Disperse
The New Year's banquet didn't end until the moon was high in the sky.
The old village chief of Zhoujia Village fell ill again before the Lunar New Year. He was already old, and now he looked like he had one foot in the grave. Everyone in the village knew this, but they just didn't say anything discouraging at the end of the year.
But everyone knows that without the old village chief to rely on, Zhou Zhi and Zhou Li, these two good-for-nothing sons, cannot establish the title of village chief.
No one in the village respected them.
Unfortunately, the two of them didn't think so.
Zhou Lexing glanced at the corner every now and then while helping to tidy up the table.
Since arriving here, Gu Jiansheng has only touched his chopsticks slightly and has been sitting there steadily ever since. He has a million vague answers to the villagers’ questions, and his gaze is fixed on Zhou Lexing.
It's not that either of them was competing with the other; they both stayed at the New Year's banquet, and neither wanted to be the first to leave, so they dragged it out until the banquet ended.
Zhou Li arrived at this time.
He stood arrogantly in front of Gu Jiansheng, his chin slightly raised, his eyes looking down sideways, one hand resting on the table beside him, the other in his pocket. This posture, which should have been somewhat imposing, took on a slightly comical quality when pulled out by his short and stocky build.
Zhou Li, oblivious to his own arrogance, spoke in a way that made one's fists itch: "Gu Jiansheng, so you couldn't make it outside and ran to the village? Heh, I saw you were quite arrogant when you left. I knew it, with your arrogance after your parents died, how could you possibly hook up with a rich man's father? Were you kicked out by your family? What about Brother He who went with you back then?"
Gu Jiansheng coldly looked up at him, his lips slightly parted as if he was about to say something, but when he caught sight of Zhou Lexing quietly walking not far away, he closed his mouth again, not only shutting his mouth but also lowering his head.
That familiar timid look inadvertently fueled the bitterness and harshness that grew in Zhou Li's heart from the fire of jealousy.
"Let me tell you, I'm in charge of Zhoujia Village now. Aren't you supposed to be rich? Why haven't you brought back any New Year's gifts? If you know what's good for you, give them to me..."
Zhou Li's words came to an abrupt halt when someone forcefully slapped him on the shoulder.
He was about to unleash a torrent of curses, but when he caught a glimpse of the corner of the garment that had captured everyone's attention that day, he quickly shut up and even became cautious in turning around to look at it.
When Zhou Li actually saw the person he both envied and hated, even his last bit of courage vanished.
Zhou Lexing was originally a bully in the village. Later, the villagers said that he had changed his nature and was a good young man. But to him, the son of the village chief, Zhou Lexing was still as unruly as ever.
This man was incredibly skilled and extremely arrogant; he wouldn't give him a kind look just because he was the village chief's son.
Zhou Li had finally waited for Zhou Lexing to leave Zhoujia Village, but before he could be happy and smug for long, and even the number of times he cursed Zhou Lexing to die outside was less than a hundred, Zhou Lexing began to send good news back to Zhoujia Village one after another.
Zhou Li initially thought he was just bragging, but the money Zhou Lexing brought home couldn't be faked. Not to mention big items like a TV, even the front door of his house was completely renovated. Zhou Bobo and the others who went out with him were also in much better spirits.
Zhou Lexing had said before the Lunar New Year that he would help the village repair the asphalt road that had only been partially paved.
With this road, the village will no longer need to rely on tractors to go to town. The business of buying and selling livestock and fruits and vegetables alone will be enough to support these farmers who make a living from the soil.
Therefore, this achievement alone is enough to make the villagers extremely grateful to Zhou Lexing.
This is one of the reasons why every household focused their attention on Zhou Lexing at this year's annual banquet.
But in Zhou Li's view, Zhou Lexing was definitely making trouble for him.
Why would you want to steal the limelight from someone who's never home?
His father is dying.
In his quest to seize the position of village chief, he had been locked in a bitter standoff with his brother Zhou Zhi for quite some time. Just when he needed the support of the villagers, Zhou Lexing stole all their attention. Now, who remembered his boast that he would lead the villagers to buy an extra tractor and get the town's supply and marketing cooperative to spend more money to buy the village's rice, grain, vegetables, and fruits?
Zhou Li disliked Zhou Lexing, but when he tried to speak, he stammered due to the fear he was suppressing: "What are you doing?!"
"Let me tell you, this isn't a place for you to do whatever you want! If you dare lay a finger on me, I'll call the police right now!!"
The last character, "安," was twisted and deformed, rising upwards with a strange and sharp tone, attracting curious glances from those still busy around them. When they saw the person in question, they began to whisper among themselves.
Zhou Li felt as if his shoulder was about to break under Zhou Lexing's hand. He didn't know where this guy got such strength. The pain almost made him kneel down, but the iron-like force of his arm kept him frozen in place, unable to break free.
“Even if you were to report it to the police, it would be that young comrade who reported you for extortion first,” Zhou Lexing said calmly, without glancing at Gu Jiansheng at all. He simply said, “Apologize, or I’ll take you to town right now.”
As he spoke, he yanked Zhou Li's hand, causing Zhou Li, who was wincing in pain, to almost cry out again: "Fine, fine, fine! I..."
