Chapter 8 Dogs Fighting Dogs. Lin Qing'an counted them too, and indeed...
Lin Qingan counted them and confirmed that one was indeed missing.
"Don't worry, it might be hidden in the pigsty." Lin Qing'an said, raising the oil lamp to search the pigsty, but after looking in every nook and cranny several times, he still couldn't find it.
Lin Qingan was starting to get anxious.
Could it really have been carried away by the Weasel spirit?
"That wretched Weasel spirit! That's my mother's old hen, which she raised with great difficulty, and it's already starting to lay eggs!"
Lin Yanfeng was both anxious and angry.
Lin Qing'an suddenly spotted a row of footprints in the dim light. He followed the footprints with his lamp, and they led all the way to the bamboo fence.
Lin Qing'an brought the lamp closer, then raised his hand and pulled, and the bamboo strip that had been torn off fell easily.
Lin Yanfeng followed and saw it too. He immediately realized what was happening and exclaimed excitedly, "Brother, it's not Huang Daxian, it's a thief!"
"Shh!" Lin Qing'an gestured with his index finger, gently pried open several pieces of bamboo that had been cut, handed the lamp to Lin Yanfeng, and bent down to crawl through.
The footprints in the field were clearer, and not far away was my second uncle's territory, which was also a fenced enclosure.
Lin Qingan and Lin Yanfeng walked over quietly. When the light shone on Lin Yongwu's chicken coop, Lin Yanfeng immediately recognized his old hen. Even though the red cloth rope on the hen's leg was gone, he could still recognize it.
Lin Yanfeng pointed, and Lin Qing'an nodded. Then, he tore open the fence of Lin Yongwu's house, crawled inside, pulled out his old hen, and then returned to his own yard with Lin Yanfeng.
"Brother, Uncle and the others have gone too far! No way, I'm going to release all their chickens too." Lin Yanfeng said, about to head over there, but was pulled back by Lin Qing'an the next second.
He scolded, "What are you doing! You're going to be a top scholar in the imperial examinations, how can you do such bad things!"
"Brother! We can't keep being bullied and trampled on. If that's the case, I'd rather not study at all."
"Go back and go to sleep!"
Lin Qing'an ignored him and seriously asked Lin Yanfeng to go back to his room and sleep.
Lin Yanfeng naturally dared not resist and returned to his house with a belly full of anger.
Lin Qing'an waited for a long time, and after several attempts, he finally confirmed that Lin Yanfeng was asleep before quietly getting up and leaving the room.
He quickly returned with the lantern and entered Lin Yongwu's pen again, just as he had done before.
He carried one in each hand and walked towards the woodshed.
Lin Qing'an found a long rope and quickly tied the two chickens to a corner. He then went back to get the remaining chicken before clapping his hands and saying, "Brother Chicken, stay put! I'll treat you to a show in a few days before you go back."
Lin Qingan fell asleep quickly after returning home and slept soundly through the night.
I was woken up in the morning by a loud banging on the door.
Lin Yanfeng sat up abruptly. "Brother, someone's knocking on the door."
"Lin Qingan, Lin Yanfeng, you two brats, open the door!"
"Brother, it looks like Second Aunt," Lin Yanfeng said warily.
"Yes, it's her." Lin Qingan yawned and got out of bed at a leisurely pace.
Lin Yanfeng asked again, "What is she doing here?"
"Who knows?" Lin Qing'an gave a wicked smile through the bamboo curtain, and after getting dressed, he lazily went out. "Let's go and see what kind of trouble she's up to this time."
Lin Qingan opened the courtyard gate, looking impatient, and said, "What's all this noise so early in the morning? Don't you want people to get any sleep?!"
Lin Qing'an was truly grumpy upon waking up; she wished she could slap the person across the face twice and send them flying.
"Lin Qing'an, did you steal my chicken?"
Lin Yongwu stepped forward and grabbed Lin Qing'an by the collar, demanding an explanation. Lin Yanfeng was about to step forward to help his brother when Zhang Cuiping stopped him, saying, "Tell me, where did you hide my chickens?"
Lin Qingan didn't answer. Instead, he kicked hard and shoveled Lin Yongwu's arm, then grabbed him and slammed him to the ground with an over-the-shoulder throw.
He slapped Zhang Cuiping's hand away, pulled Lin Yanfeng behind him, and said coldly, "I don't know what you're talking about!"
No one expected Lin Qing'an to suddenly strike like this. It took Lin Yongwu a long time to realize the pain and he gasped for breath several times on the ground.
"Oh dear, husband, how are you?" Zhang Cuiping hurriedly went to help Lin Yongwu, but Lin Yongwu couldn't get up no matter what he did, even with his back bent.
