Girl's Background

It turned out that the girl's name was He Xiyuan, and she was from Yanhe Village, Dongxiang Township, near Xinjiang City. In order to raise money for her younger brother's education, she came to Xinjiang City three days ago to work. At the long-distance bus station, she met a middle-aged man who said he could help her find a job. As this was her first time working away from home and she lacked social experience, she was tricked into going to a bar near Taohua Alley. She had been promised a job as a waitress, but today, the bar owner, Yu Wenfeng, suddenly told her to sleep with a customer. He Xiyuan refused and wanted to quit, but Yu Wenfeng insisted that he had bought her from the middle-aged man for 2,000 yuan and would not let her leave. He forcibly dragged her to a private room. Inside, He Xiyuan desperately fought back, and eventually, using an ashtray, she injured the customer and managed to escape.

Of course, Yu Wenfeng wasn't going to let her off easily. He gathered a group of people and chased her down the street. Just as they were about to catch her, He Xiyuan saw the police station ahead and ran inside, only to almost be hit by my car. This led to the scene I described earlier.

"So, you're saying he really did act out of righteousness?" The police officer finally believed me.

"Yes, officer, please let him go!" The girl said.

"If what you're saying is true, then we will handle this as a case of righteous action and release him..." The officer was about to continue when his phone rang.

"Hello, this is Songjiang Police Station… What?! He's in a vegetative state?! …He used excessive force? I understand." The officer hung up the phone with a grim expression and said, "Yu Wenfeng has been beaten into a vegetative state, so you can't leave just yet. We suspect you used excessive force..."

"In such an urgent situation, how could I possibly think about whether it was excessive or not? I just did everything I could—otherwise, it could have been me in a vegetative state!" I said innocently. Deep down, I knew I did it on purpose.

"We need to hold a meeting to decide the details of the situation. So, you are temporarily detained," the officer said, shrugging.

Detained?! This couldn't be happening—I still had my two wives waiting for me outside the police station.

"Call Director Jiang to come here!" I said impatiently. Normally, acts of righteous bravery like this aren't a big deal, and I didn't want to trouble Jiang Yongfu, especially since I was in the right. But now, they were detaining me, so I had no choice but to call him.

"What? You know Director Jiang? Why didn't you say so earlier? Wait a moment, I'll call him right now," the officer said, immediately unlocking my handcuffs and rushing to the side to make a phone call.

After a short while, Jiang Yongfu arrived. When he saw me, he quickly shook my hand and said, "So it's you, Liu! You didn't even tell me you were here! Little Wu, hurry up and make some tea!" Jiang Yongfu told the officer.

"No need to trouble yourself!" I quickly stopped him, but since the Director had spoken, how could Little Wu refuse? He quickly grabbed a teapot to prepare tea.

"Brother Liu, what's going on?" Jiang Yongfu gave me a knowing look, glancing at me and the disheveled girl beside me, and teasingly asked.

"This..." I saw the expression on Jiang Yongfu's face and immediately knew he had misunderstood.

But before I could explain, Jiang Yongfu pulled me aside and whispered, "Your girlfriend is so beautiful, why would you want to get involved in something like this? If you really want to, just go to a bar and spend a few hundred to hire a prostitute, why go for something like rape? This is going to be a bit tricky to handle!"

"Director Jiang, you really misunderstand!" I said with a wry smile.

"Misunderstand? How is it a misunderstanding? Isn't that what happened?" Jiang Yongfu asked, puzzled.

"Of course not! How could I, such a good socialist youth, do something so dirty? I was acting out of righteousness..." I then explained everything that had happened earlier to Jiang Yongfu.

"This is a good deed! Our police station should thank you!" Jiang Yongfu said, slapping his thigh.

"Well, that's true, but it seems like I might have accidentally made the suspect brain dead!" I said.

"Oh, so that's what happened! Little Wu, tell me exactly what happened. What went on?" Jiang Yongfu sighed in relief and said.

Little Wu, knowing that the Director had spoken, didn't dare hide anything and explained the whole situation. After hearing it, Jiang Yongfu nodded repeatedly, then looked at He Xiyuan's statement and said, "Little Wu, this is clearly an act of righteousness. We all know who Yu Wenfeng is! How could you not handle this properly?"

