Aunt Hua began searching for help throughout the village, calling anyone she knew—brothers, sisters, relatives, and friends. She called anyone she could reach, and for those she couldn’t, she resorted to bribery. She finally gathered a large group of people.
Still feeling uneasy, she went to find the village chief. The chief’s wife sarcastically remarked, “You’re too late, another family has already invited the village chief. I’ve warned you before not to be so wicked. Did you think we were envious of you? Look at my eyes now, don’t they look bloodshot [1]“Look at my eyes now, don’t they look bloodshot” sarcastically suggests that the speaker is not jealous, implying that their eyes are “bloodshot” from anger or … Continue reading jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_3338691_1_1').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_3338691_1_1', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });?”
At this moment, Aunt Hua didn’t have the time or patience to deal with her mockery. She suspected that the other three families involved in the stealing things were behind this and left distractedly.
It just so happened that the three families didn’t live far away, so she quietly pretended to pass by and took a glance at the busier household, only to feel her heart sink.
She saw that this was no longer the same family from before. The village chief was outside, speaking kindly, while a pair of siblings from that family stood by, but no one dared to step forward. It seemed that others had already thought of the same things she had. However, it was clear that these tactics were useless against Hunter Jiang!
Her legs suddenly felt weak.
As she walked a little closer and stood outside the door, she could see the scene inside. She saw Hunter Jiang was holding one of the thugs from that day, while a gleaming sickle pressed close against the thug’s neck.
When the people saw that he was serious, the crowd outside became aroused. The thug’s father shouted fiercely, “Hunter Jiang, if you dare to touch my son, your son won’t be able to escape either!” He then prepared to move toward Jiang Zhu, who was standing behind Qu Qing.
Hunter Jiang sneered coldly, “Go ahead! If your hand touches my son, I’ll cut your son. If anything happens to my son, no worries—I’ll kill your whole family to bury him! You have over ten people in your family, and mine only have two. Let’s see who’s really at a loss here.”
The thug’s father immediately froze in place, not daring to make a move.
Qu Qing, who had been anxiously watching, finally felt he could relax a little. He sensed the gaze of the villagers turning this way, which made him even more nervous, and along with Hua Zizhou, he tightly protected the two children.
When Hua Zizhou saw that the thug with a sickle pressed against his neck was the same one he had beaten up the night before. He felt a bit gloating but, fearing that someone would notice him, he suppressed his urge to laugh out loud and pretended to be just an ordinary onlooker. He adjusted his expression to convey one message: We have no idea what’s going on, how could Hunter Jiang be such a person?
In reality, Qu Qing wore a similar expression, but the difference was that he genuinely didn’t know what was happening, while Hua Zizhou had realized Hunter Jiang’s intentions the moment he saw him take out the sickle.
Seeing that things seemed to be serious, the villagers immediately shouted at him to calm down. For a moment, the noise level rose to that of a bustling market.
As the scene was getting heated, the village chief stepped out to take charge of the situation. It took him a long time to calm everyone down and get them to stop talking. He then looked at Hunter Jiang and raised his hands halfway, urging him not to act impulsively.
“Hunter Jiang, this family has indeed wronged you. The people inside, who you’ve captured, also deserve this. They took advantage of your uncertain fate to bully your child and rob your home. They’re truly despicable scoundrels! Don’t you all agree?”
When that family heard the village chief’s words, they felt he was insulting them and were about to voice their dissatisfaction, but someone nearby pulled them back.
The villagers nodded along with the village chief’s words. A man among the onlookers appealed to reason: “Yeah, they deserve to be punished! But for a good man like you to drag this family
down with you, that’s just not worth it! Brother Jiang, we’re all looking forward to buying meat from you, so please don’t do anything stupid!”
The village chief added, “That makes sense. Hunter Jiang, your son will be able to marry in a couple of years. If you go down this path with him, you’re being an unfit father. You need to think this through.”
Hunter Jiang snorted coldly, “I don’t want this either, but everything in my house has been stolen, and I can’t live like this anymore. What do you suggest I should do?”
The village chief immediately replied, “I’ll take charge and ensure they return everything they stole from you, even a bowl or a pair of chopsticks won’t be missed.”
