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

Chapter 57 I'll pay!

In fact, Wang Zidong didn't think much of it. He was ready to take his bicycle back as soon as he saw it, since Wang Chengpeng had come to pick up the bicycle at Wang Chun'an's request.

Unexpectedly, the bicycle that seemed to be parked properly in the yard fell over and broke with the slightest touch.

Anyone would be angry if they encountered such a thing for no reason, which is why they started to loudly complain in the yard.

Upon hearing this sound, Wang Jinshan, who had been resting calmly in the house, felt a sudden jolt of fear, realizing that something was very wrong.

Sure enough, when he arrived in the yard, he saw an extremely angry Wang Zidong, and lying in front of Wang Zidong was the bicycle that was obviously damaged.

After weighing the pros and cons for a long time, Wang Jinshan chose the latter, weighing the pros and cons to the death. He immediately spoke in the tone of an elder lecturing a younger person:
"Zidong, you can't just say things like that."

"This bicycle was perfectly fine when it was parked in the yard, but it broke as soon as you came in. Who can explain what happened? After all, no one saw what happened."

"Besides, Cheng Peng borrowed this bicycle from your house, so even if there's a problem, it can't be blamed on me."

Faced with Wang Jinshan's shameless remarks, Wang Zidong almost laughed in anger, saying:
"I just arrived, how could I possibly do anything to my precious bicycle?"

"Although Pengzi borrowed the bicycle from my house, it was you who used it. Are you implying that I deliberately damaged my own bicycle to scam you?"

"If you don't explain this to me clearly today, then we'll go to the team and find a place to reason with them."

This kind of bicycle being damaged has happened before; usually, an apology and a repair are all that's needed to resolve the issue.

However, Wang Zidong has never encountered a situation like Wang Jinshan, who not only refuses to admit his mistakes but also tries to shift the blame.

In order to fight for his own legitimate interests, he disregarded the fact that the other party was barely his elder and argued his case forcefully.

Just then, Wang Chengpeng came out of the house and advised, "Dongzi, calm down."

"There's no need to take this to the team; we can just clarify things here."

"Don't worry, even if no one else pays for it in the end, I will still pay for the bicycle!"

Ultimately, out of respect for Wang Chengpeng, Wang Zidong's emotions were not as agitated as before, and he said:
“Our family isn’t stingy, and we would never extort money from others.”

"But it's only right that I repair my bicycle and return it after borrowing it."

"Uncle Jinshan, do you think what I said is right?"

Although Wang Zidong was polite, it was practically a blatant accusation that Wang Jinshan was the one who broke the item and needed to pay for it.

Wang Jinshan, however, remained unfazed and changed the subject, saying, "Zidong, you're right."

"So Cheng Peng has to pay this money, and he just agreed to pay it. Doesn't that settle things perfectly?"

Hearing this, even Wang Tieshan frowned.

My son has never even touched a bicycle, so how did it all come to the point where he has to take responsibility?
Thinking about how his son insisted on coming by himself today, Wang Tieshan suddenly realized, could it be that his clever son had already foreseen this situation?

Thinking this, he subconsciously looked at where Wang Chengpeng was, only to find that Wang Chengpeng looked extremely innocent, as if he had no idea why things had turned out this way.

Could it be that I guessed wrong?
With doubts in his mind, Wang Tieshan walked up to the bicycle and began to examine its condition.

Since everyone has their own version of events, the only clues to be found are the bicycle itself.

However, it was this glance that led Wang Tieshan to spot an incredibly familiar footprint on the bicycle.

Nowadays, most rural areas have dirt floors, and there are very few tiles or even cement, so shoes are usually covered in a lot of dust.

This also resulted in Zhao Yuju leaving a blurry yet familiar footprint on the bicycle during the day, which Wang Tieshan immediately noticed. How could Wang Tieshan not recognize his own mother's footprint?
If he was only a little emotional before, Wang Tieshan was utterly heartbroken when he discovered the footprint.

If his son wasn't smart enough, or if he and Wang Zidong hadn't come today, what would have happened?
Wang Chengpeng would inevitably have to swallow this bitter pill and be responsible for compensating Wang Zidong's family for the cost of repairing their bicycle.

Not only that, but it might even cause a falling out with Wang Zidong's family and lose a friend. This move is simply outrageous.

My mother knows my family's situation perfectly well. Let alone being in dire need, I'm practically living on borrowed money right now.

However, even under these circumstances, the mother still insisted on doing so, wasn't she just pushing herself to the brink of despair?
At that very moment, Wang Zidong also spoke up decisively:

"Every wrong has its perpetrator, and every debt has its debtor. Why should I make Pengzi pay for something he didn't break?"

"Just because he kindly helped someone borrow a bicycle, does he have to take the blame? That's unreasonable, no matter where you are!"

Just as the two were about to start arguing again, they heard Wang Tieshan say with a dark face:
"Let's drop the matter about the bicycle; I'll pay for it."

"Zidong, I apologize for this. I was wrong."

Looking at the growing crowd of onlookers, Wang Tieshan sighed and said:

"Zidong, let's go. There's no need to make such a big deal out of this. Cheng Peng doesn't need to pay for it; I will."

If Wang Jinshan damaged the bicycle, Wang Tieshan would do everything he could to get justice for his son.

However, judging from the shoe print, it was very likely that his mother, Zhao Yuju, did this.

In the end, it was the Wang family who made a fool of themselves; it would have been better to just pay up and avoid further trouble.

However, Wang Tieshan was inevitably even more disappointed in Zhao Yuju. He simply couldn't understand why his mother was so harsh on his family.

Does that mean I'm not his biological son? How can someone be so biased?

"I always knew this was Wang Chengpeng's fault, otherwise why would his father admit to losing money?"

Wang Tieshan was clearly planning to pay compensation to settle the matter peacefully, but Wang Jinshan seemed to have found some evidence and started shouting loudly again.

It was his actions that made Wang Chengpeng, who had originally intended to settle things peacefully after achieving his goal, sharpen his eyes again.

How could he not know his own father, Wang Chengpeng? To put it bluntly, he was blindly filial; otherwise, how could he have been so completely controlled by the Wang family?

If we don't let him lose faith in the Wang family sooner, and instead he clings to some unrealistic fantasy, he'll inevitably be persuaded to reunite with his family later.
Or perhaps she was exploited by the Wang family because she was soft-hearted.

They've already got their eyes on me just because I bought a bicycle. What will they do in the future?
However, before Wang Chengpeng could even speak, Wang Zidong said rather irritably:
"He knows perfectly well who did this."

"You really have the guts to throw dirty water on someone who's never even touched a bicycle."

"If you're not satisfied, we can always go and talk to the village officials."

Wang Zidong was still willing to give Wang Tieshan face, but that didn't mean he would sit idly by while Wang Jinshan slandered Wang Chengpeng.

Upon hearing that Wang Zidong intended to take the matter to the village officials, Wang Jinshan, feeling guilty, immediately fell silent.

Anyway, now that someone has paid for it and I haven't been branded as someone who damaged bicycles, this matter can be considered a perfect end.

However, Wang Jinshan didn't see that Wang Chengpeng's eyes had already lit up when he looked at the bicycle.

(End of this chapter)