Chapter Twenty-Eight: Brother Chengren! Something terrible has happened!
Thinking of this, Meng Wanshu immediately forced a smile that looked more like a grimace and said anxiously, "Oh dear, Auntie, look at the mess this has made!"
"That's right. I didn't know how much the gold necklace cost at the time, so I just... just casually gave Chengren one hundred and twenty yuan."
"I'll pay you the rest of the money right now! Thirty yuan, right? I'll give it to you right away!"
As she spoke, she hurriedly reached for her pocket.
Seeing this, the onlookers began to whisper among themselves again.
"So all this fuss was about thirty yuan?"
"That Meng Wanshu is really something, owing money and refusing to pay it back, and she's still being stubborn!"
Hearing Meng Wanshu so readily admit to "owing money," Zhang Chunxue's smile deepened, but the smile was like a poisoned knife, making Meng Wanshu's heart tremble.
"Hehe..." Zhang Chunxue chuckled softly, her voice full of mockery, "Meng Wanshu, Meng Wanshu, I told you you were stupid. You thought you could climb up the pole I offered? I was just kidding!"
"My second son never mentioned anything about 120 or 150 yuan to me!"
"What do you mean he bought you a necklace... I think it's just that you two are having an affair, and he bought it for you as a gift!"
Meng Wanshu's head went blank for a moment, as if she had been hit hard by a heavy hammer!
What...what did she say?
Did you lie to her?
So all that talk about owing money... was it all made up by this old hag to scam her?!
"Whoosh—"
The crowd erupted!
"My goodness! This old lady is amazing! She's got Meng Wanshu completely wrapped around her little finger!"
"I knew it! Meng Wanshu keeps lying, she doesn't tell the truth at all!"
"So it was all an act from beginning to end, trying to get away with it!"
"Shameless! You did something wrong and tried to renege on your promise! Now that you've been exposed, you deserve it!"
"Exactly! Women who destroy other people's families are the worst kind of scum!"
Some even pointed directly at Meng Wanshu's nose and cursed: "Pah! Shameless slut! Seducing a married man, and you still have the nerve to cry and act pitiful here!"
"Exactly! It's indecent!"
The accusations and insults were like countless needles piercing Meng Wanshu's body, making her feel utterly ashamed.
She knew that she was completely finished today!
If this continues, I'll lose my job and my reputation will be ruined!
In a moment of quick thinking, Meng Wanshu rolled her eyes upwards, her body went limp, and she fell straight to the ground!
"Oh dear! Recorder Meng!"
"Recorder Meng has fainted!"
The two colleagues from the grain and oil station who were closest to her reacted quickly and helped her up, preventing her from having a close encounter with the ground.
"Quick! Quickly pinch his philtrum!"
"Is it heatstroke?"
"Were you scared?"
The surrounding crowd stirred again, some genuinely worried, others eager to watch the drama unfold.
Zhang Chunxue stood there, coldly watching the scene, a sneer curling at the corner of her lips.
Keep pretending!
She cleared her throat, her voice not loud, but clearly reaching everyone's ears: "Since Comrade Meng has fainted and is unconscious, I will retrieve this necklace from her neck on behalf of my son."
"After all, this was bought with 150 yuan of my good-for-nothing second son's hard-earned money!"
As she spoke, Zhang Chunxue strode towards Meng Wanshu, who was being half-supported and half-carried by her colleague, and reached out to remove the gold necklace from her neck.
Those icy fingers were almost touching the skin on Meng Wanshu's neck!
Meng Wanshu, who had been "unconscious," suddenly had her eyelids twitch violently a few times.
Just as Zhang Chunxue's fingers were about to hook onto the thin chain, Meng Wanshu suddenly opened her eyes and, with a burst of strength, pushed hard!
"ah!"
Zhang Chunxue never expected her to pull such a move. She lost her footing, cried out in surprise, and crashed straight into the corner of the counter next to her!
The corner of that counter is very sharp; if you hit it hard, you'd be lucky to get a head injury!
Just at this critical moment, a pair of strong hands suddenly reached out from the side and steadily supported Zhang Chunxue's tilting body.
Zhang Chunxue felt a tightness around her waist, and the next moment she fell into a firm embrace, and she seemed to smell a faint scent of soap.
Still shaken, she instinctively said, "Thank you..."
Before she finished speaking, she turned her head to see which kind person had lent a helping hand.
Upon seeing this, Zhang Chunxue was completely stunned.
Song Xingzhi?!
How did he end up here?
Zhang Chunxue's heart skipped a beat for no reason, and a trace of panic and unease flashed across her face.
She quickly straightened up from Song Xingzhi's arms, creating some distance, and her expression quickly returned to its usual toughness.
"Thanks." She added stiffly to Song Xingzhi, then immediately turned her head and turned her attention back to Meng Wanshu, who had completely "woke up."
"Meng Wanshu! You're really something! Weren't you just unconscious? You've got quite the energy now!"
Zhang Chunxue's voice was filled with anger, but even more so with sarcasm.
"Since you don't want me to take the necklace back, fine! Then give me back the 150 yuan my son spent on the necklace, in full!"
Pressed by Zhang Chunxue, Meng Wanshu no longer cared about saving face. She broke free from her colleague's support, put her hands on her hips, and jumped up and down, shouting, "Why! He gave me this necklace! Why should I give you money!"
Zhang Chunxue sneered: "A gift for you? Comrade Meng, I already told you, Zhong Chengren is a married man!"
"He spent our Zhong family's money, which is our Zhong family's joint property!"
"You bought these things with my family's money, and now you're trying to renege on your debt?"
"I'm telling you, Meng Wanshu, today you either return the necklace or give me the 150 yuan!"
"Otherwise, I'll go to the police station right now and report you to the police! I'll accuse you of fraud! I'll accuse you of breaking up someone else's family!"
"Call the police?" Upon hearing these three words, Meng Wanshu's heart skipped a beat, and her arrogance immediately diminished.
No matter how much she argued and made a fuss, she knew that if this matter really went to the police, she would definitely be the one who suffered.
But how could she be willing to just hand over the necklace or pay 150 yuan?
That's 150 yuan! That's almost half a year's salary for her!
Meng Wanshu bit her lip tightly, her eyes darting around, refusing to budge: "I...I won't give it to you! This is between Zhong Chengren and me! What does it have to do with you, his mother! If anyone should have something to say, it should be Zhong Chengren who comes and explains it to me!"
Meanwhile, at the other end of town, in a low-rise house filled with smoke.
Zhong Chengren stared at the playing cards in front of him, his eyes bloodshot and his forehead covered in sweat, muttering foul language.
"Damn it! I lost again!" He slammed the cards in his hand onto the table.
"Brother Chengren, don't be in such a hurry. Fortune changes every day. It'll be your turn to make a fortune next time!" A man with a pointed face and monkey-like cheeks advised with a grin, while his subordinates deftly collected the money on the table.
Just then, a boy came running in from outside, panting, and rushed straight to Zhong Chengren.
"Chengren...Brother Chengren! Something terrible has happened!"
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