Chapter 168: Strange Matter
Forging an official seal?
The Lin Family was stunned. Village Chief Lin reacted first and hurriedly cried injustice.
“Unjust! Even if you lent me ten times the guts, I wouldn’t dare forge an official seal.” He pointed at Shang Wan. “It’s her, it must be her! Officer, please investigate clearly!”
“You can eat food carelessly, but you can’t speak carelessly. The deed and land deed were originally ours. Why would I forge an official seal?” Shang Wan pursed her lips. “We are law-abiding good citizens, unlike you. After being village chief for a few years, you’ve become arrogant and even dare to forge an official seal.”
She looked at Dan Dajun. “Officer, this kind of crooked trend cannot be encouraged.”
Dan Dajun nodded, thinking to himself that Village Chief Lin was stupid. He forged an official seal but didn’t make it complete, even writing the characters wrong, and still tried to fool him.
If he really hadn’t noticed, wouldn’t he become an accomplice?
At this thought, he shuddered and grew even more resentful toward the Lin Family. With a wave of his hand, regardless of how the Lin Family cried and wailed, they were all bound with rope by the constables and taken away.
The villagers were all dumbfounded.
How could the village chief have such big guts? Forging an official seal means losing your head!
Catching them wasn’t enough. Dan Dajun led people to search the Lin Family and found that stone-forged official seal in a wall hole in Village Chief Lin’s bedroom, still stained with red ink pad. Also found together were one hundred fifty taels of silver.
Seeing the silver, Chen Guifang’s mouth gaped open in surprise. How did their family have silver?
Many villagers who came to watch the excitement were puzzled seeing so much silver. How was the Lin Family so rich?
They neither did business nor relied on skills. Just a few days ago, they had compensated the Xiucai Scholar’s family over one hundred taels of silver. How did they still have so much?
Everyone eked out a living from the field. How could the gap be so big?
Shang Wan looked at the silver, a cold laugh flashing in her eyes.
She met Lin Jianshui’s gaze and imperceptibly nodded, then looked away at the forged official seal.
She had to admit, her own fox’s craftsmanship was pretty good.
“The physical evidence is here.” Dan Dajun coldly glanced at Village Chief Lin, the subtext being to see how he would quibble.
The fake official seal was wrapped in red cloth. Village Chief Lin stared wide-eyed, his mind blank.
How was that possible? How could their family have an official seal?
He subconsciously looked at Shang Wan and didn’t miss the cold laugh at the corner of her lips.
“It’s you! You forged the official seal! You’re framing us!”
His eyes were venomous. If not bound by rope, he probably would have pounced to perish together with Shang Wan.
Shang Wan innocently blinked, giving him a slight smile that could infuriate someone to death.
This smile in Village Chief Lin’s eyes was an admission.
He instantly had bloodshot eyes, his face flushed red, and in rage, he spat out a mouthful of blood with a “pu.”
“You… won’t… die well!”
After forcing out these words, he tilted his head and fainted.
“Dad!” Lin Jianshan hurriedly shook him, his face no longer showing previous smugness.
The crowd couldn’t understand. What was he so angry about?
If anyone should be angry, it should be the Xiucai Scholar’s wife. She had been slandered repeatedly, but with her good temper, she hadn’t cursed back. Anyone else would have.
Dan Dajun secretly glanced at Shang Wan, feeling something was off.
Village Chief Lin’s reaction didn’t seem like someone whose forgery failed and tried to frame others, but more like someone who had been framed by others.
However, the deed and land deed were indeed taken out by Village Chief Lin himself, and the forged official seal was found in the Lin Family home. It should be genuine.
After pondering, he suppressed his suspicion and ordered his men to take everyone away together.
“Leader, what about this child?”
Dan Dajun glanced at the boy hugging Zhou Shi and crying, waving his hand. “Take him along too, to await the Lord’s judgment.”
Seeing Tie Dan also bound, Chen Guifang felt relieved yet thought of the missing Er Ya, wondering if she would ever see her again in this lifetime.
Suddenly grief welled up, and tears fell uncontrollably.
Her crying made Zhou Shi cry too. Wei Lao Tai and Liu Yuzhi, innocently implicated, also hugged and cried together.
After many days apart, Shang Wan noticed Liu Yuzhi seemed a bit fatter.
The villagers didn’t dare plead. Forging an official seal wasn’t ordinary quarreling; it was a beheading matter they couldn’t casually get involved in.
“Keep crying and I’ll stuff your mouths!” Dan Dajun’s face lost its previous kindness, glaring fiercely with intimidating aura, scaring the women into stopping their cries.
The farce ended with all the troublemakers taken away by the constables.
Shang Wan couldn’t keep the guests. Lu Chengjing had Xiao Huan pack two large food boxes for Dan Dajun and his group to take back and eat.
These two food boxes were brought by Qiao Yu’an, originally full of pastries, now perfectly useful.
Such thoughtfulness made Dan Dajun embarrassed.
Today’s housewarming banquet was ruined by him, yet not only did they not resent him, they considered it hard for him and his brothers to make the trip, packing the two food boxes full.
Moved, he planned to speak well of the Lu Residence in front of the county magistrate upon return.
After sending off the constables, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
The housewarming banquet officially began!
Good dishes were served, cups were passed around, full of joy and liveliness.
Meanwhile, Dan Dajun and his group encountered something strange.
Hundreds of birds suddenly chased after Steward Liu and the Lin Family’s heads to shit, focusing on Steward Liu and the middle-aged man.
Instantly, a foul stench assaulted the nose.
Dan Dajun hurriedly protected the food boxes. No bird shit fell on him. To be precise, the birds’ targets weren’t the constables, but the people bound with rope.
Bird shit fell like rain. Steward Liu looked up, about to shout to drive the birds away, nearly swallowing bird shit. Scared, he quickly buried his head, letting the bird shit smash onto his head and body.
The crowd cursed and shouted, but bound on the cart, they couldn’t escape.
Where had the constables seen such a scene?
While staying away from the bird shit attack area, they asked Dan Dajun, “Leader, what to do? Drive them away or not?”
Dan Dajun pondered briefly and waved his hand. “Being hit by bird shit won’t kill you. No need.”
“But I heard being hit by bird shit brings bad luck.”
“Whatever, the unlucky ones aren’t us.”
·
The housewarming banquet was lively, but cleaning up was a headache.
Guests patted their butts and left, leaving a mess.
Shang Wan politely declined the aunts’ help. Everyone had been busy all day and was tired. She told the aunts to go back early and rest.
The moon climbed the treetops, its full glow sprinkling in the courtyard.
The family barely finished the work and lay down in the courtyard, not wanting to move.
Lu Chengjing used his arm as a pillow for Shang Wan. She found it uncomfortable and called Xiao Hui over to lean on.
How could a skinny arm compare to leaning on fluffy comfort?
The snubbed Lu Chengjing: “…”
Shi Tou put his hands behind his head, gazing at the moon and sighing deeply. “So tired!”
Xiao Huan weakly agreed: “Tired!”
Shang Wan: “Back and waist ache. Won’t hold it again.”
Lu Chengjing: “Mm.”
Chu Xu and Yuan Yuan whispered, the two little ones giggling together.
Shang Wan reached out to pull Yuan Yuan over and rub her a couple times, asking Chu Xu who leaned over. “Tell me, what mischief did you get into?”
