Song Anxin followed Lin Dongzi. At this time, the sun was setting, and there were many villagers returning from work by the roadside. Since the last time Song Anxin's family had a happy occasion, many women had been received by Song Anxin. After chatting with Song Anxin, these women felt that Song Anxin was not as difficult to talk to as before.
So two or three women greeted Song Anxin, but Song Anxin was in a hurry and didn't have time to chat with them. She just smiled politely at them. Even so, these women felt that Song was really different now, because she could smile at them now.
They arrived at their destination quickly. Song Anxin recognized this as Lin Shitou's house. Hadn't the two of them been having a great time together that afternoon? Had they quarreled?
As soon as Song Anxin entered the courtyard, she witnessed a horrifying scene: Lin Fengshou was being beaten on the ground by Lin Shitou's father, Lin Laizi, while a group of villagers tried to break up the fight.
Lin Shitou, his face covered in bruises, stood in front of his father, crying. Lin Shitou's mother had fallen to the ground for some unknown reason, and Granny Han was helping her up.
Lin Fengshou's face was covered in bruises, and blood was coming from the corner of his mouth.
"Stop!" Song Anxin shouted.
When the villagers saw Song Anxin arrive, they hurriedly said, "Oh, Fengnian's mother, you've finally come! I don't know what happened, but Lin the Drunkard started fighting with Fengshou. This half-grown child is no match for Lin the Drunkard. If we hadn't come to pull him away, Fengnian would have been beaten to death by him."
Lin Laizi was also known as Lin the Drunkard, because he liked to drink all day long, so everyone gave him that nickname.
When Lin Fengshou saw his mother arrive, he quickly scrambled to his feet and called out softly like a child who had done something wrong, "Mother..."
Song Anxin pulled Lin Fengshou behind her and said, "Lin, you drunkard! What did my son do to you that you beat him to death like this? If you don't give me a proper explanation today, we're going to see the authorities!"
Lin, the drunkard, reeking of alcohol and slurring his words, said, "Second Sister-in-law Lin, you've come at the right time! Your son actually conspired with my son to steal my money. If you want to see the authorities, let the yamen runners arrest your son and put him in jail!"
Han Xiaohe, standing nearby, said angrily, "No way! This is what I earned working in town with Brother Fengshou and Brother Shitou. You're the one who came to steal our money and called us thieves."
Han Xiaohe and Lin Shitou were Lin Fengshou's two best friends in the village. Lin Fengshou and Lin Shitou were both sixteen years old, while Han Xiaohe was a little younger and was fifteen years old this year.
Song Anxin finally understood. Of course, he didn't believe that Lin Fengshou would steal money. He thought that Lin the Drunkard was taking advantage of their young age and stealing their money.
"Bullshit! Where did you half-grown kids get your money? You stole it from me!" Lin the Drunkard said arrogantly.
Lin Fengshou got angry when he saw that he was still talking nonsense and went up to fight him, but the others quickly stopped him.
Song Anxin stretched out her hands and shouted, "Stop!"
She turned her head and looked coldly at Lin the Drunkard: "Lin the Drunkard, since you say the money is yours, then tell me how much money is in this bag? And where did you get this money?"
Lin Jiugui clutched a money pouch in his hand, feeling a little guilty under Song Anxin's gaze: "This... this is probably two or three hundred coins. It's what I painstakingly saved up. How about it?"
He hadn't even had a chance to open the money bag and count how much money was in it yet. He just needed to give a rough estimate and then say he'd misremembered.
Song Anxin nodded and said methodically, "Okay, everyone, have you heard me clearly? Now, you few, tell me how much money is in this money bag, where did it come from, and what else can prove that this money is yours?"
Lin Fengshou immediately said, "There are a total of 270 coins in here. It's the money that Shitou, Xiaohe, and I got from helping Master Wang build his estate in the county. We worked for nine days, and we earned 30 coins a day."
Upon hearing this, Lin the Drunkard became even more arrogant: "Do you think I'm a three-year-old kid trying to fool me? Why would the Wang family in the county need little brats like you when they're building a house?"
Lin Shitou, whose face was covered in injuries, hurriedly said, "Father, at first the foreman refused to hire us, only wanting the strong men. It was Fengshou who said that if the three of us worked together, we would only get paid one share, and that's when the foreman agreed."
"That money bag in your hand was sewn for me by my grandma. It has three white lines embroidered on it. Grandma said it represents my name, Xiaohe," Han Xiaohe said, pointing to the money bag.
The villagers followed Han Xiaohe's hand and looked at the black cloth money bag. There were indeed three white lines embroidered on it, which were very eye-catching. Lin Jiugui hurriedly covered the mark, but it was too late. All the villagers present had seen it.
Now everyone understood. Judging from Lin the Drunkard's expression, it was impossible to say exactly how much money he had. This money belonged to the three kids, and this shameless Lin the Drunkard was trying to extort it.
So everyone started to speak up in support of the injustice.
"Lin the Drunkard, you stole someone's child's money and then hit them! You're not a real man!"
"That's right, Lin the Drunkard! If I were you, I'd bury my face in my crotch! It's so shameful!"
"......."
When Lin Jiugui saw everyone starting to berate him, he was ashamed and indignant, but still tried to argue, "I...I misremembered, okay? I had 270 coins in my money bag, this money bag...money bag..." Lin Jiugui racked his brains but couldn't explain why Han Xiaohe's money bag was in his hands.
Just as Lin, the drunkard, was stammering and unable to make sense of it, someone in the crowd exclaimed, "The village head is here!"
Everyone quickly looked outside and saw the villagers who had been watching outside the courtyard making way for the village head, who walked over with a serious expression.
Seeing this, Lin Jiugui seemed to have found a pillar of support and quickly called out, "Uncle."
Song Anxin felt a sense of unease. This drunkard Lin's father was the elder brother of the village head, and this drunkard Lin was also his nephew.
However, almost everyone in Linjia Village is surnamed Lin and has lived there for generations. They are all related by blood. Song Anxin's father-in-law is Lin Lizheng's cousin, her husband is her cousin's nephew, and she herself is his cousin's wife, which is a step away from Lin Jiugui, her own nephew.
Song Anxin's expression darkened. What if the village head showed favoritism towards his own nephew? As the saying goes, even a powerful dragon can't suppress a local snake. After all, he was the village head. If he really showed favoritism, she, a widow and orphan in the village, would probably have a hard time.
"Alright! You good-for-nothing! You drink all day long and your tongue is all thick with alcohol, has it corrupted your heart too! You even steal money from the kids, how did our Lin family end up with such a piece of trash!"
Lin Lizheng walked over and angrily cursed.
He rushed over when he heard that Lin Jiugui was causing trouble with the second son of the Lin family. He didn't expect that Song Shi was also there. Not only did she not cry or make a fuss, but she also made them prove their innocence in such a clear and organized way.
The day before yesterday, Lin Li was in the county on business and didn't see what Song Anxin said on the oxcart. When he went to officiate the wedding, he only felt that Song Anxin had become more amiable. But now, he feels that it's not just that.
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