Since Aunt Wu came to the provincial capital, Xia Liang's standard of living has risen sharply. Every morning, she has a prepared breakfast with many different kinds, and each breakfast is different. She originally planned to eat lunch at the canteen, but Aunt Wu said she would bring it to her. Han Yulan instructed her to ensure nutrition, but there was no way to resist. Aunt Wu's cooking was just too delicious, so Xia Liang gave in. When she got home in the evening, there was also a hot meal waiting for her.
That day, Xia Liang finished the breakfast Wu Ma made and went to work. As soon as she arrived at the factory gate, she sensed something was off. A crowd was gathered around the notice board, looking at something, and some were pointing and whispering about her. Xia Liang vaguely heard someone say, "That's her, her name is Xia Liang. I never expected her to be like this." "Yeah, yeah, I never would have guessed, she has such heavy tastes." Xia Liang walked to the notice board and called out, "Excuse me, please move aside." The crowd turned around, saw it was Xia Liang, and scattered. Xia Liang saw the large poster about her, saying that as a married woman, she had an improper relationship with another man. Many people had seen that man bringing her to work. They said the man looked very old but wealthy, and that Comrade Xia Liang was a disgrace to military wives, unworthy of being a glorious military wife or a glorious worker. Xia Liang wondered when she had been improperly involved with anyone. Then it occurred to her, were these people crazy? She tore down the poster, threw it into a nearby trash can, and nonchalantly returned to her office.
Not long after starting work, Assistant Deputy Factory Director Yang came to her office to call her. Xia Liang knew it was about the big-character poster, but she didn't panic. She followed the assistant to Deputy Factory Director Yang's office. The assistant went in and said to Deputy Factory Director Yang, "Director, Comrade Xia Liang is here." Deputy Factory Director Yang nodded and said, "Please let her in." The assistant said "Okay" and went out to invite Xia Liang in. After Xia Liang entered, Deputy Factory Director Yang didn't say anything, but pulled out a chair for her and poured her a glass of water before speaking: "You know about the big-character poster?" Xia Liang nodded: "Yes, I know. It's pure slander. They're probably talking about my father-in-law. A few days ago, my mother-in-law brought relatives from my hometown to visit me. My father-in-law drove me to and from get off work those few days. Knowing it's inconvenient for me to be here alone, my relatives from my hometown even stayed to take care of me." Deputy Factory Director Yang was surprised! He said helplessly, "These people believe everything they hear. They don't even use their brains. This matter will definitely be clarified for you at the meeting. Don't feel pressured, just focus on your work." Xia Liang thought, "They probably don't want to use their brains!" It's likely that many people are envious of her high-paying job, but their abilities are inferior to hers. Now that they see an opportunity to exploit her mistakes, they want to trample on her to death.
Not long after returning to his office, there was a knock on the door. Xia Liang looked up and saw Zhu Xiuling, whom he hadn't seen in a long time, along with several unfamiliar female colleagues. Xia Liang asked, "What's the matter?" Seeing that Xia Liang hadn't been punished and was still safely in the office, Zhu Xiuling instantly flew into a rage: "Xia Liang, I have to say, you're shameless! After doing something like this, you still have the nerve to work in the factory? If I were you, I'd be too ashamed to show my face. Tsk tsk tsk, you really are a despicable scumbag. Even an old man like that is scared into kissing you..." "You're old enough to be your father! Tell me, just how poor are you? Only..." *Slap!* Before Zhu Xiuling could finish speaking, she felt a burning pain on her face. Her followers were stunned; they hadn't expected Xia Liang to dare hit someone. Seeing them frozen in shock, Zhu Xiuling yelled, "Are you all dead? Didn't you see she hit me? Hit her back!" The followers didn't dare actually lay a hand on her. They were only following her because her factory manager was her cousin-in-law; otherwise, who would pay her any attention? They were acting like complete idiots. Xia Liang said calmly, "You slandered a military family member, why can't I hit you?" Zhu Xiuling, furious, covered her reddened face, yelling, "You're shameless! You seduced an old man, you're despicable!" Seeing another slap coming from Xia Liang, Zhu Xiuling dared not confront her directly. Although she knew Xia Liang was pregnant and no match for her, she figured if she just gave her a gentle push, Xia Liang would miscarry, and she'd be in deep trouble. She had that much sense; otherwise, she wouldn't have let Xia Liang slap her without fighting back. She ran out, shouting, "Xia Liang hit someone! She's been caught cheating and still dares to hit someone!" Many people were attracted by her noise. Hearing her shouts, they all looked towards Xia Liang's office, where Xia Liang stood coldly at the door. Amidst Zhu Xiuling's screams and curses, the security guards arrived. Zhu Xiuling rushed forward as if seeing their saviors, sobbing, "Comrades, Xia Liang cheated on me, and I exposed her! She even dared to hit me! Look, my face is all red from her beating!" She then loosened her hands from covering her face, wanting more people to see her bruised cheeks. Everyone gasped; the beating was indeed quite severe! Xia Liang, seemingly a capable person, was certainly ruthless when she struck. A security guard stepped forward and asked Xia Liang, "Comrade Xia Liang, what happened? Why did you hit her?" Xia Liang glanced coldly at Zhu Xiuling and said, "She slandered military spouses. As a military wife, I already have a hard life, and now I'm pregnant. Zhu Xiuling came directly to my office and verbally abused and slandered me. As a military spouse, I absolutely cannot let uninformed people think that military spouses are immoral because of me, so I hit her." There were many military spouses among the factory workers, and they knew how difficult it was to be one. They thought of Xia Liang, a young girl who was pregnant, and it was indeed heartbreaking to be slandered. It was just a slap; even if her leg was broken, Zhu Xiuling deserved it. A well-meaning person said, "You've gone too far. You're a woman yourself, how can you slander someone's innocence like that?" A chorus of agreement rose from the crowd: "Exactly! Don't you know how important a woman's innocence is? That's malicious!" Seeing that Xia Liang had quickly shifted the blame to her, Zhu Xiuling hurriedly defended herself: "I didn't slander her! She's just having an affair! I saw a middle-aged man escorting her to and from get off work. Wasn't her boyfriend supposed to be a soldier? That man didn't look like a soldier!" Everyone turned to look at Xia Liang again. Seeing Xia Liang's calm and unperturbed demeanor, they wondered if it was a misunderstanding. The kind-hearted older woman who had spoken earlier said, "What? Don't you have any relatives left?"
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