The fire was strange; it all drifted towards Shu Jiandang's house, while Shu Aiguo's mud-brick house remained unaffected. When Shu Aiguo and Deng Fangping ran out with their children, they saw that Shu Jiandang's house was already burned beyond recognition, and Liao Hongmei's few old hens had also been burned to death. In contrast, there was nothing left on the walls of Shu Aiguo's house.
The smoke was a bit too much, and Shu Aiguo was worried that it would affect the quails, so he brought out the quail racks.
Quails are sensitive to temperature, but luckily there was a fire burning next door, so it wasn't cold outside.
Seeing that her house hadn't burned down, Deng Fangping, just in case, slowly went inside to pack her belongings and took out all the valuables.
The family of nine, with each person carrying a package, moving a table, and carrying a stool, plus the fact that Shu Aiguo didn't have anything of value, managed to move everything out into the open in just a few minutes.
On the contrary, when Liao Hongmei discovered that her house was on fire next door, Shu Jiandang's house was already burning quite fiercely, she hurriedly pulled her son out and ran out. In her haste, she forgot about her daughter.
It was only after Shu Jiandang shouted a few times that his daughter finally ran out.
Liao Hongmei is afraid of death; she doesn't have the guts to run away and then run back.
Knowing full well that he should go in and get some clothes and blankets, and take out the few dollars and a few pounds of rice and flour he had left at home, he was afraid of getting burned by the fire, so he didn't dare to go in.
"You brat, go inside and get the money for your mother," Liao Hongmei urged her youngest daughter, Shu Jing.
Shu Jing was terrified. "Mom, I'm scared. I don't dare to go in."
"You good-for-nothing! What good are you? We didn't take a single penny. All the rice, flour, clothes, and blankets were inside, and now they're all gone in a fire. Our family will starve! You'll be starving to death sooner or later, you good-for-nothing!"
Liao Hongmei twisted her daughter's arm in a fit of anger.
Shu Jing screamed and ran behind Shu Jiandang, crying, as she was being twisted.
Shu Jiandang is quite troubled.
When the villagers heard the commotion and came to put out the fire, they assumed it was Shu Aiguo's house that was on fire. When they saw that Shu Jiandang's house was on fire, they were not very willing to help.
There was no way to save them; the fire was too big, and the well was frozen. Where were they supposed to find water to put out the fire?
We can only let the fire burn and wait until it stops before we can think of a solution.
With so many eyes watching the spectacle, and Liao Hongmei still making a fool of herself, Shu Jiandang was extremely distressed.
How could Liao Hongmei not be angry?
They set fire to Shu Ai's house, but not a single brick in Shu Ai's house caught fire; the fire spread all the way to her house.
Her house was burned to the ground; the tiled roof was gone, the clothes, blankets, money were gone, the pots and pans were gone, and even the old hen that laid eggs was burned to death.
They had nothing.
Liao Hongmei lay on the ground, wailing, "My house was burned down! If I find out who did it, I'll never forgive them!"
Shu Aiguo felt there was a hidden meaning in her words. The two families lived so close to each other, it was impossible for him not to have heard what Liao Hongmei was saying.
Deng Fangping was furious. "What does she mean? At worst, we'll call the police and find out who set the fire."
"Second Uncle, don't pay any attention to her. She knows who set the fire," Chu Yu said calmly.
Shu Aiguo was taken aback, sensing that there was something more to her words, and looked at her.
Chu Yu didn't hide it and told Shu Jiandang about the arson. When Shu Hui heard that Shu Jiandang wanted to burn them to death, her gentle face showed resentment.
Fortunately, it was Shu Jiandang's house that was burned down. If the fire had been allowed to spread, Shu Aiguo's mud-brick house would not have been as sturdy as a red brick house. The house was small and would have burned down very quickly. It is possible that any child in the house would have failed to escape.
Shu Jiandang knew all along, but he still set fire to the place. This kind of person is worse than a pig or a dog!
Shu Hui initially thought his family was quite unlucky, as their perfectly good home was burned down by a fire. Upon hearing that Shu Jiandang had set the fire himself and that Chu Yu had thrown it back, Shu Hui felt that his family deserved it!
Chu Yu really stood up for them!
Deng Fangping only then learned about this matter. She held Chu Yu's hand, tears welling up in her eyes.
"Good child, thanks to you. The house can be rebuilt after it burns down. There are so many people in our family. If one of them is missing, who can feel at ease?"
Shulan was shocked and admired Chu Yu's decisiveness. Most people would either catch Shu Jiandang or wake up the whole family if they encountered such a situation.
Chu Yu, however, went along with it, letting Shu Jiandang start the fire, but then directing the fire to Shu Jiandang's home, making Shu Jiandang reap the bitter fruit of his actions.
What could be more regrettable than reaping the consequences of one's own actions?
Liao Hongmei and Shu Jiandang must be filled with regret and hatred, but what good is it?
After years of hard work, Liao Hongmei's family fortune has vanished. Her shop is closed, and she has lost her home. Life is probably going to be tough for her now.
Shulan just wants to say one thing: Serves you right!
If only they had known this would happen, why did they do it in the first place? If it weren't for Chu Yu, Deng Fangping would be the one kneeling on the ground crying.
It can only be said that God has eyes and evil will be punished.
This incident, though not a major one, caused quite a stir. Rumors circulated in the village that the fire was deliberately set. Sure enough, when the police came to investigate, they traced it back to Shu Aiguo.
Everyone in Shanguan Village knows that Shu Aiguo and Shu Jiandang are not on good terms, and Shu Aiguo has the strongest motive for committing the crime.
Shu Aiguo said he hadn't left the house since he fell asleep, and Deng Fangping and Chu Yu could testify to that, but it was all useless. After all, they were all family, and their words couldn't be taken as testimony.
Liao Hongmei insisted that Shu Aiguo set the fire, and the police could only investigate along this line.
Chu Yu never expected that Shu Aiguo would be implicated.
The police will definitely release him if they have no evidence, but the villagers' opinions won't be pleasant. People live for their reputation, and rural people care the most about their honor. Shu Aiguo was wronged and felt uncomfortable, but he couldn't prove his innocence.
"You'd better come with us," the police officer said.
Shu Aiguo frowned. "Police officer, it really wasn't me. Everyone in our village knows that it's always Shu Jiandang who stirs up trouble. I've never gone looking for trouble with him. I already told the brigade leader that my house was going to be demolished and rebuilt. Why would I set fire to his house at this time?"
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