"Well… I just didn't feel confident making a decision. I thought I'd report it to you, Director, and let you decide. Now that you've given your opinion, it's much easier to handle!" Little Wu said, feeling a bit awkward.

"Alright, the statements are all done, right? Liu, you can head home now. I'll apply for the certificate of righteous action for you. This matter is probably settled! You've done a great service to the public!" Jiang Yongfu said with a smile.

I chuckled and said, "Then I'll head out now!"

"How about having some tea before you go?" Little Wu, holding a teapot, made a 180-degree turn in attitude and warmly said.

"No, thank you, Officer Wu!" I waved my hand.

"No need to thank us! We should be thanking you for catching the criminal!" Little Wu replied.

"Cooperation between the police and the public!" I said.

"Let's go." I said to He Xiyuan, "I'll take you to the hospital to check your foot." I extended my hand to help her up. He Xiyuan's face flushed red, but since walking was inconvenient, she didn't refuse.

"Do you know the police chief?" He Xiyuan asked, surprised, once we were outside the police station.

"I do. Why?" I didn't understand why He Xiyuan was asking this.

"Well..." She hesitated, biting her lip, her eyes flickering.

"Just say what's on your mind." I could tell she seemed to have something on her mind but was struggling to say it.

"I have something I'd like to ask you for help with... Can you agree to it?" He Xiyuan hesitated before speaking.

"Help me?" I was taken aback. What does asking me for help have to do with knowing the police chief?

"You don't have to answer me right away... I was just casually saying it..." He Xiyuan, thinking I looked hesitant, quickly clarified.

"Heh, Xiyuan, you've misunderstood. If I can help, of course I'll do it. I'm just curious how knowing the police chief has anything to do with me helping you," I said with a smile.

"Really? You'll really help me? That's great! Since you know the police chief, you can help me—help me arrest the village chief's son from our town, Dongxiang!" He Xiyuan said, her face lighting up with joy.

"Arrest your village chief's son? Why would you want to arrest him?" I asked, puzzled.

"The village chief's son, Jia Daguo, is a big bully!" He Xiyuan said, gritting her teeth.

"Don't rush, Xiyuan. Let's get in the car first, then you can tell me slowly. Tell me how he's a bully!" My instincts told me that He Xiyuan must have suffered some injustice.

Once we got in the car, Zhao Yanyan and Chen Weier were clearly anxious, waiting for me. As soon as they saw me, they eagerly asked, "Honey, how did it go? They didn't make things difficult for you, right?"

Although Zhao Yanyan and Chen Weier both knew nothing would happen to me, they couldn't help but worry. I felt warmth in my heart and smiled, saying, "I'm a hero who acted out of righteousness, of course, nothing happened! The unlucky ones are those bad guys. Not only did I beat them up, but they're also going to jail!"

"Why did she come along?" Zhao Yanyan asked, looking at He Xiyuan behind me, surprised. She finally took a closer look at the girl and realized she was incredibly beautiful—no less than herself.

At the same time, He Xiyuan was also puzzled, wondering why both of them called him "husband." Did he have two wives? But wait, this was a society where gender equality was promoted—how could polygamy still exist?

"Her name is He Xiyuan. We're taking her to the hospital; she hurt her foot earlier," I explained.

"Oh!" Zhao Yanyan nodded but shot me a glare from the corner of her eye. It was as if saying, "Are you interested in her because she's pretty? Do you want to take her in too?"

I quickly gave her an innocent look. Zhao Yanyan ignored me.

I let out a wry smile as I got into the car. To be honest, I didn't have any other thoughts about He Xiyuan—just sympathy. She came to the city to work and raise money for her brother's tuition, all alone, without anyone to rely on. She couldn't have been much older than me, maybe even younger. She should have been at home being spoiled by her parents, but now she was suffering so much. From what she said earlier, it seemed that the village chief's son, Jia Daguo, had even bullied her. Sigh... I thought Chen Weier had it tough, but compared to He Xiyuan, Weier's life didn't seem so bad.

But today, I was actually quite happy. Thanks to He Xiyuan, I had inadvertently solved a lingering worry—Yu Wenfeng. I had thought it would be a complicated matter, but I was able to easily resolve it right at the police station gate, and I even got the name of a hero for my trouble.

Everything turned out just as I had predicted. Since my rebirth, only I and the people around me have changed. But the general direction of history remains the same. Though the process might differ, the results are always the same.

