Chapter 139: Xu Damao's Attempt to Steal a Chicken Fails and He Loses His Rice Instead

As soon as the group of children ran home, Boss Leiting arrived with a group of workers. Looking at the empty Erfang, he knew immediately that the items had been looted.

The burly Leiting spat and said, "Third Uncle, what a mess! We underestimated the character of the people in this courtyard."

Boss Leiting shook his head and said, "Take Xiaoliuzi and Xiaojiu, and search house by house!" Then, he thought for a moment and added, "That kid named Li Yong in the Houyuan always likes to come over and pry for information; I suspect he was involved, so you can start with him."

Around noon, the parents of the Siheyuan returned one after another.

The burly Leiting and his two brothers began knocking on doors with precision, starting with the home of Yan Bugui.

Seeing the three fierce-looking men, Yan Bugui asked, "Do the three of you need something from me?"

Leiting spoke up, "I'm the one doing the renovations in the Zhongyuan. I came over early this morning, and all the He Family's things were gone. I received word that your eldest son was involved!"

Yan Bugui pushed up his glasses and said, "That can't be! The child has always been honest; he's at home reviewing his schoolwork!"

"Teacher Yan, I didn't come here just to spout nonsense." He took out a child's tooth and said, "Your son should be missing a tooth. Someone saw that when your son was moving the small table, he didn't see the threshold and knocked his front tooth out."

Yan Bugui's old face flushed red. Although he liked to take small advantages, he did not want his child to be branded a thief.

He went inside, looked at Yan Jiecheng, and asked, "Did you go to the He Family to steal things?"

Yan Jiecheng shrank his neck and said, "Xu Damao said the He Family was all dead, and that He Yuzhu's Siqiang had come to divide up the He Family's property, so why couldn't the neighbors do the same?"

Yan Bugui scolded, "Xu Damao said the He Family was dead, and you believed him? Now look, people have come to our door, and you've earned a reputation as a thief. Are you stupid?"

After saying this, he slapped Yan Jiecheng.

Yan Jiecheng immediately shouted, "Dad, why are you hitting me? All the kids in the courtyard took things!"

"Children not learning to be good! Even though our family is poor, we cannot steal! It's a disgrace to our reputation!" Yan Bugui said.

"I'm sorry! Brother Lei! It's my fault for not disciplining the child strictly!" Yan Bugui hurried out to apologize and even returned the He Family's kang table.

Leiting nodded and said, "Teacher Yan is a reasonable man. Thank you."

Next, the three men followed the information they had gathered and went door-to-door to demand the items back. Most of the parents were reasonable; they not only returned the items but also offered apologies.

Only the Xu Family in the Houyuan would not open their door. Then there was the Zhao Si family, who not only refused to admit their child had taken anything but were also very aggressive and tried to act tough; as a result, they were beaten up by Leiting and his two men, and the bench their child had stolen was found under the bed.

Zhao Si grabbed the bench and refused to let go, shouting with a flushed face, "This bench is clearly an heirloom of my family! By what right do you come to my house to rob me? I'm going to report this to the Patrol Police and have them arrest you all!"

Leiting laughed and said, "Zhao, my ancestors built the Forbidden City. Do you think we didn't leave any markings when we stored our things? Take a look and see if there's a serial number under this bench."

"Bullshit!" Zhao Si cursed.

When the people in the Siheyuan heard this, they began to chime in.

Old Man Ma said, "Zhao Si, whether there is one or not, won't you know if you just look? Turn the bench over and let everyone see. If there's no number, everyone here will speak up for you!"

Once Zhao Si heard this, he had no choice but to turn the bench over, only to find that not only were there numbers on the four legs, but there was also a serial number on the back of the bench.

Zhao Si was immediately left speechless.

"Isn't it just a broken bench? As if I care that much! I just remembered, my bench was borrowed by my third elder brother."

The people standing around laughed and said, "Zhao Si, your memory is really good."

At this time, Xu Fugui also returned home. Seeing a table clock placed on his cabinet, he asked, "Damao, isn't this from the He Family? How did it get into our house?"

"Li Yong and the others said the He Family members were all dead, and that He Yuzhu's Siqiang came to seize the house, so we might as well divide up their belongings!" Xu Damao dumped the blame onto others.

