Chapter 281: Chapter 281: Forcing with Death

Gu Qinghuan soon returned home as well. She wasn’t sure how things had been handled, but at least Ma Suping hadn’t caused any more trouble.

What a jinx!

As soon as Gu Qinghuan got back to her room, she hurried into her space and took out some ice from the fridge to apply a cold compress.

She had never been slapped in her life before—Ma Suping really was a crazy woman!

Luckily, she’d reacted quickly and slapped her right back. Otherwise, she would’ve really suffered a loss.

After a quick cold compress, she came back out—her two kids would be home from school soon.

Just in time, too. As soon as she came out, she heard the children knocking at the door.

Lin Xiaomeng had come along with them.

“Qinghuan, I heard Lin Muyang’s wife slapped you? What happened?” Lin Xiaomeng had just gotten out of class and hadn’t witnessed the gossip herself, so she was itching to hear it straight from the source.

Gu Qinghuan shot her a look. “Sis-in-law, the kids are here!”

Dabao and Beibei were both pricking up their ears, listening intently.

“Mama, who hit you?” Dabao was like a little firecracker, ready to go off at a moment’s notice, his eyes practically shooting sparks.

Gu Qinghuan and Lin Xiaomeng both burst out laughing.

“It’s nothing, Mama already took care of it.” She was much stronger than Ma Suping—her slap had definitely left a mark.

After sending the kids off to do their homework, Gu Qinghuan told Lin Xiaomeng the details of what had just happened.

“Lin Muyang is really pitiful! Being a live-in son-in-law isn’t easy—it’s no wonder he never wants to go home,” Lin Xiaomeng sighed.

“Exactly. He actually got a spot for the Worker-Peasant-Soldier University once before, but his wife ruined it for him…” Gu Qinghuan trailed off, suddenly thinking of something. She put down the beans in her hand and stood up.

“How did his wife find out about this time? Given what happened before, he should’ve been extra careful—so how did she find out at such a critical moment?”

Lin Xiaomeng immediately caught her meaning.

“You think someone deliberately leaked it to ruin his chances and take the spot for themselves?”

“Not just that. This person wanted to kill two birds with one stone.

I suspect it’s Wan Rong.

If it were another competitor, at most they’d just tell Lin Muyang’s wife about the university spot—there’d be no need to drag me into it.

But this person wants the spot and also wants to use this to smear my reputation.

I haven’t offended anyone else at school.

So, it must be Wan Rong.”

Gu Qinghuan was almost certain—only Wan Rong would do something so spiteful and self-defeating.

Lin Xiaomeng agreed that her suspicion made sense.

“You’re right. That explains everything. So what are you going to do?”

“We’ll take it one step at a time.” For now, Gu Qinghuan didn’t have a plan.

Wan Rong, that crazy woman, had really pissed her off this time. She wouldn’t be satisfied until she taught her a lesson.

—

Principal Chen brought the couple to his office to mediate.

He wanted to help them reconcile—after all, unless it was a matter of principle, divorce was still rare in these times.

So he tried to persuade both sides to compromise.

“Teacher Lin, I have to criticize you—don’t talk about divorce so lightly. You two have a child together, and this isn’t some earth-shattering problem. Just live your lives well.

And you, comrade, I have to criticize you too. The opportunity to attend Worker-Peasant-Soldier University is something Teacher Lin worked hard to earn. As his wife, you should support and encourage his progress, not hold him back.

Besides, you shouldn’t speak without knowing the facts. You didn’t even figure out what was going on before coming to the school to make a scene, and you even hit our teacher. That’s very serious—you should apologize to her.”

“No way! Look at what she did to me! And you want me to apologize to her? Dream on!

I don’t agree to Lin Muyang going to university. Your school had better withdraw his spot, or I’ll keep causing trouble. It won’t look good for anyone,” Ma Suping thought the school would be afraid of her.

“What if I insist on going?” Lin Muyang said, enunciating each word.

Ma Suping suddenly pulled out a small knife and pressed it to her own neck.

She said viciously, “If you insist on going, then we’ll go down together! I’d rather die than let you go to that university.” Ma Suping was gambling on Lin Muyang’s conscience.

She knew Lin Muyang had a strong moral bottom line—her crying, making a scene, and threatening suicide had always worked on him.

It had been proven effective many times before.

Principal Chen was startled by her sudden move and quickly signaled Lin Muyang to calm her down.

But Lin Muyang wasn’t surprised at all—this wasn’t the first time she’d threatened him with her life.

Looking at the crazed woman before him, he suddenly felt utterly exhausted.

“Ma Suping, your life is your own. Why do you always force me to be responsible for it?

