Lin Xiao, on the other hand, had shouted herself hoarse. She only managed to yell “Help!” a few times near her home, but unfortunately, her parents didn’t hear her.

After bringing the two to the brigade leader’s house, Lin Zhengrong presented evidence of Lin Sanzhu’s arson attempt and explained what had happened.

“That damn little bastard, truly rotten to the core! Thank goodness you were there, Dazhu, or the consequences would’ve been unthinkable!” Hu Haizhi was furious at the sight of Lin Sanzhu and his sister, though he also felt a wave of relief that nothing worse had happened. Otherwise, the village’s reputation would’ve been ruined.

“Lin Sanzhu, Lin Xiao, how many years has it been since our village saw such a vile act? I ought to rip your hearts out and see just how black they’ve turned!”

“Brigade leader, it… it wasn’t successful,” Lin Sanzhu tried to defend himself. He had intended to set the fire, but he didn’t mean to kill Jiang Qiuyue and the others-he just wanted to burn down the house so they’d have nowhere to stay.

Besides, he hadn’t even managed to light the fire before being knocked out. After being tormented all night, he felt he’d suffered enough.

“So just because it failed, it shouldn’t count?”

Hu Haizhi was so angry he felt smoke rising from his head. He smacked Lin Sanzhu several times. “That’s only because you got caught! If you hadn’t, wouldn’t you have succeeded? If you’d really set that fire and people had died, you’d be facing a firing squad!”

“And you!” Hu Haizhi turned to Lin Xiao. “Sanzhu says this was your idea. How can a teenage girl be so vicious? You’ve watched Beibei and Nannan grow up-if something happened to them, could you even sleep at night?”

After berating them, Hu Haizhi sighed and said to Lin Zhengrong, “Thank heavens you had the foresight to cut ties with that family. These two little beasts from the Lin family are downright inhuman!”

Lin Zhengrong glanced at Lin Sanzhu and his sister, and the two instinctively shivered. This was exactly the outcome he wanted. “Brigade leader, that’s the situation. I’ll leave it to you to decide how to handle them.”

“They’ll definitely be publicly denounced in front of the whole village!” Hu Haizhi assured Lin Zhengrong. “Since they dared to do such a thing, I’ll make sure they pay the price!”

Lin Zhengrong was a military man. If this matter wasn’t handled properly and he remained unsatisfied, how could Hu Haizhi continue as the Brigade leader?

As for Lin Zhengrong, he had already taught Lin Sanzhu and his sister a lesson. Handing them over to the brigade leader was a gesture of respect, since maintaining a good relationship with the village leader was important for living in the community.

Besides, he knew that with his stance made clear, the chief wouldn’t let the siblings off easily.

On his way home, seeing smoke curling from the chimney, Lin Zhengrong felt the warmth of a family’s daily life, and a faint smile finally touched his lips.

“Dad, you’re back!” Lin Beibei, who hadn’t seen his father when he woke up, had worried that he’d left again. “Mom said you went out-what were you doing?”

Lin Zhengrong ruffled his son’s hair. “Just exercising. Want to join me next time?”

“Sure!” Lin Beibei adored his father. Now that he had a dad, the other kids couldn’t tease him anymore. Plus, his dad was so strong-stronger than anyone else in the village!

Jiang Qiuyue had steamed sweet potatoes and eggs for breakfast, keeping the meal simple. If Lin Zhengrong hadn’t been gone all night, leaving her too uneasy to sleep, she wouldn’t have gotten up so early.

After breakfast, Lin Zhengrong went to slaughter the chicken, while Jiang Qiuyue grabbed a handful of wild mushrooms and soaked them in warm water.  

Once the fresh chicken was blanched, all that was needed was to add cooking wine and ginger before stewing. Since it was an old hen, it required a longer cooking time. After covering the pot, Jiang Qiuyue stretched lazily and heard the village broadcast calling everyone to gather at the village committee square.  

Having heard from Lin Zhengrong about the events of the previous night, Jiang Qiuyue knew this was a spectacle she couldn’t miss.  

After adding more firewood to the stove, the family of four locked their courtyard gate and ran into Wang Chunhua and her group, who were also heading out.  

The sight of Lin Zhengrong immediately put Wang Chunhua in a foul mood. Cutting off family ties? Only an ungrateful wretch like him would dare say such a thing. She sneered sarcastically, “Hmph, what terrible luck running into a bunch of jinxes first thing in the morning.”  

