The next day, the entire Duan Village was in an uproar.
The sudden arrival of numerous police cars the previous night to raid an illegal gambling den, resulting in multiple arrests, had instantly become the village's top news.
"Hey, have you all heard? Last night, the police came in full force and took away so many people."
"I saw it—everyone was rounded up at Liu Jianyi's place, people and money alike, all seized in one sweep!"
"About twenty or so were arrested. This New Year is really turning out lively, huh?"
"Old Zhao's family, Wang Mazi, Wang Ergou… and even Liu Jianyi—none of them got away!"
"........"
At the village crossroads, outside the small grocery store, anywhere villagers usually gathered, crowds now stood discussing the previous night's raid.
No one had expected such a major incident just days before the Lunar New Year.
The families of those arrested must have felt like their world had collapsed.
Not only was their hard-earned money confiscated, but they also faced fines and detention—who could bear that?
Soon, desperate pleas for help followed—calls to connections, appeals to the village chief, and frantic visits to the local authorities, throwing the entire village into chaos.
"Chief Wang, Chief Wang, open the door!"
"Uncle Degui, you have to do something! My husband was taken away—what are we supposed to do now?"
"Degui, you have to go to the county and get them released! The New Year is right around the corner—how are we supposed to handle this?"
"……"
Village Chief Wang Degui was at his wit's end. His own son had been arrested and was still locked up—how could he spare the energy to deal with others' troubles?
Ever since learning of his son's arrest the previous night, he had been making frantic calls, reaching out to every connection he had in the county.
But the results were far from promising.
However, one crucial piece of information had reached him:
This raid had likely been premeditated. The police had obtained an unusually complete chain of evidence, including video recordings of multiple past gambling sessions.
This evidence was devastating for Wang Ergou and the others.
His contact also speculated that Liu Jianyi couldn’t have been the mastermind—doing this would be cutting off his nose to spite his face, landing himself years in prison for no real gain.
So, the prime suspect had to be Liu Jianyi’s daughter, Liu Yutong.
What normal person would install so many hidden cameras in their own home, especially a rural one?
Liu Jianyi certainly didn’t have the means to pull that off!
Frustrated and overwhelmed by his own family’s crisis, Wang Degui stormed to his door and snapped at the crowd gathered outside.
"What good will harassing me do? The police made the arrests—it was a county-level operation! I’m just a village chief—do you think I have the power to demand people from the county bureau? That’s illegal, don’t you understand? Stop making a scene at my doorstep! All of you, go home!"
The crowd wasn’t having it.
"But you can’t just ignore this! You’re our village chief—who else are we supposed to turn to?"
"That’s right! This happened in our village—it’s your responsibility!"
"And your son was involved too—aren’t you going to do anything about it?"
"……"
Wang Degui only grew angrier. "How am I supposed to handle it? I’ve been broadcasting warnings, putting up notices, telling them not to gamble—did they listen? Like dogs returning to their vomit! Should I have tied them up? Now that they’re in trouble, it’s suddenly my fault?!"
"And if I really had that kind of power, my son wouldn’t be locked up either!"
"If you want someone to blame, go find Liu Jianyi’s precious daughter! She’s the one who called the police, she’s the one who set up the cameras. The debt is hers to pay—why are you crowding my doorstep?"
"While you’re at it, ask her this: Does she even respect me as village chief? Does she care about the people of Duan Village at all?!"
Wang Degui’s sharp words redirected the villagers’ fury straight at Liu Yutong.
After all, there was no way he’d still consider her a "future daughter-in-law" now—his family wasn’t that fortunate.
Sure enough, his words struck a chord.
"The debt is hers to pay—let’s go find that little witch!"
"Exactly! Gambling’s common here—who does she think she is, meddling like this?"
"Reporting her own father, getting villagers arrested—what kind of heartless creature does that?"
"We’ll make her go to the police station and get them released!"
"Come on, everyone—to Old Liu’s house!"
"……"
Like a swarm of enraged hornets, the crowd turned and marched toward Liu Yutong’s grandparents’ home.
Meanwhile, at the grandparents’ house…
Grandfather had already learned about the previous night’s events, but he didn’t reprimand Liu Yutong or Gao Min.
Gao Min had stepped forward to take responsibility—as a police officer, she couldn’t turn a blind eye to illegal gambling, especially not on such a large scale.
To his surprise, Grandfather fully supported her actions. Precisely because Gao Min was now his granddaughter, he believed she should uphold her duty without compromise.
He was a man of unwavering principles.
Since his eldest granddaughter was an officer, he expected her to be diligent and impartial—not to condone wrongdoing just because her own father was involved.
If they broke the law, they deserved to face the consequences!
"Don’t worry about this matter anymore. Even if people come making trouble, I’ll handle it."
"Grandfather, I—" Liu Yutong started to say she could manage it herself.
But he cut her off. "I’ve lived in this village my whole life—I still have some standing here. Both of you, go inside and stay out of this."
Just then, shouts erupted outside the courtyard.
Though the villagers had been cursing fiercely earlier, their tone noticeably softened upon reaching Liu Chengjiang’s doorstep.
The villagers held deep respect for Liu Chengjiang, the retired accountant.
"Accountant Liu, are you home?"
"Uncle, open the door—we just want to ask Liu Yutong a few things."
"Accountant Liu, you owe us an explanation!"
"……"
Soon, the gate swung open.
Liu Chengjiang stood before them, dressed in a faded Zhongshan suit.
The same villagers who had been clamoring at Wang Degui’s door fell silent instantly.
This was not the mild-mannered, slow-moving old accountant they were used to.
Now, his posture was straight as a pine, his gaze sharp as an eagle’s—like a long-sheathed sword, radiating an undeniable authority.
For a moment, the villagers almost forgot themselves.
Liu Chengjiang seemed to have transformed back into the fearless hero who, decades ago, had stormed a bandit hideout alone with a hunting rifle to rescue his fellow villagers.
In his youth, Liu Chengjiang had been a demobilized soldier. Shortly after returning to the village as an official, he encountered a group of fugitive criminals who had taken villagers hostage.
While others panicked, Liu Chengjiang grabbed his rifle, eliminated the outlaws, and freed the hostages—a feat that had once shaken the entire region.
Later, Liu Chengjiang worked diligently as an accountant for decades, calculating public accounts his entire life without ever embezzling a single cent or making a single mistake, earning deep respect from the villagers.
So when they heard him shout, everyone instinctively suppressed the resentment and hostility in their hearts.
Liu Chengjiang swept his gaze over the crowd and then declared with unshakable authority, "I know what you’re thinking. But even if you argue till the heavens fall, the truth remains the truth—they brought this upon themselves!"
"My granddaughter did the right thing! I, Liu Chengjiang, am standing right here today. If any of you want to settle a score, I’m ready!"
