"Why should I? Tell me, why should I give up my house if you're unwilling to share your things?"
“You all speak so matter-of-factly, I thought it was just a custom in this alley. If that’s the case, then whatever I want in the future, you all have to give it to me, otherwise it’s immoral, and I might cause a scene.”
Suti learned from her father after what happened to her grandmother that the wicked will be punished by the wicked, and reasoning with them is useless.
"Then...how can that be the same?" Several women were taken aback by her words, wanting to refute but unable to find a reason.
“Tell me, what’s different?” Suti laughed.
"This...this..." The group racked their brains but still couldn't figure out what went wrong.
"Comrade, I know we've been too forward and bothered you, and you're probably not happy about it, but you also know that housing is very tight these days."
“We genuinely want to rent your house. You can name your terms. There are only two people living in your house, and it's a waste to leave such a big yard empty.”
The men over there realized that the woman was being unreasonable, so they turned to Li Baichuan and said something.
Wouldn't it be better to rent it out? You can earn some extra income, and it's all done privately, so they won't report it.
We're all neighbors, and if we help each other, we'll remember their kindness.
“Are you talking to me? What my wife said is exactly what I wanted to say. You are indeed bothering us. We won’t rent our house, no matter what you say.” Li Baichuan said sincerely.
The men over there were dumbfounded. They had politely said "excuse me," but this guy was so clueless as to admit it so readily.
There's another grown man who's so useless, letting a woman run the household; they wouldn't even bother with him.
"Hmph, look at all the military vehicles that came to your wedding. You have soldiers in your family, right? Aren't soldiers supposed to serve the people?"
"Is it reasonable for you not to help the people when they are in trouble? And you claim this house as yours, do you have any proof?"
"I think you obtained this by abusing your power. Do you think you've lived up to the trust the people have placed in you?"
The men were all factory workers, and they were all permanent employees. They had met many important people and knew how to speak in a way that would intimidate others.
"Soldiers are there to protect our country. When it comes to solving the difficulties of the people, we have to consider who they are and whether they deserve our help. Don't try to scare me. What evidence do you have that we abused our power?"
"Baichuan, go report this to the police. I want to see if the higher-ups will care if you frame soldiers who are defending our country."
"We don't want to rent out our own house, and you're making unreasonable demands of us?"
"Also, notify the neighborhood office that since you're going to make trouble, I'll make trouble with you to my heart's content."
Suti had no intention of talking to them properly. They started with force, then reason, and finally resorted to moral blackmail and intimidation. If he didn't subdue them this time, who knew what would happen next?
Upon hearing his wife's words, Li Baichuan immediately nodded.
“Let me tell you, my wife is pregnant. If you dare to bully her after I leave, I’ll fight you to the death. You want to reason with us? We’ll find someone who can reason with you.”
Li Baichuan was worried, so he let his wife go in first, then locked the door and threatened the group of people outside before riding his bicycle to report to the police.
"What...what should we do? Why did we call the police?" Many people wanted to back down when they saw them like this.
"What are you afraid of? It's better if this gets blown up, then the neighborhood committee won't protect them anymore."
"Besides, we didn't do anything. We just wanted to rent a house and were willing to exchange goods. Nobody can say anything about us."
Some people backed down, while others persisted. Just thinking about that empty room filled them with a burning passion.
Once they move in, there's no way to kick them out. If we had a room like that, our son wouldn't have to worry about finding a wife in the future.
Those with many sons in the family refused to back down no matter what, and even thought about how they would cry and plead when the people from the Ministry of Public Security arrived.
This family must have had connections in the military, and in the end, they had to give up the house to save face.
The men knew better than anyone that soldiers deserved everyone's respect, but they were still subject to the constraints imposed by the people.
When they went on business trips to other places, they saw soldiers on the train who had sleeper tickets, but the old ladies would make a fuss and have to give them up.
"If you want to leave, then leave first." Several families who had their own ideas wanted to kick them out when they saw them arguing.
It's good that they've all left; then the house will be theirs, and they'll be worried that there won't be enough for so many people.
They all looked at each other warily, yet felt they shouldn't have come together to cause trouble. The more important thing now was who to rent the house to later.
Everyone had their own agendas, and no one wanted to leave. As for Suti and the others inside the house, they didn't intend to cause any trouble.
If something really happens, they won't be able to explain themselves even if they're in the right. They're not stupid.
Li Baichuan arrived quickly, and even though the street office staff had already left work, they were still summoned. Everyone was furious.
“Police officers, you must stand up for us, the people! Our family is a working-class family in Guanrong.”
"There are four sons in the family, and now they are crammed into a small room. The room is divided into several smaller rooms, and there is no room left. Two of the sons are married, so they can only share a bunk bed."
"Now we have two sons who are about to find partners, but we really can't fit them all in the house. We are facing difficulties, but we should try our best to overcome them."
“We would accept living on the main street, at the entrance of an alley, or in a passageway, but now, this family, by virtue of their military status, has two people occupying a large courtyard.”
“We went to the neighborhood office to ask, but they didn’t care at all. We’re not unreasonable people. Since that’s the case, we can rent…we can rent their house in kind, right?”
“But even so, they still disagreed, and even looked down on us workers in a condescending manner.”
As soon as the men saw the Ministry of Public Security personnel arrive, they rushed over and told them what had happened before the men could ask any questions.
The implication was that Su Ti and his group were abusing their power and were in cahoots with the street office.
Several men are much smarter than those women who only know how to make a fuss; that's a nice way to put it.
"What exactly happened?" The police officers who arrived looked at Li Baichuan, who had come to find them.
Li Baichuan walked over and opened the door. He saw his wife sitting there safely. He helped her out first before turning to look at the police officers.
The people from the local street office standing nearby were speechless at the commotion; they knew this family was no ordinary person!
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