Go ahead! Show me how determined you are.

If you really dare to die, fine, I won’t go to university. Do you dare?

Go on! Do it!”

Ma Suping hadn’t expected him to say that. Her heart skipped a beat, and her hand holding the knife went limp.

In that moment, she could feel that he truly wished she would die.

But she didn’t want to die—she hadn’t lived enough yet!

“You don’t dare? Well, I do!” Lin Muyang suddenly snatched the knife from her hand and stabbed it hard into his own arm.

He did it so decisively, without a second’s hesitation.

Ma Suping and Principal Chen were both stunned.

Ma Suping had deliberately brought a dull knife, afraid she might accidentally hurt herself.

So, although Lin Muyang’s action looked fierce, the wound wasn’t too serious—just a hole in his arm, blood spurting everywhere.

“What are you doing?!”

Principal Chen reacted quickly, grabbing him to stop a second stab and stuffing the knife into his own pocket, terrified they’d cause more trouble.

Both of them were ruthless—his old heart could hardly take it.

Lin Muyang stood there like a puppet, staring blankly at the blood dripping from his arm, as if he didn’t feel any pain.

Ma Suping was scared stiff, her legs trembling.

She always liked to use these tricks, but she never dared to actually do it—she was just bluffing.

Seeing Lin Muyang like this, she suddenly felt powerless. Had she really been wrong all along?

But if she didn’t do this, Lin Muyang would leave her sooner or later.

Principal Chen realized he couldn’t count on her.

He pressed on Lin Muyang’s wound while shouting, “Is anyone there? Someone, help!”

A crowd had gathered at the door to watch the commotion. Hearing the urgency, they rushed in.

Two male teachers quickly escorted Lin Muyang to the county hospital.

Ma Suping finally snapped out of it and hurried after them.

Lin Muyang’s arm wasn’t seriously injured—the doctor disinfected, stitched, and bandaged it, and he needed an IV to prevent infection.

The two male teachers stood guard at his bedside, watching Ma Suping like she was a thief.

Ma Suping had lost all her earlier energy, sitting there like a puppet, staring into space.

On the way over, she’d thought about a lot.

She’d liked Lin Muyang since school. Later, when she heard about his family’s troubles, she genuinely wanted to help—but she’d also taken advantage of his situation.

How had a good life turned into such a tragedy? It probably started right there.

She often regretted it—if she hadn’t forced him into marriage back then, would things have been different between them?

But there’s no medicine for regret in this world.

Suddenly, Lin Muyang spoke: “I’m hungry. Could you please get me something to eat?”

The two male teachers exchanged glances, worried Ma Suping might cause trouble again.

“Don’t worry, go ahead. I just have a few words to say to her.”

They left, looking back every few steps.

Their footsteps echoed down the hallway.

A few minutes passed.

Lin Muyang composed himself, just about to speak.

But Ma Suping spoke first.

“All these years, you’ve been miserable, haven’t you?” she said, giving a self-mocking smile.

Lin Muyang didn’t respond. He didn’t know what to say. Miserable? Probably.

“Actually, I have too. All these years, I’ve tormented you and hurt myself too. There hasn’t been a single day I was truly happy.

I often envy other families—the husband comes home from work and the house is full of laughter. But me? I just grit my teeth and swallow my pain, facing a cold stove alone. When I’m sick, when the child is sick, I handle it all myself.

Every big and small thing at home is on me—there’s no one to discuss anything with.

I admit, I shouldn’t have forced you into marriage back then. That’s why I’ve suffered so much coldness all these years.

I thought that once we had a child, you’d want to make things work. But in the end, I was wrong.

Just now, I suddenly figured it out.

You want a divorce? Then let’s divorce.” Ma Suping sounded relieved, uncharacteristically calm, like a different person.

Lin Muyang looked at her in disbelief.

He’d waited years to hear these words, but never expected it to be like this.

It had been years since Ma Suping had spoken to him so normally.

Principal Chen was right—who could really say who was right or wrong between them? Each had always seen themselves as the most hurt, never considering the other.

A wrong beginning can only lead to a wrong ending.

“Are you serious?”"

"Chapter 282: Divorce and Laying Plans

Ma Suping let out a mocking laugh. “You think I’m joking with you? Lin Muyang, I used to treat you like you were something precious, but now I’m done serving you. Without me, you’re nothing!”

From deep young love to mutual resentment, this time Ma Suping had truly decided to let go.

Lin Muyang had grown used to Ma Suping’s crying, tantrums, and threats, so her sudden decisiveness left him a little unsettled.

“I’m sorry. I’ve neglected you a lot over the years. From now on, let’s both take care of ourselves.”

