Volume 1 Chapter 6: What Are the Odds?

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“Heavens, these are all photos of Su Yinwan and Song Huaiyu!”
“Look at the bottom right corner—there’s a date written right there!”
“I remember on the eighth day, Yinwan took leave from the factory…”
“Isn’t it true that Song Huaiyu only recently broke off his engagement with that other girl? But look at these dates…”

At this point, no one had any doubts left.

Su Yinwan and Song Huaiyu had an affair first, and wanting to break off their engagement without gaining a bad reputation, they conspired to sully the name of the ex-fiancée. They even plotted to send someone to destroy that girl’s reputation.

“Oh my! Such a vicious scheme. I even felt sorry for Song Huaiyu before—he seemed so exceptional, yet he ended up with that fiancée…”
“Wah, I’m guilty! I even scolded his previous fiancée before…”
“I’m guilty too. I was once moved by Su Yinwan and Song Huaiyu’s ‘love story,’ but now I feel disgusted, ugh…”
“Am I the only one who feels sorry for that little girl named Shen? A perfectly good girl, broken off with for no reason, and now slandered by that despicable couple…”

Realizing what was happening, Su Yinwan attempted to seize the photos back.

But the photos had already been widely circulated, making it impossible for her to retrieve them.

The evidence was undeniable.

And the recording hammered home the affair between Su Yinwan and Song Huaiyu mercilessly.

It wasn’t until the factory supervisors hurried over that this farce was momentarily paused.

But what use was that?

The photos that needed to be seen, the recordings that had to be heard, had already been exposed to all.

The news that Su Yinwan and Song Huaiyu, together with the future mother-in-law, had smeared the ex-fiancée spread like wildfire throughout the residential compounds near the factory, then rapidly beyond.

After all, workers at the textile mill came from near and far.

In an era with few entertainment options, gossip was everyone’s way to unwind.

The dirt Su Yinwan and her group had thrown at Shen Zhiyi was now being thrown back at them with equal force!

Previously, Song Huaiyu’s mother, Chen Shuzhen, had tearfully lamented to anyone who would listen about her troublesome future daughter-in-law and how deeply her son had been hurt.

Thanks to her and Su Yinwan’s relentless propaganda, every household in the nearby compounds—from eighty-year-old grandmothers to toddlers—knew about the troublesome fiancée of Song Huaiyu.

Now, the gossip had spread even farther and wider.

But this time, the criticism was directed at them.

Whether or not people had known Su Yinwan and Song Huaiyu before, now everyone knew them.

They had become infamous in a bizarre way, their names spreading far beyond their circle.

Chen Shuzhen, Song Huaiyu’s mother, was returning home carrying a basket of vegetables.

Along the way, she endured the cold, strange glances of the crowd.

At first, she thought they were greeting her and responded warmly.

Spotting some people chatting under a tree, she approached, intending to continue her usual slander of Shen Zhiyi and solidify her son’s image as a deeply wronged victim.

But to her surprise, the usual nods and agreements to her words failed to come.

Everyone fell silent, staring at her in unison.

Chen Shuzhen mistook their quiet for dissatisfaction with her remarks.

So she intensified her attack: “You don’t know, my son’s former fiancée was lazy and greedy… It was them who used coercion and threats, forcing my husband to agree to the engagement… We resigned ourselves to this marriage all these years, and now she has the audacity to do such shameless things…”

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One auntie, who had been friendly with her, couldn’t bear it and tugged her sleeve.

“Shuzhen, better say less.”

Then she lowered her voice and quickly recounted the textile factory incident.

Only then did Chen Shuzhen realize the gazes she had received were not pity or interest, but ridicule and contempt!

Her face turned pale, and she hurried home in a panic.

An auntie spat disdainfully at her departing back:

“Pfft! Breaking off the engagement is one thing, but that girl must have been cursed for eight generations to end up with such an in-law family!”
“You’re wrong—it’s the ex-in-law family now!”
“Sigh, the good name accumulated by the Song family’s patriarch will probably be completely ruined this time…”

Actually, Su Yinwan and the others’ original plan might have worked, since Shen Zhiyi was so far away in Guang Province; they could control the narrative, portraying her as whatever they wanted.

