“Bad person! You aren’t allowed to bully Brother Mingshan!!”
“That’s right! We’re all going to be like Brother Mingshan in the future! We definitely won’t be like you!”
Calyx-like, youthful voices echoed throughout the room.
Small figures rushed in through the door one after another.
I didn’t know who was leading them, but they kept squeezing in around me, An Zhi, and Su Xixia.
Zhao Wu’s subordinates were all local villagers, so they naturally recognized these children.
Not a single person dared to lay a hand on them, and they were forced back as the kids crowded the space.
“Bad guy, I’m never going to work at your factory! I’m going to find a good job!”
“Exactly! We’re going to get into a university and go to the city to make our families proud!”
“We want to be like Brother Li! We want to marry wives as beautiful as these sisters!”
“Villain Zhao! You aren’t allowed to bully them!”
An Zhi, who had just recovered from the initial shock, was still a bit overwhelmed.
She blankly reached out and patted the head of one of the little girls.
“…Mingshan, what exactly did you do behind our backs!?”
Su Xixia wiped away her tears and pinched the cheek of a child beside her while scolding me.
“You should have said something sooner! You scared me to death.”
“I’m sorry. I’ll explain later,” I said, scratching my head.
I hadn’t expected so many children to show up.
I was squeezed into the middle of the group, and it felt like someone had stuffed something into my pocket, but I couldn’t reach down to check…
Zhao Wu was stunned by the scene.
Once he regained his senses, he began shouting, “Get out! Who let you in here? This is my damn house! Get out, or I’ll beat you little brats to death!”
He raised the cup in his hand.
Realizing things were about to take a bad turn, I prepared to step forward and stop him.
“Zhao Wu! You actually dare to raise a hand against these children?”
A powerful, resonant voice came from the doorway.
Very few people in the village knew Zhao Wu’s full name.
Aside from his relatives, only the Village Chief called him that.
“Old Man Li, you… why are you here?”
He lowered the cup, a trace of fear flickering in his eyes.
“You’ve grown too comfortable, thinking you can do whatever you want here. Breaking things, causing trouble, parading a mob through the village, and now threatening children… you’re no better than the underworld!”
“Damn it, why are you here to ruin my business? My family invested here, built the school, and renovated the village roads. Are you trying to make my family withdraw our investment and quit!?”
Zhao Wu maintained a cold face, looking completely unrepentant.
“Have you consulted your parents before saying that? I just confirmed that you secretly stole 1,000,000 from the family accounts. Your father is on his way here right now to question you!”
“Then I’ll just convince him to withdraw the investment! Without our money, Heshan Village can just wait to rot!”
Zhao Wu plopped down on the bed. Knowing he was in the wrong, the light in his eyes dimmed.
“Zhao Wu, times have changed.”
The Village Chief let out a long sigh.
“The future doesn’t belong to me, nor does it belong to your Zhao family… it belongs to these children. Whether Heshan Village declines or not depends on them.”
“It’s thanks to Li Mingshan’s guidance that I realized this truth…”
“Damn it, Li Mingshan! Li Mingshan again! Just you wait. University students are everywhere these days. My factory wouldn’t even want one!”
Zhao Wu could only resort to such words as he collapsed back onto the bed, his momentum completely gone.
“Thank you, Village Chief Li,” I said, bowing my head in gratitude.
“No need for thanks. If it wasn’t for the excellent plan you proposed, I really wouldn’t have known how to handle this mess. Sigh, I’m getting old…”
The Village Chief looked at the cluster of children and sighed with emotion.
I turned to face Zhao Wu and said, “I will return the money to the original account through Su Xixia’s bank details. But first, you must leave Su Xixia and her family alone, and the restaurant must be returned to the Su family. How about it?”
“Whatever, whatever… damn it, what a stroke of bad luck,” he grumbled unhappily.
“The Village Chief and the children are all listening. I hope you’re a man of your word!”
The heavy stone in my heart finally dropped.
I was glad I had sent those messages to the Village Chief while on the road.
Using the village’s future as bait, I had barely managed to convince him.
He also happened to want this opportunity to suppress the Zhao family’s arrogance and bolster the Village Committee’s reputation in the eyes of the villagers. It was a win-win.
As for the children’s arrival, that was a surprise.
Perhaps they had overheard their parents gossiping and ran over on their own.
