Returning to the small mountain village of '86, intelligence updated daily.

Chapter 127 The Mastermind Behind the Rumors

Zhou Shiwei was helping several strong men from the village to hold down and slaughter a pig, unaware that his own family had arrived. Zhou Shijie was also helping, but not as a main force, because he didn't know how to hold down a pig; he was just pulling on a pig's foot.

At this moment, the host family noticed that four more people from the Zhou family had arrived, which Liu Benshan had seen from afar.

Liu Benshan was overjoyed to see the newcomer and immediately dropped what he was doing to greet him.

He was already a little worried that he wouldn't be able to finish the work today, and he was even considering hiring someone.

As it turned out, four more members of the Zhou family arrived, directly solving his immediate problem.

"It's your sister-in-law! Please come in, please come in. Have some water first. Thank you so much."

Liu Benshan was very grateful. He originally thought that it was already good enough that the Zhou family could send two people to help, but he did not expect that four more people would come!

The Zhou family is so kind! The whole family came to help them.

Liu Benshan invited everyone to come inside, have some water, and rest. He poured water for them and offered them polite compliments.

Zeng Jiamei knew that her family wasn't there to sit and drink water, so she said directly to Liu Benshan, "Brother Liu, just tell us what you need to do. Our family will do whatever you ask. Just give my second son an easy job, since he's still young."

Zeng Jiamei was quick-witted and told him directly.

Seeing this, Liu Benshan no longer stood on ceremony. In rural areas, when a large banquet is held, everyone's duties are usually arranged in advance.

This is considered a favor-based job. Basically, whoever is assigned to it has to make time to come unless there are special circumstances. Otherwise, if something happens to their family next time, other families will definitely have their own opinions, and if it can't be done, they can't blame others.

However, there were one or two unexpected situations or people who were not included in the arrangements. For example, this time, Liu Benshan's side was short of several people.

Those who couldn't come either had only one or two people at home who were too busy, or something else happened... In short, there was a shortage of manpower.

Liu Benshan stopped being polite and assigned the two ladies to wash and chop vegetables, and Zhou Ming to boil water. The original staff were replaced to do other tasks.

Zhou Rui accompanied him to greet the guests, who were the main characters of the day. Liu Benshan's second son had personally mentioned this a couple of days ago, and he also wanted Zhou Rui to be his best man.

Liu Benshan hesitated only slightly before agreeing. His reason for hesitation was simple: he had heard a lot of rumors lately.

They were all saying that Zhou Rui was extremely rebellious.

However, he didn't believe it. Others might not know what Zhou Rui and the Zhou family were like, but his Liu family knew them well.

So he agreed, and when he told Zhou Rui about it, Zhou Rui was a little surprised to hear that he was to be the best man.

So, I've become a groomsman?

Old Liu is someone who isn't afraid of gossip, yet he asked me to greet guests and be his best man. Isn't that putting me in a difficult position?

However, since you've already asked, we'll definitely give you that courtesy.

Zhou Rui thought to himself that he had a good relationship with Liu Shouxin in his previous life, and Liu's temper was actually to his liking.

In addition, he also wanted to take this opportunity to see who in the village had a good relationship with him and his family, and who he disliked openly.

And so, the Zhou family members all went about their tasks. Only after everyone had left did Zhou Shiwei see that more people from his family had arrived. He greeted his wife and then went back to their own business.

Zhou Rui held a pack of cigarettes in his hand and another pack in his pocket. They were Hongmei cigarettes, because as a greeter, he had to offer cigarettes to every guest who came.

At this time, it was still early, around eight o'clock. People wouldn't come for the banquet now; they would come for lunch and then have a formal banquet in the evening.

Didn't they arrange a best man for me? Where's the groom?

Zhou Rui muttered to himself, "It's already the wedding day, and the groom isn't home yet. What's going on?"

However, a familiar figure interrupted his thoughts, for he saw someone coming from the direction of the village.

Aunt Li has arrived.

"Aunt Li, you're here! Come in and sit down for a while. By the way, where are Uncle Zhao and the others?"

Zhou Rui, quite familiar with the situation, stepped forward to strike up a conversation. Aunt Li, who doted on this younger generation, replied with a smile, "Our eldest son is all grown up now, greeting guests here. I won't go in and sit down, lest people gossip. Your Uncle Zhao and the others will arrive in the evening; he's waiting for Xiaoya to come back from school in the county town."

Riding a motorcycle is not as strenuous as riding a tricycle or as cumbersome as riding a bus. Even a bicycle is faster than the former two when traveling between towns and villages.

