Volume One, Chapter 16: The Village Chief Has Unexpectedly Died.

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For a full-grown man as nimble as Zhao Dayong, climbing over a courtyard wall was effortless.

He jumped down from the wall and headed straight for the inner room.

There was no lamp lit inside, but in the moonlight he could still make out the village headman lying on the bed with his back to the door. Tian was a very clean woman, and she kept the bedding spotless. The village headman was even covered with a freshly turned cotton quilt.

Zhao Dayong pushed the door open on tiptoe. It creaked once, but the man on the bed showed no reaction. Clearly, he was fast asleep.

Zhao Dayong could not help feeling secretly delighted. Everything tonight was going perfectly—the timing, the place, and the circumstances were all on his side.

With growing boldness, he pushed the door wider and entered the room.

Once inside, Zhao Dayong went straight to the cabinet Shen Yuan had mentioned. He gently opened the cabinet door, and sure enough, at the very bottom lay a small wooden box.

Zhao Dayong opened it. The broken silver pieces inside gleamed beneath the moonlight. He gave the box a shake. It was heavy. That little fool had been right—the box really did contain three to five hundred silver taels!

He was going to make it big! He had money now! He was truly rich!

With this money, he could buy a house and land, and take a wife. Once he had money, what kind of woman could he not have? Then he could father a whole brood of children and become the most successful man in the Zhao family!

Overwhelmed with joy, Zhao Dayong carefully tucked the wooden box into his clothes. He had just turned around when a furious roar suddenly rang out behind him.

“Zhao. Dayong!”

The unexpected voice made Zhao Dayong jolt violently.

He turned his head and saw that the person who had been lying on the bed had somehow raised his head and was glaring at him in fury.

“You… You’re awake?!” Zhao Dayong stammered instinctively. He had not expected the village headman to wake so soon, and for a moment he was too flustered to know what to do.

In truth, the village headman had never fallen asleep. First, a bout of sudden illness had left one side of his body numb. Then he had suffered severe burns in a fire and developed asthma. Now he could only lie in bed day after day, eating, drinking, relieving himself, and doing everything else there. Apart from sleeping, he was incapable of doing anything.

But the more helpless he became, the less he could sleep—and the less willing he was to sleep.

When Tian was in the room, he could at least curse her and torment her with his tongue to pass the time. When she went out, he could only lie on the bed alone, staring blankly at the canopy as hour after hour dragged by.

He had actually heard the disturbance outside the door long ago. He had simply been curious about who would come to his home in the dead of night and what they intended to do, so he had held his tongue.

Although he was ill, he was not yet blind with age. And since the intruder was someone familiar, he had recognized Zhao Dayong from his silhouette alone.

That Zhao Dayong had actually dared to sneak into his house and steal from him!

Did he think the village headman was already dead?

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The village headman wished he could climb out of bed at once and slap Zhao Dayong twice across the face. But burns covered his entire body, and the new skin had not fully grown back. The slightest movement caused such unbearable pain that he wanted to curse the heavens.

He did not dare move. All he could do was glare viciously at Zhao Dayong and curse in a hoarse, indistinct voice. “Put back what you stole, or I’ll make you regret it!”

Zhao Dayong had been somewhat flustered when he saw that the village headman was awake. But when he realized the man did not even dare move, all his fear vanished.

The once-glorious village headman of Chu Family Village was now nothing more than a sickly invalid who could not even get out of bed. He could no longer throw his weight around in front of Zhao Dayong!

Zhao Dayong walked to the bedside, deliberately bringing his face close to the village headman’s. Then he grinned insolently and patted his own cheek.

“Come on! You want to make me regret it? Your grandpa is already handsome enough. How much more handsome do you want me to be?”

“You miserable wretch!”

Enraged, the village headman raised his hand and slapped at Zhao Dayong’s face.

But Zhao Dayong nimbly dodged it.

“You still want to hit me? Hahaha! Can you even reach me? You can’t hit me, can you? Hahahahaha!”

“You… Cough, cough, cough!”

The village headman was furious. His breathing suddenly became labored. He remembered the physician’s warning that, with his asthma, he must not become angry or experience violent emotional swings. He took a deep breath, trying to ease the pressure in his chest.

But Zhao Dayong continued swaggering before him without the slightest fear. How could he possibly swallow such an insult?

He could not.

He was unable to control his emotions. His chest heaved harder and harder, and a breath seemed to lodge between his heart and lungs, neither rising nor falling, leaving him unable to breathe.

His neck felt as though someone had seized it in a chokehold. The sensation of suffocation spread through his head. His face instantly darkened to the color of liver, turning a purplish red.

Help… Someone, help him!

He wanted to call for help, but no sound would come out.

The room was unlit and dim. Zhao Dayong could not see the color of the village headman’s face; he could only see him trembling and twitching on the bed.

He must have been enraged to death!

Zhao Dayong had originally intended to steal the silver without anyone noticing. He had never expected the village headman to see his face, throwing his entire plan into disarray. For the moment, he had no intention of leaving.

If he wanted to remain in the village, he had to deal with the village headman!

He could not let the man tell anyone what had happened that night.

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With that thought, Zhao Dayong’s gaze turned cold. After a moment’s consideration, he took out a fire striker and lit the kerosene lamp. Carrying the lampstand, he walked toward the village headman.

If he poured the lamp oil down the man’s throat and burned his throat and tongue beyond repair, the village headman would be unable to say a word!

Only then would he be unable to report Zhao Dayong, allowing Zhao Dayong to remain in the village.

Zhao Dayong did not think any further. He stepped to the bedside and reached out to seize the village headman by the throat. He had expected the man to struggle, but to his surprise, he did not move at all.

Zhao Dayong easily pried open the village headman’s mouth.

He brought the lamp beside the man’s face and was just about to pour it into his mouth when he suddenly sensed that something was wrong. Looking up, he saw the village headman staring at him with wide-open eyes—but the pupils had already lost their focus, as though he were dead.

Zhao Dayong’s heart lurched. He felt along the side of the man’s neck with the hand that gripped his throat.

There was… no pulse!

He… he was dead!

How could this happen? How could he have died just like that? Zhao Dayong had never meant to kill anyone! He had only come to steal some silver to spend. He had never once thought of killing anyone!

Zhao Dayong panicked, utterly at a loss. But soon he forced himself to calm down. He could not lose his head. He had to leave immediately!

As long as he got away, no one would know what had happened.

Once the commotion died down, he could still live freely and happily!

With that thought, Zhao Dayong immediately scrambled to his feet. But before he reached the door, the courtyard gate suddenly opened. Several figures crossed the courtyard and entered the inner room, blocking him inside.

“Dear, I brought you some chicken soup!”

Tian was at the front. She pushed open the door and suddenly saw a figure inside. Frightened, her hand slipped, and the porcelain bowl filled with chicken soup fell to the ground, splashing soup everywhere.

The hot broth scalded Zhao Dayong, making him take a step backward.

Tian did not look at him. Instead, she looked toward the man lying on the bed. Seeing that he was unconscious, she cried out, “Dear! What’s happened to you? What’s wrong? Someone, help! My husband is dying!”

“You foul-mouthed woman, stop shouting!” Zhao Dayong tried to silence Tian’s cries, but before he could make a move, two other people stepped forward and stopped him.

Only then did Zhao Dayong turn around and notice that four people were standing in the courtyard. Two of them were the kindhearted husband and wife, Mr. and Mrs. Zhu.