LW chapter 73

 

Chen Dabao nearly wet his pants when he arrived at the local government office. Seeing that everyone was already there, he went back to the courthouse.

“Chen Dabao,” the judge began. “Someone has accused you of occupying someone else’s ancestral house. Do you admit it?”

Hearing the reason, Chen Dabao finally humbled himself. He didn’t know where that bastard came from to falsely accuse him. He immediately shouted, “Sir, that’s not fair! That is my family’s humble home.”

“Just because you say it’s your house doesn’t mean it is. Do you have a property deed?”

Chen Dabao was stunned. From the time Chen San died until Chen Qing fled, they had searched the house for the deed. They almost destroyed the house, but still could not find the ownership papers. However, thinking that Chen Qing might die outside, they stopped searching.

“Of course there’s a deed,” said Chen Dabao.

“What kind of deed could you possibly have?” Chen Qing had been waiting in court. When Chen Dabao entered, he only glanced at Chen Qing and did not recognize him.

Because Chen Qing was not wearing a hood in court, Chen Dabao did not realize it was him until he spoke. Before the court servants could react, Chen Dabao rushed toward Chen Qing. “You’re the one who falsely accused me? Who are you?”

He tried to punch Chen Qing, but Zhou Yuan knocked him to the ground. Then, the court servants restrained him.

The district judge was furious. This man had tried to hit someone right in front of him. He showed no respect for the law: “Chen Dabao!”

Chen Dabao realized he was in the wrong place. He kowtowed and admitted his mistake, saying, “I don’t know what grudge this man has against me, but he came to falsely accuse me. I was in a hurry…”

Chen Qing did not reveal his identity. The district judge said, “The owner of the house you are occupying has confirmed that it belonged to Chen San. Chen San has been dead for many years and only had one child. This house now belongs to Chen Qing.”

Chen Dabao immediately said, “Sir, Chen Qing has been dead for a long time!”

Zhou Yuan frowned at this. Chen Dabao couldn’t stop talking about death. What bad luck.

“Even if Chen Qing were here, you should report this matter to the government. The government will reclaim this piece of residential land,” said the district judge.

Chen Dabao was stunned. They were just ordinary people, and there were no scholars in the family who understood the law. They only knew that the house was unoccupied, so they moved in.

“Chen Dabao, you have occupied someone else’s house and insulted the court. I sentence you to fifteen strokes of the rod, and you must move out immediately.”

Chen Dabao objected. “Sir, before he died, my third uncle said he would give us this house. But he died suddenly, so he didn’t give us the deed.”

“My father never said he would give the house to you.” Chen Qing didn’t want to hear any more from Chen Dabao. When there was a benefit, he called him Third Uncle. When there wasn’t, he called him Chen San.

Chen Dabao then looked at Chen Qing. After staring at him for a long time, he could hardly believe it was indeed him. “You? Chen Qing?”

“It’s me. I’m here to take back my things. What’s the problem?” This time, Chen Qing wouldn’t let Zhou Yuan stand in front of him. It was a family matter, so he had to handle it himself. Having Zhou Yuan stand behind him gave him great courage.

As soon as Chen Qing finished speaking, an old woman rushed over. She raised her hand to slap him, but he held her hand tightly.

“You little ungrateful brat! How dare you come back, you unfilial wretch! You didn’t pay your respects when you returned, yet you dare to sue your own brother in court. I’ll beat you to death!” The person who came was Chen Qing’s grandmother, who had wanted to marry him off to an old widower more than ten years ago.

She opened her eyes angrily. Although she was clearly very old, she was still very strong, and she had a cruel expression on her face.

This face used to be Chen Qing’s worst nightmare. She had never treated him kindly when he was a child. She often beat him when he fought with his siblings. She would also pinch him with her long nails on the backs of their hands.

Chen Qing had been really afraid of her, but now that Zhou Yuan was behind him, he didn’t need to fear this woman who was over fifty years old.

“I just took back my father’s belongings. How is that unfilial? If I let you take my father’s things, that would really be unfilial!” Chen Qing brushed her hand away. “This is a court. If you hit me here, do you also want to be locked up for a few days?”

The old Chen grandmother stared at Chen Qing. After more than ten years, she didn’t look much different, but she seemed very different. There was no trace of cowardice between her eyebrows. She might be hard to control now.

“Quiet!” The district judge frowned. “If you cause trouble in court again, you will be jailed for five days!”

Even though the old Chen grandmother was arrogant, she did not dare to offend the official.

She and Chen Dabao’s wife knelt on the ground, crying and screaming. “Sir, the house obviously belongs to me. What’s wrong with giving it to my grandson?”

“This is a court. How could it belong to someone just because you say it does?” After witnessing the scene outside the courtroom, the district judge, who had initially been biased toward Chen Qing, became even more biased. “The plaintiff has a court-issued deed, and I will judge this case based on it.”

“You!” Old Madam Chen pointed at the district judge. “I don’t accept it!”

The district judge really did not want to get involved with this family. “I have already ruled. If you don’t accept it, you can go to the city for a retrial.”

Immediately, the court servants pinned Chen Dabao to a board and beat him, despite Old Madam Chen’s cries and wails.

Zhou Yuan protected Chen Qing, who stood in front. “Tomorrow is a good day. You should move out of my house then.”

