I was married off to a disabled hero in lieu of marriage; my in-laws doted on me and I aspired to gr

A commune has thirteen production brigades, and each production brigade has eight smaller production teams.

Zhao Jintao was the lowest-ranking squad leader. Logically speaking, if the brigade secretary committed a crime, it shouldn't be his place as the squad leader to persuade him. Could it be that the affair between Guo Baohua and Wu Xia was spread from their village?

Zhao Jintao was uneasy. Zheng Fenglin and Wu Xia had the deepest grudge, and Wu Xia had made Qiaoqiao's grandmother sick. Could it be that she was the one who spread the rumors?

They arrived at the commune quickly, where a dozen people were blocking the entrance to the office building. Guo Baohua's wife, Xiao Yuzhen, was sitting on the ground, wailing and crying.

"Your Honor, you must stand up for us poor peasants! That vixen has climbed into my bed! This shameless woman should be paraded naked!"

Surrounding Xiao Yuzhen were her family members. Zhao Jintao immediately spotted a familiar figure – it was Juhua from Dashui Village.

"Sister-in-law Chrysanthemum, what are you doing here instead of working?" Zhao Jintao asked angrily.

"Captain, with such a big incident at my aunt's house, how can I be in the mood to work? Wu Xia is going too far. We won't leave until the commune gives us an explanation," Juhua said angrily.

"You... hurry back, you can still catch up on half the work. You're only making things worse by staying here." Zhao Jintao frowned.

"I'm not going back, Captain. You have to talk to the commune secretary properly. We can't tolerate prostitutes. We have to drown that little slut Wu Xia."

What kind of era is this? Still drowning people in ponds.

Unable to persuade him otherwise, Zhao Jintao went into the secretary's office.

Upon entering the room, Guo Baohua, his face covered in scratches, sat on a bench smoking, while Wu Xia sat in a corner of the office, covering her head.

Zhang Wei quickly gestured for Zhao Jintao to sit down: "Jintao, sit down. Li Feng, go pour me a cup of tea."

Upon seeing Zhao Jintao, Guo Baohua tossed aside his cigarette, stood in front of Zhao Jintao, and said, "Zhao Jintao, was it you who told my woman?"

"Secretary Guo, what did you say?"

"Don't pretend with me. You've always had a good relationship with the Yang family. Wu Xia angered the old lady of the Yang family so much that she had a heart attack. You held a grudge and deliberately spread rumors. You despicable person!" Guo Baohua angrily questioned.

Zhao Jintao said calmly, "Secretary Guo, I have no idea what your relationship with Wu Xia is. Wu Xia spoke rudely, insulting soldiers, people, and heroes, which nearly killed the old lady. You just brushed it off lightly. Secretary Guo, who is the villain here?"

"Don't try that on me. You're trying to drag me down so you can get promoted, right? If you're so capable, do it openly. What kind of man are you, resorting to underhanded tactics?"

"Secretary Guo, I'll say it again, I know nothing about your affair with Wu Xia. If you don't want people to know, then don't do it in the first place. You've abused your power and engaged in illicit activities, bringing shame to our Party."

"Fuck your mother..."

Guo Baohua threw a punch, but Zhao Jintao grabbed his hand and said sternly, "Guo Baohua, even if I don't want this squad leader position, I'm going to settle things with you today."

"Guo Baohua, you still have the nerve to argue? Sit down properly!" Zhang Wei shouted, and Guo Baohua calmed down.

"Zhao Jintao, is Grandma Yang alright?" Zhang Wei asked with concern.

"I just picked up the old lady from the hospital in town and ran into Clerk Li on the way."

"It's good that she's alright, it's good that she's alright. Guo Baohua, if Old Lady Yang hadn't caught her breath, not only you, but even I, the commune secretary, would have been implicated. A brigade secretary really has all the power in the world! Look at you, what do you say we do about this?"

Zhang Wei sat down on the stool, fuming.

"Men and women issues aren't just something I have, Secretary Zhang, you're not really going to remove me from my position as brigade secretary, are you?" Guo Baohua said anxiously.

