Chapter 66: The Neighbors and Children’s Songs

As soon as Zhang Shourong finished speaking, he picked up his son and jumped down.

The other children also hurriedly climbed down from the wall, leaving only the youngest, San Ya, behind. She was short and standing high, unable to climb down on her own, and was still crying.

Lin Yue couldn’t bear to watch. This whole family was so shameless, she had told them not to do it, but they wouldn’t listen. She simply ignored them.

They also heard the sound of the motorcycle at this time. Xiao Wanli and Lingling excitedly shouted, “Dad is back!” and were about to rush to the door.

Lin Yue chuckled and took one by the hand, leading them out to greet him.

Zhang Yuandong’s appearance wasn’t great. He had faint dark circles under his eyes, his beard hadn’t been shaved for days, and his clothes were wrinkled.

He had thought about tidying himself up before returning, but there were no clean clothes to change in the worker dormitory, and he wasn’t willing to waste time. After thinking about it, he decided to return as he was.

He had been very busy lately. The case by the sea was closely related to what he was investigating. They had found two more bodies in that area.

The killer had dumped the bodies in a very remote place, where accidents were common, so few people went there to fish.

If the body hadn’t been washed up by the waves onto the reef, it might have gone undiscovered for a long time.

This wasn’t a few years later, management was relatively less strict. Unless you were going on a long trip or staying in a hotel, you generally didn’t need an introduction letter. The flow of people was also relatively higher than in the following years.

But precisely because of this, in this era of poor communication, it was possible for a few people to disappear occasionally, and no one would notice for a long time.

Zhang Yuandong didn’t intend to hide anything. He told Lin Yue and Liu Fang about it in general, wanting them to be aware.

Lin Yue’s heart sank with fear. Seeing the soaked clam meat, she felt a wave of nausea and carried it out to dispose of it.

Fortunately, Zhang Yuandong had brought back two pounds of corn bones. Lin Yue used them to make a winter melon bone soup.

Unfortunately, the corn bones were really clean. There were two pounds of bones, but the meat on them wasn’t enough for the children to have a bite.

When Lin Yue set the table, Zhang Yuandong had washed up and changed into a new set of clothes.

These clothes were made by Lin Yue. They were made of coarse cloth, a white long-sleeved shirt on top and indigo blue trousers on the bottom, with slightly tapered legs.

When Lin Yue was making the clothes, she had been thinking, his legs are so long, they must look good in them.

Now, looking at him, he was already naturally broad-shouldered, narrow-waisted, and had long legs. The clothes on him, although not as flattering as his usual uniform, made him look even more youthful.

Lin Yue then remembered that he was only 24 years old this year, not as mature as he seemed.

Zhang Yuandong hadn’t expected Lin Yue to make clothes for him. He was a little shy and stood awkwardly, too embarrassed to meet her gaze.

Seeing him like this, Lin Yue couldn’t help but praise him, “I didn’t realize your legs were this long before. Putting on these trousers makes them look even longer and straighter. It’s really enviable! Look, who’s this young man? He looks so energetic! Look at his height, and his figure! Tsk tsk!”

The aunties and grandmothers in the village often commented on young men like this, and Zhang Yuandong had heard it many times before. But today, hearing it from Lin Yue’s mouth, he didn’t know why he felt so embarrassed, he wanted to cover her mouth.

Liu Fang had gone to Wang San Niang’s house to deliver mixed grain pancakes with the two little ones, and he had just returned.

The three of them entered the house. The two children were attracted to the food on the table, while Liu Fang immediately noticed Zhang Yuandong, who was clean and tidy, his face flushed red to the roots of his neck.

He chuckled and approached him, teasing, “Oh, Brother Zhang, why is your face so red? What have you two been up to while we were gone?”

Zhang Yuandong’s face turned even redder. Lin Yue also felt a little embarrassed. They hadn’t done anything, why did it feel like they had been caught doing something wrong?

She shoved chopsticks into Liu Fang’s hand, “Hurry up and eat your food. You must be missing your wife, right? There are many eligible girls in our village, I’ll introduce you to some this afternoon!”

Liu Fang immediately begged for mercy, “Sister-in-law, please have mercy on me. Look at me now, if you introduce me to a girl, I’ll scare her to death! I was wrong, I won’t bully your man again!”

Lin Yue raised her leg to kick him, Liu Fang wanted to dodge, but Zhang Yuandong pressed him down with one hand.

Liu Fang cried out in anger, “You two, you’re ganging up on me!”

Zhang Yuandong said calmly, “Keep your voice down, the flat houses aren’t soundproof. If you keep talking so loud, the neighbors will hear you.”

After he finished speaking, Liu Fang really didn’t dare to say anything anymore. He sat down obediently and ate.

Lin Yue had witnessed the eating capacity of these two big men. Zhang Yuandong was already a big eater, but Liu Fang was no less so.

That thick stack of mixed grain pancakes wasn’t enough to eat. In the end, they both finished a large bowl of winter melon bone soup before they were finally full.

Seeing the adults eating so happily, the two little ones also ate a lot.

They had eaten too much for lunch, and after finishing, they didn’t go to sleep immediately. Instead, they moved a few stools and sat in the yard, watching the two little ones chase the chickens.

