"You? You! You... Good, very good then!"
Old Uncle Hu was enraged, and he couldn’t help turning to Old Qin and questioning him again: "Old Qin, have you seen clearly now? This is how your daughter-in-law talks to her elder like me? This is how she treats the one who saved her life? What excellent family customs your Qin family has indeed!"
Old Qin was unable to respond, and bowed his head subconsciously, looking around for someone to come to his rescue, only to be disappointed.
All the onlookers kept a safe distance to one side, not a single one stepped forward.
Even Qin Shuan’er and her mother, whom Su Pan’er had just defended, hid far away in the back, not daring to show themselves.
He had no choice but to focus his gaze on Su Pan’er, a complex look flickering in his eyes.
On the contrary, Qin Yi, who was leaning against a pillar under the eaves to rest, squeezed out of the crowd, looking perfectly righteous.
"I believe Pan’er didn’t do this! Cough cough... I, Qin Yi, may not have much time left to live, but as long as I have a breath left, I absolutely won’t allow anyone to harm her! To slander her! Cough cough..."
His words were halting and lacked persuasiveness.
But they made Su Pan’er look at him deeply.
She then turned around and swept her gaze over everyone, her calm and composed voice carrying across the crowd.
"Ha ha! Old man, don’t be guilty and embarrass others! If you want to know whether I pushed you or not, it’s very simple. Frankly speaking, I’m afraid that if I bring out the evidence, your old face will be dishonored, and you, Old Uncle Hu, won’t have a foothold in the surrounding counties anymore!"
Her leisurely pace of speech oddly bolstered her credibility.
Old Qin’s eyes brightened, and his gaze trailed over Old Uncle Hu, pausing briefly: "Old Hu, considering the current situation, you see..."
Could she actually produce evidence that she didn’t push him? If at this point, he still didn’t realize that Su Pan’er was deliberately swindling him, it would be a disgrace to all the years he, Old Hu, had been working the streets!
"Old Qin, you’re not siding with your foolish daughter-in-law and letting her slander people, are you? There’s no bargaining on this matter. This is defamation, do you understand? If you want to protect her, be careful, old man, because I might just sue you all to the government office! Hmph!"
Old Uncle Hu jumped up and barked furiously at Old Qin, showering him with spittle.
This forced Old Qin to continuously dodge away.
"Great! You want to go to court? Frankly speaking, I can’t wait!"
Su Pan’er laughed lightly and stepped out from the shadows, standing defiantly in front of Old Uncle Hu. The intensity of her stare was piercing, causing him to flinch and his heart skipped a beat. Yet, she shook her head: "But well, there’s really no need to go to court now. Anyone with a pair of eyes can see the truth."
Su Pan’er pointed to her eyes.
"Cough, cough... Pan’er, what exactly happened? Tell us the truth!"
Qin Yi on the side was getting anxious!
No matter what Su Pan’er was thinking, as long as he was alive, he never wanted to see her suffer injustice. Especially being splashed with such a large bucket of dirty water, he was especially unwilling for her to bear it!
Su Pan’er glanced at him and scolded him in a low voice: "Get out of the way! Stop obstructing the way!"
Can’t he see that he can’t even stand properly, yet he still tries to show off here? If he accidentally gets hurt, she’ll have to step in to rescue him again and cause more trouble.
Qin Yi’s eyes darkened and although he moved his lips, he ended up saying nothing and stepped back.
He couldn’t help frowning, how could Pan’er resolve the situation she was facing?
Su Pan’er’s gaze slid over Old Uncle Hu like a knife: "You despicable knave, you wanted to see the evidence, right? Go! Bring some torches over and let me show you the evidence!"
"Oh my goodness! You sure know how to scare a fool! Eh, wait! Do you think I’m scared of you? If you’re capable, bring out the evidence. Stop bluffing here. I’m not easily frightened!"
Old Uncle Hu was sure that Su Pan’er couldn’t produce any evidence. After all, the fact that he fell was clear cut! If he claimed that Su Pan’er pushed him down, who could prove otherwise? Nobody was there to see it.
Su Pan’er folded her arms and kept chuckling, but didn’t say a word.
It wasn’t until Qin Yu came over with a few torches that she took two of them and turned to look at Old Uncle Hu, her eyes filled with outright contempt: "I, Su Pan’er, am not like you, always behaving dishonestly. You mangy old dog, open your dog eyes and see clearly!"
As she spoke, she walked a few steps forward to where Old Uncle Hu had fallen. She held up one of the torches: "Look! Can everyone see clearly? Are there any footprints of mine in the vicinity where this old dog fell?"
It turned out that in the evening, when Old Uncle Hu had a fit of sheep mad disease, he had forcefully gulped down half a ladle of dregs, and the rest had been spilled, slowly soaking the nearby soil in the courtyard, creating a patch of wet ground.
This wet patch of ground was not a big deal, but it became a problem when Old Uncle Hu sneaked in and happened to kick the bucket of dregs that Qin Yueshi, who was busy cooking, had forgotten to take away. The bucket of dregs overturned, made a noise and attracted Su Pan’er’s attention.
Old Uncle Hu couldn’t see anything in the dark, but Su Pan’er had good eyesight and had clearly seen the muddy patch nearby, naturally she wouldn’t step on it.
Since she didn’t step on it, naturally there wouldn’t be any footprints of hers in the large patch of wet ground near where Old Uncle Hu had fallen!
And just by coincidence!
The bucket of dregs was leaning to one side and had also blocked the onlookers from moving forward, inadvertently preserving the crime scene intact. Only the foot prints of Old Uncle Hu, this old dog were left behind. Now, even if he wanted to deny it, he couldn’t!
Everyone looked and their gazes all fell on Old Uncle Hu, their openly contemptuous looks seemed to pierce him!
Old Uncle Hu’s eyes bulged like a frog’s, his face turned pale in an instant, his deathly pallor conveying his shock. His body swayed several times before he finally collapsed weakly.
He had been completely tripped up!
This time, he was really thoroughly trounced!
His reputation, his earnings, and his face were all gone!
With his eyes closed, he could imagine what kind of consequences he would face when he woke up tomorrow!
Su Pan’er chuckled, then turned to Qin Yu and commanded him. Qin Yu quickly brought the medicine box over, which Su Pan’er then flung in front of Old Uncle Hu.
Smack!
The medicine box was thrown open and the contents scattered, silver nuggets and copper coins rolling around on the ground.
"Count carefully! See if there’s anything missing from your medicine box? Don’t try to turn around tomorrow and accuse me, Su Pan’er, of getting greedy at the sight of money or being money-eyed! Things can happen once or twice, but not a third time! Bullying a fool and framing him over and over again. And you call yourself the region’s eminent doctor? I’m embarrassed for you!"
Old Uncle Hu opened his mouth but no sound came out. Woodenly, he started to pick up the stuff, one by one, the sound of laughter in his ears flooding over him like a tidal wave, it was gradually drowning him out.
The surroundings seemed to be closing in on him, and all he could see in his eyes were the silver nuggets and the copper coins rolling on the ground.