Chapter 33: Dogdan’s Family Faces Rejection

The people in the village overheard the conversation and couldn’t help but glance at Dogdan’s family, their eyes full of unmasked disdain.

Dogdan panicked and quickly shouted, “You’re talking nonsense!”

“Talking nonsense?” Bai An pointed at Dogdan and said, “Then explain where my injuries came from.”

“You fell,” Dogdan mumbled.

“Where did I fall?” Bai An asked.

Dogdan couldn’t answer and could only angrily shout, “How should I know where you fell?”

“You don’t know where I fell, so how can you be so sure that my head injury came from a fall?”

Faced with Bai An’s sharp questioning, Dogdan stammered, unable to answer.

The villagers standing by also began to understand what was happening, and one by one, they started pointing fingers at Dogdan’s family.

Dogdan’s mother hadn’t expected that the people she called in for support would end up making things worse for her.

Lu Demin, seeing this, stepped in front of Bai An, shielding her. He turned to the village head, still in a daze, and asked, “Village head, what should we do about this?”

The village head lowered his head, thinking for a moment, before rubbing his hands together and saying, “It’s not a big deal.”

“Not a big deal?” Lu Jin’an, standing to the side, gave him a cold look. “Village head, doesn’t your conscience hurt?”

Lu Demin also fixed his gaze on the village head, waiting for an answer.

“Village head, still haven’t thought of a solution?” Wanqing stepped out from behind her husband and softly spoke, “Since it’s come to this, let’s not ask for much. Just have Dogdan’s family return the things they stole from us that night.”

Wanqing’s words shocked not only Dogdan’s family but also the village head and the other villagers.

Dogdan’s mother, recovering from the shock, awkwardly shouted, “Who says we stole anything from your family?”

Wanqing didn’t even look at her. Instead, she turned to the village head, silently staring at him. “If Dogdan’s family can’t return the items, we’ll just report it to the police.”

Before the village head could respond, some villagers could no longer hold back.

“Dogdan’s mom, just apologize to Bai An’s family. What’s the harm?”

Dogdan’s mother’s face turned awkward as she looked at Bai An’s family.

But Wanqing waved her hand and said, “No need for an apology, just return the things to us.”

The others fell silent, but only Dogdan’s family looked extremely embarrassed.

“Can’t return it?” Lu Demin took Bai An’s hand and began walking out, “Then we’ll just have to report it to the police.”

“Wait a moment,” the village head called out to them and turned to Dogdan’s mother. “Return the things your family took from Bai An’s.”

Faced with the village head’s urging, Dogdan’s mother’s face darkened. “Why should we return it?”

“Dogdan’s mom, just give it back. What else can you do if they report it to the police?” a villager shouted.

The courtyard was in an uproar, with everyone urging Dogdan’s family to hand over the items.

Dogdan, afraid of the situation, tried to hide behind his mother.

Dogdan’s mother yanked him out from behind her, put her hands on her hips, and pointed her finger at the crowd, yelling, “You bunch of troublemakers! Since you’re all saying this, why don’t you call the police to arrest me? It’s not just my family who took things; everyone took them!”

The room instantly fell silent. Wanqing then continued, “I don’t care about anyone else, as long as Dogdan’s family returns the things they took. I can ignore the rest.”

Dogdan’s mother’s face darkened, and she raised her hand to slap Wanqing. Lu Demin, seeing this, grabbed Dogdan’s mother’s hand and pushed her back.

Dogdan’s mother fell to the ground, crying and pounding her thighs. “You heartless people! What things do I even have? You’re all bullying me because Dogdan’s father is useless. Ah, why is my life so miserable?”

Bai An’s family paid no attention to her. Lu Demin turned to the village head and said, “We’re going to Dogdan’s house to get the things back.”

Upon hearing this, Dogdan’s mother quickly scrambled to her feet and reached out to grab Lu Demin’s clothes to stop him from leaving.

Some villagers stepped in to hold Dogdan’s mother back, while others enthusiastically offered to guide Bai An’s family, worried that they might get upset and report the situation to the police.

“This is Dogdan’s family,” one villager said as he opened the door for Lu Demin. Pointing to the master bedroom, he added, “They usually keep things in their bedroom.”

Dogdan’s grandmother heard the noise from outside and came out of the house. Seeing so many people standing at the door, she paused for a moment before asking, “What’s going on?”

“Nothing, Aunt. It’s just that Dogdan’s family took something from Bai An’s family, and now they’ve come to get it back,” a villager explained to Dogdan’s grandmother as he would any other day.

Dogdan’s grandmother, upon hearing this, became wary and said, “We don’t have anything that belongs to their family.”

“Whether you do or not, we’ll know once we go inside and check,” Lu Jin’an said as he walked around Dogdan’s grandmother and entered the house.

Dogdan’s grandmother was about to stop him, but other villagers held her back.

Bai An followed behind Lu Jin’an, and upon seeing the inside of the house, couldn’t help but exclaim, “How greedy can they be?”

On the bed, there were blankets, in the wardrobe, cotton coats, and in the corner, half-eaten rice. There were even various pots and pans.

Bai An knew her family’s things had been stolen, but she didn’t expect this many items. It was as if they had stolen everything from her family.

Lu Demin and Wanqing also looked around, their faces showing some surprise.

Other villagers didn’t know exactly how many things Dogdan’s family had stolen, but seeing the items in the house, which seemed out of place in the shabby home, they could tell something was off.

Wanqing pointed at the various items and said, “You stole quite a lot, I can’t imagine how you managed to take all this that night.”

She then turned to the village head and asked, “I suppose we can take these things back, right?”

The village head wiped the sweat from his forehead and hurriedly nodded, “Of course, if you can’t carry it all, I’ll have someone help you.”

“I’ll do it.” Several villagers raised their hands, offering to help Bai An’s family carry the things.

Dogdan’s mother, who couldn’t see what was happening inside the house because she was being held back, became anxious and started cursing. “What are you doing, huh? You damn people!”

No one paid her any attention, and she was left to yell by herself.

As she was shouting, she saw her own big pot being carried out, and quickly screamed, “That’s not theirs, that’s ours!”

No matter how much she yelled, no one stopped to listen.

Dogdan, seeing his mother being held back, stood next to her, afraid. Dogdan’s father remained silent, watching the situation unfold.

Seeing her son and husband standing there, helpless, Dogdan’s mother couldn’t help but cry out, “How can you be so useless? Our house is being robbed, and you’re just standing there like idiots!”

Dogdan’s father, after a long pause, finally muttered, “That was theirs to begin with, if they took it, then let them have it.”

“That big pot is ours, ah, I’d rather die than be with you two!”