“Police!” A group of officers burst in, followed by Xu Shengli. He had been listening outside, and now, he saw the fierce joy on the young woman’s face.
“Comrade Police, this man pretended to take my cousin’s job. He just denied it, but then he said he bought the job from my cousin. My cousin had an accident that day and was in the hospital. He had no time to worry about work. I believe this man might have hurt my cousin on purpose. Please, Comrade Police, clear our family’s name!” Xu Ying stood there, her small body somehow powerful. She looked at Liu Haile as if he were a weak ant, her eyes filled with cold mockery.
His little sister truly was amazing. As she left, she had told him to wait for her at the police station. If she didn’t find him in twenty minutes, he was to bring the police directly to the factory director’s office. He never expected his little sister to actually find the very person who had hurt his cousin.
“No, I didn’t! It was Zhang Guoqing! I gave him all the money!” Liu Haile cried out, desperate to explain.
“Comrade Police, Liu Haile’s family is complicated. He lives with his sister. His sister is spoiled in our village and never works. Her husband is a Red Army soldier, and he doesn’t earn much each month. But Liu Haile just said he spent eight hundred yuan to buy this job. His brother-in-law only started working a few years ago. His sister can’t save any money, eating and living so well every day. It’s impossible for her to give him money to buy a job. If you don’t believe me, you can go to our village and ask around!” Xu Ying’s eyes lifted slightly, and every word she spoke made Liu Haile’s face turn whiter.
It was over. He was in deep trouble.
Liu Haile was quickly taken away by the police. Director Sun put on a righteous face. “Little Xu, if there’s anything useful for our factory, just tell us. We will definitely help you!”
“Thank you, Director,” Xu Ying said gratefully. She was not ungrateful. Instead, she knew how to appreciate kindness. Since she had come to the factory, she certainly wouldn’t leave without doing something good. Xu Ying looked at Director Sun and smiled. “Director, our duck product is delicious, but many people haven’t tasted it. And people don’t easily accept new things. How about we give a sample of our products to everyone who works in the other factories?”
“How would you deliver this duck product? Won’t the cooked food spoil during delivery?” Director Sun looked unsure, but Little Xu was right. People aren’t quick to try new things. If they rushed to sell it, no one would want it. And even with partners, transporting cooked food was indeed a problem.
“Director Sun, it’s winter now. Look at the ice and snow outside. This duck product can last at least four or five days. If the duck product sells well and makes money, the higher-ups will definitely not just sit by and do nothing!” Xu Ying’s words struck a chord with Director Sun. He smoothed his few strands of hair and smiled. “It’s better to share the good fortune. I’ll do as you say.”
Xu Ying left the food factory feeling happy. She wondered how much her next month’s salary would be.
As soon as Xu Ying and Brother Xu returned to the village, they saw several police officers standing in front of the next-door neighbor’s house. The officers were surrounded by villagers, asking questions about Wu Yimu’s family.
“Yes, yes, Comrade Police, their family eats meat every day! We don’t know where they get so much money!”
“That’s right! Morning, noon, or night, they eat it all the time! Aren’t they afraid of dying from it?”
A short while later, the man next door was arrested. Xu’s mother stood at the door, enjoying the scene. Soon, several police officers came out carrying heavy wooden boxes. No one knew what was inside. Xu’s mother stretched her neck, filled with intense curiosity. “Daughter, you just came from the Public Security Bureau. What happened?”
Xu Ying had some guesses, but she just shook her head.
The door of Liu Haiyun’s house was packed with people watching the show. “What’s going on with the Wu family? They were all arrested!”
“Who knows? He deserves it! His wife is so blind, eating meat all day. She doesn’t know where she got so much money. She must be doing something illegal!”
“It looks like it. And those boxes of things… who knows what’s in them.”
Liu Haiyun’s face turned white as she watched the man being arrested. Without him, what would she do in the future? In the crowd, Zhou Huiru’s heart pounded when she saw Wu Yimu arrested. She touched her belly, a complex look flashing in her eyes.
Wu Yimu looked at the police officer and begged for mercy. “Comrade Police, can I have a word with my friend? Just one word.” The police officer, not entirely heartless, nodded, his face still cold.
Seeing this, Wu Yimu quickly walked up to Zhou Huiru and handed her a handkerchief. It was bulging inside; no one knew what it held. When Liu Haiyun realized what was happening, her face turned green. She still didn’t understand. She looked at Wu Yimu, opened her mouth, and cursed loudly: “You heartless man! I serve you at home every day, feed you, give you drinks, let you sleep, and you go behind my back and get with this witch!”
Zhou Huiru touched the object inside the handkerchief and instantly knew what it was. Fearing Liu Haiyun would snatch it away, she quickly ran home. Wu Yimu was taken away by the police, leaving the villagers buzzing.
In the evening, Xu’s father came home. When Xu’s mother saw him, she immediately asked, curious, “What happened? Why was the man next door arrested?”
Xu’s father sat on a chair, lit a cigarette, took a deep breath, and said, “The man next door was stealing. No wonder they had so much food and fish every day. Thanks to our daughter, otherwise, we wouldn’t have found out about the corruption next door. What happened to Shengshun wasn’t an accident. I heard from the comrades at the bureau that Liu Haile said Zhang Guoqing purposely harmed Shengshun, and they split the job money. Liu Haile gave Zhang Guoqing four hundred yuan, but there’s no proof, so this needs to be investigated slowly.”
Second Uncle Xu had followed Father Xu home. When he heard these words, he filled with intense anger. His poor son had been harmed by these people and turned into a fool.
“Second brother, don’t worry about this. The police comrades will definitely clear our names,” Xu’s father said, looking at his brother and comforting him.
Uncle Xu had tears in his eyes. He hung his head and sighed deeply. “If Shengli’s wife hadn’t said this, I would never have thought that this was done on purpose. It’s all my fault for being careless and not thinking about how strange this was.”
Xu’s father felt a little sad seeing him filled with such guilt. “You and your wife were busy saving Shengshun then. How could you have thought of so much? But it’s not too late to get revenge for Shengshun. Those who harmed Shengshun will definitely not escape punishment!”
It had been so long, like rotted millet from old sesame. It would surely be hard to find proof now. Xu Ying thought that since Cheng Yinglan and Cheng Yinghe’s names were so similar, there might be a connection. She quickly ran back into the house and found Sister Xu. “Sister-in-law, can you take me to your parents’ house? I want to find your brother’s partner.”
“Is it about Shengshun?” Sister-in-law Xu was a little curious.