Ma Suping pulled a piece of paper from her pocket and tossed it to Lin Muyang. “This is from the person who tipped me off. He probably wanted to use me to take your spot. Consider this my last favor to you. After this, we’re even.

There’s not much money left at home, so I won’t give you any. The child will stay with me. From now on, the two of us have nothing to do with you. Even if we meet on the street, don’t say hello.

Tomorrow morning at nine, I’ll wait for you at the office to finalize the paperwork.”

With that, Ma Suping turned and left, not giving herself a chance to regret her decision.

As soon as she stepped out of the hospital, fat tears rolled uncontrollably down her cheeks.

Women are emotional and contradictory creatures.

Sometimes indecisive, sometimes ruthless and resolute.

Lin Muyang was the man she had loved with all her heart. But when she saw that he’d rather hurt her than stay, she knew it was time to let go.

After years of pain and struggle, she still couldn’t keep him.

Was she regretful?

—

Gu Qinghuan only learned about the aftermath of Lin Muyang’s incident the next morning.

She heard he was still in the hospital after being stabbed, and many teachers from the staff housing were collecting money to go visit him.

Gu Qinghuan took three apples and three pears from home as a gift and asked another teacher to bring them for her.

She didn’t go herself—after all, it was a sensitive time and she didn’t want to give anyone ammunition for gossip.

Rumors, if repeated enough, can turn fiction into fact.

Just as Gu Qinghuan was about to leave, she saw a young girl coming out of Fang Youde’s dorm with a history book in hand.

Her heart tightened.

Was Fang Youde up to his disgusting tricks again?

He shouldn’t be called Fang Youde—he should be Fang “No Morals.”

According to Wang Ruolan, Fang Youde had previously used the excuse of giving her extra lessons to lure her to his dorm.

Then he deliberately held her hand, behaving outrageously.

So, was he planning to repeat his old tricks?

Gu Qinghuan hadn’t had time to report Wang Ruolan’s case to Principal Chen, and yet this beast dared to offend again.

Gu Qinghuan stormed straight into Fang Youde’s dorm. He was sitting there with his legs crossed, looking relaxed.

“Fang Youde, what disgusting thing have you done this time?”

“Gu Qinghuan, don’t make baseless accusations without evidence.”

“Preying on such young girls—how can you live with yourself? Aren’t you afraid of retribution?”

Fang Youde stood up and walked toward Gu Qinghuan, stopping just a step away, a smug smile on his face.

“They want to study, and I’m just trying to help them. What retribution could there be?

But you, getting in my way, keeping them from studying and dooming them to be country bumpkins their whole lives—that’s real harm.”

Fang Youde deliberately leaned in close and whispered suggestively in her ear, “Young girls are really something else—their little hands and faces are as smooth as peeled eggs.

But if Teacher Gu is willing to sacrifice herself for others, maybe I’ll let them off.

Between these green fruits and a ripe one, I’d choose the ripe one any day.”

Utterly disgusting. Vile! Rotten to the core!

How could someone like this be a teacher?

Gu Qinghuan’s anger shot straight to the top of her head. If she didn’t do something, she’d explode.

Finally, unable to hold back, she punched him square in the face.

“Scum like you deserve a bad end. Just wait!” If heaven won’t punish you, I will.

Fang Youde was one, Wan Rong was another—both scum of society, disgraceful among teachers.

She wouldn’t let either of them off.

After that, Gu Qinghuan began making home visits every day. She spent several days signing aid agreements with students from struggling families.

During this time, Lin Muyang came by with a gift to apologize. His wound wasn’t deep and would heal with some rest.

In the end, he and Ma Suping did get divorced. Lin Muyang left with nothing, but he seemed to be in good spirits.

He packed up his personal belongings and left. At the end of August, he would be heading to the Workers, Peasants, and Soldiers University.

Gu Qinghuan congratulated him on achieving his dream.

Everyone has many sides. As a teacher, Lin Muyang was responsible, dedicated, and charismatic.

As a friend, he was a good listener.

But as a husband and father, he really fell short.

But nothing is absolute—different perspectives yield different judgments.

He and Ma Suping started off on the wrong foot, leading to a wrong ending. It wasn’t too late to set things right now.

Before leaving, Lin Muyang gave her a letter, warning her to be careful of Wan Rong.

So, it really was Wan Rong who tipped off Ma Suping—Gu Qinghuan hadn’t wronged her.

Time passed day by day, and the trap Gu Qinghuan had set was finally ready to be sprung.

From that day, she knew Fang Youde had to go.

So she set a trap just for him.

It was summer, and everyone washed clothes frequently. Usually, they’d string up a line in front of the dorms to dry their laundry.

