Climbing onto the roof and removing the tiles
Ling Zhan carried a cleaned piece of venison on his back and a short knife in his hand as he pushed open the door and went out.
Her face was expressionless, her gaze calmly sweeping over Chen Yan and the children standing in a row.
The air seemed to freeze instantly.
The children immediately stopped and stood in a straight line, as if they had been put on pause.
Tiger quickly put down his hand that was patting his chest, Bean Sprouts sniffed back his snot, and Big Girl also shut her mouth and ran back to the group.
Shen Yan's heart skipped a beat.
His face instantly broke into a radiant smile, and he strode forward, pounding his chest with a resounding boom: "Wife! You're back! You've worked so hard! Rest up! I'm teaching these little rascals a lesson in life! I'm telling them that a person must be trustworthy! A person of their word must be true to their promise! Just like you, my wife, if you say you'll hunt a wild boar, you'll never hunt a rabbit!"
He spoke more and more fluently, spitting as he tried to mask his guilty conscience with righteous indignation, "My wife, rest assured! I, Chen Yan, have always been one to make a difference with my words! My responsibility to 'teach by example' for the children... that's all from the bottom of my heart! Heaven and earth can bear witness! When my luck turns in the future, I, Chen Yan, will surely..."
Before he could finish speaking...
A deep, cold voice, like a thousand years of ice, boomed behind him like thunder:
"Operating?"
"A sedan chair carried by eight men?"
Shen Yan felt all the blood rush to his head and then instantly cool down!
He turned his head stiffly, inch by inch.
Ling Zhan was already standing a few steps behind him!
On her shoulder was a wild boar of astonishing size!
The boar's tusks were ferocious, curved like hooks, and its fur stood up like steel needles. Its massive body weighed at least three or four hundred pounds! The heavy, overwhelming stench of blood and the unique stench of wild beasts from the mountains and forests rushed towards us like a tangible wave, almost suffocating us.
The immense weight caused the soil beneath her feet to sink slightly.
Beside her feet followed a tiger cub carrying a plump wild rabbit in its mouth; it had clearly been temporarily conscripted.
Just then, Cui'er arrived carrying a small basket.
It was as if they had just come out of the village and were about to "inadvertently" pass by the foot of the mountain when they stumbled upon this horrifying scene.
"Ah—!!!" Her shrill scream pierced the sky, the basket flew out of her hand, and wild vegetables scattered all over the ground.
She turned deathly pale as if she'd seen a vengeful ghost, and turned to run, scrambling and stumbling, completely abandoning any semblance of the composure expected of a city maid. Only one frantic thought remained in her mind: Wild boar! A jinx! It's too terrifying! She'll never come back!
Shen Yan watched Cui'er's fleeing figure, then looked at the ferocious wild boar on Ling Zhan's shoulder, which was as big as a small mountain and dripped with blood. Finally, he met Ling Zhan's unfathomable, cold eyes that were now locked on him. A chill ran from the soles of his feet straight to the top of his head!
He chuckled dryly, his voice trembling, "Mother...wife...you...please let me explain! It's a misunderstanding! It's all a misunderstanding! Just a joke to cheer up the little girl! Don't take it seriously! Just to lighten the mood...Look at you, hitting such a big thing, you must be exhausted, right? Put it down, put it down..."
Ling Zhan didn't even glance at Cui'er, who was running away.
Her icy gaze, like the most precise probe, first fixed firmly on Shen Yan's forced composure, then slowly and with immense pressure shifted to the children standing in a row beside her, their eyes wide and mouths slightly agape.
silence.
A deathly silence.
Only the "plop" of blood dripping from the wild boar's wound hitting the soil sounded exceptionally clear and jarring in this deathly silence.
Tiger was startled by the silence and his mother's gaze, and instinctively imitated Chen Yan.
Patting his thin chest, he assured the bean sprout beside him, "Bean...Bean sprout! You...you trust me! When I become rich, I'll make sure you...have meat every meal! Eat...eat well and drink well!"
Bean Sprout rolled her eyes, pouted, pointed at the wild boar that looked like a small mountain on the ground, and loudly complained, "Come on! Daddy said he'd give Sister Cui'er a grand wedding procession! He immediately changed his mind, saying that the meat Mommy makes is the real deal! The meat is delicious!"
boom--!
