PWE – Chapter 123 She almost succeeded.

“Oh, I’ve long suspected something was off with that Xiao Wange. Just look at her—such a beautiful woman, how could she possibly stay faithful? I always guessed she would cheat, that she would do something to betray Zhan Zeyan.”

Among the crowd, a slightly plump woman spoke, her tone dripping with contempt.

Her name was Zhu Shuangmei. She was about the same age as Zhan Zeyan. Before she married, she had once thought of marrying him herself—but Zhan Zeyan had no interest in her and had rejected her advances.

Later, Zhu Shuangmei married someone else, but it was not the man she truly desired, and she had never been satisfied with her life. She always felt it was incomplete.

Her resentment only deepened when she saw Xiao Wange marry Zhan Zeyan and witness the Zhan family prospering even more afterward. She felt as if she had missed out on billions.

If she had married Zhan Zeyan, it would have been her living the good life with the Zhan family.

Since marrying her own husband, she had been overworked every day, waking before dawn and working herself like an ox.

She was jealous of Xiao Wange and resented her. But before, she had managed to hide her envy and hatred.

Now, seeing Xiao Wange thriving, her face glowing with health, her resentment and jealousy could no longer be suppressed. She wanted to crush Xiao Wange beneath her feet, to make it so that Xiao Wange could never live such a good life again.

After Zhu Shuangmei finished speaking, the crowd went silent for a moment.

Then someone said, “Impossible! I don’t believe Zeyan’s wife is that kind of person! She’s a good person. She even saved my son’s life. If it weren’t for her, my son would be dead long ago.”

“My husband was also saved by her. She’s our family’s savior. I don’t believe she would do such a thing. I’m sure there’s more to this story than we see on the surface!” another villager said firmly, in agreement.

These two villagers had personally benefited from Xiao Wange before. Once, someone in the village had been exposed to corpse-contaminated water in the mountains and was almost killed by the poison. If not for Xiao Wange, they would have been dead. So they were grateful and naturally defended her when others defamed her.

“You just don’t see Xiao Wange’s true nature. Sure, she may have saved your families, but that was probably to mislead everyone, to make people think she’s good. Maybe in some ways she is. But in marriage, she’s truly bad. Her husband hasn’t been dead long, yet she’s already betraying him. If her husband knew in the afterlife, how devastated he would be!”

Zhu Shuangmei spoke slowly, deliberately. She believed her words were reasonable.

She even raised her chin proudly when she finished.

The two villagers defending Xiao Wange frowned. One of them looked at Zhu Shuangmei’s husband and said, “Zhao Erzhu, don’t you care that your wife is talking nonsense? None of us even know what really happened. Yet here she is, trying to accuse Zeyan’s wife. What has Zeyan’s wife ever done to her that she wants to harm her like this?”

“Aunt, what are you saying? I’m not harming Xiao Wange. I’m just speaking the truth…” Zhu Shuangmei tried to protest, but another villager stared at her and said suddenly, “Oh, I remember now. Zhu Shuangmei had her eye on Zhan Zeyan before; she wanted to marry him, but he rejected her. She must be jealous of Zeyan’s wife—jealous that she got to marry Zhan Zeyan and live such a good life. That’s why she’s speaking ill, trying to accuse Zeyan’s wife.”

After a pause, the villager glanced Zhu Shuangmei up and down with disdain. “I’m just saying, if I were Zhan Zeyan, I wouldn’t fancy you either. Look at you—your body’s flabby, you look like a woman past fifty. And your face, it used to be a bit fair, but now it’s so dark. How do you compare to Zeyan’s wife? She has looks, a good figure, and abilities. If Zhan Zeyan doesn’t marry her, why would he marry you? What reason would he have?”

This person was a neighbor from Zhu Shuangmei’s family home. They had always looked down on her, and seeing her now as a haggard, yellow-faced woman only made their disdain worse.

After this remark, someone else in the crowd added, “Now that you mention it, I remember. Before she married, Zhu Shuangmei confessed to Zhan Zeyan, wanting to date him and eventually marry him. Back then, most villagers didn’t know, but I did. I actually saw her clinging to Zhan Zeyan, trying to force a relationship. I thought, how shameless this girl is, acting without any decency! Fortunately, Zeyan rejected her. If he had married her, it would have been a disaster.”

