Chapter 16

“Uncle Village Chief, today Grandma took Yangyang to work in the fields, so it was just me at home with Xingxing, playing with little hair ties.

Around noon, I heard someone shouting outside. I went out and saw him there. I didn’t know him, so I told him Grandma wasn’t home and asked him to come back in the afternoon if he had business.

After saying that, I went back inside. But not long after, I heard noises in the yard again. I thought maybe a thief was trying to take advantage of everyone being out in the fields to steal from the house. I got scared. There just happened to be a kitchen knife inside, so I grabbed it and went out.

It turned out to be him again. I told him to leave, but he threatened me, saying that if I didn’t do what he wanted, he’d tell everyone I was seducing him, so people would point fingers at me behind my back.

I’m just a woman alone at home with a child, and a strange man runs into my yard. I was terrified. I didn’t want people gossiping about me, so I chased him with the knife. After all, I’m scared of being slandered.”

Gou Dong listened to her story and felt something was off, but couldn’t quite put his finger on it. Still, that didn’t stop him from retorting:

“She’s lying. She saw I was well-dressed and handsome, so she tried to seduce me.”

His mother chimed in, “That’s right! This little slut must have set her sights on our Dongzi on purpose. With her man away, she just can’t hold herself back anymore!”

The surrounding villagers now more or less understood the situation. They already knew Gou Dong and his mother were shameless.

But Lin Xi’s own reputation wasn’t great either — her neighbors could often hear her yelling at her kids and cursing her mother-in-law.

With these two going at each other, the villagers’ desire to watch the drama only grew stronger.

The village chief was getting a headache listening to the mother and son chattering away, just about to tell them to shut up, when someone beat him to it:

“Shut up!”

Lin Xi’s voice was loud and forceful — she’d taken several deep breaths before shouting just to make sure it carried enough weight.

Sure enough, her shout silenced the pair instantly. Gou Dong’s mother, realizing it was Lin Xi who had yelled, was startled for a moment. Then her anger flared, and she pointed at Lin Xi, about to curse her out — but…

“Shut your mouth! Yell one more word and I’ll tear it right off your face!”

Lin Xi’s eyes glinted with a cold, deadly light as she glared at her. Gou Dong’s mother was actually frightened into stopping. She pulled her hand back and was about to turn to the village chief for help when a soft, gentle voice spoke up:

“Uncle Village Chief, my husband Qingyan is serving in the army, protecting our country. At home, it’s just me, my mother-in-law, and our two children. Today, these two humiliated me like this. I’d like to ask you to help look after my mother-in-law and the kids, because I need to go into the city. Otherwise, I’m afraid they’ll even bully my mother-in-law and children.”

Gou Dong and his mother were dumbfounded, staring at her. They couldn’t imagine that this tearful yet stubborn-looking woman was the same fierce, knife-wielding terror who had just chased him halfway across the village.

The villagers didn’t dwell on that, though. Seeing Lin Xi looking so pitiful now, and hearing what she’d said, they all felt Gou Dong was truly despicable.

The village chief understood Lin Xi’s intent and went along with it, asking,

“What are you going to the city for? Your husband is a soldier — the authorities won’t let his family be bullied. Don’t worry, I’ll get to the bottom of this.”

Then he waved at the crowd,

“Alright, disperse, disperse. Everyone get back to work.”

Once the villagers were sent away, he turned back and said,

“You two — come with me!

Third Sister-in-law, Qingyan’s wife, you come too. I’ll have my daughter Lan Hua look after the kids.”

Tian Yufen tugged Lin Xi along after him. Thinking of the two little ones at home, and that the neighbor had her own chores, she agreed — after all, the village chief’s twelve-year-old daughter liked playing with her kids anyway.

“Then I’ll trouble Lan Hua.”

The village chief, walking ahead, replied,

“No trouble at all — that little girl has eaten plenty of your flatbreads.”

Hearing their exchange, Gou Dong’s mother’s eyes shifted. She interrupted,

“Village Chief, could you have Lan Hua first go to my house and call for Dongzi’s father? He’s sick and lying in bed. He’s the head of the household — without him here, we don’t feel at ease.”

Gou Dong’s father was an honest man, and she knew pleading with the village chief would work better through him. But before she could finish, the chief cut her off impatiently:

“Hmph! You two don’t feel at ease? You looked pretty bold just now. If you cooperate and settle this matter properly today, then it’s not a big deal.

But if you think you can play the same tricks as before, and Qingyan’s wife decides to report this to higher authorities — well, forget your husband. Bullying a soldier’s family is like slapping the country in the face. Even I wouldn’t be able to help you then.”

The village chief oversaw all the village’s affairs and was a man of some experience. He already had a pretty clear picture of what had happened.

As for Gou Dong’s behavior — he could guess the truth with his toes. These words were meant to scare the mother and son, make them understand the situation.

As for whether Lin Xi would actually call the police — he knew she wouldn’t. If she intended to, she wouldn’t have dragged things out this long. She just wanted to put the mother and son in their place — and that was something he was happy to see.

Hearing this, Gou Dong felt a bit afraid. He was just an ordinary villager — he might be shameless and petty, but he didn’t have the guts to go up against the authorities.

His mother was even more scared. Her son had been disciplined several times before, and to keep him from causing trouble again, they’d even sent him away.

If he got punished again this time, it could mean prison. And now the chief was saying it would be like “slapping the country’s face”…

She didn’t quite understand how exactly it was “slapping the country’s face,” but with all the current talk about loving and supporting the military, respecting military families — and knowing Lin Xi was a soldier’s wife — if this blew up, her son would definitely be in big trouble.

The two of them grew more and more uneasy, even before they reached the chief’s house.

Once inside, the village chief’s wife, already aware of the situation, brought out a few stools for them to sit. The chief called into the house:

“Lan Hua, go to your Lin Xi sister-in-law’s place and bring Xiao Gu Yang and Xiao Gu Xing over to play.”

The little girl came out, saw the crowd, and agreed before heading out.

“Alright, sit down!

I have a good grasp of what happened today. Gou Dong, you’d better tell me the truth about what happened, or don’t blame your uncle for not showing you any mercy.

This could be a small matter or a big one. If I can settle it here, then it’s nothing major. If I can’t, I’ll have to report it.”

Lin Xi was a bit surprised at his words. In her experience, people in leadership were usually best at smoothing things over — especially village cadres, who in remote areas often acted like little emperors, expecting the villagers to butter them up.

But this village chief had clearly been on her side from the start — something she’d noticed early on. She just hadn’t expected him to cooperate so well, even helping her intimidate the mother and son.