Chapter 160 Public Opinion
Through Sister-in-law Li's explanation, everyone finally understood the meaning of what Old Man Zhou had said.
It turns out that Li San Niang encountered villains on her way home from work, but not only was she not kidnapped, she also killed the villains. After being brought to the Jingzhao Prefecture, she was only punished by having to increase her hours of work in the medical hall. This story was spread by the mouth of a minor official in the Jingzhao Prefecture.
After all, the Imperial Guards had already sealed off the alley where Li San Niang was attacked, and it wasn't until mid-afternoon that the seal was lifted. Not to mention that the body of the man in black in the alley had been sent to the morgue of the Jingzhao Prefecture. However, the pools of blood that were reddish-black in the alley and the lingering smell of blood in the air all told everyone that a murder had occurred here.
Not to mention that Li San Niang herself is a woman who naturally attracts attention.
When she saved Qian Xiaolang, she was still unknown. Later, she saved the young lady of the Liangguo Duke's Mansion with her CPR skills. Princess Cheng'an, the Liangguo Duke's Mansion, and the Gao family all sent people to deliver gifts of thanks. This made Li San Niang, who was originally an ordinary and unknown young lady, famous in Chang'an City all at once.
This happened just over three months ago, and people in Chang'an still have some impression of the name Li San Niang.
So, the fact that it was this Li San Niang again that sparked everyone's interest and made them gossip endlessly.
Before this, the story of Li San Niang performing mouth-to-mouth resuscitation on the young lady of the Liangguo Duke's mansion had been spread among the noble ladies present. At that time, some pedantic moralists came out and said that Li San Niang's method was overstepping the bounds, unreasonable, and inappropriate.
Later, the matter was only suppressed because the Duke of Liang's mansion hired someone to suppress public opinion and dealt with a down-on-his-luck young man who spoke rudely to Li San Niang in public.
Unexpectedly, this time, these people made even more malicious comments about Li San Niang's matter.
The gossip Li Dasao overheard was that Li San Niang, a woman, had been forcibly abducted by villains. What does this mean?
This shows that Li Sanniang is a woman with some flaws or improprieties!
Otherwise, why would this villain target you out of all people?
Furthermore, although Li San Niang was not kidnapped that night, the villain must have been a man, and Li San Niang was likely already violated by him and was no longer pure.
Not to mention, how could a young woman like Li San Niang kill a man? Isn't that obviously something that could never happen?
Therefore, there must have been another person present, a man, who saved Li San Niang, but feared gossip, so he withdrew and did not come out to accept the title of hero.
Even worse, some fabricated stories, saying that when Li San Niang saw the hero who saved her was about to leave, she took off her clothes and so on.
They completely overlooked the fact that if that were the case, how could the Jingzhao Prefecture and the Dali Temple not have looked for this person?
Furthermore, this is a murder case involving death. If a third party, a young man, were to save someone, and that young man then committed murder, wouldn't the Dali Temple investigate? Would they just let it go unpunished?
When Li Erxiong heard the rumors that Li Dasao had overheard on the street, he was so angry that he almost smashed his teacup on the ground.
"Outrageous! These hypocritical, pretentious literati are utterly despicable. What kind of gentlemen are they? They gossip behind people's backs instead of reprimanding the villain, and they even have the nerve to speak ill of Third Sister! It's infuriating."
"That's right. It seems that not all learned people are good. How did Third Sister offend them to be so shameless?"
In Li Ersao's memory, those well-dressed, polite, and literate young men were the best of people.
Who would have thought that these pedantic literati would be even more adept at gossiping and making fun of people behind their backs?
After taking a sip of tea, Sister-in-law Li frowned and said to the Li family, "These things are fine. I guess those young men will lose interest after a few days and then it will all be fine. The problem is that some people on the street are actually making up dirty words to disgust people."
Only then did Li's mother put down the dewdrop in her arms and look at Li's sister-in-law, asking what this meant.
Most people don't believe that Li San Niang, a seemingly weak and delicate woman, could actually kill a strong villain.
Although the rumors spread among the minor officials of the Jingzhao Prefecture that Li San Niang had indeed used a scalpel and skillful timing to kill the villain, most people still did not believe it, or rather, they simply did not want to believe it.
