MMB Chapter 1745 The Thief (Next chapter at 2:30)
Chapter 1745 The Thief (Next chapter at 2:30)
Chapter 1745 The Thief (Next chapter at 2:30)
Now that they've come back, the children have all moved to the new house, so only the couple lives in this house, as do their neighbors, the older brothers.
Ye Chenghai and Ye Chenghe are married and have children, so it's not appropriate to bring them all to be raised by Ye's parents. Besides, there aren't enough rooms, so they have to give them to their unmarried younger siblings.
But since returning home for the Lunar New Year, the whole family has been eating and drinking together. Every day around mealtime, Lin Xiuqing's three sisters-in-law would go over to help Ye's mother with the preparations.
The whole family was having a lively time.
As people get older, they naturally want to see the whole family together. Mr. Ye was particularly satisfied with the newly built house, which brought the whole family together again.
We can live our own lives normally, but we still have to be together during the Lunar New Year. Having a bright and spacious house makes things much more convenient, and the children can run around more freely.
The next day, Lin Xiuqing moved all the valuables in her house to the new house and locked them up.
Ye Yaodong also took his three children and some New Year's gifts he had prepared in advance to the city to pay New Year's visits in advance.
Just when the house felt empty, the couple's worst fears came true.
That night, Lin Xiuqing suddenly heard a pack of dogs barking wildly. She was jolted awake from her sleep and quickly put on her coat and went outside.
The barking of dogs outside seemed to be fading away at that moment.
There was also a commotion next door, and Ye Yaohua and Ye Yaopeng opened their doors one after the other.
"What's wrong? Why are so many dogs barking in the middle of the night?"
Lin Xiuqing was already standing at the gate of the courtyard, watching with surprise and uncertainty as a group of dogs ran wildly into the village.
"It looks like there are strangers; a pack of dogs are chasing us into the village."
"Huh? Let's go check it out." Ye Yaopeng said, quickly picking up the carrying pole leaning against the corner and running towards the sound of the barking dog.
Ye Yaohua also picked up a stick and followed closely behind.
Lin Xiuqing quickly locked the door as well.
Sister-in-law Ye and Sister-in-law Ye came out a step later.
"What's the matter?"
"Oh dear? Why are there steamed buns all over the floor?"
Lin Xiuqing became even more certain that someone had ulterior motives, and said as she ran, "There are thieves. They must be trying to poison these dogs. They're being chased into the village right now."
"This is outrageous!" Sister-in-law Ye shouted immediately upon hearing this, "Help! There's a thief! Catch the thief..."
Sister-in-law Ye quickly followed suit, shouting, "Thief! Everyone get up and catch the thief!"
Ye Chenghai and Ye Chenghe, who lived upstairs, were a step behind. They opened the window to listen for a moment, and then quickly went downstairs.
Ye Yaopeng and Ye Yaohua grabbed their weapons and ran quickly toward the sound of barking dogs, while the three women behind them ran and shouted.
The dogs were already quite noisy as they ran and barked, and in the dead of night, the noise woke up many villagers. When they heard someone shout "Catch the thief!", they all quickly got up, turned on the lights, opened the windows, and ran out of their homes.
"Where is the thief?"
"The dog is barking! The dog is chasing the thief! Everyone, hurry up and help catch the thief!"
"It's right ahead, it can't have gone far."
All the able-bodied men in the village were at home when they heard about the thief. Every household turned on their lights, and some of the men rushed out to grab their weapons without even bothering to put on their clothes.
"They're tired of living, there are thieves during the Chinese New Year."
"Thief! Everyone get up and catch the thief!"
"The dog's barking is right ahead; it hasn't gone far. Hurry and chase after it."
"Thief? Catch him and kill him..."
The cries of "Catch the thief!" rose and fell, and lights came on in most of the village.
Ye Yaopeng, Ye Yaohua, and the two brothers, Ahai and Chenghe, ran ahead following the sound of the dog barking.
I don't know if the dogs have entangled the thief, but the barking, which initially faded away, is now getting closer and closer, and it's not fading anymore; the barking is becoming clearer.
"They're just ahead, everyone hurry up and keep up, don't let the thief get away."
