Chapter 748 - 744: Holy Cow

Everyone was stunned.

They never imagined she would make such a move.

But Gu Jiaojiao produced her list and read every single word clearly. The people who had been so arrogant just moments before were now beet-red and utterly speechless.

They had only gossiped about Gu Jiaojiao behind her back, saying all sorts of vulgar things they knew weren’t actually true.

But Gu Jiaojiao was also an educated youth sent to develop the countryside. She was supposed to do the same work and toil under the same sun as them.

But Gu Jiaojiao had gotten lucky. She became a teacher, and even when she did have to work in the fields, she had men helping her. Now, she was brazenly skipping work altogether.

They were jealous, and since they couldn’t win a direct fight with Gu Jiaojiao, all they could do was make snide remarks behind her back.

But what Gu Jiaojiao did was drag all the ugliness from the depths of their hearts out into the open.

Under the crowd’s gaze, these people wished they could bow their heads to the ground or just dig a hole and bury themselves.

It was utterly humiliating.

When they had been cursing Gu Jiaojiao, it hadn’t felt like a big deal. But now, as she read those words—"tramp," "slut"—with such righteous indignation, they felt as if they had been stripped bare.

They were desperate for this humiliating moment to be over.

Gu Jiaojiao’s tone remained placid throughout. She had already read the list beforehand. ’They’re all just a bunch of pathetic clowns,’ she thought, not taking any of it to heart.

Leng Yuan and the team captain, however, looked increasingly grim.

Leng Yuan couldn’t believe these people had the gall to slander his wife like that.

The team captain was furious.

He never imagined they would dare to spread rumors about him and Gu Jiaojiao, let alone use such filthy language. The minds of these people were truly twisted.

He was furious and laid down the law. "Everyone on that list will continue to farm the old way. If the task is digging ditches, you dig. If it’s hauling water, you haul."

When their families heard this, they were furious!

They couldn’t believe their bad luck, being stuck with such shameless daughters-in-law.

Women with their mothers-in-law present were immediately slapped by them.

"You wretched jinx! What good did slandering Gu Zhiqing behind her back do you? I’ll teach you to run that mouth of yours!"

With that, another two slaps—SLAP! SLAP!—landed on the woman’s face.

’That idiot! Slandering Gu Jiaojiao is one thing, but how dare she slander the team captain too? Can’t she see the murderous look in his eyes?’

’If we offend the team captain, what will our family do when he decides to target us?’

The mother-in-law was a sharp one. After delivering a few more slaps, she had her son drag the woman away.

The daughter-in-law wailed as she was hit, dying of regret. If she had known that badmouthing Gu Jiaojiao would have such dire consequences, she wouldn’t have dared to utter a single word.

But now, it was too late for regrets.

In the entire Qingshan Team of over two hundred households, everyone else could now use tools for their farm work. Only some thirty-odd families, dragged down by either their daughters-in-law or their own mothers, had to continue toiling just as hard as before.

The few families who had spread rumors about an "improper relationship" between the team captain and Gu Jiaojiao had it even worse. They were assigned the most difficult plots of land and the most grueling tasks, all for the same number of work points as before.

But they didn’t dare utter a peep.

They knew they were in the wrong.

Li Hongmei was indignant.

Just as she was about to speak, someone slapped her across the face.

"Li Hongmei, this is all your fault! If you hadn’t egged me on to cause trouble for Gu Zhiqing, I wouldn’t have dragged my family into this! You caused all of this, you jinx!"

The girl was dying of regret. She had been jealous that Gu Jiaojiao didn’t have to work, but she’d never thought it would end up hurting her own parents.

Her parents were getting old, and the busy farming season was already exhausting for them. Her father had gotten visibly thinner in just the last two days. They were finally about to get a break, and she had ruined it.

The girl slapped herself hard twice, then hurried over to Gu Jiaojiao.

"Gu Zhiqing, I was in the wrong before. I know I made a mistake. I can work without the tools, but my parents... they never said a bad word about you. Could you please let them use the tools?"