Chapter 37: Now the Evidence Is Irrefutable

Even at this point, Xu Lecheng refused to admit it. "Team leader, this is slander, this is defamation!"

"I have never done such a thing."

The team leader had long expected him to deny it and sneered, "Did you think I only found this one piece of evidence?"

Xu Lecheng’s heart skipped a beat, filled with an ominous premonition. "Team leader, I know you have a prejudice against me..."

"You don't need to say these things to garner sympathy; not a single person here will pity you," the team leader interrupted him.

The people present began to chime in.

"Could it be that Xu Lecheng was once a woman? Using the 'playing the victim' card—that’s something only a woman would do."

"He truly is Zhang Qingqing’s husband, just as adept at playing the victim as she is. I bet this couple hasn't spent much time doing anything other than scheming against others with these tricks."

Being compared to a woman, Xu Lecheng flushed with humiliation. "Team leader, you have no right to treat me like this!"

He had to get home as quickly as possible and have his parents help him; only then could he return to the city and finalize his divorce.

The team leader looked at him with disgust and shouted, "Bring out the evidence!"

"Let Xu Lecheng see if I have concrete proof!"

A few educated youth, accompanied by the village doctor and two villagers, walked up to the team leader.

When the doctor appeared, Xu Lecheng’s heart sank further and further. He wanted to say something, but the team leader gestured for an educated youth to cover his mouth, denying him any chance to spout nonsense.

The doctor pushed his glasses up his nose, stared at Xu Lecheng intently for a long moment, and confirmed, "He is the person who came to me to buy medicine a few days ago!"

"He bought several types of medicine at once: abortifacients, sleeping pills, and cold medicine."

"At the time, he was bundled up tightly and his eyes were shifty, so I kept an extra eye on him."

He hadn't wanted to sell the medicine back then, but he couldn't resist the large amount of money offered—a full thirty yuan.

The two villagers pointed at Xu Lecheng and said:

"It’s him! I saw with my own eyes that he ducked into the small woods, and when he came out, he was bundled up tightly. I was curious, so I followed him, and I ended up seeing him run into the health clinic."

"I saw him coming out of the clinic. At the time, I thought, which lunatic is this, dressing like that in the heat of summer? I wanted to see who it was, so I followed him all the way and saw him take off those layers halfway there."

Yan Ziyue, who was watching the show, thought to herself: If you say Xu Lecheng is smart, he knew to buy medicine to sedate Zhang Qingqing to frame her in a bed with another youth. If you say he is stupid, he knew to bundle himself up tightly—yet he was foolish enough to run to the village clinic to buy the medicine.

However, this was a good thing for her. The more Xu Lecheng courted his own destruction, the more miserable his end would be, and the less likely he would be to achieve the status and influence he had in his previous life.

Xu Lecheng was panicked, making muffled, whimpering sounds. It wasn't him! He hadn't done such things! He knew one thing clearly: the more desperate the situation, the less he could afford to admit it.

The team leader signaled for the youth to let him go. He sneered, "Xu Lecheng, the evidence is ironclad now, so it doesn't matter if you admit it or not."

"To be precise, I don't need your confession."

"Before you were dragged back here, I already called the authorities. They have stated clearly that an educated youth like you, who has no character and has committed nothing but evil in the village, should never dream of returning."

"Furthermore..." he said with a face full of mockery, "you will no longer receive any preferential treatment, and your family will be implicated and affected in every way."

As soon as these words were spoken, the crowd applauded.

"Excellent! This is truly the best punishment!"

"To deal with someone like Xu Lecheng, you have to use methods like this!"

Yan Ziyue felt incredibly relieved and satisfied. In her previous life, Xu Lecheng had held a sense of superiority over her, first because he was an educated youth, and second because he was from the city. Now, he had lost both of those identities. It was truly satisfying.

Xu Lecheng looked as if he had been struck by lightning. He sat slumped on the ground, disbelieving. "How could this be? How could it?"

Why did it turn out like this? According to his plan, after he sent Zhang Qingqing to Wen An's bed, everyone would be busy catching them in the act, and with the Yan family causing a scene, things would spiral out of control. That would have given him enough time to sneak back to the city.

The team leader looked at him with even greater loathing. "I might as well tell you one more thing: out of pity for Wen An's situation, the authorities have already agreed to let him return early."

"Before you were caught and brought back, he had already boarded the transport."

Xu Lecheng sat bolt upright, his face twisted. "On what grounds?"

"On the grounds that Wen An worked hard here and lived his life honestly!" the team leader mocked. "Do you think everyone is like you?"

"Spending your days not working properly, only knowing how to seduce young girls in the village and scam them out of their money and valuables!"

"You and Zhang Qingqing are truly a match made in heaven!"

At this moment, Yan Ziyue stepped forward. "Speaking of money, I have to mention the four hundred yuan Xu Lecheng owes me." She glanced coldly at him. "I gave you two days to raise the funds, and now it is time for you to pay me back."

The mention of four hundred yuan changed the way the villagers looked at both her and Xu Lecheng.

"Is Yan Ziyue really that rich? We work ourselves to the bone our whole lives and can't even earn that much."

"It’s not just that she’s rich; it’s that Xiao Heshuo is good at making money. He’s skilled at hunting and often finds wild goods in the mountains to sell in town. Who knows how much he has saved over these years."

Many villagers felt a pang of regret that they hadn't married their daughters off to Xiao Heshuo. If they had, they and their daughters would be the ones enjoying this good fortune.

"Have you all forgotten?" Miao Lanlan, who had arrived on the scene, curled her lip and scoffed. "Back then, it was Xiao Heshuo who begged to marry Yan Ziyue; it wasn't the Yan family trying to force her onto him."

"For those of you wanting to marry your daughters to him, you should see if he’d even look their way."

Many villagers remembered. "Now that Miao Lanlan mentions it, I recall. Back then, Xiao Heshuo was determined to marry Yan Ziyue, and the Yan family gave him all sorts of trouble. It was only after he dealt with Yan Zhuangshi that he finally married her."

"At the time, Yan Ziyue didn't want to marry him, saying his cold face was too scary. When Xiao Heshuo is cold-faced, he really is quite terrifying."

Xiao Heshuo’s low, calm voice carried a chill. "The only person I have ever wanted to marry, from beginning to end, is Yan Ziyue."

"If anyone thinks of offering me their daughter or stirring up trouble, I will not be lenient."

He knew exactly what some people in the village were thinking. Back when his parents were still alive, some villagers had seen that his family was doing well and tried every way possible to arrange a marriage, claiming how wonderful their daughters were. It was all for the sake of his family’s prosperity and money.

Some villagers laughed awkwardly, but others had not yet given up their designs. Yan Ziyue saw this, but she said nothing more. She knew very well that no matter how much she said, it was useless. The most important things were Xiao Heshuo’s attitude and her own capability to handle things.

"Xu Lecheng, pay up!"