Trapped Behind Bars

Xiao Li from the Public Security Bureau and two fellow officers drove first to the Commune, found Brigade Secretary Lei Zhensheng there, and told him about how the Zhao brothers had framed Shen Jianan.

The man was nearly stunned senseless with fury. Just yesterday, the higher-ups had praised the young educated youth, and their Commune had basked in the reflected glory, receiving a few words of praise as well.

The leaders had said that this year's "Advanced Collective" and "Advanced Individual" awards would, barring any surprises, both go to Red Flag Commune.

And now? With Zhao Qiancheng stirring up such a mess, it would all go down the drain. Lei Zhensheng gritted his teeth in secret. Once those people got out, if he did not skin a layer off Zhao Qiancheng and his son, he would write his name backward.

"All right, don't waste any more time. We still need to pick up Shen!"

Xiao Li gave him an indifferent glance, then left the Commune office with his two companions. Lei Zhensheng was unbearably embarrassed and could only follow. The three then drove to the Production Brigade.

By coincidence, it was lunchtime after work had ended. The team members were walking together in groups, gradually making their way toward the Production Brigade. At the sight of him and the Public Security officers, everyone grew nervous without realizing it.

Zhao Gang hurried forward to speak. "Comrades from the Public Security Bureau, Secretary Lei, is... is something wrong?"

Xiao Li nodded sternly. "Please help us call Shen over and have him come with us to the Public Security Bureau.

"Your Production Brigade's secretary, Zhao Qiancheng, and his brother Zhao Manjiang falsely accused Shen of forcibly marrying Zhao Xiaojun and driving her from home. We need to take him back for questioning."

"What? Who is Zhao Xiaojun!?"

Xiao Li's words were like cold water dripping into a boiling wok of oil, instantly exploding through the crowd.

"I think she's Zhao Manjiang's second daughter."

"H-how did Shen even know Zhao Xiaojun?"

"No idea. Maybe he took a liking to her while he was in town taking care of business?"

"That's possible!"

"He's got some nerve. Was Zhao Manjiang's daughter someone he could just push around?"

"Who cares whether he could push her around? As long as he could marry her..."

The crowd's discussion made Xiao Li and his two companions turn cold-faced at once. Just as Brother Zhang had worried, these people were all fucking beasts who could not tell right from wrong, cannibals who did not even spit out the bones.

They were still enjoying Shen's goodwill! Rather than saying a word for him or getting the facts straight, they had already begun "solving the case" on their own. If it had been someone else, would they not have driven that person to death?

No wonder some educated youths had been sent down for years and still felt no sense of belonging here at all. Who would not be chilled to the bone?

"What are you idiots yammering about?"

A furious voice rang out of nowhere. Everyone turned toward the sound and saw Cheng Hu limping quickly over, leading his wife and child by the hand, as he cursed them roundly.

"Do you all have pig brains? Didn't you hear the Public Security officer say Shen was framed?"

The little child stood beside his father and glared at them just as angrily. "You're saying bad things about Brother Jianan. You're bad people!"

Chen Ming, who had come with them, was even more furious. "You heartless, ungrateful things! Have you all forgotten Shen's kindness to us?"

"We earn our work points with our own strength. We don't owe him anything."

Zheng Lei folded his arms across his chest and retorted disdainfully, "You and Cheng Hu are the ones who got more from him, aren't you?"

"What kind of nonsense are you spouting, you educated youth?"

Not only the Production Brigade members, even Lei Zhensheng nearly coughed up blood from anger. "If you don't want to work, then quit outright. Neither the Production Brigade nor Shen begged you to come earn work points."

"Exactly."

Zhao Gang continued with a grim face, "I've lived for decades and never seen anyone as brazenly shameless as you. Today, I've learned something new."

Zhao Quan in the crowd also shot him an angry glare. "Shameless!"

"More than that!"

Zhao Hongjun gritted his teeth. "He doesn't even have a heart. He's worse than an animal."

"Recorder, stop scolding him."

Feng Yi gave a disdainful snort. "You already said he's an animal. How could he understand human speech, much less have a heart!?"

Song Yichen nodded in agreement and swept a cold gaze over Zheng Lei. "Isn't that so? Having someone like you at the Educated Youth Station is truly our disgrace."

Lu Xiaoyue and the other educated youths all nodded in agreement. "Exactly, exactly..."

"You... you all..."

Zheng Lei was rebuked red-faced by their barrage of words, fury churning in his chest. He wanted to argue back, but seeing that Zhao Gang and the other cadres were already angry, he feared they would settle accounts with him later. He could only shrink back with his head lowered, not daring to utter another word.

