Zeng Jingrong rushed over to retrieve the person, only to find a dense crowd gathered not only outside the hot spring pool area but also in the open space between the pool and the storefront.
People were also standing on the hot spring courtyard walls, the second-floor walkway of the storefront, and the walkway of the buildings on the cave side.
How did things escalate to such a scale?
He took out one of his many public-facing work IDs and said, "Make way, make way! I'm from the Ministry of Public Security. What's going on here? Why are you all gathered here?"
Upon hearing that he was from the Ministry of Public Security, the impenetrable human wall parted to create a 'path'.
Zeng Jingrong followed the 'path' to the center of the crowd, where four main figures were present.
These were Zeng Jingliang, Yuan Feng, and Zhang Shitoutou, along with a woman lying on the ground with several knives stuck in her legs.
The corner of his mouth twitched. His cousin-in-law was indeed a formidable figure.
Yuan family members, their knife skills must be top-notch.
To prevent her husband from feeling guilty due to his mistake, Yuan Feng had no qualms about throwing several ancestral knives she always carried at the fleeing Tong Xinhua.
After sticking the knives in, she regretted it. How would she cut vegetables in the future?
What she regretted even more was alarming the entire scenic area, with villagers from the shops and thousands of tourists pouring out.
This woman who had contaminated the Yuan family's ancestral knives had actually slandered her, accusing her of intentional assault.
If not for Zhang Shitoutou, who was on duty today, stepping out to testify that she was the owner of Yuan Family Private Kitchen, these kind and enthusiastic tourists would have collectively protested, demanding the scenic area activate its cable car or operate its rafting boats to send this woman to the hospital.
Tong Xinhua lay on the ground, glaring at Zhang Shitoutou. She had almost incited these tourists to cause a collective disturbance, but her plan was thwarted by this man who had patted his chest and guaranteed, "No villager in the scenic area would wrongly accuse a good person."
Were Zeng Jingliang and Yuan Feng villagers?
Coupled with Yuan Feng saying that the police had already been called, these tourists became less anxious.
Pah! A bunch of hypocrites.
Hearing Zeng Jingrong's voice, Tong Xinhua, who had been struggling to support herself and save herself, lay flat with a sense of despair.
Zeng Jingrong lowered his head and looked at the woman lying flat under the streetlamp: "Tong Xinhua, it's you again? Can't you just live a normal life?"
"I let you off the hook once, and you've come out to cause trouble again. Come back with me. This time, I will verify the truth and falsehood of every single word you say."
The tourists stopped their chatter as Zeng Jingrong approached the injured Tong Xinhua.
At this moment, the several layers of people surrounding the inner circle clearly heard Zeng Jingrong's words, and discussions erupted.
"So this woman is a repeat offender?"
"So what this woman said earlier was false?"
"So the owner of Yuan Family Private Kitchen really did something righteous?"
"Alas! Seeing is not always believing. I can't believe so many of us were deceived by one woman."
"Actually, if you think about it carefully, we should trust the villagers in Kushan and the Hot Spring Valley Scenic Area."
"Yes, the scenic area has been operating for so many years, and there has never been any instance of deceiving tourists or defrauding consumers."
"We must learn from this incident and be cautious in the future. We must not easily sympathize with the weak."
"That's right, that's right. If we really let the bad guys go, it would be disheartening to those who uphold justice."
"Yes, yes, yes. We shouldn't act impulsively and try to enforce justice."
Listening to these discussions, Zeng Jingliang and Yuan Feng's mouths twitched. These people could really turn their faces quickly.
Zeng Jingrong flashed his handcuffs: "Come on, this pair of silver bracelets is your reward."
Tong Xinhua: "..."
Tourists: "..."
This comrade from the Ministry of Public Security is a bit cheeky.
After handcuffing her, Zeng Jingrong asked Zhang Shitoutou to call the scenic area's medical room to treat Tong Xinhua's wounds.
When the nurses from the medical room came to remove the knives and bandage Tong Xinhua, Zeng Jingrong, while showing his work ID to the tourists in the inner circle, urged them to leave, as they were delaying his investigation.
The tourists carefully examined the photos and the embossed seal, then apologized to Zeng Jingrong and squeezed their way out.
Gradually, after more than half an hour, the crowd dispersed.
Zeng Jingrong, carrying the bandaged Tong Xinhua, went up to Laoyingzui, and Chen Fu was also summoned.
In the lobby of the restaurant, Chen Fu saw Lin Hua'er holding a sleeping Yuanyuan and started to walk towards her.
