Chapter 28: What Kind of Result Do You Want?
“I don’t agree to a confrontation.” The moment Station Chief Yang had someone invite Lin Wan into the interrogation room and explained the idea, she rejected it instantly.
“I reported the crime, and it’s your job to investigate it.”
“Everything should proceed according to due process and the evidence. I respect the law.”
“Let the judgment fall exactly as it should!”
Guo Xuyang was getting too big for his boots if he thought he could do whatever he pleased! Lin Wan was thoroughly sick and tired of him!
Guo Xuyang slammed his hand on the table and pointed at Lin Wan. “I see right through you—you just don’t dare to face me! You have a guilty conscience! You and Jin Cuicui are friends, so her testimony must be something the two of you coordinated in advance!”
Lin Wan picked up the enamel mug from the table and splashed the liquid right at his face, drenching him completely from his head down.
She pointed right at Guo Xuyang’s nose and barked, “Guo Xuyang!”
“Who the hell do you think you are? Do you own this police station?”
“Are the pieces of evidence dug up by the comrades of the police station just dog shit in your eyes?”
“What do you take them for?”
“Or do you think you’re the emperor of the Qing Dynasty, and the public security, procuratorate, and judiciary all have to obey your commands?”
“You claim Jin Cuicui and I coordinated this? Why would she coordinate with me to frame me? Am I an idiot?”
After snapping at him, she turned to Station Chief Yang. “Station Chief Yang, you heard what Guo Xuyang just said. Now I want to charge him with malicious slander as well!”
“The burden of proof lies on the accuser!”
“Comrade Guo Xuyang, since you insist so firmly that the one who broke the law is me, please bring out the solid evidence!”
She pointed at her own face. “As for what you did to me, however, I have an eyewitness.”
Guo Xuyang clenched his back teeth tight. The fury in his eyes looked intense enough to eat Lin Wan alive.
Station Chief Yang wanted to smooth things over, but under the current atmosphere, even he couldn’t find a way to intervene.
Lin Wan let out a cold sneer. “What’s the matter, Comrade Guo Xuyang? Do you want to claim that Comrade Sun Zhi and I also coordinated to slander you?”
“That’s fine.”
“I haven’t washed my face or changed my clothes yet. I trust the public security comrades have plenty of methods to extract your fingerprints from my body, and they can extract the footprints from that alley too.”
“If you did it, you left a trace.”
Guo Xuyang took a deep breath. “Who says I dare to do something but don’t dare to admit it?”
“Lin Wan, if you hadn’t crossed the line so terribly, I wouldn’t have blocked you just to give you a warning.”
Lin Wan turned back to Station Chief Yang. “Station Chief Yang, if there is nothing else, I will take my leave first.”
“Whenever you need me to cooperate with the investigation, you can find me again.”
There was no point in saying anything more to someone who was completely impervious to reason.
“Don’t leave!” Seeing Lin Wan turn to go, Guo Xuyang instinctively reached out to grab her.
Lin Wan flung his hand off and slapped him right across the face. “Guo Xuyang, you’re crossing the line! We are right inside the police station, yet you dare get handsy with a female comrade!”
Guo Xuyang was completely stunned by the slap.
Station Chief Yang pressed a hand to his forehead. Truly, if it weren’t for the current strict crackdown on feudal superstitions, he would suspect Guo Xuyang was possessed by some foul spirit. He was clearly a shrewd young man, and he wasn’t the type to reject sound advice. Why on earth was he acting so utterly pigheaded right now? Standing to the side and watching made him feel so frustrated that he wanted to deliver two slaps to wake him up himself.
“Since we have your statement, I need to go interrogate Jin Cuicui. Do you want to observe?” Station Chief Yang pulled the on-the-verge-of-exploding Guo Xuyang away.
The moment Lin Wan walked out into the police station courtyard, she ran into Zhang Qin, who had rushed over in a frantic hurry. Zhang Qin’s face was stark white, and her eyes were red and pooled with tears.
She questioned Lin Wan with a trembling voice, “Lin Wan, what on earth do you want before you’ll leave Xuyang and me alone?”
“Can’t you just stop for once?”
“For the sake of Dad and Auntie Huang, I already begged Xuyang not to hold that matter with Jin Cuicui against you, so how could you…”
She had already backed down to such an extent. Why was Lin Wan still so utterly relentless?
Zhang Qin wiped away her tears, straightened her spine, and said firmly, “Lin Wan, no matter how much drama you cause, I will never back down like I did in the past!”
“In the past, I always accommodated you… but I won’t do it anymore!”
“I will never give my husband up to you!”
Lin Wan rolled her eyes. “Beat it!”
