Hearing her words, He Qiang ground his teeth maliciously and sneered,
"You've got guts. Let's see how you manage to stay in the police station after today!"
With that, he raised his voice again:
"Everyone, come take a look! Su Xiu, this shameless—"
Before he could finish, Zhou Ziyang stepped forward and cut him off:
"Comrade, are you here to file a report today? Are you accusing Comrade Su Xiu of abandoning you?"
He Qiang froze, momentarily unable to react.
Zhou Ziyang didn't give him time to think. Nodding to himself, he continued,
"Alright, I'll take your case. Come with me to the interrogation room."
At the mention of the interrogation room, He Qiang grew uneasy. He quickly stood up and asked nervously,
"Why would I go to an interrogation room? I came to find my wife!"
Zhou Ziyang replied seriously,
"No, you came to file a complaint. As the victim, I heard your accusations clearly, and I don't approve of Comrade Su Xiu's behavior either. So I need to take your statement."
"But your explanation just now wasn't clear enough. You'll need to come with me and explain in detail how Comrade Su Xiu abandoned you. Once you've finished your statement, I'll let you go. Otherwise, you'll stay in the interrogation room—and I'll provide your meals."
Despite his earlier bravado, He Qiang was only fearless because no one had intimidated him yet.
Now, after Zhou Ziyang's words—and the threat of being held in an interrogation room—he immediately lost his nerve. Shaking his head frantically, he shouted:
"I'm not going in! I won't go!"
The moment he finished speaking, he turned and ran, even losing one of his shoes in the process!
Although He Qiang fled, the lies he had spread still caused trouble for Su Xiu.
The onlookers didn't show much on their faces, but once they returned to their offices, rumors began to spread quickly.
At this moment, Su Xiu was still unaware of it. She stood at the entrance thanking Zhou Ziyang:
"Comrade Zhou, thank you for driving He Qiang away. Everything he said just now was a lie. I never… I never did anything with him. We never even held hands. Really—you have to believe me!"
Zhou Ziyang smiled gently.
"I believe you."
"In the military, we're trained to detect lies. That man was clearly making things up—I could tell."
Hearing this, Su Xiu felt much better.
She didn't care what others thought, but she didn't want Zhou Ziyang to misunderstand her.
However, after returning to the office, she could clearly feel the subtle looks from her colleagues. Whenever she wasn't around, they gathered and whispered among themselves. The moment she came back, they fell silent.
Su Xiu understood everything, but she could only pretend not to notice.
At lunchtime, she followed her colleagues toward the cafeteria with her lunch box.
The weather had been hot lately, so she no longer brought food from home. Every day, she simply bought two liang of rice and paired it with a free serving of soup.
After getting her meal, she glanced around and spotted an empty seat nearby.
Just as she was about to sit down, the people at the table hurriedly packed up their lunch boxes and said,
"I'm full, Su Xiu. Take your time eating."
Though they didn't explicitly say they disliked her, their actions made it painfully obvious.
Su Xiu sat down quietly, her heart filled with grievance as her eyes reddened.
Seeing this, Zhou Ziyang walked over with his lunch box and sat across from her, gently comforting her:
"Comrade Su Xiu, don't take their attitude to heart. I'll explain things to them."
Then he glanced at her lunch box and frowned.
"Why didn't you get any dishes?"
With tears in her eyes, Su Xiu forced a smile and replied,
"I don't like vegetables."
In truth, she was trying to save money.
Although her clerical job at the police station paid over thirty yuan a month, she wanted to save for her parents' retirement. In the future, she might even need to bring in a live-in son-in-law—everything would require money.
So she tried to save wherever she could.
How could Zhou Ziyang not see through that?
But he said nothing. Nor did he offer her his own food.
After all, Su Xiu was already under scrutiny. Everyone in the cafeteria was stealing glances at her. If he acted too openly supportive, it would only fuel more gossip and make things worse for her.
—
Su Yun, of course, knew nothing about Su Xiu's situation.
After lunch, she went to the neighborhood office to request leave. When she returned, she continued studying with Gu Hai. As the end of the workday approached, the two of them finalized their plans for the next day.
Before leaving, Gu Hai hesitated for a moment, then said,
"Su Yun, about the camera and television you got last time—can you help me get another set?"
Su Yun paused, then quickly clarified,
"It wasn't me—it was my friend!"
Gu Hai followed along smoothly:
"Then can your friend help me get two more?"
By now, Su Yun was very familiar with him. A small favor like this was nothing—she wouldn't refuse.
"Of course. I'll ask when I get back. Do you only want the TV and camera? What about watches? My friend can also get electric fans and washing machines—do you want those?"
After all, Gu Hai had ten million yuan stored with her. Even if she bought out her entire system marketplace, she still wouldn't run out of money!
Gu Hai was momentarily stunned.
He actually wanted all of them.
After a brief pause, he said,
"If possible, I'll take the camera, the TV, and an electric fan. And two watches. Just deduct the money from my account, alright?"
Su Yun didn't hesitate.
"Of course! Then it's settled. I'll have everything ready for you by the day after tomorrow at the latest."
After all, she had plans to go treasure-hunting tomorrow.
"Alright."
After saying that, Gu Hai didn't leave as he usually did.
Instead, he looked at Su Yun expectantly.
"Well… it's still early today. How about I take you home?"
Su Yun was puzzled.
Early?
She finished work at five-thirty every day—today was no different.
Besides, the recycling station was only a twenty-minute walk from her home. She could get back quickly on her own.
Thinking this, she waved her hand.
"No need. Don't you have to rush home to cook for your younger siblings? I won't hold you up."
Gu Hai replied seriously,
"Didn't you say this morning that your mother asked you to bring apples home? I figured if I personally take you back, it'll be more convincing. Besides, my younger siblings are old enough now—they should learn to be independent. I can't take care of them forever."
Su Yun hesitated.
"That… doesn't seem appropriate."
"There's nothing inappropriate about it. It's settled. I'll take you home today—let's go!"
Under Gu Hai's insistence, Su Yun couldn't refuse. With a helpless expression, she climbed onto the back seat of his bicycle.
She hadn't even bought the apples yet!
Who knew what had gotten into Gu Hai today?
Halfway there, Su Yun spotted the familiar alley. She quickly told him to stop.
"Comrade Gu Hai, I arranged to pick up some apples after work. Wait here for a moment—I'll be right back."
Without waiting for his response, she turned and hurried into the alley.