Chapter 5: The Lin Family’s World Collapses

This is a disaster. Lin Old Lady didn’t know whether to keep the door closed or not, and she looked at Lin Dagong with a pleading expression.

Lin Dagong felt the scornful glances from the onlookers, making him feel as if he were standing there naked, utterly embarrassed. Ignoring his mother’s pleading gaze, he pretended not to see and hurriedly got up, heading toward his room. With a loud “bang,” he shut the door behind him.

Seeing his son leave, Lin Old Man straightened his back, hands behind him, and swayed back to his own room.

Lin Old Lady noticed this, but she didn’t care about the crowd outside anymore. She returned to her room and closed the windows, trying to make herself unseen.

The onlookers in the yard scolded the Lin family’s heartlessness for a while, then realized that the main characters had all hidden away, and they gradually dispersed.

None of the three who had beaten Lin Wentao so severely thought about going to check on his injuries.

On the way back, Lin Dayou was holding Lin Wentao when he encountered the village chief, Lin Zhousheng, who was leading the way with a young man carrying a girl on his back.

Out of the corner of his eye, Lin Dayou recognized the girl’s outfit was somewhat familiar, but given Lin Wentao’s dire condition, he didn’t pay much attention.

Village chief Lin Zhousheng also saw Lin Dayou and, noticing his urgency, called out loudly, “Dayou, wait! We found Luo Xi down by the river; she fell into the water…”

Upon hearing that Luo Xi had fallen into the water, Lin Dayou felt as though the sky was collapsing. He looked down at the lifeless Lin Wentao in his arms and felt chills run through his body.

A wave of weakness washed over him, and he struggled to form words, but nothing came out. His legs wobbled, and he nearly collapsed with Lin Wentao.

“Dayou, are you okay?” The village chief didn’t know what had just happened, but seeing the pallor of Lin Dayou’s face, he rushed forward and supported him just as he was about to fall.

Lin Dayou nodded slightly to indicate his gratitude, just as he was about to move forward, he lost consciousness and surged forward.

Lin Wenzheng, who had been following closely, was quick to react and caught his father, preventing both him and Lin Wentao from hitting the ground, which would surely have worsened Lin Wentao’s condition.

“Father, let me carry my brother!” Lin Wenzheng, worried about his father’s pale face, reached out to take Lin Wentao from Lin Dayou’s arms.

“No, I’m fine.” Lin Dayou knew he was the pillar of the family; given that both of his children were in trouble, he must not fall. Taking a deep breath, he pushed himself to endure, holding Lin Wentao tightly and continuing towards home.

At that moment, the village chief also noticed Lin Wentao’s condition. Seeing the bloody and lifeless boy in Lin Dayou’s arms, he gasped in horror.

He hurriedly kept pace beside Lin Wenzheng and quietly asked, “Wenzheng, who did this to your brother?”

The village chief assumed Lin Wentao had been hurt by a child from another family, completely oblivious that it was his own grandparents who had done this.

The tension that Lin Wenzheng had been holding onto snapped at the village chief’s question, and tears streamed down his face. “Uncle Zhousheng, it was my grandma who did it.” He gritted his teeth while saying the word “grandma.” If it weren’t for the fact that she was an elder, he would have fought back.

“What? Your grandma did this?” Lin Zhousheng couldn’t believe his ears and asked in disbelief.

Seeing Lin Wenzheng crying uncontrollably, he couldn’t respond further and simply nodded, confirming that indeed, it was his grandma who had hurt him.

The village chief still couldn’t believe it. No matter how biased the two elders of the Lin family were, they couldn’t possibly beat their own grandchildren to such an extent.

If a situation like this got out of hand, it could lead to jail time, so he wanted to get to the bottom of this matter.

The villagers who had come to watch the commotion, seeing the village chief’s disbelief, hurriedly recounted what they had seen and heard with their own eyes and ears.

“What in the world! The Old Lin Family is really too… sigh!” The village chief could only sigh in frustration and decided to follow the young man who was carrying Lin Luoxi, heading toward Lin Dayou’s house.

The villagers, upon catching sight of that young man, were so frightened they backed off three meters, not wanting to get close to him.

But when they saw the Lin Luoxi on the young man’s back, their curiosity got the better of them, and they followed along with eager gossip.

They felt deep sympathy for Lin Dayou’s situation—his son was beaten to the brink of death by his own father.

At the same time, the silly girl they were carrying had also fallen into the water, her life or death unknown. Lin Dayou was truly having the worst luck.

Regardless of what everyone was thinking, they soon arrived at Lin Dayou’s home.

Having not been to Lin Dayou’s home for a while, many villagers previously thought things were going relatively well for him, considering that Lin Dayou had flourished for some time in the past.

But what met their eyes now was a rundown thatched cottage, surrounded by a fence, with a yard that had been cleared for growing vegetables and hanging clothes to dry.

Looking at the patched-up clothing hanging out to dry, the villagers felt a mix of emotions.

Inside the main room, it was evident at a glance that the place was bare—literally just the walls, which was a stark contrast to what they had just seen at the Old Lin Family’s home.

It seemed the Old Lin had really driven Lin Dayou out, leaving him with nothing. Not only had they not given him a penny, but they also spread various stories around the village, claiming they had shown mercy to Lin Dayou and his family.

“How could it be this poor? Does Lin Dayou even have any money to take the two kids to see a doctor?”

Some sharp-minded villagers, upon seeing Lin Dayou’s situation, quietly slipped away from the crowd and headed home, fearing the village chief might ask them to help Lin Dayou.

In these times, even having enough to eat was a problem; who had the extra money to aid others?

“Dayou, your place… it’s just too dilapidated.” The village chief looked at Lin Dayou’s home, which had nothing but a wooden table, and felt a pang in his heart.

“Dayou, I have a bit of money here; take it for now.” Lin Zhousheng, being a good village chief, knew upon entering Lin Dayou’s home that he surely had no funds for medical expenses.

So, he took out a small amount of silver from his waistband and pressed it into Lin Dayou’s hand.

As Lin Wentao was gently placed on a straw bed, Lin Dayou was just about to do something when the silver was pushed into his hand.

Looking at the small amount of silver, Lin Dayou couldn’t contain his emotions and began to cry, suppressing his sobs.

“Thank you, village chief, thank you! I promise, even if I have to sell my pots and pans, I will repay your kindness… I…”

Watching his father move to tears after receiving help from the village chief, Lin Wenzheng felt deeply saddened but also thought, Father, our family doesn’t even have a decent pot. If you want to sell something, someone will have to want to buy it!