Free Web NovelChapter 117: Chapter 117: Removing the Firewood from Under the Pot
When Mrs. Meng made a move, the results were undeniable.
She carried herself with a haughty air, her attitude and methods uncompromising. She dragged Zhao Wenming through the mud and exposed all his dirty secrets.
All that talk about not being officially engaged to the coal boss’s daughter and not wanting to make a big deal about it was a lie. He had clearly just tricked the girl, and her parents had never even acknowledged him!
Zhao Wenming’s image in Xinghua Village was destroyed, sinking lower and lower.
If he had managed to muddle through before, this time there was no escape.
Having people show up at your door to throw urine on you, accuse you of being a toad lusting after a swan’s flesh, and declare they would rather beat their daughter to death than marry her to you!
What could possibly be more humiliating!
Until now, Zhao Wenming’s greatest sources of pride had been his secure teaching job and having the coal boss’s daughter as his girlfriend.
His mother, Fang Yulan, was an arrogant snob who was an expert at trampling on the lowly and flattering the powerful. Her favorite pastime was showing off; she wished the entire world knew every little thing about her family.
Who in the whole village hadn’t heard her bragging about how the coal boss’s daughter would be her daughter-in-law? She had used her status as the coal boss’s future relative-by-marriage to look down on and belittle so many people in the village.
Everyone had been envious and just put up with it. But in the end, the moment the real matriarch, Mrs. Meng, arrived, she completely refuted the whole affair.
Forget the teachers; even the students were now looking at Zhao Wenming with particularly strange expressions.
How could Zhao Wenming endure such gazes? He roared in fury.
"I know, I know you look down on me for my rural background! You despise me for coming from the countryside..."
Mrs. Meng cut off his furious roar and stated directly,
"Zhao Wenming, when I say you’re not good enough for my daughter, it’s not because of your rural background. I have never looked down on people from the countryside. I look down on *you* because of the kind of person you are!"
Hearing her self-righteous words, Zhao Wenming nearly died of anger. "You’re lying! Yingyang said you look down on country folk and despise them..."
A dark glint flashed in Mrs. Meng’s eyes. She sneered and cut him off again.
"You’re a compulsive liar, a social-climbing opportunist. You haven’t even married into our family yet, but you’re already using our name to do bad things. That’s what I can’t stand about you!"
’Yes, she did look down on people from the countryside. She detested that unrefined, muddy air they had in their bones. The very sight of it disgusted her.’
’The most important reason she was dissatisfied with Zhao Wenming was that he was from the countryside—and from a backwater mountain gully at that!’
’But would she ever say something like that out loud?’
’What kind of person was she? No matter what her true thoughts were, she never publicly revealed her likes and dislikes.’
’Fengcheng County was an agricultural region. Most of its population consisted of farmers. How could she make enemies for her husband and tarnish his reputation?’
Mrs. Meng sneered. "Zhao Wenming, did you really think you could hide the fact that you’ve been parading around the county as our family’s future son-in-law, threatening people to do your dirty work, and hiring thugs to trash someone’s company?"
Zhao Wenming’s face paled dramatically.
Mrs. Meng reprimanded him loudly, "Zhao Wenming, a petty man like you—if you’re not a toad, what are you!"
"Let me tell you, I’ve already reported your actions to the Education Bureau. As for whether you’re still qualified to be a teacher, whether you’re even fit to be one, they’ll be here soon to give you an answer!"
When Mrs. Meng finished, Zhao Wenming’s expression was no longer just pale; it was ashen.
His face was filled with terror, as if he were watching his bright future slip away from him.
Without thinking, he denied it. "No, Ma’am, you’ve misunderstood! I didn’t do it! I’ve been framed!"
As he spoke, his legs seemed to give out, and he suddenly collapsed to the ground, reaching out to hug Mrs. Meng’s legs.
Mrs. Meng kicked at him with a look of utter disgust. "Get off..."
