Soon, a dark figure could be heard muttering a few curses, stuffing something into a bundle on his back, and then restoring the ground to its original state.
The dark figure straightened up, glanced at the dark night sky beyond the backyard wall, hesitated for a moment, then turned and headed towards the front yard.
Tian Jing leaped down from the rooftop, threw a few Solanum seeds onto the ground, and quickly made them sprout. Using the roots, she dragged all the stones deep underground, then pushed the soil aside, creating a depression in the ground the size of the jar.
With a long Solanum vine left, and after destroying the rest, Tian Jing sprang onto the rooftop. In three bounds, she reached the roof of the west wing. Seeing the dark figure had already scaled the wall and was about to jump out of the Tian family courtyard, she thought, "How can I let that happen?"
She flung the Solanum vine in her hand, wrapping it around the dark figure's arm and yanking him back. With a "snap," the dark figure fell to the ground, making quite a loud noise.
Silently, she jumped down, pushed open her own room door, and pretended to have just come out, "Who? Who's there?"
After a soft shout, she turned and kicked a few times at the door of the room next door. Discarding the vine, which had turned to dust in her hand, Tian Jing then walked towards the dark figure, casually grabbing a wooden stick from the woodshed.
Lu Jianjun, dazed from the fall, agilely bounced up. Seeing that he had fallen inside the Tian family courtyard, fear gave him supernatural strength. With a push and a stride, he scrambled back onto the Tian family courtyard wall.
Tian Jing poked at him with the wooden stick in her hand, and the dark figure fell down again with a "snap."
Tian Jing looked at the still quiet rooms of the Tian family. She really wanted to shout "Thief!" Were these people in the Tian family all pigs? Such a commotion and no one had come out.
The moment Lu Jianjun fell off the wall for the fourth time, the door to the main hall finally opened. Old Man Tian, Old Lady Tian, Tian Yongren, and Ding Aihua all came out, "Who? Who's in the yard?"
"Heh heh," Tian Jing chuckled, "Hurry over and catch this person, and you'll know who it is. Do you want me to yell 'Thief'?"
"A thief?" Old Man Tian was startled. Seeing the dark figure getting up again, he anxiously called out to his eldest son to help catch the person, "Eldest, quickly!"
Tian Liguai finally walked out of his room. The room Tian Jing had kicked was this man's bedroom.
Old Man Tian's second son and his wife, and Old Man Tian's third son and his wife also came out. Tian Liwen and Tian Liwu, the two couples, also got out of bed.
After Old Man Tian and his eldest son caught the dark figure, he still struggled. Tian Lao Er, pushed by his own mother, quickly stepped up to take his father's place.
Someone lit a torch, illuminating the Tian family courtyard and revealing the dark figure's face.
"Lu Zhiqing?" The Tian family was astonished.
It's over.
This was the first thought that flashed through Lu Jianjun's mind after being caught. However, when he thought of the gold bars, he stopped worrying. He had committed theft, but the Tian family, who claimed to be impoverished peasants for generations, hiding gold bars was no small matter compared to his crime.
Thus, he became calm, "It's me."
Old Man Tian frowned. This person wasn't afraid even after being caught stealing, which was very suspicious. "Eldest, Second, take him to the main hall."
Because they had something to hide, Old Man Tian had his two sons escort Lu Jianjun into the house, intending to interrogate him privately.
Tian Liwen, as the eldest grandson, felt that his grandparents and father were being foolish. This matter should be reported to the village committee for them to handle Lu Jianjun. Su Dan Novel Network
Tian Yongren slapped his eldest son on the head, "If you don't know, don't spout nonsense. Are you trying to show off?"
Finally, everyone in the Tian family who had gotten out of bed dragged Lu Jianjun to the main hall of the Tian family.
Tian Jing followed behind and entered the main hall, boldly sitting on the heated brick bed.
Old Man Tian glanced at her. He didn't have time to argue with this girl for now, and besides, it was she who caught Lu Jianjun. He'd let her be smug for a while.
"Liwen, Liwu, pull down his bundle and see what's inside."
Lu Jianjun, who had already decided to return the two gold bars, offered no resistance and let Tian Liwen pull the bundle off him.
When two gold bars were found, the Tian family erupted.
Old Man Tian and Old Lady Tian rushed out of the room with a speed that didn't match their age. Old Lady Tian didn't forget to grab the flashlight.
Tian Yongren had always known his parents hid good things. Now, with the appearance of two gold bars and his parents' panicked expressions, he quickly followed, not forgetting to instruct, "Second, Third, keep an eye on that surnamed Lu."
Tian Yongyi also wanted to go see. Most of those things were brought back by him. However, he was worried about the two gold bars under his nose, his heart torn in two, wishing he could see both sides.
In the backyard, the moment Old Man Tian saw the pit, his heart sank. Old Lady Tian patted her chest with distress and opened her mouth to cry out, but she forcefully suppressed it, turning it into a very unpleasant low growl, "Old man."
Old Man Tian's eldest son asked nervously upon seeing the pit, "Father, what's wrong?"
Old Man Tian snapped back to reality, "Eldest, quickly get a shovel."
When Old Man Tian's eldest son brought a shovel, under Old Man Tian's command, he dug the pit into a small pond. The jar was nowhere to be seen, not even a fragment.
"This will be the death of me."
Old Lady Tian, unable to suppress her crying, whispered to Old Man Tian, her hoarse voice bringing Old Man Tian back to his senses, "Go back to the house and ask Lu Jianjun."
The three returned to the main hall. Lu Jianjun was one of the only two people sitting inside. The others were all gathered around the square table, staring at the two gold bars with shining eyes.
Looking at Lu Jianjun lounging with his legs crossed, Old Man Tian snorted, "Lu Zhiqing, hand it over."
Lu Jianjun looked at Old Man Tian as if he were an idiot, pointing at the square table, "Didn't you already find them?"
Is this family all sick? He guessed Tian Ping's thought process was inherited.
"Let's not beat around the bush. Where did you get these two gold bars?" Old Man Tian also pointed at the square table.
"Dug them up from your backyard." Lu Jianjun was fearless, knowing the Tian family wouldn't dare to make a big fuss. Where did a family of impoverished peasants for generations get gold bars?
Lu Jianjun's attitude made Old Man Tian grit his teeth, "Where's the jar?"
"The jar?" Lu Jianjun sat up in surprise. There was a jar? No matter how big or small, it meant the Tian family had quite a few good things. "I didn't see any jar. When I was digging, there were only some stones piled up into a small pit, and inside were just these two gold bars."
"Impossible!" Old Man Tian's voice rose when he heard Lu Jianjun deny it. "We've already dug a large pit in that area. Forget stones, we didn't even see a piece of gravel. Speak! Where did you hide the jar?"
"Impossible!" Lu Jianjun stood up. "I found these two gold bars in a small pit piled with stones. I even restored it to its original state."
"Nonsense! When we went to look in the backyard, it was already a pit."
"Impossible! You must be framing me intentionally. I didn't see any jar, I only found them in the pile of stones."
"Nonsense!..."
"Impossible!..."
Old Man Tian and Lu Jianjun repeated the same circular argument several times, still unable to find proof against each other.
Tian Jing, who was watching the show, almost fell asleep. Couldn't they say something more substantial, something more stimulating?