Chapter 9

“Dad, earlier you asked us to go into the mountains to find Comrade An and Brother Huo. We actually ran into Brother Huo halfway there. We went to the trap where Comrade An fell—it really had a sickle in it, and there was a piece of torn cloth on the tree branches by the hole. These must belong to Comrade An,” said a handsome, delicate-looking young boy.

Everyone turned to look. A rust-covered sickle and a piece of torn fabric that matched the color of An Zhicheng’s clothing—what more proof was needed? Clearly, Li Yanli and Zhang Chunmei were lying.

“Oh my god! What kind of hatred is this? Trying to take someone’s life wasn’t enough—they had to slander her reputation too? If this had really worked, just think what would’ve happened to Comrade An. It’s terrifying.”

“Exactly! Besides, Comrade An’s only been here for a few days. It’s not like she could’ve offended them already. Could it be that they’re jealous because she’s prettier than they are?”

“That would be ridiculous… wouldn’t it?”

“Li Zhicheng always looked like a strong-headed person. And that Zhang Zhicheng, she seemed so honest—who knew she had such a vicious heart?”

“My son used to try to curry favor with Zhang Zhicheng. No way—I’m going home and telling him to stay far away. That kind of woman is trouble.”

“…”

The brigade leader silenced the noisy crowd with a shout. Once everyone quieted down, he turned to Li Yanli and Zhang Chunmei with a stern expression. “Anything else you want to say?”

Zhang Chunmei was so frightened by the brigade leader’s gaze that her legs went weak. Just as she was about to confess, Li Yanli stubbornly shouted, “How do we know you’re not all working together to frame us? Didn’t that comrade just say they ran into Comrade Huo halfway up the mountain? He could’ve used that time to plant the sickle and fabric in the trap when they weren’t looking.”

“Sis, can you just wake up already?” the handsome young man looked speechless. “There were several of us, and Brother Huo was never out of our sight.”

He thought Li Yanli was just grasping at straws, completely pointless. She might as well admit it and try to get a lighter sentence.

“Enough, Xiaocong. Leave the adult matters alone. Go help your mom in the fields,” the brigade leader ordered with a frown.

Although Chen Cong didn’t want to, he couldn’t disobey his father. He left reluctantly.

“Since Comrade Li still refuses to believe it, I have another eyewitness,” Huo Linyuan said at just the right moment. He turned to Lin Muyuan. “Sorry to trouble you.”

Lin Muyuan smiled and glanced at An Lan, giving a discreet nod.
This little girl looked like a fairy—no wonder even this stiff man’s heart had bloomed.

“Brigade Leader, you know I go hunting when I’m free. I overheard these two girls whispering about leaving Comrade An alone in the mountains overnight. How could I ignore that? So I told Huo, and we went looking for her. Thank goodness Huo found her—if he hadn’t, who knows what could’ve happened,” Lin Muyuan said, his face full of lingering fear. No one knew the dangers of the mountain better than he did.

With both physical evidence and a witness, Li Yanli could no longer argue her innocence. Zhang Chunmei quickly confessed and shifted the blame onto Li Yanli.

“You bitch, Zhang Chunmei! You were in on it too—how dare you dump everything on me! I’ll kill you!” Li Yanli shrieked and lunged at Zhang Chunmei, slapping her left and right until Zhang’s face was bruised and swollen.

It wasn’t until others stepped in and pulled them apart that the chaos ended.

“It was you! You said you wanted to teach Comrade An a lesson for Bai Zhicheng’s sake. I told you not to do it, but you threatened me! This had nothing to do with me—it was all you! You’re the one who dragged me into this!”
Zhang Chunmei, usually known as the most mild-mannered among the educated youth, now had a red, flushed face and shouted furiously at Li Yanli.

She was terrified by what the brigade leader had said earlier about punishment. What if she got sent to a remote farm? Would she ever make it back?

Rumor had it that those farms were full of criminals, and women not only lost their reputations, but even surviving was uncertain.

An Lan hadn’t realized Bai Weiwei had played a part in this too, but thinking about it, it made sense. Bai Weiwei had an extremely vain personality. How could she stand anyone in the educated youth camp being more popular than her?

“You bitch!” Li Yanli hadn’t expected the usually timid Zhang Chunmei to turn on her. Her eyes bulged in fury.

The brigade leader didn’t want to hear another word and turned to An Lan:
“Comrades Li and Zhang will be punished by doing manure duty for one year. And half a year’s worth of work points from each of them will go to you as compensation. Is that acceptable?”

He hoped An Zhicheng would agree. Every year, villages were evaluated for the title of ‘Advanced Brigade.’ If they went to the police, their village might lose its qualification.

An Lan understood the brigade leader wanted her to settle privately. After some thought, she figured it wasn’t a bad idea. She hadn’t been here long, and this could help her earn favor with the leader—useful for future matters.

Plus, the punishment was fair.

Each of them earned 5 points per day—equal to a strong laborer. Without lifting a finger for half a year, she’d get full points daily. It was a great deal. No need to worry about food, especially with the money and ration coupons she’d earned from the system. She’d live very well.

So An Lan agreed without much fuss.

But while An Lan agreed, Li Yanli did not. She had slaved away for half a year, working from dawn till dusk to earn those points. Why should An Lan get them?

She was so angry her teeth nearly cracked:
“Brigade Leader, I don’t agree! You’re giving our points to that slut—what are we supposed to eat?”

Zhang Chunmei quickly chimed in, “Yes, Brigade Leader! We barely have enough work points. If we give them to An Lan, we’ll starve!”

“If that’s how you feel, why did you try to harm someone in the first place? If you don’t want to compensate her, fine—I’ll stay out of it and let Comrade An report this to the police,” the brigade leader said coldly, clearly displeased.

At the mention of the police, the two women deflated like popped balloons and collapsed to the ground…

With the matter settled, the crowd gradually dispersed and headed home.

An Lan and Huo Linyuan walked behind the main group.

“Comrade Huo, thank you again. You saved me once more.”
An Lan had been planning to use the ‘Truth Doll’ on Li Yanli if she still refused to confess, but Huo Linyuan had not only brought physical evidence—he’d brought a witness too.

No wonder he had disappeared halfway through the search.

The thought softened her heart. She gave him a grateful smile.
“Comrade Huo, thank you again. You really helped me out.”

Her smile bloomed like a white orchid—stunningly beautiful.

Huo Linyuan was momentarily dazed. He awkwardly looked down and muttered, “…Mm.”