Then, Zhou Yuan carried Chen Qing out of the local government office. Old Madam Chen jumped and cursed at them from behind, but Chen Qing just pretended not to hear.

Once they were outside, Chen Qing seemed to have lost all his strength. If Zhou Yuan hadn’t been holding him, he might have fallen. Zhou Yuan lifted him. “Ah Qing was very strong just now.”

Chen Qing’s eyes suddenly turned red. He wrapped one arm around Zhou Yuan’s neck and wiped his tears away with the other hand. “Maybe she’s old. Now, I don’t find her so scary.”

Zhou Yuan smiled. “Of course. She’s just an old woman.”

“Give them one day. We’ll return the day after tomorrow to take over the house. Not only will we take over the house, but we will also hold a grand funeral for Father and Little Father.” Zhou Yuan carried Chen Qing and walked back, ignoring the expressions of the people around them. “Let’s take back the house. What do you think?”

Chen Qing thought for a moment. “Why not let Aunt Du’s family live there? There are three of them, and I think Brother Du will eventually get married, so it would be good for them to live together.”

“Ah Qing is always so considerate.” Zhou Yuan said.
“After we finish all this, let’s go home, okay? It’s almost the fifteenth day of the seventh lunar month, and only Mother can go worship alone this time.”

Chen Qing leaned on his chest. “Li Xin’s belly is getting bigger. I don’t know if he can get used to it. Qi Shuning has to prepare for the exam too. I don’t know if he can manage it alone.”

Although Chen Qing was born on this land, now the small village surrounded by mountains and rivers was his home.

He was a little worried. “Will everything go smoothly on the day after tomorrow? There are so many of them, and it’s just the two of us…”

“Don’t worry. We have people, too.”

Chen Qing looked at him, confused. “Where did the people come from?”

“Meng Qi and the others.” Zhou Yuan explained, “Before entering Xiaxi, I left a letter for them at the place we sent it. I asked them to come after they finished their journey.”

Although he could handle these people alone, Chen Qing was worried he might get hurt, so he asked someone to come along.

After all, this trip was not in vain. The items in the Xiaxi Prefecture were very rare. If he brought them back, they might sell well. He had gone around the prefecture city several times before, it was not in vain.

Various gemstones, various tools, blankets, and sleeves made of different animal furs were items they could not see there.

Sure enough, the next day, Meng Qi and Meng Shuanzi arrived with the dart team. They looked a little uncomfortable with the wind and sand. Meng Qi’s face was red and peeling. They didn’t know how to apply oil, so the group had patched-up faces.

Chen Qing was both anxious and amused, so he went to buy shell oil for them. He left them at the inn to discuss various things.

“My god, we didn’t feel so bad when we were fighting.” Meng Qi touched his face, it felt hot and sore. “Chen Qing was born in a place like this.”

“Brother, you didn’t ask us to come here just to carry back items to sell, did you?”

Zhou Yuan told them about the situation here. Meng Shuanzi hit the table. “I was wondering how Chen Qing could be stranded in our place from such a distance. So this is how it is.”

“Let’s support him the day after tomorrow.”

“Thank you all.” Zhou Yuan bowed to them.

“What are you talking about?” Meng Shuanzi said.
“We call it punishing evil and removing danger.”

Chen Qing bought all the shell oil in the shop, gave one to each person, and explained how to use it. “It will be fine in two days. If you’re still not used to the wind and sand, you can also cover it with a hood.” Everyone nodded.

As adult men, it was okay to be a little rough.

The next day, Zhou Yuan brought Chen Qing back first. It was almost the fifteenth day of the seventh lunar month, the right time to hold a funeral for the two elders. However, it had been a long time since they had left, and they didn’t know where to find someone to prepare the banquet.

They had to bother Aunt Du about these things. They first went to her house, where Chen Qing explained the purpose of their visit. Aunt Du hesitated, then said, “Xiao Qing, even though your two uncles are fighting now, they stood together in the past. You and your husband are just two people, and you might not be able to outsmart them.”

Chen Qing shook his head. “It’s okay. We have many people, and our relatives are here, too.”

“That’s good. Then I will help you contact someone to prepare the banquet.” Aunt Du continued, “But if you’re in a hurry, I don’t think there’s anything affordable. Everything is quite expensive.”

Chen Qing shook his head. “Aunt, money is not an issue.”

They hadn’t enjoyed anything in life, and it took years to earn posthumous honors, so of course they had to do it well.

They sat at Aunt Du’s house for a while, and then they prepared to return home. However, when they arrived, Chen Dabao, who lived there, had not moved. He was still in bed recovering from his injuries. He was determined not to leave. How could a young man like Chen Qing turn the situation around?

“You haven’t moved yet?” Zhou Yuan opened the door and said. “If you don’t want to move, I’ll help you.”

“How dare you!” Chen Dabao was so arrogant outside of court. He wanted to walk around the whole village like a proud man.

Zhou Yuan sneered and ignored him. He lifted Chen Dabao, who was lying on the ground, with one hand and kicked him out.

Then, the people from Meng Qi’s Escort Agency arrived. They were skilled at packing. They cleared all the items from the house quickly. Zhou Yuan had originally wanted to destroy everything immediately, but Chen Qing said he might have to pay for it. Besides expelling Chen Dabao, Zhou Yuan packed all the other items.

When Lin returned, a group of tall, strong men were standing at the door, and Chen Dabao was lying on the ground.

 

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