Jia Dashan took a deep breath, took out his cigarette case, and found it was empty. Frustrated, he crumpled the cigarette case into a ball.
He finally managed to suppress what happened yesterday, but she went and caused trouble again today.
"Comrade, the child is ignorant, we will accept whatever punishment is appropriate."
Suddenly, Grandmother Jia grabbed the policeman's arm, tears streaming down her face, and pleaded incessantly.
"Fines and compensation are fine, just don't take the child away..."
Looking at her father's ashen face, Jia Jiaojiao suddenly realized that she had made a terrible mistake.
The old policeman gently pushed Jia Mu's hand away, saying, "Everyone is equal before the law."
He took out a pen from his pocket and tapped the end of the transcript.
“The child must come back to the station with us to give a detailed statement; this is the procedure.”
Jia Dashan's face turned a deep liver color.
"I'll call Director Wang of the district's Public Security Bureau!"
He turned around to dial the landline phone in the corner of the living room.
“Mr. Jia,” the young policeman stepped forward, his handcuffs gleaming coldly under the light, “Director Wang just finished a meeting at the station and specifically instructed that this be handled according to the law.”
These words were like a bucket of ice water poured over Jia Dashan's head. He stopped in his tracks, his knuckles turning white from clenching his fists.
Suddenly, Grandmother Jia rushed over and hugged Jia Jiaojiao, tears streaming down her face.
"My darling, you mustn't go to a place like that!"
She turned and yelled at Zhang Ma, "Go and get the gold bars from my camphor wood chest right now!"
Startled, Zhang Ma huddled in the corner, the bowl of malted milk powder in her hand clattering to the ground, enamel shards splashing onto the armrest of the imported sofa.
Jia Jiaojiao's sheepskin slippers had already been stepped on and one of them was gone, leaving her bare feet curled up on the cold floor.
She watched her father slump down on the sofa, then leaned back against it, feeling utterly powerless.
"Young lady, cooperate a little, don't make things difficult for us."
The sound of handcuffs made Jia Jiaojiao tremble. She instinctively reached for her mother, but her mother held her hand tightly.
"mom!"
Her sobs changed tone, "I don't want to go... I'm scared..."
The theme song of "Huo Yuanjia" was still playing tirelessly on the living room TV.
Jia Dashan suddenly stood up, took out a stack of brand-new ten-yuan bills from the inside pocket of his coat, and slammed them onto the coffee table.
"This money should be used for that child's medical treatment. Jiaojiao is young and doesn't understand..."
The young policeman looked at Jia Dashan with a serious expression.
"Obstructing official business will be punished more severely."
He tapped his knuckles against the handcuffs at his waist, the clanging of metal particularly jarring in the quiet living room.
The older policeman gestured for his younger colleague to come forward, and Jia Jiaojiao collapsed to the ground as if her bones had been removed.
Grandmother Jia tried to pull her daughter up, but the old policeman stopped her without making a sound. She watched helplessly as her daughter was helped up and taken away.
"Dad! Mom!"
Jia Jiaojiao's cries faded into the distance as the police half-supported and half-carried her toward the door.
Suddenly, Jia Dashan grabbed a glass ornament from the coffee table and smashed it hard on the ground.
The glass shattered into tiny pieces, one of which bounced onto the policeman's boot.
The old policeman glanced back at him, said nothing, and walked straight outside.
The courtyard gate creaked open and then slammed shut again.
Jia Dashan stood frozen in place, staring at the empty entryway, his eyes brimming with anger.
Lin family, well done! From this day forward, I, Jia Dashan, will swear to never let you get away with this!
...
The Lin family, which Jia Dashan hated, was currently filled with a warm atmosphere.
Lin Li happily placed the braised meat she bought on the road on the table, and then brought out the fish-flavored shredded pork, twice-cooked pork with pickled vegetables, and eggplant with minced meat that she had cooked herself.
The two little ones and Lin Laosan, who had just returned home, came over after smelling the aroma.
"Mom, why is there so much food today? Is there something good happening?"
"Hmm... After I bought the storefront today, I asked Chen Dashan to come and do the renovations..."
As Lin Li spoke, she stood up and began serving rice.
"And what happened? As soon as he came over, he said that Xiao Wang had a few discounted apartments and asked if I wanted them."
When Lin Laosan heard about the discounted room, his eyes lit up and he urged them to hurry up.
"So, did you buy it?"
"Of course they bought it!"
Lin Li proudly raised her head and placed the bowl full of rice on the three seats.
"Then I'll go find Xiao Wang in a bit and see if he has any discounted apartments left. I want to buy one too."
Lin Laosan rubbed his hands anxiously, wanting to eat but also wanting to buy a house right away.
"Don't go, all the discounted apartments are sold out. Chen Dashan and I bought the last few."
Lin Laosan: "...?"
"Don't worry, I'll give you one of the houses, just remember to transfer the payment to me."
"Really? Thank you, Mom. I knew you wouldn't forget me."
After hearing Lin Li's words, Lin Laosan ran to his room in one stride, took out the savings book from the cabinet, and brought it to the main room.
"Mom, this is the money I saved. Is it enough? If not, I'll give you the rest after I get my dividends next month."
Lin Li took the passbook and saw that there was a considerable amount of money on it.
"That's enough, there's still more!"
"Keep the extra money for me, and buy me a discounted apartment when it comes out in the future."
Lin Laosan happily skipped and hopped to the water pipe, washing his hands as he responded loudly.
"Alright!"
After hearing what Lin Laosan said, Lin Li immediately threw his savings book into her spatial storage.
After putting down their schoolbags, the two children ran to the tap to wash their hands. Looking at Lin Laosan's flushed face, they asked curiously.
"Third Uncle, did you get praised by the teacher today? Why are you so happy?"
Lin Laosan: ...
She rolled her eyes at the two little ones, pursed her lips, and said with a disdainful look.
"Do you think I'm this happy just because the teacher praised me? Do you think I'm the same age as you?"
"Did you find a wife?"
Lin Laosan: "...?"
You two know how to talk; you just grabbed the knife and stabbed him without the slightest hesitation.
The two little ones had no idea that Lin Laosan had been so provoked that he couldn't speak. Seeing that he wasn't saying anything, they assumed he was shy.
After happily washing his hands, he pounced on Lin Li.
"Grandma, Uncle San has a wife again!"
Lin Li: You've only been heartbroken for a short time? You've already fallen for another girl?
Lin Laosan: Is he hallucinating? What did he just hear?
"Mom, I didn't. Don't listen to their nonsense. I'm focused on my studies and doing experiments diligently."
Coming to his senses, Lin Laosan hurriedly washed his hands, dried them with the white hand towel beside him, and rushed to Lin Li, trying to salvage his precarious reputation.
"Grandma, but Uncle San really has bad taste in choosing a wife. Look at Jia Jiaojiao, whom he likes, it's really hard to describe!"
Lin Hu gave Lin Laosan a deep look, then shook his head and sighed.
"Exactly, neither Tiger nor I could tell she wasn't a good girl. I don't know why Uncle Three was so desperate to pursue her back then."
Lin Laosan looked at the two little ones with a face as black as ink, unable to express his bitterness.
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