Chapter 79: Just What We Wanted
Zhang the Hag turned to Old Man Zhao. “What now? Are you really willing to let us take Gou Dan away? Once Jinping remarries, he’ll have to take his stepfather’s surname!”
Just as Old Man Zhao was about to speak, Su He cut in.
“No matter what his surname becomes, he still carries the blood of our Zhao family!
If his stepfather is willing to raise him, we’d actually be grateful!
Aren’t you planning to leave? Then why are you still lingering here? Don’t tell me you’re having second thoughts?”
Zhang the Hag saw her well-laid plans unraveling thanks to Su He’s interference. Enraged, she jumped off the heated brick bed, raised her smoking pipe, and went for Su He.
“You damn brat! Who asked you to butt in while your elders are talking? I’ll beat you to death!”
Su Yongguo, who had been keeping a close eye, immediately grabbed her wrist.
“Go ahead, try laying a hand on my daughter!”
Normally a mild and honest-looking man, Su Yongguo now glared fiercely, his eyes burning with fury—a startling sight.
Zhang the Hag flinched, visibly shaken. She immediately started wailing and throwing a tantrum.
“Heavens above! I can’t go on living! The Zhao family wants to kill me! No wonder Zhao Kaiwen ended up in prison—this whole family’s a bunch of thugs…”
Old Madam and Old Man Zhao were at a loss. Zhang the Hag was infamous for being a shrew and a scoundrel—how were they supposed to handle this?
Su He turned again to Li Jinping.
“Aunt, aren’t you going to say something?”
Li Jinping snapped, “Su He, my mother is right! This is our Zhao family’s business. Why are you meddling? I think you’re just stirring up trouble!”
Su He sighed.
“Aunt, that’s the last time I’ll call you that. I gave you a chance—you chose to walk away.
Just now, Grandma said you’re the one who’s been managing the family’s money.
I’m guessing even if I asked you for it now, you wouldn’t hand it over. Fine, consider it your share of the family’s assets. From this point on, you and the Zhao family are finished.
Take your mother and leave. Otherwise, I’ll make sure she ends up behind bars!”
A flicker of panic crossed Li Jinping’s eyes. What Su He said was true—she had always been in charge of the Zhao family’s finances.
Though the family wasn’t well-off, she had managed to save over a hundred yuan for herself.
She was definitely taking that money with her.
She sneered.
“So what if I was managing the money? There are expenses everywhere—there’s not a single cent left! What’s more, do you take me for a three-year-old? What crime has my mother committed? On what grounds would you have her arrested?”
Su He turned to Zhang the Hag.
“Granny Zhang, looks like your daughter doesn’t know about all your little secrets. I’ll give you one last chance: get out. Now. Otherwise, I’ll spill every last bit of your dirty laundry!”
Zhang the Hag’s expression turned nervous, a flicker of fear flashing through her eyes. Could this damned girl know she performed fake exorcisms and spirit-calling rituals? Or maybe that she stole soybean cakes from the commune?
She scrambled to her feet, putting on a fierce front.
“Don’t talk nonsense, you foul-mouthed brat! What dirt could I possibly have?! Jinping, let’s go. We’ll come back another day to settle the score with this Zhao family!”
She grabbed Li Jinping and stormed out. In her panic, she forgot about the raised threshold at the door and tripped, falling face-first into the dirt. Her nose hit the ground and started bleeding.
Zhang the Hag was about to make a scene when Su He said coldly, “Did you forget your nose is there for a reason? Couldn’t you see that huge doorstep? Or were you just trying to fake an injury to scam us? Get moving, or I’ll make you pay for damaging our doorstep!”
Zhang the Hag was already seeing stars from the fall. Now, enraged by Su He’s words, she nearly fainted on the spot.
Su He added,
“Don’t forget to pick up Gou Dan from school. If you don’t, I’ll deliver him to you myself!”
Zhang the Hag gritted her teeth.
“You deliver him to us? Based on what?! He’s your Zhao family’s blood! And you expect me to raise him for free? Dream on!”
Old Madam Zhao: “…”
Old Man Zhao: “…”
Didn’t they insist on taking Gou Dan just a few minutes ago? Why the sudden change of heart?
Su He went on,
“If my uncle gets released and makes something of himself, don’t come crying with regret!”
Zhang the Hag snorted.
“As if Zhao Kaiwen could get out! And even if he does, he’s such a useless good-for-nothing—he’ll never amount to anything!
If he ever becomes successful, I’ll kneel and kowtow in front of your Zhao family’s gate!”
With that, she dragged Li Jinping away, cursing as she went. Li Jinping didn’t even look back once, showing no hint of attachment.
Once they were gone, Su He turned to her grandparents and said cautiously, “Grandma, Grandpa, I was just so angry that I lashed out. You’re not mad at me, are you?”
She had already made up her mind—if her grandparents couldn’t tell right from wrong, she’d still help her uncle with his case, but she’d stay out of the family’s domestic matters going forward.
But if they were sensible and fair-minded, she’d make an effort to stay close to them.
Old Madam Zhao, wiping her tears, said, “Silly girl, Grandma’s not senile yet—I can still tell right from wrong! If it weren’t for you today, that Zhang Hag would’ve turned the whole house upside down!”
Old Man Zhao added with some confusion, “Su He, earlier you said Zhang the Hag did something illegal—what exactly did she do?”
Su He chuckled.
“I was just bluffing to scare her. She panicked because she has a guilty conscience.”
Old Man Zhao: “…And when you said to let them take Gou Dan away—you didn’t mean that either, right? How did you know they wouldn’t really take him?”
Su He smiled.
“If they truly wanted Gou Dan, they wouldn’t be demanding money.
Grandma, Grandpa, since Aunt has made up her mind to divorce, just let her go. We should focus on helping my uncle now. Can you tell me exactly what happened?”
Honestly, neither grandparent had much hope in Su He. After all, what could a young girl possibly do?
But desperate times called for desperate measures, so they explained everything.
After hearing it all, Su He raised an eyebrow.
“There’s usually someone watching the test field, right?”
She had actually thought of this on the way there. If Professor Qu valued the experimental field so much, why wasn’t anyone guarding it?
If someone had been there, they would’ve noticed the cows early, and the disaster could’ve been avoided.
“There is usually someone,” Old Man Zhao said. “But I heard the guy had stomach troubles that day. By the time he realized what was happening, it was too late.”
Su He sneered inwardly. What a coincidence, huh?
More likely, the man was slacking off or sneaking away from his post.
If they could prove that, it might reduce some of her uncle’s responsibility.
“Grandpa, take me to the test field!”
So Old Man Zhao led Su Yongguo and Su He to the agricultural supply station’s test field.
The test field was about two acres in size, with a large sign clearly marking it. Nearby stood a small shed, presumably where the guard would rest.
The field was a mess—hoofprints everywhere, with almost no soybean seedlings left. It was clearly beyond saving.
Old Man Zhao sighed.
“Destroying crops is bad enough, but this was a test field for the agricultural supply station. Kaiwen brought this on himself!
Never mind the experts—even I feel awful just looking at it.
It’s just bad luck. The pasture for grazing is several miles from here, and those cows are usually tame. Why did they run all the way here that day…”
Su He suddenly interrupted, “Does the person guarding the test field own a dog?”
