MAC’60s Chapter 51.1

Wang Yaozong’s crimes were easy to determine. He had committed the offenses alongside Brother Dao and his gang, and naturally, after an assessment, the verdict was delivered together.

Brother Dao hated Wang Yaozong. If it weren’t for Wang Yaozong’s stubbornness, they would never have been arrested. Brother Dao was blamed by his companions and it was obvious—everyone had been quietly getting rich, and Yaozong had to go find a few people to help move things, and it ended like this?

The others who were arrested, who didn’t have an introduction letter, were also identified. They were from Beijing and were involved in land-grabbing, and also participated in illegal excavations.

Although these activities had been prohibited, it was strictly controlled in the cities, but the countryside was poor and some families didn’t understand these things. You could even have a pickled vegetable jar at home that might be valuable.

So these people had avoided suspicion, laying low for two years. But now, they couldn’t stay hidden anymore. They had found a way to escape and heard that there were many tombs in this area, so they sought out Brother Dao, a local intermediary, for help.

When they came to survey the area, they thought the excavation was going to be a big one and the items would need to be moved by someone.

Since they weren’t familiar with the area, they entrusted everything to Brother Dao.

And so, the result… was Brother Dao giving them a big gift.

The Victory Commune reported the matter, and not long after, people arrived from Beijing. They took all the items and also escorted the people back with them.

The remaining individuals were left for the Victory Commune to handle.

The commune leaders were furious. They realized that because of this group, their chances of being recognized as “advanced” this year were gone.

Immediately, they sentenced Brother Dao and Wang Yaozong.

Brother Dao, whose real name was Chen Zhen, was a widower with a son. He worked temporarily at the commune’s livestock station.

The commune leaders swiftly sentenced Brother Dao to ten years of labor reform. Going to prison? Fat chance—he’d be sent to a labor farm to suffer.

Among Wang Yaozong’s group, Wang Yaozong was given the heaviest sentence. He was sentenced to one year in prison and five years at a labor reform farm. Furthermore, the police would keep a record on him because Wang Yaozong had not only participated in illegal excavations but also had a history of fighting and brawling. Both issues were recorded and punished.

Now that Wang Yaozong’s case was settled, let’s talk about Wang Yongshun.

Thanks to Wang Ying’s guidance, Wang Yongshun’s crime was quickly investigated. He was accused by the child of a martyr of maliciously occupying the property of a relative.

The amount of money and items involved in the embezzlement was significant, especially the heavy gold bracelets and the 500 yuan, which was an astronomical amount for rural people.

The commune leaders were puzzled when they saw Wang Yongshun’s actions: “To squander 500 yuan in two years, this person is really something!”

Their own cadre families didn’t spend that much.

Wang Yongshun had no way to speak up. Of the 500 yuan, Xu Shuang took 100, Wang Yaozong had been tricked into giving away 80, and the rest had been spent on medical bills and compensation for a few chickens. In total, how could they possibly have spent 500 yuan in just two years?

The person in charge of the investigation scoffed: “You gave the 100 yuan because you took their things a few years ago, and you paid for the chickens because you ate them. You got tricked out of the money—that’s your own fault. As for the medical expenses… wasn’t that your own doing?”

The whole family was inept, waiting for easy gains.

Moreover, after investigating, everyone knew that their standard of living hadn’t been poor in the past, especially Wang Yaozong. While at school, he lived extravagantly and was more lavish than the students in town.

In short, Wang Yongshun’s crime was the embezzlement of another’s inheritance.

He was sentenced to four years of labor reform.

Now, both Wang Yongshun and Wang Yaozong were destined to spend the next few years working at the labor farm and wouldn’t be coming back anytime soon. Even if they did return, their family status would change, and their lives wouldn’t be easy from now on.

As for Li Chunjuan, she had already run back to her natal home before the news came down and hadn’t been heard from since.

Old Lady Xu patted her chest and said, “Good riddance!”

Now, she was finally feeling a sense of fear. She had originally thought Wang Lingling was incapable, but now she realized that Wang Lingling’s faults all stemmed from her parents.

This entire family was useless. The father was greedy and ruthless, the mother was foolish and vicious, and the daughter had inherited both traits—cunning and foolish. Wang Yaozong was the worst, managing to drag the whole family into trouble.

Looking back now, Wang Yongshun’s seemingly kind and honest face was actually terrifying. This man had swallowed up all of Wang Ying’s assets without hesitation and even planned to marry Wang Ying off to someone of his choosing. He had no qualms about taking everything from his brother’s widow and, as if that wasn’t enough, expected her to serve his family like a servant.

Now he has received his comeuppance, it’s truly as if Heaven is opening its eyes.

