Refusing to marry a widower, I went on a crazy spree of sending my children to the army.

Sure enough, the fence-sitters looked at Qiao Manman with resentment, as if accusing her of disrupting the team's unity.

Qiao Manman remained calm, raised her hand to wipe away non-existent tears from the corner of her eye, and sobbed, "Is Chuncao so sure that no one heard your nonsense?"

Qiao Manman looked up at Lu Yuan and gestured for him to come over.

However, Lu Yuan remained unmoved.

Qiao Manman's lips twitched: "Mingming, Lu Zhiqing was there when you said these things, he can testify for me!"

As soon as he finished speaking, everyone turned their suspicious gazes toward Lu Yuan.

Lu Yuan's eyes narrowed dangerously, thinking to himself, "This girl is really audacious. Does she think I'm too withdrawn to say no?"

He clearly didn't...

Seeing that he remained silent for a long time, Qiao Manman smiled and mouthed the question silently: "Does Deputy Battalion Commander Lu want to take responsibility for me, or for Zhao Dahu?"

Lu Yuan's pupils contracted almost imperceptibly, his clenched fingers digging into his palms. He remained motionless for a long time before nodding, "Yes!"

Qiao Manman breathed a sigh of relief, a smug look appearing on her face.

It's truly remarkable that she could get a "righteous and incorruptible" deputy battalion commander to give false testimony for her. But what could she do? She held his life in her hands!

How to describe Lu Yuan? He has principles, but he also knows how to be flexible.

Just like Zhao Dahu, how could he not have investigated the situation of the members of Qingshan Brigade when he came to Qingshan Brigade to do his mission?

He and Lu Yifeng didn't go into the water to save Zhao Dahu, probably because they had already discovered that this man not only committed domestic violence but also harmed several young girls.

If the people don't report it, the officials won't investigate. They can't bring him to justice openly, but they can pretend not to see it in private.

However, he is a soldier and a military leader. If someone reports him for failing to help someone in distress, his career could be ruined.

Moreover, Qiao Manman even revealed his identity.

Lu Yuan didn't know how this girl knew his identity, and he would never let anything happen to her before he found out.

Moreover, he did indeed see Li Chuncao push someone. Given that, shouldn't he be reasonably accused of gossiping?

Lu Yuan had a good reputation in the village, and when everyone saw him nod, they believed him to some extent.

Before Li Chuncao could retort, Qiao Manman interrupted, "Not only Lu Zhiqing, but also Sister Hui'er, Aunt Qi, and Zhao Di, they all saw you gossiping!"

Qiao Manman's statement wasn't entirely nonsense.

The original owner had no friends and often hung out with Li Chuncao. While the two were whispering to each other, Sister Hui'er and Zhao Di did indeed pass by several times.

I don't know if I heard what Li Chuncao said, but it's good to take it out and show it off.

After all, team members are easily led astray. Whether they hear it or not is not important; what's important is creating a scenario in their minds.

Sure enough, Qian Huihui and Zhao Zhaodi nodded firmly: "That's right, Chuncao often slacks off and makes fun of everyone."

Li Chuncao was speechless and her face turned pale.

Wang Defa gave her a disgusted look and told her to apologize to Li Guilan, Qin Erhua, and Liu Yun.

Although he knew these people had problems, Li Chuncao shouldn't expose the facade of harmony in the Qingshan Brigade.

Li Chuncao had no choice but to bow and apologize to the group. Tears streamed down her face; she looked both aggrieved and pitiful.

Unfortunately, no one sympathized with her.

Just as the matter was settled and everyone was preparing to disperse, someone suddenly asked, "Wait, we've been talking about Zhao Dahu for so long, where is Zhao Dahu?"

Qiao Manman's eyes flickered, and the corners of her lips curled slightly. She thought to herself, "So much time has passed; that trouble must have already..."

She stood calmly in the crowd, watching Li Chuncao panic.

"Chuncao, didn't you see Zhao Dahu walk this way? Where did he go?"

Li Chuncao looked panicked.

She had realized that things were like a runaway horse, galloping without direction. How could she dare admit now that she had bewitched Zhao Dahu?

What if something happens to him? Won't it implicate me?

Li Chuncao shook her head vigorously, but Zhao Laoniang, who had come from afar, wouldn't let her off the hook.

"Chuncao, tell me the truth, did my son really not save that girl Manman?" She thought she could get a daughter-in-law for free! What a pity!

Qiao Manman looked shocked: "Grandma Zhao, don't talk nonsense. I just arrived here like you, everyone can testify!"

Old Lady Zhao's expression froze, then she asked Li Chuncao, "Leaving aside Qiao Manman, where's my son? I've looked all over and haven't seen him!"

Everyone burst into laughter: "He probably went to hide in the shade of some tree to be lazy!"

Old Lady Zhao thought it made sense; in this weather, it would be a miracle if her son actually went to work.

Wang Defa once again sent everyone back to work, when he saw a child in the distance pick up a red belt: "Hey, what's this?"

Aunt Zhao was stunned when she saw it: "Isn't this my Da Hu's belt? How did it get here?"

Hmm... the belt!

How could such a private thing be lost? Could Zhao Dahu be out there having an affair with some young woman nearby?

A belt, tinged with a risqué atmosphere, made everyone even more curious about Zhao Dahu's whereabouts.

They surrounded Li Chuncao, demanding she give a detailed explanation. Some even speculated that Li Chuncao might be the one having an affair with Zhao Dahu.

She's crying "stop thief!"

Unable to bear it any longer, Li Chuncao pointed at the calm lake beside her and yelled, "He fell into the water and drowned!"

Oh ho, that's the truth!

Qiao Manman's eyes sparkled; she felt that Li Chuncao had come up with a brilliant idea, firmly pinning the blame on her.

Qiao Manman stepped back, hiding in the crowd to watch the show. But before she knew it, Lu Yuan grabbed her wrist.

The man frowned slightly, his eyes cold and dangerous, and whispered in Qiao Manman's ear, "Who are you, and what do you want?"

Qiao Manman struggled free without taking it seriously, and said with a smile, "I am Qiao Manman, the real deal, no fakes. Of course, I'm doing this to protect myself!"

Don't worry, I won't reveal your identity, nor will I interfere in your affairs. I only ask one thing: on the matter of Li Chuncao, you must stand with me.

After saying that, he patted his chest and said, "Look at me, why am I saying all this? After all, do you have any other choice?"

Lu Yuan gritted his teeth in hatred, but still smiled and said, "Qiao Manman, you're very good!"

Qiao Manman nodded: "Absolutely!"

Lu Yuan quickly composed himself: "By the way, I'm quite curious, how do you get your clothes dry so quickly?"

Qiao Manman's eyes flickered, but she remained calm: "What is Lu Zhiqing talking about? I didn't fall into the water, so of course my clothes are dry the whole time!"

Lu Yuanming knew she was lying, but he couldn't bring himself to call her out on it. After all, denying Qiao Manman's statement would mean that he was lying too.

This is very detrimental to his subsequent work.

While the two were facing off, Zhao Laoniang had already rallied two or three young men to go into the water and search for Zhao Dahu.

Although she didn't believe that her son, who was a good swimmer, could lose his life in the calm lake, she was still startled by Li Chuncao's words.