Chapter 65: The Mayor Arrives
Zeng Xiaofan sneered disdainfully, “Don’t you dare try to pin false charges on me!”
“You say treason and it’s treason?”
“Utter nonsense!”
“Well, did you all hear that?” Jin Youcai turned to the others with exaggerated outrage. “Not only does this brat refuse to cooperate, now he has the audacity to insult public officials in broad daylight!”
“That’s an additional crime! There’s no need to wait—just notify our superiors and have them send someone down to handle this immediately!”
Jin Youcai grew even more arrogant, his voice rising. The other officials pointed at Zeng Xiaofan’s nose, shouting:
“Insolent troublemaker! Are you defying the authorities?”
“Are you going against the law?”
Zeng Xiaofan faced them fearlessly. “I haven’t broken any law. I’m reclaiming wasteland for farming, leading the villagers in revitalizing our countryside!”
A mocking laugh came from Jin Youcai. “Zeng Xiaofan, who do you think you are?”
“What status do you have? You think you’re qualified to talk about rural revitalization?”
“Is country revitalization something a peasant like you can speak of?”
Jin Youcai’s lips curled in a sinister smile as he glanced at Zeng Xiaofan, then leered lasciviously at Li Bixian. “Let me be frank with you: I’ve already made the arrangements!”
“Zeng Xiaofan, Li Bixian—if you don’t satisfy me today, your crimes will be severe!”
“This wasteland is basic farmland, protected under the red line. You dug a canal and destroyed farmland. The evidence is clear!”
“At the very least, it’s destruction of farmland; at worst, it’s undermining national food security. That’s espionage and treason! You’re finished!”
These words left Li Bixian so frightened that her knees nearly gave out. She’d never heard of such serious charges. Her face went pale. “Xiaofan… what… what do we do now?”
“We didn’t know this was protected farmland…”
Zeng Xiaofan gave her a gentle smile and spoke calmly. “Bixian, don’t be afraid. He’s making all this up.”
“He’s just retaliating against us for what happened yesterday.”
Jin Youcai laughed coldly. “You know what? You’re exactly right! I am retaliating against you today! So what?”
“Don’t like it? I’m the village chief! If I say you broke the law, then you broke the law!”
“The right to interpret the law is in my hands! What are you going to do about it?”
He glared at them, voice icy. “If you know what’s good for you, kneel down and apologize!”
“Then pay twenty thousand for farmland restoration. And Li Bixian, bring your mother too!”
“You two can come to my house tonight. I’ll give you a proper lesson…”
“I’ll teach you all about the legal ways to farm, heh heh heh…”
Jin Youcai’s laughter grew ever more obscene. “Do as I say, and I’ll let you off. Otherwise, you’re both going to prison!”
Li Bixian turned even paler, trembling. She’d never feared arguing with villagers, but this time Jin Youcai represented the authorities—she was at her wit’s end…
“Xiaofan… maybe… maybe we should try to reason with him…”
“If he really frames us, our lives will be over…”
At her words, Zeng Xiaofan nodded quietly and said in a flat tone, “Fine… if it’s money you want…”
“I can give it to you—come and get it.”
Jin Youcai’s face broke into a greedy grin, his jowls quivering with excitement.
“Heh, and here I thought this brat was tough—turns out he fears the authorities too?”
“Hahaha! Kid, if you knew this would happen, why did you cause trouble in the first place?”
“Kneel down and hand the money over!”
Zeng Xiaofan nodded and walked toward Jin Youcai.
“I told you to kneel!” Jin Youcai roared. “Crawl over on your knees—do you understand, you little bastard!”
The other officials looked on with mocking expressions, but Zeng Xiaofan was unmoved. He walked calmly to Jin Youcai, and said quietly, “You want money?”
“I’ll give it to you.”
“Fifty thousand!”
As the words left his lips, Zeng Xiaofan slapped Jin Youcai across the face with full force.
A crisp smack echoed. Five finger marks instantly bloomed on Jin Youcai’s face.
The entire crowd gasped.
Jin Youcai was stunned, mouth agape in shock and fury. “Damn it! You—you dare hit me now?”
“I’m a public official, enforcing the law!”
“You still dare hit me!?”
The other officials, equally shocked, erupted in shouts.
“Kid, you’re dead!”
“You’re resisting law enforcement! And now you’re assaulting a public official!”
“We’ve recorded your crime! You’re finished!”
Li Bixian screamed, “Xiaofan! Stop! Assaulting an official is a serious crime!”
Zeng Xiaofan only snorted coldly. In a deep voice, he declared, “I’m not hitting a public official—I’m hitting a corrupt bully who abuses his position, deceives his superiors, and oppresses the people!”
“I’m hitting you!”
With those words, Zeng Xiaofan unleashed another vicious slap.
Smack!
“You want money?”
Smack!
“There’s another fifty thousand!”
Smack!
“You want Bixian and her mother to serve you?”
A torrent of slaps followed.
“This is the mother-daughter double!”
“Take it all!”
Smack! Smack! Smack! Smack! Smack!
Zeng Xiaofan rained blows from both sides, leaving Jin Youcai dizzy and reeling.
“You’re finished… to hell with your whole family!”
“Zeng Xiaofan… damn it, I’ve never been slapped in the face like this in my life!” Jin Youcai, clutching his swollen face, scrambled to hide behind the others.
Zeng Xiaofan didn’t pursue, but merely shot him a glare, sending another shudder through Jin Youcai.
Everyone present was stunned. None of these officials had ever seen anyone dare to stand up to them like this.
Some began calling for reinforcements, others recorded videos, but none dared approach Zeng Xiaofan.
Seeing this, Zeng Xiaofan was about to go after the others when his phone suddenly rang—it was a call from Fan Bing.
He took out his phone and answered.
“Xiaofan… are you free today?” Fan Bing’s gentle, alluring voice came through. “I want you to come with me to see the wife of our county magistrate, Chen Jianghe. She’s been suffering from a chronic illness that no famous doctor has been able to cure. Can you help?”
Zeng Xiaofan frowned slightly. “Bing, treating her isn’t difficult, but I might not be able to get away right now.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Oh, it’s just a little trouble… Someone’s accusing me of destroying protected farmland and has surrounded me, threatening to arrest me…”
“What!? Who dares? What’s going on?” Fan Bing demanded.
Zeng Xiaofan briefly explained the situation. Fan Bing replied firmly, “Xiaofan, don’t engage them. Wait there—I’ll send someone to deal with it.”
Though Zeng Xiaofan wasn’t afraid of these people, he had no interest in tangling with the authorities, so he put his phone away and stood down.
Before long, a black SUV pulled up at the roadside.
Jin Youcai’s face lit up. “The town mayor is here to back us up!”
“Heh, kid! You’re dead!” He shot Zeng Xiaofan a malicious glare and hurried over to greet the car with obsequious enthusiasm.
At the same time, Mayor Lin Chunhua stepped out.
“Mayor, you personally came out for this?” Jin Youcai fawned, “It’s just a little troublemaker, yet you were disturbed… I’m so sorry. Thank you for supporting my work…”
He reached out ingratiatingly, but Lin Chunhua’s expression was thunderous. Instead of shaking his hand, Lin’s hand swept past and landed a resounding slap across Jin Youcai’s face.
“You worthless scoundrel! Look at what you’ve done!”
The echoing slap left the scene in utter silence.