and ran, but because of a cramp in her leg muscles, she knelt on the ground after running only two steps. Her knees were rubbed and bleeding. Wen Xiuwei didn't care about it anymore. She quickly got up and went to find Luo Shuyang and the others for help.
The old lady didn't know where Xu Jie had gone. It was unrealistic for her to look for him in the entire village by herself. She had to ask others for help. Moreover, in this situation, only Luo Shuyang could talk to the people in the commune.
So what if Xu Changhe is a local tyrant, so what if Xu Jie is acting arrogantly in Xujiawan, they must return Chu Jiujiu properly, they must!
Otherwise...she...
Wen Xiuwei felt her heart was empty. She stumbled forward. At this time, Han Shengyi came over. Seeing Wen Xiuwei's appearance, he couldn't help but run over and support her. "Wen Zhiqing, what happened?"
Wen Xiuwei clutched his hand tightly as if she had found a lifeline: "Jiujiu, go find Jiujiu! Xu Jie has taken her away!"
Han Shengyi also didn't know who Xu Jie was, but when he saw Wen Xiuwei's expression and heard him say the word "take away", his face changed immediately. He let go of Wen Xiuwei and turned to go to the brigade headquarters in Xujiawan. At this time, he suddenly heard distant crying.
He was very familiar with this crying sound. Last year, he heard it almost every few days.
Han Shengyi quickly ran towards the direction where the crying sound came from. Wen Xiuwei was stunned for a moment and quickly followed. Chu Jiujiu ran out from the opposite side of the road, her whole body was black. She was crying while running, and her throat was still coughing. After seeing Han Shengyi, she cried even harder. Han Shengyi had never run so fast in his life. He took Chu Jiujiu in his arms. Before he could even ask how she was, Chu Jiujiu fainted in his arms.
Han Shengyi's brain buzzed and the blood drained from his face. He hugged Chu Jiujiu, knelt on the ground, and was about to call her name. Then, he felt a finger gently draw a triangle on his leg.
Han Shengyi, who was stuck in a quandary, said: "..."
Wen Xiuwei followed closely and saw Chu Jiujiu fainted in Han Shengyi's arms. She was frightened and knelt beside Han Shengyi. She kept calling Chu Jiujiu's name, trying to wake her up. Her hands kept moving, sometimes touching Chu Jiujiu's face, sometimes touching her neck.
Tears fell like beads from a broken string. Wen Xiuwei wanted to cry and call her, and her sobbing voice filled with fear and worry reached everyone's ears, especially the old ladies who followed behind to watch the fun. One old lady saw Wen Xiuwei like this and thought that Chu Jiujiu was no longer alive.
Since Chu Jiujiu pretended to faint, she must have had her reasons. Han Shengyi couldn't tell Wen Xiuwei the truth in front of so many people, so he could only quickly put Chu Jiujiu on his back. He carried her and said to Wen Xiuwei, "Wen Zhiqing, let's rush to get Jiujiu to the hospital."
Wen Xiuwei nodded randomly, tears still hanging heavily on her chin, "Yes, yes, send him to the hospital!"
She wanted to go to the brigade headquarters to ask someone to borrow a tractor, but Han Shengyi stopped her and said that there was a ready-made one in Qingzhu Village, which was closer to the hospital. Wen Xiuwei was so anxious that she didn't even think about how false Han Shengyi's words were. Which village would have a ready-made tractor waiting to transport patients?
Han Shengyi carried Chu Jiujiu out of Xujiawan until there was no one behind him, and then he put Chu Jiujiu down.
Wen Xiuwei saw his movements and was just wondering when she saw Chu Jiujiu jump off his back. She looked back and confirmed that no one was around. Then she quickly took the initiative and took Han Shengyi and Wen Xiuwei's hands. She said, "Let's go! Let's go back to the village first, and then I'll tell you what happened!"
Chu Jiujiu pulled it but it didn't move. When she turned around, she saw Wen Xiuwei's eyes filled with rage.
Being able to force Wen Xiuwei to get angry shows how much fun Chu Jiujiu had today.
"Chu! Wine! Wine!!!"
Wen Xiuwei said angrily: "Do you think this is fun? What good will it do you to scare me to death! I have never seen a child as naughty as you, you make me so angry!"