Xu Fugui said, "How can you be so muddled? What kind of people are the Leiting family? They numbered everything; if they report this to the Patrol Police, you'll be a thief! Besides, our family isn't lacking these things, why did you take theirs?"

"I've been holding a grudge and couldn't let it out; I just wanted to get back at the He Family, but I didn't expect this Leiting fellow to be so hard to deal with."

"You don't know anything! The Leiting family is a large clan, and they have people in every field; don't easily offend them. To put it bluntly, if our house collapses one day, with one word from the Leiting family, no one would dare to repair it for us."

Xu Damao was unconvinced. He left the house in a huff and gathered several children to go to Dian'anmen to discuss the matter.

"Who told the Leiting family about our business? How did they know exactly which doors to knock on?" Xu Damao asked.

Li Yong immediately said, "In my opinion, it must be Jia Zhangshi! That old woman is always lurking around!"

"Impossible! Jia Zhangshi went to buy grain; I saw it with my own eyes," Xu Damao said.

"Then it must be Ma Yan from the Houyuan. She has always been hanging around us, but she didn't take anything. I bet it was her!" Liu Guangqi said.

"To think it was that jinx; she ruined our good thing. I must teach her a lesson," Xu Damao said.

"She usually goes to pick up laundry for her grandmother in the afternoon. Why don't we beat her up on the way?" Liu Guangqi said.

"I'll keep watch for you. When I see her going to pick up the laundry work, I'll send you a signal," Yan Jiecheng said.

"I think you guys should just let it be. The Ma family is miserable enough. The little girl is only seven years old and helps her grandmother wash clothes every day; why give her a hard time?" Wang Shucheng said.

"Hey! Are you trying to make her your little wife? Protecting her like that!" Xu Damao said.

Wang Shucheng turned and ran, shouting a threat, "I'm going to find Chen Daya and see if she doesn't beat you to death when she comes!"

"Wang Shucheng, you're a spy. I don't think Ma Yan was the one who snitched at all; it was you," Xu Damao said.

"Bullshit, I just got back from my second uncle's house," Wang Shucheng said.

Shen Shichang was ill and staying at the Peking Union Medical College Hospital, where a doctor was giving him an IV drip.

Liu Rusi hurried over. She stood before the hospital bed and asked, "Father, how did you end up like this after just one night?"

Shen Shichang said weakly, "If your information is inaccurate, our Shen Family is finished."

"Your three sons are all in the United States, what are you afraid of? At worst, we can just leave," Liu Rusi said.

"How can it be that simple? With my status, once I fall, the Military Statistics Bureau can hunt us down to the ends of the earth!" Shen Shichang said.

"You're at least having a quiet time being sick like this. I imagine many people are looking for you, right?" Liu Rusi said.

Shen Shichang said, "I can't worry about that anymore."

"You should get some rest! Once there is news, I will let you know!" After saying this, Liu Rusi exited the room.

She stood at the doorway and looked at the guard, Changgen, saying, "What happened to my father? He was fine when I left yesterday, how did he get a fever by early morning?"

Changgen hesitated to speak. Liu Rusi glared at him, and only then did Changgen say, "The master walked around the courtyard in his shirt for half an hour last night."

Liu Rusi whispered, "What a coward."

Changgen wanted to say something; his lips moved, but he closed his mouth again.

Just then, a plainclothes agent ran over, covered in sweat, whispered a few words to Liu Rusi, and quickly left.

Liu Rusi immediately perked up and ordered, "Changgen, hurry and handle the discharge procedures for my father!"

Changgen hesitated a bit and said, "This... the master's illness hasn't recovered yet!"

Liu Rusi shook her head and walked quickly into the hospital room. A nurse was changing the IV bottle for Shen Shichang.

Liu Rusi leaned into his ear and said, "Dai Laoban's plane crashed at Daishan in Nanjing!"

Shen Shichang suddenly sat up and asked, "Is what you said true?"

"The news came out of the Nanjing Ministry of National Defense," Liu Rusi said.

"Changgen, handle the discharge procedures for me!" Shen Shichang said. Changgen looked at Liu Rusi with a confused expression.