Single-Handedly Ruining Her Entire Family

Cheng Yue nearly burst out laughing. The remark was admittedly cutting, but damn, it felt good to hear.

"Who said that? Come out if you've got the guts! I'll pluck every hair off you!"

That did it. The entire crowd erupted into laughter. A few people around her age even criticized her for talking nonsense in front of a child.

Cheng Yue figured they were wasting their breath. If she could listen to reason, things would never have gotten this far.

The woman certainly lived up to his expectations. She alone made enough noise for ten people, her shrill curses filling the air above the residential complex.

What had started as her unreasonable accusations had now turned into the crowd collectively mocking her.

Cheng Yue was racking his brain for a way to calm her down when a timid voice came from behind him.

"I... I called the police."

He turned in surprise and met the young woman's eyes, hurt yet determined.

Honestly, if he hadn't been wearing his work uniform, Cheng Yue would have given her a thumbs-up.

Since the accused had chosen to call the police, he stopped trying to intervene. He stood in front of the young woman and watched the older woman take on all comers, idly petting Labrador, who sat beside him.

It wasn't that he was determined to slack off. The woman was simply too formidable. She had single-handedly shouted everyone into silence, which showed just how unhinged she was.

"What's all this shouting? Who called the police?"

The woman had been on a roll, but it was as if someone had hit pause. Her curses cut off abruptly.

Cheng Yue rubbed at his ears, relieved that there would finally be some peace. A second later, a child's piercing wails rang out into the night.

"..."

What perfect timing.

Her daughter's timely support restored the woman's confidence. Without even considering who stood before her, she opened her mouth and started shouting. This time, at least, she managed to explain what had happened.

Her version was certainly interesting.

"I'd just come back with my child when I saw her letting her dog run wild from way off. I couldn't see whether it had a leash on, but judging by the distance, it probably didn't."

"My daughter only wanted to get closer and look, but she made the dog lunge at her to scare her! My poor child cried herself hoarse!"

Cheng Yue was speechless.

It might be dark out, but the rest of us aren't blind.

I've got to hand it to your daughter. She's talented. Not a peep when she isn't supposed to cry, but the second she's needed, one howl and the tears come pouring out.

Look how pitiful she is. Anyone who didn't know better would think it was her twin sister who'd been crouching nearby earlier, coldly watching her mother unleash hell.

Many people hadn't seen how the dispute began, but they had all seen whether the child had been crying. Before Cheng Yue could speak, they started chiming in with their accounts.

"Please wait a moment, everyone. Let the people involved speak first."

Realizing things were going against her, the woman tried to speak again, only for the officer to cut her off coldly. "You've said enough. Let the other person speak."

Ever since the young woman had quietly called the police, Cheng Yue had known she was merely bad with words, not slow-witted.

Sure enough, she handed him the leash and asked him to watch the dog, then took all the dog's paperwork out of the bag she carried.

Then, under the older woman's incredulous gaze, she removed the Action Camera hanging around her neck.

Now it was time to witness a miracle.

The commotion had gone on for over half an hour without any sign of the woman's family. But as soon as things started turning against her, an older woman nimbly slipped out of the crowd, scooped up the little girl, and tearfully declared that the poor child had been scared out of her wits.

The little girl naturally joined in the instant the offensive began, crying so hard that anyone who didn't know better might have thought her father had died.

As the officers prepared to watch the footage, the woman refused to be outdone and struck first. "It's fake! It's been doctored!"

The three generations' cries and shouts made everyone's head ache. Those standing nearby covered their ears and backed away a couple of steps.

"Stop shouting! Whoever's holding the child, take her away first! Everyone else, get on with your business. What are you all stirring things up for?"

The officer's authority wasn't to be challenged, but the crowd's appetite for drama wasn't to be underestimated either.

No one left, but at least things grew much quieter.

They found the footage quickly. Unfortunately, the young woman had turned her back to shield the dog at the time, so the camera hadn't captured the full beginning of the incident.

The older woman, who had been watching closely, immediately picked up on that. Her tension vanished, and she puffed up again.

"Young women these days can't speak a single word of truth! Lying right to the police's faces! If I were your parents, I'd just bash my head..."

"I've already clipped the surveillance footage. Should I send it to you, or would you like to watch it now?"

Zhao Li made his way through the crowd, emerging from the darkness into the light of a streetlamp. The moment he held out his phone, almost everyone-not just Cheng Yue-thought he positively glowed.

Some people brought disaster on themselves. Even the officer had run out of patience with her arrogance. Without hesitation, he played the video and carefully watched the incident unfold from beginning to end.

With the surveillance footage and the audio recorded by the young woman's Action Camera, this late-night farce could finally come to an end.

Even then, the woman refused to admit she was wrong. She stubbornly argued that she hadn't hit anyone; it was just a quarrel. At most, they could give her a lecture. Surely they couldn't throw her in jail over this?

Cheng Yue almost wanted to applaud her. Such an indomitable spirit was truly breathtaking.

"I want to press charges for insulting me! And spreading sexual rumors about me!"

Looking utterly bewildered, the woman was invited to the station for a little chat. After taking a couple of steps, she started throwing another tantrum, denying everything and accusing the police of taking favors from the other party and abusing their power.

"..."

Even the officer was speechless. "Leaving aside your slander of the police, new regulations came into effect this year. Publicly abusing or insulting others, or fabricating facts to spread rumors, is punishable under the Public Security Administration Punishments Law, depending on the severity of the offense."

If her abuse led to more serious consequences, such as suicide or a death, it wouldn't stop at detention and a fine. She would be held legally accountable.

Now the woman was genuinely frightened. In her panic, she blurted out, "My dad's a veteran Party member! He's an official! You can't arrest me!"

"?"

It was the classic "My dad is Li So-and-so" routine. Hearing that, the onlookers who had been about to head home turned right around and followed, their eyes gleaming.

Society now was worlds apart from what it had once been. Twenty years ago, a claim like that would have made people decide to let the matter drop.

Things were different in the age of big data. Hearing those words no longer made people feel frightened and powerless. It made them excited.

If you dared say it, they could dig up what color underwear your father had worn when he was three.

All anyone could say was that this family had better look out for themselves.

The officer didn't have that much patience. Seeing her resist and refuse to cooperate, with ironclad evidence of her offense already in hand, he stopped sparing her feelings. He snapped a pair of silver bracelets around her wrists and escorted her out of the complex.

With no more drama to watch, the crowd dispersed.

The young woman had to go along to the Police Station. After hesitating for a few seconds, she quietly asked the security team to look after her dog for a while. She would come back and collect the dog once she was done.

"Sure. I'll take the dog to the East Gate. Just pick the dog up there when you get back."

The young woman thanked him repeatedly.