Chapter 104: Chapter 104: Guilty Conscience

Wang Xuehong was shocked by the midnight arrival of Su Qing, Zhao Youcai, and his wife. "Old Zhao, is something wrong?"

As he spoke, Wang Xuehong’s gaze fell on Su Qing. He had a gut feeling that something terrible had happened to her. Otherwise, the three of them wouldn’t have come rushing over in the middle of the night. It was, after all, two-thirty in the morning.

Zhao Youcai nodded. "Old Wang, something did happen. Three men broke into Su Qing’s house in the dark."

"What!" Wang Xuehong shot to his feet and quickly looked at Su Qing. "Su Qing, they didn’t hurt you, did they?"

Su Qing quickly replied, "Village Secretary, I’m fine. Luckily, I met an old traditional Chinese medicine doctor in the county town who gave me some sedatives. I was planning to use them for self-defense when I go into the mountains, since there are so many wild animals. But I never expected those three men to suddenly break in, so I used the sedative on them. That’s how I managed to escape."

"Oh, that’s good, that’s good." Wang Xuehong let out a sigh of relief.

Inside, listening to the conversation, Pang Xiaofang shivered. She clutched her chest, her mind flashing back to what had happened at her parents’ house two days ago. ’My gut tells me those three men were sent by that Brother Liu,’ she thought. ’I can’t believe Su Qing is so capable. She actually caught them.’

Pang Xiaofang felt a sense of dread. ’It would’ve been fine if the three of them had gotten away. But now... what if those men say something? Then I’ll be in big trouble.’

While Pang Xiaofang’s mind was racing, Su Qing and Zhao Youcai exchanged a look. Zhao Youcai then said to Wang Xuehong, "Old Wang, these three men didn’t show up by chance. They went to Su Qing’s house with a purpose. Their target was very clear."

Wang Xuehong frowned. "With a purpose? You mean they were targeting Su Qing all along?"

"Yes," Zhao Youcai said. "And what’s more, someone specifically told these men about Su Qing’s situation."

"What!" Wang Xuehong exclaimed, demanding, "Who? Who would do something so despicable! Su Qing is just a young woman. Who could she have possibly offended?"

In the room, Pang Xiaofang felt her breathing grow difficult. She wanted to rush out and stop Zhao Youcai from saying more, but that would be a dead giveaway. ’What if... what if those men have nothing to do with Brother Liu?’

Pang Xiaofang tried to comfort herself with that thought, continuing to strain her ears to hear the conversation in the main room.

"Village Secretary," Su Qing said to Wang Xuehong, looking wronged, "the men said they were sent by someone called Brother Liu. He runs an illegal gambling den. When he went to Qianshan Village to collect a gambling debt from a family with the surname Pang, that family told Brother Liu about me in order to cancel their debt."

"What!" Wang Xuehong froze. ’Qianshan Village, the Pang family, gambling debts... isn’t that...?’

"Su Qing, you’ve gone too far!" Before Wang Xuehong could say anything, Pang Xiaofang, unable to hold back any longer, burst out of the room. She jabbed a finger at Su Qing. "Didn’t you say you knocked those three men out? How could they have told you all this? You little brat, are you doing this on purpose to get back at me? I swear, you’re the most scheming girl I’ve ever met..."

Seeing Pang Xiaofang rush out, Wang Xuehong felt the blood rush to his head. He snapped at her angrily, "You! Shut your mouth."

"I..." Pang Xiaofang started to say more, but Su Qing cut in. "Aunt Wang, I used the sedative to knock them out, tied them up, and then woke them up to question them. Everything I’ve said is exactly what they told me. I haven’t changed a single word."

Pang Xiaofang’s heart pounded with even greater panic. She clenched her fists, her eyes practically shooting fire at Su Qing. Seeing this, Tang Suqin quickly pulled Su Qing behind her. "Pang Xiaofang, we have to get to the bottom of this. If this really is connected to your family, you owe Su Qing an explanation. We can’t let this girl be wronged."

"She’s slandering me!" Pang Xiaofang retorted angrily.

"I told you to shut up!" Wang Xuehong was about to explode with anger. When he first heard Su Qing’s story, he was skeptical. But now, seeing Pang Xiaofang’s reaction, he was suddenly certain. If she didn’t have a guilty conscience, she wouldn’t be acting like this.

’So it’s true,’ Wang Xuehong thought, looking at Pang Xiaofang with disappointment. ’Pang Xiaofang’s family really did try to harm Su Qing. And all because she refused to lend them money? They came up with such a vicious plan over that?’

Three big, burly men breaking into a young woman’s courtyard in the middle of the night... what good could they have been up to? Besides robbery, they likely had other intentions. If they had succeeded, Su Qing’s reputation would have been completely ruined.

"Wang Xuehong, you don’t actually believe what Su Qing is saying, do you?" Pang Xiaofang’s mind was in turmoil. She turned to Wang Xuehong and asked nervously.

Wang Xuehong’s gaze was chilling, causing Pang Xiaofang to shiver. She took an involuntary step back and stammered, "Su Qing is just making things up! Don’t believe her."

Zhao Youcai said calmly, "We’ll find out if she’s making it up by asking. And if we can’t get it out of them, there’s always the police."

"No, I..." Pang Xiaofang grew even more flustered. She was the one who had told Brother Liu about Su Qing. Although her nephew and Brother Liu had pressured her into it, the fact remained that she was the informant. ’If they really report this to the police,’ she thought frantically, ’will I be arrested?’

Seeing the obvious panic on Pang Xiaofang’s face, Wang Xuehong grew even angrier. He pointed a finger at her and roared, "It’s come to this, and you’re still not telling the truth? Speak! What exactly happened?"

"Sister-in-law Wang, this isn’t a small matter. You’d better hurry up and tell us what’s going on," Zhao Youcai added.

"I... I..." Pang Xiaofang felt utterly mortified as everyone stared at her. She wanted to turn and flee, but Wang Xuehong’s words froze her in place. "If you don’t talk, I’m calling the police and letting them question you."

"I’ll talk! I’ll talk." Realizing she couldn’t bluff her way out, Pang Xiaofang confessed everything, telling them all about how Brother Liu and his men had come to her parents’ house to demand payment for the gambling debt.

At the end, Pang Xiaofang started crying. "I didn’t mean to tell them about Su Qing! It was Baozhu who let it slip, and then that Brother Liu forced me to talk! I just thought they’d listen and that would be the end of it. How was I supposed to know they’d really go to Su Qing’s house?"

Wang Xuehong gritted his teeth. He might not know others well, but he certainly knew Pang Xiaofang’s nephew. ’This wasn’t a slip of the tongue,’ he thought bitterly. ’This was a deliberate attempt to throw Su Qing under the bus to get rid of their gambling debt.’

SLAP!

Pang Xiaofang stared at Wang Xuehong in disbelief. "Wang Xuehong, you hit me! You hit me in front of all these people!"