Everyone looked toward the direction of the siren. A police car was making its way along the winding mountain road.
Liu Ruyan’s expression shifted; she knew someone in the livestream must have called the police. With the police involved, wouldn't it be exposed that she was broadcasting live?
"There's no way the livestream can be kept secret from this man for much longer, but as for the police report, I can easily claim I was the one who called," Liu Ruyan thought to herself.
The people of Linjiacun Village looked at the police car, their expressions darkening.
"Who called the police?" Lin Xian asked with a heavy face. His demeanor suggested that if he found out who had done it, he would tear them to pieces.
The viewers in the livestream were terrified by Lin Xian's expression.
"It’s over, Sister Ruyan is finished."
"Damn, that idiot who called the police just got Sister Ruyan killed!"
"This guy is so scary, he looks like one of those evil villains."
Seeing this, Liu Ruyan was so frightened she almost couldn't speak. However, after a moment of hesitation, she tentatively raised her hand. "I... I called the police. These men were human traffickers, so I called."
She didn't dare say that she had called because she saw these people beat someone to death. That would be a much bigger problem.
Lin Xian took two strides and arrived directly in front of Liu Ruyan. He was tall, standing at one meter eighty-five, and looked down at her. Behind him, the villagers of Linjiacun gathered around with unfriendly glares.
Liu Ruyan was startled. "What... what are you doing?"
"You did well. If you hadn't called, I would have," Lin Xian said, a smile blooming on his face.
Liu Ruyan looked at Lin Xian, stunned. "You... what did you say?" She hadn't expected him to say such a thing.
"Haha, we in Linjiacun have always been at odds with evil!" Lin Xian raised a finger and pointed to the sky.
Liu Ruyan’s mouth twitched. Your village is at odds with evil? In her view, Linjiacun was the very breeding ground for crime! With a bully like Lin Xian in charge, the villagers were all cowards who indulged his every whim. It was no wonder they could commit so many crimes—trafficking cultural relics, drug trafficking, and even something about war crimes? How could someone commit war crimes in this era of peace?
The netizens in the livestream were also amused by Lin Xian’s words.
"What? He’s ‘at odds with evil’?"
"Hilarious, I doubt anyone in that village is a good person."
"They beat someone to death in front of so many people in the livestream, and he’s talking about how Linjiacun is law-abiding?"
"Human Trafficker: 'Why am I peanut?'" (a reference to a meme implying "why am I getting beaten")
After saying this, Lin Xian turned to look at the villagers. "The man is dead. As our ancestors said, 'A life for a life, pay your debts!' We must have someone take responsibility for this death!"
He hadn't wanted a death to occur, but these traffickers were kidnapping people. If he hadn't been there today, someone would likely have been stuck in this mountain village for the rest of their life, reduced to a breeding tool. These traffickers deserved to die. But since a life had been lost, someone had to take the fall.
The villagers looked at one another.
"Great-Grandfather... I... I killed him," a frail, aged voice suddenly rang out from the crowd.
The crowd parted, and an elderly man of eighty or ninety, leaning on a cane, tottered forward.
Lin Xian’s mouth twitched. "A Guo, you..."
"Don't say another word, Great-Grandfather! I’m the one who beat him to death with a single punch!" The old man dropped his cane and rolled up his sleeves with trembling arms.
"..."
Liu Ruyan was speechless. Who would believe that this old man killed someone? He would have a hard time killing a chicken, let alone a man!
The viewers in the livestream were also dumbfounded.
"What the hell is this old man doing? Why is he stepping up to take the blame for this village bully?"
"Exactly, the guy looks like he’s pushing ninety. Who would believe he committed murder?"
"He’s at the age where he’s basically immune to the law. Even if he went in, he’d probably be released in a few days."
"Then why wouldn't he just take down the village bully?"
"Exactly."
"Probably because his children and grandchildren are being threatened by the bully."
Lin Xian looked at the old man helplessly. "A Guo, how old are you? Rest now. You don't look like you’re capable of killing anyone!" He had intended to handle the conversation with the police himself because, given the number of people involved and the fact that they had an eyewitness in Liu Ruyan, they would definitely need to process multiple people.
"What! Great-Grandfather! Are you looking down on me?" A Guo glared at Lin Xian. Even though Lin Xian was his Great-Grandfather in terms of lineage, as the oldest man in the village, he dared to stare Lin Xian down. "I killed plenty of Japanese invaders back in my day!"
A Guo turned to the crowd. "Son, go home and get my uniform. The police are coming! I’m going to turn myself in!"
