When She Stops Being Dramatic

Chapter 365: Chapter 134: The Green Tea Supporting Female Character in a Period Novel (21)

"A cornered dog will bite. There’s no telling what other dirty tricks he’ll pull."

"Besides, Jiang Zishi, Bian Yumin, and Huang Yingwei have all wronged me. I have to give them a proper send-off before I leave, right?"

"We won’t do anything drastic. We’ll just improvise and turn their own schemes back on them."

Jiang Yihua watched her tugging on his sleeve, her foxy eyes glistening as she looked at him. He smiled and nodded. "Alright. I’ll get even for you!"

Chi Yun’er’s eyes lit up. "Brother Hua, there’s also a really bad hoodlum in Bian Family Village named Bian Xiaolan. He’s always loitering outside the Educated Youth quarters."

"One time, everyone had gone to work and I forgot to lock the door. If an older woman hadn’t lost a chicken and come to my door looking for it, I... I might have been violated by him!"

Bian Xiaolan had had his eye on her for a long time. That was precisely why he was able to seize the opportunity when she was heading to town alone, dragging her into a cornfield of half-grown stalks.

But Chi Yun’er also believed it must have been Jiang Zishi and Village Chief Bian’s family who gave Bian Xiaolan some kind of signal, emboldening him. Worse, after he succeeded, he was protected by most of the villagers, completely blocking her path to escape.

Jiang Yihua’s whole body went rigid, his heart pounding with belated fear. He gritted his teeth. "Just how much evil has this ’good’ little brother of mine done?"

"Yun’er, who else has bullied you? Spit it out. If we can’t deal with them out in the open, we’ll get them back in the shadows!"

Chi Yun’er cautiously watched his furious expression. ’When an emotion is this strong,’ she thought, ’it’s the hardest to fake.’

She gave a light laugh. "Bian Xiaolan’s family. They spread vicious rumors about me, which is the main reason everyone instinctively thinks of me as a bad woman."

Bian Xiaolan’s entire family had beaten and kicked her in the past. But back then, she had lost all hope in life. At first, she was afraid, but she eventually grew tough from the beatings. She started fighting back with a cornered desperation, so they mostly left her alone after that.

Jiang Yihua nodded, stroking her small face, which still had a bit of baby fat. A corner of his lip curled up. "Then tonight, we’ll attend their treacherous feast."

"Before, when the village party secretary’s daughter was having a difficult labor, we were the ones who drove the tractor to take her to the town hospital."

"The party secretary kept inviting us over for a meal, but our farm has strict rules. We aren’t allowed to impose on the local people, so we kept declining."

"But if we show up with some wild game as a gift, there shouldn’t be a problem."

"The two of us will go to the village chief’s house, and I’ll have a few of my buddies visit the party secretary’s house. With people watching each other’s backs, the people of Bian Family Village won’t dare to go too far..."

Chi Yun’er nodded, and with a slight flicker in her eyes, she whispered to Jiang Yihua:

"I’ve heard that Bian Xiaolan’s family grows a very beautiful type of trumpet flower. They protect it like it’s a treasure—the old lady even stands guard over it with her walking stick."

"Think about it. Bian Xiaolan does nothing all day and doesn’t earn work points, yet he meticulously tends to this flower, and it’s not like his family ever goes hungry."

Jiang Yihua raised an eyebrow, his mind following her line of thought. "A trumpet flower... You mean Manduo..."

Chi Yun’er put her hands behind her back. They were both children who had grown up in the general hospital.

While other children recited catchy nursery rhymes and read war stories, they had memorized texts like the *Medicinal Properties Poem* and the *Medical Three Character Classics*, and the picture books they saw were filled with medicinal herbs.

As a result, their ability to identify medicinal substances and their sensitivity to them were far beyond that of an ordinary person.

She nodded and said in a low voice:

"I once made a point of passing by the small hillock next to their house. I definitely saw quite a few yellow and reddish-purple trumpet flowers in their yard."

"I suspect Bian Xiaolan is growing this stuff on purpose."

"Bian Xiaolan rarely goes to work. The villagers often see him heading into the mountains with a hoe and a bamboo basket on his back. Whenever he runs into someone, he just grins and says he’s trying his luck, hoping he might dig up some wild ginseng so he won’t have to worry about food for the rest of the year."

"I suspect he’s growing it in large quantities up in the mountains!"

Jiang Yihua’s eyes narrowed. Manduo was a state-controlled substance. Civilians were not allowed to grow it privately. It could be used clinically as an anesthetic and was also the main ingredient in the Knockout Drug mentioned in many novels and stories.

Anyone or any organization growing Manduo on a large scale was very likely involved in organized crime, such as human trafficking, illegal sale of controlled drugs, running private clinics, or even trafficking organs. The corresponding punishments were also extremely severe.

"Yun’er, have you mentioned this to anyone else?"

"Does Jiang Zishi know?"

Chi Yun’er shook her head and said with a hint of smugness, "No. I’m a bit of a loner, and I like to let my mind wander when I’m by myself."

"Bian Xiaolan has a bad reputation in the village, and the old woman in his family is especially fierce. Very few people ever visit them."

"I only heard the term ’trumpet flower’ from some kids who were climbing trees to get at birds’ nests. My curiosity was piqued, so I went to the hill, steadied myself on a tree trunk, and climbed onto a few large rocks to see. That’s how I discovered their secret!"

"So, Jiang Zishi doesn’t know about this."

Jiang Yihua hummed in thought, bowing his head for a moment before patting her on the shoulder. "Yun’er, go back and get ready. We’re going to Bian Family Village for dinner tonight. I’m going to make a trip to town."

"With Manduo involved, we’ll need the police to get involved."

Chi Yun’er obediently agreed, tugging on the corner of his sleeve. "I secretly watched him later. Bian Xiaolan heads toward the rocky mountain behind Bian Family Village. It’s a rugged, rocky area that few people ever visit. That’s why no one else has discovered his secret."

"Although I didn’t follow him in, I can guess he must have found a hidden spot suitable for growing Manduo."

Jiang Yihua couldn’t help but gently flick her forehead again, his heart once more seized with fear for her. "You silly girl. You look so delicate and timid, yet you dared to be curious about something like this."

"What if that Bian Xiaolan had discovered you? Have you ever thought about how serious the consequences would have been?"

Chi Yun’er covered her forehead and pouted. "It’s because he scared me that I couldn’t help but gather more information on him. Isn’t there a saying? ’Know your enemy and know yourself, and you’ll never be defeated.’"

"If he dared to have any more ideas about me, I was going to expose him!"

Jiang Yihua’s expression turned serious. "Comrade Chi Yun’er, I have to criticize you for this. You don’t realize that in many cases, growing Manduo isn’t the work of one person, but an entire family, a clan, or even a vicious criminal organization."

"If they were overwhelmingly powerful, do you think you’d have even had the chance to expose them?"

"Yun’er, if you encounter something this dangerous in the future, you can’t act so rashly. You have to discuss it properly with me or your father."

Chi Yun’er nodded repeatedly, her voice meek and obedient.

In truth, she had only slowly pieced these things together after being tied up in Bian Xiaolan’s house.

Having been reborn, she cherished this life dearly. But she trusted that Jiang Yihua could use this information to ensure Bian Xiaolan received the punishment he deserved!