Zhang Laoshi took a step back, still finding it hard to believe it was true.
Wang Cuihua, standing beside him, collapsed onto the ground, unable to utter a sound.
If this were true, wouldn't their entire family have to die?
Had Zhang Liunian harmed them?
"Alas, Jiang Qingqing, your husband and you have committed such an act. There's no easy way out of this. It's best to honestly confess your crimes and seek some leniency!" Village Party Secretary Zhang Hao, seeing that the matter was undeniable, sighed deeply.
"Secretary, the crayfish are truly not poisonous. We've eaten them for days without any discomfort. You must believe us," Jiang Qingqing still insisted that the crayfish were not poisonous, trusting her husband.
"What kind of bewitching words has Zhang Liunian fed you? I've already said the poison won't kill you immediately, but it will take half a year." Zhang Hao sternly repeated the symptoms.
"Even if it takes half a year, one would still feel uncomfortable. Moreover, the rumor about poison only exists in our brigade. I've never heard of it in Hongshan Brigade."
To prove her husband's innocence, Jiang Qingqing had no choice but to bring up Hongshan Brigade.
Tu Meili, upon hearing this, curled her lips in retort, "Jiang Qingqing, you've been married into our brigade for five years. Back then, we didn't have these poisonous creatures. How do you know there isn't such a rumor in Hongshan Brigade?"
The brigades were quite far apart. Jiang Qingqing hadn't traveled much in recent years. How could she know if Hongshan Brigade had this saying or not?
Jiang Qingqing was momentarily speechless. Her previous statement was merely an impulsive utterance. If pursued, it would indeed be difficult to verify.
"Can't explain it now, can you? No need to quibble. When you make a mistake, you must accept punishment. Since you two have done such a thing, you should comply with the arrangements from above and go to the farm for re-education!" Tu Meili was smug, as if she could already see Zhang Liunian and his wife going to jail.
"Since that's the case, we'll escort you to surrender yourself first," Zhang Hao suddenly spoke, and immediately, some people moved to restrain Jiang Qingqing.
Hua Bao, who had been holding Zhang Xiaomei's hand all along, heard the villagers wanting to take his mother away. He immediately broke free from Zhang Xiaomei, rushed over, spread his small arms, and declared, "You're not allowed to take my mother, and you're not allowed to talk about my father. I will get angry."
Hua Bao's sudden appearance brought tears to Jiang Qingqing's eyes. She urgently explained, "Secretary, the crayfish are really not poisonous. If they were poisonous, we wouldn't dare to sell them. Please believe me."
Zhang Hao looked at her, falling into silence.
Hearing this, Zhang Laoshi's heart was profoundly shaken. Yes, based on their interactions these past few days, Zhang Liunian was truly a good comrade. How could he do such a thing?
Perhaps there was some misunderstanding?
With that thought, Zhang Laoshi stepped forward, speaking in Zhang Liunian's defense, "Secretary, the matter is not yet confirmed. Why don't we wait for Liunian to return before discussing it?"
"The matter is too serious. Hand over Jiang Qingqing first." Zhang Hao knew that Zhang Liunian had sent the crayfish meat to the machinery factory, which involved tens of thousands of lives. The incident was too severe, and they had to handle it quickly.
As soon as the village party secretary finished speaking, his two sons moved to take Jiang Qingqing away.
Seeing this, Hua Bao blocked their path and shouted, "Don't touch my mother."
"Jiang Qingqing, this is the mistake your couple made. Don't let the child get hurt." Zhang Hao looked directly at Jiang Qingqing.
"Xiaomei, please watch Hua Bao for me. I'll go with them." Jiang Qingqing didn't want her daughter to be harmed either, so she turned to Zhang Xiaomei for help.
"No, Sister-in-law," Zhang Xiaomei cried out, running over, and then looked at Zhang Hao, "Secretary, my third brother would never harm anyone. The crayfish are truly not poisonous."
Just as her sister-in-law had said, if they were poisonous, wouldn't they feel uncomfortable?
Didn't that old bachelor say he almost died after eating them?
But they were perfectly fine!
"What business is it of yours, Zhang Xiaomei? Get out of here. Your third brother committed such an inhuman act. If he doesn't go to jail, who will?" Tu Meili said, then shoved Zhang Xiaomei forcefully. Caught off guard, Zhang Xiaomei stumbled diagonally towards Jiang Qingqing.
"No!" Zhang Xiaomei screamed, seeing herself lunging at her sister-in-law, and tried desperately to change direction. But if she could control her body, she wouldn't have stumbled sideways.
Jiang Qingqing hadn't expected the accident to happen so suddenly. Just as she was about to say something, a large hand appeared and pulled her into an embrace.
Smelling the familiar presence, Jiang Qingqing could no longer hold back her tears. Liunian was back, how wonderful.
Zhang Liunian hugged his wife, then hooked his leg around his younger sister who was about to fall to the ground, and helped her up.
Feeling the dampness on his chest, Zhang Liunian's face tensed. He placed a large hand on his wife's waist and asked his sister, "Are you alright!"
Zhang Xiaomei shook her head, still shaken.
Seeing his sister shake her head, Zhang Liunian shifted his gaze and began to check on his wife. "Qingqing, how about you? If you feel uncomfortable, you must say so. You're pregnant, so don't be vague, understand?"
Jiang Qingqing reached out to stop Zhang Liunian's probing, her small face blushing slightly. "I'm really alright."
Seeing her like this, Zhang Liunian breathed a sigh of relief. Then his eyes sharply fixed on Tu Meili, "Tu Meili, do you feel restless if you don't stir up trouble for a day?"
"Can't compare to you, selling poisonous creatures to city folks. Who knows how many lives you've caused to die." Tu Meili, confident she had Zhang Liunian cornered, crossed her arms and met his gaze defiantly.
"Heh heh, that's called crayfish, and it's not poisonous, much to your disappointment." Zhang Liunian looked at Tu Meili with contempt, as if she were some jumping clown.
"Just because you say it's not poisonous, it's not poisonous? What a joke. This poisonous creature is recognized as poisonous by our entire village. Can your single word prove it?" Tu Meili absolutely refused to believe it was non-poisonous and edible.
If it were edible, wouldn't they have discovered it by now?
"I can't prove it, but a professional testing company can." Zhang Liunian said, then took out a test report from his pocket.
Seeing it, Zhang Hao immediately reached out and took it. He looked at it incredulously. "Impossible! How can a poisonous creature be non-poisonous? Then how did that old bachelor die?"
Old bachelor? Was that the one who spread the rumor that the crayfish were poisonous?
"Nobody knows how he died, but it certainly wasn't from eating crayfish, because they are not poisonous.
Otherwise, why would I dare to make them and eat them?" Zhang Liunian didn't remember the old bachelor well because he was a homebody.
"Non-poisonous? You're talking nonsense! Do you think this piece of paper can prove your innocence and erase the fact that you harmed people? I don't believe poisonous creatures are non-poisonous." Tu Meili saw Zhang Liunian pull out a paper and then change the village party secretary's mind, so she started yelling at the top of her lungs.
Seeing this, the village chief also stepped forward to examine it. Finally, he exclaimed with joy, "Non-poisonous, it's really non-poisonous, and edible too. This is true." "Hahaha, that's great, it's not poisonous. I knew Liunian wasn't that kind of person."
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone began to murmur.
The village party secretary and the village chief both stated that the poisonous creatures were non-poisonous. Did that mean the poisonous creatures were indeed not poisonous?
Then, hadn't they wrongly accused Zhang Liunian and his wife just now?