Seeing that someone was speaking up for Shen Jianan, Xiao Li finally felt a little better. Shen's efforts had not been entirely wasted after all. He raised his hand and called out, "All right, all right."

He then turned to Chen Ming, who stood beside Cheng Hu, and spoke gently. "Comrade, please take me to Shen. This matter cannot be delayed."

"Oh, all right."

Chen Ming nodded readily and pointed ahead. "Comrade Public Security officer, Shen lives at Half-Mountain Courtyard. I'll lead the way. You just follow."

With that, he took off running, leaving Xiao Li no time to call him into the car. Xiao Li could only call Zhao Gang and Lei Zhensheng over and head there together.

The others had wanted to follow and watch the excitement, but several cadres stood at the crossroads with dark faces, blocking the way. No one dared act up, so they could only return to their courtyards for lunch in reluctant frustration.

However, Huang Qimei would never miss an opportunity to kick Jiang Hongmei while she was down. Using the excuse of going to the toilet, she darted off to the Zhao Household and told her what had happened.

Jiang Hongmei and Qin Fengying's family of three were eating when they suddenly heard the news. Their vision went dark from shock. Then, crying and shouting, they rushed out of the house to look for the Public Security officers. Only then did Huang Qimei return to the Production Brigade in satisfaction.

Shen Jianan and Gu Yu had been peacefully making clothes in their room when anxious shouts came from outside. The two hurried out to investigate.

They saw Chen Ming standing at the foot of the mountain with his hands on his hips, saying the Public Security Bureau was looking for him. Their hearts tightened, and they rushed down the mountain, only to see a jeep pull up before them.

Their old acquaintance Xiao Li stepped out of the vehicle, greeted Shen first, and then told him how Zhao Qiancheng and the other three had gone to the Public Security Bureau to report Zhao Xiaojun missing and falsely accused Shen Jianan of forcibly marrying her.

Shen Jianan was completely dumbfounded. He had been sitting at home, only for a pot to fall from the sky onto his head. He did not even know who Zhao Xiaojun was, whether she was flat or round, so where had this forcible marriage come from?

Gu Yu's face was darker than ink. Someone had set their sights on his beloved and framed him—no man could tolerate that. By now, he had already thought of seven or eight ways to retaliate against them.

"All right, let's not delay. We'll go to the Bureau first and talk there."

One look at their expressions told Xiao Li that Zhang Dayong's guess had been correct—Shen Jianan had indeed been framed. He comforted him, "Don't worry. The Bureau has already notified the relevant leaders. They forced their children into marriage and falsely accused a promising young man like you. They definitely won't get away with it."

Shen Jianan nodded at that. "All right, I'll go with you."

He then turned to Gu Yu. "Brother Gu, I'll be back soon."

Gu Yu pressed his lips together and looked at him with a frown. "Mm."

Seeing how tense he was, Shen Jianan smiled and patted his arm. "Don't worry. A straight body does not fear a crooked shadow."

Then he got into the car with Xiao Li. Gu Yu watched the jeep turn around and drive away, a storm brewing in his eyes. "Chen Ming, I'm going into the mountains to hunt. Keep an eye on the house."

"Huh?"

Doubt arose in Chen Ming's heart. At a time like this, how could this man still be in the mood to hunt? Still, whatever the other man wanted to do was his freedom, and he had no right to interfere. So he nodded and agreed.

"Mm."

Gu Yu nodded in thanks and turned onto the mountain path. At that moment, the car had just passed the intersection by the Educated Youth Station, brushing past Qin Fengying and her two sons, along with Jiang Hongmei, who had rushed from home after hearing the news to cry out their grievances.

Seeing the vehicle speed away, they stamped their feet and cursed furiously. Shen Jianan watched their hysterical figures in the rearview mirror, and his gaze gradually turned cold.

By the time everyone arrived at the Public Security Bureau in town, it was already two in the afternoon. People from the Educated Youth Office, the government, and Zhao Manjiang and his wife's work units had all arrived.

Seeing such a grand lineup, Shen Jianan's eyes shifted. He immediately put on a wronged expression and followed Xiao Lin and the others into the meeting room with a face full of unease.

Liu Jiang from the Educated Youth Office had already been furious after learning what had happened. Now, seeing the young educated youth looking so anxious and frightened, his heart ached even more.

They had finally produced such a precious talent—someone who could write articles and lead the local people to prosperity—only for him to be bullied into this state by the Zhao family. Liu Jiang would never let that family off easily.

As for the government representative, there was even less need to say. He was an official named Li Zhong, a man who had taken office less than a week ago and believed in practical work.

