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

Chapter 256 Feeling Lost
At this point, Zhou Xia seemed to recall something, and with lingering fear, he said:

“I believe that only Brother Wang is doing this for my own good. If I were to get involved in a case, Li Weiguo would definitely distance himself from it immediately.”

“When he asked me to do bad things, he said that it had nothing to do with him. I’m afraid he was planning to use me as a scapegoat back then.”

"If he does the first thing, then don't blame me for doing the fifteenth."

"I've done this, so just wait and see what evidence I have to give you."

This time, Zhou Xia was truly convinced and completely convinced by Wang Chengpeng, which could be seen from the way he called him "Brother Wang" so affectionately.

If anyone approaches him again in the future, claiming to be 100% certain they can kill Wang Chengpeng, he probably won't believe a single word.

Going against this kind of person is like dying without even knowing how you died.

Looking at Zhou Xia, who seemed like a lackey, Wang Chengpeng nodded with great satisfaction.

Although it took some time, the arrangements are almost complete, and we just need to wait for the results.

The key to this matter now is timing; to deliver a fatal blow to Li Weiguo before he knows anything about it, and naturally, the sooner the better.

Once the truth comes out and Li Weiguo becomes aware of the situation, even Zhou Xia might not be able to gather evidence against the other party.

Thinking this, he waved his hand and said, "Just give the evidence to Song Wenxin directly."

"After all, you know I'm just a country bumpkin, and I don't have much time to play these petty tricks of tripping each other up."

Having received the arrangement, Zhou Xia immediately smiled obsequiously and said in a very servile manner:
"Brother Wang's arrangement is correct. I will do as you require right away."

"I've sold all my weight, over 100 pounds, to Brother Wang, so please don't lie to me."

He turned off the recorder and nodded, saying:
“I’m a man of my word, and I wouldn’t go back on my word like a petty person like you.”

"As far as I can remember, have I ever broken a single promise I made to you?"

"One last piece of advice: don't think about going back on your word."

“I’ve already recorded what I said before. If I send the recording to Li Weiguo, do you think you’ll still be his son-in-law?”

When Zhou Xia heard Wang Chengpeng say that he had recorded the audio, his face turned green.

However, he dared not say a word of blame to Wang Chengpeng, and could only force a smile and say:
"Brother Wang has already shown me the way to survival, so am I supposed to go back on my word and court death?"

“Brother Wang is a man of his word, so I naturally trust him.”

At this point, Zhou Xia pointed to the tape recorder again and said:

"I think Brother Wang trusts me, but he's still a little worried about my abilities."

"They just told me they wouldn't teach me how to collect evidence, and now they've covered for me at the scene again. I've really benefited from this."

"Brother Wang, don't worry."

“This Li Weiguo actually dared to harm your family. He deserves to die a thousand deaths and will surely die without a burial place.”

"He is a person who does no good deeds and has done all sorts of bad things. This time, he has fallen into Brother Wang's hands, which is what he deserves."

"It's really an honor for him to be judged by Brother Wang."

"It's all thanks to Brother Wang's righteous intervention that he rid the people of this scourge; otherwise, Fang Weiguo would have harmed countless more people."

Nodding noncommittally, Wang Chengpeng stood up and said:

"Don't just flatter; we also need to see your actions."

"Want to live? Then you'd better hurry up."

"The police will be coming to your door in less than three days. You don't have much time left."

“You won’t even have three days. Once Li Weiguo hears the slightest hint of trouble, you’ll probably lose all chance to gather evidence and become a scapegoat.”

With a fawning smile, Zhou Xia nodded and said:
"Thank you for the reminder, Brother Wang. I will take care of it as soon as you leave."

"Brother Wang, don't worry, this matter concerns my own life, and I will take it more seriously than anyone else."

"Just watch my performance, wait and see the show, wait and see the Li family collapse."

Picking up the tape recorder, Wang Chengpeng said:

"Alright, then I'll wait and see."

"I have other things to do, so I won't waste your time here. You'd better take care of yourself."

After saying that, Wang Chengpeng left the teahouse.

Now that Zhou Xia, the inside man, has been taken care of, the next step is to go and talk to Song Wenxin again to hand over the relevant matters.

