Zhou Dongdong couldn’t sleep tonight, and as she was just about to get up in the middle of the night, she suddenly saw her father and uncle going outside.
At that moment, she wanted to ask where they were going, but the two men walked fast and disappeared into the dark night in no time. Zhou Dongdong didn’t think much of it, assuming that her father and uncle were probably going to the field to catch snakes or mice.
Could it be…
The village chief heard Ye Ge’s comment and turned to the other villagers instantly, saying: “Who on earth did it? Stand up, don’t joke with the entire village’s grain. As long as you dare to admit it, I shall not blame you for the past!”
There would be no leniency.
After the village chief asked, it was silent by the paddy field.
Everyone was waiting for the culprit to stand up, but after a long while, no one dared to do so.
“No one admits it? Fine, I will question each one of you!”
The village chief had everyone line up, and began questioning everyone indeed.
“An hour ago, where were you?”
Some answered that they were sleeping at home, others said they were bathing their children.
Nan Feng reminded the village chief, “You can’t ask like this, it’s best to separate the men and women and see if their answers coincide; if not, each should be screened individually.”
The village chief found Nan Feng’s suggestion feasible, so he did just that.
Men and women were separated into two lines, far from each other. The village chief asked the questions, and Ye Ge, who was literate, was tasked with recording the answers.
All answers would be cross-examined after everyone was questioned.
However, there was still no clue; everyone claimed they were sleeping and had not gone out.
The family of Zhou Senior and Zhou Second seemed to have discussed their answers beforehand, so their answers were also the same.
“I can’t get any answers, what should I do?” the village chief asked Ye Ge again.
Ye Ge thought for a moment, suddenly turned and walked over to the women’s line, circled around, and then stopped in front of Zhou Dongdong.
Zhou Dongdong saw Ye Ge looking at her, she felt a little flustered, but she straightened her back shortly, appearing ready for Ye Ge’s questioning.
As expected, Ye Ge asked her, “Two hours ago, where were you?”
Zhou Dongdong’s voice was shaking a bit, but she answered confidently, “Of course, I was sleeping.”
“Did you see where your parents went?”
“I was sleeping at the time, my parents don’t share a room with me, and it was so late, they must have been sleeping too!”
Ye Ge proceeded to question Zhou Senior’s younger children, and had only asked Dongdong’s younger sister one question when Dongdong scolded him, “Why do you always focus on our family? Do you insist that it’s us who did it before you give up?”
Once Dongdong finished scolding, her younger brothers and sisters started crying, making it impossible to ask further questions.
Ye Ge had to stop.
No clues were found that night, there were not any witnesses, and in the middle of the night, everyone dispersed.
…
Early the next morning.
As soon as it was daybreak, the villagers went to the fields again.
Each of them was worried about the seedlings in their fields. If anything happened to the seedlings, it would be a disaster for the villagers.
Nan Feng also hurried to the fields to check on everyone’s situation. Actually, it was not too bad. After a night had passed, the seedlings that were previously wilting were once again a little upright. If it was sunny and the field was sunned, by the afternoon the seedlings would probably return to their original state.
However, the villagers didn’t look at her as kindly as before.
Nan Feng knew that everyone was scared by the incident last night. Also, no one could be found responsible for the leakage of the reservoir, and since villagers were simple-minded, it was normal for them to blame her. It was even good enough that they didn’t turn on her with shovels.
…