"We don't have to report it to the authorities!"
When the village head heard Lin Cuiying's words, the hand stroking his beard froze in mid-air. She had persuaded him so easily.
Then Liu Cuiying stated her demands: "But the families of Qian Daniu, Wu Tiezhu, and Lai Pichun must be kicked out of Luhua Village."
Lin Tiandong suddenly tugged at her sleeve: "Sister, our house..."
"Of course we have to compensate them." Lin Cuiying shook off her brother. "And since our house is burned to this state, we should transfer the deed of their three houses to our Lin family's name. That would be compensation for us."
"This is a good idea! It avoids going to the authorities and also gets rid of a menace..."
“The three houses are located at the end of the village, close to the Lin family’s house, and there is no one else around except for these three houses.”
"Their houses were next to each other, but Lai Pi Chun's house had long since collapsed."
“The Wu family and the Qian family are neighbors, and Lai Pichun’s house is behind the Qian family’s house.”
"Their houses were all mud houses. Lai Pichun's house collapsed, and it was almost like wasteland."
“Now that the Lin family’s house has been burned to the ground, I don’t think Cuiying’s request is excessive.”
“I think so too. Since all three families are going to be evicted from the village anyway, we can use the houses as compensation.”
Building a house is not easy for villagers. Most people live in mud-brick houses, and a few live in brick houses.
As for Lai Pichun's dilapidated house, no one would want it even if it were given away for free.
The houses of the Qian and Wu families are habitable, but if those two families are evicted, the houses will definitely be taken back by the village.
After all, there are only so many residential plots in the village, how can we let outsiders occupy them forever?
The village head frowned and pondered for a moment, then thought Lin Cuiying's idea was not bad.
In this way, both Qian Daniu's three families were punished, and the Lin family was compensated.
Moreover, these three families were not well-liked in the village, especially Lai Pichun, who idled away his days and often stole chickens and dogs.
Qian Daniu and Wu Tiezhu were no good either.
“Alright, let’s do as Cuiying says.” The village head made the final decision. “From now on, the Qian Daniu, Wu Tiezhu, and Lai Pichun families will no longer be part of our Luhua Village. Their houses will also belong to the Lin family.”
Lin Cuiying breathed a sigh of relief; the result was better than she had expected.
Although Lai Pichun and his gang weren't sent to jail, at least they were kicked out, so there's no need to worry about them coming back to cause trouble.
Moreover, they received two houses as compensation, which was a stroke of luck amidst misfortune.
However, now that all three families have fled, especially the sons of Wu Tiezhu and Qian Daniu's families who are working in town, it would be another troublesome matter if they were to be brought back to cause trouble.
The village head also thought of this, and turned to instruct a few villagers: "You guys, go to town tomorrow and keep an eye on the young men of the Qian and Wu families. If they dare to come back to the village, beat them out."
"Don't worry, village head, we'll keep a close eye on them," several villagers assured them, patting their chests.
Lai Pi Chun is a bachelor with no ties or relatives. The Qian Daniu and Wu Tiezhu families have no relatives in the village, so the villagers don't need to worry about him at all.
"Alright, it's getting late, everyone can go home now." The village head waved his hand, signaling everyone to leave.
The villagers were also tired, and they left yawning.
When the fire started, Chen brought out the cloth and cotton she had bought in town that day; these were now all the belongings they had left.
However, now that the Wu and Qian families' belongings are all theirs, and given their hasty escape, they must have left behind many usable items.
The family, carrying their only possessions, walked towards the end of the village.
The first house they arrived at was the Wu family's, and next door was the Qian family's. Lin Tiandong looked at both sides and asked, "Dad, shall we stay at the Wu family's or the Qian family's tonight?"
Before Lin Changgeng could speak, Lin Cuiying said, "Of course it's the Qian family. The Qian family's house is bigger."
"Alright." Lin Tiandong, carrying the things, took the lead and walked towards the Qian family's house.
Tonight was filled with fighting and putting out fires, everyone was exhausted. After tidying up a bit, we went to bed.
The Qian family had a total of four rooms: a main room, three side rooms, and a kitchen built with a thatched shed.
Lin Changgeng and Chen Shi shared a room, Lin Cuiying shared a room with her two young maids, and Lin Tiandong shared the smallest room.
The next day, perhaps because they were in a different place, the whole family woke up earlier.
As Chen was searching for food in the Qian family's kitchen to prepare breakfast, there was a commotion outside.
It turned out that it was Zhang Xiuqing, the village head's daughter-in-law, carrying half a bag of brown rice, with several aunties behind her peeking out with bamboo baskets on their shoulders.
"Auntie, my father-in-law asked me to bring this over to you."
Zhang Xiuqing placed the rice bag on the stove, and the woman in the floral-patterned jacket behind her rushed to hand her the bamboo basket: "The steamed cornbread you made this morning is still warm!"
"No, no, no!" Chen waved her hands wildly in the air, then pointed to the Qian family's rice jar, "They still have grain!"
"Oh, there really is some grain!" Zhang Xiuqing looked into the rice jar. "Some of it was compensation given to your family, and this is just a small token of our appreciation."
As soon as she finished speaking, Zhang Xiuqing turned and left with her people, and the aunties behind her quickly put down the baskets containing the vegetables.
After they reached the courtyard gate, they added, "Remember to bring the baskets back to us later!"
Lin Cuiying, who was struggling in the outhouse, squatted over the latrine, pinching her nose, her legs already numb and without feeling.
After traveling for so many days, I still don't get used to this kind of dry toilet at all.
Seeing the bamboo strips beside her, and remembering the burning sensation that was about to return, Lin Cuiying's face darkened.
As luck would have it, Lin Tiandong's voice came from outside, "Sis! Did you fall into the cesspool?"
Despite the discomfort, Lin Cuiying finished a set of movements. When she pulled up her pants, she almost stepped into the cesspool, the wooden planks creaking loudly.
He pushed open the dilapidated wooden door and shouted at Lin Tiandong, "Are you trying to kill me?!"
"I just couldn't hold it in any longer!" Lin Tiandong ran past Lin Cuiying.
"Doesn't the Wu family next door have a toilet? Why are you trying to take it from me?"
Lin Tiandong rushed into the outhouse and bolted the door shut, the wooden plank slamming against the earthen wall.
A layer of frost had formed on the edge of the latrine, and a cold wind blew straight into the trouser legs through the gaps.
"Hiss—" Lin Tiandong shuddered, a wave of relief washing over him, accompanied by two "slap slap" sounds, before loudly answering Lin Cuiying's question.
"Sister, there aren't even any bamboo strips left to scrape your bottom by the Wu family's outhouse! I have no choice but to go back to the Qian family's place."
Lin Cuiying had already entered the kitchen and didn't hear what Lin Tiandong was saying at all.
Upon entering the kitchen and seeing several baskets on the stove, Lin Cuiying asked, "Mother, who came by just now? And why did they take so many things?"
Chen stirred the bubbling porridge in the pot, her eyes still fixed on the fresh shepherd's purse in the bamboo basket: "The village head's wife and a few other women are worried that we haven't had anything to eat after the disaster."
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