Chapter 107: The Fate of the "Good Man"

Captain Liang and Village Chief Zhao both wore very sour expressions, with Zhang Dagang trailing behind them like a forsaken soul. The three of them walked along the road without catching a ride or riding bicycles, the atmosphere among them thick with tension.

Captain Liang and Village Chief Zhao were still seething over the events of the previous night, when everyone had been threatened with death by Wei Chunlan. At first, Liang and Zhao had been indifferent, thinking, let her make a fuss, do as she pleases. The more she made a scene, the worse it would be for Wei Chunlan and Zhang Dagang. This had little to do with them; their only duty was to watch the commotion. But after hearing the latter part of Wei Chunlan’s words, they were nearly enraged to death on the spot.

If it were possible, they truly wished they could toss that shameless woman into the deep mountains to be devoured by wolves. Initially, given the number of witnesses present, they thought Wei Chunlan’s outrageous claims would not cause much of a stir. They reprimanded her, which only provoked her to become even more desperate and wild in her statements.

Liang and Zhao began cursing silently—they had been careless. They never anticipated that this educated young woman from the city would be so brazen, uttering such shameless nonsense. Had they not wanted to preserve some dignity for Zhang Dagang, they would have summoned the entire village when they came, avoiding this suffocating humiliation.

Watching Wei Chunlan’s unyielding stance and resolute expression, Liang and Zhao muttered doubts to themselves. Surely, they would not really throw a person into the mountains to feed the wolves, right? Then they thought of their sons still serving in the military. In this era, military personnel faced strict scrutiny. If Wei Chunlan continued her shameless disruptions, it wouldn’t matter much to them personally—they might only receive reprimands from superiors—but their sons’ evaluations would undoubtedly suffer.

Though Zhang Dagang hated her fabrications, he understood this was his last chance. Otherwise, his family would be endlessly gossiped about by villagers for generations, and it would affect his children’s prospects for marriage and the future. So Zhang Dagang pleaded earnestly on the sidelines. After some discussion, Liang and Zhao, moved by Zhang Dagang’s entreaties and for the sake of their children outside the village, finally decided to relent.

However, they still had to say something for appearances’ sake, addressing everyone present. If this woman continued her disruptions, it would only bring harm to the entire village. Various benefits might be reduced, opportunities for jobs and college places could disappear, and the village’s reputation would be tarnished, making it difficult for the children to find good matches.

Most of those who came to apprehend Zhang Dagang were from the families of Liang and Zhao, so these two successfully suppressed the matter. Nevertheless, Village Chief Zhao made Wei Chunlan write a very harsh letter of proof; otherwise, she could do as she pleased with no consequences.

Though Zhang Dagang had volunteered today to quit, the leaders still scolded him harshly. The people they had promoted were being pushed out? What were Liang and Zhao trying to do? If this tripartite balance was broken, would Shanghe Village continue to cause trouble?

For now, they could only remove Zhang Dagang from the accountant position. Regardless of the reasons, there was no need to force the issue. In every era, many aspire to rise further; even without Zhang, the butcher, they wouldn’t be forced to eat unclean pork. Yet, reproaches were necessary—what if they wanted to promote someone else later?

After the reprimands, Village Chief Zhao used his connections to transfer Wei Chunlan to a village far from Shanghe Village.

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Captain Liang and Village Chief Zhao’s hearts grew darker as dusk fell after all arrangements were complete. They shared the same thought: compassion was a weakness that needed to be corrected.

Han Li gazed at the newly finished bathing room, feeling much more at ease. It was a pity it couldn’t be used yet; otherwise, he would have tried it no matter what. Still, he sensed something was missing inside the bathhouse. Suddenly, he slapped his forehead, realizing what it lacked—a wooden bed or a long bench, where one could lie down and rest during the sauna. If accompanied by someone else, it could also serve as a simple scrubbing bed.

With this in mind, Han Li hurriedly finished the chrysanthemum tea in his cup in large gulps. To realize this dream sooner, he needed to make charcoal tomorrow. The earlier he produced charcoal, the sooner he could use his bathing room.