Yu Wenfeng still met the same fate of becoming a vegetable. The only difference was that the one who carried it out wasn't Ding Baosan, but me.

I let out a deep sigh of relief. It seems that in this new life, luck is still on my side.

"He Xiyuan, what exactly happened with the village chief's bully of a son that you mentioned earlier?" I asked after getting into the car.

"Will you really help me?" He Xiyuan asked, a bit uncertain. Everything that had happened today felt like a dream. Everything was so sudden—she had thought she would surely fall into Yu Wenfeng's clutches, but unexpectedly, this older brother figure had appeared and saved her! Not only that, but he even knew the police chief of the city! Could he really help her seek justice?

"Of course! As I said, if there's anything I can do to help, I will!" I said firmly. For some reason, I felt deeply sympathetic toward He Xiyuan.

"Then you must have the police chief help me arrest that villain, Jia Daguo!" He Xiyuan said, full of anger.

"If he's truly broken the law, then he certainly deserves to be arrested. Now, tell me the whole story, from the beginning," I said. Once again, I couldn't help but feel sympathy for her.

"Three years ago, my family contracted a piece of mountain land up in the hills, intending to plant fruit trees. At that time, the project was relatively obscure, so no one else dared to do it. My father managed to contract it with very little money. We bought saplings from outside the area and planted them. Last autumn, the trees finally bore fruit, and our family made a good profit. We were able to pay off the debt we owed from buying the saplings," He Xiyuan said slowly.

"That's a good thing!" I responded with admiration. In rural China during the 1990s, many farmers became wealthy by taking similar routes.

"Yes, it was all going well, but then the village chief's son, Jia Daguo, found out we made some money and became very jealous. He approached our village's accountant and tried to forcibly take back the land we had contracted," He Xiyuan said.

"Wait a minute—didn't you sign any contract with the village?" I interrupted her. If things were really as she said, and they had signed a contract, this could be easily resolved! With a proper contract, you could take the matter to court, but many farmers in rural areas have no idea what a court is for! This leads to many people suffering in silence without any way to file complaints.

"We did have a contract, but it was just a simple receipt from the village saying we had contracted the mountain land for ten years," He Xiyuan explained.

"Did it have an official seal?" I asked, not caring about whether it was just a receipt at this point. The key question was whether it had the proper seal.

"No," He Xiyuan shook her head.

Upon hearing this, I knew it was going to be difficult. Without even a formal contract, there was no way to win a lawsuit in court. Sigh...

"What's wrong?" He Xiyuan noticed my sigh and asked nervously, "Does this mean there's no way to deal with it? I've heard that without a contract, there's nothing that can be done about a bully like him!"

"It's okay, we'll think of another way. Don't worry, Xiyuan, keep going," I said with a smile, trying to reassure her. In my mind, I thought, it's just the village chief's son. Who cares if there's no contract? I'll still deal with him. You think you're a bully? I'll show you who's the bigger bully. If you push me too far, I'll send Guo Qing over to demolish your house!

"Okay," He Xiyuan nodded, then continued, "Afterward, my parents discussed it for a long time, and they realized we couldn't possibly win against Jia Daguo, so they swallowed their pride. As they say, the common people can't fight against the government, especially when the government official is corrupt! My father went to Jia Daguo and said he would give him the mountain land, but Jia Daguo had to pay us for the fruit trees. At first, Jia Daguo agreed. But during the New Year, when my father went to ask for the money, Jia Daguo denied everything and even beat my father! I went to the village's security committee to report it, but all the members there were on Jia Daguo's side, so they ignored me! In the end, to get my father treated, we had to spend all the money we had saved up for my brother's school fees. That's why I came to the city to work, to save money for my brother's tuition."

I couldn't help but fall silent after hearing this. What had happened to He Xiyuan's family was all too common in small rural areas. The village chief was like a local king, and many farmers, with their low levels of education, didn't know their rights or how to seek legal help. Even if they were wronged, they just had to swallow it without knowing where to complain. People like He Xiyuan, who had the courage to fight for justice, were rare.

When we arrived at the hospital, the doctor examined her and confirmed that her foot was only sprained and that it would be fine after some rest.

"Xiyuan! Where are you staying tonight?" I asked casually, but after asking, I felt that I asked a stupid question, because He Xiyuan had no place to go at the moment.

