CHAPTER 129: CHAPTER 129: LOOKING FOR TROUBLE

Upon hearing Zhao Zhitong ask this, Zhao Cheng was taken aback. "How do you know, little sister?"

Immediately, he realized that it wasn’t important how Zhao Zhitong found out, but rather that he couldn’t let his sister return home. Without hesitation, he said, "Little sister, weren’t you going to Little Master Qiao’s home to read today? Let’s go together; I’ll accompany you today."

Saying this, he took Zhao Zhitong’s small hand and looked towards Qiao Muchen.

Now Zhao Zhitong was even more puzzled. Not only was she confused, but Qiao Muchen, Wei Shulan, and Zhao Yue—the three youngsters—also found it strange.

Zhao Zhitong held onto Zhao Cheng and said, "Big brother, I’m not going to read today. Let’s go home!"

"No!"

Upon hearing that Zhao Zhitong wanted to return home, Zhao Cheng nearly blurted out his denial. Immediately realizing his reaction was too intense, he quickly smiled and said, "No, what I meant was, let’s go read first, then we can return home."

Now, Zhao Zhitong was even more convinced of her suspicion. Pouting, she said with dissatisfaction, "Big brother, are you hiding something from me? Did something happen at home? If you don’t tell me, I’ll cry until you do."

Zhao Cheng shook his head. "No, no, nothing could have happened. Don’t worry needlessly, little sister. Aunt just asked me to accompany you to read today."

Zhao Cheng really wasn’t a good liar. At this moment, his whole face was flushed crimson. Combined with his ragged breathing from rushing over, it was hard to believe his words.

Zhao Zhitong stayed silent, continuing to stare at him with her big, shiny eyes. Qiao Muchen and the others also looked at him. Soon, he couldn’t bear their stares and gave in.

"Alright, it’s like this, little sister. Something did happen at home, but don’t worry, it’s not serious. We can return home after reading at Little Master Qiao’s."

"Big brother is lying! I don’t want to; I want to go home now!" Hearing that something had happened at home, how could Zhao Zhitong bear to stay outside any longer? She immediately wanted to rush home.

Zhao Cheng was extremely annoyed and smacked his own head hard. I’m so stupid!

He couldn’t even accomplish the simple task his aunt had given him. Annoyed, he quickly chased after her, shouting, "Little sister, don’t run, come back!"

Qiao Muchen and the others exchanged glances, then also grabbed their luggage boxes and ran towards Zhao Village.

---

Zhao Zhitong ran ahead, panting. Big brother won’t let me go home, so there must be danger there. He’s afraid I’ll get hurt, which means Mom and Dad must be in danger too!

At this thought, Zhao Zhitong’s eyes reddened. She sniffled, fighting back tears, but her pace quickened.

She ran towards home as fast as her little legs could carry her, but being small, she quickly grew winded and breathless. By this time, Zhao Cheng had caught up.

He squatted down in front of her. "Little sister, hop on. Big brother will carry you."

Zhao Zhitong, no longer angry with her big brother, walked over, wrapped her small hands around Zhao Cheng’s neck, and climbed onto his back.

The little girl was soft and light. Zhao Cheng didn’t want his sister to get hurt, but he could understand her feelings. Therefore, he yelled, "Hold on tight, little sister!"

Then he stood up and started running quickly.

...

The group hurried, running all the way to the edge of Zhao Village. They hadn’t even reached their homestead when they heard a commotion coming from that direction.

Among the voices, Zhao Zhitong immediately recognized some. It was her step-grandmother, Mrs. Wang, and her family!

Seeing her step-grandmother and her family here, she knew this meant trouble, which only made her more anxious.

Just then, Mrs. Wang’s sharp voice rang out, "Zhao Dong, you, you truly disappoint me! How could you stoop to such things! Stealing from others—you’ve actually learned such petty theft!"

Hearing this, an uninformed bystander might think these were the words of a mother disappointed that her son hadn’t lived up to expectations.

Unfortunately, she was not that kind of mother.

Zhao Cheng had barely stopped when Zhao Zhitong skillfully used the momentum to slide down from his back. Zhao Cheng quickly squatted, helping her down.

As soon as her feet touched the ground, Zhao Zhitong indignantly rushed to Zhao Dong’s side and, puffed up with anger, declared to Mrs. Wang, "My daddy is not a thief!"

Upon seeing their daughter return, Zhao Dong and Sun Mei were both startled. "Why are you back? Weren’t you going to Little Master Qiao’s house to read?"

Then, looking up, they saw that Qiao Muchen and the other two children had also come. They instantly understood that Zhao Cheng had probably let the information slip.

Sun Mei quickly stepped forward and pulled the children behind her.

Only then did Zhao Zhitong notice that there were about twenty stout-looking servants surrounding them, each holding a club!

Zhao Zhitong blinked, pointed at those servants, and asked with a puzzled look, "Daddy, who are these people?"

Mrs. Wang’s family couldn’t possibly have such servants.

Zhao Dong looked at the fierce-looking servants, knowing that this matter wouldn’t be resolved easily today, and fear crept into his heart. But hearing his daughter’s question, he still patiently explained, "These are all servants from Landlord Qin’s house."

At this point, Mrs. Wang spoke again, "Zhao Dong, as your mother, I can’t help you this time. You stole something, and it had to be from Landlord Qin’s house! You really are bold! The Qin Clan says that if you tear down this half-built house and then compensate Landlord Qin with your current courtyard, he won’t pursue this matter."

Hearing this, Zhao Dong scoffed inwardly. The old fox is finally showing her tail!

Mrs. Wang and Zhao Chun had colluded with the Qin Clan, all for their family’s vegetable plot!

Even if they got their hands on the vegetable plot, they wouldn’t know how to use it. But to force him to give it up like this... he felt incredibly aggrieved!

Seeing Zhao Dong’s reluctance, Zhao Chun also chimed in to support Mrs. Wang, hastily trying to persuade Zhao Dong to listen to Landlord Qin’s terms and hand over the courtyard to avoid physical suffering.

The commotion had already drawn a crowd of curious villagers.

A newcomer who didn’t understand the situation asked, "What’s going on? Something about stealing? What did Zhao Dong steal from Landlord Qin’s house to make Landlord Qin so angry?"

Then, some villagers who had arrived earlier and had a better idea of the situation kindly explained, "Sigh! I heard Zhao Dong stole Landlord Qin’s manor design plans to build his house. Landlord Qin found out, so he came looking for him."

"Ah! Zhao Dong is too bold, daring to offend Landlord Qin. He’s probably done for now!"

Throughout history, no one had dared to offend these landlords and gentry, who had deep roots in the area. Even successive County Magistrates had always treated them courteously. County Magistrates came and went, but these powerful landlords and gentry were fixtures. Now that Zhao Dong’s family had offended Landlord Qin, they were in for a rough time.

Zhao Chun and Mrs. Wang continued their persuasion, but the head servant had run out of patience to bandy words with Zhao Dong. Seeing his continued stubbornness, he decided to resort to force.