Zhou Qi, a man of academia, was naturally no match for Qi Chengyan.
He struggled for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said, "She struck first!"
Cheng You shot him a cold glance. "Do you really not know why I struck you?"
"I'm stating a fact, a fact that everyone in Yancheng knows!"
Cheng You chuckled. "A fact? As far as I know, my husband left the army voluntarily. If it were a fact, could you produce the disciplinary document? If not, what right do you have to call it a fact!"
Qi Chengyan's matter had reached a dead end during the investigation and was eventually dropped.
The incident had damaged his reputation, but it couldn't convict him.
Given his previous meritorious service and someone's strong recommendation, the army had not intended to expel him.
Zhou Qi barked, "Everyone knows the truth, I'm not slandering him!"
"Without evidence, it's slander! Even the army didn't dare to pin this matter on my husband, so what gives you the right to say such things! Say one more word, and I'll slap you again!"
Zhou Qi felt indignant. The army hadn't made a ruling, but it was still the truth.
It was something everyone knew, not just him saying it.
Cheng You, too lazy to argue with him, picked up the broom.
"Are you leaving or not? If not, don't blame me."
Zhao Jisheng hadn't expected things to turn out this way. His intention was to have a good talk with Cheng You, but he ended up offending her on his first visit.
"Zhou Qi, stop talking. Let's go."
Zhou Qi snorted resentfully and followed Zhao Jisheng away.
He had already gotten the address for the medicinal plant seeds, so there was no need to beg her anymore.
After the two left, the people in Uncle Li's yard looked at each other with strange expressions.
After all, they had all heard what Zhou Qi had said.
They had vaguely heard some things before, but they couldn't connect the upright and principled Qi Chengyan with such matters.
Now that Zhou Qi had brought it up so explicitly, everyone felt that Cheng You had been wronged.
What a good girl Cheng You was, beautiful, capable, and able to earn money. Why did she have to marry Qi Chengyan?
Cheng You paid them no mind, pulling Qi Chengyan and walking away, avoiding their gaze.
She wasn't blinded by love. She simply understood who Qi Chengyan was better than these people.
A man who considered protecting his country and people his mission, who valued the safety of his people more than his own life, how could he possibly harm a comrade's wife?
The more Cheng You thought about it, the angrier she became. Qi Chengyan had been here for so long; couldn't they see what kind of person he was?
Qi Chengyan didn't say a word, nor did he take Zhou Qi's words to heart.
He lowered his gaze and saw that Cheng You's face had turned red with anger.
He smiled helplessly, then ruffled her hair.
"What are you angry about?"
Cheng You looked at him with reddened eyes. "How could he say that about you?"
The girl's eyes, full of concern, converged into a warm current that melted the coldness in his heart.
He wasn't miserable at all, because he had Cheng You.
"It's okay, we won't pay him any mind."
Cheng You pouted and rubbed her head against his shoulder.
She just felt wronged.
Qi Chengyan should live with pride. No one should accuse him with such a charge.
He found it both amusing and exasperating. It seemed to be the other way around; wasn't he supposed to be the one being comforted?
...
When Zhenzhen woke up, she didn't remember much.
Little Tiger had called her to the back mountain, and then she had eaten the sugar water given by Little Tiger's grandmother, after which she lost consciousness.
Uncle Li didn't plan to pursue charges against the villagers, opting instead for private compensation for Zhenzhen.
However, he had no intention of letting the Wen family parents, the instigators of the whole affair, off the hook.
If they weren't dealt with, Zhenzhen would continue to be in danger.
Many people found this reasonable, as the Wen family had abandoned Zhenzhen and her mother first.
They had been so harsh to them before, and now that they knew their son was useless, they remembered they were of the Wen family bloodline.
There was no such thing as an easy deal in this world.
Some people, however, felt that Uncle Li was too heartless. Regardless of what the Wen family did, the Wen parents were indeed Zhenzhen's grandparents.
The Wen family was Zhenzhen's rightful family.
However, no matter how much they said, it couldn't change the fact that the Wen parents would go to jail.
Besides Zhenzhen's matter, the topic of conversation that was most frequently discussed was Qi Chengyan.
Thinking of what Zhou Qi had said, everyone's first reaction was surprise.
"He was that kind of person?"
"I really couldn't tell!"
"This sounds like a crime of hooliganism, why wasn't he arrested."
"..."
Everyone felt it was a pity for Cheng You, and some even started advising her to divorce him.
She was still young and could marry someone better.
The village gossip made the educated youths at the settlement very unhappy.
"How much help has Brother Chengyan given everyone? He's always the first to step forward in times of danger. Don't they have eyes?" Sun Xiaowan said indignantly.
Duan Liping also frowned, and everyone was generally unhappy.
Although the educated youths had heard these rumors, none of them believed that Qi Chengyan would do such a thing.
As Cheng You had said, if Qi Chengyan had truly done it, the army would have disciplined him long ago, and he wouldn't have been allowed to leave on his own accord.
Cheng Tianhua felt extremely ashamed. He had disagreed with Cheng You marrying Qi Chengyan from the start.
His main concern was that this city man would one day abandon Cheng You, leaving her with no recourse.
Now, with this incident, he felt Cheng You must get a divorce.
"Cheng You is still young, and it's not too late to remarry. You are her father, you should try to persuade her," Song Yulian said.
Before she could say anything too unpleasant, Cheng Tianhua glared at her coldly.
Although Cheng Tianhua had brought her back home, they had not remarried. They were living together in a confusing state.
It seemed he had only let her stay here for the sake of the child in her belly.
Song Yulian felt wronged but could only endure it, not daring to say anything.
Cheng Tianhua ignored her and walked out the door.
He went to Cheng You's house and saw Qi Chengyan chopping firewood. He let out a heavy snort, clearly displeased.
Qi Chengyan paid him no attention, swinging the axe down swiftly. The blade split the wood cleanly in two.
The muscles in his arm bulged, exuding a sense of pent-up strength.
Cheng Tianhua walked into the house and saw Cheng You tending to the polygonum multiflorum she had planted in a large pot in the yard. He walked over.
"Cheng You, have you heard the gossip going around lately?"
Cheng You didn't look up. "What gossip?"
Before they could exchange many words, Cheng Tianhua became furious.
"Are you truly foolish or just pretending? Don't you know what kind of person the one sleeping beside you is?"
Cheng You slowly watered the polygonum multiflorum. The water, mixed with dew, made the leaves visibly perk up.
"I know very well what kind of person Qi Chengyan is. The one who can't see clearly who's beside them seems to be you, doesn't it? You slept with Song Yulian for twenty years, and you still don't know what kind of person she is? Oh, no, not only can't you see what kind of person she is, but you can't even recognize your own child."
Cheng You clicked her tongue twice. Now that was what you called a real sucker.