A jinx, me? But I bring good fortune to my whole family!

With Gu Jianguo's kick, the broken wooden door flew off.

The door slammed against the table leg inside the room, and dishes shattered on the floor. A mixture of musty and medicinal smells wafted out of the dark room.

"Warm and cozy!"

Su Xiulan rushed in barefoot, not even noticing the broken bowl fragments she stepped on. She pounced on the broken wooden bed and yanked off the blanket.

The bed was empty, and her heart sank. Her legs went weak, and she almost knelt down.

"The inner room!" Gu Xiaoan shone his flashlight over the room, the beam sweeping across the tattered curtain hanging in the doorway.

Gu Jianguo ripped open the curtain and rushed in. The light from his flashlight shone in, illuminating two men slumped on two broken beds and an old wooden box turned upside down in the corner.

There is no warmth.

"Not in this room!" Gu Jianguo's voice came from the inner room, each word trembling.

Su Xiulan's mind went completely blank for a moment. Little Grey had clearly brought them here, so how could there be no one here?

More and more torches gathered outside the courtyard, and the villagers around me also came to surround me. Just as Li Dashan was about to climb over the wall, a loud curse came from inside the courtyard.

"Who the hell dares to kick down my front door! They've gone too far!"

Old Mrs. Lin's voice was sharp and shrill. She was wearing a tattered cotton-padded coat and rushed out of the side room, followed by Wang Guixiang and Li Qiaomei.

Grandma Lin held up a lamp and gasped in pain when she saw the broken door.

Just as I was about to open my mouth to curse, I suddenly saw the face of the person in front.

Gu Jianguo!

Old Mrs. Lin was so frightened that she took a few steps back, her expression changing repeatedly.

However, remembering that she was in her own home, the old lady straightened up, her neck stiffened, and she shouted, "Gu Jianguo? How dare you bring people to smash up my house?"

"Where's Nuannuan?" Gu Jianguo, gripping a machete, strode out of the house, his voice frighteningly hoarse.

"What 'warm and cozy'? I don't know what you're talking about!"

Grandma Lin took a step back, but she remained stubborn and kept shouting.

"You're talking nonsense!" Su Xiulan rushed out of the house, her finger pointing straight at Old Lady Lin's face. "Nuannuan was taken away by you! Even the rats led the way to your doorstep! And you're still pretending!"

"A rat?" Old Mrs. Lin curled her lip. "You believe a rat? A rat leading the way? Are you crazy?"

A flicker of panic crossed her face, but she immediately backed down, defiantly yielding.

"Even if Nuannuan is with me, she's still my granddaughter! What law did I break by taking my granddaughter home for a couple of days?"

Upon hearing this, Su Xiulan's hands trembled.

"You're taking her home? You call that taking her home? Nuannuan was stolen from my yard!"

"Steal?" Old Mrs. Lin's voice rose even higher. "What steal! This child has the blood of the Lin family flowing in her veins, and her father is my own son! You, an outsider, what right do you have to hold onto my granddaughter?"

She shouted as she went, yelling loudly towards the outside of the courtyard wall.

"Help! Everyone from Niulan Village, come out and see! People from other villages have come to our doorstep!"

That shout made quite a commotion.

Niulan Village was not large to begin with, with dozens of households close together. In the middle of the night, there was the sound of kicking doors followed by shouting and cursing. Then, a large group of people from Gujia Village arrived with torches, startling the entire village.

Lights came on in the east, and someone opened a door and peeked out in the west.

Before half a cup of tea had been brewed, the men of Niulan Village also came out.

Three or five, five or six, or ten or so.

Some ran out wearing only their underwear, some carried sticks, and some carried hoes.

"What's going on? Who's causing trouble?"

"Aunt Lin, who bullied you?"

When Old Lady Lin saw that people from her village had arrived, she immediately straightened her back a bit.

She stood in the crowd, hands on her hips, pointing at Gu Jianguo and the others, her mouth moving rapidly.

"Look, everyone! Look, everyone! These are people from the neighboring Gu Family Village. They came to smash my house with knives in the middle of the night! Why? Because I brought my own granddaughter back to stay for two days! They're here to take her away!"

She cried and wailed, her voice trailing off.

"Fellow villagers, you be the judge! A stranger adopted my granddaughter, and I, her own grandmother, can't even see her? I missed her and brought her back for a meal, and they brought the whole village to beat me!"

"Is there no justice left? Is there no law left?"

The villagers of Niulan Village were unaware of the situation; they only saw a large group of people from another village arrive, carrying carrying poles, shovels, and some even holding machetes.

What are we here for if not to fight?

Several young men immediately stood in front of Old Lady Lin, blocking her way.

"Hey, you from another village, let's talk this out. You want to resort to violence? First, ask if Niulan Village will allow it!"

The two groups of people stood facing each other, with less than three steps between them.