The closer you get, the louder the dog barks, and you can also hear its furious shouts.
"Right here, right here..."
"There really is a thief..."
"Kill them..."
They had blocked a road on a secluded side road leading to the main road in the village. A pack of dogs was biting three men in the bushes, making it impossible for them to move. One of them had fallen to the ground and was being bitten by the dogs.
The men in the village rushed forward in a swarm, wielding carrying poles and attacking the three men.
The women kicked and chased the dogs away.
"Kill them! They actually dared to come to our village to steal things."
"Are you out of your mind? Hit him hard!"
“Even when we’re at home, thieves still come to our door. If we’re not home, they’ll be dead.”
"Kill them..."
The men took their weapons and beat the victim mercilessly, spitting and cursing as they did so.
The women chimed in, "We have to teach them a lesson, or they'll think our village is easy to bully."
"They sneak into our village in the middle of the night. What will happen after the men leave?"
“They even brought poisoned buns to kill the dogs in the village.”
"Luckily, there are a lot of dogs in our village."
"Kill them! How dare they steal from our village..."
The three men who had been beaten were already crouching on the ground, begging for mercy.
"We didn't steal anything, we just looked at it for a moment, and then the dog chased us..."
"We didn't steal anything..."
"Stop hitting us, we've had too much to drink, we were just wandering around..."
"Old Lady Lin, how could you possibly wander from another village to ours in the middle of the night? Do we look like fools to you?"
"Exactly, they still dare to argue. They brought poisoned buns to the door to poison dogs, and they still dare to say they were just strolling around? This was premeditated."
"Who would be wandering around someone else's village in the middle of the night instead of sleeping? And even disturb the dog in front of someone's house?"
"Why aren't you in your own village? You're incredibly audacious, daring to poison dogs in our village in the middle of the night! I'll kill you..."
"Give them the buns they used to feed their dogs, and see if they dare to eat them?"
Everyone was enraged and started hitting, cursing, and kicking each other.
They were all back when they still encountered thieves. What would have happened if they hadn't been there? How much would their elderly parents, wife, and children have suffered?
They all projected themselves onto this; if they catch anyone tonight, they'll all be dealt with horribly.
"We need to make an example of them and scare them into submission, otherwise there will be more petty theft in the future."
“Yes, what would happen if we weren’t home? The elderly, women and children at home would be bullied. If anyone dared to sneak into the door in the middle of the night, they should be prepared to be beaten to death.”
"It's pointless to kill someone like that."
“With the Lunar New Year approaching, there are already a lot of petty thieves. If we kill a few to scare them, we’ll see who dares to come to our village.”
No one stopped them; everyone was worried that if their man wasn't home, he might be robbed and they'd suffer a great loss.
Now, everyone in the surrounding area knows that their village is famously wealthy, and most of the men are not at home; it's mostly elderly people, women, and children.
If we don't make an example of them this time, these habitual offenders will be coming to their village every day.
As for why no one had visited their village before, it was probably because there were many dogs in their village, especially at night. When it was quiet and no one dared to come, the dogs would chase them for miles.
In recent years, dogs have been stolen and killed by people with their necks put on them, but they are also being bred. The villagers are united. The men follow Ye Yaodong to earn money outside, and the women earn money in the workshop. Naturally, the whole village raises dogs to guard their homes and property.
Even someone with thieving intentions would think twice before acting, given the number of dogs in their village, including large wolfhounds.
As the fight progressed, the men found the tools cumbersome and abandoned them, relying solely on their hands and feet. When they got tired, they would switch to another person. No one considered showing mercy; they were all thinking, "What if they're not home?"
As the fighting progressed and people lay on the ground, no one held back. The women were on the outermost edge, chasing away the dogs.
It wasn't until the village officials arrived late that everyone stopped, panting, and before stopping, they all kicked each other again.
"Pah, what kind of thing is this, daring to come to our village to be a thief and drug addict? He deserves to be beaten to death."
Village Chief Chen kicked the man lying on the ground. "Don't kill him, it's the New Year, take it easy."
"Who dares to say anything if a few thieves are killed?"