So Zhang Cuiping started wailing again.
"Everyone come and see! Is there no justice left? Those two damned brothers stole my chickens and even injured their uncle! They're utterly beasts! This is outrageous!"
Zhang Cuiping's howling was so loud that it eventually attracted the attention of the neighbor closest to Lin Qing'an's house.
"What happened?"
"Yes, what exactly happened? How could Qing-ge'er, who seems so weak, have managed to injure Tianyou's father?"
Obviously, nobody believed their nonsense.
"Oh dear, it's true! It was Lin Qing'an who injured his second uncle. He...he...he..." Zhang Cuiping was so anxious that she couldn't speak and gestured with her hands.
"It was my cousin. I saw him trip my dad and make him fall."
"Yes, I saw it too!"
The two who ran over were Zhang Cuiping's son, Lin Tianyou, and her eldest daughter, Lin Pan'er.
Lin Pan'er is one year younger than Lin Yanfeng, while Chen Tianyou is two years younger than Lin Yanfeng.
He often did bad things with his parents, and as a child, he regarded the two brothers, Lin Qing'an and Lin Yanfeng, as easy targets.
However, after seeing how powerful Lin Qing'an was today, he dared not be presumptuous anymore. After speaking, he hid behind his parents and dared not show his face.
Lin Qingan picked at his ear, extremely impatient: "Alright, I don't have time to mess around with you! Get lost!"
"Give me back my chickens!" Zhang Cuiping shouted unwillingly.
Lin Yanfeng and Lin Qing'an stood side by side and roared, "When did we steal your chickens?"
Although he had his doubts, he was certain that they hadn't done it.
Lin Qingan also spoke up at the right time, "Auntie, you can go to the chicken coop and see if there are any of your chickens there."
Enraged, Zhang Cuiping shouted without thinking, "You stole it! Otherwise, why would your old hen have gone back by itself?"
Upon hearing this, the neighbors who had come to see what was going on all found it extremely strange.
Only Zhang Cuiping was unaware of what was happening, her face displaying an aggressive demeanor.
Lin Yongwu tugged at her, but she didn't react.
"Oh?" Lin Qingan suddenly laughed. He stared at Zhang Cuiping and asked, "Auntie, where would my hen go if it's not in its own chicken coop? Go back? From where would it go back to?"
Only then did Zhang Cuiping realize that she had said the wrong thing, but she still stubbornly said, "How should I know? Anyway, you stole my chicken. If you don't return it today, I will take you to the authorities."
"Go ahead and report it!" Lin Qing'an pointed to his backyard, looking completely open and honest. "If I find any of your chickens in any corner of my house, I'll voluntarily go to jail. If you can't find them and don't have any evidence, then don't blame your nephew for being ruthless."
"You!" Zhang Cuiping was so angry that her eyes went blurry. Her two children were busy supporting their father and mother.
The neighbors who were watching the scene understood the reason. If Zhang Cuiping really had evidence, she would have broken in long ago instead of making a scene at the door. Seeing the two poor brothers, everyone began to criticize Zhang Cuiping and Lin Yongwu's family.
The leader was the kind-hearted Grandpa Lin, who was also highly respected within the Lin family.
"Lin family second son, you've gone too far! Qing'er is your own nephew, after all. How come he keeps causing trouble for people? Although they have no parents, they still have us, their fellow villagers. If things really get too out of hand, don't blame us for being impolite!"
"That's right! Grandpa is right. No matter what, they are still members of the Lin family. We can't let you bully them too much!"
"That's right, that's right!"
The calls for condemnation were incessant, and Zhang Cuiping and Lin Yongwu were so frightened that they got up and slunk back home.
Meanwhile, Zhou Caixia, who was peeping from the wall, stared maliciously at Lin Qing'an and his companion, who were being protected by everyone. Her scheming was chilling even in broad daylight.
The farce only ended when Lin Yongwu and his family completely disappeared from sight.
Lin Qing'an pulled Lin Yanfeng and bowed to the villagers, saying, "Thank you so much, uncles, aunts, brothers and sisters-in-law! We brothers will always remember your kindness!"
Someone wiped away tears and sighed, "Alas! God is playing tricks on us; you two brothers have really suffered."
There were few people in the morning, and they dispersed quickly, so Lin Qing'an's home finally returned to peace.
Upon hearing about this, Chen Gengnian urged his mother to quickly find an auspicious date. There were two auspicious dates, one of which was half a month later, giving them ample time to prepare.
However, Chen Gengnian chose the date two days later and instructed Chen Yuetao not to tell Lin Qingan the reason for the matter.
"Is there really no other day?" Lin Qing'an asked Chen Gengnian with a worried look on his face.