Idiot! She didn’t want to waste a single word on this couple! They were infuriating!
Now she could finally comprehend why some people said the self-righteous destructiveness of good people could sometimes outdo the harm done by bad elements. In fact, under specific circumstances and events, that destructiveness could even multiply exponentially.
She strode away from the police station to wait for Huo Xiao by the roadside. Within a short while, Huo Xiao drove the vehicle over. He stepped out of the car to open the passenger door for Lin Wan.
Once both of them were seated inside, he spoke to Lin Wan. “I went to speak with the comrades from the Armed Forces Department just now and inspected the evidence. I’ve supervised them to ensure all the evidence is transmitted back to the military unit.”
“Now we just wait.”
“The results should be out by tomorrow or the day after!”
Lin Wan said softly, “Thank you!”
Huo Xiao cast a glance at her, deliberating for a brief moment before opening his mouth again. “Ultimately, if Guo Xuyang’s actions are classified as hooliganism, he will face prison time. The Guo family won’t just stand by and watch; they will definitely come looking for you.”
“What are your thoughts on this?”
“Do you intend to insist on sending him to prison, or will you accept compensation and sign a settlement letter?”
“If you are willing to settle, the Guo family has the influence to make the police station drop the case.”
After splashing Guo Xuyang and delivering that slap, combined with the few sentences she shared with Huo Xiao, the fury in Lin Wan’s heart had dissipated considerably. Guo Xuyang wasn’t actually attempting to commit hooliganism against her. Therefore, she wasn’t so completely unhinged as to lock onto the charge of hooliganism with a death grip just to force him into a fatal corner.
When all was said and done, Lin Wan still harbored some reservations about Guo Xuyang’s male lead halo. When dealing with the main characters, she needed to adhere to the principle of never actively initiating malicious plots. At most, she would equip a thorns armor. If they plotted maliciously and suffered a backlash, it would have absolutely nothing to do with her!
“How will the military handle him?” Lin Wan asked Huo Xiao.
Huo Xiao didn’t give a direct answer, merely asking her in return, “What kind of result do you want?”
Lin Wan: “Discharged from active duty and reassigned to civilian work.”
Huo Xiao: “Understood.”
He gave Lin Wan a distinct illusion that his word was absolute law. But that was impossible. A military officer having a slight physical altercation with the wife of another military officer due to a misunderstanding would, at most, result in a demerit on his record. It would likely just be a circulated criticism notice. As for the harsh words Lin Wan had hurled about stripping him of his uniform, that was purely driven by her heighted emotions. She didn’t have the audacity to assume she could dictate the military’s decisions.
“The civilian authorities and the military handle penalties separately. You need to have a clear idea in your mind of how you want to resolve it.”
“But there is no need to fear threats.”
Huo Xiao parked the car outside the department store. “Since we are married, we must follow the standard marriage procedures. The ‘Three Rounds and One Echo’ and the ‘Seventy-Two Legs’ of furniture must be arranged!”
“The gifts for your family must be arranged as well.” Huo Xiao checked his watch. “Time is short; the department store will be closing soon, so let’s move quickly.”
The original plan for noon had been to visit Lin Wan’s home, but because of the case, they hadn’t been able to make it. They could only reschedule for the evening.
Lin Wan hurriedly waved her hands. “No need, no need. Given the nature of our relationship…”
Huo Xiao: “When a son of the Huo family marries, he cannot slight his wife. Otherwise, it won’t pass the inspection of the elders back home!”
“Comrade Lin Wan, we have already registered our certificate. I hope you will view the relationship between us seriously.”
“Since it is a partnership, it ought to be handled with more precision.”
“My family will also hold a gathering. When we return to Capital City, you will need to prepare gifts for my family as well.”
“But there is no need to worry about the cash and coupons; I have them here!”
Lin Wan immediately said, “I’ll handle the preparations for your family’s side.”
“Let’s forget about the ‘Seventy-Two Legs’ of furniture for now. There’s no place to store them even if we buy them, and it’s too late anyway.”
Huo Xiao didn’t object. “Alright, we’ll do as you say.”
“Then I will convert it into cash for the bride price instead. What do you think of the figure 666 yuan and 60 cents?”
Lin Wan’s eyes widened. That was far too much, wasn’t it? Which family gave such a massive bride price? The Red Star Machinery Factory was a massive enterprise, and its conditions were considered top-tier in Huacheng, yet a high bride price for their factory workers’ weddings usually amounted to just one or two hundred yuan!
Seeing that Lin Wan remained silent, Huo Xiao hesitated for a brief moment before asking, “Is it too little?”
“Then how about adding another thousand yuan?”