Gu Qinghuan deliberately claimed that her underwear had gone missing.

At first, no one paid much attention.

But within a couple of days, another female teacher’s camisole disappeared.

Incidents like this started happening more and more—always women’s undergarments.

People started getting suspicious.

Was there a pervert on campus?

No matter how careful everyone was, things kept disappearing. People stopped drying clothes outside and started hanging them indoors.

Of course, all this was orchestrated by Gu Qinghuan. With her secret space, it wasn’t hard to pull off.

Now, it was time to close the net.

After the final exams, the school was about to go on break. Principal Chen called a staff meeting—everyone was present.

Gu Qinghuan stood up. “Principal Chen, after the work matters, I’d like to bring up a personal issue on behalf of the women teachers.”

“Go ahead!” Principal Chen respected Gu Qinghuan—her abilities spoke for themselves.

“Everyone probably knows there’s been a thief in the staff housing recently. This thief doesn’t steal anything else—just women’s undergarments. It’s disgusting.

Now, no one dares hang their laundry outside.

I myself have been a victim—two sets of underwear stolen.

So today, I’m standing up to call on everyone: let’s work together to catch this thief.” Gu Qinghuan spoke passionately.

Other teachers chimed in.

“Teacher Gu is right—the thief must be someone in our staff housing, otherwise it wouldn’t be so easy.”

“Exactly. If we don’t catch them, more people will suffer.”

“At the very least, it’s theft. At worst, it’s a sign of serious moral problems—someone with a fetish for stealing women’s underwear. Disgusting.”

“Yeah, my underwear was stolen too. I had to buy fabric and make new ones.”

“I support Teacher Gu. Let’s catch this thief together.”

…

Everyone was talking at once. Most agreed the thief had to be caught.

Only a few people remained indifferent—Fang Youde among them. He had no idea he was about to become a laughingstock, utterly disgraced.

Seeing the crowd’s anger, Principal Chen went with the majority.

“Teacher Gu, do you have any good ideas?”

“Principal Chen, I think we should catch him off guard.

With so many stolen items, he must have hidden them at home.

Why don’t we organize the victims and search every home?

To prevent anyone from tipping him off or hiding the evidence, we can gather everyone in the courtyard outside. As we search each home, we call the owner to accompany us. That way, no one can move the stolen goods.

Of course, this might invade people’s privacy a bit, so I apologize in advance.”

“I don’t think it’s a problem. These days, we don’t have anything to hide—our pockets are cleaner than our faces, and there’s nothing valuable at home.”

“Teacher Gu’s idea is great! I don’t believe we can’t catch the thief.”

“I don’t think it’s a woman. To collect so many women’s undergarments, it’s probably a man. The men will just have to wait in the courtyard for now!”

“Alright, let’s do it!”

…

The plan was set.

Principal Chen appointed Gu Qinghuan, Chen Fang, and two other female victims to lead the search.

Lin Xiaomeng’s underwear hadn’t been stolen, so she wasn’t a victim and couldn’t participate. She looked at Gu Qinghuan with envy.

Gu Qinghuan had deliberately avoided taking Lin Xiaomeng’s things—since they both had secret spaces, she didn’t want to risk exposing herself.

Everyone, including family members—old and young—was called to gather in the courtyard.

People looked confused.

After a brief explanation from Principal Chen, the search began.

Each household was called, and someone accompanied the search.

Led by Chen Fang, with Gu Qinghuan assisting, the four-person team began a thorough search.

To prove her innocence, Gu Qinghuan started with her own home—of course, nothing was found.

Next was Lin Xiaomeng’s home—also nothing.

One by one, they searched each house, soon arriving at Fang Youde’s.

At that moment, Fang Youde was still outside, chatting and laughing, completely unaware of the disaster about to befall him. When Gu Qinghuan called him over, he even winked at her, making her sick to her stomach.

Before the meeting, Gu Qinghuan had already found a way to plant the stolen items in his room—even using some modern technology to secretly make a copy of his key.

As soon as they entered, Chen Fang started searching the kang cabinet—nothing. She lifted the bedding—still nothing.

Just as she was about to put everything back, she noticed a loose brick on the kang.

That caught her attention, so she gently pulled the brick out.

There was a hole underneath.

Gu Qinghuan quickly handed her a flashlight.

Fang Youde nervously stepped forward. “Sister Fang, let’s not look in there. That’s where I hide my money.”

It really was his hiding place—he had several hundred yuan stashed there, afraid others would get jealous if they found out.

What he didn’t know was that Gu Qinghuan had already emptied the money out.

She had no qualms about taking money from scum like him."

"Chapter 283: Hell is Empty, and the Devils Walk the Earth