Chapter 590 - 589: Dealing with the Scumbags (5)

The matter was resolved. Wary of Fang Luo, Miao Fenghua and Su Dan scurried away immediately. Before leaving, they urged Su Li to give them the money promptly.

Once they were outside, the thought of receiving eight hundred in child support every year put a spring in their step.

Eight hundred! Not eighty, but eight hundred!

A fortune!

This was a true windfall!

And it wasn’t a one-time thing. It was money they could collect every single year, a continuous stream of cash. And it would even increase in the future!

Miao Fenghua and Su Dan had never imagined that some news report could be so effective. They had spent the last two days trying with all their might to get a single cent out of Su Li and failed, yet now they had succeeded just like that.

These reporters from the newspaper and TV station were incredible!

Excited, the two of them spent the whole way back discussing what they would buy once they got the money.

Su Dan only talked about food and drink, focused solely on indulging himself. Miao Fenghua, however, was thinking further ahead. With so much money coming in every year, on top of her own earnings, she was already planning to save up, build a new house, and then have Su Dan divorce that bitch Qin Shanshan and take a new wife.

With Su Li in the picture, and with that eight hundred a year, they wouldn’t have to worry about finding a pretty young girl for him to marry—someone far better than that Qin Shanshan.

Miao Fenghua chattered on the whole way, already scheming about how to squeeze even more money out of Su Li once her future grandson was born and started school...

She was thinking so, so far ahead, with such remarkable foresight.

While Miao Fenghua was lost in her pleasant daydreams, Su Li was seeing off Mr. Li, Fang Luo, and the others.

"Thank you all so much," Su Li said sincerely, though of course her thanks did not extend to the editor-in-chief and Zhao Wenming.

"Don’t mention it."

"We were just doing what we ought to do."

Fang Luo and Mr. Li said, waving their hands dismissively.

The factory manager had invited Mr. Li, while Su Li had asked Fang Luo to come.

Su Li had gone to see Fang Luo the previous night.

Even after moving to the Imperial City, Su Li had not lost touch with Fang Luo. They didn’t typically write letters or call each other, but Su Li had not forgotten how he had helped her in the past.

During holidays, Su Li would send gifts to Police Fang, or ask people like Li Hongqin to deliver simple food items to him.

It was also thanks to Fang Luo’s discreet watchfulness that the factory in Fengcheng County had been able to operate without trouble from the envious or other petty miscreants.

The television and radio reporters promised to release their stories as soon as possible to clear Su Li’s name.

"Thank you, thank you all. However, if it’s possible, could you please not show my face directly?"

Su Li made the request.

The reporters didn’t know why she was reluctant, but they agreed nonetheless.

After seeing everyone off, Su Li and the factory manager returned to the factory.

"Thank goodness that’s resolved," the factory manager remarked with relief on their way back.

Su Li nodded. "Yes, it is."

"President Su, what are your plans now? Are you going back immediately?" the factory manager asked.

"I still have a few things to attend to. I’ll leave the county tomorrow and head to the city." Su Li already had her plans laid out.

’I’ve come all this way back, so I should naturally take a good look around the factory and resolve any issues.’

"Leaving so soon..." The factory manager sounded regretful. For the rest of the afternoon, he didn’t let Su Li out of his sight.

He asked all the questions he had been saving up and took Su Li on a tour of the entire factory, hoping she would offer her guidance and point out areas for improvement.

Su Li was kept busy until eight or nine that night.

Su Li had been rushing about for the past two days, exhausted both mentally and physically. As soon as she finished her work and lay down, she fell asleep instantly.

She might have fallen asleep, but for others, this was destined to be a sleepless night.

The first among them was Zhao Wenming.

Zhao Wenming had been utterly humiliated. After they left the factory, the editor-in-chief wouldn’t even spare him a glance.

Zhao Wenming’s dream of a prestigious job at the newspaper was shattered. He had dragged the paper into his mess, and his own reputation was now tarnished. If he wanted to publish anything in the future, he’d have to find another outlet!

