Peace

When those people came in, they pried open the front door. The nearby neighbors quickly rushed over, and the grandmother next door cried out when she saw the broken lock. "Oh dear! Xiao Jin's house has been robbed!"

Another uncle arrived carrying a pitchfork. Fang Jin had tutored his youngest son and treated him to candy before. The man quietly said, "Wait here," then took the lead inside.

The uncle pushed the door open and flipped on the lights. The moment he saw the people lying on the floor, he cursed, "I knew it was you bunch of bastards!"

More than half the things in the room had been smashed. Even the last tender bud on Fang Jin's potted magnolia had been trampled away.

Before long, the neighbors all crowded inside.

"Xiao Jin?" The grandmother next door was worried about Fang Jin's safety, but Lu Jiatang was holding Fang Jin tightly, the hostility on his face not yet gone. No one dared approach for the moment.

Fang Jin gently pushed Lu Jiatang, but failed to move him. So he poked his head out and said, "I'm fine, Grandma."

The grandmother cautiously glanced at Lu Jiatang. "And this is...?"

"I'm Xiao Jin's brother." Lu Jiatang spoke smoothly, his expression gradually softening. "I came to see him and happened to run into this."

Fang Jin pursed his lips, tacitly accepting the claim. The distinctive scent of sandalwood clung to Lu Jiatang's body and lingered around his nose.

The uncle asked, "Are you hurt?"

"I'll take him to the hospital," Lu Jiatang said. "We'll have to trouble you uncles with the rest."

He sounded so utterly natural about it that his "uncles" stirred up everyone's sense of responsibility. The uncle waved a hand. "You go on ahead. We'll call the police and handle