Chapter 22: A Face with Features but No Moral Compass

“Yeah, if you keep pestering me, I’ll have no choice but to use force. Who told you to be so shameless? And now you’re even worse—attacking Comrade Jiang! I’m going to find the team leader right now.”

Hearing this, Li Hongmei completely broke down, squatting on the ground and sobbing uncontrollably.

“Waah waah waah, you’re all bullying me! Zhou Ye, is your heart made of stone?

I’ve liked you ever since you came here. So many years have passed—even a stone would’ve been warmed by now—how can you still not see me?

She—she’s just a fat nobody! Ugly and dumb, nothing good-looking about her. What does she have that I don’t?”

Jiang Manman took a deep breath. Damn it, she could understand being heartbroken and acting out after a failed confession, but how did it turn into her being collateral damage?

She rolled up her sleeves, walked right up to Li Hongmei, and gave her a resounding slap.

In her past life, she swore she’d never slapped anyone before. Now that she was here, she didn’t know if it was the original host’s temper influencing her, or a fusion of both of them—but this was her now.

Li Hongmei was still crying, and was stunned by the slap. Thinking back to how viciously she had treated Jiang before, she couldn’t help but shudder.

“Who are you calling ugly? Go find a puddle and take a good look at yourself before talking trash about me!

Your face might have features, but there’s no morality behind them. And you have the nerve to call me ugly?

Just now, you tried to pour fish soup on me, and before that you even accused me of being some capitalist’s daughter.

If I don’t hit you today, I’ll report you to the team leader and Secretary Zhao, and tell them you’re insulting a martyr’s child. Just wait.”

She turned to leave but then spun around again and slapped the other side of Li Hongmei’s face.

Li Hongmei clutched the other cheek in shock.
“You said you wouldn’t hit me again!”

“I’m just being considerate. Your face was lopsided, so I helped even it out. No need to thank me.

Now I’m going to report this to the secretary. You’re not just ideologically problematic—your conduct is appalling. I propose we send you to the farm for re-education.”

Hearing this, Li Hongmei trembled. She definitely didn’t want to be sent to the labor farm. Being sent to the countryside was bad enough—every day was exhausting, like being worked to the bone.

Going to a labor farm would be even worse.

“No!”

Jiang Manman turned to leave. In a flash, Li Hongmei threw herself at her and grabbed her leg.

“No, I don’t want to go to the farm! I was wrong! I apologize, Comrade Jiang—please forgive me just this once! I’ll never bother you or Comrade Zhou again, okay?”

Jiang Manman looked down at the woman clinging to her calf. Just moments ago, she had been genuinely boiling with rage. She turned to look at Zhou Ye.

Zhou Ye rubbed his nose.

“I already had Wang Jiaxing go call Secretary Zhao and the team leader. I don’t think Comrade Li deserves any sympathy.

Over the past year, she has harassed me numerous times, seriously affecting both my work and life.

This time, she even hurt me. I think she’s become a dangerous element and shouldn’t stay here any longer.”

Just as he finished speaking, Secretary Zhao arrived. Hearing Zhou Ye’s words, he frowned deeply as he looked at Li Hongmei lying on the ground.

Jiang Manman took the opportunity, quickly pulling her leg free and running to Secretary Zhao.

“Secretary Zhao, what Comrade Zhou said is true. Li Hongmei has serious ideological issues—she’s started attacking people indiscriminately.

Just now, she used the fish dish she made as a weapon and tried to hit me. If Comrade Zhou hadn’t intervened, my face might’ve been ruined.

I can’t forgive this.”

Secretary Zhao was speechless. Did she think he didn’t know Li Hongmei came with braised fish?

Plenty of villagers had seen it. But now in Jiang’s version, it had become a weapon.

Jiang Manman: If it can hurt someone, it’s a weapon.

Sun Hongmei saw Secretary Zhao had arrived and Zhou Ye said all that. Wasn’t this basically cutting off her way out?

She immediately stood up, walked to her braised fish, pointed at it, and cried out:

“Secretary Zhao, I was just bringing them some braised fish! They didn’t appreciate it, fine—but they’re slandering me like this?

That Jiang girl just got here and already hooked up with Director Zhou. Look at my face—she hit me and even threatened me not to get close to him again! Waah, Secretary Zhao, you have to stand up for me.

Everyone here is from the pig farm—they’re obviously biased toward those two!”

Secretary Zhao had a headache. Li Hongmei had been chasing after Zhou Ye for over a year—everyone in the village knew. Now with Jiang joining the mix, things had escalated.

Aunt Liu Si immediately jumped out, unable to hold back.

“Secretary, we can all vouch she’s lying. She brought fish for Zhou Ye, and when he refused it, she tried to throw it on Comrade Jiang!

Ay, this is bullying a fellow educated youth! If this were my kid, I’d have torn her apart by now!

And just because she’s bullying someone from the pig farm doesn’t make it okay. We all saw what happened—how could we be wrong?”

There was one more thing she didn’t say: if her own daughter had saved the factory director from drowning, she’d be raising hell until he married her.

But Jiang was a lone young woman with no one to speak for her, playing at free love or whatever nonsense.

Director Zhou was good-looking, young, already a director, and came from the capital. He had a promising future ahead!

The more Aunt Liu thought about it, the more she felt that Jiang Manman was missing a golden opportunity—she was so anxious watching from the side.

Aunt Wang chimed in too:

“Exactly, facts are facts. We’re not shameless enough to lie.

She used to only go after Director Zhou, but now she’s even targeting the new girl. Ay, terrifying!

She better not come here again—what if she spreads her disease to the pigs?”

Li Hongmei saw that everyone had turned on her. Just moments ago, she was clinging to Jiang Manman’s leg crying. Now she lunged and hugged Secretary Zhao’s leg.

Secretary Zhao stiffened as she knelt and clutched his thigh. Today he was wearing pants held up with elastic.

With her tugging, the pants started to slip down.

He regretted not wearing the belt-holding pair. But it was too late—there was only one belt in the whole family, and he kept it safe for county meetings.

Now this dignified secretary was stuck trying to hold up his pants with one hand while trying to shake off Li Hongmei with the other.

But Li Hongmei was truly desperate not to be sent to the farm, clinging to his leg like her life depended on it.

Jiang Manman and Zhou Ye stood off to the side, watching the show unfold.

Every time Secretary Zhao pulled his pants up, Li Hongmei dragged them back down.

The scene became downright chaotic—so much so that when the team leader finally arrived, the first thing he saw was Secretary Zhao’s exposed long underwear.

“What the hell is going on here?”

Secretary Zhao shouted the moment he heard the team leader’s voice:

“Captain Zhang, save me! Quickly get Comrade Li off me!”

The team leader stared speechlessly at the crowd enjoying the drama.

“What are you all standing around for? Go help him!”

Aunt Liu Si chuckled and said:

“Captain, it’s not that we don’t want to help—we’re just too scared to!”