But the premise was that Shen Zhiyi didn’t know and had no system to help her.

Without the system, Shen Zhiyi wouldn’t have found out about this for years.

By then, everything would have settled.

Trying to clear her name years later wouldn’t be as effective as it was now.

“How could such a secret get out? Were you followed when you went out?!”

Chen Shuzhen was frantic, shaking Song Huaiyu’s shoulders, demanding answers.

Song Huaiyu’s face was pale, and he seemed dazed, but when questioned, he instinctively replied:

“I don’t know…”

He and Yinwan hadn’t been very careful around others when together, only taking precautions before intimate moments.

Perhaps someone had secretly filmed them in a corner they hadn’t noticed.

But…

That conversation on the recording was held at home.

Chen Shuzhen had realized this too.

She was on the verge of breaking down.

“Who on earth would do this to us… sob sob, son, your mother’s done for. If your father and grandfather find out, they’ll kill me…”

The engagement break was a fait accompli, carried out by mother and son without the patriarch’s knowledge.

With their earlier lies, tricking the old man into believing the Shen family had initiated the breakup, they had barely gotten away with it.

But now that their scheme to slander Shen Zhiyi was exposed, the patriarch’s wrath was inevitable.

Chen Shuzhen suddenly looked up, as if recalling something: “Do you think it could be that little bitch Shen Zhiyi behind this?”

But before she finished, Su Yinwan, curled up in a corner, equally dazed, spoke first: “Impossible!”

The light in Chen Shuzhen’s eyes dimmed.

“I think it’s impossible too…”

Not to mention Shen Zhiyi was far away in Guang Province and knew nothing of Beijing’s affairs. And how could she have access to a recording pen and photos? She was just a country girl.

Yet, precisely because they couldn’t identify their enemy, they felt terrified.

“Son… your mother did this all for you. You must keep it from your grandfather…”

Chen Shuzhen could only pray that the old man remained secluded and unaware of today’s events.

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Yet the matter had already become the talk of the town; it was impossible to keep it hidden.

No matter how hard Chen Shuzhen tried to stop the old man from going out for walks.

The next afternoon, when officials came to inquire, Song’s patriarch learned of the scandal and was so furious he was hospitalized.

However, no matter how chaotic things were in Beijing, Shen Zhiyi’s side remained peaceful.

After yesterday’s unexpected advantage, she thought she wouldn’t see Song Huaichuan again for some time.

But to her surprise, she saw him again today.

Noticing her, he abruptly turned away mid-step instead of approaching.

Shen Zhiyi tightened her grip on the vine in her hand.

“Big brother, if you and second brother team up, how sure are you you can take him down?”

Shen Zhicun, busy bundling firewood, followed her gaze and immediately recognized Song Huaichuan—the man who had watched helplessly as their sister fell into a rice paddy that evening!

Recalling what Shen Zhigao had said the night before, Shen Zhicun realized this was the wild man their little sister fancied.

Looking at Song Huaichuan’s tall, upright figure, Shen Zhicun thought for a moment, then said:

“Ninety percent.”

Shen Zhiyi’s eyes brightened: “Really?”

“Really. Ninety percent is even an underestimate. Your second brother and I would be a hundred percent likely to be taken down by him.”

Meaning, they would definitely lose.

Shen Zhiyi bit her lip, unwilling to accept defeat, and asked:

“What if third brother and a trap ambush were added?”

Shen Zhicun smiled wryly: “Sis, I’m glad you think so highly of me, but you seriously overestimate your brothers.”

Shen Zhiyi was speechless.

Looking down at the vine in her hand, she contemplated finding a chance to tie up Song Huaichuan.

Bind him and imprison him—then she could do whatever she wished.

…Not gonna lie, that idea suddenly seemed pretty cruel, almost worthy of torture.

Especially since Song Huaichuan was in the military; testing it might be fatal.

Shen Zhicun had no idea what Shen Zhiyi was thinking.

He glanced at Song Huaichuan again—he was indeed the type most girls would like, especially with that face.

But their sister wasn’t shallow.

So Shen Zhicun asked:

“Sis, does it have to be him? What do you like about him?”

Shen Zhiyi’s answer was startling—