Chapter 25: Chat in Public

　　The crowd, who were about to disperse, became excited instantly when they heard Lin Jianzhong's words.

　　Everyone turned their attention to Gu Nianwei.

　　Gu Nianwei's dislike for Lin Jianzhong reached its peak at this moment.

　　She seemed to see those men in her previous life who placed white candles in front of the crowd, knelt down and gave flowers to express their love.

　　They don't care whether the girl likes him or not, or whether the girl will feel embarrassed, they just know that they want this girl to be their girlfriend.

　　Some girls are too embarrassed to admit defeat and can only agree to it under the jeers of onlookers. Some girls who firmly refuse to agree will be held back by the men who confess their love and will not be allowed to leave until they have a reason. No matter what the reason is, they will most likely be accused of being snobbish.

　　Men who believe in women never think that girls reject them just because they don't like them. They only think that girls reject them because they have no money and no power in their family.

　　Jiang Youtao had seen this kind of drama many times when she was in college, and her face was not looking good. She and Li Yunying walked in front of Gu Nianwei and blocked Gu Nianwei behind them. Wang Shanxi and several other educated youth walked silently behind Gu Nianwei.

　　The scene of Jiang Youtao fighting that day reappeared at this moment.

　　Gu Nianwei felt warm in her heart. She patted Jiang Youtao and Li Yunying on the shoulders and walked in front of them. This was her battlefield. There was no reason for her to stand back and hide while her friends fought for her.

　　Gu Nianwei said to Lin Jianzhong: "Comrade, I am not familiar with you. There is nothing to talk about in private. If you have something to say, just say it here. I have nothing to be ashamed of."

　　After learning that Lin Jianzhong was the director of the commune's supply and marketing cooperative, Gu Nianwei knew that her previous two encounters with Lin Jianzhong in the county town were not just a coincidence.

　　As a staff member of the state supply and marketing cooperative, in the era when private sales were not allowed, her relationship with Lin Jianzhong was on the wrong side.

　　Their relationship is like ice and fire, destined to be in opposition.

　　Then the question arises, Lin Jianzhong was a battalion commander in the army, so he must have some ability. Seeing her at the crime scene again and again, is it possible that he didn't have a trace of suspicion?

　　The first time was a coincidence, how could the second time be such a coincidence?

　　The alleys in the county town are interconnected. Did Lin Jianzhong really come from the opposite side of her that day, or did he go around from another alley to the front of her?

　　Since he already suspected her, why didn't he choose to report it, but chose to hide it and approach her as if he knew nothing? What did he want to do?

　　But it was no longer important to pursue those things now. When Lin Jianzhong chased her out and asked to talk to her alone, she only knew that Lin Jianzhong had bad intentions when he tried to approach her for the second time.

　　Gu Nianwei never believed that there was love without reason in the world, and she didn't believe that Lin Jianzhong fell in love with her and insisted on marrying her just because she had met him three times and spoke no more than ten sentences.

　　Everything a person does has a reason. As for the reason, Gu Nianwei knew it immediately.

　　The refined rice and flour she took out were all processed with modern technology from later generations, especially the rice, which was not only husked, but also polished, which was something that could not be achieved with the technology of this era.

　　Her rice became very popular as soon as it was introduced, and along with white flour and noodles, it became the most popular item.

　　As the director of the supply and marketing cooperative and a person who participated in her arrest, it is impossible for Lin Jianzhong not to have seen the things that were circulated from her. Anyone with eyes and brains can see the wealth brought by those things.

　　Gu Nianwei speculated about the time when the rumor about her and Lin Jianzhong spread, and she felt that this rumor might have been spread by Lin Weihong at the instruction of Lin Jianzhong. Otherwise, the timing would not be so coincidental.

　　All of this pointed out Lin Jianzhong's purpose. He wanted her supplies, or perhaps, he wanted her source of supplies. And all of his actions must have been based on his personal decision. After all, if he really wanted to capture her, he would not have used this method, but would have reported her to the upper management.

　　Isn't it?

　　The pretentious gentleness that Lin Jianzhong have before disappeared completely at this moment. His cold eyes contained a threat: "Comrade Gu Nianwei, do you really want me to say it here?"

