Chapter 24: A Beating for Nothing

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“Huh? Seriously? Then why did you lie and tell me you were a schoolteacher?”

“I never said that. You simply assumed that because I lived at the school, I must be a teacher.”

Lu Hao was instantly rendered speechless. Thinking it over carefully, he remembered that when Sun Xiaolei had given him the keys yesterday, he had mentioned that several apartments in the family housing compound of the township middle school were being used by the township government. In that case, it was perfectly normal for Lin Xiyue to live there.

As Lu Hao sipped his tea, his mind gradually became more active. Recalling everything that had happened since he arrived in Fangshui Township, he stared at Lin Xiyue as though he had suddenly found the answer.

“Why are you staring at me like that? Is there a flower on my face?” Lin Xiyue rolled her eyes.

“Xiaoyue, ever since I arrived in Fangshui Township, have you been helping me whenever people targeted me? Including the cancellation of my disciplinary punishment this time and my appointment as director of the Poverty Alleviation Office—was all of that because of you?” Lu Hao asked seriously.

“I have helped you before, but the disciplinary inspection this time, the revocation of your punishment, and everything else—the decisive factor wasn’t me. I merely went along with the situation. Your appointment as director of the Poverty Alleviation Office was Zhao Gang’s idea.” Lin Xiyue’s expression turned solemn as well.

She had known for a long time that Lu Hao would ask this question, so she had already prepared her response. She made no mention of Ye Ziyi’s existence.

Lu Hao frowned again. He had thought he had found the answer, but now his confusion had only deepened.

“What is it? Do you still have doubts?” Lin Xiyue saw straight through his thoughts.

Lu Hao nodded. “Zhao Gang once forced me to take the blame for him, but now he suddenly recommended me as director. That’s far too abnormal.”

He was still worried that Zhao Gang might be setting a trap for him, so he had to remain cautious.

“If they want you to take the position, then do your job well and stop overthinking it. As long as you don’t make any mistakes, even if someone digs a pit for you, you’ll be able to leap over it. If you achieve results as director of the Poverty Alleviation Office, you’ll have plenty of opportunities to be promoted to deputy section chief in the future.” Lin Xiyue seemed to have seen through his concerns and spoke earnestly.

Lu Hao nodded, accepting what she had said.

After that came the formal organizational discussion. Lu Hao reported on the numerous messes left behind at the Poverty Alleviation Office, all of which would take time to sort out.

In particular, several years earlier, when Song Bo had been in office, he had brought in a chemical plant and granted it substantial subsidies. Although the plant had solved employment problems for many farmers in Fangshui Township, it had also polluted the township’s environment and water resources.

As far as Lu Hao knew, the pollution had already affected the crops grown on many farmers’ land, and the wastewater discharged by the chemical plant failed to meet standards.

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This series of problems left Lin Xiyue frowning deeply as well. She instructed Lu Hao to keep a discreet eye on the chemical plant and reminded him to report the situation to the Ecology and Environment Bureau later.

After leaving Lin Xiyue’s office, Lu Hao was in an excellent mood. He had never imagined that Secretary Lin was actually Xiaoyue, the woman who had been by his side day and night.

He returned to his office and continued working overtime. Just as he had told Lin Xiyue, the Poverty Alleviation Office had been left in complete disarray, with far too many details requiring careful organization. He worked until nine that evening before finally heading home.

Fangshui Township was nothing like a major city, where the streets remained ablaze with lights and nightlife late into the night. Here, by nine o’clock, hardly anyone could be seen on the streets. Most people had already gone to sleep.

Lu Hao had long since grown used to it. Unfortunately, the streetlight circuit had broken over the past two days, so he was following the road toward the family housing compound of the township middle school with a flashlight in hand.

But just then, the sounds of several motorcycles suddenly came from both ahead of and behind him. Their powerful headlights shone directly into his eyes, making it impossible for him to see.

Before Lu Hao could react, a collapsible baton swung toward him and struck him hard across the back.

He staggered and was thrown several yards forward before finally managing to regain his balance.

A searing pain spread across his back.

The next moment, five or six men dismounted from the motorcycles. Each carried a collapsible baton, and they charged toward him with murderous expressions.

“What do you think you’re doing? Assaulting a government official?” Lu Hao narrowed his eyes and barked.

“Even if you were the Emperor of Heaven, we still wouldn’t be afraid of you. You dared dock Big Mountain’s wages, so don’t expect to enjoy yourself from now on,” one of the thugs snarled viciously.

Lu Hao had only been suspicious before, but he had never expected that Niu Dashan really was behind it. His gaze turned cold, and he suddenly shouted into the darkness around him, “Niu Dashan, you’ve got the nerve to send people after me, but not the nerve to show your face? What are you, a coward hiding behind a shell?”

He knew Niu Dashan must be hiding nearby. A man like Niu Dashan would certainly want to watch him get beaten with his own eyes before he could vent the resentment in his heart.

Sure enough, Niu Dashan’s voice immediately came from the darkness. “Lu Hao, once you’re crawling around on the ground with your teeth knocked out, begging for mercy, let’s see how arrogant you can still be. You dared dock my wages. Every time you dock them, I’ll have someone beat you up. Our township is too poor, and the surveillance cameras here broke down long ago. Even if we beat you senseless, the police won’t be able to trace it back to us.”

His voice was filled with smug satisfaction. Then he shouted, “Go! Teach him a proper lesson!”

He had made up his mind to put Lu Hao in his place. Otherwise, wouldn’t everyone in the entire township government think they could shout at him whenever they pleased?

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A cold smile spread across Lu Hao’s face. He pointed at the thugs Niu Dashan had brought with him. “That remark of yours just reminded me of something. Come at me together. I haven’t had a fight in a long time.”

As he spoke, he took off his jacket, revealing the white undershirt beneath, and crooked a finger at the thugs.

How could these men tolerate such blatant arrogance? They charged forward with their batons raised.

Lu Hao sidestepped the first blow, then kicked one of the thugs several yards through the air. The force of it startled Niu Dashan.

And that was not all. None of the remaining thugs could even get close to Lu Hao. In his eyes, their collapsible batons were no more threatening than children’s toys.

In less than two minutes, Lu Hao had knocked every one of them to the ground. He moved so quickly that Niu Dashan was left speechless with shock.

“You probably never looked at my personnel file. I served in the military while I was at university. Back then, my hand-to-hand combat skills were always the best in my unit, and I even won the military district championship.” Lu Hao rolled his wrists and gave a quiet laugh.

That smile was painfully dazzling in Niu Dashan’s eyes. Hearing the groans of the men he had called in, Niu Dashan’s legs began to tremble. He turned and ran.

But there was no way Lu Hao would let him escape. In the blink of an eye, he seized Niu Dashan by the shoulder and threw him over his back. The two-hundred-pound man crashed to the ground with a shriek.

Lu Hao then rushed forward again, raised his fist—large as a sandbag—and slammed it into Niu Dashan’s face. Niu Dashan cried out in agony.

At first, he gritted his teeth and cursed Lu Hao. But Lu Hao said nothing and simply continued beating him.

Niu Dashan held out for only a few minutes before giving in. He begged repeatedly, “Stop hitting me! I was wrong! Please, I’m begging you! If you keep going, you’ll kill me!”

Only after hearing Niu Dashan beg for mercy did Lu Hao stop. He slowly rose and shook the blood from his fists.

“You little bastard! If you’ve got the guts, then kill me!” Seeing that Lu Hao had stopped, Niu Dashan realized that Lu Hao would never truly dare kill him. His courage returned, and he became defiant once more.

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