A few minutes later, Su Qinghe finished piecing together the first sweet potato.
Qin Wang had originally thought Su Qinghe was just trying to show off and brag.
But now, seeing the reassembled sweet potato, Qin Wang was stunned.
It… actually worked!
Ignoring the exclamations of the surrounding crowd, Su Qinghe was completely immersed in piecing together the sweet potatoes.
As time ticked by, one sweet potato after another was fully pieced together.
Big and small, there were twelve sweet potatoes in total, all placed against the wall. Every piece fitted seamlessly, with not a single slice too many or too few.
Xu Changjiang gave Su Qinghe an appreciative look before turning with a cold expression to Wang Dahua. “Didn’t you say you lost two dried sweet potato slices?”
Wang Dahua’s face turned pale, but being older and thick-skinned enough, she quickly calmed herself down.
“I… I saw two marks, and this little brat was right outside the door, so I assumed he stole them… It turns out I made a mistake! Now that the misunderstanding is cleared up, let’s just let it drop.”
“Let it drop?”
Su Qinghe sneered, stood up, and walked toward Wang Dahua step by step.
“You say let it drop, and we just let it drop?”
“Do you have any idea what kind of overwhelming disaster your casual slander is to a child?”
“Children are the flowers of our motherland, the hope of our motherland, and need to be cherished and protected by all of us. You falsely accused a child of being a thief out of nowhere and hurled such abuse at him in front of everyone, causing immense trauma to his young mind!”
“Can such deep trauma be wiped away just because you casually say let’s forget it?”
Su Qinghe had a stern expression, her voice growing louder with every word, each sentence echoing forcefully.
Wang Dahua had never encountered such a powerful presence before, and Su Qinghe’s interrogation left her at a total loss.
“Then… then what do you want?”
“An apology, of course!”
Su Qinghe rolled her eyes.
“You did something wrong, shouldn’t you apologize?”
“Apologize?” Wang Dahua’s voice turned sharp. “Apologize to whom?”
“To my son, of course!”
“You want me to apologize to that little bastard?” Wang Dahua shrieked as if her tail had been stepped on. “Impossible!”
Su Qinghe didn’t argue with Wang Dahua. Instead, she turned to Xu Changjiang, her expression and tone instantly becoming immensely aggrieved. “Comrade Officer, you see this, right? She clearly slandered my son as a thief and demanded compensation from me. The child was terrified out of his wits and couldn’t even speak.
Now, in front of you, Comrade Officer, I’ve proven my son’s innocence and just want her to apologize to him so he won’t feel so hurt. Yet not only is she unwilling, but she’s also cursing him like this.
If she acts like this right in front of you, Comrade Officer, I can’t imagine how she’ll bully us mother and son once you leave…”
By the time Su Qinghe finished speaking, her voice choked with emotion, and her eyes turned red.
Xu Changjiang sighed again in his heart. This mother and son really didn’t have it easy.
Since he was already here, he definitely had to handle this matter properly.
Xu Changjiang looked at Wang Dahua. “Comrade, this matter was your fault to begin with. Apologize to the child!”
“Comrade Officer, I—”
“If you don’t apologize and she refuses to let it go, she’ll go to the Public Security Bureau to find the leaders to handle it. You’ll probably have to go to the Public Security Bureau too. As for your dried sweet potatoes, they are evidence, so we’ll have to take them with us first. You’ll only get them back in ten days or half a month after the matter is resolved.”
Wang Dahua’s lips twitched.
If those dried sweet potatoes were stashed away for ten days or half a month, wouldn’t they stink?
Besides, she didn’t want to go to the Public Security Bureau.
What decent person goes to the Public Security Bureau!
No matter how reluctant she felt inside, Wang Dahua could only pout and say, “I’m sorry, alright!”
Su Qinghe shook her head. “No! You should say, ‘Comrade Qin Wang, I’m sorry, I was wrong, I shouldn’t have called you a thief.'”
“You!”
Wang Dahua shot Su Qinghe a fierce glare.
However, seeing that Xu Changjiang remained silent—clearly agreeing with Su Qinghe—she had no choice but to bite the bullet and endure it.
“Comrade Qin Wang, I’m sorry, I was wrong, I shouldn’t have called you a thief. Is it fine now?”
Su Qinghe was satisfied now. “It’s fine. Comrade Officers, thank you for your trouble today!”
Xu Changjiang shook his head. “No trouble at all. Serving the people is our duty. Since there’s nothing else, we’ll take our leave.”
Xu Changjiang left with Zhao Liang.
Even after they had walked a distance away, Zhao Liang kept looking back.
Xu Changjiang cast a faint glance at him. “What are you looking at?”
“Master, that female comrade back there was so impressive!”
“She is indeed impressive!” Xu Changjiang murmured softly.
Not only was she bold yet meticulous, but she also knew how to turn others’ strength to her advantage and elevate the argument to a moral high ground.
Even if ten more old women came at her, they still wouldn’t be her match.
As soon as the officers left, Wang Dahua’s expression instantly changed. “Don’t be so smug! That little brat is no good news! You’ll suffer sooner or later!”
Su Qinghe beamed. “No need to trouble yourself with that. If you have the time, you’d better go to the hospital and get your eyes checked! Stop seeing everyone as a thief!
Today you falsely accused my son, but luckily the officers were here to uphold justice and prove his innocence.
If someone else passes by your doorstep in the future and you call them a thief too, what if they aren’t as lucky as me and can’t clear their name despite having a tongue? What will happen then!”
It looked as though Su Qinghe was genuinely worrying.
In reality, however, she was covertly dropping poison in everyone’s ears.
Sure enough, as soon as she finished speaking, the onlookers began looking at Wang Dahua with eyes full of guard and suspicion.
Wang Dahua nearly fainted from anger.
How could this young woman’s mouth be so sharp?
Su Qinghe couldn’t care less what Wang Dahua thought. She merely sighed and looked at the crowd gathered to watch the commotion. “In the future, everyone should stay far away from her doorstep. If you get grabbed and accused of being a thief and forced to pay compensation, wouldn’t that be like swallowing a bitter pill with no way to speak out about your suffering?
Anyway, I won’t dare go near her front door ever again, or else if the old cured meat in her cabinet goes missing, she’ll probably blame me for stealing it.”
Su Qinghe motioned to Qin Wang. “Son, come, come, let’s leave quickly. We can’t afford to mess with someone like her, but at least we can stay away from her!”
Qin Wang looked at Su Qinghe with a complex expression, but ultimately walked over to her.
Su Qinghe led Qin Wang back to their own front door, locked it, and then took Qin Wang to the State-run Restaurant to eat.
She was already hungry, and after all this commotion, she was now so famished she could eat a whole cow!
With no more drama to watch, the crowd dispersed as well.
Before leaving, however, everyone shot Wang Dahua contemptuous looks.
Wang Dahua stomped her feet in rage, but she didn’t dare offend all these people, so she could only lay all the blame on Su Qinghe’s shoulders.
Su Qinghe couldn’t care less what Wang Dahua thought; she and Qin Wang had already arrived inside the State-run Restaurant.
A bowl of braised pork with potatoes, a plate of vinegar-glazed cabbage, and two large bowls of rice made up their dinner.
Su Qinghe picked up her chopsticks and said to Qin Wang, “What are you standing there for? Eat!”
Qin Wang pursed his lips. “Why did you help me?”