Chapter 31: Shen Jiaojiao, I’m Sorry

The Public Security officer looked at them sternly.

Finally, his gaze landed on Mother Fang.

“Even your son never said that Shen Jiaojiao seduced him. Why are you trying to tarnish a young girl’s reputation?”

Mother Fang was stunned. “I… I just spoke without thinking.”

Fang Qinghe covered his face. He had never seen such a foolish mother.

The Public Security officer shot her a glare before turning to Fang Qinghe.

“There are no other witnesses to this incident, so we can’t close the case based on testimony. However, Fang Qinghe, you knew that Shen Jiaojiao had a fiancé, yet you still met with her alone in private. This is called failing to avoid suspicion.

You can’t blame her fiancé for beating you up.”

The Public Security officer concluded: “Since that’s the case, the root cause of this incident is you, Fang Qinghe. Go apologize to Shen Jiaojiao, and this matter will be settled.”

Fang Qinghe let out a deep sigh.

Apologizing was fine.

As long as he didn’t have to go to jail, anything was acceptable.

Shen Jiaojiao felt somewhat dissatisfied.

That was it? Just an apology?

She had thought that this time, she could finally send this bastard to prison!

This was far too lenient on him.

Xu Mo secretly clenched his fists.

He was already thinking of finding another opportunity to beat Fang Qinghe up again.

If he crippled him, then Fang Qinghe wouldn’t be able to go around causing trouble anymore.

Fang Qinghe walked up to Shen Jiaojiao.

Gritting his teeth, he said: “Shen Jiaojiao, I’m sorry.”

Shen Jiaojiao rolled her eyes at him. “Louder. I didn’t hear you.”

Fang Qinghe took a deep breath, suppressing the anger in his heart, and raised his voice. “Shen Jiaojiao, I’m sorry!”

Shen Jiaojiao let out a cold snort. “Get lost. I don’t want to see you.”

When they stepped out of the Public Security Bureau, the sky was not too late in the evening.

Liu Xiaolan took Shen Jiaojiao’s hand and spoke gently: “Jiaojiao, let’s go to the Supply and Marketing Cooperative. Auntie will buy you something to eat. You injured your leg, so you need to nourish yourself properly.”

Mother Fang, upon hearing this, let out a cold snort.

“If you want to waste your own time, that’s up to you. We’re not waiting for you.”

Mother Fang spoke as she attempted to climb onto the ox cart.

Unexpectedly, Liu Xiaolan stopped her.

“This ox cart is for Jiaojiao to sit on. You better get lost.”

Mother Fang became furious. “You all have bicycles! Why do you still need the ox cart?”

“A bicycle is nowhere near as comfortable as an ox cart. My Jiaojiao needs to lie down and rest in the back. If you keep pestering, and her leg doesn’t heal properly, I’ll make sure to demand compensation from you until you’re left with nothing but your underwear.”

“Do you have no sense of reason?”

“I don’t. I’m completely unreasonable. What can you do about it?”

Liu Xiaolan’s attitude was extremely arrogant.

Mother Fang glanced at her three sons.

Each one was tall and well-built.

Then, she looked at her own son.

Not only was his face bruised and swollen, but he was also short and skinny, looking like a sickly weakling.

Bah, how could she think of her own son like that?

Either way, she was outnumbered, and she had no leverage to fight back.

“Fine! Then use the ox cart! At least give me a bicycle!”

Liu Xiaolan stepped in front of the bicycles. “No way. This is my family’s Old Third’s borrowed bike. If you take it and sell it, who am I supposed to go to for compensation?”

Mother Fang was so angry she nearly exploded.

“Do I look like that kind of person?”

“Oh wow, you actually got it right! You really are someone who’s greedy for money, petty-minded, loves stirring up trouble, and even more enjoys scheming behind people’s backs.”

“You… What do you mean by this? You’re not seriously expecting us to walk back, are you?”

“Now that you mention it… I never said that. We’re just heading to the Supply and Marketing Cooperative. If you want to follow, then follow. If you don’t, you can walk back on your own.”

