Chapter 435: The Younger Brother is Unworthy, the Elder Brother's Fault

Lin Sicheng rummaged through the cabinets to find the car keys and hurried outside.

Zhao Da and Zhao Er, who were in the outer room, tossed aside their magazines and chased after him: "Master, are you going home? Shall we drive you?"

"No need, I can manage myself!"

"Huh?" The two brothers paused. "Before we came back, my father and Professor Wang gave instructions: after arriving in Xijing, no matter where you go, we must follow you." Lin Sicheng's pace slowed down.

It wasn't that Xijing was unsafe, but that incident in Beijing had left Zhao Xiuneng and Wang Qi Zhi with psychological trauma: Lin Sicheng had been out for a perfectly normal stroll through an antique street and nearly lost half his life?

Those who work in archaeology and the antique trade, having seen far too many strange and bizarre things, are all somewhat idealistic. And since Lin Sicheng's luck was so good it defied logical explanation, they naturally attributed it to fatalism:

You can't have all the benefits to yourself; if you take a huge advantage here, don't you have to suffer a small loss somewhere else?

Furthermore, Lin Sicheng really did have quite a few enemies. In Zhao Xiuneng's words: no matter how high your martial arts are, you still fear a kitchen knife. No matter how good Lin Sicheng's skills were, he couldn't withstand someone shooting cold arrows at him.

Although the two brothers weren't as good at fighting as he was, they were thick-skinned and sturdy, making them good enough to serve as human shields... that was Zhao Xiuneng's original phrasing.

"Fine, let's go together!" Lin Sicheng didn't refuse again. "We're going back to Qujiang today; don't drive the Mercedes-Benz, just take the Santana!"

"You got it, Master!"

Zhao Da responded and took the car keys from Lin Sicheng's hand. Zhao Er went to the Treasury and moved the items shipped from Beijing into the car. There wasn't much, and it all fit into the trunk. Then the two brothers got into the front row, and Lin Sicheng sat in the back.

About half an hour later, the Santana drove to the old house.

Just as he got out of the car, Lin Sicheng was stunned: there was a road at the entrance, a slope further ahead, and a vegetable patch below the slope. Since no one lived there regularly, it was a pity to let it go to waste, so he let his great-uncle's family grow corn there. Every year, basically after the corn was harvested in mid-October, they would apply manure, then deep-plow, and wait until the end of November to irrigate for the winter. Right now, it was that empty period after the manure was applied and the plowing was done, waiting for irrigation, when the soil was at its loosest. At this moment, several half-grown boys were digging a tunnel in the vegetable patch.

It was a real tunnel: it was a full two meters deep from the surface, the roof of the cave was a full meter thick, and it had been dug nearly seven or eight meters long.

There were either five or six of them, digging from both ends. They were all so smeared with mud that it was impossible to tell who was who.

But one of them had a particularly conspicuous build: a chubby boy of medium height, half-squatting at the cave entrance, holding a rope end and sticking his butt out to pull up a mud basin. Looking at the skin on his neck, the parts not covered in mud were extremely white.

After recognizing him for a good while, Lin Sicheng finally identified him, and his eyelids couldn't stop twitching.

Zhao Da and Zhao Er recognized him too and were stunned: this is... Professor Wang's son?

His hands were mud, his face was mud, and his whole body was mud.

His clothes were stained with manure, and a half-piece of something black and dark hung from his hair; it looked for all the world like a lump of dung.

Being dirty was one thing, but the key was that he was still giving orders: "Hurry up, everyone! Once we dig through, we'll bury the landmines."

Standing nearby was a thin, stick-like child, perhaps just rotated out, who was panting heavily: "But... but there are only ten Thunder Kings; what if it doesn't collapse when we blow it up?" Hearing the voice, Lin Sicheng realized this was his fourth great-uncle's grandson, his cousin.

The little fatty was unconcerned: "If it's not enough, we'll buy more!"

No sooner had he spoken than a muffled voice came from the tunnel: "Wang Youjian, you only have ten yuan!"

"It's fine, my aunt (Lin Sicheng's mother) said: whatever I want to buy, just put it on my cousin's tab."

A head poked out from the other end of the tunnel: "Wang Youjian, didn't I say? My family has detonators, I'll sell them to you!"

The little fatty shook his head violently: "What if we can't run away in time? I don't want that..."

Hearing this, Lin Sicheng's eyelids weren't just twitching; his scalp was twitching along with them.

This bunch of blockheads actually wanted to blow up a tunnel?

This tunnel definitely wasn't dug today; in just half a day, a few half-grown boys couldn't dig this deep or this long. But one hundred percent, using Thunder Kings to blow up the tunnel was definitely Wang Youjian's idea.

The key was that the ground underneath was all wet mud; never mind using detonators to blow it up, it was quite possible the cave would collapse on its own the next second.

And for those few in the pit, not one of them would be able to run away...

Lin Sicheng took a deep breath, gave his two disciples a look, and tried hard to squeeze out a smile he thought was gentle: "Cousin!" Wang Youjian gave a start and twisted his neck around stiffly: "Cousin?"

