Chapter 17.1

Liu Xiaozhu crawled back a few steps, trying to distance himself from the fierce little girl. She looked good, but she was too fierce and brutal. Damn it, if he had known earlier, he wouldn’t have dared to have any ideas about her.

Although the bag was given to him by Jiang Hongyu, it had already passed through one pair of hands. Gu Qingchuan’s words still echoed in his mind, and of course, he didn’t dare to expose Gu Qingchuan, “Little Jiang Ci, just look and give it back to me…”

Jiang Ci stepped on his leg to prevent him from escaping. She opened the bag and froze. She had thought it contained her lost belongings, but none of it was hers. Among the items she recognized was an earring belonging to Jiang Hongyu.

Jiang Hongyu would never be foolish enough to put her own things in there. Whose bag was this?

She crouched down and asked slowly, “Before I came to find you, who else looked for you?”

“Only Jiang Hongyu,” Liu Xiaozhu said, fearing he might get beaten. He pleaded, “Little Jiang Ci, I was wrong. Jiang Hongyu gave me two hundred yuan. This bag doesn’t contain your things, does it? I really don’t know. Why don’t you just take it away?”

In truth, he did know, but he didn’t dare to say it, fearing he might get killed.

Jiang Hongyu was quick on her feet and had already dragged her man over. Jiang Ci heard Jiang Hongyu’s crying and cursing from afar. “Sun Changshun, I knew you were still thinking about Ji Laifeng! How can you justify being alone together late at night?”

“Please don’t say such nonsense. I just went to understand the case,” Sun Changshun replied.

“Why can’t you go during the day? You insist on going at night. You’re just taking the opportunity to meet her in secret. I’m telling you, I will never divorce you, even if I have to rot in prison forever. You will never get to remarry.”

“What kind of nonsense are you talking about? Why bring up going to prison? What exactly have you done behind my back?”

The two of them were about to arrive, so Jiang Ci threw the silk bag back at Liu Xiaozhu. “Be smart later. If you can keep quiet, then don’t say anything!”

“Okay, okay. Anyway, I only have one line tonight; I won’t dare to spread rumors about you,” Liu Xiaozhu hurriedly nodded.

Jiang Ci pushed Liu Xiaozhu out from behind the house. “Little uncle, I caught a thief just as you arrived.”

Sun Changshun was taken aback. He had just left Jiang Ci, and the little girl had run to the Shitou Bridge area where the little hoodlums gathered. She was really brave.

Sun Changshun was scared by her courage. “How can you come here alone at night? If anything happens to you, Grandpa Jiang will go crazy.”

“I came out to look for my mom and saw Liu Xiaozhu sneakily holding a bag while mentioning my aunt’s name. I just chased him here when you all arrived,” Jiang Ci explained.

Jiang Ci glanced at Jiang Hongyu, thinking, I’m just talking nonsense; let’s see how you jump around.

“You’re talking nonsense,” Jiang Hongyu retorted. Seeing Liu Xiaozhu still holding the silk bag she had given him, and since Jiang Ci was present if Sun Changshun opened the bag in front of them, it would confirm the chaotic relationship between the two of them.

“Sun Changshun, I’m telling you, you won’t believe me, but Jiang Ci and Liu Xiaozhu have been together for a long time, and she even gave her things to Liu Xiaozhu. If you don’t believe me, just open that bag and see for yourself!”

At that moment, Jiang Hongyu felt no guilt in her heart. Over a decade ago, when she used the same method to frame Ji Laifeng, she did not dare to look Ji Laifeng in the eye.

This time, she fixed her gaze on Jiang Ci, her eyes almost bloodshot. No one knew how much she despised Jiang Ci.

Originally, she was the most treasured daughter of the old Jiang family.

She had three older brothers, and her father, Grandpa Jiang, favored her the most. He had promised that he would arrange for her early retirement and let her work as a secretary at the mechanical factory.

He would give her the small courtyard as a dowry when she got married. No one among her brothers and sisters-in-law dared to oppose this.

But what happened later? She merely found someone she liked and used a little trick, and her father nearly cut ties with her.

Her wedding was so shabby; the promised job was gone, and there was no dowry.

Grandpa Jiang no longer acknowledged her as his daughter.

He even fell seriously ill, and Jiang Ci, that little girl, was so scheming. She ran to the mountains to pick tea leaves to win his favor, boiled medicine for him, and kept him company to alleviate his boredom.

Jiang Ci replaced her and became her father’s most beloved granddaughter.

Jiang Ci had taken everything away from her in the old Jiang family.

Sun Changshun felt something was off.

How could Jiang Ci, with her excellent conditions, possibly be interested in someone as plain as Liu Xiaozhu? “There must be a mistake. Xiao Ci would never look at Liu Xiaozhu. I’ll take her back to the station and question her slowly.”

Jiang Hongyu snatched the small bag from Liu Xiaozhu’s arms. “What’s there to interrogate? Just open it and see what’s inside, then ask Liu Xiaozhu, who gave it to him, and everything will be clear.” This stubborn girl couldn’t deny it no matter what.

