Chapter 165: A Drama to Go With the Meal
Half-asleep, Ning Xiyue just wanted to keep sleeping.
Hearing the noise outside, she reached out blindly with one hand, dragged the army coat over her head, then pulled two quilts up to cover herself completely. She pressed her ears tightly into the pillow and managed to sleep for another five minutes.
But the noise outside grew louder and louder, the harsh sounds drilling into her ears. After tossing and turning a few times under the covers, Ning Xiyue realized she couldn’t fall back asleep. Helpless, she sat up and started getting dressed.
The filthy curses and the calm, composed responses outside were now crystal clear. She could hear every word and understood exactly what was going on.
“Ai, I knew something would happen.”
Ning Xiyue dressed slowly and stepped out of the room. A crowd of people was already gathered outside the educated youth dormitory.
“Damn you! It’s your foul mouth that cursed my family! Pay up! If you don’t compensate us today, I’m not leaving!”
A shrill, crying voice reached Ning Xiyue’s ears just as she opened the door.
“I think you’ve gone mad over money — trying to blackmail me now? Even the team leader reminded your family to get that house inspected. What, are you going to go ask him for money too? I’ll be sure to ask him myself when he gets here.”
That calm but sarcastic voice — Ning Xiyue recognized it. It was Chen Yechu.
Looking over, she saw the educated youths surrounding the commotion. At the center of the dispute stood Chen Yechu, Li Qiang (the man who’d clashed with her during the grain distribution), and his wife Zhang Xiaohua.
The troublemakers were clearly Li Qiang and Zhang Xiaohua. Chen Yechu stood there cool and composed, though the impatience in her eyes grew more obvious by the second. One hand rested firmly on the brick she carried on her back and hadn’t moved.
From those two sentences alone, Ning Xiyue already understood the situation.
Their house must have really collapsed, and now they were stirring up trouble with Chen Yechu — trying to extort some money. As if things were that easy.
Judging by Chen Yechu’s reaction and posture, she clearly had it under control. Ning Xiyue shook her head and headed for the kitchen. That couple was about to suffer.
After heating some water and washing up, she brought out a bowl of rice and dishes from her storage space, happily carrying it forward.
Time to enjoy a free drama to go with her meal.
She found a quiet spot with a wide view and shelter from the wind and snow — the wooden ladder leaning against the wall under the eaves. Sitting there, she began eating while watching Chen Yechu thoroughly crush the shameless villagers.
The fight was still going strong. Zhang Xiaohua had now thrown herself on the ground, wailing and sobbing as if someone had dug up her ancestors’ graves.
“My house is gone! You must compensate me! I won’t ask for much — just five hundred yuan! That’s nothing for you educated youths from the city. And if you really can’t pay, we’ll reluctantly accept your bicycle.”
“Oh, Zhang Xiaohua, that dump you called a house wasn’t worth ten yuan, and you have the nerve to ask for five hundred? And a bicycle too? Your heart’s darker than the bottom of a pot. Pah! Shameless, utterly shameless.”
One of the village women couldn’t hold back and cursed Zhang Xiaohua. She had never realized this usually quiet woman was so brazen — she and her husband were clearly here to extort money from the young educated youth.
“What’s it to you?” Li Qiang barked, glaring around.
As Ning Xiyue ate, she glanced at Zhang Xiaohua. The woman was indeed a talented actress — crying so pitifully that anyone watching might feel sorry for her. Her lines were perfectly clear and well-delivered, not inferior to a professional performer.
If only her words weren’t so shameless — extorting money with such righteous indignation. Absolutely disgusting.
Her snot and tears smeared across her face were ruining Ning Xiyue’s appetite. She turned her eyes away and focused on her meal.
Chen Yechu looked calmly at the pair, a trace of disgust flickering in her eyes. “Go ahead and keep causing trouble. I’ve already sent someone to get the public security comrades. The more noise you make, the longer you’ll get locked up.”
Glancing at the scene, Ning Xiyue noticed that Yu Zhiyu and Wu Guifang were not among the crowd — they had likely gone to report to the team leader or call the police.
The local police responsible for their area were really suffering — how many times had they been called here this year already?
By the time Ning Xiyue finished another mouthful of rice, she looked up and saw Li Qiang charging toward Chen Yechu like a madman. “You bitch! How dare you call the police!”
“I’m asking the police to uphold justice. If they say I should compensate you, I’ll pay. What’s the matter? Feeling guilty? You know you’re in the wrong, don’t you?”
The mocking smile on Chen Yechu’s face provoked Li Qiang and Zhang Xiaohua even more.
Zhang Xiaohua scrambled up from the ground and lunged toward Chen Yechu. “You little whore—!”
The bystanders quickly restrained her.
Chen Yechu regretfully patted the brick she carried, then said casually with a pleasant smile, “Picking fights and assaulting people will only get your labor reform sentence extended.”
Ning Xiyue finished the last bite of her meal, sighed, and held her bowl. This was a one-sided beatdown — Chen Yechu didn’t even need the other educated youths’ help. That couple should’ve known better — Chen Yechu was not the type to be pushed around.
Sure enough, her words had both terrified and infuriated them.
“Ah, you…”
Zhang Xiaohua was too angry to speak. After pointing her finger for a while, she just let it drop, not knowing what to do.
Realizing things weren’t going their way, Li Qiang decided that if force didn’t work, he’d try pity. He broke free from the crowd, fell to his knees, and began crying.
“Wuu wuu, Comrade Chen, please just compensate us. My house collapsed, all our belongings are buried in the snow, our child is injured, and we have nothing. How are we supposed to live? I can’t go on like this…”
Chen Yechu chuckled. “Was it me who made your house collapse? If you’re going to extort money, at least come up with a believable excuse.”
“It was you! If you hadn’t cursed my family, would it have collapsed? So you must pay! The house fell because of your words!” Zhang Xiaohua clung stubbornly to her nonsense, trying to pin the blame on Chen Yechu.
She didn’t realize that this was exactly what Chen Yechu had been waiting for.
“Everyone heard that, right? She said my curse made her house collapse. Zhang Xiaohua, you’re openly spreading feudal superstition in broad daylight — isn’t that another crime?”
She even blinked innocently at the crowd, seeking their agreement.
“Yes!”
Ning Xiyue altered her voice and shouted back in support before turning to head toward the kitchen with her bowl.
Chen Yechu’s sharp eyes spotted her outside the crowd and guessed it was her. A warmth spread in her chest.
After Ning Xiyue’s lead, the other educated youths immediately echoed with loud shouts of “Yes!”
The villagers watching, however, didn’t follow along. Instead, they whispered among themselves.
“I didn’t! Don’t twist my words!” Zhang Xiaohua shouted loudly, trying to cover her guilt with volume.
Even from inside the kitchen washing her bowl, Ning Xiyue could hear her furious yelling.
If Chen Yechu had truly wanted her arrested, she could’ve easily called the Revolutionary Committee comrades and tricked her into saying even more. Then she wouldn’t have had a chance to protest — they’d have just taken her away.
Setting the bowl aside, Ning Xiyue stopped wiping her hands.
There were footsteps outside the kitchen.
They were coming her way.
Moving quietly, Ning Xiyue stood beside the cupboard — a spot that blocked the view from outside. She wanted to see who those footsteps belonged to… and what they intended to do.
