The Stepmother’s Counterattack: Raising a Child in a Bygone Era
Chapter 235 - 234: The Traitor

Chapter 235: Chapter 234: The Traitor

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"You better leave immediately and stop causing trouble here," the officer warned. "If you don’t go now, we will take you all into custody for disturbing public order."

Unable to deal with Pei Yang, who was as tough as nails, Huang Yuan simply called the police in the hope of intimidating Pei Yang into backing down.

This move by Huang Yuan did have some effect.

The elderly men and women enticed by Pei Yang’s offer of "two pounds of sugar" to help witness began to have second thoughts upon seeing the police arrive.

They weren’t about to exchange the small benefit they were promised for a trip to the police station for reeducation.

"Forget it, I don’t want the sugar anymore. I’m leaving," one of them said.

"I don’t want it either," another echoed.

One by one, about a dozen people left, and Pei Yang did not stop them.

Seven or eight remained, but they stood at a distance, undecided whether to stay or go.

Only Pei Yang and Shen Chaobei were left at the entrance of Hengxing, as Shen Hongmei had already gone back, and Lao Zhu remained in the truck watching the goods.

Huang Yuan, peeking from a window above, saw this scene and his face was etched with scornful mockery.

Hmph, thinking of fighting me? He’s still too green.

Huang Yuan hummed a tune in a good mood, looking forward to seeing Pei Yang scared out of his wits, running away in a sorry state.

However, he had underestimated Pei Yang’s courage and intelligence.

Even though Pei Yang was resolutely confronting Hengxing with a do-or-die attitude, he was certainly not foolish enough to leave any evidence for Hengxing to manipulate.

"Officers, there’s a reason why we’re here..." Pei Yang began to explain the whole story of Meihao Food Factory’s collaboration with Hengxing to the police, "...I have no choice but to stand guard here. If I don’t, Hengxing could sue me for breach of contract and I cannot afford to lose everything."

"Officers, although I’m not highly educated, I understand and abide by the law, and I wouldn’t do anything to disrupt public order. Our presence here isn’t affecting their work and production, so it shouldn’t be considered a disturbance, right?" Pei Yang questioned.

The two officers looked at each other, unsure of how to proceed.

"This is their front door. If they don’t want you standing here, you have to leave," stated one of the officers.

Pei Yang politely asked, "Then, could we stand across the street? Just on the curb, guaranteeing not to obstruct pedestrian traffic."

Du Juan, playing the woman’s card, pleaded with tears in her eyes, "Officers, please show some mercy. Our factory owes a huge debt, and the workers are counting on their wages to go home for the New Year. We came here out of desperation. Please give us a way out, I’m begging you." She started to kneel but was supported by one of the officers.

Seizing the opportunity, Pei Yang pleaded, "Just for today, we’ll leave after midnight and won’t come back to cause you any trouble."

Seeing the trio’s cooperative attitudes and their promise not to block Hengxing’s entrance anymore, the police didn’t want to meddle further, and after a few words of warning, they left.

Once the police had left, those who had been watching from a distance came running back.

Pei Yang led them across the street.

Watching this scene through the window, Huang Yuan’s eyes bulged with anger.

Damn, why is this guy so hard to kill?

However, Huang Yuan had bigger problems to deal with since his boss found out about the situation and called him in for a reprimand, threatening to demote him if he didn’t resolve the issue immediately.

Huang Yuan felt a headache coming on. Years of office experience told him that if the problem wasn’t handled properly today, he could very well capsize in the proverbial ditch.

Right away, he phoned Shi Guangsheng to cancel their agreement and promised to return any kickbacks previously accepted.

Shi Guangsheng was alarmed to hear this.

He couldn’t stand the thought of letting the meat slip from his mouth. Unsatisfied, his resourceful mind quickly hatched a brilliant plan, advising Huang Yuan to stall for now since it was less than half an hour till the end of the workday.

Once they got through today, he would go to Pei Yang tomorrow and buy the apple candy at a bargain price.

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Huang Yuan was far from as optimistic as Shi Guangsheng thought, "This guy Pei has a very stubborn temper, what if he refuses to sell?"

Shi Guangsheng sneered coldly, "It would be best if he knows what’s good for him, but if he doesn’t, I’ll make his little food factory disappear from Fengcheng."

Huang Yuan’s eyelids twitched wildly, "What are you going to do? Don’t mess around!"

Shi Guangsheng smiled sinisterly, "Manager Huang, rest assured about the way I handle things. When the time comes, not only will your young boss not blame you, but he will also praise you for your foresight."

...

The end of the workday at Hengxing arrived in a blink.

Workers streamed out of the company’s main entrance, whispering to each other upon seeing the banner across the street.

Mixed in with the off-work staff, Huang Yuan quickened his pace as he left the company, all the while eyeing the banner with a shadow in his gaze.

Now, his only hope rested on Shi Guangsheng.

He had heard of some of Shi Guangsheng’s dirty tricks. Once Shi Guangsheng got what he wanted, Meihao Food Factory would be utterly discredited.

He would be able to explain himself to the young boss and get his revenge.

Thinking this, Huang Yuan felt a rush of satisfaction.

As dusk fell and the staff from Hengxing Building had mostly dispersed, Pei Yang gathered up the banner, then went to a nearby mutton restaurant and bought ten pounds of mutton to bring back, treating everyone to a hearty meal.

Mutton was nourishing and warming, able to fend off the chill of the night.

...

In the hospital room.

Pei Wenping placed the food and stewed soup she had brought on the small table and handed chopsticks to mother and son.

"Eat up while it’s hot."

Shen Mingzhu was indeed a bit hungry. She picked up a piece of stewed soft carrot and, while eating, asked Pei Wenping, "Sister, have you seen Pei Yang? He’s been out all afternoon."

Pei Wenping scooped up a crucian carp from the soup to make it easier for Shen Mingzhu to drink, and replied, "Don’t worry about him. He’s a grown man; he’s not going to get lost."

Shen Mingzhu was not worried about Pei Yang getting lost but was concerned that he might have gone to make trouble at Hengxing.

She wanted to ask Pei Wenping to check on the food factory, but considering the dark and slippery roads, she was worried about safety and had to suppress her thoughts.

Pei Wenping, as the elder sister, was no less concerned about her brother Pei Yang than Shen Mingzhu was.

"Once you both have finished eating, I’ll swing by the factory on my way back."

"That would be great, sister. Thanks," said Shen Mingzhu.

Pei Wenping looked at her with a smile, "As long as you recover, anything I do is worth it."

Shen Mingzhu nodded and took several hearty sips from her soup bowl.

She did need to recover, not just for herself, but also for the little life inside her, and to avoid worrying those around her.

While Shen Mingzhu and Pei Ziheng were eating, Pei Wenping went to fetch a kettle of boiling water. Once they finished, she quickly packed up the insulated container and left.

The hospital was not far from the food factory, but with the heavy snow that had fallen the day before, the roads were wet and slippery, so Pei Wenping did not dare to ride fast.

By the time she arrived at the food factory, it was already 9 o’clock.

Seeing that the factory’s gate was closed but with light coming from inside, Pei Wenping parked the motorcycle and was about to knock on the door when it suddenly opened.

Both individuals, inside and outside the door, jumped in surprise.

Recognizing the person inside as a female worker from the food factory, Pei Wenping patted her chest to catch her breath and asked, "Is Pei Yang at the factory?"

Hu Guifen shook her head.

Learning that Pei Yang had gone out with Shen Chaobei and his wife in the afternoon and had not returned, Pei Wenping left with a worried heart, not noticing the guilt and awkwardness on Hu Guifen’s face.