"Don’t even think about taking chances. Her husband holds the rank of battalion commander in the military, no lower than mine. If Nan Sheng makes a call to the military district, not only will you be fired, but you might even face forced labor. Do you think falsely accusing a military spouse is some kind of joke?"
Yu Feng wasn’t trying to scare her. The military district folks were fiercely protective of their own, and if they found out, they wouldn’t let this slide lightly.
Jia Bing realized the gravity of the situation, but she still refused to back down. "I know I was wrong, Uncle Yu. Can you please put in a good word for me and ask Nan Sheng not to hold me accountable?"
Yu Feng felt like he was about to lose his mind. What kind of troublemaker had he brought into this job?
"Jia Bing, I’ll say this one last time—you handle this yourself. If you can’t resolve it, the secretary will definitely fire you. Yes, your father did me a favor, but Nan Sheng has also helped me plenty. I won’t take sides between you two. Figure it out on your own!"
Jia Bing just stood there in silence. Yu Feng looked at her like she was an alien. If he couldn’t deal with her, he could at least avoid her.
He got up and went outside to find Du Tang. The two of them had to head to Xiaoguan Village to wrap up some work. But deep down, he still hoped Jia Bing would come to her senses, so he had Nan Sheng stay behind for her.
That day, Nan Sheng spent her time idling around.
That day, Jia Bing kept staring at Nan Sheng, her lips trembling as if she wanted to say something but couldn’t. Her eyes still held a trace of resentment, as if she couldn’t understand how someone who wasn’t even that pretty could marry a battalion commander.
By the time the town head and Du Tang returned to town, it was almost dark. They each went home, exhausted from the day’s work.
When Yu Feng rode his bike up to his house, he could hear the lively chatter inside. As soon as he stepped in, he saw Jia Bing’s entire family—all three of them—waiting for him.
Jia Bing’s father wore a guilty expression. "You’re back, Yu Feng. My child has caused you trouble."
Jia Bing had gotten her cousin to help write that accusation letter. Her parents had no idea, or they would’ve stopped her. Now that she realized she couldn’t handle the fallout alone, she had no choice but to turn to them for help.
After she confessed at home, her face had been met with two sharp slaps. Jia Ming scolded her for being reckless—how could she jeopardize such a respectable job and cause trouble for Yu Feng?
"Come on, go apologize to your Uncle Yu. If he isn’t satisfied, forget about working in the government. Stop embarrassing me!"
Seeing Jia Ming, Yu Feng softened his tone slightly. "Brother Jia, your daughter really is a handful. She’s crossed someone she shouldn’t have."
Jia Ming had a quick temper, and his daughter hadn’t explained the situation clearly earlier. Hearing Yu Feng’s words, he immediately pressed for details.
Yu Feng didn’t hold back, laying out the whole story.
"Comrade Nan Sheng is a benefactor to our entire county. If she hadn’t insisted on reporting the situation up the chain, who knows how many more people would’ve starved? Her husband isn’t someone to be trifled with either—he’s a battalion commander in the military district. If this gets escalated, even the secretary and I will face consequences. I truly don’t know how to handle this."
He didn’t even have the heart to mention that Jia Bing had wanted the government to fire Nan Sheng—without a shred of solid evidence.
Oh, so you have nothing, just a baseless accusation letter, and you think you can drive out a comrade who’s accomplished two major feats?
Absolutely ridiculous!
Du Tang had also told Yu Feng that Nan Sheng had no intention of letting this go. The moment she returned to the office, she made the whole matter public. Now, everyone in the town government was waiting to see the outcome. Who would dare show favoritism?
Only then did Jia Bing’s mother start panicking. Her daughter had just been introduced to a promising suitor, one with excellent conditions—who specifically valued Jia Bing’s government job.
If anything goes wrong now, the wedding will definitely be called off.
"Yu Feng, I’m begging you as your sister-in-law. You have to help with this. Our Jia Bing is still young and doesn’t understand how things work. If she gets fired, what future will she have? She’s our only child."
