Chapter 52: Stealing Someone? A Hoodlum?

"Hurry up! The adulterer is running away!"

Tang Deren's wife screamed at the top of her lungs.

The neighbor who rushed out first caught sight of a dark figure sprinting away at full speed and immediately gave chase, roaring as he ran, "Damn bastard, stop right there! If you don't stop and I catch you, I swear I'll beat you to death with my bare hands!"

How could that man possibly dare to stop? He ran even faster.

The snow on the path was thick, making it nearly impossible for him to gain traction. Every couple of steps, he would stumble and fall deep into the snowdrifts. Seeing his pursuer closing in fast, he made a desperate gamble, shedding his outer coat and trousers and continuing his flight clad only in a set of thermal underwear.

His speed increased dramatically indeed.

Freezing cold as it was, it was still far better than being caught.

In this era, once caught in an act like this, a person would undoubtedly be beaten to death on the spot!

Thud!

Suddenly, just as he thought he had escaped, a foot lashed out from the side, kicking him violently into a snowdrift where he lay unable to climb back up for a long time.

When he finally struggled to his feet, he found himself surrounded by several fierce-looking villagers, having no idea who had delivered the kick.

The other villagers paid no mind to who had landed the blow either; they set upon him the moment he stood up, landing a couple of heavy punches followed by a flurry of brutal kicks. Fortunately, the village party secretary arrived in the nick of time, or else the man surely would have been beaten to death right there.

"Stop hitting him! Beating someone to death will only bring us trouble. Handing him over to the public security bureau is the best course of action!"

With the secretary stepping in, the crowd dispersed. By then, the man had been beaten beyond recognition.

Tang Jiancheng stood quietly at the back of the crowd. That flying kick from earlier had been his handiwork. Right after delivering it, he had pretended to slip accidentally and tumbled into the snowbank beside them. Only when the rest of the pursuers arrived did he leisurely climb back up and ask, "What on earth is going on?"

"Damn it, this son of a bitch had the audacity to sneak into our village for adultery! Bloody hell, even I, a born and bred local, haven't..."

The fellow seemed to realize he was about to blurt out his true thoughts and hurriedly changed tack, "Does he think our Daping Village is completely unmanned? Beat the motherfucker to death and let that be the end of it!"

"Beat him to death!"

"Damn it all, the bastard is too arrogant, he has to be beaten to death!"

The villagers were filled with righteous indignation.

"Don't be rash. We must hand this matter over to the public security bureau. If we beat him to death ourselves, we'll turn ourselves from the wronged party into the wrongdoers."

The village secretary pacified them repeatedly.

Moments later, a group of villagers dragged the man over to Tang Deyi's house. Tang Deyi's wife, Yang Xiuli, had also been captured—bound hand and foot like a zongzi, her hair disheveled, with visible slap marks and bloodstains on her face, clearly having suffered a severe beating herself.

Before long, villagers gathered in increasing numbers outside Tang Deyi's house, lighting blazing torches that illuminated the night.

"Holy shit! Isn't this Liu Guang from Taomu Village? This absolute scumbag and hoodlum needs to be handed over to the police to be shot!" Tang Xingde arrived leaning on his crutches, and upon catching a glimpse of the man who had been beaten past all recognition, he cried out in sudden astonishment.

"Head of public security, hurry and send someone to report this to the police!" the village secretary instructed.

"Understood, I'll go myself!"

The security chief raised a torch and strode rapidly toward the township.

On the way, he ran into Liu Cai and Liu Qiang, who were hurrying over. The security chief narrowed his eyes in guarded suspicion, demanding, "What are you two up to? Which village are you from?"

Taking a closer look and seeing Liu Qiang wrapped in bandages from head to toe, he felt a wave of relief wash over him, mixed with a sudden streak of curiosity. How could someone in such a state still be wandering around?

Could they be fugitive hooligans as well?

"Uncle, is my older brother Liu Guang in your village?" Liu Cai asked straightforwardly.

