Ning Yuan looked at her. “If there’s only a five-yuan bill left in your box, then it’s mine!”
Tang Zhenzhen was furious. She took the five-yuan bill out of the biscuit tin. “Ning Yuan, you’re talking nonsense! This five-yuan ‘Great Steel Refining’ bill is mine. Do you even have that much money?!”
She had specifically placed this five-yuan bill, printed with the image of the Great Steel Refining, in the box. She usually kept her loose change of a few jiao and fen on her person.
If she hadn’t trusted these sycophantic roommates who only knew how to flatter her, she wouldn’t have been so careless as to not lock her trunk properly.
Who would have thought that this particular sycophant, Ning Yuan, would actually dare to rebel!
Ning Yuan smiled faintly. “My family can send me Wan Nian Qing biscuits and Great White Rabbit Milk Candy. Of course, I have a living allowance.”
Her words instantly made everyone exchange glances and start whispering among themselves.
“That’s true. Ning Yuan’s family can send her such high-end biscuits and candies. It’s not strange for her to have five yuan.”
“So who stole from whom?”
The Educated Youth’s food, lodging, and labor were all provided by the village for free, but their families would send them two or three yuan a month as a living allowance to buy things like soap, matches, and salt.
Five yuan was no small sum.
Even Huang Xuehong was a little stunned. She subconsciously pointed at Ning Yuan, mimicking Rong Zhaonan’s earlier tone, “Words are no proof. Do you have evidence!”
Tang Zhenzhen also sneered, waving the five-yuan bill in her face. “That’s right, do you have evidence? Or will it answer you if you call its name? A person like you who mixes with bad elements…”
Before she could finish, Ning Yuan seized the opportunity to snatch the money being waved in front of her.
Tang Zhenzhen was both shocked and enraged. “You dare to rob me…”
The next moment, Ning Yuan held up the bill for everyone to see. “Everyone, take a good look. This five-yuan bill has my name on it. I wrote it here in case I lost the money!”
Everyone’s gaze instantly focused on the five-yuan bill in Ning Yuan’s hand.
Sure enough, on the bottom right corner of the bill, within the decorative pattern on the side depicting the Great Steel Refining worker, were two characters—Ning Yuan.
Everyone was dumbfounded. The money really did “answer” to Ning Yuan.
The way the villagers looked at Tang Zhenzhen, and even at Huang Xuehong and Qin Xiaoxia, turned strange.
“So the money really belongs to Ning Zhiqing?!”
“Isn’t this a case of the thief crying ‘thief’? The proof is in the other person’s hands, and she has no evidence herself, yet she accuses someone else of stealing from her…”
The Male Educated Youth also exchanged glances at this bizarre reversal. Could it be that the most beautiful girl in their team had such poor character?
Tang Zhenzhen’s face flushed red and then turned pale. She reached out, trying to grab the bill. “How is that possible? When did you write your name on my money!”
Ning Yuan immediately took a step back and coldly threw the same words back at her, “You dare to rob me!”
Tang Zhenzhen, exasperated, reached out to grab her again. “Give it back to me! That’s my money! My money!!”
Li Yan reached out and clamped a hand on her shoulder, his expression grave and unpleasant.
“Tang Zhiqing, have you made enough of a scene? Making false accusations and pinning labels on people is a crime!”
Seeing the disgust in Li Yan’s eyes, Tang Zhenzhen’s delicate face turned beet red, her chest heaving.
She desperately wanted to scream hysterically—You bunch of idiots, she’s the one framing me! The money is mine, it’s mine!!
But the gazes of the people around her, and even Qin Xiaoxia tugging at her arm, stopped her.
Tears instantly welled up in Tang Zhenzhen’s eyes. She choked back a sob, full of grievance. “Li Yan… Deputy Secretary Li… I understand. Perhaps I misremembered. I put my five yuan in Qin Xiaoxia’s study notebook.”
Qin Xiaoxia felt Tang Zhenzhen’s fingers digging into the flesh of her arm, the pain making her gasp. She could only nod. “Right, right, right… I remember now, too. Zhenzhen’s five yuan is in my study notebook.”
The excuse was incredibly clumsy.
But… blowing this matter up would not be good for the Educated Youth who hoped to return to the city.
Li Yan glanced at Ning Yuan, then at the weeping Tang Zhenzhen. “Return the money to Ning Zhiqing and apologize for the misunderstanding. The Production Brigade can treat this as your first offense and not put it on your record.”
Tang Zhenzhen’s fingertips were digging into her palms so hard they were about to draw blood, but she knew she couldn’t… she couldn’t break down on the spot, and she certainly couldn’t snatch the five yuan back from Ning Yuan’s hand.
She forced a smile uglier than a crying face at Ning Yuan. “Ning Yuan, I’m sorry… Can you forgive me?”
Ning Yuan looked at her coolly. “Be a better person and have fewer crooked thoughts. Then you won’t end up losing the bait as well as the fish.”
When she had taken the biscuits and milk candy that morning, she had guessed that with Tang Zhenzhen’s personality, she wouldn’t let it go.
