Volume One, Chapter 15: Roaming the Village! Roaming the Village! Roaming the Village!-O Pesadelo Chegou(Luo Qiaosen)

Last night, for some reason, the village chief stayed at the Luo family’s house—his own home. As night fell, strange things began to happen at the Luo residence. Fortunately, the chief reacted swiftly, guiding Luo Feng and Gu Ya to hide inside the main hall and sealing the doors. Soon after, a horde of malevolent spirits surged into the courtyard from the kitchen. If the chief had hesitated even a moment, not only would the couple have perished, but he himself would have been killed as well.

The windows of the Luo house were nailed shut from the inside; only an outsider opening them could give the evil spirits an entry point. There were only two outsiders who had approached the Luo house: Zhang Yunling and Zhang Jun.

Once the entire village gathered, the chief intended to begin interrogations with harsh methods.

Luo Bin’s heart trembled, his eyes reddened.

The "certain reason" was, of course, to investigate the accelerated burning of the lamp oil, a matter the chief had not disclosed to anyone. The window that was opened was the kitchen window—and Gu Ya often stayed in the kitchen! She had nearly lost her mother.

Who could have opened that window?

The answer was clear as day.

Lowering his head, Luo Bin moved forward, only to be blocked by someone.

“Move aside,” his voice hoarse.

“Are you blind? There’s people here!” the villager blocking the way snapped impatiently and shoved Luo Bin’s shoulder. He stumbled backward, then tripped and fell flat on his back.

Laughter erupted—harsh and grating. The villagers sighed over the near calamity that had befallen the Luo family, yet they reveled in Luo Bin’s humiliation.

A heavy weight settled in his chest.

But this was all the mess left behind by the original owner… Otherwise, who would pick a fight with him for no reason?

Rising through the pain, Luo Bin gave up trying to force his way through the crowd. No one would let him pass.

He circled to the edge of the gathering and finally reached the front of the platform.

Gu Ya was there. She had heard the laughter earlier and vaguely caught someone mention Luo Shan, but she hadn’t seen what was happening. Now, seeing Luo Shan disheveled, she hurried forward.

“Xiao Shan, why are you here?”

“Mom,” Luo Bin’s voice trembled. Now that he understood what had happened the night before, he could see why Gu Ya’s eyes were bloodshot.

“What about Dad? Is he alright?” Luo Bin asked hoarsely.

“Your father is fine; he’s at home sealing the windows… Xiao Shan, you…” Gu Ya started to speak.

Luo Bin shook his head, his gaze falling on Zhong Zhicheng’s face.

Zhong Zhicheng stood at the center below the platform, sunlight illuminating his face. His resolute features showed faint traces of fatigue from staying up late.

Then, supporting himself on the roughly one-meter-high platform, Luo Bin vaulted up with a swift movement.

A chorus of hisses erupted from the crowd, all eyes fixed on Luo Bin in astonishment.

Zhong Zhicheng frowned slightly.

There happened to be a stick on the ground, which Luo Bin picked up with one hand.

“Xiao Shan, what are you doing?” Gu Ya gasped, hurriedly calling out, “Don’t do anything rash. If there’s a problem, first talk to us…”

Luo Bin said nothing and walked straight toward Zhang Jun.

Zhang Jun was trembling uncontrollably, his legs shaking.

Being tied up here was a huge misunderstanding!

Yesterday, he had tried to take advantage of the outsiders but ended up kicked hard in the groin. He admitted he had wanted to stir up trouble at the Luo house, to do something unpleasant, because the more he thought about it, the more he resented Luo Shan—such a bastard favored by the village chief, now trying to be a good person?

But he only thought about it; he never dared act.

Because Luo Feng was at home.

Luo Feng was well known in the village as a tough character—not only strong but sharp-minded. If it weren’t for Luo Shan’s failures, Luo Feng might have been the deputy village chief.

That’s why Zhang Jun had planned to wait until Luo Feng was away, break the locks on the Luo house, or tamper with the oil lamp to cause a leak.

But that morning, barely awake, he was already bound and dragged here by the village chief.

The ongoing gossip made him realize he was in serious trouble!

He begged desperately for the village chief’s understanding, but the chief refused to listen.

Soon after, Zhang Yunling was also brought in, and Zhang Jun still clung to hope of clearing his name.

But the ferocious look in Luo Shan’s eyes chilled him to the bone.

“Shan... listen to me...” Zhang Jun barely got the words out before—

A sharp whistle cut through the air as the stick struck Zhang Jun’s face with brutal force!

The pain made him scream.

“Fuck! It hurts... it hurts... it hurts!”

“What did you just say?!” Luo Bin’s voice trembled with rage.

“I... I’m sorry... I didn’t mean to... I...” Zhang Jun’s words faltered.

With a snap, Luo Bin struck again, this time on Zhang Jun’s abdomen.

Zhang Jun’s agonized screams echoed down the mountainside, rebounding off the hills.

“Sorry? You think saying sorry is enough?”

“Zhang Jun, I curse your grandmother!”

“How can I forgive you? Pretend I don’t hold a grudge? This is what you did?! You opened my family’s window, so I’ll open your household registration!” Luo Bin’s fury spilled out as he cursed and struck with savage blows.

Zhang Jun’s screams were relentless.

The villagers, who had been chatting, suddenly fell into an eerie silence.

Zhang Jun’s voice cracked from screaming, his cries turning to sobs as he begged Luo Shan to stop.

Luo Bin’s palms stung with pain.

“Stop!?”

“You hurt my parents? I can’t kill you!”

It wasn’t about his father—it was about his mother.

The pain he had suffered in his past life was something Luo Bin never wished to endure again.

Especially because it was all his fault!

Because he had beaten Zhang Jun and broken his intentions, Zhang Jun had taken such a cruel revenge!

“Luo Shan!” Zhong Zhicheng’s voice finally rang out, “Enough beating. Stop. What conflict do you and Zhang Jun have?”

Luo Bin gasped for breath and halted.

“No... no conflict... it’s just... a misunderstanding between brothers...” Zhang Jun stammered, trembling. Though badly hurt, he knew he was misunderstood.

“Luo Shan, we’re brothers... how could I do such a thing... you have to believe me! I didn’t...” Sweat poured down Zhang Jun’s face.

He hadn’t done it yet—he only thought about it, but he couldn’t be the scapegoat!

Though Zhang Yunling, tied opposite him, didn’t seem like the kind to do such a thing, it certainly wasn’t him!

Luo Bin ignored Zhang Jun’s protests and recounted every detail of what had happened the previous night at the Mountain God’s Temple.

Zhong Zhicheng’s expression grew cold and dark. He turned to look at Zhang Jun.

“Is this true?!”

In that moment, Zhang Jun felt nothing but hopelessness; his face went ashen.

“Yes... but it’s not the same thing... I didn’t...” Zhang Jun’s chubby face quivered as he tried to explain.

But a flood of curses drowned out all his words.

Then the curses were replaced by two words repeated over and over:

“Exile from the village!”

Zhang Jun’s terror and trembling slightly eased Luo Bin’s heart, but more than anything, he still felt lingering fear and relief—it was fortunate that nothing worse had happened.

But what did exile from the village mean?

Looking at the villagers’ ravenous eyes, the village chief’s icy demeanor, and Zhang Jun’s current terror—he had even wet himself, yellow urine dripping steadily—

Was this some form of punishment?

It sounded like a public shaming, yet they weren’t going to kill Zhang Jun. Was scaring him to the point of losing control really necessary?