Cheng You readily agreed and sat down. She was the only one seated in the entire room.
She reached out and took Qi Chengyan's hand, noticing his reddened knuckles. "Did you hit someone?" she asked.
The unlucky fellow pointed to the injuries on his face, lamenting, "Look for yourself, it's all because of your man, he's simply barbaric! This isn't over, he'll be disciplined!"
Cheng You tutted, a hint of concern in her eyes. "Does it hurt?"
"Of course it hurts, it hurts like hell!"
Cheng You rolled her eyes at him and blew gently on the back of Qi Chengyan's hand. "It's all red, does it hurt?"
Secretary Yang was speechless. You have no idea how hard your man's fists are!
Cheng You pulled Qi Chengyan to sit down, feigning a difficult expression. "You want to discipline him? That would make me unhappy."
The bruised and battered unlucky fellow scoffed, "Who cares if you're happy or not."
Cheng You smiled faintly and looked up at him. "When I'm unhappy, I like to pull up mu xi grass."
Secretary Yang's head throbbed. Cheng You was even more troublesome than Qi Chengyan! Why did you provoke them!
Qiu Yingxun's gaze was cold. He remained silent, his head bowed as if lost in thought. Only when he heard "mu xi grass" did he show any reaction.
Qi Shengwen said, "Whether he's disciplined will be discussed further." He naturally hoped there would be no punishment. Qi Chengyan was his son, after all, and he was biased.
Cheng You smiled obediently. "Secretary Yang, Father, I don't give things for free. The military shouldn't treat me like a fool." She felt she was the victim in this whole affair. The thought of Qi Chengyan being disciplined after beating someone made Cheng You's heart ache. Her expression cooled slightly as she looked at Qi Chengyan. "I don't think we're needed here anymore. Let's go home and get you bandaged."
The people in the office exchanged glances. They're not being this one-sided!
As they walked out of the disciplinary department, Cheng You was still indignant. "Your father isn't really going to discipline you, is he?"
Qi Chengyan curved his lips and squeezed her hand. "Even if I am, I'm not afraid."
Cheng You glared at him. "Of course, we're not afraid, but it's not right."
They hadn't walked far when Qiu Yingxun caught up. "Cheng You!"
He was anxious, knowing that after this incident, his grandmother's release would be even more difficult. He also knew that Zeng Xiuyun had indeed destroyed mu xi grass. "Cheng You, I apologize on behalf of my grandmother."
Cheng You's expression was cold. "You've already said that."
Seeing that she wasn't accepting his apology, Qiu Yingxun found himself unable to voice the words in his heart, and a hint of displeasure crossed his face. "Then I'll say something I haven't said before. You clearly know how to propagate mu xi grass by cuttings, so why didn't you share the method? If you had made it public earlier, my grandmother wouldn't have accidentally made a mistake."
Cheng You suddenly burst into laughter, raising an eyebrow and retorting, "Does thinking that make you feel better?"
Qiu Yingxun was stunned. "What?"
Cheng You's clear eyes met his, and she spoke clearly, "First, you feel guilty about the mistake you made, then you become enraged and turn the tables to blame the victim, as if that can cover up your own wrongdoing. If that makes you feel better, then continue to hold that thought."
She had seen this kind of reaction from Qiu Yingxun too many times. Cheng Tianhua would also jump around like this whenever his sore spot was hit and he felt guilty.
Qiu Yingxun felt as if his fig leaf had been ripped away, exposed by Cheng You's naked gaze. He had been so confident in questioning Cheng You, but now his face burned with shame. He even felt that Cheng You's words left him with no room to deny them.
Cheng You couldn't be bothered with him. Compared to Zeng Xiuyun's mistake, Qiu Yingxun's complaint letter had caused more serious consequences. But could people not complain? Complaining and reporting were the rights of the people, who could say it was wrong? Cheng You didn't intend to interfere with the military region's disciplinary decision, as long as it didn't affect her own interests.
Returning to her courtyard, Cheng You immediately noticed the missing section of the vegetable patch. The mu xi grass planted here had not been propagated with condensed dew. No one knew better than her how difficult that process was. Now, it had all been destroyed, and it was hard not to feel heartbroken.
Qi Chengyan helped her clear the debris from the ground, and any branches that could be salvaged were soaked in condensed dew. "What was that bald guy's name?" she asked, referring to the bruised and battered unlucky fellow. He wasn't exactly bald, more like a receding hairline.
Qi Chengyan replied, "He's from the Political Department, his name is Wang Ding."
Cheng You repeated the name to herself, but she didn't recall knowing him. Qi Chengyan knew she was angry, as these mu xi grass plants were ones she had nurtured meticulously, day and night. Now they had been so easily ruined.
Fortunately, a few days later, the military region gave her a satisfactory response. Wang Ding was dismissed from his post and had to compensate Cheng You for her losses. The exact amount would be determined after an appraisal. Zeng Xiuyun had already been released. She also had to pay compensation, but not much. However, after being detained for a period and interrogated so many times, her mental state was a bit dazed, and she looked disheveled, with no trace of her former dignified appearance.
Besides these two main culprits, Feng Yaojun and Elder Song were also affected. Feng Yaojun's position was already precarious; now he had not only been demoted but also received a disciplinary reprimand. As for Elder Song, there wasn't another person in the entire Yan City who, at his age, had to write a self-criticism.
With Cheng You present, no one in the military region dared to discipline Qi Chengyan for assault. The matter was thus dropped. However, the news that Cheng You could propagate mu xi grass spread among some high-ranking officials.
Upon hearing the news, Elder Yun rushed over. "Cheng You, you've hidden this from me for so long!" He had passed by her house so many times and spoken with her, yet he had never noticed that she had so much mu xi grass growing at home.
Unable to refuse his persistent requests, Cheng You casually clipped a few stems and gave them to him. "Take these back to the research lab." Elder Yun then left satisfied.
He wasn't the only one. People from the Botanical Research Institute also wanted to discuss matters with Cheng You. If Qi Shengwen hadn't stood guard at her doorstep, her entrance would have been trampled by visitors.
However, this matter had not yet spread to the school. Qiu Yingxun admitted that he had selfish motives; he didn't want others to know about this, and he certainly didn't want Cheng You to gain such great honor. He would linger around Cheng You's house several times a day, and Cheng You's success made him think that perhaps he, too, could cultivate mu xi grass. But after a few days, he found he couldn't even sneak a peek at how mu xi grass was cultivated.
Thus, he set his sights on Cheng Tao. "Aren't you and Cheng You sisters? Can you ask her for a sprig of mu xi grass?"