The Spoiled Young Lady Who Married a Military Officer-Chapter 28: A Major Feud

The onions stung Su Tang’s eyes, and tears streamed down her face like water from a faucet.

’I don’t want to be crying,’ she thought, ’but these onions are just too potent. I can’t stand it.’

She gripped Hu Jianjun’s arm tightly, her hold so strong that he couldn’t break free for a moment.

"Hu Jianjun! You were the one who reported me, weren’t you?"

Su Tang’s voice was tinged with tears, yet it was exceptionally clear, cutting through the crowd’s noise and reaching everyone’s ears.

Hearing this, everyone knew there was drama to be had. No one wanted to leave now. They all stopped in their tracks and pricked up their ears to listen.

Hu Jianjun’s eyes darted around in a panic. "Su Tang, what nonsense are you talking about? Let go of me!" he snapped.

He tried to yank his arm away, but while Su Tang looked frail, her strength was astonishing.

With a guilty conscience, Hu Jianjun didn’t dare get rough with her in front of everyone.

Su Tang knew Hu Jianjun wouldn’t admit it. Luckily, she had spotted Hu Lili at his house a couple of days ago.

"Nonsense?"

Su Tang abruptly raised a hand and pointed toward Hu Jianjun’s house.

"Right after Mr. Zhao and the others left, your sister, Hu Lili, climbed out your back window. Did she think no one saw her? The family compound is only so big. Did she really think she could sneak back and fool everyone?"

"Hu Jianjun, you’re taking the fall for your sister! You want to protect her, but aren’t you afraid of getting dragged into this yourself? Harboring someone who snuck back is a much more serious offense than reporting a neighbor!"

Su Tang’s words struck like a clap of thunder, and the color drained from Hu Jianjun’s face.

’How does she know Lili is back?’

The last time Hu Lili was taken away, she was sternly warned never to return to the family compound.

Hu Jianjun had pleaded with many people to no avail. After all, Hu Lili was dishonest, had done many wrong things, and constantly bullied Su Tang. No one could protect her.

Left with no choice, Hu Jianjun had to send Hu Lili back to their hometown.

He just didn’t know why Hu Lili had come back...

But Hu Lili was his own sister, after all. When she cried, with tears and snot streaming down her face, Hu Jianjun’s heart softened.

He let Hu Lili stay for the time being, thinking he would plead her case again after things blew over.

But who would have thought that upon hearing Su Tang was now working at the hospital, Hu Lili would act like she’d gone mad.

Hu Jianjun could barely control her anymore.

Hearing Su Tang’s words, the crowd erupted in an uproar.

"Hu Lili is back?"

"Heavens, wasn’t she kicked out? She snuck back?"

"Hu Jianjun, is what Doctor Su said true?"

"No wonder he filed a report. Was it to cover for his sister?"

Zhang Cui was the first to react, demanding sharply, "Hu Jianjun! Is what Doctor Su said true? Where is Hu Lili? Tell her to come out!"

Sister Li also chimed in, "That’s right! Have her come out and make things clear! Whoever made the report should do it face to face, out in the open!"

If anyone had felt even a shred of pity for Hu Lili before, it was all gone now.

Hu Lili was too petty and loved to stir up trouble. Keeping her in the family compound was bound to cause problems sooner or later.

With his secret exposed by Su Tang and pressed by the surrounding crowd, Hu Jianjun completely lost his composure.

He looked into Su Tang’s unusually calm and sharp eyes and felt as if he’d been stripped bare, all his schemes laid out in the open.

Hu Jianjun knew, of course, that if it were confirmed that Hu Lili had snuck back, he would be in deep trouble.

He gritted his teeth and insisted he was the culprit. "I was the one who reported you. I wanted revenge. It has nothing to do with my sister. She’s not back. This was all my idea!"

He staunchly maintained that he was the one who made the report, refusing to mention Hu Lili, determined to keep her out of it.

"Su Tang, I just can’t stand the sight of you! So what if I reported you?"

Hu Jianjun’s words almost made Su Tang laugh. ’So these days, villains are more righteous than heroes, is that it?’

’I suffer an unprovoked disaster, and in the end, it’s my own fault?’