"I need to report your matter to the county. Whether or not you're removed from the list isn't up to me. Now, what about Wu Xia? If we send her back to the brigade, won't your wife tear her apart? If we send her back to the city, she has no right to do so." Zhang Wei scratched his head, extremely troubled.

Wu Xia suddenly turned around and shouted, "I want to go back to the city. If you don't let me go back, I'll accuse Guo Baohua of raping me."

Guo Baohua was stunned, and stammered, "Wu Xia, you can't frame me! You came to me willingly, how can it be rape?"

"Offer yourself to me? Are you handsome or capable? Why would I want to send my innocent daughter to your bed?" Wu Xia started barking like a dog.

"You...you didn't want me to give you a return-to-city permit before you'd be with me, did you?"

"Did you give it to me? You good-for-nothing! Not only are you incapable of getting me back to the city, you can't even control your own wife at home. Are you even a man? I'm telling you, if you don't let me go back to the city, I'll kill myself..."

Wu Xia was determined to go all in; she couldn't possibly return to the brigade under any circumstances.

Zhang Wei laughed loudly: "Wu Xia, what do you take our commune for? You insulted the family of a hero, seduced the brigade secretary for a quota to return to the city, and now you're threatening revolutionary comrades, saying you want to die or live. Fine, you can die if you want, but you can't die here."

Li Feng called the Public Security Bureau and ordered them to bring Guo Baohua and Wu Xia in for questioning on charges of hooliganism.

Guo Baohua was shocked and said in a humble voice, "Secretary Zhang, this won't do. If I go to the Public Security Bureau, I'll lose my position."

"I wouldn't dare to protect you. If a vicious dog bites you, I'll be in deep trouble. You go to the police station and explain things clearly. I'll go to the county to report the situation. Whether you stay or leave is up to the leaders." Zhang Wei adopted a businesslike attitude.

Guo Baohua panicked. If Zhang Wei wouldn't protect him, why would the county protect him?

He strode up to Wu Xia and slapped her across the face: "You bitch, I've seen plenty of your kind. You think you can go back to the city? Stop dreaming."

"You, you all ganged up on me, a woman..." Wu Xia covered her face and cried.

"Who would dare to bully you, Wu Xia? You're so powerful that you even dare to threaten your superiors."

Li Feng entered with two police officers in uniform. They saluted and said, "Secretary Zhang."

Zhang Wei said, "Take the person away, interrogate them thoroughly, and send the materials to the commune. I'm taking them to the county."

"yes!"

The two women were taken away, leaving Xiao Yuzhen downstairs stunned. She stopped the police car, shouting, "That little bitch Wu Xia seduced my husband! You can take her away, but why take my husband?"

"Get out of the way! If you dare to obstruct the police investigation, do you all want to be locked up in jail?"

The rioting crowd quieted down, but the police officer had a pistol tucked into his waistband.

Only Zhang Wei and Zhao Jintao remained in the office.

Zhang Wei poured tea for Zhao Jintao and asked, "You really don't know anything about Guo Baohua's matter?"

"Secretary, I really don't know. What man cares about these matters between men and women?" Zhao Jintao said firmly.

"Yang Wenjin's son-in-law hasn't returned to Dashui Village yet?" Zhang Wei changed the subject.

"No," Zhao Jintao answered honestly.

Zhang Wei said thoughtfully, "Guo Baohua's problem is one of conduct, which can be serious or minor. He himself has no connection with the Yang family; it was Wu Xia who made Grandma Yang sick."

If someone insists on linking the two incidents together as a form of retaliation, then Guo Baohua is being unfairly accused. Zhao Jintao, this matter shouldn't be publicized; we also need to appease the Yang family.

"Yes, I will." Zhao Jintao lowered his head.

"Go back now. I'll visit Grandma Yang myself when I have time in a couple of days."

"Okay, Secretary Zhang, you're busy. I'll be going now."

"Okay, let's go back."

It's still over 20 li (about 10 kilometers) from the town to Dashui Village, and Zhao Jintao, not having a bicycle, walked the whole way back.

Zhang Wei's words made it clear that he didn't want to touch Guo Baohua, since Guo Baohua was in charge of him.