The torchlight shone on each face, one side showing anger, the other wariness.

The carrying pole and hoe reflected the light in the dim light, and the air was thick with the smell of gunpowder.

"You're talking nonsense!" Su Xiulan rushed forward, trembling all over, her voice hoarse and barely able to speak. "What do you mean, 'bring her back for a couple of days'? She was stolen! My Nuannuan was perfectly fine in the yard, and then she was gone in the blink of an eye! You hired someone to steal a five-year-old child, and you still have the nerve to say you'll bring her back?"

"You're talking nonsense!" Old Mrs. Lin retorted, "The child has the blood of the Lin family flowing in her veins! Why would I need to steal to take my own granddaughter home?"

"Blood?" Gu Jianguo's voice was squeezed out through clenched teeth. "Have you no shame? How did you treat Nuannuan after her parents died? Do you want me to confront you in front of the whole village about Wang Guixiang pushing her off the cliff?"

Hearing this from behind the crowd, Wang Guixiang's face turned pale, and she shrank back two steps, wishing she could hide herself underground.

Grandma Lin's face twitched, but she was determined to go for it.

"That was just a child falling accidentally! You're making baseless accusations!"

"you--"

Gu Jianguo suddenly stepped forward, almost raising his machete.

Several young men from Niulan Village also took a step forward, and it looked like a fight was about to break out.

Both sides had tears in their eyes.

The villagers of Gujia Village were truly anxious. Nuannuan was their benefactor, a little bodhisattva, who had saved dozens of lives at the mine. They couldn't bear to see their benefactor stolen and locked up in this dilapidated house.

Although the villagers of Niulan Village were unaware of the inside story, they were still ashamed that their village had been bullied by outsiders.

Hoes clashed, carrying poles bumped against each other.

People started pushing and shoving.

A young man from Gujia Village was pushed and stumbled, nearly hitting the person opposite him with his shovel.

"You dare touch me!"

"Who the hell started it?"

The shouts and curses rose and fell, and the scene was completely out of control.

Just as the two sides were about to start fighting, a gunshot shattered the night sky.

Everyone froze in shock.

The shoving hand froze in mid-air, the words of curse stuck in the throat, neither swallowing nor spitting them out.

Gao Yuan stepped out from behind the crowd.

He pointed his gun at the sky; the smoke from the gunpowder hadn't yet dissipated. His military uniform was impeccably pressed, and his face showed no superfluous expression.

He walked between the two groups of people and stood still.

"Stop it, all of you!"

The few words, spoken neither loudly nor softly, resonated in everyone's ears in the silence that followed the gunshots.

The villagers of Niulan Village were the first to back down. They had only ever heard of guns in plays, but to actually be shot in front of them was a nightmare. Their legs cramped instantly.

Several young men dropped their hoes on the ground with a clatter.

The people in Gujia Village didn't dare to make a move either. Gao Yuan was the battalion commander in the army, and with that status, no one dared to cause trouble in front of him.

Gao Yuan scanned both sides.

"Fighting with weapons is illegal, don't you know that?"

No one said a word.

"No one is allowed to cause trouble today," he paused, "Let the child choose who to live with."

"Why should a child have to choose!" Old Mrs. Lin was the first to jump out, shouting in a shrill voice, "She's only five years old! What does a five-year-old know?"

"Does a five-year-old child not understand who is good to her?" Gao Yuan didn't look at her; his voice was icy.

"Grandma Lin, if you have nothing to hide, why are you letting the children choose?"

These words left Old Lady Lin speechless.

Her lips trembled twice, and a flash of resentment crossed her face.

Li Qiaomei leaned close to her ear and whispered something. Old Mrs. Lin's eyes darted around, and she suddenly grinned.

He looked at the sick person with a smile.

"Fine! Let the child choose!" She tossed her hand and turned to walk towards the side room.

The door to the side room creaked open.

Nuan Nuan stood behind the door, wearing a faded coarse cloth jacket, her hair loose, and her face still bearing traces of tears.

The little girl gripped the door frame with her hands, tilting her head to look outside.

The courtyard was packed with people, and the torchlight cast flickering light on her small face.

"Nuan Nuan!" The moment Su Xiulan saw her, all her strength vanished, her legs went weak, and she collapsed to her knees, sobbing uncontrollably.

"Nuan Nuan, Mom's here, Mom's come to pick you up—"

Nuannuan's little mouth twitched slightly, her eyes reddened, and her short legs were about to take a step out.

Grandma Lin suddenly squatted down and grabbed Nuannuan's arm.

Her fingers were clenched so tightly that her knuckles turned white.

She brought her head close to Nuannuan's ear, her voice so low that only the two of them could hear it.

"Nuan Nuan, have you thought it through?"

Her lips were almost touching Nuannuan's ear, her breath hot and fishy.

"If you dare to leave, I'll keep your biological parents a secret forever and never tell you anything about them."