Chapter 40: with translation of chapter title

At this moment, hearing.

【1】 At this moment, hearing the news, the Battalion Commander and the Branch Secretary also rushed over; seeing the Battalion Commander and the Branch Secretary arrive, the onlookers dispersed immediately, for it was work time now and they did not want to have their work points deducted.

Zhou Ganshi was anxious inside, but he also knew this was not the place to talk, so the three of them went together to the Brigade Headquarters.

Upon reaching the Brigade Headquarters, Zhou Ganshi immediately inquired about Su Ruo's situation and then repeated Li Cuiping's words verbatim to Lao Zhishu and the Battalion Commander.

Lao Zhishu and the Battalion Commander were utterly bewildered upon hearing this; having returned early, they did not know that Su Ruo had adopted An'an, nor that such a rumor had spread in the village.

But Lao Zhishu quickly recovered from his shock and said, 'Comrade, although I do not know the exact circumstances, I can assure you that Educated Youth Su is absolutely not that kind of person.'

Zhou Ganshi naturally also did not want things to be like that; he had brought the banner and medals, and if Su Ruo truly lacked virtue, he would not know how to handle this matter.

'You should first call Comrade Su over, clarify the matter before speaking; if someone really maliciously slandered Comrade Su, this matter must be handled seriously, and we absolutely cannot let the hero suffer disgrace.'

The Battalion Commander also reacted at this moment and said, 'I will have someone notify Educated Youth Su to come over.'

Su Ruo had been waiting for this day; upon hearing someone call her, she immediately took An'an and went to the Brigade Headquarters.

As she was about to leave, she glanced at Chen Wei; Chen Wei did not know why, although Su Ruo's eyes showed no emotion, she just felt a creepy feeling in her heart, always feeling that Su Ruo's gaze made her uneasy.

After reacting, she again felt she was being overly worried; Su Ruo had been silent these days, wasn't that already an admission?

'Nothing will happen, certainly nothing will happen,' Chen Wei silently comforted herself.

When Su Ruo arrived at the Brigade Headquarters, Zhou Ganshi, the Battalion Commander, and Lao Zhishu all looked at her with solemn expressions.

Su Ruo did not wait for the three to ask; she voluntarily explained how she had adopted An'an.

She also produced the certificates issued by Qingshui Village and the county, as well as An'an's household register.

'Branch Secretary, Battalion Commander, I adopted An'an out of pity for the child, but I never expected people would spread rumors like this about me.'

'Now I only hope that you, Battalion Commander, will decide for me, severely punish the rumor-mongers, and restore my reputation.'

Zhou Ganshi had just personally heard how vile those words were.

For a girl, those words are practically lethal; someone a bit more fragile would probably not be able to survive.

To use such words to slander an unmarried maiden shows how malicious the intent is, especially since Su Ruo is a disaster-relief hero honored in the county.

In Zhou Ganshi's view, this matter is absolutely intolerable; he immediately angrily slammed the table and said, 'Investigate, this matter must be thoroughly investigated, to clear Comrade Su Ruo's name.'

Lao Zhishu's and the Battalion Commander's faces were also very grim.

Originally, it would have been a good thing for Su Ruo to receive praise and rewards from the county, but who would have thought it would turn out like this.

Lao Zhishu and the Battalion Commander now hated the village's gossiping women, who spread rumors without knowing the truth, causing embarrassment that has reached the county.

Immediately they stopped working, convened a meeting of all villagers, and today they must investigate this matter thoroughly and clearly.

Upon hearing the broadcast, the villagers thought something major had happened and all rushed to the Brigade Headquarters.

After all villagers had gathered, the Battalion Commander immediately spoke about the rumor concerning Su Ruo.

Upon hearing the Battalion Commander's words, the villagers all changed expression; the matter of Su Ruo had been spreading wildly these days, and everyone knew about it, but no one expected the truth to be like this.

In the crowd, Chen Wei and Li Cuifang suddenly went weak in the legs, their faces turning deathly pale, after all this rumor was spread by them.

Seeing the Battalion Commander's and Lao Zhishu's expressions, they knew today's matter could not be easily resolved, and they were terrified.

Li Cuiping still wanted to hide, but Zhou Ganshi immediately called her out, sternly questioning her about where she heard those words and why she maliciously spread rumors to slander Comrade Su Ruo.

Li Cuiping now realized she should be afraid; she never imagined that merely spreading a bit of gossip would cause such big trouble, and she was instantly cowed by Zhou Ganshi's presence, sitting on the ground and bursting into tears.

'Comrade, I am innocent! This is all because Chen Wei told me; she described it vividly and even said Educated Youth Su admitted it herself. I never thought she, with her black heart, would deceive me. If I had known it was false, I would not have spread it even if beaten to death.'

