Chapter 4: Finding That Adulterer

Chapter 4: Finding That Adulterer

Originally, everyone had been acting as if it were none of their business, but upon seeing the two green banknotes, their eyes nearly glowed with green light.

"Heiya, this money—does your family know about it? You better not have stolen it from home."

Heiya's back instantly broke out in a cold sweat, and she felt a sudden, dying regret.

This money was something she had accidentally stolen from someone while she was secretly selling things at the town's black market after her rebirth.

The black market was a mixed bag of all sorts of people; even if money was lost, no one would make a scene.

In Heiya's heart, this money had always been one of her hidden trump cards.

She simply wanted too much to pull Gu Xue down from her pedestal; she was too jealous of Gu Xue, and she hadn't been able to help herself, so she had brought the money out directly.

Now, she could be described as being in a position where she couldn't retreat even if she wanted to.

Gu Xue was also startled; she hadn't expected Heiya to actually have money.

However, the origin of this money would be hard to explain. After all, for a girl—and a girl who was neither loved by her father nor her mother—where would such a large sum of money come from?

Clearly, the Great Captain had also reacted. Looking at Heiya, his gaze was sharp: "Heiya, where did this money of yours come from?"

Heiya stammered, her mind a complete blank, unable to come up with an excuse all of a sudden.

She didn't dare say she had been to the black market. One had to know that it was illegal; once discovered, one would be sent to sit in a big cell and would even be paraded through the streets to serve as an example to all the villages.

Heiya glanced around; at this moment, she couldn't think of an excuse at all.

Her heart was filled with nothing but regret; if only she hadn't been so impulsive just now.

"You dead girl, you're the one who stole the 10 yuan from the house, aren't you!"

Before the person was even seen, a shrill, fierce voice was heard.

At this moment, Heiya's mother, Wang Dahua, rushed over with a rag tied around her head.

She was a very thin and dark woman. Her clothes were just like Heiya's—pitch-black garments—and combined with her acerbic facial features, people's brows would furrow the moment they heard her voice.

Seeing the two banknotes in Heiya's hand, her eyes lit up as she snatched them away, holding them carefully in her hands.

Turning to look at the stunned Heiya, she glared at her ferociously, pulled her over, and grabbed her ear hard.

"You dead girl, how dare you touch any money! See if I don't beat this money-losing brat to death! You even dared to steal..."

Even though Wang Dahua was thin and small, when she started hitting someone, it really hurt. Heiya felt pain all over her body.

As the leader, Auntie Gu pretended to offer a few words of persuasion but did not step in further.

Gu Xue watched the mother and daughter with cold eyes. Only after Wang Dahua had finished hitting her did she speak.

"Auntie Dahua, stop hitting her for a moment. Heiya just said there was a man in my room; I want to see how she explains it." Gu Xue's words immediately brought the matter back on track.

Wang Dahua held Heiya dismissively: "This money-losing brat just loves to talk nonsense. She probably saw that you were living too well and felt jealous in her heart, so she said such things."

"Don't be like that, Auntie Dahua. Heiya said it very clearly just now, and she called so many people over. She's clearly aiming to ruin my reputation." Gu Xue did not want to let it pass like this; if it ended abruptly like this, she would be the one at a disadvantage when explaining things later.

Wang Dahua looked at Gu Xue awkwardly. Originally, she had intended to use the money to gloss over the matter.

The others didn't know, but Wang Dahua knew very clearly that this 10 yuan wasn't her family's money at all.

After all, the entire family's savings combined didn't even amount to 10 yuan.

But since the money was in her hands, it was hers.

"Hehe, little Gu Xue, these are all things Heiya made up. I'll have our Heiya apologize to you."

As she spoke, she twisted Heiya's ear and said, "You dead girl, hurry up and apologize to her! You don't have a single word of truth in your mouth all day. It's bad enough that you love to lie at home, but now you're making up stories about people outside."

With one sentence, she had defined Heiya's character. From then on, whenever people thought of Heiya, the first thing they would think of was that she was a habitual liar and a thief.

In the future, it wouldn't be easy for Heiya to marry.

Heiya naturally knew this, and she used all her strength to break free from Wang Dahua's grip.

She roared at everyone: "Gu Xue is just fooling around with a man! I clearly heard it! That man must still be in the courtyard!"

As she spoke, she continued to rummage through the courtyard incessantly, looking truly like a madwoman.

Although the Gu family's courtyard was large, at a glance, every place where someone could hide had been turned over.

Forget a man; there wasn't even a single person.

At this point, the expressions of the onlookers toward Heiya had changed.

"This Heiya is just jealous that Gu Xue's life is going well. Gu Xue is pure and innocent. If she actually succeeds in slandering her, how can that girl ever hold her head up in the village?"

"That's right. My daughter is even good friends with her. I'll have to tell the little ones at home not to play with her anymore."

"Exactly. If one day we get caught in a rant like that, how are we supposed to live our lives?"

"Alright, alright, there's no more good drama to watch. Hurry back and get to work; I need to go back early to cook for my family."

"Going, going. This Heiya doesn't speak a word of truth; we can't believe her from now on."

Before long, the crowd dispersed, leaving only the Great Captain and the Women's Director, Auntie Gu.

Auntie Gu didn't want to stay either; as excited as she had been listening to the gossip just now, she was just as embarrassed now.

However, she was the Women's Director, and it wouldn't look good if she left.

Heiya could no longer even stand straight; she slumped onto the ground, staring blankly at the dispersing crowd.

It's over, it's all over!

The money is gone, and her reputation is ruined!

Looking at Wang Dahua's ferocious face, she knew things wouldn't be easy when they got home.

Seeing that everyone had left, Wang Dahua wanted to take Heiya away.

Before she could walk off, Gu Xue called out to her: "Auntie Dahua, don't leave yet. Setting aside the matter of Heiya slandering me, regarding the fact that she ransacked my house like this, aren't you going to make some form of compensation?"

Hearing this, Wang Dahua immediately gripped the money in her hand even tighter.

"Little Gu Xue, nothing was broken. You can just clean it up yourself. I'll definitely give this dead girl a good scolding when I get home."

Wang Dahua was thick-skinned, acting extremely rogue.

She put on an air of having no money to give and only her life to offer.

Gu Xue didn't look at her, but instead addressed Auntie Gu and the Great Captain.

"What do you two think? If this matter isn't resolved today, I will go to the town to report it to the police."

Before the two could speak, Wang Dahua started clamoring: "What's the big deal, reporting to the police? For a young girl, if this matter gets out, your reputation won't be good either."

Gu Xue looked at Wang Dahua with a cold sneer, and the Great Captain and Auntie Gu shared the same thought.

"I'm not afraid. I believe the police officers will certainly investigate everything clearly when the time comes."

The Great Captain looked at Wang Dahua and Gu Xue, feeling like his head was about to explode from the headache.

If they actually reported it to the police, they certainly wouldn't be in line for any advanced commendations.

"Was this matter caused by Heiya? As compensation, we will deduct five days of work points from Gu Jianguo's family and give them to your family."

Before Gu Xue could say anything, Wang Dahua refused to accept it and tried to speak.

"Wang Dahua, if Gu Xue really reports this to the police, you'd better think about how you're going to explain the origin of that 10 yuan in your hand."

As soon as these words were spoken, Wang Dahua stopped. She looked toward Gu Xue's house and said sourly, "Fine, take the compensation. With a courtyard as big as the Gu family's, they probably won't care about such small things from us anyway."

(End of Chapter)