After Er Gouzi left, Liu Tiezhu and Second Uncle roasted the pheasants, wolfed down a few bites, and continued filling sacks with porcini mushrooms. An hour later, they had two more full bags. Just as they were about to swap bags and keep going, Er Gouzi rushed back in a panic.
"Dad, Brother Tiezhu, something's wrong. Brother Shan got beaten up by Liu Yang's family, and now they won't let him leave."
"Holy shit!"
Hearing this, Liu Tieshan cursed. He abandoned the porcini, grabbed a hatchet and tucked it at his waist, then turned and headed back.
"Gouzi, hurry up and follow."
Second Uncle said nothing more, left the mushrooms behind, and quickly caught up.
The three jogged the whole way, covering what usually took half an hour in under ten minutes. As they arrived at Liu Yang's house, they found a crowd of neighbors gathered in the large yard.
"Thief who stole the cow, beat him to death!"
"No wonder those two families didn't want to join the New Year's dinner—they were afraid the stolen beef would be found out if they brought it."
"Damn it, those two families are a den of thieves. They should be driven out of the village!"
Liu Tieshan and the others heard the neighbors' ugly insults from a distance. Drawing closer, they saw Liu Yang gripping the eldest brother by the collar, his face twisted with rage. The eldest brother's face bore several red marks, clearly from slaps.
The sight instantly enraged Liu Tiezhu.
"I'll fuck your mother!"
Liu Tiezhu charged into the crowd, without a word, and kicked Liu Yang square in the lower back. Caught off guard, Liu Yang fell flat on his face. After the kick, Liu Tiezhu pulled his elder brother behind him.
"Son of a bitch, I helped you find your cow out of kindness, and you dare frame my brother? And you bastards, what are you all yelling about? Trying to kick our two families out of Liu Family Village? Who's got the guts to try?"
Er Gouzi and Second Uncle also rushed in, glaring coldly at the neighbors.
Liu Changhai spoke up: "Look at this, the cow thief thinks he's in the right! He dares to hit someone—everyone, call the police!"
At that, the neighbors started shouting again.
"Call the police, have them arrested!"
"Scum like this belong in jail!"
"Our village doesn't need thieves!"
Hearing the curses, Liu Tiezhu laughed. He pulled out the hatchet from his waist and pointed it at Liu Changhai.
"Old Dog Liu, which eye of yours did you see me steal the cow? If you don't make this clear to me tonight, see if I don't chop off your shriveled little dick!"
Dealing with unreasonable scumbags required dirty tactics, not logic.
"You wouldn't dare!" Liu Changhai puffed up his chest, a defiant look on his face.
"Old Dog Liu, I'm putting it out there: take two steps forward if you've got the balls, and see if I don't do it."
Liu Tiezhu's face darkened as his gaze swept over Liu Shan and the others.
"And you bastards—did I sleep with your wives, or did Liu Shan feed you shit? So obedient, following him here to frame my brother?"
Liu Shan and the others turned red with anger. Faced with Liu Tiezhu's overwhelming aggression, none of them dared utter a word. These days, soft persimmons were easy to squeeze, but Liu Tiezhu was a cactus with thorns—they wouldn't dare touch him. After all, the hatchet in his hand was no joke. If he lost it and swung, it could cost a life. They were just here for the spectacle, not to risk their necks.
"Liu Changhai, you've got no balls—weren't you just yelling about sending me to jail? Take a step forward, and I'll call you a real man."
Liu Tiezhu kept pressing Liu Changhai. To deal with this old bastard, he had to scare him once and for all. Otherwise, these old fools would keep causing trouble.
"I... I..."
Liu Changhai gritted his teeth, stammering, but couldn't get the words out.
"I'll fuck your mother..."
"Fuck your ancestors..."
"You useless old prick..."
Liu Tiezhu pointed the hatchet at Liu Changhai and let loose a torrent of curses.
"Liu Tiezhu, that's enough! Liu Changhai is still an elder—how can you..."
Liu Shan didn't finish before Liu Tiezhu cut him off.
"Fuck your ancestors for eighteen generations..."
"Fuck every woman in your family..."
"..."
Liu Tiezhu jabbed a finger at Liu Shan's nose and cursed out his entire lineage. Having lived a second life, if he let a bunch of old turtles push him around, he might as well drown himself in his own piss.
"You... you... you..."
Liu Shan trembled all over, unable to keep up with Liu Tiezhu's rhythm.
"What, haven't been cursed enough? Cheating fools, playing tricks, no balls."
"Damn it..."
"Fuck your mother's cunt..."
Liu Tiezhu's spit flew, drenching Liu Shan's face, and he actually fainted from the shock.
When Liu Changhai saw Liu Tiezhu's gaze turn back to him, he was so scared he slipped away. The other neighbors all lowered their heads to avoid trouble. They now realized that Liu Tiezhu's family wasn't one to mess with. Helping Liu Shan any further would only bring them grief.
Everyone shut up, but Liu Tiezhu's anger hadn't subsided. Behind him, Er Gouzi and Second Uncle were seeing this fierce side of Liu Tiezhu for the first time. Grinning, they silently gave him a thumbs-up.
"Liu Yang, did you fucker hit my brother's face?"
Liu Tiezhu walked up to Liu Yang, hatchet in hand, and asked coldly.
"He stole my cow—what's wrong with a few slaps?" Liu Yang said timidly.
"Stole my ass! If we stole it, why would we bring it back to you? Are you brain-dead, with shit for brains?" Liu Tiezhu shouted.
Liu Yang snapped back, "Who knows what you were thinking. Maybe you were afraid I'd call the cops and brought it back."
"Idiot, I can't be bothered wasting spit on you. I've marked those slaps on my brother—this isn't over."
Liu Tiezhu cursed at Liu Yang, grabbed his brother, and walked away. The watching neighbors didn't dare say another word and parted to make way.
In truth, everyone knew whether Liu Tieshan had stolen Liu Yang's cow. They hadn't come to care about that—they were there to help Liu Shan make trouble for Liu Tieshan. That was their real goal. But this time, they'd hit a hard nut and ended up cursed out instead.
After a few steps, Liu Tiezhu turned back.
"You bastards keep protecting Liu Shan—you'll be crying soon enough."
Everyone's faces flushed red, but no one dared reply. Only after Liu Tiezhu and his group had walked far away did the neighbors start muttering insults behind his back.
Hearing their ugly words, Liu Tiezhu couldn't care less. Tomorrow was the last day—then the snowstorm would hit. With food running low, these neighbors would soon turn on each other.
The four returned to the bamboo grove. Second Uncle handed the leftover roasted pheasant to Liu Tieshan and Er Gouzi.
"Brother, don't worry—I won't let those slaps from Liu Yang go unanswered," Liu Tiezhu said.
He wasn't one to hold grudges, but he couldn't let these neighbors keep bullying them. In his past life, these bastards had tormented their two families plenty. This time, he wouldn't let it happen again.
Liu Tieshan waved his hand. "Forget it, let bygones be bygones."
"No way." Liu Tiezhu's face was resolute. "We've been too meek, so they dared to ride roughshod over us."
Second Uncle chimed in, "Tiezhu's right. We don't bully others, but we won't let them bully us either. Eat up—tonight, we dig up all the porcini and bamboo shoots. Just like Tiezhu said, when the snowstorm hits, they'll reap what they sow."