Charcoal was abundant here, as many villagers made some in autumn. Han Li recalled watching an elderly man making charcoal by digging a pit in the ground, its size depending on the wood collected from the mountains.

They would lay dry grass at the bottom of the pit, then stack wood alternately horizontally and vertically, layer by layer. (Locally, oak was preferred for charcoal because it was the best wood for burning.)

They covered the pile with grass shaped into a dome, with a small chimney standing on top. Then they applied a thick layer of prepared mud—at least seven or eight centimeters thick—to prevent cracking during burning.

A small hole at the base was left for ignition. Once the wood caught fire, the hole was sealed, and the chimney was tightly closed. The wood inside gradually transformed into charcoal, a process one could patiently wait for at home.

When the temperature dropped, the charcoal was considered successfully made. Experience and timing were crucial; if the burn was incomplete, the charcoal would contain wood cores, causing smoke when used. If overburned, it turned to ash.

Han Li had once helped an elderly man with this process, listening carefully to each step. Because the winters here were harsh and long, people needed fire pits at home to stay warm during the cold months.

These fire pits, like heated brick beds and walls, were essential for winter warmth. Usually made from locally sourced clay into a round container with a wide mouth and narrow base, they required no advanced skills—just practicality.

The clay fire pits only needed to be cool enough to handle when moved; even children could make their own with clay. As living standards improved, people gradually acquired iron, copper, or ceramic basins.

When winter came, everyone stayed indoors, sitting cross-legged by the fire pit, smoking, mending shoes, chatting, or playing cards—this was the local winter life.

The fire pits also served for grilling food, boiling water, and warming meals, making them versatile.

The more diligent households made more charcoal, mostly burning it in their fire pits during winter. Slightly lazier families or those short-handed couldn’t make charcoal and instead burned suitable wood or kept embers from cooking fires in their pits.

This caused a persistent smoky odor indoors, and ashes would scatter around. Regardless of the method, middle-aged and young adults would yield the fire pit to elders and young children to ensure their comfort through the winter.

Though Han Li had never made charcoal himself, he was confident he could learn with practice. As for the fire pit, he planned to craft a better one that could warm the room and serve as a hot pot stove during winter.

But for now, it was time to sleep—it was already late. Just as Han Li was about to head inside, he noticed a few wolf-dogs in the yard and patted his forehead. He still had to tend to their feeding and care before he could rest on the heated bed.

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The next day, at the usual time, Han Li was awakened by his internal clock. After rising, his morning routine included martial arts practice, washing up, boiling water, eating, and tidying up before heading to work.

Today was like any other, with no special announcements. Yet, to the surprise of all villagers, Accountant Zhang voluntarily requested to work in the Third Squad.

Zhang Dagang’s wife’s face immediately changed, and the other Zhang family members looked equally shocked. Captain Liang and Village Chief Zhao didn’t give them a chance to speak and promptly nodded in agreement, having planned this among themselves.

Since it was unsuitable to announce Zhang Dagang’s removal from the accountant position directly—to avoid unrest among the Zhang clan—they gave him time to explain and smooth things over with his relatives.

If the Zhang family caused trouble, Liang and Zhao would publicly expose Wei Chunlan’s actions, and whether Zhang’s family could continue living peacefully in the village would no longer concern them.

Han Li glanced toward the educated youths but did not spot Wei Chunlan. Could it be that the “good person” matter had been exposed? That would be a pity.

Han Li regretted not having observed the situation more closely during that incident. Regardless, Wei Chunlan’s voice had been pleasant, especially when she spoke the words “good person,” full of allure—now, it seemed, lost to him forever.

He Mi also sensed something amiss, having heard Han Li mention the affair between Accountant Zhang and Wei Chunlan. To clarify, she moved closer to Qi Zhaodi.

Though Zhang Dagang joined the Third Squad, he still avoided Han Li, stubbornly continuing to shirk work.

At this moment, Wei Chunlan had just seen off Captain Liang and Village Chief Zhao. Knowing she had been transferred to another village, she said nothing.

[End of Chapter]