“Liu Xiaolan, you—”

Fang Qinghe tugged on Mother Fang’s sleeve, his face devoid of expression.

“Enough, stop talking. Just follow them.”

At this point, he knew he couldn’t win against these people. He could only swallow his pride and endure.

Lately, Fang Qinghe had been feeling utterly stifled.

It seemed like nothing was going his way.

That shouldn’t be the case!

He was a transmigrator. How could he be doing so miserably?

Fang Qinghe seriously reflected on himself. There had to be something wrong somewhere.

Meanwhile, Liu Xiaolan took Shen Jiaojiao to the Supply and Marketing Cooperative.

“Jiaojiao, take whatever you want to eat. Auntie will pay for it.”

Shen Jiaojiao was deeply moved.

How could her mother-in-law be so kind?

Even though their family wasn’t wealthy, they had never mistreated her.

She was always well-fed, with three meals a day filled with delicious food, and there was even meat in every meal.

In her past life, her eyes must have been blind.

“Auntie, I should be the one buying things for you. You work so hard cooking for me every day, and I haven’t even properly repaid you. No matter what, today, I have to buy something for you. Otherwise, I’ll feel too guilty to let you bring me meals in the future.”

She had originally planned to find an excuse to come to the county herself and take out the food from her space to give to Liu Xiaolan.

But she had never found the right opportunity to visit the county.

Today, since she didn’t have ration tickets, she couldn’t buy grain. However, she could still buy some snacks that didn’t require tickets.

“Oh, come on! You’re about to become my daughter-in-law. Isn’t it natural for me to cook for you? Today, Auntie is buying for you. Don’t waste your money.”

Shen Jiaojiao stubbornly shook her head, insisting on paying herself.

After much back and forth, Liu Xiaolan finally gave up on the idea of buying things for Shen Jiaojiao.

After all, despite Shen Jiaojiao’s sweet mouth and soft heart, she was incredibly stubborn.

Once she made a decision, not even ten oxen could pull her back.

Shen Jiaojiao picked out peach crisps, canned food, and some other snacks that didn’t require ration tickets.

Since she didn’t bring tickets, there weren’t many things she could buy.

If she could go to the black market, she wouldn’t need tickets at all.

But with so many people around and prying eyes everywhere, now was not a good time to visit the black market.

“That’s enough, that’s enough. Stop wasting money.” Liu Xiaolan couldn’t bear to let Shen Jiaojiao spend her money and quickly stopped her from taking more items.

“How is treating you well considered wasting money?” Shen Jiaojiao said sweetly.

Liu Xiaolan truly felt that this daughter-in-law was wonderful—beautiful, kind-hearted, and sweet-tongued.

On the side, Mother Fang and Fang Qinghe’s expressions changed as they watched this scene unfold.

Fang Qinghe felt certain that his mother must have treated Shen Jiaojiao poorly, which was why she distanced herself from him and turned to Xu Mo instead.

After all, back when Shen Jiaojiao liked him, Mother Fang had always acted arrogant toward her.

She would boast to everyone, saying: “My son is truly impressive—even a golden phoenix from the city is eager to marry him.

But I don’t fancy a daughter-in-law who can’t carry anything or do any labor.

Marrying her means not only losing out on work points but also having to treat her like some deity. I’d have to be crazy to want such a daughter-in-law.”

Thinking about all this, Fang Qinghe couldn’t help but feel even more disgusted with his mother.

Meanwhile, Mother Fang felt a sudden sense of disparity when she saw Shen Jiaojiao buying so many things for Liu Xiaolan.

In the past, weren’t these things all bought for her?

She still remembered that when Shen Jiaojiao was pursuing her son, she would bring gifts to their home every few days.

Because of this, their household never lacked food or meat.

But now that she thought about it, it had been a long time since Shen Jiaojiao last brought anything to their house!

And now, the person she was trying to please had changed—it was Liu Xiaolan instead.

Mother Fang suddenly felt that their relationship seemed far too harmonious!

Wasn’t Shen Jiaojiao supposed to be difficult and demanding?

Wasn’t Liu Xiaolan supposed to be a vicious mother-in-law?

How could the two of them be getting along so well?