"Nonsense! You're lying! You clearly just admitted that it was your fault my son Fugui got hurt. How did it suddenly become my Fugui trying to harm you? How did he harm you?
The one who fell into the river and almost drowned was my son, not you! Stop spouting nonsense!"
Originally silenced by the intimidating presence of Wang Zhiguo, the brigade secretary, Fugui's mother had been too afraid to speak. But seeing the issue now directly involving her own son, she couldn't stay quiet, no matter how scared she was.
Still shaken by Wang Zhiguo, she didn't dare to curse at He Manshu as crudely and viciously as she had at Li Yufang.
"If you don't believe me, go ask your ugly son yourself."
He Manshu replied mercilessly. Since she had already taken action, she wasn't going to leave any loose ends. She deliberately provoked Fugui's mother because, according to the plot, this woman was also partly responsible for the original He Manshu being tormented to death.
If they're all guilty, then deal with them all at once.
"You're the ugly one! Your whole family is ugly!"
Her son's ugliness wasn't just Wang Fugui's shame, it was also his mother's sore spot. She had always been proud and competitive, but fate gave her a child that everyone avoided because of his looks. Of course she wasn't okay with it.
But being upset didn't change the fact. Her son's appearance was what it was—denial was useless.
Though a mother shouldn't dislike her child for being ugly, Fugui's mother had never been able to swallow the bitterness. She and Fugui's father weren't attractive, but they weren't that bad-looking either. Yet they somehow ended up with a shockingly ugly child. This was her lifelong pain. For the sake of pride, anyone who dared call Wang Fugui ugly in front of her would get a tongue-lashing.
"Pfft, hahaha..."
From the crowd, someone couldn't help but burst out laughing at Fugui's mother's angry insult. That laugh spread like wildfire—soon everyone at the brigade office was laughing in waves.
"Oh come on, Goudan's mom, you really have the nerve to call Manshu ugly? Are you blind?"
"Exactly! If you say Manshu's ugly, then I guess there's no such thing as beauty in the world!"
"If your eyes are bad, go fix them. If you're blind, open your eyes wide and look properly, will you?"
"Look, Goudan's mom, don't get mad. But you do know what kind of kid you raised, right? Ugly is ugly—everyone in the village knows it. What, just because your kid's ugly, nobody's allowed to mention it?
Please, get a grip. What kind of logic is that?"
Fugui's mother had been a widowed, tough woman raising a kid on her own. She'd made a lot of enemies. Now that people had the chance, those who didn't like her stepped up to stomp her down.
"As the Chairman teaches us, we must be truthful and honest. Goudan's mom, you should be honest."
"Yeah! Be honest, hahahaha..."
With the teasing and scorn, everyone naturally turned their eyes to He Manshu's face. Beautiful. Absolutely beautiful. She might be a country girl, but her skin was flawless—pale with a pinkish glow, like fine white jade.
And it wasn't just her skin—her features were delicate and striking, impossible not to notice. If she weren't dressed in plain rural clothes, her appearance and demeanor would have made her look like a noble lady from the old days.
She really didn't look like a peasant girl at all.
Looking at He Manshu, the villagers suddenly turned to glance at Wang Xiu.
Wang Xiu's appearance could be considered pretty, but it was just that—pretty, not beautiful. And yet this woman had somehow given birth to such a stunning daughter. It was hard to believe. People began recalling her late husband, the man who died early for the sake of the village.
His face was already a blur in everyone's memory, but one thing was for sure—he wasn't particularly good-looking either.
A crooked tree bore straight bamboo—how envious!
At that moment, all the villagers looked at Wang Xiu with a mix of jealousy and suspicion.
Faced with those jealous stares, Wang Xiu, who harbored secrets, began to panic. She was terrified someone would shout: "Hey! Wang Xiu and her daughter don't look alike at all. Could it be they picked up the wrong baby back then?"
That kind of talk was often used as a joke in the village, but today she really didn't want to hear it. Feeling guilty, she didn't even dare look at He Manshu, and therefore missed the meaningful, knowing smile He Manshu gave her.
Wang Xiu was guilty, He Manshu was watching the show, the villagers were riled up, and Fugui's mother's face turned red and purple with rage.
If not for Wang Zhiguo, the brigade secretary, she would have jumped up and fought back already. So what if her son was ugly? At least she gave birth to a boy. That was a line she loved to use when arguing with childless women in the village—no wonder so many people hated her. That's why, today, everyone joined in kicking her while she was down.
Actions have consequences. She deserved it!