There was a commotion coming from the east side neighbor. Lin Yue listened carefully and realized that it was his second daughter-in-law scolding Zhang Shourong, the third son.

The reason was, of course, because they had been peeking over the wall to watch the commotion, and they had left the youngest, San Ya, up there when they climbed down.

San Ya’s mother, Liu Suhong, had a particularly loud voice. “You still know you’re an uncle, huh? You can leave a child up there, how dare you let people call you uncle! You say you forgot? Then why didn’t you forget your own son up there too! San Ya is only five years old, look at her arm, it’s all scratched up! Isn’t she your niece? How can you be so heartless!”

Lin Yue listened intently, Liu Suhong was quick-witted, and Zhang Shourong was speechless in response.

Hearing the exciting part, Lin Yue wished she could climb over the wall to watch the commotion too.

She now understood why this family loved to watch the commotion so much. She liked it too! Her previous residence was remote, there wasn’t so much excitement for her to watch!

It turned out that Zhang Shourong, in order to watch the commotion, had specially found some broken wood to make a simple scaffold. However, this scaffold didn’t seem very sturdy. Lin Yue heard a series of bangs, and the scaffold collapsed.

Lin Yue turned her head and saw Liu Fang listening with gusto, even Xiao Wanli and Lingling were looking curiously towards the east. Only Zhang Yuandong looked absentminded.

Lin Yue felt curious and was about to ask, when she heard another woman’s voice from next door, “You son-of-a-gun, don’t talk so nicely here! Everyone knows how you treat your two daughters! You’re just infertile, you can’t give birth to a son yourself, so you’re jealous of other people’s sons and deliberately picking a fight! Don’t even look at yourself in the mirror, huh? You see clearly, this is my man, not yours. Your man is lying in the house pretending to be a big shot, why don’t you let your own man take care of your children, why are you making a fuss here!”

Then there was another bang of things being smashed.

Lin Yue was stunned. This voice belonged to Zhou Aixiang, the third son’s wife.

Their family was always smiling and laughing outside, never causing trouble, and they were quiet and unobtrusive when watching the commotion. Lin Yue hadn’t expected their fighting power to be so high.

These words were not suitable for children to hear, so she quickly called the two children inside.

The two little ones hadn’t had enough fun yet, and they reluctantly went inside, still wanting to run outside.

Zhang Yuandong also went inside. It took them a lot of effort to coax the two naughty children.

When Liu Fang finished listening to the commotion, he came in with a mischievous look. Lin Yue was teaching the children a song.

Liu Fang was a little surprised, “Sister-in-law, you know this song too? My nephew sings it all the time at my house.”

This song was broadcast at the beginning of the “Helping Others” campaign this year. Lin Yue’s house didn’t have a radio, yet she knew how to sing it. He was a little surprised.

 Lin Yue’s heart skipped a beat when she heard him ask.

Because Zhang Yuandong was now a policeman, she remembered this song.

She thought it was a well-known children’s song, but she didn’t expect it to attract Liu Fang’s attention.

She laughed and covered it up, “I heard someone singing it when I went to the county. What, am I singing it wrong?”

Liu Fang laughed, “This song only started airing on TV this year. I don’t know if you’re singing it right or wrong.

I only heard my nephew sing it, his voice is terrible, not as good as yours.”

Lin Yue breathed a sigh of relief and made a few more jokes, covering up the matter.

Zhang Yuandong could only sing a few songs from the army, and he didn’t realize the problem.

But he knew Lin Yue quite well and saw that something was wrong with her.

With Liu Fang around, he didn’t say anything more.

After this interruption, Lin Yue lost interest in eavesdropping on the neighbors’ gossip. Although Liu Fang loved to listen to gossip, he wasn’t the type to spread it around. The drama next door ended like that.

“By the way, I saw a strange man outside the door just now. He wasn’t from our village, and he looked a bit suspicious.

Sister-in-law, be careful when you go out recently, and try not to talk to strangers.” Liu Fang was serious when it came to business.

Zhang Yuandong frowned, “Tell me more.”

Liu Fang had been running around the village with the two little ones these days, and he had a general understanding of the village. He had seen most of the villagers.

But the man he met outside the door just now was an exception, “He said he came to visit relatives and got lost, and he asked me for directions.

But his eyes were too sharp, like he could see through my disguise. I was suspicious, so I asked him more questions, and he couldn’t even tell me what his relatives’ family was like.”

He hesitated for a moment, then said cautiously, “Moreover, I feel like he was coming for you, Sister-in-law.

I saw him hanging around the door for a long time.

And when he saw me taking the children to the house, he came straight towards me. When he saw my face clearly, he was stunned.”

Zhang Yuandong looked at Lin Yue with some concern. This man might really be coming for her.

Lin Yue understood his look. She smiled and patted his hand, “It’s okay, even if he’s coming for me, he’s a fool. He could see through Liu Fang’s disguise, and he didn’t even do his homework before coming, he didn’t even investigate his relatives’ situation. He’s either a fool or a moron!”

The two of them were amused by her words, their tense hearts relaxed instantly.