After obtaining consent, the staff immediately took another sample about a dozen centimeters away from the second sampling location and proceeded with a third test.

While the test was underway, Wu Dahu, who had been watching the commotion from the sidelines, sidled up to Liu Ergou. He sneered, "Liu Ergou, Liu Ergou, your good days are over! Just you wait. Once you're locked up, all your women will be mine. Rest assured, I'll take good care of them for you! Can't be helped, it's your own fault for messing with people you shouldn't have!"

After saying his piece, Wu Dahu quickly moved away and returned to his previous spot to continue watching.

Liu Ergou's brows furrowed tightly upon hearing those words.

I messed with people I shouldn't have? Let me think... The only person who holds a grudge against me is Yuan Wenkang. There's no one else. Wait a second! There is one other person, the one I just offended—Mi Xiaoying! But there's no way Wu Dahu could have any contact with Mi Xiaoying. And from Feng Chunling's description, he's just a lackey for that Lord Six.

For a moment, Liu Ergou was deeply puzzled.

Just as he was puzzling over this, the results of the third test surprisingly showed that the soil was compliant. This outcome made everyone present frown, and at that moment, Liu Ergou spoke up. "Officer, something doesn't add up here! If my land really has excessive heavy metal levels, why would it suddenly test as compliant now?"

He paused before continuing. "There's only one explanation for something like this! And that is... someone poisoned my land!"

As soon as he said this, a hush fell over the crowd.

Meanwhile, Wu Dahu, who had been beaming just moments before, saw his expression turn ugly.

What's going on?! Liu Ergou was supposed to be finished this time, so why? How did he turn the tables? This isn't right!

Seeing that no one was speaking, Liu Ergou shouted, "Officer, I want to file a report! I want to report that someone has poisoned my land!"

Instead of replying, the officer turned to a nearby staff member, who immediately understood and began collecting more samples. This time, they collected more than ten.

As the test results for the ten-plus samples came in, the officer's expression grew grim. He waved a hand, signaling the others to release Liu Ergou. The tests on all ten-plus samples came back clean; not a single one exceeded the heavy metal limits. This result perfectly corroborated Liu Ergou's claim.

Once freed, Liu Ergou flexed his wrists and glanced sideways at Wu Dahu, a cold sneer forming in his heart.

Time for my counterattack!

"Officer," he said, "when I returned yesterday, some people from my village saw Wu Dahu snooping around my wasteland several times! I now suspect that he's the one who poisoned my land!"

With that, Liu Ergou pointed directly at Wu Dahu.

Wu Dahu never dreamed that the blame would suddenly shift to him in the blink of an eye.

"No, Officer, don't listen to his nonsense!" Wu Dahu shouted. "I didn't do any poisoning! I'm from this village, so isn't it perfectly normal for me to walk around here?"

Hearing this, Liu Ergou let out a cold laugh. "Oh, is that so? Wu Dahu, let me ask you, you've wandered around the village before, so why did nothing happen then? Why is it that something has happened now?"

Liu Ergou didn't press the point. Instead, he strolled over to the area where the samples had been taken. After pretending to inspect the ground, he suddenly pointed at a footprint. "Hey, Officer, look! There's a footprint here! Look at it, it's clearly a man's footprint, but all the employees I hired are women! So how can there be a man's footprint here?"

Then, Liu Ergou looked at Wu Dahu again. "Seeing as you followed everyone here, I'm guessing you were the one who made the report, right? If I remember correctly, you're practically illiterate, so how would you know a term like 'heavy metal contamination'?" he demanded. "Wu Dahu!"

At Liu Ergou's sharp cry, the already flustered Wu Dahu became even more panicked and began to stammer excuses. "I—I just happened to find out! And who's to say I can't study later on!"

However, his rambling, nonsensical excuses convinced no one. Instead, the police officers present began to cast suspicious glances his way. Wu Dahu, who had been about to argue further, felt his bravado falter under their gazes. In the end, he could only shut his mouth, not daring to utter another word.

Seeing this, Liu Ergou sneered again. "So, Officer, I want to report a crime. I suspect someone poisoned my property! And I strongly suspect it was this kid!"

He finished by pointing a finger straight at Wu Dahu. The gesture made Wu Dahu's legs go weak, and he nearly collapsed on the spot.

At that moment, the officer seemed to understand. "Alright, we understand the situation. However, everything must be based on evidence; we can't act on speculation alone. We will immediately open a case and investigate this matter. We'll get to the bottom of this!"

With that, the police said no more and promptly departed, leaving Wu Dahu standing there alone, his face deathly pale.

After watching the police leave, Liu Yunxi rushed over to Liu Ergou. "Er Gou, it's so obvious that Wu Dahu poisoned the land! Why didn't the police just arrest him?"

Hearing her words, Liu Ergou sighed and gently tapped her on the head. "Yunxi, didn't you hear what the officer said? Everything requires evidence. Right now, we don't have any proof; it's all speculation. Understand?"

Liu Yunxi, though frustrated, knew he was right. In this day and age, everything came down to evidence. Without it, an accusation was just slander.

Seeing that she had nothing more to say, Liu Ergou smiled slightly, then turned to look at Wu Dahu. In that instant, his expression turned grim. He strode purposefully toward Wu Dahu and soon stood directly in front of him.

Seeing Liu Ergou looming over him, Wu Dahu panicked. "L-Liu Ergou, what are you trying to do!" he stammered. "I'm warning you, don't try anything funny! The police haven't gone far!"

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