Chapter 116
After giving instructions to the two, Mu Zhaoye walked to Zhou Lin's side and asked, "Any clues?"
Zhou Lin nodded slightly, "Although this piece of land is messy, you can roughly make out the footprints of two men."
Upon hearing this, Mu Zhaoye looked down and examined the footprints closely. Following the direction of the footprints, he could indeed see that one was larger than the other.
"While there are still clues, we should quickly find the person."
As Mu Zhaoye spoke, he picked up a bamboo stalk from the side. The two of them didn't say anything more and followed the footprints carefully all the way.
The footprints of the same size ended at the neighbor's house next to Zhou's house.
Mu Zhaoye said softly, "I suppose this is the place."
In Zhou Lin's eyes, there was anger, shock, and even more disbelief.
"How could it be his house? How could it be?"
The neighbors next to the Zhou family were also a family who had fled from other places and settled in Mujia Village; their surname was Wang.
Zhou Lin had known Wang's eldest son since childhood. Neither of them was favored by their parents, and perhaps because they shared a similar plight, they got along quite well.
The two families' fields were close together, and they would often help each other out while working in the fields.
The two later married. After Zhou Lin separated from the family, they saw each other less often. But in Zhou Lin's memory, the Wang family members were all honest and hardworking farmers.
He couldn't believe it, no matter who in his family had damaged his land.
Mu Zhaoye said softly, "Whether it is or not, just knock on the door and see."
Zhou Lin calmed himself down and pounded on the gate of the Wang family compound.
The footsteps inside the door sounded somewhat hurried, and someone whispered, "Who is it? So early in the morning."
Upon closer listening, one could hear a slight tremor in the person's voice.
Mu Zhaoye had a plan in mind; he was afraid this family was definitely not going anywhere.
"Open the door, or I'll kick it down!"
Mu Zhaoye said in a deep voice, "There's really no need to be polite to people who are so envious and can't stand seeing others do well."
The two made quite a commotion, and the gates of several neighboring houses quietly opened, revealing a few dark heads peeking out.
The people inside seemed startled and opened the gate before Zhou Lin and Mu Zhaoye could run out of patience.
"Ah Lin, it's you. What's wrong? Is something the matter?"
Wang's eldest son chuckled awkwardly.
Zhou Lin had never seen him look so guilty before, and his heart sank immediately.
"Brother Wang, do you know why I've come?!" Zhou Lin's voice was slightly deep.
"I...I'm not a mind reader, how would I know why you've come looking for me?"
Mu Zhaoye was too lazy to waste words with him. "Brother Lin's vegetable garden was destroyed. We followed the footprints here. What are you pretending to be innocent for?!"
Wang's eldest son turned pale immediately, but he stubbornly insisted, "Don't wrong an innocent person. These village roads aren't yours to stop people from walking on them. I was just passing by in the mountains yesterday when I went to collect firewood."
Zhou Lin and Mu Zhaoye were both burly men, and they were quite intimidating just standing at the door, let alone the fact that one of them was carrying a stick.
If Wang's eldest son hadn't been holding on, his legs would have given way and he would have collapsed to the ground long ago.
Zhou Lin said in a deep voice, "There are many footprints, but there is only one at the very top, and it is the same size as my vegetable garden. If you don't tell the truth, I will have no choice but to report to the authorities and ask the magistrate to give me justice!"
Mu Zhaoye chimed in from the side, "Tsk tsk, with this vegetable garden ruined, Brother Lin's family has lost a lot of income. Even if we calculate it less, it'll still be two taels of silver a month. I wonder how many lashes they'll get."
The eldest son of the Wang family turned pale immediately. He was timid, and the fact that Zhou Lin and Mu Zhaoye were able to find him meant that the county yamen runners were probably more capable than the two of them.
Now, having been frightened by Mu Zhaoye, he's lost all his courage. Yesterday, he dared to ruin the Zhou family's vegetable garden, but last night, he acted impulsively out of anger. When he returned from the Zhou family's vegetable garden, he regretted it somewhat.
“A-Lin, you…you can’t report this to the authorities. Your mother came with me yesterday. If you report this, you’ll be sending your own mother to the county government office!”
Upon hearing this, the neighbors who were secretly watching the commotion gasped in shock, let alone Zhou Lin.
"What...what did you say?!"
Once the eldest son of the Wang family had spoken, he simply spilled everything.
He was timid to begin with, and without anyone egging him on, he truly had the desire to steal but lacked the courage.
"Ever since you married Jin Ge'er, I've been incredibly jealous. Who is Jin Ge'er? He's the most handsome and capable man in the village. He could have married anyone else, but he chose to marry someone who isn't even as good as me."
As Wang's eldest son spoke, he became so angry that he almost made Mu Zhaoye, who was standing to the side, laugh.
"Not long after, you separated from the family and learned a trade from Uncle Heng. Your life became more and more prosperous. Now your family has built a new house and dug a well. You were originally a man like me, or even worse than me. Why should you be ahead of me?"
Zhou Lin's face was gloomy, his fists clenched, and his mind was in turmoil.
Mu Zhaoye laughed angrily, "You're really shameless. Instead of working hard to earn money and make a good living, you're holding a grudge against men who are more hardworking and capable than you."
Wang's eldest son turned pale, feeling quite ashamed after what he was said. But then, as if remembering something, he suddenly felt a bit more confident.
“It’s not my fault. It’s all your mother’s fault. She can’t stand to see you doing well. I was just resentful in my heart. It was your mother who spoke ill of you to my husband time and time again, saying that you were unfilial and didn’t deserve such a good life. When I said I would ruin your vegetable garden, it was just something I said to my husband in a fit of anger. But when your mother heard it, she took it to heart.”