I should also thank you, Ms. Ji Yayu.
The children gradually dispersed. Seeing Zhao Wu in such a state, his subordinates also slunk away in embarrassment.
At that moment, Li Baishuang suddenly shouted, “Zhao Wu! You also have to pay for the renovation costs of my restaurant!”
As soon as she finished, Su Zhengtian grabbed her and started pulling her toward the door.
“Enough, don’t lose any more face here…”
He muttered.
As he passed me, he whispered, “Li Mingshan, come to my house for lunch later.”
Then he left.
‘What does he want to say to me?’
As I was wondering, my arm was suddenly pulled into a soft embrace, and I couldn’t pull it out.
“Mingshan, thank you! You saved me this time… I really do still like you, a lot! I want to eat you up right now—! Just kidding, hahaha.”
I had never seen Su Xixia smile so sweetly.
‘Is her current smile pure and from the heart? I think so.’
“I’m sorry, I can’t accept that.”
I shook my head.
“By the way, earlier you said you were the ‘Female Demon King’ conquered by me. Where did you get that line?”
“Huh? What are you talking about? I never said that!”
Her face turned bright red.
She let go of my arm and turned toward the children.
“I thought you were going to give up, so I figured I might as well make him angrier…”
“Mingshan, why is your pocket so bulging?”
An Zhi’s voice came from below.
“The children stuffed it… Wah—!!”
“An Zhi!?”
I quickly leaned down.
An Zhi was so scared that her eyes were brimming with tears as she hugged me tight.
“I’m too cowardly… I’m sorry.”
A toad hopped away from my feet, frantically trying to find a way out.
‘What on earth did those kids stuff in there…’
“It’s okay, it’s just a toad. We can go back to the city soon.”
I patted her head.
We played with the children around the villa for a while, then followed the Village Chief to see them back to their homes.
At the request of the parents, I asked the kids to attend their classes properly starting tomorrow…
The level concrete roads, the stone walls built by various households, and the renovated Heshan Elementary School—none of these would have been possible without the Zhao family’s investment.
If Zhao Wu had been a bit more disciplined in his actions, we might have been the ones at a disadvantage.
A single thought between good and evil can lead to vastly different endings.
***
Before I knew it, the sun had risen to the middle of the sky, dispersing some of the chill in the wind.
Holding An Zhi’s hand, I followed Su Xixia toward her home.
From a distance, I could see Su Zhengtian looking around in front of his house.
When he saw me coming, he waved incessantly.
“Welcome, Li Mingshan—! I’m sorry about my attitude before, and for scolding you. It’s cold outside, come in and sit! This beautiful girl, please come in too! You are Li Mingshan’s…”
He trotted over and opened the door to welcome us in.
When he saw An Zhi, he froze for a moment.
Stepping into the entryway, a wave of warm air hit us.
“She’s my girlfriend, An Zhi,” I said.
“Girlfriend… Right, please come in, Ms. An! I’ve asked the restaurant chef to whip up a few dishes. We were just waiting for you!”
Su Zhengtian hesitated for a moment before enthusiastically inviting An Zhi and me onto the wooden floor and into the living room.
“Thanks. Let Xixia go first.”
I turned and patted Su Xixia’s shoulder as she kept her head down, urging her to walk ahead.
Father and daughter faced each other coldly.
At my prompt, Su Zhengtian nodded repeatedly and said, “Xixia, your dad missed you. Your mother won’t say it, but in her heart…”
“I don’t need you two to miss me!”
Su Zhengtian was stunned.
The light in his eyes faded slightly.
He pulled out a box of cigarettes but then put it back.
When he saw me walk by, he quickly pulled them out again.
“Right! Li Mingshan, do you smoke? Good quality stuff.”
I waved him off, refusing, and followed Su Xixia into the living room.
“Ms. An, do you smoke?”
“Smoke? What’s smoking?”
An Zhi tilted her head behind me.
“Mingshan doesn’t smoke, so I don’t either.”
“Uh? Right, right.”
The place had been renovated and was no different from an apartment in the city, with wooden floors, a round table, a liquid crystal television, and an air conditioner blowing warm air.
It felt even better than the apartment I rented; it was certainly much larger.
Several hot dishes were laid out on the table, emitting mouth-watering aromas.
When I was young, my family was poor.
Every time I passed the Red Flower Restaurant, I could smell similar scents.
