Originally, Li Gouzi’s family had lost some chickens, and his mother was cursing loudly at the doorstep.
But when she heard the villagers shouting that Zhao Jianjun might be the thief, she reluctantly decided to accept the unfair blame.
After all, her son made a living under Zhao Jianjun—she couldn’t afford to offend him!
However, the earlier commotion in the village had spread everywhere. The three households who had gone to Zhao’s house to make a fuss had already retrieved their chickens. Now, Li Gouzi’s family couldn’t sit still any longer.
Those were chickens!
And their son could have an extra egg every day!
The family huddled and discussed for a while, ultimately deciding to try their luck.
Li Gouzi patted his chest and assured his family that he had always had a good relationship with Zhao Jianjun. Since Zhao had returned the chickens to the others, surely he would give them some face if he asked himself.
The other families had similar thoughts.
Unexpectedly, they all showed up at the Zhao household together.
Li Gouzi bent forward and smiled ingratiatingly at Zhao Jianjun: “Captain, my family also lost two chickens yesterday.”
The others chimed in: “Captain! Captain! Our chickens were stolen too!”
Zhao Jianjun was already feeling suffocated with frustration—this was the first time in his life he had been wrongly accused!
And now, in front of so many people, he had to apologize to those wretched women!
If he had done it himself, fine. But he was being framed!
It felt like disaster had fallen from the sky while he was at home.
A heavy stone seemed to sit in his chest.
His eyes swept over the people nodding and smiling at him. He used to enjoy flattery, but now their smiles felt piercing. These people actually had the audacity to band together to mock him!
Unbelievable! The sky itself seemed to have turned upside down!
Anger had reached its peak. The earlier three families at least had some fake “evidence,” but these people?
Clearly, they were just trying to extort him!
Thinking Zhao Jianjun had lost his militia captain post, they came to kick him while he was down!
How had he never realized these cowards had such guts?
Gritting his teeth, he forced the words out: “You all say you lost chickens?”
Once they all confirmed, Zhao Jianjun completely lost it!
His father was the village captain!
How dare they assume he wouldn’t regain his position in time?
A bunch of shortsighted fools!
Zhao Jianjun’s fists flew wildly, screaming as he charged at them!
If he didn’t deal with these bastards today, how could he maintain authority in the militia?
The victims screamed in pain. They had dealt with Zhao Jianjun the longest and knew how vicious he could be.
If they tried to dodge, they’d get beaten even worse. All they could do was scream louder, make it look even more painful.
Only when Zhao Jianjun was too exhausted to continue did they slink home.
Li Gouzi had it the worst—his eyes swollen to narrow slits, blood at the corner of his mouth, limping along. Seeing her son in this state, his mother’s tears fell in pity.
“Zhao Jianjun is really despicable! You work under him, put in effort even without credit. If he didn’t want to return the chickens, fine—but to beat you?!”
Li Gouzi was crushed. Thinking back to the boasts he had made to his parents before leaving home, his heart turned icy. He had expected Zhao Jianjun might deny it, but never imagined he’d hit one of his own!
Years in the militia—even a dog earns some affection, right?
Now he clearly saw Zhao Jianjun’s true nature. If something serious happened, forget about sharing hardship—he might even get scapegoated himself!
This was picking on the weak, confident they couldn’t retaliate.
Li Gouzi and his family agreed—they couldn’t stay in the militia. That very day, his father contacted his brother in the county town and sent Li Gouzi to work as an apprentice there.
The other families had similar plans. Originally, they had managed to get their sons into minor militia positions through connections. Now, seeing Zhao Jianjun’s character, they had to make other arrangements.
That day, besides Li Gouzi, one other person left; the remaining three families stayed for the time being.
Even after beating them, Zhao Jianjun didn’t feel much better. He slouched into the house and saw Zhao Shizhong waiting in the main hall.
“Come with me.”
Father and son entered the main room.
Once inside, Zhao Jianjun, still feeling wronged, said: “Dad! I really didn’t do it!”
“I know. We were set up,” Zhao Shizhong’s face darkened as if water could drip from it.
“Who had the nerve! I’ll tear them apart!” Zhao Jianjun growled through gritted teeth.
Zhao Shizhong shook his head: “I initially suspected Ge Hongxia, but then the Sun and Xu families also came.
Ge Hongxia has some skills, but there’s no way she could convince the other two families to join in slandering us. Your father believes there’s a hidden mastermind behind this.”
Hearing this, Zhao Jianjun shivered. Who could be so powerful as to get three families to gang up on the Zhao household?
Remember, his father was the village captain—this was like plucking hairs off a tiger!
Zhao Shizhong picked up the dry tobacco pipe from the kang, puffing steadily.
“Keep a low profile for a while. Don’t stir up trouble, or others will find a loophole.
As long as we stay patient, the fox will eventually show its tail.”
Zhao Jianjun nodded, then hesitantly asked:
“Dad! If that old woman Ge Hongxia dares to defy you, won’t it affect your authority in the village if we don’t deal with her?”
Zhao Shizhong glanced at his still-naïve son and said calmly: “Today, I’ll give you another lesson.
For now, these families must not be touched.
If anything happens to them, I—the village captain—will be the first suspect. Then I’d really be finished.
You don’t need to worry. I have a plan. I’m only in my fifties; there’s plenty of time. Remember this:
A gentleman’s revenge can wait ten years.
They dared to provoke the Zhao family, thinking they could get away with it? Hmph! Not a single one will escape!”
Zhao Jianjun tensed, hesitatingly muttering: “Understood, Dad! The Sun family…”
Zhao Shizhong tapped his son’s head with the pipe and scolded: “You lecherous fool! If the Sun family really wanted to marry into us, they wouldn’t have come openly to challenge us. They never intended to marry their daughter to you. Forget those silly thoughts!
Even if they agree now, I won’t let Sun Xiaofang marry into our family!”
Though unwilling, Zhao Jianjun nodded in agreement.
Taking another puff, Zhao Shizhong asked: “Why were you fighting outside just now? You need to restrain yourself—plenty of eyes are on us.”
Zhao Jianjun’s face darkened: “It was Gouzi and the others. They came saying their chickens were stolen too! No evidence—just trying to extort me!”
Zhao Shizhong looked at his son reproachfully: “How do you manage your subordinates? Even as mere servants, they dare to lord it over you?”
Zhao Jianjun flushed, ashamed. He had been too lenient before, which is why they had dared to push him. He stammered, unsure how to explain to his father.
Seeing his son’s guilty expression, Zhao Shizhong softened, remembering his own grievances from today.
“Forget it. They got beaten! But they’ll need proper discipline going forward, so they know who the real master is.”
“Understood, Dad!”
Just then, the door opened, and Du Hong walked in, her face still bandaged.
Zhao Shizhong, unlike outside, was no longer acting tender. After thirty-plus years together, his deep care for this aging woman had long faded—it was all for show.
“Where’s that fool Chunxing?!”
If not for her today, this wouldn’t have escalated. Maybe it could have been handled quietly.
“She went back to her family!”
Du Hong’s face was injured, and speaking was difficult, but even Zhao Jianjun could tell she was angry.
And so… what of it?