“Just like that? They robbed my family and beat my son, and now they think returning my things is enough to settle it? What if I hadn’t survived this? Would my son’s suffering have been in vain? Who will give him justice then?”
The thug’s mother was enraged and stepped forward, shouting, “What do you want then? Hunter Jiang, let me tell you, you’re just an outsider, don’t be so ungrateful!”
“Is that so? I’m ungrateful? Fine, I won’t ask for compensation. I just want my things back, and…” Hunter Jiang sneered, stepped forward to lock the door from the inside, found a rope, and tied the man up. He then started smashing things inside, breaking everything he saw, creating a continuous clatter of pots and pans that echoed outside.
The people outside immediately felt a knot in their stomachs [2]“felt a knot in their stomachs” is an idiomatic expression that describes a feeling of anxiety, nervousness, or unease. It often refers to the physical sensation of tightness or … Continue reading jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_3338691_1_2').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_3338691_1_2', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });, and many onlookers quietly asked the person next to them, “How long do you think their things can withstand being smashed?”
The thugs inside were frightened to tears. One of them felt like he had run into bad luck these past few days. He cried with a snotty nose, shouted outside, “Dad! Mom! Our things are going to be smashed to pieces!”
The family could no longer endure it. The mother cried out in desperation, “Stop smashing! Please, stop! We’ll compensate you! Whatever you want, we’ll pay you back!”
Only then did the noise inside stopped. After a moment, Hunter Jiang opened the door, holding a piece of the rope used to tie them up. “If you had agreed to this sooner, it would’ve been much easier. How are you going to compensate me?”
“Uh…” The woman and her husband exchanged glances. The husband stepped forward and said, “You know the situation in our village, everyone is poor, and we can’t afford any money. You… you can take whatever valuable items you want from our house.”
Upon hearing this, the wife anxiously pinched him and whispered, “What if he takes our expensive things?”
The husband angrily shook off her hand. “Whatever happens, happens! Isn’t it your good son who’s responsible for this mess?”
Hunter Jiang looked at the village chief. “Village chief, you’re my witness, this is voluntary on their part.”
The village chief sighed, “You… don’t go too far. After all, if you push them to a desperate situation, it won’t end well for you either.”
Hunter Jiang smiled and said, “I’m not someone who would completely lose my conscience.”
After saying this, he let go of the thug, who was immediately pulled away by his mother. She anxiously checked him from top to bottom, fearing that her precious son might have been hurt. When she looked up, she saw Hunter Jiang’s gaze fixated on the only cow in their barn. Instantly forgetting about her son, she dashed in front of the barn, blocking the cow.
“The cow absolutely cannot be touched! Don’t even think about moving my cow, if you do, I’ll risk my life and fight you today!”
In the distance, the onlookers included Er Mazi and his mother. Er Mazi’s mother said, “Didn’t I tell you a few days ago that I was right? Didn’t I warn you that you might suffer a big loss? Why don’t you go and steal more things from Hunter Jiang’s house again?”
“I dare not, I dare not!” Er Mazi hurriedly waved his hands, forcing a smile as he watched the family inside getting beaten so badly. He wouldn’t dare to criticize his mother for making the decision for him to return the things back. He was inwardly relieved that he had listened to his mother at that time.
Hunter Jiang didn’t spare Er Mazi a glance and took a few steps to the side, bending down to open the chicken coop door. He reached in and pulled out two chickens. “Son, little Mao’er, come here.”
The two walked over, holding the wings of the chickens, he let his son carry one in each hand. Then he pulled out a big white goose for Mao’er to hold, and he took another goose for himself. He walked over and handed one to Hua Zizhou, then said to Qu Qing, “Brother, I’ll need your help to carry more things later.”
Feeling the murderous glares from that family, Qu Qing stiffly pulled the corners of his mouth, looking awkward yet polite as he glanced around at the onlookers. He quietly said to Hunter Jiang, “This… isn’t very good, is it?”
