An old fisherman who couldn’t stand it anymore suddenly spoke up.
“That’s a mud carp. It’s a freshwater fish—there’s no way it could appear in the sea! Comrade, he probably realized something was wrong and is trying to change the subject!”
“Exactly! There are many kinds of sea fish, but people unfamiliar with them might be tricked by dishonest vendors into buying this as eel at a high price!”
Another fisherman immediately chimed in.
Liu Dazhuang shot a furious glare at Liu Qianqian, who had been frightened by the adults’ expressions and no longer dared to cry.
What a useless girl!
Liu Qianqian had already stood up by now. She nervously looked at her father’s expression, becoming even more frightened.
Ruanruan stood quietly nearby watching Liu Dazhuang.
She knew very well that arguing with Liu Qianqian about whether she had pushed her would be pointless. It would only drag Liu Dazhuang further into the situation.
When it was just two children quarreling, naturally no one would pay much attention.
“Ahem, that’s enough. I know you’re all jealous that I had good luck today and jumped straight to eighteenth place in the rankings. But that’s my luck—and my ability! I’ve been by the sea all day. Besides, the bucket got knocked over. Who knows where those fish came from? I’m telling you—without evidence, don’t talk nonsense. Be careful or I’ll sue you!”
Hearing this, Ruanruan glanced at Liu Dazhuang.
This guy was surrounded by bad luck—how could he possibly have good fortune?
The people around them immediately began booing. After all, they weren’t fools; everyone knew Liu Dazhuang had a problem.
But unfortunately, no one had concrete evidence. If he insisted he didn’t know how the fish ended up in the sea, they really couldn’t do anything about it.
Ruanruan stared at Liu Qianqian and said,
“Could it be that the fish fell from the sky? Maybe they can fly into Uncle’s bucket? That’s so magical! Cousin Qianqian, I must buy one to study when we go home!”
Hearing this, Liu Qianqian immediately looked at the fish in Ruanruan’s hand and burst out laughing.
“Ruanruan, you’re so stupid! How could fish possibly fly? You’re really just a little kid!”
“Then how did the fish get into your family’s bucket?”
“Of course they were bought! Ahem… I mean, the fish in our bucket were all caught from the sea! Our family would never buy fish from fishermen and pretend we caught them!”
Liu Qianqian suddenly realized she had let something slip, and when she noticed Liu Dazhuang’s face becoming darker and darker, she hurriedly tried to correct herself.
Unfortunately, the people present weren’t deaf.
They immediately let out meaningful “Ohhh” sounds and started teasing.
Someone deliberately mimicked Liu Qianqian’s words.
“Our fish were all caught from the sea~”
“So shameless. If you bought them, just admit it! Why lie to us?”
Liu Dazhuang’s face turned red. Raising his voice angrily, he shouted,
“Stop slandering me! You’re just jealous of my good results. I spent the whole day fishing!”
Unfortunately, not a single person present believed him.
At that moment, even the local organizer of the fishing competition—Niu Dali, the village chief of Huanghua Village—spoke up.
“That’s enough! Why are you all making such a fuss? Liu Dazhuang, your results in this competition are hereby canceled!”
“What?!”
Liu Dazhuang had never expected his results to be canceled outright. Thinking about the hundred yuan he had spent, his heart ached.
“There must be a misunderstanding! Village Chief, listen to my explanation—”
“Enough. I may be old, but I’m not stupid. I’ve dealt with fish my entire life. Your lies might fool a three-year-old child—but even a five-year-old wouldn’t believe you!”
“You’re just biased!” Liu Dazhuang retorted. “You’re favoring others because you’re afraid my results will take your spot!”
“If you think it’s unfair, you can go complain to the higher authorities. I don’t mind. But whether you can withstand an investigation—that’s another matter.”
That single sentence instantly shut him up.
Liu Dazhuang knew very well that he wouldn’t survive an investigation.
He resentfully swept his gaze across everyone present.
Finally, unable to hold back, he slapped Liu Qianqian across the face.
“This is all your fault for knocking over my bucket and causing this whole mess!”
Even after being slapped, Liu Qianqian didn’t dare say anything. She could only clutch her cheek.
Liu Dazhuang then glanced at Ruanruan, who ranked first in the competition, and suddenly lowered his voice.
“I’m a grown man and can’t even catch that many fish. How could Lin Ruanruan, a little girl, possibly be first place? Maybe Lin Dayong bribed the village chief beforehand and is pulling some tricks behind the scenes!”
Hearing this, Liu Qianqian’s eyes lit up.
She immediately jumped forward and pointed at Ruanruan.
“Wait! If you cancel my dad’s results, you should cancel Ruanruan’s too! She must have bought fish from fishermen and pretended she caught them herself. Otherwise, how could she possibly get first place?”
“‘Too’? Cousin, does that mean you’re admitting Uncle bought those fish?” Ruanruan immediately countered. “Oh right, I think I saw Uncle standing together with a man wearing a straw hat—he looked like a fisherman!”
Liu Qianqian froze.
Subconsciously she looked toward her father for help, only to find his gaze filled with vicious anger.
She began trembling with fear.
Liu Dazhuang hadn’t expected that after just one remark from Lin Ruanruan, Liu Qianqian would stand there like a wooden post.
And he could feel the mocking looks from the people around him.
Furious, he slapped Liu Qianqian across the face again.
“Idiot! What nonsense are you talking about?!”
Even after the slap, he still wasn’t satisfied. He raised his foot and kicked her.
Normally, when a father disciplined his own child, people nearby wouldn’t interfere.
But now it looked like Liu Dazhuang intended to beat her half to death.
The crowd immediately rushed forward to stop him.
“You’re the one who did something wrong—why are you beating the child?!”
“Exactly! Your results are clearly suspicious. Just stop causing trouble!”
Everyone began criticizing Liu Dazhuang at once.
Faced with everyone’s ridicule, Liu Dazhuang could only lower his head and remain silent.
Liu Qianqian was helped up. When people checked her injuries, they were shocked to discover many bruises hidden beneath her clothes.
It seemed the little girl was beaten quite often.
Even at this moment, Liu Qianqian was still thinking about her father. She grabbed the arm of the person beside her and pleaded,
“Auntie, my dad didn’t cheat. He really caught those fish himself!”
“Good child, the matters of adults have nothing to do with you.”
Liu Meihua was not only Niu Dali’s wife but also the women’s affairs director of their village.
Seeing the girl in such a pitiful state made her furious. She immediately went to find the village chief and told him about Liu Qianqian’s situation.
Niu Dali had already been extremely dissatisfied with someone like Liu Dazhuang.
After hearing this, he made a firm decision.
“Disqualify Liu Dazhuang from the competition!”