This person’s husband had also been exposed to corpse-contaminated water in the mountains and would have died without Xiao Wange’s intervention. So now, seeing someone disparage her, they felt compelled to defend her. On top of that, they had never liked Zhu Shuangmei, ever since she had harassed Zhan Zeyan.

After these words, the crowd stared at Zhu Shuangmei in shock.

They couldn’t believe she had been so shameless back then—forcing herself on Zhan Zeyan.

If she had liked Zhan Zeyan, her attempt to defame Xiao Wange now made sense.

Zhu Shuangmei’s face alternated between pale and red, showing embarrassment and frustration. She frowned and tried to explain, “It’s not true! I never forced myself on Zhan Zeyan. I never liked him. I—”

“Stop defending yourself. Not many people know this, but enough do. I know because I heard it directly from Zeyan’s mother. She said you were like a stubborn sticker, always forcing yourself near Zhan Zeyan, and no matter how they tried to push you away, you wouldn’t leave. You drove his mother crazy back then.”

Someone sneered at Zhu Shuangmei, mocking her openly.

Zhu Shuangmei’s eyes widened. She hadn’t expected Zhan Zeyan’s mother to spill the story. She had indeed been shameless back then. But she had never thought the tale would damage her reputation.

“Zhu Shuangmei, you’d better go back this instant!” her husband shouted, slapping her across the face, eyes blazing with fury.

Zhu Shuangmei was stunned.

She froze, covering her cheek with her hand, and looked at her husband. “Why are you hitting me? Even if I liked Zhan Zeyan before, what’s wrong with that? Just because I liked him doesn’t mean I can’t speak against Xiao Wange! She really cheated! That man is still standing in the yard—he’s proof!”

She turned to Qiu Haiyang. “Comrade, you need to tell everyone clearly. What exactly did Xiao Wange do to you? You need to explain, or else they’ll think you’re lying, that you’re slandering her!”

Qiu Haiyang furrowed his brow.

He glanced at Zhu Shuangmei and continued smoothly: “Earlier, I went into the kitchen to help Xiao Wange with the fire. But unexpectedly, she suddenly lunged at me. She said she liked me, that she hadn’t experienced a man in a long time, and wanted me to satisfy her. You know she can capture spirits and exorcise demons; her abilities are immense. If you hadn’t arrived, I almost would have succumbed to her. Thankfully, you came in time. Otherwise… today… she would have succeeded!”

Qiu Haiyang finished, glaring angrily at Xiao Wange as if she were garbage.

“Did everyone hear that? Did you hear what this comrade just said? Xiao Wange is shameless, a wicked woman! And you people still defend her? Hah, you—”

Zhu Shuangmei mocked her tone, but before she could finish, Xiao Wange interrupted:

“Watching you two work together in your little act is… quite entertaining. But I have other matters to attend to this morning. So this little show of yours cannot continue. Zhu Shuangmei, how much did Qiu Haiyang pay you to be so desperate in helping him?”

Upon hearing this, Zhu Shuangmei’s breath caught. A flash of panic crossed her eyes.

How did Xiao Wange know Qiu Haiyang had given her money? Could Xiao Wange see through things like this?

“Don’t slander me! I have nothing to do with that man! I didn’t even meet him before. I only just saw him and learned he’s Zhan Zeyan’s subordinate. Xiao Wange, I know you’re trying to wash your name, but no matter what you do, it won’t change anything. You are a shameless, wicked woman!”

When she uttered the final words “wicked woman,” Zhu Shuangmei felt a strange sense of satisfaction, as if saying it would strike Xiao Wange down completely.

“Where are the village chief and committee leader? I think we need them here to handle this properly,” someone said, looking around in confusion. Normally, they should have arrived already when they heard trouble had occurred at Xiao Wange’s home. But where were they now?

“Maybe the chief doesn’t know. I’ll go to the village office and call them over,” a villager said, turning to leave.

But just as he did, the village chief’s voice rang out: “No need to call them. We’re all here.”