Jiang Ci placed her hand on the bag, blocking Jiang Hongyu. “Wait a minute. This could also be a frame-up. Auntie, don’t you think so? How can you be sure the things inside are mine?”

“If it’s not yours, why did you happen to be at Liu Xiaozhu’s house tonight? Jiang Ci, don’t deny it. My dad taught you for over ten years, and I never expected him to raise such a shameless person.”

“Jiang Hongyu, how can you speak like that?” Sun Changshun interrupted sharply. “Xiao Ci is your niece; do you really want to be so ruthless?”

“Sun Changshun, are you afraid to act fairly because that little girl has acknowledged Cui Pingzhou as her father?”

Just the thought of her man having just drunk tea with Ji Laifeng made jealousy rob Jiang Hongyu of her last ounce of reason. “If it weren’t for that little girl, the job and the small courtyard would have been ours. My father wouldn’t have ignored me. Now there’s a chance to deal with her; why aren’t you making a move?”

Sun Changshun was at a loss for words.

“Jiang Hongyu, you really have gone mad.”

Sun Changshun didn’t dare to take the bag. The contents could potentially destroy another young girl’s life.

That year, he had just returned from military service, and Auntie and his Eldest aunt arranged matches for him. The girl he liked was also surrounded like this, pointed at and criticized, called shameless, and accused of being involved with a thug. Later, he got engaged to Jiang Hongyu.

And now, that girl from years ago had become a widow. She asked him: “Sun Changshun, I didn’t get involved with anyone. Why didn’t you believe me back then?”

The questioning left him speechless; that year, it was all decided by his parents. By the time he realized what was happening, everything had changed.

Jiang Ci let go and asked again, “Auntie, are you sure you want to report your niece? You’re certain this won’t be a deliberate frame-up?”

Jiang Hongyu was resolute. “I saw Liu Xiaozhu come out of your house. You handed him this bag at the door.”

“Alright then, Uncle, you can open it in front of my Auntie and see for yourself,” Jiang Ci said with a cold smile. The more certain Jiang Hongyu was, the louder the slap in the face would be later.

Sun Changshun’s face turned ashen as he took the bag. “Xiao Ci, your uncle is not blind. Today’s incident is quite suspicious. I definitely can’t let anyone wrong you. I will investigate this thoroughly…”

He opened the bag and took one look, his expression suddenly becoming very grim.

Jiang Hongyu felt triumphant. In this day and age, it is all too easy to ruin someone’s reputation. She had even given Liu Xiaozhu 200 yuan.

Jiang Hongyu added fuel to the fire. “Liu Xiaozhu, tell my husband where all these things came from!”

Liu Xiaozhu thought about the two beatings he had taken that night and spoke honestly, “That’s a strange question. Didn’t you give me this bag? You also gave me 200 yuan!”

Jiang Hongyu was taken aback. ‘No, no, this wasn’t right. Why was Liu Xiaozhu changing his story?’

She was afraid of the night being long and fraught with troubles, so she hurried over.

Jiang Hongyu lunged at Liu Xiaozhu and began hitting him. “This isn’t what we agreed upon! You, a petty thug, dare to frame me? That was clearly given to you by Jiang Ci!”

This was the third time Liu Xiaozhu had been beaten that day, and his luck had run out. There was even a police officer standing right there.

“Uncle Sun, this really was given to me by your wife. Let me be honest; Jiang Hongyu said that if I took the things, I could marry little Jiang Ci tomorrow. I was foolish and greedy to believe her nonsense. Even if you take me to the station, I’ll still say the same thing.”

Damn it, he was done playing along with these crazy people.

“Sun Changshun, you can’t believe this thug’s words!” Jiang Hongyu hurried to explain.

“Then tell me, what’s the story behind these things?” Sun Changshun asked as he shook the bag, causing everything inside to spill onto the ground.

A few old skirts, several hairpins, a silver earring, and what terrified her most were the 2000 yuan that Mei Baoying had given her, which scattered everywhere.

“How did it become my stuff?” Jiang Hongyu quickly dropped to the floor, trying to pick up the scattered money, but there was too much. She panicked. “Sun Changshun, we’ve been robbed! Hurry up and investigate!”

Sun Changshun understood everything now. Jiang Hongyu’s framing tactics were not sophisticated, and she had even been caught switching items before her husband. Now, she was only focused on picking up the money scattered on the ground.

Their family wasn’t wealthy; at least one or 2000 yuan was lying there. Where did it come from?

Sun Changshun felt a chill in his heart. “Everyone, go to the station! Each of you needs to clarify what happened!”

—o—o—o—

In the interrogation room, Zhao Qishu personally interrogated Jiang Hongyu. “First, explain where that 2000 yuan came from.”

Jiang Hongyu remained defiant. “Why should I tell you where my family’s money comes from? Director Zhao has no right to interfere, right?”

There was no way she could reveal the source of the money. As long as there was no evidence, she would probably be released by tomorrow. “My husband is the deputy captain. Where is he? Why haven’t you released me yet?”

