我表姐陈秀雅这辈子，活得就像一本先苦后甜的话本子。 especially fifteen years after that incident in the cornfield， when she returned to our village。
That day， the village's biggest troublemaker， Wang Jianjun's family， was holding a big banquet。 His son Wang Hao got into a good university， and the whole family was beaming with joy， setting up over ten tables in their yard。 My表姐，陈秀雅， dressed in a simple but elegant dress that you could tell was expensive， walked in uninvited。 She placed a thick red envelope on the gift table， smiling faintly， “Jianjun Ge， congratulations。 I'll cover all of Wang Hao's university tuition and living expenses， 200，000 yuan in total。“
The whole yard went silent。 Everyone knows that Wang Jianjun's family and my表姐 are mortal enemies。 Wang Jianjun was stunned for a moment， then a greasy smile spread across his face， “Oh， Xiuyǎ， you're back！ You're so successful now， you don't hold grudges。 Look at you， so generous！ Come， come， sit at the main table！“
My表姐 didn't move。 She just looked at him with a smile that didn't reach her eyes and said softly， “I have one condition。“
Her voice wasn't loud， but it was like a hammer blow in the quiet yard， making everyone's heart skip a beat。
This whole story has to start from fifteen years ago。 At that time， my表姐陈秀雅 was eighteen， the prettiest girl in our village， with skin as fair as milk and eyes that could talk。 Many young men liked her， but she had a pure heart and was focused on the college entrance exams， dreaming of leaving our poor village。 But all her dreams were shattered in one summer night。
That night， after studying late at the school， she was on her way home。 The path went by a large cornfield。 That cornfield was a place of nightmares for her for many years。 Wang Jianjun， who was already married and in his thirties， a notorious slacker in the village， blocked her path。 He was drunk and reeked of alcohol。 What happened next， my表姐 never said in detail， but when she returned home， her clothes were torn， her eyes were swollen like walnuts， and she had a large bruise on her face。
My aunt， Ma Guihua， a timid woman， was so scared she just held her daughter and cried。 My uncle wanted to go fight Wang Jianjun with a kitchen knife， but was held back by my aunt。 “What's the use！ If this gets out， how can Xiuyǎ live her life People's gossip will drown her！“
The next day， my aunt took a few eggs to Wang Jianjun's house。 His wife spat on the ground and cursed， “You old shameless thing， your daughter is a vixen who couldn't seduce a man and now you're trying to frame us Get out of my house！“ She chased my aunt out with a broom。 Wang Jianjun sat there smoking， looking smug， and said my表姐 was trying to seduce him because she was jealous his wife was pregnant with a son。
In our village， reputation is everything。 Soon， the story was twisted into “Chen Xiuyǎ failed to seduce a married man and tried to frame him。“ The way the villagers looked at her changed。 Their whispers were like sharp needles stabbing her back。 My表姐， once so lively， became silent。 She failed her college entrance exams and locked herself in her room all day。 Two months later， she left the village with a small bag， leaving only a note saying she was going to work in the city and would not be back unless she made a name for herself。
For the next fifteen years， she rarely came back， not even for the Lunar New Year。 We only heard from others that she had suffered a lot， worked on assembly lines， and waited tables。 Later， she seemed to have started a small business。 My aunt would often wipe her tears and sigh， saying she had wronged her daughter。 And Wang Jianjun's family seemed to be doing well。 His son Wang Hao was smart and did well in school， becoming the pride of their family。 Wang Jianjun became even more arrogant in the village， often bragging about how capable his son was。 Human nature is like that; when you see the person you bullied living a hard life， you feel even more justified in your actions。
Fifteen years can change a lot。 The once timid village girl became a calm and capable businesswoman。 The once arrogant bully was still a villager living off his land。 When表姐 appeared at the banquet， she was no longer the helpless girl from the cornfield。 She was the one in control of the situation。
At the banquet， everyone was staring at my表姐， waiting for her condition。 Wang Jianjun's smile froze。 He had a bad feeling。 “Xiuyǎ， we're all family。 What condition Just say it。 If I can do it， I'll definitely do it。“
陈秀雅's gaze swept over Wang Jianjun， his wife， and then their son Wang Hao， who looked uneasy。 Finally， her eyes rested on Wang Jianjun's face。 “My condition is simple，“ she said， her voice clear and calm。 “Tomorrow at noon， Jianjun Ge， you stand at the entrance of the village， at the old locust tree， and tell everyone what you did to me in the cornfield fifteen years ago。 Every detail。 If you do that， the 200，000 yuan is yours。“
