Sister Ma explained to Team Leader Lin what had happened on the day of the new teacher examination, namely that Gao Lanying had intended to slip croton powder into Zheng Peizhen’s food.
Originally, the plan had failed and no one knew about it.
But Gao Lanying had a guilty conscience, and the croton powder had been obtained through a young villager who had always pursued her.
She had told him that a friend of hers was constipated and that it was embarrassing to talk about openly. Wanting to help her friend, she claimed she only needed a tiny amount.
The person Gao Lanying had asked for help was one of her admirers, Wang Baocai, Aunt Wang’s second son.
Although Gao Lanying had always been rather indifferent toward him, and although her request seemed somewhat strange, Wang Baocai was swayed when she spoke kindly to him and eventually found a way to get a small amount for her.
Afterward, however, Gao Lanying barely paid him any attention, and he could no longer hold back. This morning, he went to find her.
At first, no one thought much of it. After all, Gao Lanying was quite “popular,” and since nothing particularly inappropriate had happened before, everyone ignored it.
Hearing this, Lin Baiyu immediately understood that Gao Lanying had probably already convinced herself that she had done nothing wrong. Yet whenever she saw Wang Baocai, the person who had obtained the powder for her, she could not help feeling guilty.
Later, during their conversation, the matter slipped out. Somehow, Zheng Peizhen happened to be nearby and overheard what they were saying, exposing Gao Lanying’s intentions.
That was indeed what had happened.
Sister Ma told everyone that over the past couple of days, the teacher examination affair had gradually faded from people’s minds, and Zheng Peizhen and Gao Lanying had begun reverting to their old ways.
Compared to their previous disputes, however, these incidents were relatively minor, and no one paid much attention.
That morning, while everyone was working, Zheng Peizhen noticed that Gao Lanying had been gone for quite some time. Assuming she was slacking off, she decided to catch her in the act.
To her surprise, after approaching, she overheard something shocking.
As Sister Ma recounted the story, Zheng Peizhen could not help recalling what had happened earlier that morning.
“Gao Lanying, what exactly do you mean by this? I helped you, and this is how you treat me?”
That was the first sentence Zheng Peizhen heard as she approached.
She thought she had finally caught Gao Lanying doing something improper. After all, Gao Lanying was constantly opposing her.
As she moved closer, however, she sensed something was wrong.
Why did it sound like they were mentioning her name?
Feeling uneasy, Zheng Peizhen held her breath and quietly listened.
The conversation continued.
“Lanying… don’t think you can fool me…”
“You took that thing… for Zheng Peizhen… didn’t you?”
“What nonsense are you talking about… I already told you it was for a good friend of mine…”
“Heh. Do you even have any good friends? An enemy, on the other hand, you definitely have one…”
“Y… you’re talking nonsense… I don’t know what you’re talking about…”
“If you keep pestering me, I’ll tell Team Leader Lin that you’re harassing me!” Gao Lanying’s nervousness caused her voice to rise unconsciously.
Hearing that, Zheng Peizhen initially thought Gao Lanying was in trouble and was about to step forward to help drive the man away.
After all, they merely had personal conflicts. She had never wanted to harm Gao Lanying, and her conscience would not allow her to stand by if someone was truly in danger.
Just as she was about to reveal herself, she heard the man become completely enraged, and her concern instantly transformed into fury.
“Don’t think I don’t know. The day you asked me to get croton powder for you, it was to hurt someone!” Wang Baocai shouted angrily.
“I’ve never heard of you being close to anyone. You asked me to get croton powder because you wanted to hurt somebody!”
Zheng Peizhen was stunned.
She had been about to rush out, but at that moment she became strangely calm.
Then she heard Wang Baocai sneer.
“I think you wanted to give it to Zheng Peizhen so she couldn’t take the exam. Looks like your plan failed, though.”
At this point in Sister Ma’s story, the crowd erupted in shock.
“I never would’ve guessed. That Educated Youth Gao is really vicious.”
“Good grief, things haven’t been peaceful since that batch arrived.”
“She looks so young, yet her thoughts are so malicious.”
“Exactly! As the saying goes, appearances can be deceiving.”
“And Wang Baocai’s got some nerve too.”
“Isn’t that the truth? Once Aunt Wang gets here, with how protective the Wang family is, this definitely won’t end here.”
…
Listening to the crowd, Lin Baiyu looked at Gao Lanying and Zheng Peizhen and felt that the truth might not be quite what everyone assumed.
As it turned out, her suspicion was correct.
The moment Wang Baocai spoke those words, he struck directly at Gao Lanying’s deepest secret.
It also brought back all the anxiety she had been carrying for days.
In the past, she had only engaged in petty squabbles at home. She still did not understand why, in a moment of resentment, she had done something like this.
If Lin Baiyu had been there, she would certainly have told her that this was the irresistible force of the plot.
Of course, Lin Baiyu knew nothing about it, and Gao Lanying had never read the original novel.
As a result, only Gao Lanying herself knew how shocked and regretful she felt.
She could not understand why a single reckless impulse had led her to do such a thing.
But since it had already happened, all she could do now was cover it up.
Besides…
In the end, she had not actually succeeded.
She secretly felt fortunate that Xie Qingyuan had “accidentally” knocked over the tampered breakfast that day.
If she had panicked when Wang Baocai first confronted her, her thoughts raced quickly, and she soon made up her mind.
“What nonsense are you talking about!”
Hearing this, Zheng Peizhen, hidden nearby, once again restrained her impulse to rush out and question Gao Lanying.
Wang Baocai stared at her in disbelief.
Even now, she refused to admit it.
Looking directly at him, Gao Lanying spoke with even greater conviction.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. You’re slandering me without any proof. I should never have asked you for help in the first place.”
Her confidence genuinely made Wang Baocai hesitate.
Could he really have misunderstood everything?
Even so, he continued to shout, “Aren’t you afraid I’ll tell everyone?”
Hearing that, Gao Lanying’s heart tightened, but remembering that he had no evidence, she replied firmly, “Say whatever you want. Even if you report it to Team Leader Lin, I’m not afraid.”
At that moment, Xie Qingyuan arrived.
He had been sent by Sister Ma to find the two of them.
“What are you doing here?” Xie Qingyuan asked as he looked at the three of them.
All three were startled.
Only then did Wang Baocai and Gao Lanying realize that Zheng Peizhen had been secretly listening nearby all along.
When they remained frozen in place, Xie Qingyuan broke the silence again.
“Don’t you need to be working? You’ve been gone for a long time. And weren’t you sent to bring them back?”
Everyone understood that the first sentence was directed at Wang Baocai and Gao Lanying, while the second was aimed at Zheng Peizhen.
The only question was how much Zheng Peizhen had actually heard.
Seeing Xie Qingyuan appear, and remembering Gao Lanying’s attitude toward him previously, Wang Baocai decided to go all in.
Since Gao Lanying had treated him this way, he was determined to make her pay for it.
So he loudly declared that he was going to report her.
Xie Qingyuan could not be bothered with such troublesome matters. He simply brought them back, informed Sister Ma of what he knew, and then stopped involving himself.
At this point in the story, the onlookers thought Gao Lanying’s actions had already been judged.
Unexpectedly, there was still another twist to come.