Lin Erzhu was equally furious. Severing ties had brought them no benefits at all—his son hadn’t had eggs to eat in days. “Yeah, let’s walk faster. No point sticking with these kinds of people.”  

“Auntie, you should hurry. Otherwise, if you’re late, you’ll miss the fun,” Jiang Qiuyue taunted with a smirk, no longer calling her “Mom” now that the ties were cut.  

“None of your damn business! We’ll walk however we please!” Wang Chunhua snapped irritably, pulling her second son to quicken their pace. “Come to think of it, where are your younger brother and sister? I didn’t see them at breakfast, and they’re not here now. Where have those two run off to?”  

Lin Erzhu found it odd too, but their sister had always been fond of playing around—she might have taken their third brother out with her. “Probably Xiaoxiao took him to catch cicadas.”  

“But it’s broad daylight now. Why aren’t they back yet?” Wang Chunhua grew angry. What kind of young people stayed out all night?  

“Mom, don’t worry. They’re grown-ups—it’s not like they’ll get lost,” Lin Erzhu said dismissively. “They must’ve wandered far catching cicadas. Those two are clever. They’ll probably be back soon.”  

That made sense to Wang Chunhua, and her curiosity shifted to why the brigade leader had called for a gathering.  

When they arrived at the square and saw Lin Sanzhu and Lin Xiao plastered with big-character posters and tied up, the family thought they were seeing things. After double-checking, Wang Chunhua rushed forward.  

“Who did this? Who the hell did this? Show yourself!” Wang Chunhua stormed onto the stage. Seeing her son and daughter pale-faced, she tried to untie them but was yanked back by Hu Haizhi.  

“I did it. What are you gonna do about it?”  

Hu Haizhi was livid at the sight of Wang Chunhua. “Do you have any idea how bold these two are? They actually tried to burn someone’s house down! If lives had been lost, they wouldn’t just be facing public criticism—they’d be in much bigger trouble!”  

“What?” Wang Chunhua was stunned.  

Lin Fugui asked, “Are you sure there’s no mistake?”  

Hu Haizhi insisted there wasn’t. “Dazhu caught them red-handed last night, and they confessed themselves. Listen, Uncle Lin—times are hard for all of us. I get that your family wanted some money from Dazhu. But just because you couldn’t get it, did you really have to stoop to something this despicable?”  

Burn someone’s house down?

Were Lin Sanzhu and Lin Xiao really that bold?

The villagers couldn’t believe what Hu Haizhi had just said. No one had expected the siblings to do something so reckless.  

Their gazes toward the Lin family shifted from curiosity to outright disgust. Those standing near Lin Fugui backed away as if he were something filthy.  

It was at this moment that Jiang Qiuyue’s family of four arrived. Seeing Lin Zhengrong, the villagers immediately crowded around, demanding answers.  

Lin Zhengrong recounted what had happened the previous night. Lin Fugui glared at him. “They’re young and don’t know any better! If you caught them, you should’ve just given them a beating! Nothing even happened—was it really necessary to drag them out for a public denunciation? Lin Dazhu, you’re nothing but an ungrateful wretch!”

“So we should just let them go because nothing happened? What if next time they actually succeed in burning someone’s house down? By then, it’ll be too late to arrest them!”  

Jiang Qiuyue immediately chimed in, “Besides, Dazhu was home last night. He has sharp hearing, which is why he caught them. But if it had just been me and the kids, once the fire started, we wouldn’t have been able to escape—we’d be dead by now!”  

People never understand the pain until the fire burns them. That was why Jiang Qiuyue deliberately framed it this way.  

Every family’s home was built through blood and sweat—not to mention the lives inside.  

When the villagers turned their eyes back to Lin Sanzhu and Lin Xiao, their expressions hardened with fury.  

“Brigade leader, we can’t let them off easy! If they don’t learn their lesson, who’s to say they won’t target someone else?”

“Auntie Niu is right! Lin Sanzhu and Lin Xiao are downright evil! Beibei and Nannan are only five years old—how could they dare burn down a house with kids inside? They should be sent to labor reform!”

“Yeah! Denounce them first, then send them to hard labor!” 

“Smash these two bastards!”

…