He loathed seeing people below him scheme and cut corners. Thus, when he learned from others that Shen Jianan had been leading Chaoyang Production Brigade in seeking a path forward and striving for shared prosperity, he had developed a favorable impression of the young man. He had even thought that once Shen produced some results, he would give him a banner in recognition and encouragement.

Yet only days later, someone had set their sights on the young educated youth and actually wanted to force him into marrying their daughter through trickery? He would never permit such bandit-like conduct within his jurisdiction.

"Shen, come sit here!"

Li Zhong looked at Shen Jianan with a kindly expression. "Rest assured, we will definitely give you justice."

As he spoke, Li Zhong looked toward the people from Zhao Manjiang and his wife's work units and gave a cold, mocking laugh. "Your units are truly remarkable. You've cultivated two such outstanding talents for the country."

Without giving them a chance to argue, he had the Public Security officers bring the people out. The two were so enraged they nearly suffered heart attacks, yet they did not dare talk back.

After all, Li Zhong held real authority, and he was also ironclad friends with that person in the provincial capital. Even if they had swallowed bear hearts and leopard gallbladders, they would not dare provoke him.

They could only sit to one side, breathing heavily to express their dissatisfaction. Shen Jianan silently gave Li Zhong a thumbs-up in his heart, then nodded a "forced smile" of greeting to him and Liu Jiang from the Educated Youth Office before obediently taking a seat nearby.

Not long after, the Public Security officers brought Zhao Qiancheng and the others in. The four had argued fiercely all the way here and had even started fighting despite the officers' attempts to stop them.

Watching them act like madmen, the leaders in the office only grew more upset and began cursing loudly.

"What are you doing? Do you take the Public Security Bureau for a marketplace?"

"Zhao Manjiang! Lin Manqing! Have you argued enough!?"

The furious roars immediately stopped Zhao Qiancheng and the others' quarrel. The four turned at the same time. When they saw Li Zhong, Liu Jiang, and people from their respective work units, their expressions changed drastically. Their lips trembled, and none dared say another word.

Even now, they could not understand how such a small matter had escalated to the point of bringing in leaders.

Before they could figure it out, Shen Jianan launched the attack. He stood and looked at Zhao Manjiang with reddened eyes. "You are Comrade Zhao Manjiang, correct?

"You say I intended to forcibly marry Zhao Xiaojun. Then tell me: when and where did I say such a thing, or commit any coercive act against her? If you cannot say, then I will countersue you for slander!"

As he spoke, he looked at Zhang Dayong, who was seated nearby taking notes. "Comrade Public Security officer, once my matter with him is settled, could you please help me open a case?"

"Of course."

Zhang Dayong said solemnly, "I heard everything they said. I can also serve as your witness."

"Thank you."

Shen Jianan nodded to him, then turned to Zhao Manjiang and his wife, whose faces had gone pale. "So, can you tell me now?"

"Th-this..."

The couple was panicking badly. How were they supposed to explain this? The Public Security officer had made it clear that he would testify for Shen Jianan. If they lied again, would they not be lighting a candle in a latrine—courting shit, or death?

But if they said nothing, they would still be unable to escape disaster. Dead either way—what were they supposed to do?

Zhao Qiancheng and his son were equally angry and anxious. Although they had not been the ones to speak the words framing Shen Jianan, they had started the whole affair. When all was said and done, none of the four could escape responsibility!

At that moment, father and son both bitterly hated Lin Manqing for speaking without thinking, while also resenting the Public Security Bureau and Shen Jianan for making a mountain out of a molehill.

But saying anything now was pointless. They had to solve the immediate problem before thinking about what came next. Zhao Qiancheng looked at Shen Jianan, his face full of ingratiating smiles.

"Shen, this matter isn't actually what you think it is. My sister-in-law was too anxious and let her mouth run away with her. Really, we just thought you were outstanding, so..."

"So you wanted to use the authority in your hands to force me into submission?"

Shen Jianan raised his voice and cut him off, rebuking him furiously. "You call yourselves successors of socialism, yet you commit bandit-like acts and carry out the remnants of feudal thinking, arranging marriages by force. When your children resisted, you pushed the responsibility onto me. It is utterly shameful."

The moment they heard that, their faces turned white with fright. Why did what they had done sound even more serious coming from Shen Jianan than it had from the Public Security Bureau?

"No, we thought..."

Seeing that they still wanted to quibble, Shen Jianan sneered inwardly. You provoked me and now think you can simply turn the page? Dream on. His eyes shifted, and he struck while the iron was hot.

