Chapter 163 - 162: A Death Worthy of Firecrackers

Chapter 163: Chapter 162: A Death Worthy of Firecrackers

A moment later, a sudden burst of laughter rang out.

"Hahaha, good, he’s dead! Hahaha! Saved me the trouble of doing it myself! Hahaha!"

Zhao Wendong was roaring with laughter, doubling over as tears streamed from his eyes.

With Zhao Wendong taking the lead, the people of Dragon King Pond Village erupted in cheers. The Zhao Family was particularly jubilant, their elation written all over their faces.

"Dongzi’s right! Good riddance!"

"He deserved it! A menace like him should be dead. The heavens are just!"

"Oh, heavens! Oh, earth! Which great hero finally gave us this justice?"

"He had it coming for messing with Brother Dong. If Brother Dong hadn’t let him off easy today, he wouldn’t have even lived to see the night."

BOOM—!

A comment from someone in the crowd made something click in Li Dawei’s mind, a bomb of inspiration for a thought he couldn’t quite grasp. He suddenly seized upon that previously hazy idea, and his pupils dilated in shock.

’Holy shit,’ he thought. ’I get it. It all makes sense now!’

’After such a huge incident today, how could Zhao Wendong possibly be in the mood to bring out meat for a bonfire party? Even if the whole village wanted to participate, he should be the least interested person here. Why did he not only show up but also sit here so cheerfully with all the committee members, right where everyone can see him?’

’Because this would prove that Li Guangming’s death had nothing to do with him, Zhao Wendong!’

And so, Li Dawei’s gaze locked onto Zhao Wendong’s face, which had transformed from indignant to pleasantly surprised. ’Zhao Wendong, you arranged all of this, didn’t you? What method did you use, and who did you get to make the move for you?’

’Zhao Wendong... oh, Zhao Wendong. Are you a good person or a bad one?’ At this moment, Zhao Wendong was a far cry from the hoodlum Li Dawei used to know. He only felt a sense of unfamiliarity and fear wash over him.

"Brother Li, why are you staring at me like that?"

Zhao Wendong looked at Li Dawei with an irrepressible smile, his eyes glinting with a strange light. An inexplicable chill ran through Li Dawei. He glanced around and saw the people of Dragon King Pond Village all cheering Li Guangming’s death. Even Yang Wenxue wore a look of relief. ’Should I tell Yang Wenxue my theory?’ he wondered.

’Even if I say it, Zhao Wendong will just deny it. And the person who did the deed? Forget about whether they could even be caught—even if they were, they might not confess. In that case, there’d be no evidence to prove Zhao Wendong was the mastermind. It would all be just my speculation. And do I really want to risk a complete falling-out with Zhao Wendong to go to bat for Li Guangming?’

"Brother Li?"

"Heh, it’s nothing, Dongzi. I’m just happy for you!"

Hearing Zhao Wendong prompt him again, Li Dawei hesitated for a moment before breaking into a smile and patting Zhao Wendong’s shoulder warmly.

"Hahaha, Brother Li is right! That scumbag Li Guangming is dead, so we have to celebrate! Uncle Weiguo, does the team still have those firecrackers we were saving for New Year’s? Let me borrow them, I’ll replace them later!"

Zhao Weiguo smiled and nodded in agreement. Zhao the Fourth volunteered to go get them, also calling over Zhao Lao Nian, who had been busy butchering the red deer outside.

"Second Brother, you stay with our sister-in-law. And you, Second Sister-in-law, go and get all the baijiu from the house! I’m going to celebrate properly today, hahaha!"

"Okay!"

Zhao Wenwu heard him and turned to leave, and Lin Zhiyin quickly let go of Zhao Wendong.

"I’ll go help too."

With that, she caught up to Song Xiaoyu and Jin Xiuying. The three women followed Zhao Wenwu out of the communal cafeteria, talking and laughing. The sight drew countless envious gazes from the entire village.

Chen Yanmei held Yadan in her arms as Little Tuanzi and Shitou darted around her feet. She was flanked by Ye Qingmei, Zhao Chuanhe, and Granny Liu on one side, and by Zhao Wendong’s third aunt, Zhang Yufen, and Zhao Sanwa on the other. A large crowd of the village women surrounded them. Watching Chen Yanmei’s three daughters-in-law leave shoulder-to-shoulder, it would have been a lie to say they weren’t envious.

"Aiya, the Zhao family is so fortunate! Look at those three daughters-in-law, each more beautiful than the last. Their future grandchildren will surely be gorgeous."

"And they’re not just pretty! Look how sweet they are. The sisters-in-law get along so well. Chen Yanmei’s hard days are finally over!"