The village secretary said, "We're a civilized village. It wouldn't be good if someone died. Let's see if anyone is dead, and who it is, and which village they're from."
Someone squatted down and turned them over. "Oh my, isn't this Lin Jianqiang from Lotus Village?"
"These two are also from Lotus Village, Li Damin and Chen Zhigang. They fight every day and have terrible reputations."
"One of them was just released from prison, and the other two were also arrested and imprisoned. They didn't repent after they got out and committed more crimes. They're all bad people, and they deserve to be beaten to death."
Ye's father felt somewhat uncomfortable listening to this from the crowd.
"They're still breathing. They're lucky to be alive. Should we just drag them to the beach? The tide's coming in right now."
"Are you kidding me? Are we still going to eat seafood during Chinese New Year?"
"Then let's just kill him with one blow."
Everyone chimed in with their own comments, chattering away.
Secretary Li coughed twice, "It's the New Year, and it wouldn't be good if someone died, it's bad luck..."
"We can't just let it go like that!"
"That's right, send them to the border post."
"Sending him to the border police station won't do any good. They haven't even made a move yet, and he was chased by the dogs from our village. We beat him half to death, so he definitely won't be locked up for more than a few days."
"Send them to the border post, and the border post will send them to the hospital."
"what is it now?"
Everyone looked at Secretary Li.
"Why don't we just kill them? We're not usually home. If they retaliate against our village, there aren't many able-bodied men left. The elderly, women, and children will be bullied to death."
"Yeah, even though we're all back, they still dare to sneak into our village in the middle of the night. Do they have to wait for us to leave?"
Secretary Li and Village Chief Chen exchanged glances, thought for a moment, and said, "Lock them up. After we finish questioning them about their purpose for sneaking in at midnight tomorrow, we'll hold a PD meeting to inform the whole village about their actions. They'll be paraded around the village for two days, and then released on New Year's Eve. If they can hold out, they'll live."
"That's fine. Anyone who dares to sneak into our village in the middle of the night should pay the price."
“Our village has never done PD before. If we don’t show our teeth, they’ll think we’re a pushover. We need to let other villages see what happens to them and see who dares to come and steal in the middle of the night.”
Village Chief Chen reassured everyone, "Let's interrogate them first to see what their purpose was in sneaking into the village in the middle of the night, and then we'll talk."
"What else could their purpose be? They must be trying to steal things. Everyone knows that we all made a lot of money outside and came back thinking of sneaking over to make a quick buck during the New Year. Who knew they'd run into a brick wall?"
"Alright, he's already half dead. Help him drag him to the village committee and lock him up."
Everyone rolled up their sleeves, and a large group of people dragged the person to the village committee, cursing all the way and asking who had discovered it first.
Lin Xiuqing said, "They were barking at our house. Nobody was home. I'm a light sleeper, so as soon as I heard the dogs barking, I immediately got up to check. My older brothers also got up and chased after them. Luckily, the dogs caught them and bit them, preventing them from escaping."
Ye Yaopeng chimed in, "Luckily, those dogs held them back, otherwise we wouldn't have been able to catch up. These three must have planned this all along; they definitely didn't just come out for a stroll after drinking too much, otherwise they wouldn't have been able to prepare the steamed buns."
"Oh no!" Sister-in-law Ye slapped her thigh. "The buns on the ground haven't been cleaned up. I don't know if those dogs will go and eat them."
Lin Xiuqing panicked, "I'll go back and check first, lest I give the medicine to the other dogs and kill them."
"Those of you who are not home should go back immediately, lest you really be robbed."
"No way?"
Some people had come out with their whole families to watch the commotion, but upon hearing this, they all quickly ran back.
Lin Xiuqing also ran back quickly.
Ah Hai's wife and Cheng He's wife were talking at the door when they saw her run back. They quickly asked, "Third Aunt, what happened? Was there a thief?"
"Yes, a thief sneaked into our area in the middle of the night, which is why there was a lot of barking from the dogs ahead. Everyone chased after him and caught him."
Lin Xiuqing responded, and looked at the ground by the moonlight. The steamed buns were all gone, but there were still two dogs lying not far away.
I saw it when I opened the door, but I didn't have time to deal with it, plus there were no other dogs around, they were all chasing people.