For a man of letters, reputation is everything. With his name now tarnished, Zhao Wenming’s future path would be incredibly difficult. He had no choice but to remain a resentful elementary school teacher.

Facing his students, Zhao Wenming no longer felt any of his former passion or drive.

His face pale, Zhao Wenming walked away, not daring to go home. He could only pray his in-laws wouldn’t find out what had happened.

After his marriage, Zhao Wenming treated his wife well, and the two of them were a loving couple. The problem was his in-laws, who were difficult to please.

His father-in-law had recently been promoted, moving up from the county to the municipal level. Unfortunately, this only made him more low-key. He was completely devoted to his work, utterly inflexible, and loathed anyone who used his position for personal gain.

Every time Zhao Wenming leveraged his father-in-law’s status, he did so with extreme caution.

His mother-in-law was another story entirely. She constantly looked down her nose at Zhao Wenming. If she hadn’t been forced into it, she would have died before letting her only daughter marry him.

But the die was cast. She did her best to suppress her dissatisfaction, but her condescending attitude never changed, nor did her rule forbidding her daughter from returning to Xinghua Village. In fact, she was even stricter about it than in his past life.

Ostensibly, Zhao Wenming had married his wife, but in reality, his situation was increasingly like that of a man who had married into his wife’s family.

He lingered outside all day, only forcing himself to head back late at night. But when he reached his front door, he hesitated once more.

’Su Li... she’s my nemesis! My chance, my dream of becoming a reporter!’

His expression dark, Zhao Wenming silently cursed Su Li again in his heart. Only after a round of internal swearing did he calm down enough to finally open the door.

’I won’t say a word about what happened today. I’ll just have to pray my in-laws don’t see the news report.’

Zhao Wenming tossed and turned all night. He didn’t manage to drift into a hazy sleep until dawn was breaking in the east.

Besides Zhao Wenming, the people of Xinghua Village and Su Family Village also had a restless night.

By now, many people in the county knew what had happened with Su Li, and the news was even more widespread in Xinghua Village and Su Family Village.

No one had seen Su Li in a long time, and now, hearing about such a commotion, they were all dying to know how it would end.

Coincidentally, the next day was market day in the county seat. Everyone who didn’t have anything pressing to do planned to go check out the spectacle and browse the market stalls.

It was still the first month of the lunar new year and not the busy farming season, so everyone had free time.

The next day, while the sky was still gray with dawn, people began setting out from their homes for Fengcheng County. Zhao Wenming’s mother, Fang Yulan, was among them.

Many people from Su Family Village went as well, especially those with some distant family connection to Su Li. Their thinking was simple: ’If Su Li is willing to support Miao Fenghua and give her that much money, maybe she’ll soften up and let us work at her factory too.’

Everyone had their own motives and different ideas, but they all shared one thing in common: they were rushing to the county seat, and the earlier they got there, the better.

The only household that remained completely quiet was the Tang family’s.

Tang Yuanxiao had enjoyed his time off, but as good as the vacation was, he had to prepare to return after the Lantern Festival.

It was only then that he learned what had happened to Su Li. He was worried about her and wanted to help, but after racking his brain, he couldn’t figure out what he could possibly do.

Still unaware that Su Li and Wu Sheng were now formally engaged, Tang Yuanxiao had gone into the county seat on the day of her return. He asked around at the factory gate, and upon hearing she was on her way back, he had planned to wait for her. In the end, however, he couldn’t.

With Mrs. Tang at home alone in her condition, he couldn’t stay away all night.

He waited for several hours before finally leaving. Su Li arrived right after he was gone.

And so, the two of them missed each other. The next day, Mrs. Tang delayed him for some time. By the time he rushed to the county seat, everything had already been resolved.

In the end, Tang Yuanxiao hadn’t been able to help Su Li at all. He returned to Xinghua Village without even making an appearance.

While the rest of the villagers were off to the market, Tang Yuanxiao was at home, tidying up.

Mrs. Tang couldn’t be left alone in the village, given her condition. Since the house would be empty for long stretches, he needed to make preparations. Once he was mostly done packing, it would be time for him to return and report for duty.