That's why Zhao Jianjun can come home anytime.

After saying a few words, Li Lan looked around and continued, "So many people have come to your house. But then again, it makes sense. Your family doesn't need to rush the autumn harvest at all, you're all strong men. Unlike our family, what are we going to do?"

The Zhao family also grows grain, but not much. In the past, during busy farming seasons, they would ask the villagers to help with the work, and of course, they would pay them for their labor.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Rui smiled and said solemnly, "Auntie, after we finish harvesting and other tasks at home, I'll come and help you."

Zhou Rui was very sensible, and he was willing to help because the Zhao family had treated his family well.

Li Lan laughed at this and joked, "It's not easy to set a wage like that."

"Aunt Li, you're being too polite. We're practically family, no need for such formalities."

"Haha, sure, sure, Auntie will go ahead and get busy, we'll talk later."

Aunt Li went to help wash the vegetables and rinse the rice, while Zhou Rui continued to stand at the Liu family's door.

At this moment, Liu Benshan finished his work and came over. He thought for a moment, as if trying to figure out how to say it. After hesitating for a short while, he asked frankly, "Xiao Rui, tell your uncle, what exactly happened when Old Yang went to your house that day? These past few days, the rumors in the village have been really strange. They all say you're unfilial and don't recognize your own family. But Uncle Liu definitely believes in us..."

'

Liu Benshan was an honest man. He originally wanted to ask indirectly, but after thinking for a long time, he couldn't come up with a way to do so, so he simply spoke frankly.

Even in the last sentence, fearing that the Zhou family might misunderstand, he specifically expressed his attitude of trust.

Zhou Rui had nothing to hide and told him everything: "Uncle Liu, thank you for believing me. I'm not lying. It was Old Yang and the others who came to borrow money that day."

'

Zhou Rui told him everything. Since Liu Benshan wanted to know, there was no harm in telling him.

Upon hearing Zhou Rui's confirmation, Liu Benshan made no attempt to hide his anger.

"How could Old Yang do such a thing! It's so unethical of him. He's so old, and he's doing this kind of thing. Isn't this just making things difficult for you? No, I have to go and talk to him about this later."

"I knew it! How could you possibly kick the patriarch out over a bowl of water? And what nonsense about beating and scolding him! I don't know where that rumor came from!"

Liu Benshan looked as if he had known it all along; he was indignant and quite displeased.

Zhou Rui simply offered a few words of comfort: "Forget it, Uncle Benshan, justice will prevail. People have already spread the word, what can we do? Old Yang is one of the most respected elders in the village..."

'

Hearing Zhou Rui say this, Liu Benshan sighed deeply: "You've really suffered, child."

"It's okay, I don't care."

Does Zhou Rui really not care? Perhaps a little, but it would be a lie to say he has no thoughts at all. He's human too, and how can he bear the feeling of being wronged?

However, he really didn't know where to start with this. If he tried to clarify it himself, it would only make things worse.

After getting the answer, Liu Benshan went back to his busy work. He genuinely had a good relationship with the Zhou family, and even on such an important and busy day for his family, he didn't forget to ask.

Zhou Rui continued to help out, either adjusting the position of the red lanterns with a ladder or tying up the ribbons, while also waiting for the intelligence update at nine o'clock.

Shortly afterward, the intelligence system was updated as scheduled.

Zhou Rui walked to a secluded spot, closed his eyes, and began reviewing today's intelligence.

[Intelligence 1: Liu Shouxin is getting married today. He is marrying a family in the county town. In addition, he has been running back and forth between the county town and the town for the past few days because he is helping Chen Xiang with some things.]

[Intelligence 1 Quality: White]

[Intelligence 2: After failing to borrow money from the Zhou family, Wang Er harbored resentment the next day and continued to plot against them secretly. At the same time, after learning that the Yang family had suffered a setback, Wang Er added fuel to the fire, intending to slander the Zhou family and Zhou Rui.]

[Intelligence 2 Quality: White]

There are two intelligence reports today.

Zhou Rui opened his eyes, and some of his doubts were finally answered. At the same time, he sighed inwardly:

You, Liu Shouxin, are really lucky! Not only did you marry a girl from the county town, but you also benefited from the wealth of Chen, a woman from the town with tens of thousands of yuan in savings. No wonder you haven't shown up yet, even though the wedding is supposed to be happening these past few days...

It seems that the ultimate beneficiary of that green intelligence report from a few days ago was actually my childhood friend.