Unfortunately, I had only eaten there once, on the day I got into university.
It was rare to be actively invited like this.
Wanting to have a good meal with An Zhi was one of the reasons I accepted the invitation.
Additionally, I wanted to see how Su Xixia’s parents were treating her.
Su Zhengtian seemed to have accepted his daughter, but as for Li Baishuang…
I didn’t even see her at the dinner table.
When I tactfully brought it up, Su Zhengtian simply said, “My wife needs to cool her head in her room,” brushing it off.
Come to think of it, Su Zhengtian might have only agreed to marry Su Xixia off to the Zhao family because of his wife’s instigation.
After all, Su Xixia didn’t reject him when he put food in her bowl.
Upon learning that I didn’t like to drink, he started downing glasses of wine by himself until his face was flushed red.
Drunkenly, he said, “I’m sorry, Xixia. Your dad shouldn’t have forced you to get married.”
“……”
Su Xixia chewed on a piece of beef with her head down.
“Uncle Su, why did you want to marry Xixia into the Zhao family?”
I asked.
“Because, the restaurant’s profits weren’t good… well, it’s not that they weren’t good, we could certainly survive! But my wife kept saying the declining profits were because I was useless. She said it was better to marry our daughter into a rich family early so they could help the business… You see, I got lightheaded and listened to everything she said!”
“Shouldn’t you rely on yourself and think about how to work hard to find new customers?”
“Yes! You’re right! I’m useless, I only thought about relying on my daughter… I didn’t treat my daughter like a daughter; I treated her like a bottle of premium liquor… I’m a bastard!”
*Slap!*
Su Zhengtian slapped himself across the face, tears welling in the corners of his eyes.
“…Yeah,” Su Xixia responded softly.
“A bastard.”
“Yes! That’s what I am! Xixia… Dad knows you like Li Mingshan, and I support you! If you want to follow him to the city, that’s fine. I’ll slowly convince your mother!”
Su Zhengtian had run the restaurant for so long that his ability to adapt to the situation and cater to others was truly impressive…
I should probably learn from that.
“Mm.”
Su Xixia nodded and picked up another piece of beef, eating with more gusto than before.
Seeing the atmosphere at the table begin to soften, I took out my phone and asked, “Uncle Su, the gold necklace Xixia stole was used as my rent. I’ll compensate you for the money now.”
“No need! That necklace was going to be passed down to Xixia sooner or later anyway. My father sold our old house to buy it when he proposed to my mother. When my father gave it to her, he said, ‘I’ll take care of you and love you for a lifetime.’ That’s the meaning behind it. Now that Xixia has given it to you… you see…”
‘Huh?! There was such a story behind it?’
“Mm-hmm…”
Su Xixia nodded.
At that moment, the father and daughter seemed to have reached some sort of tacit understanding.
“I have a girlfriend, and I love her very much. I respect the story behind the necklace, so let me pay you back,” I said firmly, rejecting the implication.
“I didn’t say you had to marry my daughter… She isn’t familiar with the city yet, so just take care of her a bit more. There’s no need to pay for the necklace! Look…”
Su Zhengtian persisted.
It seemed that if I didn’t give an answer he accepted, he would keep asking in different ways.
I looked at An Zhi.
She was currently dealing with a piece of tough beef in her bowl, eating happily as if she didn’t care about my answer at all.
“Fine. If she has any trouble, I’ll do my best to help.”
“Good! I’ll drink to that! I’ll leave my daughter in your care!”
He laughed loudly and downed a cup of yellow wine.
“Xixia, if you need anything in the future, you can contact your dad. I’ll solve it for you!”
After seeing Su Xixia nod, he downed another cup of yellow wine.
As if a weight had been lifted from his chest, he kept pouring more wine.
In the end…
By the time we quietly said our goodbyes and left, he was slumped over the table in a deep sleep, and no one could wake him.
***
In the evening, I sat in the last row of the return bus.
Su Xixia and An Zhi, sitting on either side of me, were dozing off, occasionally leaning their heads on my shoulders.
Since I was sitting right in the middle with no obstructions in front of me, I remained very much awake, staring at the transfer limit notification on my phone.
As expected, I wouldn’t be able to avoid a trip to the bank.
After transferring this 500,000, what should I do about An Zhi’s situation?
I knew that relying on myself alone wouldn’t be enough…