Zhou Li glared angrily at Gu Jiansheng, only to see a smile playing on Gu Jiansheng's lips as he looked up at him. This smile was like a slap in the face, making Zhou Li both angry and annoyed. He even showed a rare bit of backbone. Just as he was about to struggle again, he heard someone call out from the side.
"Le Xing, you can't do this."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Li immediately regained his confidence and raised his face, ready to add insult to injury, when he heard the man continue, "He's a tough nut to crack. Going against him is a waste of time. Just ignore him and treat his words like farts. Don't let him get involved with you, or things will get complicated later."
The familiar rhetoric and the bizarre change of position startled Zhou Li for a moment before he shouted at the man, "Who are you talking about!"
Back then, Zhou Lexing was the most notorious troublemaker and good-for-nothing in Zhoujia Village. How come he, the village chief's son, has become the object of the villagers' disgust?!
Zhou Lexing was also a little surprised, but he still nodded to the man as a way of thanking him: "I don't care about him, I just want him to apologize to my friend."
friend.
Gu Jiansheng pursed the word on the tip of his tongue, and the smile he had shown earlier vanished in an instant.
"Ouch!" Zhou Li felt another pain in his shoulder, and half of his body went limp. He only regretted that he was not a strongman and could not contend with Zhou Lexing, this bully. Otherwise, he would definitely have refused to submit to the death!
Moreover, how could these fellow villagers be so indifferent, so heartless, and so distort the truth? He is the victim! He is the future village chief of Zhoujia Village!
No matter how much Zhou Li was wailing and jumping up and down inside, outsiders were unaware of it, nor did they want to know.
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Is that alright?! Let me go! My shoulder is broken!" Zhou Li shouted, but his anger still lingered. He turned to Zhou Lexing and yelled, "No! You have to take me to the hospital! I can't lift my arm! It's all your fault! You're the one who ruined me!"
After Zhou Li finished speaking, he noticed that the villagers who had helped tidy up had gathered around him. The quiet whispers that had started immediately turned into a noisy murmur of pointing and whispering after hearing his words.
The person who was the first to advise Zhou Lexing immediately added insult to injury: "Lexing, you see? I told you he's a tough nut to crack. Once you're on his side, you can't get rid of him. Why did you have to do it?"
Zhou Li was so angry that he felt like he was choking on blood, and he couldn't help but shout in his defense: "He provoked me first! I didn't do anything!"
Another voice quickly rose from the crowd: "You bullied Xiao Gu first. Le Xing only attacked because he couldn't see it coming."
"Exactly! Do you think we're all blind?!"
Hearing this, Zhou Li stammered, but seeing that no one spoke up for him, the bitterness and resentment in his heart swelled up, making his eyes red: "You bunch of opportunists! Snobbish people! Do you think you can get anything by clinging to Zhou Lexing?! Let me tell you, you're just dogs at Zhou Lexing's feet! Do you think that throwing him a bone is some great benefit?! You're spineless! Look carefully, I'm the village chief of Zhoujia Village! If you keep taking sides like this, believe me, I'll get you later!"
There was a brief silence in the crowd, followed by an overwhelming and increasingly loud barrage of accusations and insults.
Zhou Lexing released Zhou Li and stepped aside. Looking at Zhou Li, who was gradually being surrounded in the center, his eyes were somewhat complicated. In a daze, it was as if he saw another Zhou Fugui, and once again he reenacted the scene he saw at the village chief's house when he was just about to leave Zhoujia Village.
Was it overconfidence that led them to self-destruct, or excessive inferiority that caused them to become blindly arrogant?
Are you worried about him?
A familiar, gentle voice reached Zhou Lexing's ears.
Gu Jiansheng had stood up from his seat at some point, giving up his place to the group of villagers who were pushing and shoving each other.
Now, the distance between Gu Jiansheng and Zhou Lexing was such that he could easily touch Zhou Lexing's arm hanging by his side when he raised his hand. However, Gu Jiansheng still did not move. He just raised his head slightly, looked at Zhou Lexing's profile, and spoke with a sense of scrutiny and measurement.
Zhou Lexing was taken aback by the question, but he forced himself not to turn around: "Why would I worry about him?"
He already disliked Zhou Li because of He Huaizhi, not to mention that Zhou Li is increasingly losing his sense of self-worth, acting wildly and causing a few foolish things in the village from time to time while being smug about it.
If Zhou Li hadn't provoked Zhou Lexing, things would have been fine for both sides. But judging from Zhou Li's arrogant remarks, which showed he didn't understand his place, it was only a matter of time before Zhou Li jumped in front of him.
The current village chief does have some power, but he can't control everything. Not to mention that Zhou Li isn't the village chief of Zhoujia Village yet, even if he did inherit his father's mantle, he wouldn't be able to do anything if the whole village opposed him. Moreover, Zhou Li hasn't even become the village chief yet, so such arrogant remarks probably mean he has no chance of becoming the village chief.
Zhou Lexing's thoughts were fleeting. He saw the villagers surrounding Zhou Li and cursing him. Knowing that he was out of the picture, he walked around them and stubbornly refused to look at Gu Jiansheng.
Zhou Lexing knew that if he looked back, all those unsettled emotions would surge forth, engulfing him completely, and he would never be able to find his anchor of reason again.
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