Jia Ming yanked his wife back, nearly making her stumble. "You fool, what nonsense are you spouting? Yu Feng, don’t listen to her. We can’t let Jia Bing affect your work."
His brother was capable and even on the verge of a promotion to the county level. Even if Jia Bing got dismissed now, there might still be a chance for her to return later.
But if Yu Feng’s career took a hit, not only would Jia Bing lose any future benefits, but the bond between their families would also be severed. He knew where priorities lay.
Hearing Jia Ming speak like this made Yu Feng feel even worse.
"Brother Jia, I really can’t do anything about it this time. You should talk to Jia Bing and convince her to apologize to Nan Sheng as soon as possible. Maybe there’s still room for reconciliation.
If that doesn’t work, we’ll have to arrange another job for her later, but it won’t be in government offices."
Once the family of three stepped outside, Jia Ming’s wife started grumbling. "After all you’ve done for him, he won’t even lift a finger to help our daughter.
Honestly, Jia Bing should just drag him into this too—say he was the one who arranged her job. Let’s see how he can sit back and watch then."
Jia Ming shot a glare at his clueless wife and daughter. Back then, his mother had warned him that his wife was dim-witted and advised against marrying her, but he hadn’t taken it seriously.
Now he understood the consequences—raising two fools under one roof…
Nan Sheng didn’t mention the incident when she got home, but Sizhe brought up how Eldest Brother Lin and Zhou Wei had reconciled.
The next day at work, the Jia family—all three of them—showed up at the government office entrance, ready to apologize in full force.
Nan Sheng barely glanced at them and tried to walk past into the courtyard.
Behind her, Jia Bing called out, "Comrade Nan Sheng, wait! My parents have something to say to you."
Nan Sheng gave Jia Bing a look. Was she still not weaned off her parents, bringing them along to apologize for her?
"If you have something to say, do it in the meeting room or my office. It’s too hot out here, and I don’t have time to waste."
Jia Bing’s mother hurried over and grabbed Nan Sheng’s arm. "Please, young lady, just hear us out here. We just want to apologize as a family."
Nan Sheng turned to look at Jia Bing, who was still hiding behind her father, and sighed inwardly.
"Auntie, what exactly is Jia Bing apologizing for? I have to get to work—if I’m late, my boss will scold me. Sorry."
She pulled her arm free, quickly parked her bike in the shade, and locked it. But the trio surrounded her again.
Zhu Yi happened to walk into the courtyard and barked, "What are you all doing?"
Jia Bing’s mother quickly explained, "We just wanted to have a word with Comrade Nan Sheng, nothing else."
Nan Sheng shot Zhu Yi a baffled look. "They suddenly cornered me as a family. I told them to talk inside, but they wouldn’t let me leave."
Once inside, Zhu Yi pieced it together. "I’m guessing Jia Bing wrote that anonymous complaint letter. Now they’re trying to plead with you privately."
Nan Sheng seemed indifferent, as if it didn’t bother her. "I don’t know why she dislikes me so much. Let’s see how the higher-ups handle it."
Neither of them brought it up again in the office. When Jia Bing came in, she sat quietly with her head down, looking like she’d been wronged.
After the meeting, the Party Secretary ordered all government officials to visit various villages to prevent another incident like the one involving the village chief of Xiaoguan Village.
When assigning tasks, the town mayor deliberately gave Nan Sheng the responsibility of visiting Wangshan Village and Xiaoling Village, knowing her family lived there—a gesture meant to curry favor.
What Yu Feng didn’t know was that Nan Sheng’s grandparents resided in Xiaoling Village, making this visit more like a personal trip home for her.
"Alright, everyone, head out as soon as possible. Compile your visit reports by tomorrow, and submit them to me when you return to work," the mayor instructed.
As Nan Sheng packed her things, a colleague, Peng, approached her quietly.
"Comrade Nan Sheng, the Party Secretary asked me to tell you that he will definitely have Jia Bing dismissed. He wants you to rest assured."
"Please thank the Secretary for handling this fairly. I appreciate his trouble."