"When we heard the noise, we swept up the buns on the ground, but we still found that the two dogs had been poisoned."
“It looked scary to us, so we didn’t dare touch it. We planned to wait until everyone came back before we did.”
Lin Xiuqing looked at the two dogs with regret, "What a pity. We saw them when we came out. They were too greedy. I'll have Dad and the others help bury them later."
"Do you know who was sneaking around in the middle of the night? How many people were there?"
"They are three people from nearby Lotus Village. One of them is a relative, but he's no good either. None of them are good people. They've been beaten half to death. They've been dragged to the village committee and locked up. They'll be interrogated when it's light."
"Huh? A relative? That's disgusting. Sneaking here in the middle of the night, there must be something fishy going on. Otherwise, why would someone not be sleeping? Why would they run to another village instead of staying in their own?"
"He was definitely trying to steal something. He deserved to be beaten to death. What kind of relative is he, bringing outsiders to harm his own people?"
Lin Xiuqing asked, "Did you get up after we chased after them? Did you see anyone else suspicious?"
"No, Ah Hai got up and we got up immediately too. We've been keeping watch at the door ever since, but we haven't seen anyone suspicious."
"Yes, we didn't dare to go over there either. Our child was still sleeping at home, so we waited at the door to see what was going on. We didn't see anyone else coming."
"That's good."
Lin Xiuqing breathed a sigh of relief. There was no one at home when she went out. Although there wasn't much cash in the house on the surface, and most of the valuables had been moved to Ye's mother's place, there was still some hidden. She was still worried about being robbed.
Are they coming back soon?
"I should be back soon. I was worried that no one would be home and there were poisoned buns on the ground, so I came back to check first."
As they were talking, a commotion in the distance slowly grew closer.
"came back."
Ye's mother asked Lin Xiuqing, "Is everything alright at home?"
"It's okay. After we chased after them, Xiuni and the others got up and kept watching at the door. Nothing serious happened, except that two dogs died from poisoning earlier."
"Have your father put it in a basket and carry it up the mountain to bury it."
Aside from the two large wolfhounds that looked different, there was also the big black dog that was raised the first time. Ye's mother didn't recognize the other dogs, so there was nothing to feel sorry for.
"Then I'll go bury them on the mountain now."
"Father, I'll go with you."
"I'll go too, it'll help us dig the hole faster. If we get to work early in the middle of the night, we can get some sleep later."
Ye's father and his two sons immediately carried out the order. They took two baskets, put the dog inside, and then took a carrying pole and a hoe to carry it up the mountain.
They also poured the poisoned buns into the basket and had Ye's father bury them together.
"You guys should go back to your rooms and get some sleep. It's all over now, as long as the person has been caught."
Lin Xiuqing asked, "Mom, that Lin Jianqiang is my cousin's husband. If we beat him half to death and the PD parades through the village tomorrow, what will happen to my uncle and aunt...?"
"No, we'd love for him to stay in jail forever, so he won't cause any more trouble. In the week since he was released, we've already cursed him 800 times. The whole family wishes he'd die out there and never come back."
Ye's mother looked disgusted. "When she was locked up in jail, the whole family felt at ease and lived a peaceful life for 10 years. We were so comfortable at home. As soon as she came back, the house was in chaos. Your cousin was beaten half to death every day. But that unruly girl, no matter who came to talk to her, it was no use."
“We should lock him up for life. If he hadn’t stolen anything, sending him to the border police station would only keep him there for a few days at most, which wouldn’t be of much use. Otherwise, we’d send him back in.”
"Your cousin's kids are honest and timid. As for your eldest cousin's kids, they just broke my legs and left them to be raised by his parents. They can't cause any trouble, and the family is relatively peaceful."
“We must have had the worst luck in the world to be related to people like this, and they even managed to get close to you. They must be after you. Everyone knows you’ve made a fortune these past few years.”
"We didn't encounter any other petty thieves, but instead, we ran into our own relatives who were thieves coming at us. If word got out, people would laugh us to death."
Lin Xiuqing said, "What can we do? Different people have different tastes. Fortunately, the village has been peaceful these past few years."
