Sold into a ghost marriage? Four-year-old and his thuggish father go on a killing spree.

"Old Cheng! Take a look! This document from the county's Civil Affairs Bureau! This...this is utter nonsense!"

At the Chengjiawan brigade headquarters, the civil affairs officer sent by the commune—a young cadre surnamed Liu—

Holding a document, he found the brigade secretary, Cheng Tiezhu, breathless.

Cheng Tiezhu, wearing his reading glasses, was calculating the team's autumn grain procurement quota.

Hearing this, he looked up, frowned, and said, "Xiao Liu, what's the matter that you're in such a hurry?"

"Take a look at this first!"

Officer Liu slammed the document on the table.

Cheng Tiezhu picked up the document, glanced at the title, and his expression changed instantly.

Application letter regarding the change of guardianship of Comrade Gu Niannian.

Applicant: Zhao.

Respondent: Gu Yanqiu.

Cheng Tiezhu's anger flared up instantly.

"That old hag! She's like a persistent ghost!"

He looked down, and the more he looked, the bigger the fire became.

The application materials portrayed the Zhao family as having a glamorous and successful image.

They said their family was well-off, and the grandmother missed her granddaughter and was willing to take on the responsibility of raising her.

The description of Gu Yanqiu, however, is a complete distortion of the truth!

The materials used Gu Yanqiu's old files from several years ago, which described him as "a notorious lazy bum in Chengjiawan Brigade, with no stable job, no fixed income, and a long history of idleness and serious problems with his personal character," and concluded that he "does not have the ability to raise his minor children independently!"

They even attached a fake family income certificate issued by the Wangjiacun brigade!

At the end of the document, there was a shocking signature: Qinghe County Civil Affairs Bureau, Zhou Ming.

"Zhou Ming?" Cheng Tiezhu murmured the name, finding it somewhat familiar.

"It's that distant relative of the Zhao family who works as a clerk at the county civil affairs bureau!" Officer Liu slapped his thigh and said angrily, "If I hadn't handled their severance of kinship before and remembered the name 'Zhao,' and hadn't paid extra attention, this application would almost have been approved!"

Officer Liu is also an upright young man.

He felt something was amiss when he received the document from the county.

He remembered the name Zhao very clearly.

The old woman who wanted to sell her own granddaughter to arrange a ghost marriage in order to pay off her son's gambling debts left a deep impression on him.

How can someone with a murder record and a signed disownment letter have the audacity to apply for guardianship?

He immediately called the county agricultural machinery station to verify, and the result surprised him greatly.

Gu Yanqiu was not a "social idler" at all; on the contrary, he was a technical backbone praised by everyone at the agricultural machinery station, earning a monthly salary of twenty-two yuan, which was higher than that of Gu Yanqiu, a commune worker!

This is clearly a malicious accusation! It's collusion between insiders and outsiders, and an abuse of power!

Upon hearing this, Cheng Tiezhu slammed his hand on the table in anger, causing the teacup to clang loudly.

"She's gone too far! Is she trying to sell Niannian a second time?!"

"Are you bullying us, Chengjiawan, because we have no one left?!"

Cheng Tiezhu's temper flared up, and he immediately grabbed the phone and berated the leaders of the commune's revolutionary committee.

Then he personally wrote a statement explaining that Zhao had sold her granddaughter, and that the Gu family father and daughter had been forced to separate their household.

The facts, such as the legally binding severance agreement signed by both parties, are clearly stated in the document.

"Xiao Liu! Send this document back to the commune immediately! Have the commune reply directly to the county civil affairs bureau: The applicant, Zhao, has a prior conviction for child trafficking, is of bad character, and has long since severed ties with the ward. Therefore, her application is not accepted!"

"Furthermore! Tell them that we reserve the right to report Comrade Zhou Ming to the county discipline inspection commission for abusing his power and falsifying materials!"

Even after finishing his official business, Cheng Tiezhu's anger had not subsided.

He realized that this incident was a huge wake-up call for Gu Yanqiu.

He immediately ordered the brigade's broadcaster to ride a bicycle to the county town, determined to bring Gu Yanqiu back no matter what!

That evening, when Gu Yanqiu returned to the village from the county town full of doubts, he was greeted by Cheng Tiezhu's face, which was as black as the bottom of a pot.

"You're too carefree, kid!"

Cheng Tiezhu slammed a copy of the application letter down in front of Gu Yanqiu.

"Look at yourself! They've practically stabbed you in the heart, and you're still completely oblivious!"

"That old hag, she's going to rot your life from the very roots! She's going to steal your life away!"

Gu Yanqiu picked up the few sheets of paper, read only a few lines, and his blood instantly froze.

His hands began to tremble violently and uncontrollably.

Those black lead characters, like venomous snakes flicking their tongues, writhe and bite before his eyes.

No stable job...

His character has serious problems...

Incapable of raising children...

Applying for a change of guardianship...

He felt a sudden dizziness, his vision went black, and he almost lost his balance.

I was terrified!

An overwhelming sense of lingering fear, like icy seawater, instantly overwhelmed him!

He almost... just a tiny bit away from losing Nian Nian forever without even knowing it!

If it weren't for Officer Liu taking charge, and if it weren't for Cheng Tiezhu standing up for him, the consequences... he didn't even dare to think about them!

"Yanqiu, wake up!"

Cheng Tiezhu's large hand patted heavily on his shoulder.

"This time, with me and the commune, we've blocked it for you."

Cheng Tiezhu's voice was extremely solemn.

"But what about next time? As long as that Zhou Ming is still at the county civil affairs bureau, as long as that old hag is still eyeing your meager salary, she won't give up!"

"A letter severing ties can cut off the emotional bond, but it can't stop her from exploiting loopholes in the rules!"

"This time she's applying for custody, but next time, will she accuse you of child abuse? Will she say you have mental problems?"

"It's easy to dodge a spear in the open, but hard to guard against an arrow in the dark!"

Every word Cheng Tiezhu uttered was like a heavy hammer blow, striking Gu Yanqiu's heart.

He looked at the document in his hand, at the glaring signature "Zhou Ming" on it, and felt a chill run through his body.

Yes.

This time it was just luck.

What about next time? And the time after that?

He can't be this lucky every time.

He couldn't entrust his daughter's future to the integrity of others and his own luck.

must……

We must find a way to solve this once and for all!

A way to make those evil spirits from the Zhao family unable to extend their claws again, a way to solve the problem once and for all!

But what is that?

Faced with this kind of pervasive malice from official channels, what can an ordinary repairman do?

Gu Yanqiu's mind went blank.

For the first time, he felt that deep-seated despair called "powerlessness".