Bamboo Whip?
Shen Nanchu took it and swung it a couple of times.
Not bad—it felt quite handy.
Huh?
Why had the person run so far away already?
She still had so much to say! Shen Nanchu’s expression darkened.
Feng Kangping had already darted three or four meters behind her the moment she started brandishing the bamboo whip.
“Uh, Comrade Shen, I’m here today under orders from the leadership. This has nothing to do with you.”
“Who says it doesn’t? I’m stepping in to uphold justice.”
Shen Nanchu flicked the whip toward the roadside, sending leaves and branches flying from the bushes.
If that strike had landed on a person, wouldn’t it have split skin and flesh?
Feng Kangping shuddered and took another step back.
“C-Comrade Shen, this man has committed a serious ideological error. I—I’m just following orders to escort him to Wang Family Village.”
Shen Nanchu was already well-versed in the tricks of these so-called revolutionary committee scoundrels.
“You say he committed a serious ideological error?”
“Then tell me, what exactly was his mistake?”
Feng Kangping hesitated. “W-well, the leadership didn’t specify.”
Shen Nanchu raised an eyebrow. “Do you even know his name?”
Feng Kangping actually didn’t.
Her gaze turned sharp. “You don’t know anything, yet you’re holding a struggle session?”
“I—” Feng Kangping faltered. The leadership hadn’t explained, and he hadn’t dared to ask!
“Now I have reason to suspect you’re holding a grudge against Wang Family Village over last time and using your position for personal revenge.”
Shen Nanchu turned their own tactics against them.
“Everyone who comes to Wang Family Village is here to support its development.”
“Captain Feng, are you afraid this distinguished guest from the capital will lead our village out of poverty? Is that why you’re stirring up trouble?”
The villagers of Wang Family Village immediately erupted.
“Captain Feng, isn’t this going too far?”
“Exactly! Your Feng Family Village is already prosperous—why block other villages from progressing?”
“No wonder you’ve been visiting so often lately. You’re just jealous!”
The tide of opinion was turning exactly as Shen Nanchu intended.
Father Pei’s identity was highly sensitive. Even in exile, his background had been concealed by higher authorities.
Lei Zhenhua might have wanted to torment him, but he didn’t dare do it openly—only through underlings.
Feng Kangping didn’t know Father Pei’s status, and neither did the villagers. So whatever Shen Nanchu said, they took as truth.
Village Chief Wang Jianguo, recalling what his eldest son had told him earlier, was even more convinced.
“Captain Feng, if you can’t produce official documentation proving he’s a ‘monster or demon,’ then I have to question your motives.”
“I might have to ask the county magistrate what this is all about.”
His last words carried a veiled threat.
Feng Kangping wasn’t too bothered by Wang Jianguo’s warning.
What he feared was that bamboo whip—and its wielder.
The leadership’s task was already done. He could report back.
Why stick around and risk a beating?
He’d seen Shen Nanchu in action before.
Fearless and ruthless—but worst of all, educated.
This female menace wasn’t just fierce; she was smart.
He couldn’t win. Best to retreat.
Without hesitation, Feng Kangping made his decision.
“Mission to escort the ‘monster or demon’ to Wang Family Village is complete. Men, fall back!”
The group came and went in a hurry.
In moments, only the villagers and the Pei family remained.
“Regimental Commander Tian, please check my father’s arm.”
Pei Zhengnian left those words and vanished.
Father Pei’s arm had been twisted earlier, but fortunately, no bones were broken.
Shen Nanchu’s eyes darkened.
“Village Chief, they’re my family. Please take them back first.”
With that, she headed toward the mountains.
Soon, the crowd at the village entrance dispersed.
By the time Jiang Shuyi arrived in a hurry, her hair still damp and a white dress clinging to her, there was no sign of Pei Zhengnian—or any of the Pei family.
She grabbed Wang Xiaobao, who was playing in the mud by the field, her voice urgent.
“Where’s the tall, handsome man who was here earlier?”
“Dunno.”
Wang Xiaobao was busy molding a mud figure.
“Think harder. I’ll give you candy if you remember.”
The moment the words left her mouth, Wang Xiaobao tossed the mud aside.
“He went that way!”
Jiang Shuyi immediately tried to dash off.
But a small hand yanked her skirt back.
“Where’s the candy? You can’t go back on your word.”
Jiang Shuyi was in no mood for bargaining.
“Next time!”
She tried to pull free, but Wang Xiaobao clung tighter.
“No!”
His grubby hands left muddy prints on her pristine white dress.
Furious, Jiang Shuyi raised her hand.
“You little brat, let go!”
Seeing her about to strike, Wang Xiaobao released her and burst into tears.
“Waaah—!”
The commotion drew the attention of Wang Dabao and the other kids, who were catching frogs in the field.
Seeing his little brother bullied, Wang Dabao didn’t hesitate.
He scooped up a handful of mud and hurled it at Jiang Shuyi.
“Mean lady! Don’t pick on Xiaobao!”
The village children were fiercely loyal.
Mud clods flew from all directions.
Jiang Shuyi dodged one, only to be hit by another.
Splat! Splat! Splat!
Her white dress bloomed with muddy flowers. Even her hair wasn’t spared.
Her clothes!
Aaaah—!
…
Earlier, on his way to the village, Pei Zhengnian—ever the professional—had already surveyed the terrain.
Now he stood on a hillside overlooking the only road leading out of Wang Family Village.
He’d held back when Feng Kangping humiliated Father Pei.
Patience was strategy.
But restraint didn’t mean surrender.
Reckoning would come.
If they couldn’t strike openly, they’d strike in secret.
The Pei family wasn’t to be trifled with.
His expression turned icy as he gripped a massive boulder beside him.
Muscles tensed, veins bulging, he heaved.
The rock wobbled, then tumbled down, blocking the road.
In the distance, Feng Kangping’s tractor was approaching.
One boulder wouldn’t stop them.
He needed more.
Just as Pei Zhengnian reached for another, a bamboo pole appeared before him.
“Need one?”
“Ten yuan apiece.”
…