　　Lin Jianzhong knew that Gu Nianwei was a smart person. When Gu Nianwei saw him but ignored him instead of saying hello, he knew that she had already suspected him. But Lin Jianzhong didn't care. After all, the information he got from Lin Weihong showed that Gu Nianwei was very good to his three sons.

　　After Lin Weihong mentioned their marriage to her, she did not show any signs of restraint. So Lin Jianzhong felt that Gu Nianwei was interested in him.

　　Lin Jianzhong was content in his heart, and he also looked down on women who only cared about love, such as his ex-wife Wang Lili.

　　But Gu Nianwei's reaction exceeded his expectations, making Lin Jianzhong very angry.

　　He didn't intend to hide it anymore.

　　Speculation is a serious crime, especially for people like Gu Nianwei who resell important materials such as rice and flour in huge quantities.

　　Lin Jianzhong was certain that Gu Nianwei would talk to him alone. As long as Gu Nianwei agreed to talk to him, he would have the initiative in the conversation, and by then it would be a done deal for Gu Nianwei to marry him.

　　As long as she married him, he would use the heavy housework, the difficult mother-in-law and daughter-in-law relationship, and the mischief of the children to gradually suppress her, leaving her with no time to spare. After that, wouldn't it be easy for her to get those supply channels behind her?

　　Lin Jianzhong is an ambitious man. If he didn't have ambition, how could he have become a battalion commander in a unit full of talented people? This time he retired from the army, it was Lin Jianzhong's own decision, and it was also a decision made by the army.

　　After retiring from the army and returning to his hometown, he decided to make great plans. Gu Nianwei was the chess piece that fell into his hands, a chess piece that will make him successful.

　　Gu Nianwei was not afraid of Lin Jianzhong's threats: "You can tell me, I am upright and have nothing to fear."

　　Gu Nianwei is carrying a space with her, and all her supplies are in the space. Even if Lin Jianzhong calls on the most powerful reconnaissance team at the moment, Gu Nianwei is confident that he will not be able to find anything.

　　Gu Nianwei's reaction obviously exceeded Lin Jianzhong's expectations again.

　　He stared at Gu Nianwei, standing there without saying a word, and began to feel uncertain.

　　Could it be that Gu Nianwei's two appearances at the scene were really just a coincidence?

　　As soon as this thought came out, Lin Jianzhong suppressed it. This was obviously impossible. Before arresting Gu Nianwei and other speculators, he had secretly checked the black market for two or three months. Every time a large amount of high-quality materials flowed out of the market, it coincided with the time when Gu Nianwei left the production team.

　　The family who rented the house to Gu Nianwei also confirmed that the person who rented their house was a thin, short man. According to their description, it was undoubtedly Gu Nianwei in disguise.

　　Lin Jianzhong didn't speak for a long time, and the onlookers were unhappy.

　　Their appetites were whetted to the point of being stuck in a rut, and they felt extremely uncomfortable with the feeling of being stuck in the middle.

　　"Gou Wa, do you have something with Comrade Gu? Just tell us all." Zhao Chunhua didn't like her eldest son Lin Jianzhong, and the nickname she gave him sounded perfunctory. Compared with the well-behaved Lin Jianhua, the two were completely different.

　　Lin Jianzhong hated being called by his nickname the most in his life, because it represented the humiliation of his first half of life!

　　He looked at the man with eyes like sharp swords. The man who called him Gou Wa was not afraid of him at all. His name was Xu Dashan, and as his name suggested, he was a country bumpkin.

　　Impulsive and reckless, he didn't feel the pressure from Lin Jianzhong's eyes. He just wanted to eat the melon quickly: "Don't you want to say something? Hurry up, are you still a man if you keep dithering?"

　　What a man hates most is being ask if he is a man.

　　As soon as Xu Dashan said this, the whole audience burst into laughter. The people in the Northeast are tough, and older women who have given birth to children will make dirty jokes anytime and anywhere. Some of the unscrupulous old women laughed while looking at Lin Jianzhong's lower body. The look was extremely aggressive, which made Lin Jianzhong want to close his legs in public.

　　Jiang Youtao heard her aunt whispering in a voice that everyone could hear not far from her: "That's not possible. I think Gou Wa is a very manly man. Look, he has only come back three or four times before, and he has already had three children. Isn't that manly?"