So, she had written her name in an inconspicuous spot on the five-yuan bill in advance.
After speaking, she turned and walked back to the small hut by the Cowshed.
Hearing her pointed sarcasm, Tang Zhenzhen wished she could rush forward and scratch up Ning Yuan’s face.
But Qin Xiaoxia pulled her back. She bit her lip, turned around with tears in her eyes, covered her face, and ran off in a hurry.
Seeing Tang Zhenzhen run away, Huang Xuehong muttered resentfully, “Ning Yuan splashed stinky water all over me…”
“Secretary Li, then… I’ll take Xuehong to wash up first!” Qin Xiaoxia gave Li Yan a strained smile and forcibly dragged the reeking Huang Xuehong away.
With the main parties gone, Li Yan looked at the other onlooking Educated Youth and villagers. “Everyone, disperse.”
Once the Production Brigade leader had spoken, everyone exchanged glances and began to disperse, discussing the matter in low voices as they went.
Li Yan looked at Rong Zhaonan, his expression cold and hard as he said, “Treat Ning Zhiqing well. You are not allowed to bully or oppress women. Study the leader’s ideology properly. The Production Brigade will check on your thought reform at any time!”
Rong Zhaonan lowered his cold, profound eyes and sneered softly. “Yes…”
The main point of the young deputy secretary’s words was probably—treat Ning Zhiqing well, otherwise it means my thought reform is inadequate?
The little spy was quite charming and had her methods, very good at bewitching people.
Li Yan’s expression softened considerably as he looked at Ning Yuan. “Ning Zhiqing, Aunt Bai came over from the Commune this afternoon. She should be here to give you your living expenses. She’s waiting for you in the Production Team office.”
Aunt Bai was Ning Yuan’s maternal aunt. She had married into the neighboring village, but they were both under the jurisdiction of the same Commune. It was also Aunt Bai who had set her and Li Yan up.
The moment Ning Yuan heard her aunt’s name, her back stiffened, and she nodded, feeling annoyed. “Okay.”
Li Yan nodded and prepared to leave with Ning Yuan, completely ignoring Rong Zhaonan’s existence.
Rong Zhaonan watched them walk away with a few Red Armbands.
Ning Yuan’s aunt?
He coldly pushed up his old, black-framed glasses and silently followed them.
This was a chance to find out the details of his so-called ‘wife’, wasn’t it?
…
Ning Yuan and Li Yan walked on in silence.
Li Yan wanted to ask her why she had suddenly changed her mind after they had gotten along for days and agreed to start a relationship the next time they met.
But he also felt that saying anything was meaningless now, especially with other people around.
Ning Yuan was in no mood to deal with Li Yan. She knew her aunt must have rushed over as soon as she heard she had gotten married.
If her mother was merely indifferent to her, her aunt’s attitude was severe, with strict rules and demands.
When she was little, no one in the family had time to look after her, so during winter and summer breaks, she was thrown to her aunt’s house to be a laborer.
She was responsible for doing housework under her aunt’s command, but even if a few drops of water splashed on the sink while washing dishes and weren’t wiped up, or if she spoke a little too loudly, she would be harshly reprimanded—no manners, write a self-criticism, no food, a pinch on the cheek.
Her mother, however, thought this was teaching her manners and even wanted to have her adopted by her childless aunt. It was her current father who, seeing her cry so pitifully, had disagreed.
When she was sent down to this village, her mother had said it was good luck to have a relative to look after her and had insisted on giving her living allowance to her aunt.
If she wanted to get her two yuan and fifty fen monthly allowance, she had to go to her aunt’s place and work as a laborer.
And then, continue to be punished at every turn.
That was why, in her previous life, she had always been afraid of this aunt who styled herself as her second mother. She was practically a shadow from her childhood.
Unless she had absolutely no other choice and had to get her living expenses, she would rather stay at the Educated Youth Spot than go to her aunt’s oppressive home.
In her past life, the only thing her aunt had ever done that made her feel grateful was introducing her to Li Yan as a potential partner.
Only later did she find out that after they started dating, her aunt’s two sons—her older cousins—were transferred to work in the Commune.
After she and Li Yan got their marriage certificate, her younger cousin smoothly secured a spot to join the army from the township.
All of this was done by her aunt forcing Li Yan’s hand.
And from then on, Li Yan began to resent her, feeling that this reflected very poorly on him. He was a man of integrity and rarely used his position for his family’s private gain.
It reached the point where later, he firmly refused to help her transfer out of the Silk Spinning Factory, where she worked ten-hour days on a three-shift rotation.
Even when she had several miscarriages due to exhaustion, he still felt it was for the glory of labor—as it should be.
He owed her and her family nothing.
Ning Yuan’s lips curled into a mirthless smile.
In this life, she had suddenly gotten married, completely ruining the plans of her domineering aunt who always had to have the final say. How would her aunt react?
Deep in her heart, she felt a secret, satisfying pleasure.
She even wanted to see the look of exasperation on her aunt’s face.
Rong Zhaonan, silent in the dark shadows of the trees, watched Ning Yuan’s expression and grew thoughtful.