It was the first time Chu Jiujiu and Han Shengyi saw Wen Xiuwei angry. They looked at her in surprise. When they found that Chu Jiujiu had no intention of admitting her mistake, she became even angrier.
"What on earth is going on?"
The fairy instantly transformed into the Queen Mother. Chu Jiujiu was stunned for a long time before she stammered to explain herself, "I came back from the educated youth camp and didn't see you, but I saw a man. I asked him where you had been, and he told me you went to the boiler room. I felt something was wrong, so I didn't listen to him. Later I found out he was lying. He had been following me the whole time, so I locked him up in the boiler room."
Han Shengyi: "Is that why you are so dark?"
He asked casually, but Wen Xiuwei turned her head instantly and glared at him, "Don't interrupt!"
Han Shengyi: “…”
Never mess with an honest person. Chu Jiujiu finally understood this truth. Not daring to delay any longer, she quickly recounted what happened next. "...The boiler suddenly exploded, and I didn't even react. When I went in again, he was lying on the ground motionless."
She didn't say what she had done to Xu Jie, nor did she say that after hearing Xu Jie's screams, she still stood there motionless, with no intention of letting him out. Han Shengyi looked at her slightly guilty expression and subconsciously frowned, but Wen Xiuwei was more concerned about something else, "Is Xu Jie dead?"
It turned out that the man's name was Xu Jie. Chu Jiujiu shook her head and said, "No, he's still alive, but he was seriously injured. I was afraid that everyone would think I did it, so I pretended to be injured too."
The amount of information was too much, and Wen Xiuwei needed to take it slowly. She only listened to Chu Jiujiu's description. She didn't know how badly Xu Jie was injured, but the red-hot coal against her skin...
Wen Xiuwei couldn't help but shudder after just imagining it.
Now that she knew the whole story, Wen Xiuwei wasn't as angry as before. She stood there and thought for two seconds before making a quick decision: "Shengyi, you continue to carry Jiujiu on your back. If you're going to pretend, then pretend to the end. Let's not go to the hospital. Let's go back to Jiujiu's house first. This matter isn't over yet. Captain Xujiawan treats Xu Jie like his own apple of his eye. He'll definitely come looking for him after he knows what happened to Xu Jie."
Wen Xiuwei still had no idea what to do when the other party came to find her, but she knew that she couldn't just stand there stupidly, and she couldn't stay in the territory of Xujiawan and wait for others to catch her.
After hearing her words, Chu Jiujiu jumped back onto Han Shengyi's back. Following Wen Xiuwei's instructions, she kept lying on his shoulder, pretending to be unconscious. No matter what anyone said, she couldn't react at all. On the way back to her village, many people saw the "unconscious" Chu Jiujiu and came over to ask what was going on. Han Shengyi remained silent, while Wen Xiuwei looked anxious. "There's no time to explain. Please, go call the village doctor, please!"
She was a beauty, and her expression of wanting to cry but not wanting to was enough to break anyone's heart. They wanted to ask more, but seeing this situation, they dared not ask anymore. They sent two people to find Doctor Huang, and the rest followed them back to the Chu family.
Chu Shao stayed at the military recruitment banquet for too long in the morning and had no time to pick up Chu Jiujiu, so he asked Han Shengyi to go there for him. At this time, he had just returned home and stuffed the candy in his pocket into the cabinet. Chu Shao held an axe and walked into the yard, ready to chop some firewood.
As soon as the axe was raised, a group of people rushed towards his home in a hurry. He had good eyesight and saw at once that Chu Jiujiu was lying on Han Shengyi's back, and everyone had a worried expression.
Chu Shao was stunned. The group of people had already arrived at his house. Han Shengyi carried Chu Jiujiu on his back and quickly entered the house. When Wen Xiuwei passed by him, she twisted his thigh hard.
Chu Shao: “……!!!”
Chu Shao hid the cry in his throat and became even more confused, but not as nervous as before. Wen Xiuwei would not pinch him for no reason. There must be something fishy about today's incident.
After putting Chu Jiujiu on the bed, Han Shengyi was almost exhausted. It had been a full seven miles! He had been carrying Chu Jiujiu on his back, and even though he was in good health, it was a bit too much. He couldn't rub his shoulders because there were so many people gathered in the room. He could only make a heavy expression like everyone else.
