The villagers below the platform were filled with righteous indignation by the old Party Secretary's words, and they all clamored to have Liu Cuifen drowned in the pond.
Hearing this, Chen Shuning was somewhat frightened, thinking to himself, "Isn't this the new China? How can there still be such a form of private punishment as drowning in a pond?"
Fortunately, the old Party Secretary cleared her mind at this moment. He cleared his throat and began to speak again: "Quiet down, folks."
The Party Secretary clearly held a high level of prestige in the village. As soon as he opened his mouth, the people below fell silent again. Only then did the Party Secretary continue, "Throwing people into ponds is an old idea left over from the old society. We do not advocate it."
After all, Liu Cuifen is still Chunzhi's mother. The child has already lost his father, and if his mother also loses her, the child will be too pitiful.
So I propose that Liu Cuifen be punished by living in the cowshed and cleaning up cow dung. All the work points she earns, after deducting her daily food and drink expenses, will be recorded in Chunzhi's account. What do you all think?
As soon as the Party Secretary finished speaking, a young woman in a red floral cotton-padded jacket stood up and said, "Party Secretary, isn't this too lenient on her? When Chengqian was alive, he treated her so well. Every time he came back from visiting his family, he would buy her new clothes. Now that he's only been gone for a few years, she can't even keep her promise and cheat on him. If you ask me, a woman who doesn't live up to her virtue should be drowned in the pond."
Everyone in the village knew that Dong Fangcao and Liu Cuifen were at odds because of Zhang Chengqian.
It was Dong Fangcao who first took a liking to Zhang Chengqian at the market, but Zhang Chengqian took a liking to Liu Cuifen, who was shopping at the market with him.
Even after Zhang Chengqian and Dong Fangcao got married, Dong Fangcao made no secret of her feelings for Zhang Chengqian. Later, in order to marry into Qingshan Brigade, she married Wang Tiejun, a lame man who had accidentally injured his leg while climbing a tree since childhood.
After marrying into the family, she constantly caused trouble for Liu Cuifen. Eventually, when Liu Cuifen was pushed to the limit, she publicly revealed the grievances between the two.
After learning that his wife was in love with another man, Wang Tiejun, who was already insecure, changed his image from the good husband who always indulged Dong Fangcao.
He would attack Dong Fangcao with fists and feet at the slightest provocation, which deepened the animosity between the two.
So when Dong Fangcao suddenly jumped out to throw Liu Cuifen into the pond, no one was surprised.
Only Dong Fangcao's husband, Wang Tiejun, felt embarrassed. He raised his hand and punched Dong Fangcao on the head, cursing, "Your man isn't dead yet and you keep calling him Brother Chengqian. If you like him so much, why don't you die with Zhang Chengqian? You spendthrift woman, get the hell home right now and stop embarrassing me here."
Dong Fangcao, who hated Liu Cuifen so much, only wanted to kill her. For a moment, she didn't pay attention to how she addressed her and blurted out the name "Brother Chengqian" that she had kept hidden in her heart for many years.
So now that she had been beaten, she felt guilty, but she didn't plan to go home. She just got up and sat down somewhere a little further away from Wang Tiejun.
Dong Fangcao was determined that even if she got another beating when she got home, she would see what fate awaited that bitch Liu Cuifen.
Seeing that Dong Fangcao hadn't listened to him and gone home, Wang Tiejun felt embarrassed and walked towards Dong Fangcao's location, looking like he was about to hit her again.
This time, however, Dong Fangcao was on guard, and before Wang Tiejun could get close, she changed locations again.
With a limp, Wang Tiejun naturally couldn't catch up with the capable Dong Fangcao. After Dong Fangcao changed locations twice, feeling ashamed, Wang Tiejun angrily said, "You wait until you get home," and then limped home.
Chen Shuning found the little farce offstage hilarious, but it didn't affect the important business on stage.
The Party Secretary offered an explanation immediately after Dong Fangcao jumped out to object.
According to the Party Secretary, drowning someone in a pond is a matter of life and death, and if the matter is blown up, the commune may revoke their brigade's title of "Advanced Brigade".
This was a major event concerning the interests of everyone in the village, so after the Party Secretary explained, everyone fell silent, which was considered an acceptance of the Party Secretary's arrangement.
The Party Secretary also saw that Dong Fangcao had been beaten, but he didn't really like this not-so-bright niece-in-law.
So initially, when Wang Tiejun started beating his wife, he would try to mediate as a brigade cadre and elder, but later he just turned a blind eye and stopped caring.
This time too, this brainless person not only openly opposed him, but also said such things without thinking. He deserved to be hit a few times.
After the dissenting voices subsided, the Party Secretary turned to the two people kneeling on the platform and asked, "Do you have anything else to say?"
During the days they were locked in the cowshed, the two of them only ate one meal a day. In addition, the cowshed was cold, and the two of them were tortured beyond recognition.
Upon hearing the Party Secretary's words, Zhao Qianjin was the first to react, crying and begging for forgiveness: "Party Secretary, I know I was wrong. I was just bewitched. I was seduced by this woman. It's all her fault."
"She said she was rich and could help me get a spot at the Workers, Peasants and Soldiers University, so I went with her. Otherwise, why would a young, unmarried man like me be with a widow who has had a child? Party Secretary, I know I was wrong. Please don't send me back to the educated youth office. If you want to punish someone, punish her. It really wasn't my fault."
Liu Cuifen, who had been keeping her head down and not speaking, suddenly raised her head upon hearing Zhao Qianjin's words. She looked at the man who had said just a few days ago that he would treat her well for the rest of his life, and now he was saying such things.
That's not how things are supposed to be. He was the one who approached me first, and even said he would take me back to the city.
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