Thrown into the River

Auntie Niu grabbed Xu Xiangfeng's arm and dragged her into the room. "Didn't you fabricate a story about Erhua hiding a man in her room? Then go in and search! We will watch you search. Today, if you don't find anyone, don't blame me for not letting you off!"

After saying this, she turned to the neighbors. "We all live in the same compound. Erhua usually calls you uncles and aunts. You can't just stand by and watch Xu Xiangfeng bully her like this, can you?"

The neighbors all looked displeased. They had been thoroughly disgusted by Xu Xiangfeng and her son over the past few days. Why hadn't they realized sooner that this mother and son were such beasts in human clothing?

"Auntie Niu, rest assured. Erhua is a child we watched grow up. We won't let her be bullied right under our noses. Today, if Xu Xiangfeng fails to find a man in Erhua's room and Erhua wants to report her, we will all testify for her!"

Hua Jinyin's eyes reddened. "Erhua thanks you, uncles and aunts, for speaking up for justice. When my eldest uncle and aunt return, I will surely have them visit each of your homes to thank you!"

After speaking, she bowed deeply to everyone.

Pushed to this point, Xu Xiangfeng had no choice but to search. But she couldn't understand for the life of her—she had clearly seen a man jump into the room, so how could she find absolutely nothing?

She searched the cabinet on the kang, the clothes chest, and even the large grain vat in Hua Jianshe and Zhou Laiying's room. Short of dismantling the stove, she searched everywhere. Forget a man, she didn't even find a male mouse.

But the room was only so big; where else could a person be hidden?

Under everyone's accusing glares, Xu Xiangfeng sobbed and wiped her tears. "I must have been mistaken. I thought a man jumped into Erhua's room. I did it out of goodwill, fearing she might get hurt being home alone. I really didn't mean to ruin Erhua's reputation... Sob, Erhua, we've lived next to each other for so many years. How could I harm you? What would I gain from harming you?... Sob, Erhua, can't you believe Auntie Xu just this once?"

Hua Jinyin sneered, "What would you gain from harming me? Naturally, if you caught me hiding a man in my room in the middle of the night, you could spread rumors everywhere that I'm a loose woman first, and that your son only climbed into my bed because he couldn't accept it! By then, Li Dongfeng would become the victim of everyone's sympathy, while I would be despised by thousands.

Xu Xiangfeng, you say we've lived next to each other for so many years, and I've called you Auntie for over a decade. But look at what you've done day after day. Tell me yourself, do you deserve to be called Auntie?"

With Xu Xiangfeng's intentions laid bare by Hua Jinyin, the neighbors who hadn't fully grasped her malice now understood completely. Their gazes turned entirely to disgust.

Auntie Feng spat at her. "Erhua, tomorrow morning, I will go around and tell all the neighbors about the wicked things she has done, so everyone knows what kind of person she is. In the future, even if she wants to ruin your reputation, no one will believe her."

Auntie Zhang also chimed in, "Exactly. Not only that, but we can't let this morally corrupt mother and son stay in our workers' residential compound anymore. Who knows who they might try to harm next?"

"Yes, tomorrow morning we will go to the factory leaders together. We must make her move out of our workers' compound."

"I'm just a widow... Sob, I really didn't mean to... Sob, you can't bully me like this..."

"Bullying you? Why do I only see you and your son bullying Erhua? You still have the face to cry at this point. You truly have no shame."

Auntie Niu, getting worked up, slapped Xu Xiangfeng across the face. "You shameless wretch! Before Zhou Laiying left, she asked me to look after Erhua. Yet in less than half a day, you've bullied her like this. When Zhou Laiying returns, I won't even have the face to face her. If I argue with her in the future, I'll always have to bow my head because of this. If you dare say another bad word about Erhua today, see if I don't slap you again!"

Seeing Auntie Niu poised to slap her again, while Auntie Feng, Auntie Niu, and Auntie Zhang behind her were also eager to join in, Xu Xiangfeng was truly terrified. She had always been the one plotting against others while they faced public condemnation; she never expected the tables to turn on her.

Not only had the residents of this compound gathered, but people from other compounds had also been awakened to watch the commotion.

Auntie Niu's loud voice continued to broadcast her "good deeds." Unable to face them any longer, Xu Xiangfeng pushed past the crowd, covered her face, and ran back to her house.

The courtyard was filled with curses and criticisms. Someone even threw a rock, shattering a hole in her window glass. Xu Xiangfeng huddled under her blanket, gnashing her teeth in rage but not daring to make a single sound.

By the time everyone returned to their homes, it was past one in the morning.

Hua Jinyin returned to her room after checking the pried window. She had to admit the person was a professional; they had only popped the inner latch, leaving only a slight scratch on the window, which didn't affect its use.

But Hua Jinyin was also afraid that someone else with similar skills might try again. She thought about installing iron bars on the windows later. With a room full of growing girls, it was essential to guard against others.

Entering her space, she saw the man she had brought in was still unconscious on the ground. It turned out not to be Ma Yuanhong as she had suspected, but a thin, small man.

The man was in his twenties. Although he didn't have bleached blonde hair, he had the distinct aura of a punk, with a completely unfamiliar face.

Hua Jinyin was temporarily unsure of how to deal with him. If it were Ma Yuanhong, who had committed numerous atrocities, she could have killed and buried him directly as an act of justice.

But aside from prying the window, she didn't know if this man had done any other evil deeds, so it wasn't appropriate to kill him directly.

However, letting him go like this was also out of the question. Since he dared to pry a girl's window, he was certainly no good. She might as well throw him into the river outside the county town. Whether he died or survived would be up to fate.

Fearing the man might suddenly wake up and discover the secret of her space, Hua Jinyin slipped a sack over his upper body.

Exiting her space, Hua Jinyin listened carefully to ensure there was no sound outside. She changed into a dark outfit given to her by Xu Xixi, covered her face, and slipped out the door.

Leaving the workers' compound, she retrieved the original host's old bicycle from her space, mounted it, and pedaled straight toward the river outside the county town.

At this hour of the night, there was no one on the road. After pedaling for over ten minutes, she arrived at the riverbank outside the county town.

This river was formed by dozens of mountain streams merging together. By the time it reached Chu County, it was quite large, spanning over fifty meters at its widest point and several meters deep.

Although she claimed to leave it to fate, in her heart, Hua Jinyin didn't really want the man to survive.

If he could pry a girl's window once, there was no guarantee he wouldn't do it again, or even do something worse. Such scum only polluted the air.

Finding a large rock for cover, she brought the man out of her space. The man had already woken up, but because his mouth and neck were tightly bound by vines, he could only make muffled, grunting sounds.

Hua Jinyin directly manipulated the vines, pushing the man into the deepest part of the river and holding him down. Only when she felt his struggles weaken significantly did she retract the vines and the sack.