Wen Xiuwei followed him in. After he put Chu Jiujiu down, she turned around and said to Han Shengyi, "Go out and persuade Chu Shao not to worry."
Han Shengyi looked at Wen Xiuwei silently, and could not see any acting on her face.
Pursing his lips, he hummed and went out to explain the situation to Chu Shao.
Chu Shao first breathed a sigh of relief when he learned that Chu Jiujiu was fine, but then he became worried again when he heard that Xu Jie was in trouble.
Not all team leaders are good people, and not all villages are as harmonious as Qingzhu Village. Chu Jiujiu did not cause any trouble, but was caught up in an unexpected disaster. It was right for her to pretend to be unconscious, and it would be best if she could remain unconscious until the matter was over. Otherwise, as soon as she showed up, the people from Xujiawan would rush out and eat her alive.
When Chu Jiujiu and the others came back, the captain didn't hear anything. He was discussing something with others in the team headquarters.
Early this morning, Ding Yiming suddenly arrived at the team headquarters, saying he wanted to exchange fields with the educated youth from Xujiawan. He wanted to learn more advanced planting techniques from Xujiawan and bring them back to Qingzhu Village. The team leader was confused. When did Xujiawan have any advanced techniques? They were all from the same commune, and they had acquired their advanced techniques from the commune. Xujiawan didn't even farm much now, so they didn't have any advanced techniques, let alone experience.
After talking to the two deputy captains, Chen Jiefang was more flexible and immediately realized that this was an excuse. He just didn't want to stay in Qingzhu Village and wanted to go to Xujiawan as an educated youth.
This is really a case of not knowing how to appreciate what you have. You know, among all the people in the surrounding area, their Qingzhu Village has the best conditions!
No matter how much Ding Yiming said, it could not hide the fact that he disliked Qingzhu Village. The people in the team were all born and raised in Qingzhu Village. They originally had no feelings towards Ding Yiming, but now, their feelings became subtle.
Sitting around a table, the women's director was quiet for a moment, then suddenly brought up something from the past: "Do you remember when educated youth Xiao Ding was herding sheep and a sheep was mauled to death? I didn't mention it before because I was afraid of wrongly accusing anyone, but I have a feeling that the sheep wasn't killed by a wild animal. You saw the wounds on the sheep, and there were no teeth marks at all. And, later I asked the children, and they found out that the ewe that died ate the most every day. Do you think Xiao Ding, the educated youth, thought it was too voracious and killed it himself?"
The team leader and two deputy team leaders looked at each other in bewilderment. If this was done by the villagers, they would believe it 100%. However, the educated youth could not carry anything on their shoulders or lift anything with their hands. They were scared to have nightmares just by watching a pig being slaughtered. No one would dare to kill a sheep with their own hands.
Chen Jiefang: "I don't think it's that serious. Xiao Ding is just a young educated youth. He's an intellectual. It's impossible for him to be so cruel."
Zhang Qingfa: "An intellectual only means he's good at studying, not that he's a good person. Before he came here today, could you imagine he still disliked our village?"
Zhang Qingfa's words hit the nail on the head. They used to think Ding Yiming was a good person, sunny and positive. Although he wasn't very good at work, he wasn't lazy and got along well with the villagers. It was obvious he was a man of integrity. Who knew he would come and slap them in the face today?
The four people sat at the table, all silent. At this moment, hurried footsteps were heard outside. Doctor Huang ran out with his medicine box on his back. The captain saw him and hurried out, grabbing the person behind him and asking, "Who is sick?"
…
At the Chu family's house, Wen Xiuwei sat by the bed, shedding tears and saying nothing. Whenever anyone asked her what was going on, she would say she would wait until the doctor came and examined Chu Jiujiu, then she would tell everyone everything. Others thought she was in no mood to explain the situation, but in reality, she hadn't yet decided what to say. By stalling for time, she could come up with a better explanation.
Normally, if something like this happened, everyone would have gone to Chu Shao to inquire about the situation. However, this was the first time that the Chu family had an adult. Although she was just an educated youth who had just gone to the countryside and was not even eighteen years old, at least she was considered an adult. Therefore, everyone waited for Wen Xiuwei to speak, completely treating her as the backbone of this matter.