Su Tang let go of his arm and wiped the tears from her face, her voice weary.

"Hu Jianjun, from the very first day I arrived in the Northwest, you and your sister have been the ones bullying me."

"Have I ever provoked you?"

On the contrary, it was Hu Lili who had been relentless, targeting her time and time again.

Not wanting to stir up unnecessary trouble, Su Tang had chosen to ignore Hu Lili.

But who would have guessed that Su Tang’s indifference made Hu Lili think she was a pushover?

Even the softest pushover has a temper, not to mention Su Tang was no pushover at all.

"Mr. Zhao’s people are handling this. If I filed a false report, that’s on me. You’ve got no right to hold me here." 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

Hu Jianjun shook Su Tang off, pushed through the crowd, and left.

Su Tang didn’t stop him. Even if the accusation was proven false, it wouldn’t mean much for Hu Jianjun.

At most, he’d have to write a self-criticism report.

The bigger issue was that he had brought Hu Lili back.

Su Tang wasn’t in a hurry. If she wanted to catch him, she needed to catch him in the act.

Zhang Cui, Aunt Wang, and Sister Li were the most furious ones.

They had never seen such an unreasonable pair of siblings as Hu Jianjun and Hu Lili.

It completely shattered their worldview.

Su Tang comforted the three of them and invited them in for tea.

She also took the opportunity to tell them what she had seen.

Only then did the three realize that Su Tang had another move up her sleeve, and they all breathed a sigh of relief.

Hu Jianjun’s plan had backfired spectacularly. Not only had he failed to take Su Tang down, but he had also nearly ended up in trouble himself.

His hatred for Su Tang reached its peak.

Su Tang always seemed to see through his tricks, and everyone’s opinion of her was completely different now.

He didn’t dare make any more overt moves, but he couldn’t stand the thought of letting Su Tang have an easy time.

So, Hu Jianjun turned his attention to Su Tang’s job at the hospital.

He knew Su Tang was a doctor and frequently handled medicinal herbs and drugs.

A more sinister plan began to form in his mind.

Lu Xiao had been away on his mission for four or five days and still hadn’t returned. With one person missing from the house, Su Tang sometimes felt a bit out of sorts.

Once he was out on a mission, there was no way to contact him.

It wasn’t like modern times, where you could just call someone on their phone.

She hadn’t heard from Lu Xiao, but she did receive news from Mr. and Mrs. Su.

They had already packed their things, sold their property, and were planning to move to the island.

Life on the island certainly couldn’t compare to Shanghai, but Mr. Su said that what was coming was bound to come sooner or later.

They had been lucky to escape disaster a few years ago, but now it seemed there was no avoiding it.

Therefore, he and Mrs. Su needed to lay low and minimize their presence as much as possible.

The letter also said that once things settled down, they would find a way to come to the Northwest to see her.

Finally, they left the contact information for an aunt’s house on the island.

Su Tang sighed. She knew that "once things settled down," as her father put it, would be at least two or three years from now.

Still, by being able to avoid the most chaotic period, they were much better off than most people.

Having news from Mr. and Mrs. Su, Su Tang felt a sense of relief.

Taking advantage of Lu Xiao’s absence, she signed up for a few days of on-call duty, planning to thoroughly familiarize herself with the hospital’s current procedures.

A few days later, Su Tang was on the night shift.

During a gap in the hospital’s nightly patrols, Hu Jianjun snuck near the hospital pharmacy.

He didn’t dare enter the core area; the risk was too great.

He wasn’t there to steal medicine. Instead, he had brought a small packet he’d gone to great lengths to obtain.

Taking advantage of a moment when no one was looking, he mixed its contents—poisonous plant seeds that resembled a common medicinal herb—into the sample bag of sorted herbs on Su Tang’s desk in the on-call room.

He did it with extreme stealth, mixing in only a few seeds, which would be difficult to spot without careful inspection.

If they were discovered, it would be a major work-related error for Su Tang. Combined with the issues surrounding her identity, the hospital would definitely not keep her.

Hu Jianjun wanted Su Tang to return to the days when she was universally despised.

Otherwise, he would never be able to swallow this indignity.