　　The women laughed even louder, and someone said, "That's right, in the past, when Gou Wa came back, Wang Lili would feel uncomfortable walking the next day. Why would a married woman feel uncomfortable and awkward walking?"

　　The men kept silent when they heard such talk, but the women became more and more explicit as they talked. The unmarried girls and newly married young wives blushed as they listened. Gu Nianwei and the other two found it strange the more they listened.

　　"Enough of that nonsense, just shut up." A man couldn't stand it anymore and shouted.

　　The woman who first teased Lin Jianzhong said with a click of the tongue: "Mo Dagouzi, is it because you are not good enough? Otherwise, why are you so angry?"

　　Amidst laughter, the women finally ended the topic.

　　Lin Jianzhong couldn't stop the violent aura emanating from his body.

　　"Comrade Gu Nianwei, you really want me to say this in public?" Lin Jianzhong's words quieted the noisy scene. Everyone pricked up their ears, waiting for Lin Jianzhong's next words.

　　It gets dark very late in the north in the summer. It is already past seven o'clock, but it still doesn't get dark outside.

　　Gu Nianwei nodded: "Yes, that's what I want you to do, go ahead."

　　It has come to this point, and Lin Jianzhong is in a dilemma. He knows very well that if he doesn't explain the whole story today, he will lose face in the village. But if he tells the truth, can he convict Gu Nianwei? She is so calm, she must have something to rely on.

　　Lin Jianzhong was now filled with regret. He hated himself for looking down on Gu Nianwei because she was a woman. He hated himself for acting rashly without doing a thorough investigation.

　　Seeing that Lin Jianzhong hadn't spoken for a long time, Gu Nianwei sneered, "Why don't you say anything? You haven't thought of how to slander me yet, right?"

　　"I have been in Liushugou for a year. I originally had a very good impression of Liushugou. Everyone is warm and kind, united and helpful. In the past year since I came to Liushugou, everyone has given me a lot of help, and I am very touched."

　　"I once wrote a letter to my classmates, praising the customs of the people in Liushugou. I never expected that you would teach me a lesson not long after I wrote the letter." Gu Nianwei's voice became louder and louder: "I believe that in the past year since I came to Liushugou, I have never done anything to let you all down. On the contrary, if anybody need any help, I will help them whenever I can and never refuse."

　　"Most of the children in the village have eaten the things I gave them, right? There were candies and snacks, right? Why should I be so generous? Isn't it because everyone has helped me a lot, and I am grateful? But in the end, I helped them and ended up causing enmity?"

　　"Everyone must be curious about why I treat Lin Wenping and his three brothers so well. It's because I feel sorry for them. The three children lost their mother and their father is almost dead. The three brothers make a living under their grandmother, and they are always hungry. When it rains heavily, they have to go out to find wild vegetables before they can go home to eat. Everyone knows about this, right? There are many aunts in the village who help them, right? Why am I the only one who helps them and still singled out for it?"

　　Gu Nianwei was telling the truth. Lin Wenping was too good at pretending. Whenever he appeared outside, nine out of ten times he didn't have enough to eat. The aunts in the village were much kinder. Seeing the three of them like this, they would more or less give them something to eat. This was nothing new in Liushugou.

　　As soon as Gu Nianwei said this, many people who had given food to the three Lin brothers nodded one after another: "That's true. There are indeed many people in our village who give them food and drink."

　　The masses are not fools, they have sharp eyes and can tell what kind of person they are just by watching them. But most of the time, they don't care about the truth and only listen to what they want to hear.

　　For example, what Gu Nianwei said, they knew that Gu Nianwei was very kind to other children in the village, and the reason why the three brothers were able to get more than other children was simply because of their background. But this was not what they wanted to hear.

　　Their lives were too lacking in entertainment, and the rumors about Gu Nianwei and Lin Jianzhong instantly ignited their boring lives.

　　Gu Nianwei was from the capital, well-educated, young and good-looking, and there were many young men in the village who had a crush on her. But such a person who seemed to be so good in every aspect actually wanted to be a stepmother to a man in his thirties. Isn't that exciting enough?