Soon, Doctor Huang arrived and everyone went out, leaving only Wen Xiuwei, Chu Shao and Han Shengyi inside. The women's director followed them in. The team leader and two deputy team leaders, like other villagers, crowded into the main hall of the Chu family.
Doctor Huang sat next to Chu Jiujiu, examining her whole body. Wen Xiuwei was extremely nervous watching his movements.
This time she was truly nervous. She was afraid Dr. Huang would see that Chu Jiujiu was actually fine. Everyone in the nearby villages had heard of Dr. Huang's miraculous healing skills. Generally speaking, barefoot doctors weren't known for their exceptional medical skills, but what if? What if this Dr. Huang was the reclusive Bian Que?
Staring closely at Doctor Huang's expression, he finally finished reading, stood up, and sighed at Chu Jiujiu lying on the bed.
The director of women's affairs quickly asked, "What's going on? Stop acting like that all the time. If you have something to say, just say it. Why are you sighing?"
Doctor Huang: “…”
"It's nothing serious, it will be fine after a few days."
The director of women's affairs frowned. "No big deal? The kid fainted, why are you saying it's no big deal? Did you notice how she fainted?"
Doctor Huang was speechless. He was a doctor, not a demigod. How could he predict what happened in the past? From the pulse he felt, Chu Jiujiu was indeed fine, but there was a bit of dampness in her body, and she should drink some dehumidifying medicine.
He also had his own baggage as a famous doctor. If the child just wouldn't wake up and he couldn't give a clear explanation, wouldn't that just destroy his own reputation? Since there was nothing wrong, he casually made up a universal excuse to prevaricate everyone. Anyway, it wouldn't be long before Chu Jiujiu woke up on her own.
"It's really nothing. The kid was just frightened. Look at her body. When she wakes up, give her a bath."
The director of women's affairs continued to ask, "When will she wake up?"
Doctor Huang stroked his beard and said sanctimoniously, "Well, it's hard to say. It's hard to say."
Women's Director: "..."
If you weren't the only one in the village who knew medicine, you would have been fired long ago just for your unreliable attitude.
Wen Xiuwei listened from the side and found the doctor quite understanding. The reasons he used were so appropriate to the situation. She turned her head and glanced at Chu Jiujiu, who had been lying in bed for a long time without moving. It was not so easy to pretend to be unconscious. She must be feeling as uncomfortable as if there were ants crawling inside. Retracting her gaze, Wen Xiuwei said to the people in the room, "Since everything is fine, let's go out first. I also want to explain everything to everyone."
Upon hearing this, the director of women's affairs stood up. Doctor Huang's work was over. He was not interested in what happened in the village, so he left with his medicine box. Chu Shao was the last one to walk out of the bedroom. He looked at Chu Jiujiu again and saw that she was still motionless. He coughed, turned around and closed the door heavily.
Upon hearing this signal, Chu Jiujiu opened her eyes quickly. She was afraid that someone would come in again, so she didn't dare to sit up. She just stretched her arms and legs frantically under the quilt.
Exhausted! If she had known she would have to pretend to be a vegetable, she might as well have been cruel enough to burn herself a scar!
Outside, the captain couldn't wait any longer. Wen Xiuwei came out with her hands in front of her. Although she was wearing the same coarse cloth clothes as everyone else, her behavior was like a lady from a noble family. Wen Xiuwei bowed deeply to everyone, and after others helped her up, she began to tell the story with tears in her eyes.
In her story, Xu Jie is a bully who holds power and runs rampant in the village, and Chu Jiujiu and she are both miserable common people targeted by the bully. The bully first wants to use force to force her to submit, but she would rather die than yield. During this period, she meets the Chu Shao brothers, who are also common people from the lower class. Chu Shao fights off the bully for her, but no one expected that the bully would hold a grudge against both of them because of this. So, he takes advantage of the absence of everyone and takes away the powerless Chu Jiujiu, and locks her in a boiler room in the middle of nowhere. However, the bully gets his retribution. The boiler suddenly explodes, knocking the bully unconscious to the ground. Chu Jiujiu is lucky enough to save her life, but she also suffered minor injuries and a lot of fright, and has not woken up since then.
