Seeing this, the village head seemed to realize that something was wrong. Just then, Aunt Ning and Ning Qiu invited the clan elders and relatives over.
The village headman quickly signaled to several young men to kick open the courtyard gate.
With everyone working together, it only took a few kicks to break open Zhang Laizi's already flimsy wooden door.
A group of men stormed into Zhang Laizi's house and caught him as he tried to escape through the window.
"Zhang Laizi, why are you running? Have you done something wrong?"
The village head stepped forward and stared at Zhang Laizi, asking a question.
"I didn't run away. I was sleeping just now, and I was half asleep when I heard the door being kicked. I thought a bad guy had broken in."
Hearing Zhang Laizi's unique voice, Jiang Yuwei felt a chill run down her spine. She stepped forward, stared into his eyes, and said:
"Zhang Laizi, please repeat what I'm about to say: 'Don't shout, or I'll kill you!'"
Zhang Laizi met Jiang Yuwei's gaze and began to look away:
"Why should I listen to you? You think you can just tell me to repeat something and I'll do it? Who do you think you are?"
The village head frowned upon hearing this and said:
"Stop talking nonsense and repeat it!"
The man who had grabbed Zhang Laizi's arm twisted it hard when he refused to obey.
"Ouch, ouch, be gentle, you're hurting me, I'll tell you, I'll tell you, okay?"
The man loosened his grip, and Zhang Laizi reluctantly muttered something.
"Don't shout, or I'll kill you!"
Seeing his perfunctory attitude, Jiang Yuwei knew he wouldn't admit defeat until he faced dire consequences, so she said:
Do you wear this hat on a regular basis?
Seeing this, Aunt Hua, who was standing nearby, laughed and joked:
"Hey, Zhang Laizi, you've dressed up like a proper man after just one day, and you've even put on a hat."
Seeing Aunt Hua say this, Zhang Laizi glared at her fiercely and said angrily:
"What's it to you if I wear a hat, you old hag? Go home and feed your pigs."
Hearing Zhang Laizi's tone, Jiang Yuwei became even more certain that her feeling was correct. She reached out and took off his hat, only to see that Zhang Laizi's forehead was swollen and red.
Jiang Yuwei then angrily said:
"Why did you follow me last night? Why did you try to harm me? If you don't give me a clear answer, I will definitely hand you over to the authorities!"
Zhang Laizi was already terrified by the village head and his entourage. When he heard Jiang Yuwei say she was going to send him to the authorities, he couldn't stand it anymore. He immediately knelt down and kept kowtowing to Jiang Yuwei, saying:
"Spare me! I didn't mean to hurt you. I... I was instructed by someone!"
Upon hearing this, Jiang Yuwei frowned instantly. Could it be that Chen Guixiang was still unwilling to give up and was trying to find a way to harm her?
Jiang Yuwei stared coldly at Zhang Laizi and questioned him:
"Who was it? Who ordered you to do this?"
Zhang Laizi thought for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said:
"Yes, it's Xu Qianqian. She told me that if I could hurt you, she would agree to do 'that' with me. I'm a bachelor and have never tasted a woman's flavor. If I can defile you without anyone knowing, Xu Qianqian will offer herself to me. Then, even if I don't have money to get married in the future, I won't lack women."
Upon hearing this, the village headman, enraged, kicked Zhang Laizi.
"Zhang Laizi, are you out of your mind? How could you do such a thing?"
Then he shouted to the men standing behind him:
"Go, go and call Xu Qianqian to me."
Upon receiving the order, the man quickly turned and ran out.
When Jiang Yuwei heard Xu Qianqian's name, she was shocked. Could it be that just because she didn't take her to the market, Xu Qianqian held a grudge against her and was willing to sell her body to drag her down to hell?
Ning Qiu noticed that Jiang Yuwei's expression was off, and quickly stepped forward to support her, whispering:
"Sister Yuwei, how are you? If you can't hold on, I'll send you back first, and leave the rest to my father."
Jiang Yuwei felt somewhat relieved after holding Ning Qiu's hand, and gave Ning Qiu a weak smile:
"It's alright, I can't leave yet. I need to ask Xu Qianqian myself why she did this to me."
At this moment, the man had already brought Xu Qianqian over, followed by Granny Wang, who looked worried.
When Xu Qianqian arrived, she saw Zhang Laizi kneeling on the ground, weeping bitterly. She immediately understood and asked with a puzzled look:
"Why did you call me here in such a hurry? What happened?"
Seeing her expression, Ning Qiu said irritably:
"Xu Qianqian, stop pretending. You know perfectly well what happened. I never realized you were so vicious."
Seeing this, Xu Qianqian quickly looked at the village head with a wronged expression:
“Village head, I really don’t know what happened. As the village head, you must uphold justice for us villagers. You can’t just let Ningqiu bully us because she’s your own daughter.”
Jiang Yuwei patted Ning Qiu's hand and said coldly to Xu Qianqian:
Why did you want to hurt me?
Upon hearing this, Xu Qianqian glanced sideways at Jiang Yuwei and sneered:
"Ha, what good would it do me to harm you? Are you two deliberately trying to bully a widow from out of town?"
Ning Qiu's face flushed red with anger as she said:
“Zhang Laizi just admitted everything, and you’re still pretending to be stupid.”
The village head kicked Zhang Laizi to make him speak:
"Yes, yes, it was her. She made me do everything."
Zhang Laizi pointed angrily at Xu Qianqian and shouted that if he had known it would turn out like this, he would not have listened to Xu Qianqian's lies and done such a thing for her.
Xu Qianqian smiled and looked at Zhang Laizi, asking softly:
"Even you colluded with them to frame me? What benefits did Jiang Yuwei give you?"
Ning Qiu was so angry that she jumped up and down:
"Xu Qianqian, do you have no shame at all? How could Sister Yuwei use her own innocence to frame you?"
Xu Qianqian turned to Ning Qiu with a wronged expression and said:
"She must have been angry because Huai Zhi treated me well, so she came up with such a despicable way to frame me and make it impossible for me to stay in Ningjia Village."
Jiang Yuwei sneered and said:
"Is that so? You overestimate your position in Huai Zhi's and my hearts."
Jiang Yuwei turned to the village head and said:
"Village head, take Zhang Laizi to the government office. No matter who instructed him, he deserves to be punished."
The village head nodded, signaling the men who had captured Zhang Laizi to tie him up and take him to the authorities.
Seeing this, Zhang Laizi hurriedly begged for mercy:
"No, village head, please let me go this time. I didn't do anything. I failed. You know Jiang Yuwei. I didn't do anything to you. Please let me go, and I'll never dare to do it again."
Jiang Yuwei walked up to Zhang Laizi and whispered:
"You deserve to die a horrible death if you mess with me, begging for mercy won't help."
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