Tian Jing quietly withdrew from the courtyard.
Outside the courtyard, it was far from peaceful.
At the foot of the steps leading to the main gate, a group of people stood. Upon seeing her appear, two young men with bandages on their arms immediately stepped forward to identify her.
"It's her, she ordered people to drag us away. The people who dragged us were very rude; they not only covered our mouths but also threw us directly off the bridge, breaking our arms."
Tian Jing then recognized the speaker as one of the two young men who had come on the sixth day of the lunar month.
"Where are the pastries?"
Tian Jing's unexpected question left the two young men bewildered. "What?"
"The pastries? You're injured like this, the pastries you were holding must have been smashed too, right?"
Tian Jing turned to the security team members beside her. "On the sixth day, who dragged them away? Who was on duty at the bridgehead? Who was responsible for hygiene at the bridgehead? Who disposed of the collective garbage that day? Find them all and ask about the situation."
"Yes."
After the security team members went to find people, Tian Jing said to Deputy Village Head Ou and Branch Secretary Yang, "Please escort everyone to the conference room. I'll be there shortly."
The group exchanged glances. Defeated in the first round, did they still have a chance of winning?
Without giving them time to think, they were escorted to a large room on the ground floor of the adjacent five-story building.
Inside the room was an O-shaped table surrounded by chairs.
Tian Jing waited for Xiao Mai to come out and asked, "Are you looking for me because of those two people?"
Xiao Mai shook her head. "No, there's someone else at home."
"Who?"
"An old man who says his surname is Chen."
Chen Guangfu?
"You go back first. I'll deal with things here."
"Auntie, that..."
Xiao Mai hesitated. "With that old man came your mother."
Under her aunt's suddenly cold gaze, Xiao Mai stammered, "She, she said she's your mother."
Tian Jing turned and walked towards the conference room. "I don't have a mother. Tell your mother to drive Zhou Chengbin to the county police station to report the incident."
As the ice-cold Tian Jing walked into the conference room, the people gathered there flinched.
This woman's icy demeanor could freeze people to death.
Tian Jing sat down in front of more than a dozen people and looked coldly at the two young men.
"That day, I let you go without asking Da Mai and Xiao Mai for the details of what happened."
"Today, you've walked right into a trap. Don't blame me for being impolite."
"I don't care who instigated you. Making a mistake is making a mistake, and it cannot be dismissed by being unreasonable."
"The police will be here soon. We will handle this according to the law."
Reported?
The two young men faltered.
Two women from the group of supporters stepped forward. "You committed violence first and then filed a false report. It's good that the police are coming; we also need to report this."
"Mom."
"Mom."
The two young men turned, trying to stop their mothers.
"Don't be afraid."
The two women comforted their sons. "Before we came, we said we should report it, but you insisted on showing leniency. Now, others are not being lenient, and we can no longer cover for you."
"Heh heh."
Tian Jing sneered. "Then let's wait for the police to arrive and see what the truth is."
"Security team, keep all the witnesses you've brought and this entire group under control. I'll go back and handle my family matters first."
"Yes."
"Hey, hey, don't go."
The two women tried to follow, but they were stopped by the security team. "Our Team Leader Tian said she has family matters to attend to."
The two women glared at the security team. "We're afraid she'll collude with the police beforehand. Are you trying to detain us?"
Tian Jing, who had already left, returned. "Fine, I'll stay right here with you and let you witness firsthand how despicable your sons are."
"At that time, don't make any more unreasonable claims to deny it."
These words infuriated the two mothers. "You can't slander us. Our sons are very well-behaved."
Tian Jing waved her hand. "I'm not going to argue with you. We'll just wait for the truth."
With that, Tian Jing crossed her arms and closed her eyes to rest.
The conference room fell silent.
The wailing sound of police sirens broke the silence in the conference room.
Tian Jing opened her eyes and sneered at the two young men. "In this world, there are two things money cannot buy: the passage of time and an antidote for regret."
The two young men's faces turned ashen.
Only their mothers, who firmly believed in their sons, continued to comfort them, telling them not to be afraid.
The others who had come began to understand. One man stood up and asked if the injuries on the two young men's arms were fake.
The two young men lowered their heads, remaining silent.
Was this an admission?
The faces of the group, who had come so assertively to cause trouble, turned grim.
The man walked up to the two young men and slapped one of them.
He gritted his teeth and asked, "Why didn't you admit it before the police car arrived? What's fake is fake. Even if you break your arm now, it's useless."
Tian Jing waved her hand, and the security team immediately pulled the man away.
"Esteemed parent, please calm down. What they did is even more despicable than this."
"Whether you truly knew or pretended not to know, it's too late."
"Parents' values directly influence their children's values. Therefore, do not shirk your responsibility."
"After you understand the circumstances later, try to put yourselves in their shoes and then decide if you want to beg for a settlement."
The man was about to say something more when the police officers entered the conference room.
Zhou Chengbin followed behind the police officers and winked at Tian Jing.
Tian Jing pretended not to see. This child was too familiar. How could Brother Zheng think this Accountant Zhou was a shy person?
The three police officers sat in a row and asked who the complainant was and the reason for the report.
Tian Jing raised her hand. "I asked the village accountant to report the police. This group of people is suspected of extortion."
The leader of the three police officers looked at Tian Jing. "You will be held responsible for filing a false report."
"I know."
Tian Jing nodded and, after explaining why she had asked the security team to escort the two young men away on the sixth day, pointed to the villagers brought by the security team.
"These are the villagers who had contact with these two young men and the pastries they brought that day."
Upon hearing that they had forcefully demanded a house as dowry from the woman, the relatives and friends of the two young men's faces changed.
This included the parents of the two young men.
They wanted to question their sons, but with the police present, they couldn't.
The questioning of over twenty people took more than two hours.
The leader of the police officers reviewed the statements and asked the two young men if they had faked their injuries to frame Tian Jing, a villager from Kushanli.
The two young men had lost their original arrogance. "Yes."
The police leader then asked the relatives and friends if they had come to demand medical expenses and compensation from Tian Jing.
Some of the relatives and friends nodded, while others shook their heads.
Those who nodded were enough. The reason for the report was established, and a case could be filed.
The group was taken away. As the complainant, Tian Jing was supposed to accompany them.
Zhou Chengbin ran to call Ouyang Meihua, who drove Team Leader Tian and the villagers who were witnesses.
Tian Jing told Xiao Mai, who had been accompanying her, "Go back and tell your father to send those people away. Say I'm busy and they can wait."
"Don't let your father offer them a meal. Also, tell Xiao Shuyuan and A Guang to guard the courtyard closely and not let any unauthorized personnel enter."
"Including Xiao Wei. Tell them that if they dare to let Xiao Wei into the courtyard without permission, I will fire them."
"Yes."