Wen Xiuwei felt guilty and afraid. She didn't dare to leave Chu Jiujiu in Xujiawan, so she brought her all the way back to Qingzhu Village. After all, Qingzhu Village was Chu Jiujiu's home. There was no evil force like Xu Jie here. She believed that the villagers of Qingzhu Village would protect her and give her justice.
She spoke in a rhythmic manner, expressing the wrath of heaven and the resentment of the people, and added some tears and accusations at appropriate times. The women's director was deeply moved and almost shed tears.
Looking at Chu Shao and Han Shengyi next to them, they were looking at Wen Xiuwei silently, as if they were looking at a stranger.
Han Shengyi: Sister Xiuwei, you can do it.
Chu Shao: Family heirloom... He finally knew where Chu Jiujiu's family heirloom came from.
Wen Xiuwei hadn't lied, she'd just embellished it a bit, with some details and exaggerated it a bit. People from other villages were bullying the children of our village, and they were even trying to bully the educated youth who had come to the countryside. Even though these educated youth weren't from our village, it was still enough to make people angry. The captain was so angry that he slammed the Chu family's only eight-person table.
"This is outrageous! Xu Jie was already a jerk before, but I didn't expect him to be even worse now! Jiujiu is so young, yet this ruthless bastard is such a jerk!"
Because of her job, the women's director always took this kind of thing very seriously. "Serves him right! He was knocked unconscious, why didn't he die? He's doing this to a little girl. Shooting him to death is even a light punishment!"
Chen Jiefang: "Damn it! I'm so angry just hearing this! I'm a worthless person, and my son is even better than me! Don't worry, Wen Zhiqing! If anyone from their village dares to come and ask for an explanation, I'll kick them all out!"
Zhang Qingfa: "Can beating solve the problem? Why do you always act like a bandit? We should solve the problem according to the process. When Chu Jiujiu wakes up, we will ask her about the details. Then we can go directly to Xujiawan to pick him up and send him to the town."
Chen Jiefang: "Are you kidding me? The town is in cahoots with Xu Changhe. He was sent there, and he was released that afternoon!"
Onlookers: Wow.
I accidentally heard some incredible inside information.
Chen Jiefang slipped up and said something he shouldn't have. The team leader glanced at the expressions of the villagers outside, raised his hand in pain, and told them to stop talking. "Okay, go back first and let Jiujiu have a good rest at home. What should we do? Hongying, you have a lot of ideas, come up with a plan."
"Let's go, everyone, get out. Wait until the people from Xujiawan arrive, then come back."
The captain was adamant that someone from Xujiawan would come, because he knew Xu Changhe best. It was impossible for him not to come and fight for his beloved son when he was injured. This guy was just like that, shameless as ever for decades, always trying to stir up trouble even when he was wrong.
The captain shouted, and all the villagers outside left. The captain left last. Before leaving, he turned around and said to Wen Xiuwei, "Wen Zhiqing, thank you for sending the wine back. Xu Changhe is a man... he holds a grudge too much. You shouldn't go back to Xujiawan in the next few days. It's not safe. Stay in our Qingzhu Village for now, or stay at Director Xie's house. They have an empty room."
This captain is indeed a good man. Even though he is not from Qingzhu Village, he is willing to take care of him. Wen Xiuwei smiled gratefully, then shook her head, "No need, Captain Chen, I am worried about Jiujiu."
On the side, Chu Shao also said: "Uncle Chen, I have an empty room at home. Let Wen Zhiqing stay with us first."
It seemed like they all had a good relationship. The captain thought about it and nodded, "Alright. Chu Shao, you should be alert when you go to bed at night. I'm afraid they'll come over here in the middle of the night."
Chu Shao listened and became more alert. "I understand. Thank you, Uncle Chen."
Finally, the captain left. Wen Xiuwei's originally grateful expression changed instantly. She let out a long sigh, finally fooling the people of Qingzhu Village.
This is just the beginning, the highlight is yet to come.
No one spoke. Wen Xiuwei, Chu Shao, and Han Shengyi all had serious faces as they leaned against the door panel, listening for any further noises outside. Then, with a creak, the bedroom door opened a tiny crack. Chu Jiujiu poked half her head out and asked, "Are they all gone?"
