Chapter 54: Su He’s Reflections
Su He sat upright in front of the microphone and began her broadcast.
Although she didn’t have the perfectly enunciated voice of a professional announcer, she spoke in standard Mandarin, which impressed the staff at the radio station.
After reading the official report, Su He continued, “As a member of the broad masses of women, I’d like to share my thoughts on this communiqué.
Gender equality is not just something we talk about—it must begin with a shift in thinking.
Take myself as an example. In recent days, Comrade Lin Bo from the County Theater Troupe has repeatedly harassed me, ignoring my refusals.
Yesterday, when he once again acted inappropriately towards me, I had my second uncle teach him a lesson.
What I did may have been a bit extreme, and for that, I sincerely apologize to Comrade Lin Bo and will cover his medical expenses.
However, this incident proves that we women comrades have truly stood up!
In the old society, women could only swallow their grievances and accept whatever came their way.
But as women in the new society, we must have the spirit to resist, and the courage to say no…”
The County Theater Troupe immediately erupted in chaos!
Everyone turned to look at Lin Bo—this wasn’t at all what he had claimed!
People who didn’t like Lin Bo to begin with started jeering, “Lin Bo, didn’t you say Su He attacked you out of spite after you rejected her? Now she’s saying it was because you acted inappropriately!”
“And you said she’d come to the troupe to apologize? Ha! She went straight to the radio station to ‘apologize’ to you—what an honor!”
“You were clearly the one flirting and now you’re slandering a young woman? That’s really low!”
…
No one doubted Su He was telling the truth—this was a public broadcast! Who would dare lie on the air?
Besides, Lin Bo himself said the matter had gone to the authorities, which meant Su He couldn’t afford to make things up.
No one expected that Lin Bo, who always looked decent on the outside, would turn out to be such a creep!
Lin Bo was absolutely fuming!
Su He, you shameless brat!
This is your idea of a public apology?
You’re publicly executing me, damn it!
The County Theater Troupe was just across the alley from the radio station. Lin Bo immediately wanted to storm over and confront Su He, but in the end, he held himself back.
Everyone was watching him right now. If he did something reckless, he’d only make things worse.
Better to lay low for a few days and deal with that brat when the dust settles.
In those days, many factories and people regularly listened to the radio—including the Machinery Factory and the Textile Factory.
At the Machinery Factory, the workshop erupted in curses.
The men already disliked Lin Bo, a slick pretty boy, and now they were verbally tearing him to shreds.
They thought Su He was too kind—why even bother apologizing to that guy?
And pay his medical bills?
Pah!
He harassed a young girl—he deserved to be beaten! Why didn’t they beat him to death?!
At the Textile Factory, opinions were split. Some condemned Lin Bo’s poor morals, saying it was no surprise considering past rumors about his shady personal life.
Others didn’t believe Su He. Maybe she misunderstood him, or maybe she was slandering him.
This second group consisted mostly of girls who had a crush on Lin Bo. They viewed him through rose-colored glasses. One statement from Su He wasn’t enough to shatter their idealized image of him.
Tian Xiaotao, a female broadcaster at the radio station, fell into the latter group.
She had previously gotten along well with Su He, but now her face was frosty.
When Su He turned off the microphone, Tian Xiaotao immediately confronted her, “Comrade Su He, your job was to read the report. Why did you have to add your personal thoughts?”
Su He remained calm: “I cleared it with Sister Zheng. She approved it.”
Tian Xiaotao was momentarily speechless. “Even if you were sharing your thoughts, you should’ve stuck to the facts. Brother Lin would never do the things you claimed!”
Su He looked at her with a faint smile: “From your tone, sounds like you know him pretty well?”
It wasn’t just familiarity—there was admiration.
Tian Xiaotao looked slightly uneasy. “We’re not that close, but we’ve worked together. He would never harass a female comrade.”
Su He nodded, “In that case, would you mind doing me a favor? Ask him how much he spent on medical treatment and bring me the receipts.”
Tian Xiaotao agreed without hesitation.
She was already concerned about Lin Bo’s injuries and now had a perfect excuse to go check on him.
Just as she was about to leave, Su He called out to her again.
“Do you believe I can guess what Lin Bo is going to say to you? He’ll confess to you, say he was blind before, and ask you…”
Tian Xiaotao didn’t believe a word of it. She thought Su He was being ridiculous!
She stormed out of the radio station to find Lin Bo.
At the County Theater Troupe, Lin Bo was busy trying to salvage his reputation when someone called out, “Lin Bo, Tian Xiaotao from the radio station is here to see you!”
Lin Bo’s eyes lit up!
He knew Tian Xiaotao liked him and her family background was decent. She just hadn’t quite reached the standard he wanted, so he had kept her at arm’s length.
She must be here to stand up for him!
Perfect!
If she could say a few kind words on the air, today’s crisis could be smoothed over.
Even better if she could say something bad about Su He—that brat would have no choice but to come crawling back to him!
With that thought, Lin Bo practically ran to the entrance of the troupe.
Just before stepping out, he slicked his hair back and flashed what he thought was a heart-melting smile. “Xiaotao, you’re here for me?”
Unfortunately, he forgot one important thing.
He had been punched by Su Yongshi yesterday—twice in the eye. Now his eyes were so swollen he looked like a goldfish. His usual charming act looked greasy and ridiculous.
No matter how heavily filtered Tian Xiaotao’s view of him had been, his appearance now was far from appealing.
People tend to be more forgiving toward attractive individuals, and far less so toward unattractive ones.
In that moment, another layer of Tian Xiaotao’s rose-colored filter shattered.
Still, she spoke with righteous indignation: “Brother Lin, are you okay?
Su He was way out of line—slandering you on the radio!
I know you’d never do something like that. She must be trying to ruin your reputation!”
Lin Bo looked touched: “Xiaotao, you’re absolutely right. I merely expressed interest in her, and when she refused, I let it go. But she accused me of being a pervert!
Sigh. I really misjudged her. I thought she was a good person—turns out she’s malicious at heart.”
He looked at Tian Xiaotao with deep emotion: “Xiaotao, I’m sorry. I was blind not to see your goodness. Only now do I realize you’re the one most suited for me.”
If Su He hadn’t said what she did, Tian Xiaotao would’ve been thrilled.
But now… all she felt was a vague sense of disappointment.
Lin Bo thought her silence meant she was shy. In his mind, girls like her were devoted to him—everything he said was golden.
He sweet-talked her a little more, then asked, “Xiaotao, how did Su He get into your station to do a broadcast? What connections does she have?”
Tian Xiaotao’s heart skipped a beat. Lin Bo’s words were matching Su He’s prediction exactly.
She replied vaguely, “She was recommended by the Women’s Federation.”
Lin Bo’s expression cleared up. No wonder she read that message about women’s liberation—it all made sense now.
“Xiaotao, I bet the Women’s Federation only asked her to read the report. There’s no way they approved her slander. You should report it to them. We can’t let her use public resources for personal grudges!”
Tian Xiaotao mumbled a vague agreement.
Lin Bo put on a troubled expression. “Su He’s nonsense on the radio—many people probably believed her lies. My reputation is ruined! Xiaotao, can you help me?”
Tian Xiaotao clenched her fists tightly. “How do you want me to help?”
Unaware of her change in mood, Lin Bo said, “During your broadcasts, say a few fair things for me. That way we can turn public opinion around in no time.”