After carefully inspecting the reinforced fence, Chen Gengnian nodded and said, "Yes, this is the only day this year."
Lin Qing'an resignedly took off running home, but after only two steps, a strong force grabbed his shoulder.
"Why are you running?" Chen Gengnian asked him, looking puzzled.
"Brother, we're getting married the day after tomorrow. The house isn't even tidied up yet, we haven't bought everything we need, and we haven't even prepared the banquet..."
“I’ve got everything ready.” Chen Gengnian turned the person around and gently reassured them, “I found someone before we came. My mother went to find my aunt who’s a tailor, and she said she can make the clothes tomorrow.”
"Huh?" Lin Qing'an pointed at himself and said, "I didn't even take any measurements, how could I have made it?"
Chen Gengnian said, "Don't worry, Mother already took the measurements yesterday."
Lin Qingan then remembered that Chen Yuetao had groped him and Ayan for quite a while yesterday.
Alright, since you're all prepared, that's good! Anyway, in this day and age, poor families like theirs don't need a big fuss when they get married.
Those who are wealthy will usually send a bridal sedan chair to pick up the groom, and then the groom's family will host a banquet for a few close relatives.
Given their situation, Lin Qing'an suddenly didn't know whether he should send a bridal sedan chair over, or if he actually did...
Lin Qingan glanced at Chen Gengnian. Putting aside whether the sedan chair could fit his nearly 1.9-meter height, his double-door frame probably wouldn't be able to be lifted by eight or nine strong men!
Seeing that his expression was getting increasingly strange, Chen Gengnian couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong?"
Lin Qingan scratched his head, unsure how to begin.
“You can talk about anything,” Chen Gengnian said frankly.
Lin Qing'an then stammered, "Um...would you like to ride in a sedan chair or on horseback?"
Chen Gengnian raised the corners of his mouth, and his smile gradually brightened.
She said softly, "No need. You can take the village chief's oxcart to pick me up, and we'll go home together."
His already handsome face became even more alluring with his smile, and coupled with those serious words, Lin Qing'an's heart felt as if it had been struck hard, leaving him restless and unable to sleep all night.
At night, Lin Qing'an released the chickens from the woodshed into his third uncle's yard. When he returned, he bumped into Lin Yanfeng sitting at the door.
"Wow! You scared me!" Lin Qing'an blurted out in modern language, startled.
Lin Yanfeng paused for a moment before asking, "Brother, where did you go?"
Lin Qing'an pushed the person into the house, casually making up a story: "I'm going out to check if there are any ill-intentioned people outside the courtyard. You know I'm getting married the day after tomorrow, and I don't want thieves to come to my house."
Lin Yanfeng simply said "oh" and went to their respective beds without saying anything else.
The next day, Lin Qing'an and Lin Yanfeng cleaned the house thoroughly. The village chief's wife and several aunties from next door came over to help Lin Qing'an make the bed.
The Lin family only had two bedrooms. Lin Qing'an's bridal chamber was set up in the room that Lin's parents used to live in. Everything inside was in good condition, and the wardrobe and other items were well maintained, so Lin Qing'an just made do with it, only changing all the bedding and blankets.
Although Lin Qing'an felt somewhat uncomfortable, there was nothing he could do. That was just how the family was. If they used their original room, they would have to take down the bamboo curtains. Seeing how reluctant Lin Yanfeng was to part with them, Lin Qing'an couldn't bear it either.
The village chief was negotiating with Lin Qing'an about the banquet when he heard that his second and third uncles in the back were fighting fiercely. The village chief had to go over and try to stop them.
"Brother, what's wrong with them?" Lin Yanfeng asked.
Lin Qing'an smiled faintly and asked Lin Yanfeng, "Yan, the teacher praised your studies before, but do you know what 'dogs fighting' means?"
Lin Yanfeng thought for a moment, then nodded and asked his brother somewhat uncertainly, "Brother, is it a case of the snipe and the clam fighting?"
"Bingo!" Lin Qing'an snapped his fingers and praised Lin Yanfeng, "Correct answer, my Yanfeng is truly knowledgeable."
But when he noticed the strange look in Lin Yanfeng's eyes, he realized that he had been too happy and had spoken without thinking. He quickly tried to make amends, saying, "What I mean is that you are very smart and will definitely make a name for yourself in the future."
Lin Yanfeng smiled and nodded: "Yes, I'll build you a big house so you and your husband can have your own new home."
Lin Qing'an stroked his long, black hair, feeling a pang of melancholy.
Looking at the bright red bedding, Lin Qing'an was still a little confused. How could someone who had been single for over thirty years get married so quickly?
This dazed state quickly reached their wedding day.
A note from the author:
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