"Come up first, take a break!" Lin Sicheng kept smiling. "All of you come up, I'll buy you Thunder Kings, everyone gets some..."

"Brother Cheng, really?"

Seeing Lin Sicheng nod solemnly and even take out money, the thin child was overjoyed. "Quick, Brother Cheng is going to buy us Thunder..."

"Really... ah, it really is Uncle Cheng..."

As they spoke, two children scurried out from the other end of the tunnel. Lin Sicheng took a careful look, and his face turned green.

He recognized them all; the village was only so big, and most were surnamed Lin. By seniority, these two should be his cousins once removed.

One of them was holding a rope with several firecrackers the size of thumbs hanging from it like bells.

The rope didn't matter, and the firecrackers didn't matter; the key was that where the thin rope wasn't covered in mud, it revealed kraft paper... wasn't this a fuse? Really, when he heard him say he wanted to sell detonators to Wang Youjian just now, Lin Sicheng thought the kid was just talking big...

He tried hard to control his expression, forcing a smile: "Stop digging for now, all of you come up, I'll give you money, go buy firecrackers first..."

Because Lin Sicheng used to buy them snacks often, the children believed him.

In no time at all, those in the pit climbed up, and those in the tunnel crawled out, all of them overjoyed.

Only Wang Youjian lingered, and was the last to climb up.

His two eyeballs were spinning rapidly: It's over, I'm afraid I can't escape a beating?

But didn't his sister say that his cousin probably wouldn't be back until night?

Thinking this secretly, he climbed onto the roadbed, just managed to stand steady, and pointed toward the entrance, his face full of surprise: "Sister, why did you come out?" He had hoped Lin Sicheng would definitely turn his head, and he could take the chance to slip away. But he hadn't considered that this was a trick Lin Sicheng had played back when he was still wearing split-crotch pants; how could he be fooled by it?

Just as his foot was raised and hadn't even stepped out yet, Lin Sicheng gave a cold laugh and grabbed him by the back of his collar.

Then, the little fatty, who weighed over a hundred jin, was lifted right off the ground.

The little fatty didn't shout or scream, just grinned: "Cousin... Cousin, I was wrong..."

"Is that so?" Lin Sicheng laughed, reaching out his hand. "Come here, Tao Wa, lend me that rope of yours..."

The child holding the fuse was still a bit dazed: Didn't Uncle Cheng say he was buying Thunder Kings? Why did he grab Wang Youjian?

But immediately, the fuse was snatched away by Lin Sicheng, and then a large hand like a pair of pliers reached over and grabbed his neck.

Then, another one nearby, and after that, Zhao Da and Zhao Er caught two each.

This was for fear that they might get scared and crawl back into that tunnel...

The thin child was a bit sharper; sensing something was wrong, he turned and bolted toward the house. He shouted as he ran: "Grandpa, Uncle..."

It was that kind of high-pitched, sharp, strained voice.

Immediately, a flurry of footsteps: Lin Zhangqing, Lin Chengzhi, Ji Wangshu.

The last to run out were Jiang Yanfei and Ye Anning; both were still wearing aprons, their hands covered in flour.

Seeing this scene, everyone was stunned for a moment: they had assumed it was a few children who had injured their hands while setting off firecrackers.

But upon coming out to look, it was far from that: Lin Sicheng's two disciples were each holding a mud monkey in one hand, grabbing four in total.

There was another one in Lin Sicheng's hand... Huh, Wang Youjian?

But how did he get so dirty?

And Lin Sicheng's face, why was it as black as the bottom of a pot?

"They are digging a tunnel underneath!" Lin Sicheng pointed below the roadbed and raised the wire in his hand, "Once they finished digging, they planned to use this to blow the tunnel down!"

Several people took a closer look: they knew about that hole; it had been newly dug by the village in preparation for changing the tap water pipes. But the materials hadn't arrived yet, so it was left there half-dug. These brats must have found it novel and were being mischievous inside.

It wasn't dug through in the middle, so these few firecrackers shouldn't be enough to collapse it.

Besides, who wasn't mischievous when they were young?

When Lin Sicheng was young, he used firecrackers to blow up the edge of a canal, flooding several acres of wheat that someone was supposed to harvest the next day...

As these thoughts turned, Lin Zhangqing glared at Lin Sicheng: "Put the child down, saying a few words is enough..."

Before the words were finished, Wang Youjian struggled a bit, then bared his teeth and smiled at Jiang Yanfei: "Auntie, Senior Brother is going to beat me..." "Don't worry, he wouldn't dare!" Jiang Yanfei smiled, "The bad things he did when he was little were far more than yours..."

Lin Sicheng let out a 'heh' and looked at Ji Wangshu and Ye Anning, who still hadn't grasped the situation.

He was just thinking that his mother was here and his sister was here, so how could this brat be so lawless? It turned out that with him and his teacher away for these two months, he had found a big backer? "Fine!" Lin Sicheng nodded and raised the wire, "Mom, do you see what this is?"

Jiang Yanfei took a look: "A firecracker?"

