Chapter 12: How Could She Have Jumped into the River?
Su Yongshi was so furious that his eyes turned red, as if he wanted to bite a chunk of flesh out of Zhao Bin!
An older person, fearing someone might die from the fight, quickly had people pull Su Yongshi away.
“This isn’t something us ordinary folks can handle. Let the authorities deal with it!”
“Yeah, let those three beasts from the Zhao family rot in jail!”
…
Outside the crowd stood a young man in a Zhongshan suit, a Hero brand fountain pen tucked into his jacket pocket.
Earlier, he had rushed in at the front lines during the fire rescue, but now he stood quietly at the edge of the crowd.
His gaze fell on Su He, a flicker of curiosity in his eyes.
Zhao Bin was clearly beyond redemption, but this girl, Su He, wasn’t simple either.
An average girl facing such a situation would have been too terrified to think straight. She looked frightened on the surface, but every word she said had been carefully chosen to guide the crowd until the evidence was uncovered.
How could someone like her possibly be the type to jump into a river to end her life?
Of course, Su He had no idea that the person she had speculated might be watching—the “Big Monkey”—was actually right here. At the moment, she was still dutifully playing the role of the poor, pitiful victim.
Soon, officials arrived to seal off the scene and took Zhao Bin away in handcuffs.
Some gossip-mongers even rushed to the factory to see what was happening. When Wei Qin was arrested, she arrogantly shouted that it was all a misunderstanding, thinking Zhao Bin was being accused of molesting Su He:
“They were dating! That slutty girl was the one chasing after my son—he’s completely innocent!”
But once she realized it was the secret stash that had been discovered, her face went deathly pale and she fainted on the spot.
As for Deputy Factory Director Zhao, he didn’t fare much better—rumor had it he wet his pants on the spot.
Su Yongshi and Su He were also called in for questioning. Su Yongshi was so frightened he trembled through the whole process and came out shaking like a leaf.
A short while later, Su He also came out.
Now, facing Su He, Su Yongshi didn’t know what to say. He wanted to explain but couldn’t find the words—after all, he had acted out of selfishness.
But if he didn’t explain, he was afraid Su He would report everything to the family elders, and Old Man Su would come after him.
Su He kept her head down and didn’t speak, the two of them walking in silence until they arrived at Su Yongshi’s rented flat.
It was a state-owned subdivided rental. What used to be a large courtyard had been split into five households, with dirt walls separating each unit. Rent was four yuan and twenty-seven cents per month.
As soon as they entered, Su He looked up with red-rimmed eyes and said, “Second Uncle, what exactly did you say to Grandpa and Grandma before we came here?
Even though you came back in the end, if Zhao Bin hadn’t suddenly gone mad, I might’ve already been… already been violated by him.
Even now, although I look okay, inside I’m deeply traumatized. I honestly feel like life isn’t worth living anymore—I might as well just die…”
As she spoke, her expression turned bleak, like someone who’d lost all hope in life.
Su Yongshi was terrified!
If anything happened to Su He, Old Man Su would probably show up at the county office with a hoe to beat him!
His older brother and sister-in-law would come after him too!
“Xiao He, Second Uncle really didn’t know Zhao Bin was such a beast. But yes, I admit it’s my fault, and I’m truly sorry!”
As he spoke, Su Yongshi slapped himself hard across the face.
Su He sniffled and asked, “Second Uncle, are you really willing to make it up to me?”
Su Yongshi vaguely recalled that he hadn’t exactly promised compensation, but seeing that Su He’s tone had softened, he quickly said, “Yes, yes, whatever you want, just tell Second Uncle—I promise I’ll make it up to you.”
Su He rubbed her hands together and said, “I want your bicycle.”
Su Yongshi: “…”
Su He could have bought a bicycle from the Exchange herself, but she had no way of explaining where it came from—so she asked for his instead.
Su Yongshi’s first reaction was that she must be joking. That bicycle, which he kept at his father-in-law’s place, had cost him a whopping 150 yuan.
That might be just over a month’s salary for Deputy Director Zhao, but for Su Yongshi, a temporary worker earning apprentice wages—only 19.84 yuan a month—it would take nearly a year of saving without spending a dime!
Not to mention how hard it had been to get a bicycle voucher in the first place!
Lately, his brother-in-law Cao Fugui had been going on matchmaking visits, and his mother-in-law, Wang Fengrong, had insisted on borrowing the bike to impress potential in-laws.
Even though he hated the idea, he had reluctantly agreed.
And now Su He was asking for it?
“Xiao He, don’t joke like that. When your aunt gets off work, I’ll have her take you to the supply store to get some cloth and make you a nice new dress.”
Su He smiled.
One foot of cloth cost 40 cents; a dress took about seven feet—less than 3 yuan in total. Was he trying to brush her off like a beggar?
“Second Uncle, I only want the bicycle. If you can’t part with it, that’s fine.
Worst case, I’ll go home and tell Grandpa and Grandma everything that happened. I’m sure they won’t blame you. After all, you were just looking out for your own future and trying to get a permanent job. They’ll understand.
Not just them—my parents will understand too. I’m sure they won’t resent you one bit.
Oh, and I should probably go thank the kind neighbors in the textile factory compound. While I’m at it, I’ll make sure to explain your reasoning to them too—so they can understand you as well…”
Su Yongshi’s face turned green!
Wasn’t that just blatant blackmail?!
“Xiao He, are you threatening your Second Uncle?!”
Su He’s smile got even brighter. “Yup.”
Su Yongshi: “…”
He immediately flew into a rage from embarrassment. “Xiao He, I’m your uncle, not your enemy! Yes, I was selfish—but I did it for your own good…”
Su He clapped her hands. “You tried to marry me off to a beast who almost burned me alive—wow, truly looking out for me! Alright, I’m done talking. I’ll just head to the textile compound and chat with those nice folks now.”
As she spoke, she turned and made for the door.
Su Yongshi gritted his teeth and stomped his foot. “Fine! I’ll give it to you—happy now?!”
Sure, his reputation wasn’t great already, but at least he could claim he’d been misled. If that little devil went around ruining his name further, he and his wife really wouldn’t be able to stay at the factory anymore.
At this point, Su Yongshi was truly filled with regret!
If he’d known things would turn out this way, he never would’ve meddled in this match in the first place!
Just as he was stewing in remorse, Su He took a piece of notebook paper and a pencil from her small satchel and handed them to him.
“Second Uncle, sign this, please!”
Puzzled, Su Yongshi took it—and almost exploded with anger when he saw what was written:
“Receipt: Received 150 yuan from Su He for the purchase of a bicycle. For record.”
Su He beamed. “I just knew you’d end up compensating me, so I went ahead and wrote the receipt while I was giving my statement earlier.
Aren’t I a thoughtful niece?”
Thoughtful? More like ruthless!
She was worried he might renege, so she had blocked all paths for him in advance.
Although Su Yongshi wanted nothing more than to rip the receipt to shreds, in the end, he still signed his name.
Now he finally understood why his mother had said last night that Su He could infuriate a person to death without taking responsibility.
Not only could she infuriate someone to death—she could bring the dead back just to make them mad all over again!