"You four have impure thoughts and improper conduct. You are nothing like good citizens of a socialist country. I now have reason to suspect that you are enemy agents lurking among the people.

"Otherwise, why are you all intellectuals holding important posts, all responsible for leading the masses forward, yet instead of remembering at all times to promote the Chairman's great thought, you insist on practicing feudal remnants and harming flowers of the motherland like me?"

With that enormous hat pressed down on them, Zhao Qiancheng and the others were not the only ones whose legs went weak as they begged for mercy. Even the Public Security officers, Li Zhong, and Liu Jiang began to panic.

The young educated youth was right. If Zhao Qiancheng and Zhao Manjiang's thinking had been sufficiently "red," how could they have thought of forcing marriage and framing someone?

They were educated, cultured successors of socialism. Their ideological consciousness should not have been so low, yet that was the reality.

Then, just as the young educated youth had said, it was highly possible that they were enemy agents hidden among the people, seeking to split the people's thinking and restore capitalism and feudal remnants.

Li Zhong and the others exchanged looks, silently making up their minds. They absolutely could not allow such social vermin to destroy social harmony. These people and their relatives all had to be thoroughly investigated; otherwise, no one would feel at ease.

Thus, the false accusation case triggered by Zhao Xiaojun running away from home was, through Shen Jianan's deliberate provocation, directly classified as a major case by several government agencies.

Zhao Qiancheng and his son, along with Zhao Manjiang and his wife, had tried to steal a chicken only to lose the rice used to bait it. They were locked up once again. Zhang Dayong and the other Public Security officers immediately began questioning them, and unable to bear the pressure or the fear of being sentenced, the four began biting at one another.

In their carelessness, they also exposed their plan to scheme against Gu Yu. Liu Jiang was furious. All the educated youths in this area were under his management, and he knew Gu Yu better than anyone.

Back then, it was because someone higher up had spoken to him and asked him to keep an eye on Gu Yu that he pressured Zhao Qiancheng to transfer him away from the Cattle Shed.

He had also instructed Zhao Qiancheng that as long as Gu Yu did not commit a major mistake and did not leave the bounds of Chaoyang Production Brigade, he was to be treated like an ordinary educated youth.

He had made it so clear that he had practically told Zhao Qiancheng that Gu Yu's family was not to be trifled with and that he should watch himself.

Good heavens, not only had this fool treated his words like wind past the ears, he had actually set his sights on someone else's prized treasure? Did he really think that being a Production Brigade secretary meant he could cover the sky with one hand?

This was only because the matter had not succeeded. If it had, it would be a miracle if Capital City had not sent people over to overturn their whole operation.

Li Zhong and the Public Security officers looked equally grim. Every one of them thought that if such filthy matters existed in one tiny Production Brigade, who knew how many people throughout the entire district were silently suffering injustice? It seemed they needed to thoroughly clean out the "garbage."

Seeing them united in hatred against a common enemy, Shen Jianan settled into his chair and happily swung his feet.

At the same time, Gu Yu used his space to reach the neighboring town and find Zhong Ning. He paid him two hundred yuan to investigate the immoral things Zhao Manjiang, Zhao Qiancheng, and Qin Guangtao, Zhao Manjiang's brother-in-law, had done.

"No matter how big or small it is, as long as it is immoral. But there is one condition: it must be true."

Gu Yu looked at him and said in a cold, low voice, "Within a week, I want results. Once you put the evidence in my hands, go spread the news for me. Then I'll give you another fifty yuan for your trouble."

"No problem."

Zhong Ning agreed readily and casually accepted the stack of ten-yuan notes Gu Yu handed him. "I have friends in the neighboring town too. I'll go find them for help right away."

"All right, I'll be going first."

Gu Yu rose and nodded. "See you in a week."

He then left the scrap collection station in quick strides. Lin Qi went to the door and watched his retreating back before returning inside to ask Zhong Ning.

"Big Brother, Yu Gu covers his face so tightly every time. Aren't you curious? And the people he wants to deal with are the Militia Company commander, Chaoyang Production Brigade's secretary, and the production director of the Textile Factory. Aren't you afraid of stirring up a hornet's nest?"

"Heh."

Zhong Ning snorted coldly and glanced up at him. "Lin Qi, as long as he pays us to do the job, that's enough. Don't ask so many questions. Curiosity killed the cat.

"As for those three... they must already be trapped behind bars. Otherwise, with Yu Gu's cautious nature, how could he possibly make a move so easily?"

Lin Qi suddenly understood and smiled as he gave him a thumbs-up. "Big Brother is wise!"