"That's right. Luckily, our village has a lot of dogs. Even someone with thieving intentions would have to turn back if they came to scout the place during the day."
Ye Chenghai interjected, "Third Aunt, I'd really like to catch a wolfhound to raise. If your two wolfhounds have another litter, save one for me."
"I want two too, save two for me too," Ye Chenghe quickly added.
"I only want one, but you're being greedy and want two!"
"Keeping two together will keep them company."
"I want two too!"
Lin Xiuqing said with a smile, "I don't know when I'll have any more puppies. I had two two two years ago and then took them to Shanghai to raise."
"Then we'll make a reservation in advance."
Ye's mother said, "There are so many local dogs, why not just take a couple home and raise them? It's too much trouble, and we even have to make a reservation."
Ye Chenghai: "That's different. Wolfhounds are fiercer, bigger, and more imposing for guarding the house."
Ye Chenghe: "Yes, someone's feet were bitten by a wolfhound and were covered in blood at night, which is why he was lying on the ground."
"Alright, if you really have offspring, we'll keep them for you."
Mother Ye waved them back to bed, saying, "Go back inside, it's freezing cold at night. Don't stay out here in the cold, it's the New Year, and you'll catch a cold."
"Then we'll go back to our room to sleep. You should go home early too."
"I'm going back now."
Lin Xiuqing closed the courtyard gate and all the doors and windows, and even after turning off the lights and lying down, she still felt somewhat uneasy.
The first time she was all alone in the house, it felt really empty. Now, no matter how much they tried to get her to sleep, she couldn't.
After a while, Ye Yaohua from next door must have come back after burying the dog. She could still hear the door opening and the couple talking.
I couldn't hear clearly, but I could hear that they were talking, which made me feel a little more at ease.
It's already past 3 a.m. The incident happened around 1 a.m., and it will probably be dawn in about two and a half hours.
Unable to sleep, she simply closed her eyes to rest. She didn't know what time Ah Dong would be back. According to the boat's journey, he should arrive home around noon, and the interrogation should have yielded results by then.
It's really hard to keep up with the changes in plans.
Yesterday, when the couple were in bed, they were still talking about this person. Adong was thinking that he couldn't handle it now, and it was almost Chinese New Year, so he planned to deal with it after the New Year and send the person in.
Unexpectedly, tonight, he invited two of his cronies to drink and embolden themselves, and sneaked into the village while no one was home.
Fortunately, there were so many dogs around the house that they could only poison one or two, not dozens. Before they could poison all the dogs, they heard the commotion and caught them red-handed.
These dogs haven't been raised in vain over the years; it's thanks to them that their village is relatively peaceful.
She couldn't sleep, tossing and turning, thinking about how A-Dong would react when he got back tomorrow.
During the Lunar New Year, the border post will probably only have staff on duty. Any issues will definitely have to be dealt with after the New Year. Fortunately, he's already half-dead, so it'll be fine to send him in after the New Year.
She really couldn't sleep unless she sent this person back in, after all, they were mortal enemies.
She let her mind wander for a while, and when it was just getting light outside the window, she simply got up and started cleaning. After it was fully light, she went to help her mother cook breakfast.
The old lady knew she hadn't slept all night when she saw her come over as soon as it was light.
She knew about the commotion last night. The old lady was a light sleeper, and with so much noise at night, she had gotten up long ago.
"Go upstairs to the children's room for a nap. They're not here, so the room is empty. I've already cooked the porridge and fed the chickens and ducks, so you don't need to do anything."
"It's okay, I can't sleep either."
"If you can't sleep, go lie down, otherwise you'll be listless all day. It's good that they caught him, there's nothing to worry about. Dongzi should be home by noon."
The old lady snatched the spatula from her, preventing her from working, and pushed her towards the stairs.
Two large pots of porridge were cooked and just needed to simmer for a while. At the same time, wooden sticks were placed on top of them to steam salted fish.
The old lady had just scooped out half of the salted duck eggs when Lin Xiuqing snatched the spatula and finished it off.
She's getting old now, so she can only cook simple dishes. She doesn't like cooking other dishes, so she can cook them when her mother gets up.