Li Zhengguo didn't seem to hear what was said on the other end. He grinned widely and hung up the phone.
"Let's go home. Zeng Jingrong said he'd call to have Zeng Jingchu moved out of Kushan village and then send him a woman as a bonus."
Tian Jing took her husband's phone and quickly typed out a text message to Zeng Jingchu:
"Zeng Jingchu, I told Zeng Jingrong I was planning to introduce Ji Shiyi to you, and he got so angry he's trying to frame you with a woman."
"You need to be careful of the women around you. If you fall into a trap, don't blame me for not warning you."
The words "Sent Successfully" made Li Zhengguo laugh heartily.
"Everyone's on edge. This might have some unexpected consequences."
Tian Jing tucked the phone into her pocket. "Now, let's go home with peace of mind."
...
As soon as they returned to Kushan village, they heard about two major events.
The first was the fight involving Lin Er lai's stepson, Lin En hu, and his classmates.
The incident started because of a female classmate.
This female classmate was a freshman, sweet and lovely.
Lin En hu, a sophomore, wanted to pursue this girl.
He was ridiculed by a male classmate in her class, who said that Lin En hu, a village boy, had the nerve to pursue a girl from their county town. He had no self-awareness.
Not only did they mock Lin En hu as a village boy, but they also called him a "drag" brought into the Lin family by his mother.
Lin En hu, at 17, couldn't possibly tolerate such insults. He got into a fight with that boy.
The boy shouted, and immediately several male classmates came to help.
In the chaos, Lin En hu was hit on the head with a brick by someone, and his head wound up in the hospital.
The second incident also involved Lin Er lai's family.
Lin Duo'er's sweet voice, when taking appointment calls, attracted a "rotten peach blossom."
A young man came directly to Kushan village, holding a bouquet of flowers, wanting to see the operator.
How could the village committee let him? They tried to escort him out of the village. The young man, however, pushed his way into the appointment room, matching the door number. He presented the flowers to Yang Ke, saying he wanted to date her.
Although the security team quickly removed the man from the appointment room, the two girls were terrified.
The appointment room temporarily switched to a young man to handle the work.
The village committee warned the young man that barging into the village office was illegal.
The young man, however, retorted that Kushan village using the girls' soft and sweet voices to attract tourists was also illegal.
Given this young man's unreasonable attitude, Secretary Yang dared not let his great-granddaughter show her face and asked his wife to stay home and accompany her.
Lin Duo'er was taken by Le Xia to Yuan's Private Kitchen to wash dishes.
Li Zhengguo slammed the table. "You're too indecisive. You let that young man's nonsense scare you."
"If you let this slide, there will be more trouble later. We need to be firm."
"What kind of people we use to answer the phones in Kushan village is none of anyone else's business!"
"How was Lin En hu's matter resolved?"
Deputy Captain Ou glanced at Secretary Yang. Seeing that he didn't move, he had to speak himself.
"The school is mediating. Lin Er lai's wife is not satisfied. She says she wants to sue those students and the school."
"She claims that after the students beat him like that, the school did nothing. She says the school even takes in hooligans who fight."
"She says her son Hu Zi's injury will have huge repercussions, affecting his body, mind, and studies."
"His life could be ruined. She demands huge compensation, especially for mental damages."
Li Zhengguo nodded. "Her approach is correct. Regardless of Lin Er lai's actions or Lin En hu's character, they are villagers of Kushan village."
"When our villagers are wronged, our village committee must stand behind them."
"Make a phone call to the police. Report both incidents together. We need to protect the privacy of the appointment room, the losses incurred by the two girls' fright, and the disruption to our appointment work."
"We also need to protect the interests of the villagers. In Lin En hu's case, we will sue the school, the teachers, several students, and their parents."
"For the charges against those students, add 'willfully differentiating classes' and the suspicion of inciting class struggle."
Secretary Yang couldn't stay calm anymore. "Zhengguo, this charge is too heavy."
"It's not heavy," Li Zhengguo shook his head. "Today's children have too much disparity between rich and poor, and they are too snobbish."
"If we add this charge, the parents of those students will panic."
"They will definitely stop waiting for the school to take the lead and will quickly compensate and reconcile."
"Once we're ready to go to court, we need to act decisively."
"Otherwise, if others mislead the public through public opinion, even if we win the lawsuit, the child will be ruined."
"Lin En hu is labeled as a villager of Kushan village, and this also has a significant impact on Kushan village."
Hearing that it would greatly impact Kushan village, Secretary Yang didn't hesitate and picked up the phone to call the police.
Li Zhengguo lectured Zhou Chengbing and Zhang Shitou, then patted his butt and went home.
Tian Jing chided him for not attending to proper business.
He smiled and said that if he didn't give his apprentices internship opportunities, they would never graduate.
The next day, the parents of several students, along with their children, went to the hospital to discuss a settlement with Lin Er lai.
Lin Er lai's wife was a bit confused. Hadn't they reported to the police?
Then she heard the parents explain that the children were young and didn't understand class division and class struggle; they were just talking nonsense.
Lin Er lai's wife understood. It must have been the Kushan village committee that reported the case.
She told Lin Er lai to take these people to the Kushan village committee to talk.
With the village committee supporting her family, she didn't need to show up.
Village Chief Li was 'skipping work' again, so Secretary Yang asked Zhou Chengbing to handle the talks.
After being lectured by his 'master,' Zhou Chengbing knew how to negotiate.
Medical expenses were a minor issue.
Compensation for lost study time was also not a major problem.
Insulting farmers was a big deal. The nine hundred million farmers across the country would not want to let it go lightly.
The parents knew that Kushan village was using the word "farmer" to threaten them, but they were helpless.
After all, their children had publicly stated that Lin En hu was the son of a farmer and not worthy of pursuing a girl from the county town.
After discussion, the parents offered a compensation of twenty thousand yuan.
Zhou Chengbing immediately stood up to escort them out.
Twenty thousand? Was that looking down on farmers? Or looking down on Kushan village?
The parents had to ask Zhou Chengbing how much compensation he wanted.
Zhou Chengbing held up two fingers. "Two hundred thousand. Twenty thousand yuan per student."
"This price is given because we pity you as parents, offering a discount."
"Otherwise, we wouldn't even talk about a settlement for less than eight hundred thousand."
"If we talk about status, since the reform and opening up, isn't economics what determines status? Why is your thinking still so backward?"
"Even if it's backward, it should be us, farmers of eight generations, who look down on you? Your educational philosophy has problems."
"We should report this to your workplaces. You need to undergo ideological education."
Twenty thousand yuan per student?
Not only were the students' parents stunned by Zhou Chengbing's exorbitant demand, but everyone in the office was also shocked.
Lin Er lai, in particular, was shocked. His wife had only planned to ask for five hundred thousand!
The parents started shifting blame. Their children were only helping the student who had mocked Lin En hu, so they had no reason to pay compensation.
The parents of the student who mocked Lin En hu also refused. After all, it wasn't their child who hit Lin En hu with the brick.
The students were also dumbfounded. Paying so much money, even if they sold their family's iron pots, they couldn't afford it!
The students also started to shirk responsibility.
In the end, they really couldn't find out who had hit Lin En hu with the brick.
When the parents heard this, they decided it was best to report to the police and go through the normal legal process.
Zhou Chengbing then escorted them out.