Era: Starting with the struggle to refuse being taken advantage of

Chapter 227 Rumors Abound
As soon as she finished speaking, Kong Xiu instinctively covered her mouth and warned Aunt Liu:
"Aunt Liu, don't talk nonsense. I didn't say anything to you, and you didn't hear anything."

"Farming, right, we were just discussing how to farm."

"Let's get busy and get things done quickly."

After saying that, Kong Xiu ran off to the side and busied herself, leaving Aunt Liu completely bewildered.

But Aunt Liu wasn't stupid, and she quickly connected the dots to a terrible possibility.

Since the person Liu Yanran is afraid of is not Shen Wei, then this person must be someone else.

Based on the sound of "bang," the person who did this outrageous thing is very likely Wang Chengpeng, who was originally engaged to Liu Yanran!
In addition, the fact that the two broke up was already suspicious made Aunt Liu feel that she must have discovered the truth.

Who is Aunt Liu? She's a notorious gossip in the village, just as outspoken as Aunt He.

Asking her to keep a secret is worse than killing her.

However, Kong Xiu, the person involved, asked her to keep it a secret, and she had no choice but to keep it a secret. This feeling of having a big secret that she couldn't share caused her internal injuries.

In a flash of inspiration, Aunt Liu came up with a brilliant idea and immediately said to the other person beside her:

"Wang Dexin, I've just discovered a big secret. Do you want to hear it?"

"If you want to hear it, you have to promise me you'll never tell anyone."

"..."

Seeing Aunt Liu starting to nag someone, Kong Xiu's eyes flashed with a glint of shrewdness. She thought to herself that she was indeed amazing. With just a simple move, she had resolved the matter.

Next, I won't even need to take any action myself, nor will I need to spread rumors.

Even if he only vehemently denies it, everyone will think that he is covering up the truth and spreading this rumor, which was not made by him at all, throughout the entire Wangjia Village.

Thinking this way, Kong Xiu felt energetic and worked even harder.

……

At the dinner table, looking at his parents who seemed hesitant to speak, Wang Chengpeng asked with some curiosity:
"Father, Mother, just say what's on your mind. Why hide things from each other when we're family?"

Although Wang Chengpeng was capable, he wasn't so clever that he could hear everything, so naturally he was unaware that the rumors had already spread far and wide.

What about Wang Chengpeng abandoning Liu Yanran after seducing her? What about Wang Chengpeng's cruelty, causing Liu Yanran to have nightmares every night?...

In short, rumors tend to become more and more outrageous as they spread, and have now portrayed Wang Chengpeng as an utterly wicked villain.

After briefly explaining the situation, Liu Chunhua advised:
“Son, don’t take it to heart. We all know the truth of the matter.”

"I don't know who is spreading rumors about this. Otherwise, I would really go to the police station to report it. It's such a hassle."

"If only you had gotten married sooner, now that the rumors are affecting you, it might be hard for you to find a wife."

At this point, Liu Chunhua sighed heavily again.

When she learned of this news, she must have argued with the person who told her.

But when someone said, "That's what everyone in the village says," she was immediately rendered speechless.

She could argue with the person in front of her, or with seven or eight people, but she could never argue with the entire village. So she could only silently sulk and say:

“My son is clearly outstanding and has excellent character. How could you people believe such baseless rumors?”

Listening to Liu Chunhua's story, Wang Chengpeng burst into laughter and said:
"Father, Mother, I thought it was something serious, but it turns out it's just something that didn't even exist."

"Don't even think about explaining or providing evidence. This is exactly what people who spread rumors do."

"I am upright and have nothing to fear. I have never been afraid of these rumors."

Even a fool could tell who was behind these rumors.
However, he was not angry at all; on the contrary, he felt rather pleased.

Some people really think that Wangjia Village is her private domain, and she can do whatever she wants with it?
Let the rumors spread for a while longer; the wider and longer they spread, the worse the final outcome will be for some people.

A self-proving trap? Wang Chengpeng would never fall into such a low-level trap.

Seeing that Wang Chengpeng was in a good mood, Liu Chunhua finally breathed a sigh of relief.

She wasn't afraid of anything else, except that her son might do something rash.

Judging from Wang Chengpeng's demeanor, he probably doesn't care about this matter at all.