Lin Hua'er waved him away: "Don't come over. I don't want to coax you anymore in a subservient way, and I won't forgive your mistakes.
"Let's both calm down. After Mother and my aunt return, we can discuss how to proceed."
Chen Fu paused, then after a moment of silence, nodded: "Okay."
Zeng Jingrong placed Tong Xinhua on a chair and took out his notebook and pen:
"Tong Xinhua, your own marriage was ruined by a third party, and now you've ruined Chen Fu's marriage. Are you happy?"
Handcuffed, Tong Xinhua no longer struggled. Hearing Zeng Jingrong's words, she smiled charmingly:
"No man in this world is any good. As long as a woman teases them, they can't control their little thing."
Zeng Jingrong flipped open his notebook: "Chen Fu, Lin Hua'er, come over and explain."
...
Li Zhengguo waited for over an hour and didn't get a call back from Zeng Jingliang or Lin Hua'er. He called Yuan Feng's mobile phone.
Upon learning that Zeng Jingliang had called Zeng Jingrong to resolve the matter, he asked Zeng Jingrong to take the call.
Zeng Jingrong put down his pen and took the phone: "This person, Tong Xinhua, I need to investigate her again. Chen Fu's state seemed unusual when he was tempted."
Li Zhengguo frowned: "Drugs?"
Zeng Jingrong shook his head: "Doesn't seem like it."
Li Zhengguo pondered for a moment: "Psychological manipulation?"
Zeng Jingrong was stunned, then slapped his forehead with sudden realization. He had been too close to the situation to see clearly.
"Zhengguo, thank you. I think I need to interrogate Chen Fu again."
Li Zhengguo nodded: "Alright, you be busy."
After hanging up, Zeng Jingrong's gaze fell on Tong Xinhua's face. If it was true, then this Tong Xinhua definitely had major problems.
He took Chen Fu to a private room for another interrogation, this time meticulously inquiring about the circumstances of Chen Fu's reunion with Tong Xinhua...
...
On Sunday, Ouyang Meihua and Li Min planned to go out for some fun. Tian Jing didn't want to go out; she wanted to spend time with her daughter.
So she asked Li Min to leave Jinian and Jiyang at home and let the two couples go out to relax.
Who knew that a phone call early in the morning would ruin everyone's mood.
The call was from Li Zhengguo, who informed Tian Jing of what had happened the previous night.
Li Min, hearing it was her little brother's call, deliberately pressed her ear against her sister-in-law's phone to listen. The result...
She furiously yelled at her husband: "What's wrong with your Chen family genes that they've become a problem with Little Fu?"
Chen Suozhu was dumbfounded.
Li Min waved at her elder brother and sister-in-law: "You guys go have fun. I'm going to make a phone call to scold someone."
She ran to the adjacent suite and dialed her eldest son's number, unleashing a torrent of abuse:
"Chen Fu, are you taking everything I say as nonsense? I'm telling you one more time, I only want four children. Whatever you and Hua'er do is your business, don't involve the Li family."
"Your uncle just became the county magistrate, and I, your mother, am too afraid to speak at home, so I have to hide away. You, on the other hand, dare to be with other women."
"Come here, you come here immediately. I'll personally castrate you and see if you dare to cause trouble again?"
Chen Suozhu, who had followed her, "..."
Li Liguo, who had followed her, "..."
Ouyang Meihua had already learned the details of last night's events from Tian Jing. She tried to console her furious sister-in-law:
"Little Fu was targeted. What's the use of you throwing a tantrum here?"
Li Min turned and glared at Ouyang Meihua: "Get lost. Don't think that just because you're my sister-in-law, I won't scold you."
Ouyang Meihua rubbed her nose and left. Her sister-in-law was quite terrifying when she was furious.
Li Min continued to roar into the phone: "You rent out the shop. Rent it out in my name."
"I plan to do what the Niu family did. I won't give you a single thing. Let's see how you can stir up trouble then. You're all rich and bored. When your father had no money, you obediently came to my house to work for a living."
Chen Suozhu, who had been unintentionally caught in the crossfire, "..."
Chen Fu asked weakly: "Mom, can I close the shop for now? When you come back, you can rent the storefront to me."
Li Min paused, then thought for a moment: "Okay! Close the shop for now. If the village doesn't allow it, then temporarily rent it to someone else for a month. You come to me, and I'll show you how big the world is?"
"Mhm," Chen Fu replied. "Then, should I bring Hua'er?"
Li Min's anger flared again: "Shut up. Let Hua'er take the phone."