The security chief's eyes flared up instantly, and he barked, "Liu Guang is your brother?! You have a lot of nerve, teaming up to sneak into our village for adultery? Someone come here, there are two more hooligans!"

Hearing the security chief's shouts, both Liu Cai and Liu Qiang were utterly bewildered.

Adultery? Hooligans?

What on earth was going on here?

"Uncle, did you make a mistake? We didn't commit adultery, and we aren't hooligans. We're villagers from Taomu Village, and we're here to look for my older brother Liu Guang," Liu Cai argued loudly.

"Just because you're here looking for Liu Guang, that means you're here for adultery, and that makes you hooligans!"

No sooner had the security chief finished speaking than the villagers of Daping Village rushed over, surrounding Liu Cai and Liu Qiang.

Seeing the ferocious looks on the villagers' faces—as if they were ready to resort to extreme violence at the slightest provocation—Liu Qiang realized that Liu Guang must have committed some unforgivable atrocity, otherwise such a scene would never have unfolded.

Liu Cai was terrified out of his wits and was about to continue arguing when Liu Qiang quickly stopped him, cupping his hands in salute to the surrounding crowd: "Elderly uncles and brothers, please stay calm for a moment. Do I look like the kind of person who could commit adultery in this condition?"

The crowd took a look at his outfit and bandaged state; indeed, he did not look capable of committing adultery at all.

It had to be said that although Liu Qiang lacked common sense, he still possessed a shred of quick wit. Seeing the crowd's expressions relax slightly, he hurriedly pressed on: "Tang Jiancheng from your village is my benefactor! I'm actually here to repay a kindness!"

"Repay a kindness? Who comes to repay a kindness in the middle of the night? Sounds like a total lie!"

You couldn't help but notice his lack of brains. Originally, the crowd had begun to lower their guard against him, but as soon as those words left his mouth, everyone became convinced he was lying through his teeth.

"No, no, no, I really am here to repay a kindness! If you don't believe me, you can call Tang Jiancheng over."

Seeing the villagers gearing up to attack again, Liu Qiang broke out in a cold sweat of anxiety.

Fortunately, at that exact moment, Tang Jiancheng walked over.

Feeling as though he had just laid eyes upon his savior, Liu Qiang yelled out, "Benefactor, save me! I'm Liu Qiang, the second brother of Pockmarked Liu!"

Fearing that Tang Jiancheng might not recognize him, he deliberately brought up his older brother.

His older brother, Pockmarked Liu, had hunted in the mountains for many years and held a certain notoriety in the surrounding area—though certainly not a good one.

"Damn it, you're Pockmarked Liu's brother? Pockmarked Liu is absolute scum, so you certainly can't be anything good either!"

"That's right, Pockmarked Liu constantly breaks the rules up in the mountains. If I had a gun, I would have quietly blown his head off long ago!"

"Crap, it's Pockmarked Liu's brother! Beat him to death!"

The crowd's fury flared up once more.

The faces of Liu Qiang and Liu Cai turned pale with fright.

Seeing this, the security chief hastily intervened, "Don't strike them. Lock them up first, and I'll go call the public security bureau."

With that, he hurried off.

Tang Jiancheng glanced at the two men and said, "This fellow really is Pockmarked Liu's brother, but in his current state, he won't take much beating. If we're not careful, it might cost someone their life. We'd better listen to the security chief and lock them up first."

The several villagers who had been preparing to sneak a few punches in held back upon hearing Tang Jiancheng's words.

Ever since Tang Jiancheng hunted twenty-one wild boars and captured six wild oxen alive, his prestige in the hearts of the villagers had risen steadily without them even realizing it. Those who had previously mocked and looked down upon him now held a shred of idolization for him.

It was true everywhere: capable people would always command exceptional respect.

Once the villagers dragged the pair away, Tang Jiancheng paid them no further mind and headed straight home.

He had no intention of wasting his sleep over such trivial nonsense. Besides, he had far more important matters to attend to; how could he possibly waste time lingering here?