Chapter 270: Flawed Testimony
‘The old lady’s energy level certainly didn’t suggest a serious injury. And besides, would someone with Zhao Lan’s disposition really attack someone?’
‘Back when Zhi was beaten to death by Old Mrs. Bai and Liu, Zhao Lan had only given Liu a couple of slaps. Now that she and Zhi were finally living a good life, why would she go after the old lady? Who would even believe such a story?’
The village chief asked Zhao Lan, “What exactly happened?”
Zhao Lan sighed. “Village chief, I didn’t even lay a finger on her. She’s clearly just trying to extort money. Please don’t fall for her trick.”
Liu shrieked, “Who are you accusing of extortion? Watch your mouth! You’re clearly the one who hit her. What’s the matter? Scared to admit what you’ve done?”
Zhao Lan was about to retort, but the village chief raised a hand, signaling for her to be quiet. He said to Liu, “You, stand back a bit. Let me ask some questions.”
Liu refused. “Go ahead and ask, then. Why do I have to stand far away?”
The village chief frowned and barked in a low voice, “I said stand back, so stand back. Why all the nonsense? If you don’t want to listen to me, I can just leave.”
The only one who could help them right now was the village chief. Liu didn’t dare to offend him, so she quickly backed away and stood on the other side of the wheelbarrow.
Seeing that Liu had moved away, the village chief finally squatted down in front of the old lady and asked, “You said Zhao Lan hit you. Tell me, how did she hit you? Where are you hurt?”
Pointing to her arm, Old Mrs. Bai said, “First, she twisted my arm, then she pushed me to the ground. The fall made my old back and legs feel like they were going to fall apart. And that’s not all! She kicked me several times. Oh, the pain is excruciating! If you had come any later, I… I don’t think I could have held on much longer.”
The village chief eyed her clothes. “You said Zhao Lan kicked you? Where did she kick you? How come there isn’t even a speck of dust on your clothes?”
Old Mrs. Bai said quickly, “Oh, there was, there was! Of course there was! You know how I like to keep things clean. I just patted the dust off a moment ago.”
The village chief nodded, then glanced sideways at A Wu, who was standing to the side. He recalled what Liu had said on the way over—she seemed to have mentioned that A Wu had also been involved.
The village chief asked again, “Was it only Zhao Lan who hit you? Was anyone else involved?”
Old Mrs. Bai shook her head. “No, it was just Zhao Lan who hit me. No one else. If there had been anyone else, do you think my old life would have been spared?”
The village chief now had a good idea of the situation. He stood up, walked over to Liu, and asked, “Tell me, how did Zhao Lan hit your mother-in-law?”
Liu said, “How else would she hit her? She came at us punching and kicking! It’s a good thing I ran fast, or I wouldn’t be standing here talking to you.”
“What do you mean, ‘punching and kicking’? Be specific,” the village chief said.
Liu thought the village chief was trying to confirm the details of the assault. If she made the incident sound more serious, she could naturally get more compensation.
“Oh, my! That Zhao Lan is absolutely vicious! The moment she saw us, she grabbed a brick from the construction site. We’d barely exchanged two words when she started trying to smash us with it. I ran fast, so she missed me, but my mother-in-law is old, you know, she couldn’t get away. Zhao Lan smashed her right in the back and knocked her flat on the ground! And that’s not all! She picked the brick up again and was about to hit her again, but luckily, I rushed forward and snatched it away. If I hadn’t, my mother-in-law wouldn’t be alive right now!”
The more Liu spoke, the more animated she became. She continued, “After I took the brick from her, she still wasn’t satisfied! She started kicking my mother-in-law viciously in the head—twice! She didn’t stop until she had kicked her unconscious!”