Lin Jianqiang looked at his father, helpless. "Dad..."
"What! Are you looking down on me too?" A Guo glared at his son, who was already sixty years old. Lin Jianqiang had no choice but to hurry home.
Liu Ruyan watched the old man with surprise. If the old man’s words were true, he had a glorious history. An old man like that should have integrity—he shouldn't be letting a village bully run rampant.
The police car screeched to a halt in front of the crowd. Two officers stepped out and immediately saw the two men lying on the ground. One was still moving, but the other was motionless; clearly, he was the one who had died.
The two officers felt their heads throbbing. The person who reported the crime said human traffickers had been beaten by villagers. These situations were difficult to handle. These mountain villagers were often ignorant, and the traffickers were scum who deserved their fate. Still, to follow protocol, they stepped forward.
"Who is the village head? Who beat these two men?"
No one spoke.
From the back of the crowd, A Guo had donned the uniform his son brought—an old military jacket covered in various medals.
"I did it!"
After putting on the uniform, Lin Guo’s voice was full of vigor. He straightened his back and walked slowly toward the police.
Liu Ruyan watched Lin Guo walk out of the crowd, his chest covered in medals. Her eyes widened. She had thought the old man had merely served in the military when he was young, but she hadn't expected him to be so decorated. The King of Hell himself would probably salute this man!
The livestream viewers were shocked as well.
"Damn, so many medals! This old man is the real deal!"
"Incredible. Respect!"
"But wait, with a record like that, why is he afraid of this village bully?"
"Who knows."
The two officers were even more troubled. They knew this would happen. In villages like this, whenever a crime occurred, someone would always step forward to take the blame if there was no substantial evidence. And this old man—his status clearly wasn't simple. That uniform... never mind the whole set, they wouldn't dare touch him even if he only had one of those medals!
"Sir... you’re at such an advanced age, how could you have beaten these two men like this?" one of the officers asked with a bitter smile.
"What, looking down on me, are you? They were tied up when I beat them!" Lin Guo glared.
"No... these wounds, they were clearly inflicted by many people," the officer said helplessly.
"I helped beat them!"
As soon as he spoke, another old man stepped forward. There were many elderly people in the village, and someone had already run back to tell them what was happening.
"Me too!" Another old man stepped out. They were all in their sixties or seventies.
"Come on, officers, we’re cooperating. We broke the law, we admit it!"
"That’s right, take us away!"
The two officers had a headache. "Who is the village head? Come with us to give a statement. The rest of you, come along too," one of the officers said helplessly to the elders. In mountain villages like this, this was the only way to handle such incidents.
"I’m the village head. I’ll come with you!" Lin Zhang stepped forward.
The police car sped away. Liu Ruyan watched it go, her mouth twitching. Two traffickers, the village head, and two villagers were taken away—was that it?
Behind the scenes, some police officers watching the feed deeply understood the difficulties faced by frontline officers. In these mountain villages, things like this happened too often.
Zhao Guoan watched Lin Xian on the screen. This man’s prestige in the village was far too high. A mere wave of his hand and countless people would line up to take the blame for him. It would be extremely difficult to find leverage against him. But no matter how difficult, it had to be done.
Back in the village, Lin Xian walked up to Liu Ruyan and extended his hand. "My apologies, we’ve embarrassed ourselves. Let me introduce myself: I am Lin Xian, the Party Secretary of Linjiacun Village."
He was the one who could make Linjiacun famous!
Liu Ruyan shook his hand. "I’m Liu Ruyan, a host from the national channel."
Lin Xian’s eyes widened. "National channel? Impressive!"
Liu Ruyan gave an awkward smile.
"You mentioned earlier that you wanted to produce some kind of program..." Lin Xian scratched his head, seeming to have forgotten what she had said.
Liu Ruyan cleared her throat. "A program about the village in the collision between tradition and the new era."
Lin Xian clapped his hands. "You’ve come to the right village. Our village has a history of over a thousand years."
Lin Xian didn't mention that his ancestors had once been the founders of a dynasty. It had been a small regime in chaotic times, but after it fell, they had fled the war and settled here. That was why he had such high seniority and prestige in the village.
"Over a thousand years?" Liu Ruyan looked at him in surprise. "Could it be that this family has been bullies for generations? Have the people here been oppressed by this same family for centuries?" That would be truly tragic.
"Haha, that’s wonderful," Liu Ruyan managed a smile. "Secretary Lin, may I start a livestream to document life in the village?"
She watched him nervously. If she got his permission, she could openly search for evidence in the village. No matter how well they hid, they would eventually show their true colors!