But is Qijia Village truly just an ordinary place?
When a businessman can conduct his trade without facing extortion, shakedowns, or framed charges, he is already faring better than 95 percent of his peers.
The existence of Qi Tongwei grants Qijia Village a sense of confidence and fairness; what is required is to restrain their endlessly expanding greed.
Qi Damao was sentenced to eight years in prison for bribing officials and organizing gangs to engage in brawls, along with a fine.
When the old village head received the verdict, he shut himself in the ancestral hall for two days. Qi Damao's wife wept until she was a shell of a person, and everyone in Qijia Village felt a shared sorrow.
Father Qi and Mother Qi returned to Qijia Village the moment they heard the news, comforting the old village head and offering a sum of money to Damao’s wife and children as a gesture of apology.
Domestic society is rooted in human sentiment; it is not a matter of who is right or wrong, but within the same clan, one must always observe the dictates of social feeling.
Qi Tongwei did not know if others held resentment toward him, though he imagined the old village head’s family did. Yet, resentment was useless. When you do wrong, you must accept the consequences; when you are punished, you must stand tall.
Besides, the result could be considered favorable; as long as Qi Damao behaved well, with some maneuvering and greasing of palms by the village, he could be out in less than five years…
Chapter 424