Seeing things getting way out of hand, Wang Zhiguo had to step in.
The sun was scorching, and he hadn't even eaten. He didn't call everyone here just to argue all day. "Enough! Everyone shut up! Are you not hungry? If you're not hungry, we can keep wasting time like this!"
He glared at everyone, his eyes full of warning: Enough is enough—stop wasting time.
Once the secretary spoke, everyone immediately shut up.
"Bring over Wang Fugui and Li Yufang, the educated youth."
Under the blazing sun, Wang Zhiguo was already out of patience. He directly addressed Liu Fuping, the security chief.
Time to cut the mess clean.
Liu Fuping raised his hand, and a few militia members with rifles brought over the trembling Wang Fugui and the limp, lifeless Li Yufang, placing them in front of the brigade leaders.
"Speak! What the hell happened!"
Wang Zhiguo wasn't known for his temper. Seeing how guilty the two looked, he barked fiercely.
The force of Wang Zhiguo's presence was so overwhelming that Li Yufang passed out on the spot.
Useless! With that little courage, she dared to plot against someone?
Casting a disdainful glance at the unconscious Li Yufang, Wang Zhiguo turned his eyes on Wang Fugui. For someone like him who could barely say a word, he had other ways to get answers. "Wang Goudan, confess everything right now. If you dare lie, I'll kill you!"
He made a hand gesture.
Clack clack!
The sound of rifles being cocked echoed.
This was the 1960s. Against those who disrupted unity and resisted, brigade secretaries had the authority to order their execution on the spot.
The sound of rifles chilled everyone. Gasp after gasp followed—then, total silence.
Absolute silence.
The villagers were both nervous and excited as they watched Wang Fugui being stared down at gunpoint, eager to see what would happen next. As long as it wasn't happening to them, they were happy to watch the drama.
At first, Wang Fugui still wanted to keep his mouth shut, but the sound of rifles broke him. He thought he was tough, but he cracked instantly.
"I'll talk! I'll talk…"
With that panicked shout, a stream of urine trickled from under him, spreading across the stone floor. A foul stench soon followed.
Villagers: Holy crap! He pissed himself?
Frightened beyond reason, Wang Fugui spilled everything—how he and Li Yufang had conspired to harm He Manshu. With the cold barrel pressing against his neck and drenched in cold sweat, he dared not hold back a single detail. He was terrified of dying.
As Wang Fugui spoke, the villagers went from shock to outrage—and then to sheer fury.
Unforgivable. Absolutely vile!
Everyone understood how important a girl's purity was. And yet someone had planned to destroy it? This was intolerable. Every family with a daughter began to view Wang Fugui and Li Yufang as dangerous threats. If they got away with it, what about next time? Who else might be targeted?
No. This kind of thing cannot be allowed in Wangjia Village. People like Wang Fugui and Li Yufang didn't deserve to live—they were wasting food and space.
"Kill them! Shoot them! Execute them!"
"Execute them! Execute them!"
Spontaneously, the villagers started shouting. Their anger boiled over. They surged forward to beat Wang Fugui and Li Yufang. Scum like them deserved to be beaten and publicly shamed before death.
"Quiet! Quiet down, everyone! Let me speak!"
"Quiet! Quiet!"
The brigade leaders dared not use force, so they shouted to calm the crowd. Seeing the chaos, the militia quickly regrouped to protect the leaders. He Manshu, always one step ahead, had already moved behind Wang Zhiguo. There was no safer place at the moment than behind the brigade secretary.
"Secretary, captain, for scum like this who disturb peace and ruin a girl's reputation, we must shoot them!"
"Shoot them! Shoot them!"
Villagers kicked and beat the pair while yelling.
"Stop! Stop right now!"
Wang Zhiguo was panicking, but the scene was out of control. This wasn't just a brawl—this was an entire village in righteous fury. With so many people yelling, his voice was drowned out instantly.
No one could hear the secretary anymore. Maybe they thought "no one punishes a crowd." Maybe it was hunger and rage. The villagers had gone wild.
They had been silent too long. Now they exploded.
Wang Zhiguo and the brigade leaders trembled at the madness in everyone's eyes. This couldn't go too far—there couldn't be a disaster. Just as Wang Zhiguo thought this, a gun was handed to him.
No time to see who gave it. He grabbed it, raised it, and fired into the air.
BANG!
A sharp, commanding gunshot froze the mob. Everyone stopped mid-motion, like someone had hit pause. All eyes turned to the source of the shot: a furious, pale-faced Wang Zhiguo and the other brigade leaders.
Crap. Trouble.