Hunter Jiang clicked his tongue, knowing that the young man’s courage wasn’t that great. He didn’t force him to go inside to grab things but went to the family’s kitchen himself. Under their hostile stares, he calmly took a large basket and then casually grabbed a bottle of soy sauce, a few bags of salt, and all the dry spices he could see in the kitchen.
The family watched in pain, feeling heartbroken, but since these items weren’t particularly valuable, they could only endure it. Afterward, he went to the nearby vegetable garden and pulled out a half basket of various vegetables, filling it up almost completely.
For the villagers, a basket of vegetables wasn’t worth much, and some even wondered why he didn’t look for more valuable items.
Watching her family’s belongings being taken away, the thug’s mother collapsed onto the ground, crying out dramatically. Unable to curse Hunter Jiang, she instead pointed at her useless son and husband, cursing them instead, going so far as to insult her ancestors for eighteen generations.
Listening to her wailing, Qu Qing surprisingly found it somewhat artistic. In her complaints, she depicted how a good woman, who had married down, was worn down into a haggard wife by this family. Now, she couldn’t even protect her home and lamented that life wasn’t worth living, implying she might as well be dead—truly, it was heartbreaking for anyone who heard it.
Just as Qu Qing was about to advise Hunter Jiang to let it go, Hua Zizhou whispered in his ear, “Everything she’s saying is all a lie. Who in the village doesn’t know that when she came here, she was already pregnant? She’s known as a notorious troublemaker in the village, always sneaking into other people’s fields to steal things. When she’s caught, she doesn’t even admit it. One time, when I wasn’t around, she even pinched little Mao’er, leaving bruises on his arm!”
Upon hearing this, the little flicker of sympathy Qu Qing had immediately turned into schadenfreude. He even thought about giving this woman a rap.
Now, he wondered why everyone nearby wasn’t comforting her or offering a helping hand. This woman’s acting skills were truly at an award-winning level!
Afterward, Hunter Jiang took an axe and a hoe, handed them to Qu Qing, and then grabbed half a bag of potatoes and two one-month-old puppies that had just been born. Then the group prepared to leave.
The others saw that he mostly picked up items that were worthless and of little consequence aside from the two geese and two chickens, the others asked, “Hunter Jiang, is that all you’re taking?”
Hunter Jiang shrugged. “Isn’t it? Who told me to be kind? I don’t want to be like some people who take things to such an extreme that they leave others without a way to survive.”
“You’re way too kind!”
Everyone began to praise Hunter Jiang, and some even suggested that they should take the family’s cow to teach them a lesson.
Qu Qing watched in disbelief as Hunter Jiang managed to break into someone’s home, steal their belongings, and still be perceived as a good person by public opinion.
Awesome! Brother!
The robbed family looked at everyone in disbelief. The thug’s mother, who had been crying just a second ago, suddenly jumped up and fiercely argued with the person who suggested taking the cow away, while pointing a finger at their nose.
Hunter Jiang didn’t care about any of that. He cupped his hands together in thanks and said to everyone, “Thank you for your suggestions, but I’ve decided to let it go. Don’t forget to come buy meat from my place later. I’m in a good mood today, so I’ll sell it to everyone for a coin less per pound!”
As soon as the villagers heard about the meat, their spirits lifted, and their praises for him became even more genuine.
On the way back, Qu Qing wore a dazed expression, as if he were in a dream.
Hunter Jiang comforted him, saying, “Brother, don’t feel pressured. We just came out for a stroll and picked up some seasonings to cook meat at home.”
Qu Qing nodded.
Well, just “taking” it in that way.
He didn’t feel any pressure at all, nor was he worried about being put in a sack [3]kidnapped jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_3338691_1_3').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_3338691_1_3', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], }); by someone while walking on the road in the future. He didn’t mind the way that family had looked at him before they left, as if he had just killed their father. He’s certainly not afraid at all.
He just couldn’t understand why that group of people was glaring at him instead of Hunter Jiang or Hua Zizhou. Did they discover that he was actually the weakest among them?
“I don’t know why, but I just feel like crying,” Qu Qing said, staring blankly at the distant mountains.
Beside him, Jiang Zhu jumped up and down, his brows dancing with excitement. “Are you so moved that you want to cry?”
“Maybe…”
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