As for what happens if someone causes trouble for Wang Chengpeng because of this?

That would truly be walking into a trap, since we've always seen Wang Chengpeng make others suffer losses, but never the possibility of others making him suffer losses.

After placing the bowl and chopsticks he was holding on the edge of the sink, Wang Chengpeng thought for a moment and said:
"Mother, I have to go out for a while, it may take some time."

"Don't worry, I'll be right back."

Wang Chengpeng was calm enough, but he was afraid that some people were not calm enough.

Given Wang Zidong's personality, and the fact that he knows the truth, upon hearing such rumors, he would probably go and fight Liu Yanran to the death.

If something happens to Liu Yanran, she will have no choice but to blame herself, but it would be unfair to implicate Wang Zidong.

Riding his bicycle, Wang Chengpeng quickly arrived at the gate of Wang Zidong's courtyard.

From afar, Wang Chengpeng spotted a familiar figure—none other than Wang Zidong.

He was carrying a carrying pole in his hand, and the moment he saw Wang Chengpeng, he excitedly rushed forward and said:

"Pengzi, you've finally arrived. I knew you couldn't sit still."

"Don't bully people like that. We have to teach that bitch a lesson."

"It's one thing to be shameless and immoral, but to actually try to bite you back is simply outrageous."

"This carrying pole is the perfect length and weight, just right to be used this time."

"Let's go, let's go to the Shen family now and cause trouble for Liu Yanran."

Hearing Wang Zidong's words, Wang Chengpeng felt speechless. He thought to himself that it was a good thing he came, otherwise Wang Zidong might have done something impulsive and accidentally gotten himself into trouble.

Wang Chengpeng snatched the carrying pole from Wang Zidong's hand and put it back in the Wang family's warehouse. He said:

"Dongzi, don't be impulsive, and don't do anything reckless."

Wang Zidong, however, seemed not to understand Wang Chengpeng's words and said, "What? Pengzi, are you saying the carrying pole isn't enough?"

“Alright, our shovel can knock someone out in one hit.”

Wang Chengpeng: ...? ? ?
Following the same method, Wang Chengpeng quickly confiscated Wang Zidong's weapons and advised him:
"Dongzi, I know you care about me, but you can't do something wrong because of impulse." "If you go to Liu Yanran like this, not only will she not admit that she spread the rumors, but you will also get yourself into trouble."

"I won't have the money to bail you out of jail then."

Having his weapons confiscated twice, Wang Zidong was clearly angry and said:
“Pengzi, I understand what you’re saying, but I just can’t swallow this anger. I can’t stand seeing my brother being slandered.”

"If you don't rescue me, you don't rescue me. Anyway, I have to get my revenge today."

Wang Chengpeng grabbed Wang Zidong and tried to persuade him again:
"Don't get me wrong, I never said I intended to let the people who spread rumors off the hook, I just won't retaliate in this way."

"You've studied for so long, are you saying you've learned nothing at all?"

"Whom the gods would destroy, they first make mad."

"Now is not the time to deal with Liu Yanran. When the rumors spread more widely and she can't help but jump out, that will be the time for us to really make a move."

"If you believe in my abilities, then you don't need to do anything, just wait and watch a good show."

Wang Chengpeng's persuasion did have an effect, Wang Zidong said:

"Okay, Pengzi, I'll trust you this once."

"You're not one to suffer a loss. As long as you don't hold onto your past feelings for Liu Yanran, I don't believe you'll be at a disadvantage."

Nostalgia for the past?

Wang Chengpeng said with a hint of amusement, "You're still hung up on Liu Yanran's past relationship with other people? You must be joking."

"Just you wait and see, a grand show is about to unfold."

At Wang Chengpeng's urging, a disaster was quickly averted. All that was needed now was for the rumors to reach their peak, and the rumor-mongers would reap what they sowed.

……

Although rumors about Wang Chengpeng have spread like wildfire, they have had no effect on him whatsoever.

He spends most of his time studying in his study and rarely goes out, so the rumors never reach his ears.

However, this was tough on Wang Tieshan and Liu Chunhua, who were undergoing training at the sugar factory, as they had to interact with many people every day.

Especially given that another party involved, Shen Wei, was also present, this matter immediately attracted everyone's attention.

