Chapter 271 - 263
Chapter 271: Chapter 263
Liu sized up the village chief’s expression. Seeing his calm demeanor, not at all angered by her words, she wondered, ’Isn’t my story tragic enough?’
The village chief glanced at her, then pointed to A Wu, who was standing nearby. "Did he get physical?"
Liu hurriedly replied, "He did! He did! When Zhao Lan was kicking my mother-in-law, he was the one straddling her, holding her down so she couldn’t move! Otherwise, my mother-in-law wouldn’t have been beaten so badly by her. She’s already fainted several times!"
The village chief said nothing. He led Liu back to Old Mrs. Bai, then waved to the workers who were watching the commotion from a distance. "All of you, come over here."
The workers couldn’t have been more eager to come over. It was obvious this mother-in-law and daughter-in-law were trying to pull a scam, and they had seen everything clearly. Even if the village chief hadn’t called them, they would have come over to testify for their employer sooner or later.
The village chief asked the workers, "Did any of you see Zhao Lan hit someone?"
The workers all shook their heads in unison. "We didn’t see her hit anyone. We just saw this old woman lie down on the ground by herself. Neither Aunt Lan nor A Wu laid a hand on her—not a single finger."
Liu shouted, "They eat Zhao Lan’s food, so of course they’d speak up for her! Their testimony doesn’t count!"
The village chief knew she would say that. He wasn’t the least bit surprised.
"In that case, Liu Guihua, repeat what you just told me."
Liu Guihua didn’t know what the village chief was up to, but since he asked her to speak, she told the story again. And what a performance it was! Vivid and embellished, she made it several times more tragic than the version she’d just told the village chief. It was as if the old woman half-lying on the ground had already been beaten to death, with not even a speck of dust left behind.
Liu Guihua was spraying spit as she spoke, and the old woman on the ground could no longer keep her composure. She finally realized why the village chief had wanted to question them separately. She repeatedly told Liu Guihua to shut up and stop, but Liu Guihua completely ignored her...
When Liu Guihua finally finished her torrent of words, the village chief and the crowd of onlookers felt like applauding her. ’This woman,’ they thought, ’why isn’t she a storyteller in a teahouse? What a talent! Truly remarkable! She spins such a detailed yarn, you’d almost believe it was real.’
"Village Chief, tell me, how could Zhao Lan be so venomous? How could she be so ruthless? To lay such a heavy hand on someone with one foot in the grave—how could she bring herself to do it?!"
The village chief really wanted to let her continue her performance, but the hour was getting late. Everyone had things to do and couldn’t just stand around watching the show all day.
The village chief looked at the grim-faced old woman and asked, "You heard everything Liu Guihua said, correct? Do you have anything to add?"
The old woman shot Liu a vicious glare. ’I should get up and give her a couple of hard slaps,’ she thought. ’That woman is more trouble than she’s worth, completely useless.’
’Making such wild claims without looking at the reality of the situation. With the way I look right now, do I look like I’ve suffered some kind of inhuman torture?’
The old woman said to the village chief, "Village Chief, Liu Guihua did exaggerate a bit, but Zhao Lan really did hit me. That is the truth."
The village chief nodded. "How about this? I happen to be heading into town right now. Why don’t you all come with me to the government office to file a grievance? You can have the Lord County Magistrate or Lord Meng himself judge this case. I will accurately repeat what both of you told me separately, and I’ll even bring a few witnesses for you. What do you think?"
The old woman’s face fell instantly, and her hands began to tremble with anger. Beside her, the clueless Liu added, "Ask Lord Meng to judge the case? With his relationship with Bai Zhi, what’s the use? He’ll definitely side with her."