Chapter 39: Retaliation and Counter-Retaliation

Night fell. Lin Shaowen was holding Qin Huairu as they slept; he was truly exhausted. Qin Huairu had been using him like a beast of burden. Beyond the courtyard, there were traces of their "battles" everywhere—in the bathroom, the study, and beyond.

Qin Huairu, meanwhile, secretly touched her lower abdomen. She had no idea just how miraculous the *Qingnang Shu* (Book of the Green Satchel) truly was. Moonlight spilled into the courtyard of the west wing, and the flowers and plants they had sown during the day immediately began to break through the soil, sprouting tender, sharp buds.

Early morning. By the time Lin Shaowen got up, Qin Huairu was already gone. On the study table sat a bowl of steaming hot noodles, with a fried egg lightly placed on top.

Twenty minutes later, as Lin Shaowen prepared to head out for work, he caught the stench of rotten eggs. His expression darkened instantly as he looked at the seven or eight dried-up stains on the front gate—clearly, someone had done this last night. As he walked through the courtyard, many were stealing glances at him, their faces filled with schadenfreude.

"So, you want to play games? Fine. We’ll play them slowly," Lin Shaowen remarked, then turned and left.

"Look at him, acting so high and mighty."
"Exactly. Let's send another group tonight."
"Right, and this time, let's use actual manure."

They weren't even whispering; they were being brazen. After all, with Lin Shaowen gone, what did they have to fear?

At the Rolling Mill.

"Yi Zhonghai, have you gone senile? Redo this workpiece!" the workshop director barked with a stern face.
"Director, this is perfectly fine," Yi Zhonghai retorted.
"Am I the director, or are you?" the workshop director roared.

Yi Zhonghai’s face flushed with humiliation.

"Jia Dongxu, are you a pig? You can't even get this simple task right?" the team leader pointed at Jia Dongxu and shouted. "You've been in this factory for five years, haven't you? And you're still a Level 1 worker—aren't you ashamed?"
"I..." Jia Dongxu was stunned into silence.
"Don't 'I' me. Finish this crate of workpieces today. If you don't, just wait and see how I deal with you," the team leader said, dumping a crate of parts in front of him.

Jia Dongxu gulped. He couldn't finish them. There was absolutely no way.

At the First Canteen.

"He Yuzhu, what’s going on with you?" Wang Kuirong called Silly Zhu in front of everyone and scolded him furiously. "A lot of workers are dissatisfied with the food you're cooking. Do you not want to keep this job?"

"Who? Who’s dissatisfied?" Silly Zhu raised his chin.
"Are you planning to retaliate against them?" Wang Kuirong’s gaze was dangerous.
"I... I wouldn't," Silly Zhu immediately wilted.
"You’d better not," Wang Kuirong said coldly. "I’ve heard you’re acting pretty big in the kitchen, ordering this person and that around? You’re just a Level 8 cook, damn it. You’re a long way from being big enough to act like a peacock."

Silly Zhu was scolded until he looked like a beaten puppy. Qin Huairu, however, hid a smile. She had noticed the rotten eggs on Lin Shaowen’s door that morning. She hadn't dared to make a scene, but she had sneaked off to the infirmary to check on him. Lin Shaowen had simply told her not to worry.

At the Seventh Workshop.

"Liu Haizhong... get your ass over here!" the workshop director roared.

At the Red Star Primary School, in the principal's office.

"Teacher Yan, there have been reports that you’ve been threatening and extorting money from students' parents. Is there any truth to this?" the principal asked gravely.
"No, Principal! You know what kind of person I am, don't you?" Yan Bugui was terrified.
"I am well aware of your character, which is why I’m letting you come here," the principal’s expression softened slightly. "But for now, you should go home and rest. Once we’ve finished investigating, you can come back."
"But, Principal..."
"That’s final." The principal ushered Yan Bugui out.

When Yan Bugui returned to the courtyard, he was dumbfounded. "Old Yi, why are you back? And Second Uncle, why are you home too..."

Yan Bugui was stunned. More than half the people who should have been at work were back home.

"Our director is targeting me. I couldn't take it, so I asked for leave," Yi Zhonghai sighed.
"Master, you’ve got it easy. I’ve been demoted to cleaning the latrines," Jia Dongxu said with a mournful face.

Liu Haizhong gritted his teeth and remained silent. He had been berated like a dog by the director in the workshop, losing all his dignity.

A short while later, seven or eight more people returned, all having been scolded by their superiors or reported, sent home pending investigation.

"Something's not right," Yi Zhonghai tapped his head.
"It is a bit odd," Yan Bugui also noticed the issue. "Everyone in the courtyard except for Qin Huairu and Xu Damao is back. Could this be..."
"Lin Shaowen. It has to be him," Liu Haizhong gnashed his teeth.
"I didn't throw any eggs! Why are they targeting me?" someone complained indignantly.
"Exactly, I didn't participate either. Why me?"

Many people began to clamor. They knew—though Lin Shaowen might not have—that the ones who threw the eggs at Lin's house yesterday were Silly Zhu, along with a few of the boys from the Yan and Liu households.

"I have to go to the Rolling Mill and find Lin Shaowen. If I lose my job, my family of five will starve!"

Once this was said, the expressions of Yan Bugui, Liu Haizhong, and Silly Zhu all changed. Yi Zhonghai frowned, though he wasn't too nervous. He knew about the incident, but he hadn't ordered it; Silly Zhu had acted on his own, and Yi had simply failed to stop him.

"Go tell Lin Shaowen? He won't necessarily appreciate it," Liu Haizhong said viciously.
"Lin Shaowen may not be a great guy, but he’s reasonable. When he borrowed the Third Uncle's hoe yesterday, he gave him a huge honeydew melon in return," someone whispered.
"Right, let's go find Lin Shaowen."

The entire courtyard erupted into chaos.

"Enough, stop the noise. I’ll go talk to Lin Shaowen," Yi Zhonghai stood up. "Second Uncle, Third Uncle, you two come with me."

The two men’s expressions shifted; they didn't dare refuse.

At the infirmary, Lin Shaowen was happily eating watermelon with a spoon.

"Huh, you’re living quite comfortably, aren't you?" A trace of envy flashed in Yi Zhonghai's eyes.
"If you're sick, say so. If not, get lost," Lin Shaowen said bluntly.
"You... do you have no respect for your elders?" Liu Haizhong roared.
"Liu Haizhong, are you looking to go work in the molten iron pit?"

Lin Shaowen’s tone was calm, but it made Liu Haizhong step back in fear. *This old guy is a Level 8 worker; I might not be able to touch him for now. But as for you, just watch how I play you to death.*

There was a world of difference between a Level 8 and a Level 7 worker. Across the entire Rolling Mill, among tens of thousands of workers, there were only a few dozen Level 8 machinists. Many people spent their entire lives toiling without ever reaching that level before retirement.

"You... don't you dare," Liu Haizhong panicked.

What kind of work was handling molten iron? It was brutal labor. Moreover, with iron at over a thousand degrees, a mere brush against it meant injury, and a splash meant death. Every year, people died in the casting shop, and the number of those crippled was countless. Did such a dangerous job pay well? No, it only offered a tiny, meager subsidy more than a regular worker.