During a break, a worker named Sun Feiyang couldn't resist and went to Wang Tieshan to ask him something, saying:
“Uncle Wang, the news about your son Wang Chengpeng has spread like wildfire throughout the village. Why don’t you come forward to clarify things?”

"Could it be true, as the rumors are circulating, that your Wang Chengpeng slept with Liu Yanran back then?"

When asked by Sun Feiyang, Wang Tieshan replied firmly, "Of course that's not true."

"I even went to the Shen family yesterday to ask Liu Yanran about the rumors in front of several people."

“She herself said it’s not true, so why are you spreading rumors? Such baseless things are bad for a girl’s reputation.”

In an effort to quell the rumors as quickly as possible, Wang Tieshan did his best and immediately took his men to find Liu Yanran.

Judging from Liu Yanran's tearful appearance, although it was certain that these were rumors, they actually became the best evidence to support the rumors.

What a pitiful person! Clearly a victim, yet choosing to endure it for the sake of her own reputation, only to benefit the wicked Wang Chengpeng.

Unfortunately, the eyes of the masses are discerning and cannot be deceived. The truth of the matter must be that Wang Chengpeng has a problem.

In this situation, the rumors actually tended to intensify.

That's why, after hearing Wang Tieshan's words, Sun Feiyang asked again:

"Liu Yanran's words are not to be taken seriously."

"Do you have any other evidence in your home that can prove Wang Chengpeng didn't do this?"

Upon hearing Sun Feiyang's words, Wang Chengpeng felt that things had become utterly absurd.

If my own words can't be trusted, then whose words can?
And how can Wang Chengpeng prove that he didn't do such a thing? It's simply impossible!

Remembering Wang Chengpeng's advice to avoid falling into the trap of self-proof, Wang Tieshan fell silent, only saying, "Believe it or not."

For Wang Tieshan, the most important thing was that his family lived in harmony; he didn't care what outsiders thought.

Given the Wang family's current circumstances, they would almost never need to ask for favors; on the contrary, others might be the ones asking them for help.

Feeling utterly dejected after being rebuffed, Sun Feiyang muttered to himself:
"Since they haven't even offered a word of explanation, then this matter must be true."

"You can know a person's face but not their heart. Wang Chengpeng looked respectable and like a scholar, but I never expected him to be such a beast."

"Fortunately, Liu Yanran managed to get rid of Wang Chengpeng's entanglement in time and found a good marriage, thus escaping her misery."

"What kind of parents can raise a son like this? It's best to avoid dealing with this couple in the future."

Hearing similar remarks, Wang Tieshan and his wife felt somewhat depressed.

In the end, it was Liu Chunhua who came to terms with it first, saying:
"We're here to work at the sugar factory. As long as we do our job well, nothing else matters."

"They can say whatever they want, it's none of our business."

"I'd better not find any evidence, or I'll definitely send these people who talk nonsense to jail."

The only thing that bothered Liu Chunhua was Wang Xia'an's indifference and even his joining the crowd that questioned her, pointing fingers at her and her elders behind their backs.

However, she quickly came to terms with it, after all, Wang Tieshan was right, as long as the family was doing well.

Since they've already separated, whether or not there's a real blood relationship, why should she care about Wang Xia'an's attitude towards her?

They even said that since we were once family, we should take good care of this young man. But judging from the current situation, it seems unnecessary.

Shen Wei, another party involved, was also questioned by everyone about whether Liu Yanran had been bullied by Wang Chengpeng.

Shen Wei was a shrewd man, so he didn't answer directly. He only said that the reason he and Liu Yanran were able to get married was because Liu Yanran came to him crying one day.

Although Liu Yanran offered no explanation and only cried, her actions clearly convinced many people.

Even what Shen Wei said was true; Liu Yanran did indeed come to him crying back then, but the reason behind it was not what everyone imagined.

Looking at Wang Tieshan and Liu Chunhua, who had been isolated by everyone, Shen Wei's eyes revealed a clear look of smugness.

He could be considered a petty person who had gotten his way, but he had just gained some advantage at Wang Chengpeng's house, and he was already feeling smug.

Little did he know that an even more terrifying storm was brewing, which could very well engulf the Shen family completely.

(End of this chapter)