　　Could they not discuss it? As for whether the matter was true or not, who knew? As for the impact of these things they speculated on Gu Nianwei, what did that have to do with them? They were just chatting for a few words.

　　Gu Nianwei looked around and saw some of the people she had helped turned their eyes away uncomfortably. The sneer on Gu Nianwei's lips grew bigger and bigger, and the mockery in her eyes grew deeper and deeper.

　　"I never thought that Liushugou, a place I thought had simple folk customs, could force educated youth to marry local people."

　　"I have never had any communication with Comrade Lin Jianzhong before today, not even a letter. I don't know how those rumors that I would marry him came about. I just want to say something to everyone and solemnly clarify it here."

　　"I, Gu Nianwei, would rather die here today than become someone else's stepmother."

　　The crowd was silent, and Lin Jianzhong clenched his hands, which were hanging by his sides, into fists.

　　"Comrade Lin Jianzhong, Captain Lin, Director Lin, I don't know what you want to tell me today, but I can tell you clearly that you can just come at me. I am not afraid of you. Because standing behind me is justice and hundreds of thousands of educated youths across the country!"

　　Gu Nianwei's words were powerful, and Wang Shanxi and other educated youth looked at the villagers with caution.

　　The sky gradually darkened, and at this moment, they and the villagers with whom they had a close relationship on weekdays completely became two camps.

　　The team leader and the village party secretary arrived at this time.

　　"Why are you standing here instead of going home after work? Arent't you tired enough from working? Fine, tomorrow's workload will be doubled." As the captain finished his words, they had already walked into the crowd.

　　The team leader's gaze stayed on Lin Jianzhong for a moment, and then fell on the educated youth who were stiffening their necks and looking stubborn.

　　"What is going on? Someone tell me."

　　As the head of the educated youth camp, Wang Shanxi was the person who spoke for the educated youth in important occasions. Facing the team leader's question, he said in a deep voice: "Captain, it is obviously inappropriate to play dumb at this time. I don't believe that no one told you what happened on the way here."

　　After mocking the captain, he did not give him a chance to speak, and continued, "Since you have decided to play dumb, I will tell you the story again. Comrade Lin Weihong wants to match Comrade Gu Nianwei from the educated youth point with her nephew, Comrade Lin Jianzhong from your village."

　　"Even after Gu Nianwei had clearly expressed her refusal, she still persisted in spreading all kinds of exaggerated and untrue rumors to slander Comrade Gu, hoping to use public opinion to suppress Comrade Gu and make her compromise."

　　"In the rumors she made up, our educated youth Gu was attracted by Lin Jianzhong's position as the battalion commander of the army and wanted to marry him to avoid the heavy farm work. She was also described as a person who would do anything to achieve her goals, and her kindness to the children was misinterpreted as her shameless attempt to curry favor with Comrade Lin Jianzhong's children in an attempt to show her virtuousness and gentleness, with the goal of becoming their stepmother."

　　"After Comrade Lin Jianzhong returned to the village, Lin Weihong invited Comrade Gu to her home for dinner to thank her for helping her family buy medicine. During the meal, she tried to bring them together again. Gu Zhiqing clearly refused and left Lin Weihong's home."

　　"As soon as he left the house, this comrade Lin Jianzhong chased him out and said he wanted to talk to Comrade Gu alone, intending to create the illusion that he and Comrade Gu had a close relationship in front of the public. After Comrade Gu rejected him, he even threatened Comrade Gu."

　　"Captain, now you understand the cause, process, and result of the incident. You can ask the people present if I have missed anything."

　　Wang Shanxi's words are sharp and logical. His words are well-reasoned and cannot be refuted.

　　The captain looked at Lin Jianzhong, whose forehead was bulging with veins and his cheeks were trembling. He wanted to speak, but the village secretary stopped him with a look.

　　The captain took out his own pipe and stroked the iron mouthpiece with his hand. This was the one that Lin Jianzhong bought and sent to him the year he just joined the army. Over the years, the captain has been using it like a treasure, taking it out to play with it from time to time, and the mouthpiece has become smooth and shiny from his playing with it.

　　He looked at Jiang Youtao and other educated youths with a serious look and asked, "So what do you want to do about this matter?"