Chapter 94

With someone supporting her, Lu Jiaojiao became bolder.

At the brigade health station, in front of the Women’s Federation comrades, Comrade Qian, Secretary Liu, and others, she cried as if her heart was breaking.

“My mother-in-law, Yin Zhihe, is inhumane. They locked me in a small dark room, didn’t feed me, and kicked my stomach every day. I bled a lot, and then they hit me on the head and dumped me in the hospital, leaving me there without care. The people in the brigade can all testify to this.”

“A few days ago, a few educated youth came to our brigade, one of them was called Feng Shishi, she’s really beautiful, and she’s an educated youth from the capital. She has money and can buy meat for my mother-in-law.”

“My mother-in-law let her rent a room in my house, and now she wants her to be a wife for Yin Zhihe, forcing me to divorce him.”

What?

The Hongqi Brigade had just had an incident involving the assault of a female educated youth?

Now Xiangyang Brigade had people making advances toward a female educated youth from the capital?

If this issue escalated, and it was brought to the county, the commune cadres could forget about their positions.

Comrade Qian was furious and explained to the Women’s Federation people: “Comrade Lu Jiaojiao hasn’t gone to the brigade’s secretary or the brigade leader to seek justice, and hasn’t reported this to our commune.”

“Our commune will severely punish this criminal behavior of harming female comrades.”

Comrade Qian stated, “As the commune secretary, our commune will fully cooperate with the Women’s Federation’s work.”

Representing the commune, Comrade Qian made his position clear.

Then, in front of the Women’s Federation comrades, he issued orders to Secretary Liu and Captain Tang.

“There have been many disputes and issues regarding educated youth staying in local villagers’ homes. Your brigade must improve the housing situation for the educated youth. From now on, no educated youth should stay with villagers.”

“Here’s the plan, we will report this to the organization at the commune level, and see if we can allocate land for the educated youth who want to live separately, and provide certain preferential policies.”

The issue with Zhao Yongsen from the Hongqi Brigade had already drawn attention since Comrade Qian came to the housewarming feast.

Currently, Zhao Yongsen had been arrested by the police and was temporarily detained at the commune.

But there was a new issue with the educated youth Liu Cuifang, who suddenly changed her mind and decided not to report Zhao Yongsen. The commune police were still figuring out how to handle the situation.

Captain Tang also realized that if another female educated youth encountered the same issue, both the commune and the brigade cadres would face serious punishment.

The issue of housing for the educated youth had become their top priority.

The audacity of Shen Guixiang and Yin Zhihe, trying to make a move on the newly arrived female educated youth from the capital, was shocking.

If Lu Jiaojiao hadn’t exposed this matter, when the problem eventually blew up, everyone would have been in deep trouble.

Captain Tang didn’t expect that, while he and Secretary Liu were focused on the construction of the rabbit farm, the Yin family would cause such a big mess.

For those who constantly created trouble and disrupted the brigade’s work, it was time to take strict action.

Furthermore, the things Yin Zhihe and his mother had done to his family’s Weiwei hadn’t been settled yet.

Captain Tang suggested, “The assault on a female comrade, causing her to be unable to have children, is an atrocious act that our brigade will not tolerate. If the investigation confirms this, our brigade will send the perpetrators to the commune for legal action.”

“At the same time, we will resolve the housing issue for the educated youth as soon as possible.”

“Good, it seems that both your brigade’s cadres and the commune weren’t aware of this situation.”

Here is the translation:

“Good, it seems that neither your brigade’s cadres nor the commune were aware of this situation.”

“Although Comrade Lu Jiaojiao reported this matter to us bypassing the normal channels, it’s a good thing that female comrades are awakening. After the investigation is cleared up, we hope that the brigade and commune will cooperate with our Women’s Federation to provide the greatest support for Comrade Lu Jiaojiao, a brave female comrade.”

“Once the issue is resolved, we will use Comrade Lu Jiaojiao’s case as a typical example to promote female awareness.”

With the Women’s Federation from the county involved, both the brigade and commune would fully cooperate with the Federation’s work.

Lu Jiaojiao’s accusation that Shen Guixiang and her son assaulted her is something that can be testified to by not only the members of the Xiangyang Brigade, the educated youth, and Lu Jiaojiao’s family, but is also a solid fact.

As for whether Lu Jiaojiao’s stomach was damaged by Yin Zhihe and his mother, based on Lu Jiaojiao’s testimony, she had been hit in the head and hospitalized at the commune hospital, where she secretly saw a gynecologist.

The gynecologist at the commune hospital could testify to this.

Comrade Qian had arranged for the police to accompany the Women’s Federation to visit the commune hospital, which indeed confirmed this.

As for Shen Guixiang trying to make advances toward the female educated youth from the capital and forcing Lu Jiaojiao to divorce Yin Zhihe, Yin Yueping and her husband were also involved and could testify to this.

When the police, accompanied by the Women’s Federation comrades, went to the state-run restaurant, Yin Yueping’s husband hesitated.

But thinking of what Shen Guixiang had done, he realized that while his wife’s family was eating well every day, he, as a cook earning a wage, was living on thin broth every day. Not just him and Yin Yueping’s family, but even the elderly and children were suffering along with them.

All of this was caused by his mother-in-law, Shen Guixiang.

Chen Fugui made up his mind and truthfully told the police and Women’s Federation comrades about Shen Guixiang’s plan to force Lu Jiaojiao and Yin Zhihe to divorce.

“Police comrades, my wife Yueping and I didn’t agree to what my mother-in-law did.”

Chen Fugui explained, “I know exactly what kind of person my wife’s younger brother is, and Yueping and I are clear about it. We wouldn’t let him harm a girl. This girl, an educated youth from the capital, is innocent and naïve, and my mother-in-law doesn’t have the sense to understand that. How could we help her do bad things?”

“Oh, my mother-in-law… don’t even get me started.”

“Twice she hurt my wife’s younger sister-in-law and had her hospitalized at the commune hospital, then just left her there without any care, and Yueping and I had to pay the medical bills.”

“I’m suffering here. The whole family depends on my small salary, but my mother-in-law’s actions have caused so much trouble. My salary can’t even cover the medical bills. This month, I even had to borrow money from my colleagues.”

“Please, police comrades, help us. Can you make my mother-in-law repay the medical bills we’ve had to cover at the commune hospital?”

When it came to Shen Guixiang, Chen Fugui couldn’t hold back his frustration.

Of course, the Women’s Federation and the police couldn’t handle family financial disputes. Once the investigation was clear, they could only give a perfunctory response and left the state-run restaurant.

Thus, Lu Jiaojiao’s accusations against Shen Guixiang and her son were fully understood, and next, they would go to Xiangyang Brigade to arrest the culprits.

This egregious treatment of a female comrade, according to the Women’s Federation’s plan, would demand that they fight for the maximum benefit for Lu Jiaojiao and help her divorce Yin Zhihe.

This was in line with the conditions for a typical case of female empowerment.

Of course, as part of their demonstration, the Women’s Federation would also help Comrade Lu Jiaojiao find a way forward, helping her find a suitable job, so that those female comrades who were still suffering, oppressed, and enduring hardship could see that in the new society, women could hold up half the sky, and women could live without men.

However, when the Women’s Federation and the police arrived at Xiangyang Brigade to arrest the perpetrators, an unexpected turn of events occurred.

Lu Jiaojiao had changed her mind.