Zhou Lin forced out a sentence, "Because she was with you, she just watched you destroy my vegetable garden?!"
Wang's eldest son nodded. "A-Lin, I know I was wrong and regret it. Please forgive me for the friendship we had when we worked together. Besides, the vegetables in the garden are only worth a few coins now. Don't let this small amount of money ruin our brotherhood that we grew up together."
Zhou Lin, her eyes red-rimmed, said, "Zhao Ye is right, you really are shameless!"
No sooner had he finished speaking than his fists struck the face of the eldest son of the Wang family from both sides.
"This punch is for my husband, and this punch is for my still-laughable heart that still cherishes our past affection."
Wang's eldest son, who had been observing, suddenly became restless, but was stopped by Mu Zhaoye with a bamboo pole.
"Don't move. No matter if you're male, female, young, or old, I'll hit you."
One sentence stopped the Wang family from moving forward.
Zhou Lin has been eating well and dressing warmly for over a year, and has become much stronger.
Wang's eldest son was no match for him. He was pitifully beaten by Zhou Lin, each punch landing squarely on his skin, leaving him no strength to fight back.
After Zhou Lin vented his anger, he picked up a wooden stick from the side.
“I’ll go and invite the village chief. Your family should prepare the money. You must pay whatever compensation is due, not a single copper coin less, and you also have to include my husband’s medicine costs.”
Wang's eldest son, his face swollen, said, "You can only blame your mother. If she hadn't egged me on, I wouldn't have gone and ruined your vegetable garden."
Upon hearing this, the Zhou family's courtyard gate, which had been closed, was immediately flung open.
"Young man of the Wang family, don't spout nonsense! You're trying to frame me? Would I destroy my son's land?!"
Wang's eldest son's husband helped him up and, upon hearing this, shouted, "Shut up, you old hag! If it weren't for your guarantee that Zhou Lin wouldn't dare cause trouble with you around, would my husband have gone?! Now you're quick to run away!"
Zhou Laosan came out of the courtyard. "Wang family, don't make false accusations. My wife stayed home all night and never went out!"
"Then do you dare to take out your shoes from yesterday and compare them with the footprints in Zhou Lin's vegetable garden?!"
"What are you comparing? There are plenty of families in the village with feet of similar size!"
Watching them fight like dogs, Zhou Lin's heart grew colder than an icicle in the dead of winter.
Why did the footprints only end at the Wang family's place? Perhaps Zhou Wushi was sharp-eyed and meticulous, and feared that if she really found her here, she would have circled back home from somewhere else.
Zhou Wu had never seen Zhou Lin look at her with such eyes before; they were like a pool of icy water, filled only with chilling coldness, devoid of any emotion.
He shouted, "Why...why are you looking at me like that?! Did you really believe their nonsense?! The vegetable garden at home is ruined, is that retribution for your unfilial behavior towards your parents?!"
The more guilty she felt, the louder she spoke, as if that were the reasoning behind her words.
Zhou Wushi originally intended to use this incident to teach Zhou Lin a lesson, to let him know that his lack of filial piety towards his parents had brought trouble upon him, and that he would be more filial to him and Zhou Laosan in the future.
Unexpectedly, the eldest son of the Wang family was so easily frightened that he blurted out everything before he even knew what was going on.
Zhou Lin withdrew his gaze, no longer harboring any familial feelings towards Zhou Wu Shi.
Fearing that he couldn't control these people by himself, Mu Zhaoye called over a young man who was watching the commotion and asked him to invite Village Chief Mu over.
Based on the losses to the vegetables in the vegetable garden, Wang's eldest son had to compensate Zhou Lin for two months' worth of vegetables, totaling five taels of silver. Adding the five qian of silver that Mu Jin spent on medicine, the total came to five taels and five qian.
Zhou Wushi vehemently denied it, and the footprints were broken at the Wang family's house. In front of so many people, the eldest son of the Wang family personally admitted that he had gone and ruined the Zhou Lin family's vegetable garden.
Village Chief Mu had no choice but to force Zhou Wushi to hand over the silver.
The eldest son of the Wang family was never liked by the elderly couple, so after this incident, he naturally cried and made a scene, refusing to pay any money.
Mu Zhaoye slammed his stick on the ground, rubbed his fist, and said, "Fine, you don't have to give me money. My brother and I are already furious, so we'll take it out on you. Don't complain about the pain if you break our arms and legs!"
He swung his arm as if he was about to start a fight.
This terrified the Wang family. Mu Zhaoye was a man who had returned from the battlefield and was known for killing without blinking an eye!
Who could withstand a punch from him?
The elderly Wang couple immediately stopped crying. Urged by their second son, they sheepishly got up, went back into the house, and brought out the silver.
Zhou Lin accepted the silver without glancing at Zhou Wushi again. He thanked Village Chief Mu and then hurried home with Mu Zhaoye.
As Zhou Wu watched Zhou Lin's hurried departure, she knew that although she had no evidence, Zhou Lin no longer believed her.
Zhou Laosan glared at her, "Feeling better now?!"
Zhou Wu regained her composure and snorted, "No matter how much money he earns, it won't be for us. Poor Erming, such a filial man, yet he has the bad reputation of being divorced. He should be taught a lesson."
Zhou Laosan sighed, thinking of his eldest son who was getting further and further away, and didn't say anything more.
In their minds, summer vegetables were worthless, and they wouldn't feel bad even if Zhou Lin ruined them.
It's not like we're without food at home.
When Zhou Lin arrived home, Mu Jin had already woken up and was drinking the medicine that Wen Zhaoran had prepared for him.
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