After seeing Chen Shuhong off, the sky had turned completely dark. Under the cover of night, I slipped over to Wang Jun's house.
At that moment, Wang Jun had just finished dinner. He was sitting in the courtyard smoking his pipe when he saw me. His expression immediately turned serious.
I remembered that in my past life there were rumors in the village that Qiao Xin and his niece-in-law, Li Shawa, were involved in something improper. Since that child had the same birthmark on her waist, keeping a close watch on Li Shawa must be the right move.
We went into the inner room and I took a slip of paper from my coat. On it was written a name: Li Shawa. I handed the paper to Wang Jun and said in a low voice, "Third Brother, I'll need you to watch this woman for the next few days. Focus on who goes to her house in the middle of the night. If you find anything, tell me immediately. If this works out, your position as militia platoon leader might just get a promotion."
Wang Jun looked at the name and his pupils suddenly contracted. He looked at me in disbelief. "Zhenshan, are you sure? This Li Shawa is the Qiao family's niece-in-law, Qiao Yuanzhong's own sister-in-law. Her husband is still away building canals. You want me to spy on her? If word of this gets out—"
"We're aiming for bigger things. We can't worry about the small details," I sneered. "This time, the Qiao family wants us to suffer in silence, so we have to dig up their rotten roots. Just tell me, are you in or not?"
Wang Jun gritted his teeth. He slapped his thigh hard. "Fine, I'll trust you this time."
While Wang Jun and I were plotting on the other side, the Qiao brothers were also on pins and needles. Qiao Cheng and Qiao Xin had already discussed it twice in the last two days, even raising the compensation to four hundred yuan. But I hadn't budged, which made Qiao Xin, the village chief, feel like he was losing face.
"Brother, what if we play hardball?" Qiao Xin took a harsh drag from his cigarette. A fierce glint flashed in his eyes. "Those kids from the Luo family. Just grab one of them to scare them. I bet Luo Wenxin will give in then, and we can go out and play the good guys, and this whole thing will be settled."
"You're a fool." Qiao Cheng immediately shot back. "The whole village is watching the Luo family's well right now. Wang Jun has been getting close to them, too. If you use force at a time like this, aren't you just handing that Luo fellow leverage? Let's wait. I'll go talk to them again tomorrow. If it really doesn't work, we'll just give them more money."
Qiao Xin was fuming when he came out of his brother's house. It was pitch black outside. He had originally planned to go back to his own house, but after a few steps, he couldn't suppress the frustration and wicked thoughts in his heart, so he turned around. He headed towards a secluded row of single-story houses at the back of the village.
He stopped in front of a rickety wooden door. He gently knocked three times at Li Shawa's.
The light in her room quickly came on. Although it was turned down very low, it was particularly glaring in the dark night. Li Shawa pulled the door open a crack. Seeing it was Qiao Xin, a sickeningly sweet smile immediately appeared on her face. She quickly pulled him inside. Then the kerosene lamp in the room went out.
Hiding behind a haystack not far away, Wang Jun was so shocked he almost bit his tongue off. He rubbed his eyes, thinking to himself that this kid Zhenshan is really something else. This Qiao Xin usually looks so prim and proper, but behind everyone's back, he's actually messing around with his own nephew's wife.
Wang Jun held his breath and continued to watch. About an hour or so passed when suddenly the faint sound of a baby crying came from inside the room. Wang Jun was stunned. Didn't Li Shawa already send her eldest back to her parents' home?
He quietly crept a few steps forward, pressing himself against the wall beneath the window. He could hear an impatient voice from inside.
"Why isn't this bastard dead yet? Didn't I tell you to throw it far away?"
"But that's my own flesh and blood. How could I bear to actually kill her?" Li Shawa sobbed in a hushed voice. "I wrapped her up well and left her in the place where the big black dog roams. I thought that would be her fate, but who knew she'd be saved by that doomed Luo Zhenshan."
"Damn it." Qiao Xin growled in a low, suppressed voice. "The birthmark on this child's waist is just like mine, her own father's. It's identical. If anyone sees it, we'll both be facing a firing squad. There's a big meeting tomorrow. You find a way to go to the Luo family's house and get rid of this troublemaker."
Outside the window, Wang Jun felt a chill run down his spine. He thought to himself, this Qiao Xin is a real piece of work. He's even willing to kill his own child. He saw that Qiao Xin was about to leave, so he quickly ducked down and retreated into the shadows.
After Qiao Xin had gone far away, Wang Jun ran to my house without stopping and insisted on dragging me out of my warm bed.
After hearing what Wang Jun said, I had a clear picture of the situation. So that birthmark on Lele's waist was inherited from Qiao Xin.
I patted Wang Jun's shoulder and said in a deep voice, "Third Brother, the evidence is conclusive. At the all-village meeting tomorrow, we not only have to save this child. We also have to strip Qiao Xin of his post. As for what comes next, you'll follow my plan."
After seeing Wang Jun off, I went back to the inner room. Lele was still sound asleep. I looked at her small, not-yet-defined face and gently changed her into a clean diaper. From now on, this child's surname will be Luo. As for Qiao Xin, his good days as the village chief are over.
Meanwhile, in the county town, Lin Ruan was also dealing with troubles. Her family had introduced her to Zheng Tai, the factory director's son. Relying on his family's wealth, that man buzzed around Lin Ruan every day like a fly, bragging about how many scarce industrial coupons he could get.
Lin Ruan frowned and said, "If you don't have anything else, you should head back. I still have reports to check." After speaking, she turned around directly without waiting for him to respond.