Shen Yan felt as if something had exploded in her mind!
My vision is going black! It's over! It's completely over!
That little brat! What a jerk! He can practically see his miserable end beckoning him!
Deep within Ling Zhan's consciousness, Zero's constant, cold electronic voice instantly responded to her question.
[Behavioral analysis confirms: The target exhibits persistent false promises and poor role models, significantly negatively impacting the child's cognition and group trust. Physical correction plan generated: Continuous striking of the soft tissue area of the buttocks. Force: Within the limits of human tolerance, ensuring significant pain without substantial bone damage. Repetitions: Ten times to reinforce memory. Additional requirements: Public execution to maximize shame and enhance behavioral correction effectiveness. Implementation recommendation: Immediately.]
Ling Zhan shrugged slightly.
The terrifying wild boar, weighing three or four hundred pounds, was lifted up like a tattered sack and slammed heavily onto the muddy ground at Shen Yan's feet with a deafening roar! The ground trembled violently, kicking up a cloud of dust and grass.
She casually moved her wrist.
The joints made a chilling "crack" sound.
I was so disgusted that my soul almost left my body and my hair stood on end!
He turned to make his escape using the "divine speed" he'd honed on the streets, his mouth still tumbling out: "Wife! Spare me! I'll change! I really will! I swear! Awooo—!!!"
It's too late!
Ling Zhan's attack was lightning fast!
The hand that had just killed a wild boar and crushed a constable's wrist grabbed Shen Yan by the back of his collar with incredible precision! Like lifting a disobedient chick, it easily lifted him off the ground!
Under the children's gaze, which suddenly lit up with surprise, confusion, and a hint of worry for their father.
In the afterglow of the setting sun, which spills down like molten gold!
Beside the carcass of a huge wild boar, freshly hunted and still emanating a strong stench of blood and death—
Ling Zhan carried Chen Yan and walked to a relatively flat large rock, where he sat down steadily.
Then, without any mercy, he flipped Shenyan, who was struggling and screaming, over so that it was face down and pressed it firmly onto his knees!
Then, she raised her right hand, a hand powerful enough to split rocks!
*Smack!!!*
A crisp, loud sound, with an amazing echo, exploded like a firecracker at the foot of the silent mountain!
Shen Yan's body suddenly sprang upwards, like a shrimp thrown into boiling oil, and then burst into a deafening, utterly miserable howl:
"Awooo—!!!"
This sound was ten times more terrifying than Cui'er's scream just now! It had extremely strong penetrating power!
"The first step is empty talk."
Ling Zhan's voice was completely calm, as if he were reading a verdict, piercing through Shen Yan's screams with icy coldness.
"Smack!!" Another merciless blow! The force was solid!
"The second time, there was no faith."
*Smack!!!*
"The third step is to teach bad habits."
...
The crisp, resounding, and rhythmic slaps, mixed with Chen Yan's agonizing screams—sometimes high-pitched and sharp, sometimes whimpering and sobbing, filled with despair and utter shame—formed the most peculiar and "beautiful" symphony of evening in Kaoshan Village at the foot of the silent mountain.
The children's reactions were truly remarkable:
At first, the children were so frightened by this sudden "family discipline" that their faces turned pale. They all took a step back, covered their mouths, and stared wide-eyed.
Immediately afterward, seeing his father being beaten, he instinctively wanted to rush over to protect him...
But after hearing Ling Zhan's cold and clear judgment of "empty talk," "untrustworthy," and "corrupting," and looking at her glib-tongued father's usual demeanor, it seemed... Mother wasn't wrong?!
The children looked at each other, their eyes filled with confusion and bewilderment.
In the end, Tiger was the boldest. He timidly picked out a few wild fruits from the pile of prey that Ling Zhan had brought back and handed them to his mother.
This is to plead for my father's life.
The eldest girl, with a serious expression, watched nervously while quietly repeating Ling Zhan's "explanation": "Empty words...dishonesty...corrupt teachings..." Her attitude towards learning was extremely "proper."
Ten times! A full ten times!
Not too much, not too little!
