Chapter 10

Now this was awkward. The educated youths who had been clamoring to tear Jiang Xingnian limb from limb all fell silent. No one had expected Huo Qi, the easygoing fellow who dressed well and seemed to come from a good family, to have another side.

They could show Jiang Xingnian every ounce of their malice without holding back. His family background was bad, he kept to himself, and no one would stand up for him. He was a soft persimmon they could squeeze.

But Huo Qi was different. They thought of their friendships with him, and of how hard it was to speak against someone whose food they had eaten. Many hesitated, unwilling to be the first bird to stick its head out and ruin those relationships.

Lu Tinglan watched in amazement. Humans really are born with double standards. Do these people actually want to find the thief, or do they just want to smear Jiang Xingnian with the filth they've made up? There's nothing wrong with the big shot being handsome and outstanding! Keep squeezing him for two years and even a ball of cotton will develop a temper!

Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west. When my big shot comes back at full strength, not one of you who falsely accused him will get off easy!

But— As soon as Lu Tinglan paused to think, both men present tensed. But what? What had they missed now?

It was nothing important. Lu Tinglan's thoughts wandered as she seriously considered what to call Jiang Xingnian.

Calling him "big shot" in my head feels a little strange. What's a young big shot, then? A little shot? That doesn't sound right either. Calling him Xingnian is too familiar, and little shot is too funny. I'll just call him Jiang Xingnian from now on. Three simple words to warm my whole winter.

I choose you—Jiang Xingnian!

At the sound of his name in her thoughts, Jiang Xingnian instinctively straightened his back into a textbook "I'm a soldier" sitting posture.

Lu Tinglan glanced over and then couldn't look away. Her gaze stayed on Jiang Xingnian's face, making him sit even straighter without realizing it.

In the oddly tense Educated Youth Compound, Jiang Xingnian was the only one undergoing a drill all by himself.

After a long while, Mother Lu forcibly turned Lu Tinglan's attention elsewhere. Lu Tinglan muttered inwardly, Why does he puff out his cheeks when he's angry? Hehe, that's kind of cute!

Jiang Xingnian: "...That's it???"

She had given him a fright!

Mother Lu's eyelid twitched as she heard her daughter's thoughts. Even if Jiang Xingnian truly was some future big shot, as a mother, she didn't want her daughter involved with someone whose family background was so complicated.

She tried to send her daughter away. "Go see whether your father's here yet!"

Speak of the devil. Father Lu came running over, drenched in sweat. Mother Lu handed him a handkerchief with a look of disdain, her words as sharp as ever. "The road's covered in freshly melted snow, and you still ran that fast. If you take a tumble, don't expect me to look after you."

"As if I would. I know what I'm doing!" Father Lu wiped his sweat with a chuckle, then carefully tucked the handkerchief into his clothes.

Ew, showing off your love in public! Dad, quit grinning so wide!

What was wrong with showing off their love? Father Lu immediately felt a surge of superiority. You needed someone to love before you could show it off. Some people wanted to, but didn't even have a partner. If they couldn't stand it, they could keep on being jealous!

That was only a brief interruption. After catching his breath, Father Lu asked the educated youths, "You called me over in such a hurry. Tell me what happened."

He had already heard most of it on the way. It was about the thief they had never managed to catch at the Educated Youth Compound.

Father Lu hadn't wanted to get involved. He had rushed over because his wife and daughter were here, and he was afraid someone with ulterior motives would use them as weapons.

Since it had nothing to do with his family, Father Lu immediately wanted to wash his hands of it. The educated youths could go on making a fuss among themselves.

Lu Tinglan had no idea her father was hoping to slack off. The courtyard full of educated youths had gone as quiet as a row of sealed gourds, so she volunteered to explain what had happened.

"Today, Mother and I came to thank Educated Youth Jiang. We happened to find Zhou Zhuo catching a thief in the courtyard..."

With so many people listening, Lu Tinglan didn't embellish a thing. She gave a thoroughly fair account, though in her mind she had already punched and kicked those villains hundreds of times.

These people are disgusting. Stupid hypocrites. They came down hard on Jiang Xingnian, but tiptoe around the real thief. If they're happy to treat each other like this, those educated youths and Huo Qi deserve to be stuck together forever.

Cursing them in her head felt good, but that wasn't how the matter could be handled. Lu Tinglan blinked her almond-shaped eyes at her father.

Your Honor, please don't let your daughter down!

What on earth? Father Lu looked away awkwardly. How could one look from his daughter make him more nervous than giving a report to thousands of people in the county seat?

If he failed to satisfy his daughter today, who knew how long the little girl would talk about him behind his back?