"They’re capable, too! They practically fight over who gets to do the work, and they’re so respectful to their elders. If you ask me, that family must have struck a great fortune!"

Chen Yanmei was beaming, and Ye Qingmei and the others beside her were smiling from ear to ear. They had never even dared to dream of days like these. They never imagined that in less than a month since Zhao Wendong awoke from his high fever, their family would experience such a world-shaking transformation.

In the crowd, Zhao Xiaoyan and Li Juan watched Lin Zhiyin’s departing figure, their hearts aching. Seeing Lin Zhiyin smiling sweetly by Zhao Wendong’s side reminded them of how he had flown into a rage and thrashed the deputy secretary for her that afternoon, which made their hearts ache with regret. They used to think Zhao Wendong was blind, but now they realized he was the one with true taste.

Sun Zhiguo and the other educated youths had been resentful and unconvinced, thinking Zhao Wendong had just stumbled into some dumb luck by winning the heart of a hidden beauty. But today, after seeing him thrash Li Guangming and summon a truckload of men who appeared like a divine army with a single wave of his hand, they felt utterly inadequate in comparison.

Seeing him now, chatting and laughing with high-ranking cadres like Jiang Weimin, made it impossible for them to feel jealous anymore. They had to admit it in their hearts: Zhao Wendong was truly on another level. When you’re good, people get jealous. But when you’re great, they can only look up to you in admiration.

Seeing Zhao Wendong’s excitement, Jiang Weimin exchanged a look with Wang Defa, and both men simultaneously breathed a sigh of relief. Still, Jiang Weimin felt the need to ask, just to be sure.

"Comrade Zhao Wendong, have you been here this whole time without leaving?"

"That’s right. What’s wrong?"

"Just asking. What are you all doing here?"

Zhao Wendong pushed Zhao Weiguo forward.

"Secretary Weimin, this is Zhao Weiguo, the production team leader of Dragon King Pond. How about I let him explain?"

"Yes, yes, of course. Then I’ll have to trouble you, Comrade Zhao Weiguo!"

Zhao Weiguo gave a simple, honest smile and repeated what he had just told Yang Wenxue. He then pulled them over to sit down, urging them to try some of the venison. However, just as Jiang Weimin, Wang Defa, and Niu Yuesheng received their portions and were about to take a bite, the doors to the communal cafeteria were thrown open once again.

This time, it was a large group of people dressed in navy blue, high-collared, Mao-style cotton uniforms. They had police insignias on their hats and red rectangular tabs on their collars. So many police officers had arrived at once. The room instantly fell silent again.

The police officers were also taken aback, not expecting the room to be so densely packed with people. Most of them remained at the door to stand guard, while only Director Fei and his deputy entered, as he had spotted Jiang Weimin sitting in the center of the room.

Director Fei strode forward and saluted Jiang Weimin. He had wanted to bring Farm Director Qian with him, but unfortunately, the man had lost his nerve and refused to come no matter what.

"Hello, Secretary Jiang!"

"Old Fei, what brings you here?"

Jiang Weimin guessed his purpose and glanced at Zhao Wendong beside him.

"I’m here to investigate tonight’s case. Zhao Wendong of Dragon King Pond Village is a key suspect, and I’ve come to take him into custody."

"Bullshit! Say that again, I dare you!"

"Brother Dong has been with us the whole time! How could he have killed anyone?"

The villagers of Dragon King Pond Village erupted at his words. Those who had followed Zhao Wendong into the fight were his most die-hard supporters, and a large group of them shot to their feet with a clamor. They were in the middle of feasting on the red deer Zhao Wendong had provided; how could they stand by and watch something happen to him? Today, they had taken on Wang Dana, beaten Li Guangming, and eaten the meat. Now, they were defined by a single word: loyalty.

For a moment, the two groups were squared off at the cafeteria entrance, and chaos ensued.

Seeing that a riot was about to break out, Jiang Weimin grew furious. He shot to his feet and roared.

"Everyone, stop!"

Once everyone had stopped, Jiang Weimin turned to Director Fei, his face ashen with fury.

"Old Fei, what do you think you’re doing? What’s this about taking him into custody? Do you have any evidence that Zhao Wendong is the killer?"

"My apologies, Secretary Jiang, comrades. I misspoke. I am here to request that Comrade Zhao Wendong return with us to assist in the investigation."

At this, Zhao Wendong smiled. He stood up and looked calmly at Director Fei.

"Hello, Director Fei. I’m Zhao Wendong. How can I assist you? Surely there’s no need to drag me away for it?"