Then a rumor spread on the street that Li San Niang pretended to obey the villains from the beginning in order to save her life, and this obedience is what you think it means.
Then, taking advantage of the villain's high spirits, he unexpectedly killed the villain with a single stab.
In this rumor, nothing else matters; instead, the story of how Li San Niang submitted to the villain is portrayed so vividly that it seems as if it really happened, and the person who spread the rumor witnessed a live sex show.
Anyone with a brain wouldn't believe such a rumor.
However, in the marketplace, it is often these kinds of lies that spread quickly and widely, and you can't stop them.
That's human nature.
This was what angered Sister-in-law Li the most. It was after hearing this rumor that she returned to the Li family with a livid face.
Li San Niang, however, was unmoved by these rumors, especially the one that fabricated stories about her having sex with a villain; she didn't care about that at all.
It's important to understand that in modern society, many people are driven to death by public opinion, and many of them know these rumors are false, yet they still spread them with great enthusiasm.
And those things between men and women are often the fastest, widest, and most unbelievable to spread.
Having witnessed these propaganda wars in modern society, Li San Niang, now mired in this quagmire of rumors and gossip, is not bothered at all.
"Sister-in-law, second brother and sister-in-law, why get angry? It's not worth it. It's just some gossip."
Those with a brain would certainly not believe these words. These rumors, on the contrary, have enhanced my reputation and promoted my identity as a female doctor in the eyes of intelligent people.
As for those who know it's fake but still insist on saying it, I don't believe they dare to say such foul words to me. If they dare, I'd be even more willing to brandish a knife at them!
Finally, those who thought I was a shameless slut and a damned sissy just because of the rumors, didn't care anymore. These people didn't just dislike me; they probably disliked everyone.
If they're unhappy, it'll make me happy too.
Li San Niang picked up the teapot and poured a cup of tea for each of her three worried family members, smiling as she comforted them, "Don't be angry. Instead of wasting time, let's think about what to have for dinner. I'm craving steamed buns, sister-in-law, how about we have steamed buns for dinner?"
After being interrupted by Li San Niang, the crowd, though still angry, were no longer so angry.
Sister-in-law Li and Third Sister Li led Lu Zhu'er to buy steamed cakes from Sister Song's steamed cake shop on the street.
It was around dinnertime, and there were quite a few people at the steamed bun shop. Some, like Li San Niang, bought steamed buns with their own baskets so they could eat them right away when they got home.
Li San Niang and Li Da Sao lined up, and soon it was their turn.
While Li San Niang was telling Song Saozi how much wheat flour and sweet potato flour she wanted, Li Da Sao took out her money bag to count out copper coins to pay the bill.
Li San Niang handed over her own basket, and soon took the basket of steamed cakes that Song Saozi had filled with. She then heard Song Saozi say, "I trust you."
Li San Niang heard these words clearly, but didn't understand what Song Saozi meant, so she asked with doubt, "Sister Song, do you believe me? Do you believe me in what?"
She used to be jealous of Li Ersao and even made fun of her. She was also jealous of Li Sanniang, but when the Li family held a banquet to celebrate Li Sanniang's successful assessment to become a female doctor, Song Saozi even brought a gift to attend.
You can call her bad, but she also has her good moments. You can also call her good, but the things she says when she's belittling someone or making them jealous can be quite nasty.
This is also part of the complexity of human nature.
Hearing Li San Niang's question, Sister Song continued working, but rolled her eyes at Li San Niang and shouted, "Believe what? What do I believe? What could it be? It's just that you're not that kind of person, I believe you, I believe you, you must have killed that villain yourself. What else can I believe! Alright, take the pancakes and get out of the way, what do the others want?"
Sister-in-law Li tossed the counted copper coins into a nearby earthenware jar, then pulled Li San Niang, who was standing there dumbfounded carrying a basket of steamed cakes, and led her out, making room for the people who would come later to buy cakes.
"Sister-in-law, doesn't Sister Song still dislike me? Why is she speaking up for me?"
Sister-in-law Li was pleased and smiled, "So this is the smart person you were talking about."
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