Boom！ The crowd exploded。 Wang Jianjun's face turned from red to white， then to a ghastly green， like a spoiled eggplant。 His wife jumped up and pointed at my表姐， screaming， “Chen Xiuyǎ， you bitch！ You're trying to ruin us！ Don't think you can slander us just because you have a little money！ Get out！“
My表姐 didn't even look at her。 She just stared at Wang Jianjun。 “Jianjun Ge， you have to think carefully。 This is for Wang Hao's future。 200，000 yuan is enough for his tuition and even a down payment for a house after graduation。 He can have a much better life。 Or， you can protect your so-called reputation and let him worry about student loans and work part-time jobs in college。“
Every word she said was like a knife twisting in Wang Jianjun's heart。 He looked at his son， his face full of hope and anxiety。 His whole life， he had been bragging about his son。 Now， his son's future was in his hands。 He wanted to curse， but he couldn't。 He wanted to refuse， but he couldn't bear to。 Sweat poured down his forehead。
“Chen。。。 Chen Xiuyǎ， can't we。。。 can't we talk about this in private“ he stammered。 “I can apologize to you。 I can give you money。“
“Apologize“ My表姐 laughed， a cold and desolate laugh。 “Fifteen years ago， why didn't you apologize When my mother went to your house， why did your wife chase her out When the whole village was slandering me， where were you Wang Jianjun， I don't want your apology， and I don't need your money。 I just want the truth。“
She turned to leave。 “You have until tomorrow at noon to think about it。 If you don't show up， I'll take it as your answer。“ Then she walked away without looking back， her back straight and proud。
That night， the village was buzzing。 Everyone was talking about it。 Some said my表姐 was too cruel， digging up the past。 Others said Wang Jianjun deserved it， that karma had finally caught up with him。 The banquet broke up in disarray。 I heard that Wang Jianjun and his wife fought all night。 His son Wang Hao locked himself in his room and didn't come out。
My aunt came to my house， her eyes red， and grabbed my hand。 “Do you think your表姐 is doing the right thing This will make them enemies for life。“
I patted her hand。 “Auntie，表姐 has been carrying this for fifteen years。 It's time she let it go。 This isn't just about revenge; it's about justice for herself。“ People who have never been in that kind of darkness have no right to tell others to be magnanimous。
The next day at noon， almost the entire village gathered at the old locust tree at the village entrance， waiting to see what would happen。 The sun was scorching。 Just as everyone thought Wang Jianjun wouldn't show up， he appeared， looking haggard， as if he had aged ten years overnight。 His son Wang Hao followed him， his head bowed。
Wang Jianjun stood under the tree， his lips trembling。 He looked at the villagers pointing and whispering， and his face was full of shame。 He hesitated for a long time。 Wang Hao， who had been silent， suddenly looked up at his father and said， his voice hoarse， “Dad， just say it。 I don't want a future that's built on someone else's pain。“
This sentence was the last straw。 Wang Jianjun broke down。 He slapped himself hard across the face， the sound echoing in the silent crowd。 Then， in a halting voice， he confessed everything he had done to my表姐 in the cornfield that night， how he had twisted the truth and ruined her reputation。 He cried and begged for forgiveness。
The truth was finally revealed。 The villagers who had slandered my表姐 back then now looked ashamed。 His wife， who was hiding in the crowd， covered her face and ran home crying。
At that moment， a car slowly drove to the village entrance。 It was my表姐。 She didn't get out。 She just watched from the car as Wang Jianjun confessed。 After he finished， she had someone send a bank card over and then the car drove away without stopping。 She never came back to the village after that。
Later， I heard that Wang Jianjun's family became the laughingstock of the village。 He couldn't hold his head up high anymore。 His son Wang Hao， though he went to university， became withdrawn and rarely came home。 He seemed to carry the shame of his father for the rest of his life。
Someone said my表姐 was ruthless。 But I think， she was just giving them a choice。 She used the thing Wang Jianjun valued most – his son's future – to make him face the evil he had committed。 This wasn't revenge in the traditional sense; it was a public trial of morality。 She didn't ruin Wang Hao's future; she gave him a chance to have a future based on truth， not lies。
My表姐 used fifteen years of suffering and hard work to deliver a verdict that was long overdue。 That decision， was truly immensely satisfying。 It taught everyone in the village a lesson: some evils， even if buried for a long time， will one day be dug up and exposed to the sun。 Good people may suffer for a while， but a clear conscience is the best legacy。 As for the wicked， the debt they owe will eventually have to be paid back， with interest。 You tell me， isn't that how it should be