Du Daqiang, restrained by two police officers for hitting his wife, could only crane his neck and shout, "What extortion? That was compensation you voluntarily gave us for calling off the engagement!"
One of the officers asked, "Is that true?"
"Yes, it was given voluntarily," Du Xiaowei chimed in, unable to stay silent when his own interests were at stake.
"And how much compensation did you ask for?" Mu Yuting's tone was gentle.
"400,000 yuan, or the marital home as collateral will do," Du Daqiang yelled loudly. Simple-minded, he interpreted her softened tone as timidity and thought the young woman was cowering.
Du Dawei hurriedly tried to stop him, "Dad, don't say anymore." Arguing for such high compensation right in front of the police was practically admitting to extortion. Having already been burned by Mu Yuting, he no longer saw her as an obedient girl but rather a man-eating flower.
Du Daqiang turned his head and glared at his son, spitting, "You're my son, why are you siding with outsiders! I'm demanding compensation for calling off the engagement for you, for this family!"
Du Dawei knew he couldn't persuade his stubborn father and simply turned away, refusing to engage further.
Zheng Xiangmei had lost a front tooth from the beating, her speech slurred and mouth still bleeding. Familiar with Du Daqiang's temperament, she knew it was futile to control him now and preferred to stay silent to avoid implicating herself.
Mu Yuting looked at them seriously. "With a greedy and shameless family like yours, it's only natural I call off the engagement. I didn't take a single cent of your betrothal gifts, so why should I compensate you?"
"What if I refuse to give it voluntarily and stand firm?"
Provoked, Du Daqiang's eyes reddened with rage as he snarled, "Then we'll make sure you never marry again, drown you in public scorn! 400,000, not a cent less."
"Not a single penny. My family has no money. If you want to suck blood, you've picked the wrong person," Mu Yuting continued to provoke him.
Du Daqiang snapped impatiently, "Pah! We'll go to your workplace, spread it all over town that you're a promiscuous woman, a worn-out shoe my son discarded, that you've had a dead fetus in your belly. Let's see how you'll ever marry after that!"
"But none of that is true. You're purely spreading slanderous rumors." Knowing he was impulsive and foolish, Mu Yuting deliberately led him on to say more.
"So what? People will believe it anyway," Du Daqiang said smugly. Regardless of the truth, a woman with such a reputation would be utterly ruined.
People need face like trees need bark. The Du family had cast aside all shame, thinking themselves invincible. Their advantage was their gender. Such slander against purity was a devastating blow to a woman, but meant nothing to a man.
In this world, if a man fooled around with many women, some would praise him for being impressive. Even if criticized, he'd think it was just "a mistake any man could make," no big deal. But if a woman was caught in rumors of being promiscuous, even if later proven false, she would first be viciously skinned by the poisonous arrows of public scorn. Even after clearing her name, the rumors would follow her for life.
Mu Yuting had long known this family would act this way. In her previous life, after the divorce, Du Dawei's parents had done the same—spreading rumors everywhere to tarnish her reputation, claiming she had a "lover" and that was why she insisted on divorcing. They well knew it was their son who had initiated the divorce after transferring all assets, leaving his wife and daughter with nothing.
In this life, Mu Yuting would never back down. She was determined to nip this matter in the bud, not even allowing it the chance to sprout.
"Officers, you all heard it with your own ears, right? His family used slander and defamation to extort me, committing both extortion and defamation. Moreover, the amount involved in the extortion is substantial, reaching 400,000 yuan."
"The sentencing standards in our country are as follows: for the crime of extortion, the punishment is imprisonment for up to three years, criminal detention, or surveillance; if the amount is huge or there are other serious circumstances, the punishment is imprisonment between three to ten years. For defamation, the punishment is imprisonment for up to three years, criminal detention, surveillance, or deprivation of political rights. (All legal provisions cited from Baidu.)"
The police officers exchanged glances. This was indeed a "clear-cut" case. Without even needing an interrogation, the suspect had confessed outright.
"They also committed domestic violence. The officers witnessed it themselves," Mu Yuting added.
"Take everyone back to the station for statements."
The group headed out to the nearest police station to give their statements. It wasn’t far, less than a five-minute walk.
Today’s case involved not only extortion and defamation but also domestic violence. By reporting this, Mu Yuting was also giving Zheng Xiangmei a choice.
If Zheng Xiangmei was willing to seize the opportunity, she could have her injuries documented as evidence, use this chance to file for divorce, and completely break free from her abusive husband, Du Daqiang. If she chose to remain silent and endure, that would be her own decision, and from then on, she would have no one to blame but herself.
At the police station, everyone was separated to give their statements.
Mu Yuting took out her phone and proactively provided the police with the audio evidence of the extortion attempt. Phones at that time had low-resolution cameras, making photos and videos too blurry to be useful, so only the audio function was reliable.
After giving her statement, the police informed her that this case constituted attempted extortion and required further investigation. All suspects—the entire Du family of four—would be temporarily detained.
The police also mentioned that if formally charged, attempted offenders would receive lighter or reduced sentences compared to those who had succeeded. However, given the large sum involved, a sentence of several years in prison was likely unavoidable.
Mu Yuting nodded and sincerely thanked the police.
After her mother, Mu Yaojia, finished giving her statement, the two left the police station together and took a taxi home.
In the taxi, neither of them spoke a word.
Once home, Mu Yaojia asked with a complex expression, "Tingting, why… why did you do this today?"
Mu Yuting replied solemnly, "If a tumor isn’t removed, it remains a tumor, spreading throughout the body until it proves fatal. Only by cutting it out completely can the wound heal quickly and truly recover."
Mu Yaojia felt a chill and tightened her coat around herself.
"Mom always taught you to be kind…"
"Mom, a saintly heart can’t stop the ambitions of wolves; only the thorns of a cactus can make them awake and fearful.""
"My kindness is reserved only for kind people. They don’t deserve it."
"This is the last time. If you can’t stand behind me and support me when I’m facing enemies, at least don’t stand in my way."
"If there’s a next time, I will move out and live on my own."
Mu Yuting remained calm throughout. These were words she had long held in her heart, finally spoken aloud thanks to this opportunity.
"You don’t want your mother anymore?" Mu Yaojia asked in disbelief. Was her daughter, whom she had relied on for survival, drifting away from her completely because of this marriage dispute?
Mu Yuting gently shook her head. "No. I've grown up. I have my own life, my own consciousness, and my own path. Mom, I also need respect, or... to be let go."
"Filial piety" does not mean "blind obedience." Filial piety is a duty children should fulfill, but "obedience" is not necessarily so, because the life experiences of parents and elders are not always right. We must have our own judgment, choosing what is correct rather than blindly following or practicing foolish filial piety.
This was the life lesson Mu Yuting had gained in her previous life.
That evening, Mu Yuting opened the Green River website and updated a chapter as usual. She already had dozens of bookmarks and over a dozen more adorable comments.
Suddenly, she noticed a notification in the backend—a small red envelope icon blinking.
She clicked the icon to check the message.
【Hello, I am Green River editor Green Shade. I've seen your work and would like to discuss signing with you. My QQ is xxxxx. Please include your pen name when adding me.】
It really was a signing station message.
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