A lonely, unlucky military officer with a stubborn fate insisted on marrying me.

Li Jinye instantly understood her meaning, patted her hand, and then exuded a terrifying sense of pressure.

Those deep eyes held no warmth whatsoever; when they swept over the crowd, it was as if a cold blade had scraped across them.

Even Wang Laoshi felt a lingering fear.

How much blood has this man seen?

"Starting today, you have three days to move and retrieve all your belongings within the Baihua Mountain area!"

"Three days later, everything within our designated area, whether trees, sheds, farm tools, or miscellaneous items, will be considered abandoned and will not be returned!"

He raised his hand, gesturing for Li Aiguo to step forward.

Li Aiguo immediately slammed two finished drawings onto the table next to him, startling the villagers.

"These diagrams are for you."

"We've clearly drawn and marked the boundaries and designated areas on the mountain. You can pass it around and keep it for your own reference. Don't say we didn't leave you any leeway later!"

The villagers looked at each other, their faces full of fear.

This man's aura was terrifying; his words were even sharper than those of the pregnant woman.

"Don't talk to me about our ancestors or how we can rely on powerful connections! With the permits in hand, this mountain is ours!"

Wang Laoshi's face was grim. He wanted to step forward and say something, but Li Jinye gave him a cold look, and he swallowed back the words that were on the tip of his tongue.

"Anyone who dares to incite trouble, stir up trouble, or deliberately delay will face consequences, so don't blame me for being ruthless!"

His tone was chillingly cold: "When the time comes, report it directly to the police and prosecute them for inciting public unrest and creating disturbances. Nobody will get away with it!"

Wang Laoshi was still unwilling to give up and wanted to bring up the matter of compensation again, but when he met Li Jinye's cold eyes, he shrank back.

A year? No! Half a year!

"Is a month okay? Give us more time."

Lin Yinyin didn't even look at Wang Laoshi, but tugged at Li Jinye's sleeve, indicating that they could leave.

Li Jinye understood, grabbed her hand in return, and said, "Three days!" before turning and leaving.

Li Aiguo and Zhang Jiande followed closely behind, the group walking calmly, their backs straight and resolute.

The villagers in the courtyard only began to catch their breath after they had gone some distance away.

"My goodness... this man is terrifying!" someone muttered, still shaken.

"Absolutely! The way he looked at me just now sent chills down my spine, like a knife was being held to my neck!"

"I'd always heard people say 'a look can kill,' but I never believed it. Today I've seen it for myself! This man's eyes are fiercer than a wolf from the mountains!"

Just as people breathed a sigh of relief, Lin Yinyin's voice came from afar.

With a hint of regret mixed with a touch of nonchalance, he said, "Sigh, to be honest, I originally thought that developing the mountain forest would require manpower. I could pay two yuan a day, with food and lodging provided, and send fifty or sixty people. But now it seems that it's unnecessary."

As soon as he said that, the courtyard fell silent.

Wang Erhua immediately chimed in, "That's right! If it weren't for that educated youth Song spreading rumors and inciting rebellion here, wouldn't things have turned into such a mess, and we wouldn't have had to fall out like this?"

"Yes, I originally hoped for peaceful coexistence and mutual benefit!"

"Pah! Don't let them get away with this! They're all out of their minds!"

And that village chief, he insisted on demanding exorbitant compensation, and now he's got nothing! Serves him right!

"Indeed, it's not like Lianxi Village is the only village! Aren't there other people at the foot of the mountain? With such high wages and such a good job, I don't believe others wouldn't be scrambling for it!"

"Exactly! These people are so stupid! They'd rather have a good life than join in this mess, they deserve it!"

After Lin Yinyin and Wang Erhua finished their tirade, the two finally dragged their feet forward.

Looking at his cunning little wife, Li Jinye really wanted to pull her into his arms and kiss her hard.

As the sound faded into the distance, the villagers began to murmur again, "What do we do now?"

Everyone looked at each other, and finally all eyes turned to Wang Laoshi, filled with questions and resentment.

"Village chief, what do we do now?" someone asked first.

"Last night you were patting your chest, saying you'd definitely get more compensation, but now look what's happened! Forget a hundred dollars, you haven't even gotten a job!"

"that is!"

A man pushed his way forward. "Didn't we agree yesterday that each family would get 100 yuan? Why did you suddenly change it to 120 yuan today? Did you scare them away with your outrageous demands?"

"That's right, village chief, how could you raise the price without my permission!"

"That's right! If 100 yuan isn't enough, let's bargain, 50 yuan will do!"

"Yes! Fifty is too much, twenty will do! It's better than having nothing at all!"

"Forget about twenty, even if you don't pay us, we'll just go to work!"

Didn't they say yesterday that even after the forest is developed, we can still gather firewood and forage for wild vegetables in designated areas? It won't affect us much!

"Yes. The only impact is on that twenty acres of land that were cleared!"

But that land had been cultivated for several years, half of it belonged to the village chief, and each of our families only received one or two acres, so we didn't lose anything at all!

"Now look what's happened! Everything's gone, nothing's left!"

"It's all Song Zhiqing's fault!" someone shouted.

Everyone turned their heads in unison, glaring at Song Yi, who was huddled in the corner.

"Exactly! Now that you're educated, why are you spouting this nonsense about being a mountain king! Bah!"

"You ruined a perfectly good negotiation with your words! If she hadn't stirred things up with that 'revolution' thing, would they have turned against us?"

As Wang Laoshi listened to the villagers' complaints, he cursed them in his heart.

Fools! A bunch of opportunistic idiots!

"Stop arguing! Get out of here right now! Move everything back from the mountain within three days!"

"We can't leave!"

Someone shouted defiantly, "Village chief, you have to get that compensation back! That's our money!"

"Yes! This Hundred Flowers Mountain is ours! It's a legacy passed down from generation to generation! Why should it be taken away like this!"

The villagers, one after another, actually repeated exactly what Song Yi had used to retort to Lin Yinyin.

Wang Laoshi was so angry that he felt dizzy, and these people turned around and morally blackmailed him!

He slammed his pipe on the ground and yelled, "Get the hell out of here!"

A bunch of bullies who prey on the weak and fear the strong!

He cowers like a dog in front of strangers, but then he turns around and tries to bully me! Damn it!

The courtyard quickly became quiet.

Only Wang Laoshi, Song Yi, and Wang Anquan, the village chief's son, remained standing to the side.

Wang Laoshi looked at his son and said, "Anquan, go up the mountain and bring back everything from our shed."

"Okay, Dad!"

After Wang Anquan left, Song Yi, who had been looking down with a wronged expression, slowly raised her head.

With a sharp "smack," a hand landed hard on Wang Laoshi's face!

"idiot!"

Song Yi's voice was icy cold, devoid of any of her previous gentleness.