The village chief’s appearance made everyone’s expressions change slightly.
But Erdan’s mother, as if she had found her backbone, rushed straight to the village chief with a loud cry.
“Village chief! You have to stand up for my Erdan!”
“Erdan may be naughty, but he still has to call you uncle! Now someone is trying to persuade my child to die, to turn my child into a traitor! You can’t ignore this!”
The words “traitor” were mentioned again, immediately causing everyone’s expressions to change once more.
Shan Cuixiang tightly held Meng Yu’s hand.
“Nonsense! My daughter-in-law is just teaching your child to study!”
“I spit on that! Study what? Those so-called decadent sounds? Those little tunes only capitalists would listen to? Then why don’t you teach your own grandson!”
Erdan’s mother was fully fired up, and the usually honest and inarticulate Shan Cuixiang was no match for her.
Although Zhou Sinian was frowning, he still shielded Meng Yu and his mother behind him.
When the village chief’s serious gaze swept over them, Zhou Sinian spoke respectfully and firmly.
“Village chief, my wife just knows a bit of music. If that is also wrong, then when everyone hums songs when they are happy, does that also make them traitors?”
As soon as this was said, everyone’s expressions changed again!
Is there something wrong with humming a tune when you’re happy?
Not to mention when people are happy—even when some families cry, they drag out their tones. Isn’t it a bit too much to lump everyone together like this?
Zhou Sinian was not stupid; he knew he had stirred up public anger.
But the next moment, he looked at Erdan’s mother.
“These words weren’t said by me. They were said by you, sister-in-law.”
He directly shifted the blame.
When everyone heard this, it made sense! So all those angry looks turned toward Erdan’s mother.
Erdan’s mother was completely stunned.
“What do you mean? What does this have to do with me?”
“What does it have to do with me? The one spreading these so-called capitalist tunes is clearly them! Why are you blaming me!”
At this moment, Meng Yu stepped forward.
She walked out from behind Zhou Sinian, transforming from someone being protected into someone standing on her own.
“Hey, you—”
Shan Cuixiang wanted to pull Meng Yu back, but Zhou Sinian stopped her.
“Sinian?”
Zhou Sinian shook his head.
Regarding Meng Yu, although he could not say he knew her well, he knew she was not someone who would let herself be bullied.
Even her own parents she dared to confront with a kitchen knife, and she had nearly scratched Erdan’s mother’s face. There was even less reason for her to tolerate baseless accusations.
Let’s wait and see.
Although Shan Cuixiang was anxious, she could only endure it.
When Meng Yu stepped forward, everyone’s attention focused on her.
Even the village chief studied her.
Zhou family’s eldest daughter-in-law had only been married in for less than a month, but her “record” was already quite impressive. To put it bluntly, she was seen as someone who could not contribute much—the Meng family had basically married in a troublemaker.
Now this “troublemaker” seemed ready to cause trouble again?
The village chief could not sit idly by.
“Sinian’s wife, what do you want to say?”
The village chief asked seriously.
Meng Yu’s unusually large eyes stared straight at him.
“Village chief, I want to ask: is there any official national regulation that defines music as decadent sounds or capitalist tunes?”
As soon as this was said, everyone was stunned.
Even the village chief could not answer immediately.
“This is decadent music! Everyone knows it!” Erdan’s mother shouted from the side.
Meng Yu then shifted her gaze to her.
“Who is ‘everyone’? Can you represent everyone by yourself?”
Erdan’s mother quickly looked around, but the surrounding people all avoided her gaze.
Everyone was just here to watch the commotion, not to get involved in an argument.
She became even angrier.
“What’s wrong with you all!”
“This little bitch clearly is—”
“Sister-in-law, mind your words.”
Zhou Sinian spoke lightly, his voice cold.
He stood there, and just a simple reminder made Erdan’s mother feel afraid.
She was unwilling and muttered curses under her breath.
“Both husband and wife are no good—one was sent back, the other is a traitor! Perfect match!”
“I’ll kill you!”
A furious scream suddenly rang out, and in the next moment Shan Cuixiang rushed forward without hesitation.
She was going to beat this foul-mouthed woman to death!
“Ah—help!”
Painful screams rang out again.
But Meng Yu did not even look at it. Instead, she fixed her gaze on the village chief again.
“Village chief, have you received any instructions?”
The village chief was completely confused by this question and did not understand her purpose at all.
“Sinian’s wife, just say what you want to say directly.”
He preferred straightforward explanations. After all, the word “traitor” carried too much weight for anyone to bear.
Meng Yu smiled at him.
One had to admit that the village chief, being able to hold his position, had some ability and intelligence.
“In 1972, Comrade Zhou already issued instructions to restore cultural and artistic activities. It is now 1975. I don’t believe three years have not been enough for that message to reach us here.”
“If, according to Erdan’s mother, learning music makes someone a traitor, then wouldn’t the local cultural troupe in the town all be traitors?”
As soon as this was said, everyone’s expressions changed dramatically.
Good heavens!
Zhou Sinian had already been sweeping people into one category; his wife was even more extreme—she was trying to drag everything into it!
This couple was not to be provoked!
The village chief’s brows also jumped.
Zhou family’s eldest daughter-in-law was truly frightening.
“Don’t! Sinian’s wife, you must not say such things! The cultural troupe has official authorization!”
“Then it’s not a producer of decadent sounds?”
Meng Yu asked back.
“Of course not!” the village chief quickly replied, afraid of being labeled otherwise.
After hearing this, Meng Yu nodded in satisfaction.
Then she suddenly turned and looked at Erdan’s mother, who was still fighting with her mother-in-law.
“Do you understand now?”
Idiot.
She thought the last word silently in her mind.
Shan Cuixiang pulled hard at Erdan’s hair again and tore out a clump before finally stopping.
Erdan’s mother grimaced in pain, holding her scalp as she got up.
A rural woman like her did not understand any of this.
She quickly looked at the village chief, hoping he would deny it.
But the village chief glanced at her and sighed before explaining to everyone:
“There really was an official document issued above. I thought we in the village wouldn’t come into contact with such things, so I didn’t tell everyone.”