Chu Shao: "Let's go, come here."
When Chu Jiujiu heard these words, her scalp suddenly tightened. Wen Xiuwei's angry look in the morning was still in her mind. She felt that Chu Shao called her over because he wanted to be angry with her.
After hesitating for half a second, Chu Jiujiu walked over reluctantly. Chu Shao's face remained expressionless until she came closer, then he grabbed her hand.
Chu Jiujiu cried out, as Chu Shao had just touched her burn. Burns are different from cuts. Cuts hurt for a while, but burns hurt for a long time afterward, even though they don't hurt at first. This is why people are so sympathetic when they hear about someone with extensive burns.
Disfigurement is secondary. The excruciating pain really makes people want to die immediately.
When she called out, Chu Shao had already let go of her hand. Frowning, Chu Shao asked her, "How did you do this?"
Chu Jiujiu: "I just bumped into it accidentally..."
Chu Shao: "Don't lie to me."
Chu Jiujiu was stunned. She held her palm and raised her head. She found that the other three were looking at her. She pursed her lower lip and had to tell the truth: "Xu Jie's injuries were very serious. I was afraid that if I didn't have any wounds at all, they would say it was me. So I thought, I should make some injuries on myself too."
"And you're going to burn yourself?" Chu Shao looked at her with dismay, "What are you thinking? If there's no injury, then there's no injury. Let others say whatever they want!"
Chu Jiujiu hung her head in silence. Han Shengyi's expression was also unhappy. "What about Xu Jie? He brought this upon himself. Do you think that just because you got a little wound, no one will say it's your fault? Even if you were more injured than Xu Jie, people would still say that."
Knowing she hadn't thought it through, Chu Jiujiu raised her head and said, "I've figured it out now. I was too anxious at the time. Xu Jie looked like he was almost dead. Besides, I didn't really do it. I just touched him and it hurt so much. How could I dare to put it on myself?"
Listening to Chu Jiujiu's words, Chu Shao felt that she still didn't know she was wrong. He frowned and walked forward, but before he could open his mouth, suddenly, Wen Xiuwei next to him walked to the eight-immortals table without saying a word and sat down. After sitting down, she bent her fingers together and put them on her lips to block the sob that was about to come out. She turned her head away and didn't look at them.
The three of them were stunned, and Chu Jiujiu was even more frightened. She hurried over and asked, "Wen Zhiqing, why are you crying?"
Wen Xiuwei just shed tears and said nothing. Chu Jiujiu asked her twice before she turned around and said to Chu Jiujiu, "You are so disobedient! When encountering something like this, why don't you just run away? Why do you have to burn yourself? I think you don't take yourself seriously, and you don't take us seriously either!"
After saying that, Wen Zhiqing turned her head away again, not wanting others to see her miserable appearance. She wiped her tears with her sleeves, but she couldn't wipe them away.
Seeing her like this, Chu Jiujiu was stunned and her eyes quickly turned red.
"I, I take you seriously. That's why I'm afraid of being arrested by them. I don't want to be sent to a labor camp to suffer because of someone like Xu Jie. I want to be with you and Chu Shao forever, so I did this. I'm sorry, don't cry. I will never do this again."
As she spoke, Chu Jiujiu also started crying and threw herself into Wen Xiuwei's arms. Finally, she felt a little scared and vented her fear with her crying. Chu Jiujiu hugged Wen Xiuwei tightly. The latter was frightened by her sudden emotional outburst and quickly hugged her and slowly stroked her back.
Wen Xiuwei comforted Chu Jiujiu in a low voice, feeling tired. Chu Jiujiu was not wrong, she was also a victim. It was ridiculous that the only person who was wrong was now unknown whether he was dead or alive, while they had to stay here and feel uneasy because of such a bastard.
Chu Shao looked at Chu Jiujiu sobbing in Wen Xiuwei's arms. After a long silence, he turned and walked out.
Seeing him go out, Han Shengyi paused and followed him out, "Where are you going?"
"Go tell Grandpa Han and Grandma Han what's going on here. Don't go back at night. Just sleep here and look after them."
After saying that, Chu Shao picked up the axe in the yard and walked out of the yard without looking back.
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