Father Lu suddenly felt the weight of a mountain on his shoulders. He looked at Huo Qi. The man had the air of a dead duck insisting its beak was still hard, ready to resist to the bitter end. In that case:

"Two years of theft is no small matter. Report it to the police!"

"Why?" At the mention of the Police Station, Huo Qi was scared out of his wits. "I lost my head for a moment and took a little tea. How can you pin everything from the last two years on me? That's not fair!"

Father Lu didn't listen to his excuses. He immediately sent a fast runner to the county Police Station to report the case.

Theft could be a small matter or a large one; much depended on the cadres' attitude. Father Lu had made it a large matter in one stroke, catching everyone off guard.

"Village chief..." Zhou Zhuo was still dazed. How had Huo Qi suddenly become the thief? How had it gone so far that they were calling the police? They had been close friends for a long time, after all. When she caught Huo Qi's pleading look, her lips moved. "The theft might be a misunderstanding. My soap is still..."

Before she could finish, Lu Tinglan shot back, "How could it be a misunderstanding?"

Nyah, you hypocrite. Now you're worried!

Lu Tinglan looked at Zhou Zhuo and returned her earlier words verbatim, a smile that wasn't quite a smile on her face.

"Are you the thief's accomplice, or are you trying to buy him time? If the Police Station doesn't suit you, we can take this to the Revolutionary Committee and the Educated Youth Office and let them judge. What do you think?"

Now that the fire had reached her, Zhou Zhuo finally knew fear. Her face went pale as she shook her head. Then she darted into her room and locked the door tight. Even when her roommate wanted to come in, she held the door shut and refused to budge. She had been scared out of her wits.

Someone still needed to take charge at the Educated Youth Compound, and Father Lu was the obvious choice. Lu Tinglan had seen enough of the excitement and was ready to go home with her mother.

As Lu Tinglan passed Jiang Xingnian, she clenched her fist and gave him an encouraging gesture.

You've got this, brother! Now it's your turn to take revenge and crush the scum. Hurry up and unleash your kingly aura, punish the bad guys, and make them all your underlings. I'm rooting for you!

Jiang Xingnian: "..."

Even after Lu Tinglan had walked away, she was still muttering inwardly. Sorry, I got your character wrong. You're not some sneering Dragon King who humiliates his enemies. Jiang Xingnian is still growing. Better keep your head down a little. Lie low if you want to have a future!

"Xiao Jiang, are you all right?"

A string of coughs sounded behind her, followed by Father Lu's concerned voice. "You need to be careful when you drink water. See how awful it feels when it goes down the wrong way?"

Jiang Xingnian shook his head, then clutched his chest through another fit of racking coughs. He made up his mind never to drink water around Lu Tinglan again. Her thoughts made him want to laugh, and laughing made him choke. That couldn't be good for his lungs!

Stay away. He absolutely had to stay away!

On the way home, Mother Lu kept a firm hold on Lu Tinglan, who was as quiet as a chicken. In her mind, though, she began singing leisurely.

Oh, us ordinary folks~ So Happy Today...

She had helped a future big shot and done her good deed for the day. With two happy occasions at once, how could she not be cheerful? Lu Tinglan ran through every festive song she could think of, going from "So Happy Today" to "Good Luck Is Coming," and finally even reaching "Wishing You Prosperity."

I wish you prosperity, oh-oh-oh-oh~

The off-key, maddening singing rang in Mother Lu's ears without pause. She endured it and endured it. Her grip on her daughter's arm tightened, then loosened. At last, she let go in disgust and quickened her pace to escape the torment.

She couldn't take it. Not even from her own flesh and blood. The last shred of her motherly love was all that stopped her from giving the girl a smack!

Mother Lu walked quickly, forcing Lu Tinglan to hurry after her. But when they reached the gate, Lu Tinglan discovered someone had "stolen her home."

Not figuratively. Someone had literally broken in! Father Lu had left in such a hurry that the Lu Family's front gate stood wide open. Inside, the rooms they had kept clean and tidy had been ransacked. Lu Tinglan could see that even the straw mat on her bed had been lifted and searched beneath.

Holy crap, what happened? Have we been robbed?

In an era when every household was poor and people rarely traveled, a burglary was truly unusual.

"There's someone in the kitchen," Lu Tinglan whispered, tugging at her mother.

Mother Lu had already picked up a thick piece of firewood from the courtyard. The rustling in the kitchen stopped. The moment the little thief pushed open the door, Mother Lu swung the wood hard into her leg and shouted at the top of her lungs.

"There's a thief in my house! Somebody come quick! Catch the thief!"