He was incredibly lucky, even Zhou Rui was a little envious. In his previous life, he didn't know much about Liu Shouxin's wife's background, only that she was gentle and intelligent, but he didn't know her true identity.

In a family, the role of the lady of the house is especially important. If she is gentle and intelligent, the family will not be too bad. But if she is like Chen Li, the family breaking apart is a minor matter. More likely, an accident will occur.

Liu Shouxin was lucky; he married a city girl who was also a virtuous wife.

He himself worked very hard. It was only after Zhou Rui's business grew that he thought of helping his childhood friend and helping him take his life to the next level.

As a result, Liu Shouxin directly rejected Zhou Rui and chose to start from the grassroots level, eventually winning the respect of countless people.

Now it all makes sense.

Zhou Rui silently wished his childhood friend Liu Shouxin well, but soon after, a surge of anger welled up in his heart.

It's that Wang Er again!

A leopard can't change its spots. Even after arguing with his wife like this, he's still trying to go against her. I thought he'd calm down a bit after he didn't get anything out of me that night.

It now seems that this person has started to use underhanded tactics. This time, it's not just gossip, but blatant slander against his own family and himself!

Zhou Rui's thoughts gradually became clearer.

That's right. My family and Wang Er are not far apart. If something happens to my family, Wang Er will definitely be the first to know.

Considering Yang Mu's attitude and Yang Bao's attitude, it's entirely possible that the group colluded.

What angered Zhou Rui was that he hated people who stabbed him in the back, especially someone like Wang Er who was two-faced.

Looking back on Wang Er's attitude that night, Zhou Rui felt extremely disgusted.

He kept calling Wang Er "Brother Zhou" and spoke in a very humble manner. Zhou Rui really thought that Wang Er might have changed his mind. But he never expected that Wang Er would stab him in the back.

Moreover, they joined forces with the Yang family to cause trouble. Birds of a feather flock together; the phrase "birds of a feather" perfectly describes them.

They both came to borrow money, but the difference was that one genuinely wanted to borrow money, while the other wanted to extort it.

What they had in common was that neither of them managed to borrow the money, and both sides were "perfectly in sync" about the matter, both feeling that the Zhou family had no right to refuse to lend it.

There was even an attitude of "I've done all this, and they still don't appreciate it," which was true for Wang Er, as well as Yang Bao and Yang Mu.

Some people always take other people's kindness for granted and think that everyone should revolve around them.

If one day they take the initiative to do something, or ask you for help, it's fine if you agree.

If you don't agree, they'll think you're arrogant and have too much of a problem, and then they'll start talking badly about you, saying bad things about you, even spreading rumors about you, and their mentality will become twisted...

But these people have forgotten the most fundamental thing: helping them is a favor, not helping is their right, and no one is born owing anyone anything.

Zhou Rui took a deep breath, suppressed his discomfort, and returned to his "post".

After a while, having seen so many demons and monsters, one becomes used to them.

Wang Er is a perfect example of someone who is two-faced and opportunistic.

The two men in the Yang family are also extremely awful. They use their seniority to intimidate others, have a high opinion of themselves, and think, "I'm already like this, they should give me money as a sign of respect."

Both sides were cut from the same cloth, so it's no wonder they ended up together, which led to all the rumors circulating in the village.

Zhou Rui slowly sorted out these details and finally came to a conclusion, also learning about the instigator behind these outrageous rumors.

Although both pieces of intelligence today were white (meaning they were innocuous or corrupt), they were extremely useful; even if there was no profit to be gained, at least Zhou Rui learned some of the reasons behind things.

This gives us a clue as to what to do next.

Zhou Rui initially thought that Yang Mu and Yang Bao had simply released a little bit of unfavorable information, which then spread through misinformation and became what it is today. However, this was clearly not the case.

The rumors circulating now are not fabricated from hearsay; they were deliberately spread from the source. It is Wang Er who wanted to harm people, and Yang Bao and Yang Mu who wanted to cause trouble.

After figuring everything out, Zhou Rui's face turned gloomy.

Whether it was fate or not, at this very moment, Wang Er, who had already divorced Chen Li, came to Liu Benshan's house alone.

Wang Er naturally saw Zhou Rui standing at the door to greet the guests. He was initially incredulous, but after a moment, he smiled.

"Ah, it's Zhou Rui! How have you been lately? I've been missing you terribly. I've heard they've been spreading all sorts of rumors in the village, and I was really upset when I heard it. How could they say such things..."

"Wang Er's mouth stretched into a wide grin, his laughter unrestrained and arrogant, like a smashed persimmon."