Chapter 118: The sight left the rabbit completely bewildered.

The moment Madam Zhao saw Bai Yan leaning in, she immediately covered the girl’s ears, glaring at Jiang Chengyan as if she could devour him.

Jiang Chengyan walked over with an expressionless face, reached out to pull his little rabbit toward him, and covered her ears with his own hands. He then said to Madam Zhao, "She doesn't know what venereal disease is, so it doesn't matter if she hears it."

"It doesn't matter," Bai Yan repeated after him.

"No, children shouldn't hear this! Take her back, quickly!" Madam Zhao waved her hands frantically, looking as if, in the next second, the wooden board in her hand would come crashing down on Jiang Chengyan’s back.

Bai Yan rubbed her head against Jiang Chengyan’s chin and nudged her chin toward the large tree nearby.

Jiang Chengyan chuckled, scooped up his rabbit, and backed out of the crowd. While everyone else was huddled together, fueled by gossip, he leapt nimbly and landed with Bai Yan on a thick, sturdy branch of the tree.

"Wow, I’ve never climbed a tree before. No matter how much I jumped, I could never get up there," Bai Yan said, swinging her legs happily as she sat on the branch.

"That’s because you aren't human; you're a rabbit," Jiang Chengyan said, pressing down on her restless head.

Bai Yan: "???" I feel like you're insulting me.

At that moment, no one paid any mind to where Jiang Chengyan and Bai Yan were sitting; everyone’s fire of gossip had been fully ignited. Good heavens, Jiang You actually had a venereal disease.

Grandpa Jiang and Grandma Jiang arrived after hearing the commotion. Upon hearing the news, the elderly couple nearly fainted on the spot.

Madam Qian had already begun to lose her composure. She kept shouting explanations, but they were useless; she had no choice but to wait for Jiang You to return.

...

Jiang You returned half an hour later. Up on the branch, Bai Yan was sitting cross-legged in Jiang Chengyan’s lap, holding a large chicken leg.

Jiang You’s footsteps were hurried, and it was clear he was anxious.

"Jiang You, are you aware that you have contracted a venereal disease?" the station officials asked the moment they saw him.

Jiang You’s face was filled with sorrow. He glanced at Madam Qian and nodded.

The station officials had been observing his expression closely. When they saw the complex look he cast at Madam Qian, the official in charge suddenly pointed at her and commanded his subordinates, "Take her to be examined."

"What do you mean by this? How could I have a disease? You are slandering me! I’m going to the county magistrate to report you!" With the fire suddenly turning toward her, Madam Qian panicked, blurting out whatever came to mind without thinking.

Moreover, since Jiang You had the disease and they had been quite intimate recently, she was in a state of extreme terror. Fearing she had been infected herself, she began to speak even more recklessly.

Just as the officials were about to drag Madam Qian away for an examination, Jiang You suddenly hung his head and said in a tone of utter despair, "Sir, there is no need to check."

"Actually, when I went to the county seat to take my post, I had already been diagnosed with the disease. I didn’t make a scene back then; I even spent all my money to pull strings and bribe officials to keep them from speaking of it. All for the sake of... for the sake of..." He did not finish his sentence, but the officials—and even the surrounding villagers—understood.

Jiang You meant that he had known about his condition all along and had gone to great lengths to hide it, all to cover for Madam Qian.

If that was the case, did that mean it was Madam Qian who had infected him?

"I am ashamed to say this, but some time ago, when the rumors spread that the doctor at the Xide Pharmacy lacked morality and was philandering with women, my wife went around the village declaring that my sister-in-law had stained her reputation. Looking back now, my sister-in-law was likely innocent."

"The one who was truly philandering with that doctor from the Xide Pharmacy was... it must have been my wife."

By the time Jiang You finished, his face looked aged and weary.

"I originally held onto our marital bonds, thinking it would be fine to just live out our lives this way. But more and more people were being harmed, and her attitude toward my sister-in-law became increasingly arrogant. Even my daughter ran away from home and has been missing ever since... I don't want her to hurt anyone else anymore..."

Bai Yan’s mouth hung open, and she watched Jiang You with wide-eyed astonishment.

"Husband, your second uncle is crying," the rabbit said, looking completely bewildered by the situation.