The entrance to the military compound fell silent instantly.

Several pairs of eyes instinctively turned to Jiang Linchuan.

Deep down, no one believed he would accept bribes, but now it's undeniable that he did accept chickens, and there really was gold hidden inside them.

"Make way." Xu Xinghe pushed through the crowd and quickly walked behind Jiang Linchuan.

She got up before dawn to get ready and was drawing her eyebrows in front of the mirror when she heard that something had happened at the entrance of the military compound. She was so scared that she ran out before she had even finished drawing half of her eyebrows.

Fortunately, she was naturally beautiful, and even without makeup, she was still lovely. At this moment, with one eyebrow light and the other thick, her face looked even whiter, and her eyes were as bright as black grapes soaked in water.

When the military wife next to her saw her arrive, she quickly lowered her voice and explained the whole story.

Upon hearing the words "accepting bribes," Xu Xinghe's expression instantly turned serious.

This is no small matter. Once you get involved, you must undergo a strict investigation. Ordinary soldiers are strictly prohibited from crossing this red line, let alone someone who is in command.

Jiang Linchuan remained calm, showing no sign of panic, and said in a steady voice, "Yesterday, when I returned from town, I immediately delivered the chicken to the canteen. Many people saw it."

He looked at Erlaizi and said, "If I had known there was gold inside the chicken and really wanted to accept this bribe, why wouldn't I have taken it out first and instead sent it directly to the cafeteria to share with everyone?"

The canteen lady who came over immediately chimed in, "That's right. When Commander Jiang brought the chicken over, we were all there. He even told us to stew it into soup for lunch to add to the soldiers' meal. It's such a tiny piece of gold, we might not even notice it when we're handling the chicken. If it's stewed into the soup, either someone will bite into it or swallow it with the soup. Who would know then?"

"That's right, these are all dry toilets. If you actually eat it, you won't be able to find it once you've excreted it!"

Erlaizi was speechless. When he discussed it with Xu Mingli, he never expected that Jiang Linchuan would send the chicken directly to the cafeteria and even plan to share it with everyone.

After struggling for a while, he could only grit his teeth and repeat, "Anyway...anyway, he accepted my things!"

Just then, the crowd parted again, and this time it was Political Commissar Wang who came.

His brows were furrowed, and his face looked extremely grim.

Why are there always people causing trouble in front of the military compound lately?

Before, it could be said that Li Xingzhou and Wang Zhizhi were up to something, but now those two have long since disappeared, so how did this kind of thing suddenly appear!

It seems we need to set some rules; we absolutely cannot allow irrelevant people to gather and make noise at the entrance anymore!

Erlaizi knew Political Commissar Wang.

Everyone in the neighborhood knows him.

He quickly stepped forward, "Political Commissar, you've finally arrived! Look, Commander Jiang took my family heirloom! You have to stand up for me!"

"What do you expect me to do?" Political Commissar Wang asked in a cold tone.

Erlaizi felt intimidated by the man's gaze, sensing that the other man didn't seem inclined to stand up for him. Nevertheless, he braced himself and said, "Return the family heirloom to me first, then severely punish Commander Jiang. Otherwise, we won't be able to convince the people. What if others follow his example and take things from ordinary people?"

Political Commissar Wang trusted Jiang Linchuan from the bottom of his heart, and he knew without asking that there must be something fishy going on.

Protect your own soldiers!

He sneered, "You scoundrel, you can't even write your own name, yet you know the words 'severe punishment to appease the public'? You've got some skills."

"I...I heard from others that it's not okay?" Er Laizi's voice grew softer and softer, and he became more and more panicked.

Political Commissar Wang raised his hand to interrupt him, "Stop talking nonsense. I will investigate this matter thoroughly. As the person involved, you must cooperate with the investigation. From today onwards, you will stay at the military headquarters. You can go home when the matter is clarified."

"No, I won't go!" Erlaizi was so scared that his face turned pale. What was the difference between going to the military headquarters and going to jail?

What if the other party tries to coerce a confession through words or actions?

What if he dies inside?

He hasn't even been able to continue the Zhou family line yet!

"You have to go, whether you like it or not!" Political Commissar Wang said firmly. "Didn't you say Commander Jiang accepted bribes? If you want an explanation, you have to cooperate with the investigation!"

Erlaizi gritted his teeth, pondering how to refute.

Suddenly, a villager stumbled to the door, shouting in a panic, "Erlaizi, something terrible has happened! Your father has hanged himself! You'd better go back and check on him!"

"What did you say?" Er Laizi froze on the spot as if struck by lightning, his eyes wide open. "My dad... he hanged himself?"

That's impossible!

When he left in the morning, his father was perfectly fine and even told him to come home early for breakfast. How could he suddenly hang himself?

"It's true!" The villager, holding his knees, gasped for breath. "Someone passed by your house and heard your father crying inside, saying that he had given away the family heirloom, which prevented you from getting married and that he was cutting off the family line, and that he was sorry to his ancestors. A while later, when someone went by, he was already hanging from the roof beam!"

The scene fell into a deathly silence, and everyone's expression changed.

Commissar Wang's brows furrowed even more, and his expression became grave.

If it were just Erlaizi causing trouble, he could have suppressed it, but now that someone has died, this is no small matter!

Er Laizi's mind was buzzing, a complete mess.

His father had no idea about any family heirloom. When he asked him to deliver the chicken, he used fortune-telling as an excuse. How could he have said something like that?

The only possibility is that his father didn't commit suicide, but was murdered!

And the only people who knew all this, besides him, were that teacher surnamed Shen!

It must have been that Chen An who did it!

Erlaizi lunged forward, grabbed the villager by the collar, and was about to shout the words "Shen'an" when he suddenly stopped.

He can't tell!

That Shen An is vicious and cunning. He must have already figured out a way to sever ties. If I dare to expose him, he can have Feng Qiushi take that bunch of keys to the police and say that I'm being a hooligan.

When Dad is gone, I'll be eating peanuts too, and the family line will truly end!

The villagers, struggling to breathe under his grip, cried out, "You scoundrel, are you insane? I came here to deliver a message, I didn't kill your father! Oh, by the way, someone asked me to tell you that he has your house key!"

"The key..." Er Laizi shuddered, a chill creeping up from the soles of his feet.

It really was a sunken bank!

That bastard isn't afraid of me exposing him at all!

Erlaizi is essentially a very selfish person; otherwise, he wouldn't only care about himself and completely disregard his father at home.

He spends any money he has on lavish meals and gambling, never giving a penny to his family.

My father now eats and drinks entirely from the land he tends himself.

Because of his advanced age and poor health, he couldn't grow much at all, and Erlaizi wouldn't help. In the end, it was only enough for the family to eat, and they couldn't afford any more. Later on, they even had to rely on the villagers for help.

So even though there were two men in his family, they were still the poorest in the village.

Even the only old hen was skin and bones, and it might not lay an egg for a week.

Erlaizi slowly released his grip.

Now that I have incriminating evidence against Shen An, does that mean I'm no longer afraid of Feng Qiushi reporting me to the police?

They might even be able to extort some money from Shen An!

Murder is a much more serious crime than hooliganism; at least I didn't actually do anything wrong!

No, it wasn't just one stroke!

Erlaizi was also quite clever, especially when it came to matters of interest. He suddenly turned to look at Jiang Linchuan and shouted at the top of his lungs, "It was you...it was you who killed my father! If you hadn't taken that chicken, my father wouldn't have been so heartbroken as to hang himself! You owe my father his life!"