Immediately, several beams of flashlight shone over, and then some of the bolder ones slowly moved closer.
"Oh my god, who is this? Why is she lying here?"
"It really is a person? That guy, Tan, the educated youth, said he heard something, right? Is that the person?"
The faint beam of the flashlight gradually approached, and the person on the ground groggily opened their eyes, their throat dry and hoarse.
"What... what happened?"
Taking advantage of the chaos, the neglected old woman dragged Liu Shengli, who was in pain all over, out of the house. Liu Shengli knew his own strength and gritted his teeth without making a sound. They scrambled and crawled until they reached the door.
The old woman turned around and pointed at the person on the ground.
"It was him, it was all his idea. If you want to arrest someone, arrest him. It has nothing to do with us."
Liu Jiefang, still lying on the ground, hadn't quite grasped what was happening. His mind was still foggy. He was helped to sit up, rubbing his neck in confusion.
"Where am I? How did I get here?"
Those around him looked at his completely bewildered face.
"Don't you know?"
Liu Weimin's face was dark, and everyone else immediately felt sorry for him. Almost no one doubted whether Liu Jiefang was lying. It was just that his parents were too biased. They would blame the younger brother for doing bad things. There were countless instances of this.
This was a secret known to everyone in the village, but only the mother and daughter foolishly thought that by pinning the blame on Liu Jiefang, this scapegoat, everything would be fine.
"Village chief, so this is the atmosphere in our Liujiatun village. If someone makes a mistake, they can easily pin the blame on someone else, and there are even people who help the wicked. We should also worry about our own safety."
That casual opening and closing of his mouth, with the intent to kill, should warrant at least ten or eight years in prison. And yet, he just dumped it on someone else. Even the police wouldn't have that kind of guts, would they?
No sooner had Lin Dongfang finished speaking than Ling Weidong seamlessly followed up.
"Yes, village chief, could this old lady be the local tyrant of Liujiatun? To be able to replace someone so easily in a matter of life and death, she's much more powerful than the police chief."
Liu Weimin's face was practically dripping with ink. If they had spoken politely and with a better attitude, these educated youths might not have been so confrontational, even if it was for the sake of their pride. They definitely wanted an explanation. But instead of thinking about how to resolve the issue, this idiot gave them a handle to use against him. Did he really think they were like the other villagers who couldn't save face?
The educated youth who arrived a few steps later were just as quick, each hurling insults—one calling it murder, the other illegal—making the villagers too embarrassed to utter a sound. Liu Jiefang, having roughly understood what had just happened, couldn't help but chuckle to himself.
"No wonder you were so nice to me today, even frying me an egg. No wonder I was so sleepy after eating today, haha!"
I actually thought, I thought you'd finally realized I was family too, but it turns out, it's just that you've pinned another crime on me!
Liu Jiefang is a man in his early thirties. Under the pressure of his parents, he supports his family almost entirely with his work points. He works hard to earn full work points during the week and does house repairs and kang (heated brick bed) repairs in his spare time. He does almost any job that can earn money. Even so, he has never received a word of praise from his parents and is still an older bachelor.
Liu Shengli was a plump, fair-skinned man. After being hit a few times by Tan Yajun, he was so weak that he couldn't get up.
Looking at Liu Jiefang, he wasn't much younger than Liu Weimin, who was already a grandfather. He was thin and bony, and his face was covered with wrinkles.
The old lady seemed genuinely indifferent to her son; seeing this, she even reminded others.
"Look, look, he's awake! He's awake! He did all this! Don't come after us, it has nothing to do with us!"
He muttered to himself in a rather loud voice.
"Shameless little brat, aren't you afraid that word will get out that you have a man in your family? You're so promiscuous, I'll see who will want you then."
It sounded like muttering, and the tone was no different from venting anger; he seemed to want everyone to hear him.
Liu Weimin's forehead throbbed with anger.
"Shut up! Aren't you ashamed? Is it something to be proud of to have a murderer in your family?"
The old lady panicked,
"No, village chief, Weimin didn't mean to kill anyone. That knife was for prying open the door. Who told her to be disobedient? It's her good fortune that my Shengli is interested in her. I went to her door to talk to her nicely, but she still chased me out. Shameless slut."
If it weren't for the fact that you can earn ten work points, have a big butt, and can give birth to a son for our Victory, do you think I would have taken a liking to you?
Pooh!
You shameless bastard, you move out so it's easier to find men, right? And you're still causing me trouble?
So you're just going to look down on our family?
"A man broke into my house in the middle of the night. Let's see what you have to say now. Let me tell you, if you don't coax me properly, even if you beg me, I won't let you into my house."
People in rural areas may have less education and less experience, but not everyone is ignorant. In any case, her words shocked the audience.
"ah!"
Clearly, Tan Yajun inside the house also heard it; after a scream, Wang Guihua's panicked voice and the chaotic commotion of several female educated youths followed.
"Oh dear, child, you mustn't do anything foolish!"
Oh no, no, you're still young, you can't do this!
"You wait, your uncles will definitely stand up for you."
Others weren't so polite.
"Waaah, Sister Ya-jun, I'm scared. Are they going to force the educated youth to their deaths?"
"Sister Yajun, we are educated youth sent to the countryside; we have powerful backers behind us."
Tomorrow—no, at dawn—we'll go to the county town, to the educated youth office, to the police station. I refuse to believe that such thugs can still cover up everything!
"Yes, yes, you mustn't do anything foolish."
A letter came from home saying that the higher-ups are conducting a strict investigation, and the charge of hooliganism has been directly downgraded.
It's true, it's true, he... he killed someone! Murder is a capital offense, Sister Ya Jun!
"Let's go to the police station. This is a capital offense. It's not worth risking our lives for someone like him!"
Wang Guihua was truly anxious, her head covered in sweat. She hated the old woman even more. "Look at you," she thought, "why did you have to scheme against those educated youth like this? If this really goes to the police station or the educated youth office, and the reputation of a murderer gets out, Liujiatun will be utterly disgraced."
Not only her, but Liu Weimin outside was also holding back his hatred, otherwise he would have wanted to take action himself.
"Old Han, tie him up properly and keep an eye on him. We'll talk about it in the morning."
He needs to go back and think about how to handle this matter in a way that satisfies the educated youth while also preserving the village's reputation.
The old woman was so frightened that she turned and ran away.
"No, no, didn't you want him? I gave him to you, and he's the one who did it."
In my haste, without looking where I was going, I turned around and was knocked over by a furry wall. When I looked up...
"ah!"
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