“Sun Changshun has been temporarily suspended from duty and is under investigation.” Zhao Qishu shook his head. This woman was both foolish and reckless. “He’s a public servant. You have no job, and your family suddenly has a large income. Of course, they need to investigate the source of the money through him. If you don’t speak, you’re only hurting your husband.”

“This has nothing to do with him.” Jiang Hongyu lunged forward but was pressed back down into her chair by the police officer behind her.

She had never thought that accepting money for favors would impact her husband. Over the years, with two children at home and no job, the family depended solely on Sun Changshun’s salary. The house they lived in had also been assigned to them by his workplace.

Her natal family was unreliable, and if something happened to her husband, what would happen to her two children?

At that moment, Jiang Hongyu felt utterly crushed.

“Sit still and honestly answer the questions,” Zhao Qishu instructed as he showed her three statements. “Alright, let’s not talk about the source of that 2000 yuan for now. Let’s discuss your attempt to harm your niece.”

Jiang Hongyu didn’t even look at the testimonies. Trembling, she replied, “They are all framing me. It’s your job as a police officer to clear my name. I will not admit to things I didn’t do.”

“As long as there is evidence, whether you admit it or not won’t matter,” Zhao Qishu slammed his hand on the table. “Liu Xiaozhu has confessed that you gave him 200 yuan. He said that you wanted to frame your little niece and make her look like she was having an affair.”

Zhao Qishu felt angry just thinking about it. How could such a lively and lovely girl could provoke Jiang Hongyu? “How could little Jiang Ci have such an aunt like you? What did she do to offend you?”

Offend? Jiang Hongyu felt her jealousy and hatred boil over. She had fallen to this state all because of Jiang Ci.

If it weren’t for Jiang Ci, she would be the only beloved daughter in the Jiang family. Even if she had made a small mistake in marrying someone she loved, her father would have forgiven her instead of abandoning her to raise little Jiang Ci anew.

Jiang Ci had taken her father, her dowry, and her job. Without a dowry or a job, she could never hold her head high in the Sun family. With an obedient and clever granddaughter around, her father didn’t even want his only daughter anymore.

She hated it.

Tears streamed down Jiang Hongyu’s face. No one understood the pain and hatred in her heart. She was merely trying to reclaim what was hers; what was wrong with that?

She wished for Jiang Ci to die, and when Mei Baoying found her, even if she hadn’t given her the 2000 yuan, she would have agreed to do anything to erase Jiang Ci from the world.

Zhao Qishu increased the intensity of the interrogation. “Little Jiang Ci said someone pushed her from behind that day. We have the testimony from Ji Laifeng, who saw a woman push Jiang Ci from behind. Though she didn’t get a clear look at the face, Liu’s sister-in-law, who also went up the mountain to pick chestnuts, confirmed that you and Jiang Ci were alone together. You are the prime suspect.”

He placed the 2000 yuan cash in front of Jiang Hongyu and used a flashlight to show her each bill.

“This money is the bribe paid to you by Mei Baoying for arranging a job. The briber marked an invisible dot on the lower left corner of the bills with a special pen, which becomes visible under light. Why did Mei Baoying give you that 2000 yuan? If you don’t want to confess, you’ll have to bear the blame alone.”

He continued, “Do you know how many years you could end up in prison for this?”

Zhao Qishu felt no pity for this petty and vicious woman; he only regretted what had happened to Sun Changshun.

“You won’t speak? Your man will also be implicated. We have reason to suspect that he and you are in cahoots, both involved in the scheme to extort large sums of money and harm your own niece. Poor children, both of their parents are going to prison…”

“No, this has nothing to do with Sun Changshun,” Jiang Hongyu’s mental defenses completely collapsed. “I… I’ll say it. Mei Baoying gave me this money. She said I was Jiang Ci’s real aunt. If I took action, no one would suspect me; everyone would just think it was an accident.”

“Why would Mei Baoying do such a thing? She has no grievances with Jiang Ci. Her motives don’t make sense,” Zhao Qishu pressed further.

“How could she have no grievances? You underestimate Mei Baoying too much. She has long noticed that her disabled stepson likes little Jiang Ci’s mother. She said that if little Jiang Ci died, Lin Wan would surely have a heart attack and wouldn’t survive. If Lin Wan died, Cui Pingzhou wouldn’t live long either. If that annoying disabled man died, her youngest son would have no rivals left.”

In order to convince the police officer that Mei Baoying had motives for harm, Jiang Hongyu revealed everything she knew.

“That woman is more cunning than I am. She tried to persuade me to harm little Jiang Ci, saying that she once changed her husband’s medication to marry Cui Yuanshan sooner. She told me that if I wanted to take my father’s job and house, I had to be a bit ruthless; after all, no one would know. Plus, I could get 2000 yuan for free, so there was no reason to refuse.”

Zhao Qishu was astonished. How could this matter involve Old Lady Cui from twenty years ago? He called in a trusted apprentice and sent him to the Cui family while he continued to interrogate Jiang Hongyu.

—o—o—o—