"I... I have no place to stay... Or you can take me to the train station, and I'll stay there for the night." He Xiyuan said.

"Train station! How can that be possible! In that case, you can stay at my house for the night." To be honest, I am a little worried about letting such a grown-up girl sleep alone at the train station.

"That's not very convenient..." He Xiyuan said hesitantly.

"It doesn't matter, you sleep in my bed at night, and I'll sleep in the living room." Although He Xiyuan is also very beautiful, she is inferior to Zhao Yanyan, Xia Jing, and Chen Weier. I don't know why, but I don't have the kind of feelings between men and women for her, and I only have the kind of sympathy or concern similar to that between brothers and sisters.

"But Brother Liu, why do you want to help me?" He Xiyuan said puzzledly: "We just met for the first time, and you asked me to go to your house... You don't want me to... let me..." He Xiyuan blushed and said shyly for a long time but couldn't make sense.

"Xiyuan! What are you talking about? What do you mean I asked you to do this and that?" I was confused and didn't know what this little girl was going to say.

"I mean, you won't treat me like... like the guest today..." He Xiyuan finally expressed her worries.

"Hehe——" I smiled and said: "Xiyuan, what are you thinking! I do this purely to help you! Besides, you can see that I already have two wives. If I really do something to you, they will kill me!"

He Xiyuan was amused by me and smiled brightly, and said incredulously: "Brother Liu, are you saying that the two sisters just now are your girlfriends?"

"Yes, is there any problem?" I said gently.

"No... I just think it's strange, how can such a thing happen now... Brother Liu, don't get me wrong, I didn't say what you meant..." He Xiyuan explained.

After such a mediation, He Xiyuan and I became closer, and we were no longer as restrained as at the beginning.

Along the way, He Xiyuan told me a lot. He talked about their village and their lives. If He Xiyuan hadn't told me in person, I would never believe that there is such a backward and corrupt place! The village chief in their village is equivalent to the police chief, the director of the Industrial and Commercial Bureau, the director of the Tax Bureau, the director of the Land Bureau, and so on. It can be said that in their village, the village chief is the sky, and what he says is what! However, every year in the election, the villagers still vote for this lawless village chief.

There are really many bad things about the village chief's bully son colluding with village cadres. I really wonder why these people don't come out to petition! Ignorant!

When I got home, my mother suddenly noticed He Xiyuan standing behind me. She looked him up and down and immediately got angry and yelled, "You damned bastard! Isn't it enough for you to have two girlfriends? Why did you bring another one back?"

"Mom... listen to me first..." I hurriedly explained. What kind of world is this! I was obviously learning from Lei Feng and doing good deeds, but why did I end up being scolded!

"What are you talking about!" My mother glared at me, then looked at He Xiyuan, and found that her clothes were in disarray, as if they had been torn by someone. She immediately guessed something and said sternly: "You little bastard, you are doing evil! Girl... Tell the truth to auntie, it's okay, auntie will decide for you! Did Liu Lei bully you? Don't worry, as long as you tell me, auntie will never tolerate it and will definitely send him to the police station!"

"Auntie, you... misunderstood, Brother Liu didn't bully me..." He Xiyuan didn't expect Brother Liu's mother to be furious, and hurriedly said carefully.

"Girl, don't be afraid to admit it! Don't look at this boy as my son, but the prince is guilty of the same crime as the common people! I will definitely not cover up for him! Tell the truth to auntie, did he do anything to you!" My mother glared at me and said.

"Auntie! We... We actually just came back from the police station..." He Xiyuan explained.

"What!? Just came back from the police station? You have already reported the case? Why didn't the police arrest this guy? Did he threaten you?" My mother said angrily.

I was really dizzy! Is this my mother? Is his son so unbearable in his mind? Is there any justice in this world!

"Mom, listen to me, can you listen to me finish my words first!" I interrupted my mother and said.

"Okay! Then I will listen to you first, and after you finish, let the girl speak! If you say something different, I will break your legs today!" My mother took a breath and said.

"Mom! Actually, this is what happened..." So, I told my mother a series of things, such as taking Zhao Yanyan and Chen Weier to eat after school, and then meeting He Xiyuan at the door, how I beat the bad guy, and finally went to the police station.