Chapter 346

Chapter 346

Making an Example of Someone

Lin Nannan was getting a headache from Jin Guizhi's yelling. She snapped impatiently, "Ask around—who'd go and pull up things from someone else's field? You knew the potatoes weren’t ready yet, but you still pulled them out. That’s deliberate vandalism, even worse than taking them after they’ve matured."

"Nan Nan is right. Kids being clueless is one thing, but you’re a grown adult. What gives you the right to mess with someone else’s field and then blame them for not telling you what they planted? Don’t you know not to touch things that aren’t yours?" Xiao Pei couldn’t stand it anymore and stood by Lin Nannan, scolding Jin Guizhi.

Jin Guizhi felt unfairly accused and argued, "I was just curious because they looked different and wanted to see. I really didn’t mean to ruin them!"

Perhaps what she said was true, but Lin Nannan wasn't about to let this slide.

A mistake was a mistake. Adults had to take responsibility for their actions.

She didn’t want people thinking they could just help themselves to her things.

If this wasn’t dealt with seriously, once word got out that her field had valuable crops, everyone would want to take a handful. And if she refused, they’d call her stingy.

So, Jin Guizhi had brought this on herself.

Lin Nannan had no patience to argue with her. She directly had someone fetch Hu Zhaoxia.

Matters among the military wives were usually handled by her, so she’d deal with it first. If it couldn’t be resolved, then it would be escalated...

Hu Zhaoxia didn’t know what had happened at first. She only heard that Jin Guizhi had pulled up something from Lin Nannan’s field and that Lin Nannan was furious. She didn’t think much of it, figuring an apology and a good talk would settle things.

But when she arrived and learned that what Jin Guizhi had pulled up was destined for government distribution, she was stunned.

"Just how valuable is this?" Hu Zhaoxia realized she couldn’t handle this alone and asked Lin Nannan seriously.

Lin Nannan set her jaw and said, "These were seeds left by my mentor. The ones planted here are the only ones not taken by experts from the capital. Auntie, how do you think this should be resolved?"

Hu Zhaoxia went pale. Before she could speak, Lin Nannan continued, "Everything in this field, once matured, will multiply several times over. If the military plants them, can you imagine the harvest next year?"

Lin Nannan was dead-set, clearly intent on pursuing the matter to the end. Hu Zhaoxia knew this wasn’t something to take lightly and said sternly, "I can’t resolve this. It needs to be reported to the higher-ups and handled by the military."

"Good." That was exactly the outcome Lin Nannan wanted. She nodded in agreement.

Jin Guizhi panicked when she heard this and begged, "I didn’t mean to! Lin Nannan, I’ll compensate you—name your price! Please don’t report this, I’m begging you!"

The thought that her nosiness might get her husband in trouble made Jin Guizhi wish she could slap herself twice.

"That’s something money can’t buy. What good is compensation?" Lin Nannan said coldly.

Jin Guizhi slumped to the dirt, her face deathly pale...

Everyone who saw this scene held their tongues.

Would-be troublemakers who had been tempted earlier now clammed up tight, not even daring to whisper.

None of them had expected things to escalate like this.

Hu Zhaoxia went to Political Commissar Chen and laid out what happened.

"This is a real mess. Nan Nan is furious, and Jin Guizhi plays the victim," Hu Zhaoxia said helplessly to her husband.

Political Commissar Chen rubbed his temples and thought for a moment. "Head back for now. I need to make a call."

Hu Zhaoxia opened her mouth to protest but knew her husband’s temperament. She turned and left.

Political Commissar Chen considered Lin Nannan's background and made a phone call. After waiting for a long time, he received the answer—the seeds Lin Nannan had were currently only available in the Lu family and with Mr. Hu in Beijing. In other words, the seeds Lin Nannan possessed were not only rare but also extremely important, too precious to lose.

After hanging up, Political Commissar Chen suddenly understood why Lin Nannan was so angry.

This was meant to set an example.

If not handled properly, people might think it was no big deal, and anyone could mess with the crops in the field.

Thinking of this, Political Commissar Chen sighed deeply, then stood up and walked out...

This had to be dealt with.

However, only Lin Nannan and Jin Guizhi were involved in resolving this issue—not even Hu Zhaoxia was involved.

...

Jin Guizhi, seeing the stern expression on Political Commissar Chen's face, was sick with regret.

"I didn’t mean to!" she whispered, her face pale, none of her earlier boldness remained.

Political Commissar Chen didn’t speak but instead looked at Lin Nannan. "What do you intend to do?"

Lin Nannan sighed and said, "If we don’t punish this harshly, it won’t stop!"

"You’re worried others will go after the rest of the potatoes, right?" Political Commissar Chen asked.

Lin Nannan nodded.

"What if we station guards there?" he continued.

"If the consequences are too light, won’t they just chance it anyway?" Lin Nannan countered.

Jin Guizhi listened in fear, too scared to even beg for mercy. Instead, she cried and said, "I... I was wrong, I’ll take whatever punishment I get. I just beg you not to drag my husband into this. He’s worked hard to get where he is—don’t let me drag him down!"

Lin Nannan looked at Jin Guizhi, who was a sobbing mess, and asked helplessly, "Now do you see what happens when you cross the line?"

You’ve got to know where to draw the line, in words and actions.

Many military wives had grown accustomed to gossiping about trivial matters, making mountains out of molehills, as such idle talk rarely had serious consequences.

And when it came to things like the vegetable field, it seemed even less significant—at worst, it might lead to a quarrel or some harsh words. They had no self-control, no understanding that others' property should not be touched.

"It’s all my fault, my fault! I shouldn’t have pulled them out. Do whatever you want to me, just don’t involve my husband!" Jin Guizhi apologized tearfully, this time sincerely.

Things had gotten so bad that Political Commissar Chen had to get involved. She’d probably become the talk of the base—and not in a good way.

Her husband would hit the roof when he found out.

At this point, Jin Guizhi wasn’t thinking about her own fate but worrying about her husband’s future.

Seeing her cry so miserably, Lin Nannan sighed and then turned to Political Commissar Chen. "How should this be resolved?"

After a moment of thought, Political Commissar Chen looked at Jin Guizhi and said, "This matter shouldn’t have escalated like this, but because you let so many people see that what Lin Nannan planted was extraordinary—and these were the only remaining seeds, something money couldn’t buy—this calls for serious punishment..."

"Wah..." Jin Guizhi broke down in terrified wails.

"However," Political Commissar Chen continued, his tone shifting, "this isn’t entirely your fault. If it had been ordinary crops, this wouldn’t have happened. So the best solution is to transfer your husband to another post, with you accompanying him. There’s no need to explain publicly. Once your family moves away, people will assume your husband was implicated by you, and no one else will dare touch these crops."