Chen Wei's face turned deathly pale, her legs trembling incessantly; she finally understood what Su Ruo's glance meant when she walked away.

She had thought Su Ruo's silence these days meant acquiescence, but she did not expect Su Ruo to be waiting for her here.

Her intuition told Chen Wei that she could not admit to this, otherwise the consequences would be unbearable for her.

Thus she immediately stepped before the crowd and said, 'Battalion Commander, I only told Li Cuiping that Su Ruo has a daughter; I never said Su Ruo had illicit relations and was divorced. Those are Li Cuiping's fabrications; do not believe her.'

Li Cuiping, furious, shouted: 'If you hadn't told me that Educated Youth Su has a daughter, how would I have known about her? You dare say you never said that Educated Youth Su was a child bride and was sent back by her husband's family.'

Chen Wei certainly could not admit it, immediately saying: 'I never said those things; they are all your fabrications.'

Seeing Chen Wei trying to pin the blame on her, Li Cuiping became enraged: 'I'll beat you to death, you vicious little wretch; I have no grudge against Educated Youth Su, and if you hadn't told me those words, I wouldn't have known.'

'You now refuse to admit it, trying to dump all the blame on me alone; I tell you, there's no way!'

Chen Wei also refused to back down, insisting she had not said those things, and the two immediately began to scuffle.

Su Ruo gazed coldly at the farce, her eyes sweeping over Li Shiru in the crowd.

She knew the true instigator of this affair was actually Li Shiru; without her fanning the flames from behind, Chen Wei's limited wit could never have caused such a big uproar.

It's a pity Li Shiru acted too covertly; this time we cannot implicate her as well, but removing Chen Wei, her henchman, is also good—without Chen Wei, who would still charge forward for Li Shiru?

Li Shiru also noticed Su Ruo's gaze; her whole body shrank, she lowered her head to conceal the hatred in her eyes.

Li Shiru hated intensely; she felt she was just a little bit away, just a tiny bit, from completely destroying Su Ruo.

If the rumors were allowed to fester a while longer, everyone would know Su Ruo was a wanton woman, regardless of whether the rumors were true.

Su Ruo could do nothing to change people's perception of her, after all people only believe what they want to believe; in this era, rumors are the best weapon to destroy a person.

But Li Shiru never expected that Su Ruo could actually find a county official to back her up, causing all her painstaking scheming to collapse in an instant.

At this moment, Li Shiru's resentment reached its peak.

'Su Ruo, why doesn't she just die!'

Li Cuiping and Chen Wei were now thoroughly entangled in a fight; Li Cuiping, strong from years of farm work, and Chen Wei, no pushover, fought so fiercely that bystanders could not pull them apart.

Only after the Battalion Commander barked 'Enough!' did the two finally separate.

But both ended up in a sorry state: Li Cuiping's hair was disheveled, her clothing buttons torn off, and Chen Wei's face bore several scratches.

The Battalion Commander did not let Li Cuiping and Chen Wei continue fighting like dogs; he questioned each villager present about the rumor from its beginning.

Faced with questioning from the Branch Secretary and the Battalion Commander, with a county official present, everyone naturally dared not conceal anything and told the whole story.

Upon learning that the matter was entirely fabricated by Chen Wei and Li Cuiping, the Battalion Commander's face turned ashen.

He made the two publicly self-criticize and apologize to Su Ruo.

Zhou Ganshi realized he had almost been deceived by a village woman, and he was furious beyond measure.

He first spoke of Su Ruo's brave performance in this disaster relief, and especially emphasized that, during the disaster relief, Su Ruo, fearless of hardship, acted with the sole aim of saving people.

Then he said: "Comrade Su Ruo is a hero recognized by the county, worthy of everyone's study and respect; the honor of a hero must not be violated!"

Those who want to maliciously slander and smear heroes are all bad elements seeking to destroy the people's peace and unity; for such people, we have zero tolerance.

The Branch Secretary and the Battalion Commander both understood that Zhou Ganshi's words meant that severe punishment was coming.

Upon hearing this, Chen Wei and Li Cuiping both went weak in the legs and collapsed onto the ground, knowing it was all over.

These past couple of days I've been a bit inflamed, my throat hurts; I've been trying hard to write this book well, yet I'm afraid I'll write it poorly, the pressure is too great—I've revised this chapter over and over, always feeling it's not perfect enough; perhaps it's the first time I've ever been this close to success, I keep striving to grasp it, afraid the opportunity will slip through my fingers.

I know this isn't right; from now on I will strive to adjust my mindset, aiming to maintain a calm attitude, continue working hard on the manuscript, and if anyone has any opinions they can raise them in the comments section—I will certainly accept them humbly.

Thank you for your companionship, votes, and subscriptions; your support is my greatest motivation～(￣▽￣～)~