Only after arranging everything could he go home to rest.

Given what had happened before, this time, Yang Guocheng practically invited Wang Chengpeng in.

Unfortunately, it was lunchtime, and Song Wenxin had already gone home.

Since there was nothing important to do, Wang Chengpeng borrowed the supply and marketing cooperative's phone and called Song Wenxin directly.

After briefly explaining to Song Wenxin how he had dealt with Zhou Xia, Wang Chengpeng left with the words, "If you encounter any emergency, you can come to Wangjia Village to find me," and then rode his bicycle home.

I'll be away for a while this time, and given the major incident that just happened at home, it's best to go back as soon as possible.

On the other end of the phone, listening to Wang Chengpeng's earnest tone, Song Wenxin couldn't help but laugh out loud, muttering to herself:
"This brat is actually ordering me around?"

"If even my Song family can't handle this, do you think asking you would be of any use?"

Just then, a deep voice came from inside the room, saying:

"Wenxin, the medicine you asked me to brew is ready. Let it cool down a bit before drinking it."

"Look at you, didn't you say you no longer believed in these folk remedies? Why are you drinking them again today?"

At this point, the old man looked at Song Wenxin with some surprise and said:

"Wenxin, what's wrong with you today? You look so radiant!"

"Who were you talking to on the phone just now?"

With a serious expression, Song Wenxin reverted to her previous youthful demeanor and said:

"What do you mean, 'radiant with joy'? Dad, you're mistaken!"

"The person who just called was that young man who said he wanted to cooperate with the Song family to bring down the Li family."

"He seemed to suddenly remember something and called me again to discuss the relevant details."

"As for medicine, I am still young, so how can I avoid seeking medical treatment? As long as there is hope, I am naturally willing to try."

With a chuckle, Song Wenxin's father, Song Guocai, said:
"So it was that young man. He's quite a capable and courageous person."

"Others, let alone being able to come up with a way to bring down the Li family, probably don't even have the right to meet you."

“What he said is easy to handle. There happens to be someone in the family who is the deputy director of the Public Security Bureau. If it’s just a matter of official business, then there won’t be any problem at all.” “But that’s not the point. Wenxin, you seem to be a little interested in him. You could try to get in touch with him.”

"Such an outstanding person, especially at such a young age, is truly rare."

Upon hearing Song Guocai's words, Song Wenxin was momentarily stunned, and a rare blush appeared on her face.

Then, as if remembering something, her expression quickly darkened, and she said:

"Father, I'm just a withered woman who can't have children. He's young and promising, he might not even be interested in me."

"Besides, we're just ordinary business partners; we've never really clicked."

"Don't try to play matchmaker. If I really meet someone I like who doesn't mind me, I'm not one of those shy, timid girls. I'll naturally take the initiative to reach out to them."

"If I don't meet the right person, I don't have to get married. I can just adopt a child from a relative's family and that will still be enough to continue the Song family line."

Upon hearing Song Wenxin say that he was not good enough for her, Song Guocai became interested.

In his memory, his daughter was very proud, but it was rare for her to speak so highly of a man.

For all these years, she has never said a good word about Zhou Xia.

He immediately smiled and said, "My usually proud daughter can actually compliment people now. It seems the other person is indeed a very outstanding young man."

"Your father won't interfere in your affairs; you can decide for yourself."

"As your father, I have a piece of advice for you."

“Those who strike first will gain the upper hand, and those who strike later will suffer disaster.”

"If you hesitate when making a choice, you might miss out on something that could become a lifelong regret."

After saying this, Song Guocai didn't wait for Song Wenxin's rebuttal, and went back to his room, shaking his head and thinking to himself that this daughter of his was really giving him a hard time; even in middle age, she was still thinking about divorce.

Song Wenxin was left alone, staring blankly at the medicinal soup in front of her.

……

Can't wait to go home!

Along the way, Wang Chengpeng pedaled his bicycle with great speed and quickly returned to Wangjia Village.

Thanks to the protection of an unsung hero, Wang Chengpeng had another beautiful and harmonious day, and even the sunlight didn't seem so glaring.

However, just as Wang Chengpeng was about to go home, he saw a dog sneaking around at his door.