When the final, crisp "smack!" fell, Shen Yan, like a salted fish whose bones had been completely pulled out, slumped limply on Ling Zhan's knees, motionless. Only his slightly twitching body and intermittent, tearful sobs proved that he was still alive.
His handsome face, which he believed could charm everyone, turned a deep purplish-red, and was covered in tears and snot.
My buttocks felt burning hot and swollen, like they had been repeatedly branded with a hot iron. The pain was excruciating!
What made him wish he could die on the spot was the unparalleled sense of shame!
He, a dignified hoodlum named Shen, was actually spanked by a woman in front of his bunch of kids! If this got back to the city... no, if it got back to any street he'd ever been on... Shen Yan would be ready to hang himself with a noodle!
Ling Zhan tossed aside the limp Shen Yan as if discarding a piece of trash, loosening his grip and flipping him to the ground.
She stood up and smoothly brushed off non-existent dust from her trousers. Her gaze swept over the children sitting in a row on the threshold, clutching fruit, their eyes filled with complex emotions—fear, confusion, and longing for roasted meat—before finally settling on the huge wild boar carcass on the ground.
"it."
Her voice remained calm, yet it carried a power that went straight to the heart, pointing towards the ferocious head of the wild boar: "I don't believe in empty words."
The children followed her finger, looking at the wild boar, which was as big as a small mountain and whose tusks were still dripping blood, then at their father lying on the ground grunting and groaning with his buttocks swollen high, and finally at the sweet wild fruit in their hands. In an instant, the most basic logical transformation was completed in their minds.
Tiger nodded vigorously, took a bite of the fruit, and said, "Mmm! The meat Mother made is really good!"
Bean Sprout, munching on fruit, pointed at Chen Yan with mumbled words: "Daddy's talking big, my bottom hurts! Mommy's beating meat, it's delicious!"
The girl's face was serious as she concluded, "Empty talk is bad! Meat is good!"
The other children looked at the wild boar and their father and nodded in agreement: "Yes! The meat is good!"
Chen Yan, who had been lying on the ground pretending to be dead, was overcome with grief upon hearing the children's "heartfelt" sentiments—these were all children he had adopted! Struggling to raise his head, his eyes brimming with tears, he uttered his final accusation: "Ling Zhan! You...you...you're committing domestic violence! I...I'm going to the authorities to sue you! To sue you for assaulting your husband! Waaah...I want...to divorce you..."
Upon hearing this, Ling Zhan slowly lowered his head.
Those unfathomable eyes, like two frozen pools, calmly rested on Shen Yan's disheveled face, which was streaked with tears and covered in dirt and bits of grass.
"yamen?"
Just two words, light and airy, yet like two icy awls, piercing deeply into the heart of aversion.
Shen Yan instantly recalled Zhao Biao, who had been swaying in the wind for three days and died a gruesome death, on the old locust tree at the village entrance…
He recalled the constable whose wrist bone Ling Zhan had casually crushed, his screams echoing through the valley… The yamen? Accuse her? He didn't even know which way the yamen gates opened! Even if he got in, those constables… could they handle this fiend with one hand? She'd probably tear the entire yamen down!
The overwhelming fear instantly overwhelmed the excruciating pain and shame in his buttocks.
Shen Yan deflated completely, like a punctured balloon.
He buried his face deep in the mud, still reeking of wild boar blood, and mumbled in a low, tearful voice, admitting defeat: "...Fine...fine...the yamen...maybe...maybe I can take a beating..."
He thought with grief and despair that at least he was still alive, while Zhao Biao had been hanging in the tree for three days!
As long as you're alive... as long as you're alive, you can eat meat...
Waaah... my butt hurts so much...
The night, like thick ink, gradually soaked into the sky.
Inside the new house, the campfire crackled and popped, the leaping flames illuminating the children's excited faces, making them glow red.
On the grill, large chunks of wild boar sizzled and dripped with golden oil, releasing an enticing aroma that filled the entire room and made everyone's mouths water.
The children sat around the fire, carefully using wooden skewers to pick up pieces of roasted meat, feeding a bite to their fathers who were lying on the straw mats and groaning. Then they would take a small, precious bite for themselves, their little faces beaming with pure, simple satisfaction and happiness from being full and enjoying the delicious food.
Although Daddy got a beating and his bottom was swollen, he still got to eat delicious meat!
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