The two men who came with her immediately moved to block Zhao Wenming. He struggled desperately. "Auntie, please listen to me! You’ve misunderstood! Yingyang and I are truly in love! My feelings for her are genuine! Please don’t tear us apart..."
"Shut up! If you dare spout any more nonsense..." Mrs. Meng’s expression was grim.
In the midst of the chaos, Fang Yulan finally arrived. She let out a shriek the moment she saw the scene.
"Let go of Wenming!"
She roared and charged forward, and the scene instantly descended into chaos.
Su Li had been standing off to the side the whole time, a cold-eyed spectator to the entire spectacle of humiliation and farce.
"A man like you isn’t even worthy of carrying my daughter’s shoes!"
After tossing out that final line, Mrs. Meng left, leaving behind Zhao Wenming, who had lost every last shred of dignity and face.
Word of what Zhao Wenming had done to Pinjun Clothing also spread, but people were more interested in the gossip surrounding him. free𝑤ebnovel.com
While everyone in Xinghua Village rushed to the school to watch the drama unfold, Su Li led Little Tang Mo by the hand, walking against the crowd and away from the school.
Zhao Wenming was cradled in Fang Yulan’s arms. Amidst his mother’s curses and pained, fearful cries, his bloodshot eyes spotted Su Li’s departing figure, and he suddenly jumped up.
"Su Li! Su Li, was it you who ruined me? Did you arrange all of this?!"
In his past life, Zhao Wenming had successfully married the coal boss’s daughter because she... got pregnant.
He had tricked the young woman and only went to see her parents after she was pregnant and the matter was irreversible.
By then, what was done was done. Her parents had no choice but to pinch their noses and accept it.
In this life, Zhao Wenming had planned the same thing. Unfortunately, before he could get his hands on Yingyang, someone had exposed their secret relationship to her parents.
The moment Zhao Wenming saw Su Li, he was certain she was the one responsible.
Hearing Zhao Wenming’s roar, Su Li stopped, turned around, and retorted, "Were you the one who sent people to trash my office?"
Zhao Wenming’s expression shifted. "Of course not! What are you implying?"
Su Li smiled faintly, casually glancing at the ever-growing crowd of Xinghua Village residents.
"I’m not implying anything. I’m just asking. If you say it wasn’t you, then I wasn’t the one who ruined you. The person I went after was the mastermind who tried to ruin my business."
Her smile and her eyes were filled with mockery—a tacit admission that she was, in fact, behind all of it.
’Go on, Zhao Wenming. If you’ve got the guts, admit it! Admit you’re the one who did it!’
Hearing Su Li’s words, Zhao Wenming’s face turned as black as the bottom of a pot, but he couldn’t say a word. He couldn’t admit to what he had done.
Su Li turned and continued walking away. This time, no one called out to stop her.
’Of course... she was the one behind it all.’
’Zhao Wenming had used his status as the coal boss’s future son-in-law to move against her, so she pulled the rug out from under him, taking away his biggest trump card!’
’The two things Zhao Wenming was most proud of and cared about most—his marriage prospects and his teaching job—were both on the brink of being lost. Zhao Wenming... heh heh...’
A smile played on Su Li’s lips as she chatted and laughed with Little Tang Mo while they walked away.
They left behind the gawking residents of Xinghua Village, along with the frightened and humiliated Zhao Wenming and Fang Yulan.
Although Zhao Wenming had been rinsed off, the foul stench of urine still clung to him. Everyone held their noses and backed far away. Only Fang Yulan showed no sign of disgust.
"Wenming, don’t be scared. Let’s go. We’ll go home, and Mom will get you cleaned up..."
She gritted her teeth and half-carried, half-supported Zhao Wenming to his feet, glaring fiercely at the onlookers. "What are you looking at? Get out of the way! Move!"
"It’s that venomous woman Su Li’s doing again! I won’t let her get away with this!" After hearing Zhao Wenming’s accusation, Fang Yulan realized Su Li was behind it all. Her hatred for Su Li bored into her very bones, and she cursed her nonstop.
Zhao Wenming’s eyes were vacant and dull.