"I'm talking about this cord!" Lin Sicheng didn't mind the dirt, wiped the mud off on his clothes, and shook the little fatty, "Come, Wang Youjian, repeat it: what was Tao Wa going to sell you just now?"

The little fatty squeezed out a smile: "Senior Brother, he wanted to sell it, but I didn't take it!"

You didn't take it, but you led them and taught them how to blow up a tunnel.

Next time you aren't around, if they don't have money to buy Thunder Kings, will they have to steal detonators?

Lin Sicheng lashed out with a whip, and before the little fatty could cry out, he held it up again: "Mom, this is a lead wire; Tao Wa was planning to steal it to sell to Youjian, it's a detonator..."

Jiang Yanfei gave a start, stunned with fright.

With a "swish," the faces of Ji Wangshu and Ye Anning turned as white as a sheet of paper.

Never mind blowing up the tunnel and whether they would be buried inside. Just talking about a detonator: at worst it costs a life, at best it severs a hand...

Instantly, the two of them gritted their teeth, making a "creaking" sound: "Lin Sicheng, put him down..."

"Senior Sister-in-law, I can't put him down; if I do, he'll run!" Lin Sicheng shook his head, "Besides, you two can't hold him down..."

Although Wang Youjian is only eleven this year, he eats well and is active. So don't let his fat fool you; his body is full of sinewy muscle, and even Zhao Da and Zhao Er might not be able to catch him.

Giving him to his Senior Sister-in-law and Ye Anning, the two of them couldn't hold him down.

Ji Wangshu reacted, the corners of her eyes twitching "rustle, rustle, rustle": "Lin Sicheng, go ahead and whip him, just leave him with a breath..."

Wang Youjian's face turned pale: "Senior Brother... Mom, I was wrong... Auntie, Sister... save me..."

Still want to be saved?

If I don't whip you to death today...

Ye Anning kept a cold face and began to roll up her sleeves.

Afterwards, Lin Sicheng dragged the constantly begging little fatty into the house, and Ye Anning searched around, taking a wire clothes hanger from the clothesline.

A mixed doubles match?

Jiang Yanfei couldn't bear it and was just about to say something when Ji Wangshu grabbed her hand.

"Teacher Jiang, if Lin Sicheng had been like this when he was little, would you have beaten him?"

Stunned for a moment, Jiang Yanfei looked at Lin Chengzhi and her father-in-law: how could she not beat him? If she had left a single piece of good flesh on his buttocks, she, as his mother, would be considered a stepmother.

But it wouldn't have been her turn, and it wouldn't have been Lin Chengzhi's turn either; the old man would have hung him up and whipped him with a belt long ago.

"Teacher Jiang, you might think that Lin Sicheng is just a Senior Brother and that Youjian will hold a grudge against him... but rest assured, he won't. Wang Qi Zhi once said: 'A teacher for a day is a father for life,' and from the day he became Lin Sicheng's teacher, Youjian was his younger brother. If this younger brother grows crooked, he, as the Senior Brother, also bears responsibility..."

Jiang Yanfei had a strange look on her face: it can be reasoned like this?

However, she could at least hear that Ji Wangshu was definitely not being hypocritical. Thinking back on usual times, whether it was Wang Qi Zhi or Ji Wangshu, they treated Lin Sicheng no differently than their own son.

But the problem is: Wang Youjian doesn't just have a dad and a mom, he also has grandparents, maternal grandparents, and even a great-grandfather...

As these thoughts turned, she looked at her father-in-law and husband again; Lin Zhangqing and Lin Chengzhi looked at each other and shook their heads in unison.

"Filial sons are produced under the stick"—this saying doesn't apply everywhere. But if it's a personality like Lin Sicheng's or Wang Youjian's, it is absolutely one hundred percent effective.

What Wang Qi Zhi meant by this saying also referred to Wang Youjian's personality: he followed his father's, a bit reckless. Don't look at how strictly Ji Wangshu and Ye Anning usually manage him and how often they beat him; he basically isn't afraid.

As for Wang Qi Zhi, don't even count on him; he has the same temperament himself, so do you expect him to teach his son?

So Wang Qi Zhi knows very well that his son must have someone he fears. But his dad won't do, and his mom and sister won't do, so he can only count on the disciple: the so-called "if the younger brother is not upright, it is the elder brother's fault."

Don't say, it really is quite effective.

And this matter today, if he doesn't learn a good lesson, do you believe Wang Youjian will dare to do it again next time?

And beating him late won't work either.

But they couldn't intervene; Ji Wangshu and Ye Anning were basically just tickling him, and that was only on the premise that the little fatty could be held down by them. So it could only be Lin Sicheng...

Just as these thoughts were turning, the little fatty's screams came from inside the house, along with the arguing voices of Lin Sicheng and Ye Anning.

"Sister Anning, move aside, don't add to the chaos..."

"I won't... if he isn't beaten until it hurts, he won't remember the lesson..."

"But don't hit his hands; if his hands are swollen, how will he go to school tomorrow, how will he do his homework?"

"Se... Senior Brother, his buttocks will be swollen too..."

"It's fine, you can stand while you write..."