Unfortunately, the things Wang Ying received were still fewer compared to what she had lost. Moreover, the two years of suffering and exploitation by the Wang Yongshun family had not been compensated in any way.

However, Wang Ying was already very satisfied. Though Wang Yongshun had squandered the 500 yuan, 100 yuan of it had gone to Xu Shuang, and the Wang family’s house had also been transferred to her. When calculating everything, it wasn’t a loss.

She had long been tired of living next to the Wang Yongshun family, and now, it was finally good—no more worries. Both sides were now her own family.

Once the house expanded and the yard was merged, the living space would increase significantly. At that time, she planned to plant some flowers, herbs, and vegetables like onions, garlic, and chili peppers. She also intended to grow pumpkins, loofah, and grapevines along the yard wall.

Old Lady Xu was also very happy and immediately decided to move next door.

Wang Ying and Xu Shuang tried to dissuade her, but she was adamant: “It’s just a wall between us. I can hear you shout from here, and I can come over with just a few steps. We can still have meals together, nothing will change.”

In fact, she also felt a bit uncomfortable being too close to the younger generation.

Though she wasn’t rushing, Old Lady Xu still hoped for a grandchild soon.

Wang Ying didn’t want to say it directly, but Xu Shuang had gone to pick up a large package a few days ago, and seeing such a big parcel made Wang Ying uneasy. The address showed it was from the provincial capital, and Wang Ying couldn’t help but think that Old Lady Xu’s hopes probably wouldn’t be realized in the next few years.

The disappearance of Wang Yongshun’s family didn’t seem very surprising to the villagers.

Ever since Wang Ying had caused a commotion, the Wang family’s scandals had come one after another. Now that both Wang Yongshun and Wang Yaozong, father and son, were both arrested, it was to be expected.

“Look at Wang Yaozong, always stealing chickens, so greedy and foolish. It was just a matter of time.”

“He learned it all from Wang Yongshun. Both Wang Lingling and Wang Yaozong are the same,” the villagers commented, still full of disdain.

Who wouldn’t be annoyed by such behavior? Wang Yaozong stole chickens, and what’s worse, he stole the egg-laying hens. A chicken weighs five or six pounds, and while in the city a chicken might only be worth a few yuan, these were all egg-laying hens.

The people who had lost their chickens were still upset and couldn’t help but mutter, “Good riddance!”

On the other hand, Qian Juhua and Cheng Shufen were more careful, worried that Wang Ying might feel upset about the situation.

Cheng Yu thought to herself: “Sigh, if I had a good mother like Wang Ying’s, and if someone took away what she left for me, I’d definitely want to get back at them.”

Money wasn’t the most important thing; it was the sentiment.

Cheng Yu clenched her left fist and slapped her right palm: “I’ll go get a rabbit for Wang Ying.”

Her face was glowing with the vibrancy of youth: “Eating some meat will surely make her feel better.”

Qian Juhua’s two daughters, Daya and Erya, were also eager to join: “We’ll go too!”

They had always been thankful to Wang Ying. If she hadn’t helped their mother and sister, they wouldn’t have the life they had now.

Daya, with her fuller cheeks, now had two small dimples, making her look much more youthful and adorable than when she had looked troubled.

Daya reflected on the past few months. Not only did she now get enough to eat, but she could also wear clothes with embroidered edges. Even though she still had to work, she could go to Teacher Cheng’s place to learn to read every day.

Erya, too, had gained weight and had a round, rosy face. She wasn’t as shy and reserved as Daya; she was an open and straightforward child, and thus had the best relationship with Cheng Yu and Wang Ying. Normally, since Cheng Yu couldn’t visit Wang Ying’s home, it was Erya who ran back and forth on her short legs.

Erya: “Yes, let’s send meat to Sis Wang Ying!”

Whenever she wasn’t feeling happy, Wang Ying always brought them food and even stuffed candy into their hands.

So, one morning, Wang Ying got up early and saw three dead rabbits neatly placed in front of her house.

One of the rabbits had a note under it, with a crooked drawing of a plate, and on it was steaming meat.

Wang Ying smiled and picked up the rabbits. The comfort and care from the little ones warmed her heart.

Xu Shuang was packing inside the house. When she saw Wang Ying walk in holding the three rabbits, she stopped.

Wang Ying took out one of the rabbits: “Let’s add this one too.”

They were going into the city together today.

But it wasn’t just to sell herbs and deliver items to Chen Dong.

More importantly, Wang Ying felt both emotionally and logically obligated to thank Yao Huijuan’s family.

If it hadn’t been for Yao Ming’s timely arrival, Wang Yongshun’s case wouldn’t have been resolved so quickly.

But…

This gentleman’s name certainly sounded impressive.