Chapter 26: Accusing Su Tangxue of Throwing a Beehive at Them

When Su Tangxue and Lu Qinglin entered the courtyard, they saw it was full of the people who had gone to the pigweed field that afternoon to cut grass.

Looking around, everyone’s face was swollen like a pig’s head. For a moment, Su Tangxue couldn’t even recognize who was who.

Finally, her gaze landed on Li Sui—why was there even a man among them?

Li Sui froze for two seconds and awkwardly turned his back.

If he had known that Little Sister Xue would be here, he wouldn’t have left the house for anything.

Letting her see him looking this ugly—how could he possibly face her again?

In his heart, Li Sui silently cursed the ancestors of the one who threw the beehive at him.

He had finally gotten a chance to see Little Sister Xue again, and it had all been ruined.

“Uncle Li, who is this?”
Su Tangxue looked at Li Bing and pointed at Li Sui, asking.

Standing nearby, Li Sui panicked. He quickly signaled to his father with his eyes, but his eyelids were so swollen that his effort was completely useless.

Li Bing glanced at his son, who was shaking his head desperately, and responded with disdain,
“I don’t know. Never seen him before. With a face this swollen, how could I tell who he is?”

“Squad Leader… mm… it was her.”
Zhang Yunlan was in the worst shape among the five. The wasps had stung her so badly she couldn’t even speak clearly.

Only then did everyone turn to look at her.

“Squad Leader, you must give us justice!”
The one who spoke up was Liao Haimei, her eyes full of resentment as she looked at Su Tangxue.

Li Bing cleared his throat. “Su Tangxue, Lu Shan, some people reported that the two of you went to the pigweed field this afternoon and caused trouble. Not only did you take a rabbit they had caught, but you even threw a hornet’s nest at them. Did you do this?”

Lu Shan had always been a mischievous kid, but Su Tangxue looked like a quiet and gentle girl. Li Bing didn’t think she’d do something like that.

But just after she got off work today, four educated youths came to complain, saying Su Tangxue held a grudge against them and threw a hornet’s nest at them. They wanted him to resolve the issue.

Left with no choice, Li Bing had summoned everyone who had been at the pigweed field that afternoon.

“Squad Leader, my little sister didn’t participate at all. I did it alone.”

Lu Shan stepped forward, standing in front of Su Tangxue and patted his chest proudly.

“Mmm! He admitted it… mmm… arrest him!”
Hearing Lu Shan admit it, Zhang Yunlan immediately jumped out to accuse them.

It was all Su Tangxue and Lu Shan’s fault that she ended up like this. Now that they had confessed, the squad leader should call the police and have them locked up.

Second Uncle Lu, upon hearing his brat’s confession, smacked Lu Shan on the head.

“Instead of working properly, you spend all day causing trouble. And now you’ve dragged down Xiaoxue with you. What are you trying to do—kill me with anger?”

Lu Shan held his head and pouted unhappily.

“So, what else do you two have to say for yourselves?”
Li Bing looked at the two with disbelief. He never expected Lu Shan to confess.

But as the team leader, he had to be fair and just. If he showed favoritism, he’d lose the village’s trust.

Lu Qinglin’s eyes narrowed slightly, and he was about to speak when Su Tangxue stepped forward and beat him to it.

“Wait, Uncle Li, my fourth brother hasn’t finished speaking!”

“Then speak.”

Su Tangxue glanced over the crowd, then calmly recounted everything that had happened in the mountains, leaving nothing out.

“Uncle Li, it’s true that my fourth brother used a slingshot to hit the hornet’s nest, but that was because Zhang Zhiqing tried to frame me first. This was tit for tat, an act of self-defense. It doesn’t count as intentional harm. As for the rabbit, there’s nothing to explain—it was Zhang Zhiqing who tried to snatch it first and then bore a grudge, so she’s framing us.”

“Zhang Zhiqing, is this true?”
Zhang Yunlan immediately shook her head, “Squad Leader, mmm… she’s lying.”

“Zhang Yunlan, I think you are the one lying! You were the one who tried to poke the beehive above my head with a stick first. My brother saw it and used a slingshot to retaliate.”
Su Tangxue said angrily.

If it weren’t for her fourth brother, she might be in the same miserable state as those four—maybe even worse.

“Zhang Yunlan, if I find out you’re lying, I’ll punish you severely.”
These educated youths had been under his watch since they came from the city. He had a clear idea of their character.

Lu Shan might be playful, but he wasn’t reckless enough to attack others for no reason.

And Zhang Yunlan had been sneaky and dishonest many times. He knew this very well.

“Squad Leader, I didn’t—mmm… she’s lying. If I did use a stick to hit the nest, then why didn’t you see a stick at the scene? Didn’t we take you there just now?”
Zhang Yunlan said smugly, not at all worried.

Li Bing thought about it and realized it made sense. He had gone to the mountain earlier and looked under the tree several times but found no trace of a stick.

“Su Tangxue, I did go up the mountain just now, and I didn’t see any stick either.”

Su Tangxue frowned deeply. “What about the beehive? I remember there was still a beehive there.”

Back then, the beehive had shattered to pieces when it hit the ground, and a swarm of bees was still surrounding the area. She thought it wasn’t worth it and didn’t ask Lu Shan to retrieve it.

“I didn’t see that either.”

“How is that possible?” Su Tangxue couldn’t believe what she was hearing.

Could someone have taken it?

But taking a beehive without precautions would mean getting badly stung.

“Squad Leader, Su Tangxue is lying. Arrest her and punish them both severely!”
Zhang Yunlan said proudly, not the least bit worried.

She had already sent the village cripple up the mountain to hide the evidence, so now she had no fear.

She just hoped the squad leader would arrest Su Tangxue and punish her—ideally send her off to labor reform.

Lu Qinglin had been listening the whole time and felt something was off.

“Uncle Li, I went up the mountain yesterday. There was definitely a beehive and a hornet’s nest in the tree. If what Zhang Zhiqing says is true—that she didn’t hit it—then that hornet’s nest should still be hanging there.”

Li Bing nodded. That made sense. But when he had gone to the mountain earlier, it was already getting dark, so he hadn’t looked up into the tree and didn’t know if the hive was still there.

Su Tangxue suddenly realized something. “Exactly, Uncle Li. We just need to go tomorrow and check if there are any marks on the tree where the stick hit the nest. Then we’ll know who’s lying.”

“No… mmm… they’re lying… trying to stall for time.”
Zhang Yunlan panicked.

Su Tangxue looked at her sharply. “Zhang Zhiqing, are you getting nervous?”

“Of course not… mmm… I’m just angry… After all, this was your fault. Who knows what you’ll do tonight—maybe sneak up the mountain and remove the hive in the dark.”