Just as he was wondering which petty thief was so audacious as to dare to scout his house while it was surrounded by militia, he discovered that the other party had actually taken the initiative to greet him:
"Cousin, cousin, you've finally arrived."

As he continued shouting, Wang Chun'an walked straight towards Wang Chengpeng.

Upon seeing Wang Chun'an, Wang Chengpeng's face lit up with joy.

Since the other party was able to come here, it naturally means that the matter of the bracelet has been resolved.

This is also a major event concerning the future of the Wang family, and Wang Chengpeng is naturally very concerned about it.

Thinking this, Wang Chengpeng also warmly greeted him and asked, feigning curiosity:

"Cousin, what brings you to my house today?"

"Don't be shy, come in and have a seat. We're all family."

Faced with Wang Chengpeng's enthusiastic invitation, Wang Chun'an replied with an embarrassed expression:
"Cousin, since you're here, I won't come in and sit down."

"Do you remember what happened last time, the one about the bracelet?"

At this point, as if afraid that Wang Chengpeng would change his mind, Wang Chun'an quickly took out a piece of paper from his pocket.

This piece of paper was none other than the sample drawing that Wang Chengpeng had given to Wang Chun'an.

Upon seeing the sample image, Wang Chengpeng seemed to finally remember something and said:
“Cousin, so this is what you meant. Of course it counts.”

"I just didn't expect you to handle this matter so efficiently, to find the location of the bracelet so quickly, which is why I couldn't make contact for a while."

"Tell me quickly where this bracelet is now. If my mother finds out that her bracelet has been found, she will be overjoyed."

When Wang Chun'an saw that Wang Chengpeng had actually kept his promise, he hesitated.

He still remembered how much Zhao Yuju treasured the bracelet. If he told Wang Chengpeng about it, wouldn't that be a betrayal of his grandmother?

To be fair, although Zhao Yuju was not good to Wang Chengpeng's family, she was extremely good to her eldest grandson, Wang Chun'an, and always remembered to give him the best things.

Seeing the hesitation in Wang Chun'an's eyes, Wang Chengpeng quickly reached into his pocket and pulled out forty-five yuan.

Wang Chengpeng waved the money in front of Wang Chun'an and urged:

"Cousin, you didn't come all this way just to mess with me, did you?"

"I've been saving this money by living frugally, how come you don't show any sincerity at all?"

"If you don't want the money, that's fine too. You don't have to pay back the money I spent on dinner before, but you have to return the five yuan deposit and the wine."

"We agreed that if you really couldn't find them, I wouldn't take these things back."

“But now the nature of the matter has clearly changed. You knew the information but deliberately did not tell us, which means you actively broke the promise between us. You should naturally return the things you accepted from me in the first place.”

“If you don’t return it, I will take this matter to the village and let everyone help judge whether you should return the money and the things.”

Wang Chun'an was stunned. He never expected that Wang Chengpeng would turn his back on him so easily.

Unfortunately, Wang Chengpeng's words made perfect sense. If the matter were to escalate to the village, not only would everyone know about it, but he would also be completely in the wrong and would have no choice but to accept the loss.

He's already drunk that expensive wine and spent that five yuan. How is he going to pay it back?
If his family found out that he had agreed to this, he might as well just sell his grandmother off completely; then no one else would necessarily know that he was the one who leaked the information.

What's more, he still has 45 yuan left to pay, so he's practically guaranteed to make a profit.

In addition, his father had always taught him that everything should be about money, so at this moment, he quickly made the wisest choice.

With a fawning smile, Wang Chun'an said ingratiatingly:

"Cousin, let's not be so tense and distant as family. I was just joking with you."

"I'll tell you the news, okay?"

Seeing that Wang Chun'an had finally calmed down, Wang Chengpeng's expression improved considerably, and he said:
"Cousin, what a coincidence! I was just joking with you."

"Tell me the news quickly, I can't wait to tell my mother this good news."

That bracelet was a keepsake from his grandmother, whom he had never met. Wang Chengpeng was determined to get it back, even if it meant risking everything.

Moreover, Grandma was unwilling to leave her belongings in the hands of that shameless Zhao Yuju.

However, even though everything had been agreed upon, Wang Chun'an suddenly became hesitant to speak.

(End of this chapter)