Chapter 17: Trouble at the Cattle Shed

“I’m telling you, Brigade Leader, I saw with my own eyes that they hid banned books. Why won’t you believe me?”

“I guarantee on my honor that these people aren’t as honest as you think. If you don’t drag them out and give them proper punishment, how will you establish your authority?”

“Besides, if word of this gets out, people will say the Brigade Leader is protecting them. That would damage your reputation.”

At the entrance of the cattle shed, Wang Dazhu, chewing on a stalk of dogtail grass, spat angrily as he stood there.

In front of him were He Daixing, who had been forcibly brought over, and the villagers who had gathered out of curiosity.

Their expressions varied, some curious, some angry, some in agreement but no one spoke.

He Daixing’s face revealed nothing; however, the tension around him made it clear he was far from pleased.

Fang Bo Song and the others also stood at the cattle shed entrance, anxiously waiting for He Daixing to respond.

Earlier, just as the workday was about to end, they were preparing to go home when Wang Dazhu suddenly blocked their path. He claimed that Wu Meixia and the others had serious problems and insisted that anyone who had done wrong should be sent to the farm.

He even boldly summoned the Brigade Leader and dragged everyone to the cattle shed.

Seeing Wang Dazhu so determined, their hearts began to race. They assumed someone had discovered what they found on the mountain yesterday and, out of jealousy, reported them.

But once they arrived, Wang Dazhu revealed that his accusation was about someone hiding a banned book.

He claimed that last night, while passing by, he saw a banned book on a table through the window. He didn’t recognize many characters, but the illustrations clearly suggested it wasn’t appropriate. The book, he said, must be hidden somewhere inside.

Hearing this, everyone relaxed slightly. They all came from clean backgrounds, and aside from their clothes, what could they possibly have hidden?

If it were money, perhaps someone might doubt them but a book? No one would bother bringing that.

Still, they couldn’t help feeling uneasy. Although there were no banned books, there were leftover porcini mushrooms, chicken mushrooms, and wild eggs from the night before inside the room.

Even though the Brigade Leader hadn’t explicitly forbidden them from gathering things from the mountain and some of them had only recently arrived, they had managed to find such valuable mushrooms.

With so many people present, they worried that revealing this might spark jealousy.

And if someone tried to pin a false accusation on them, they would have no way to defend themselves.

He Daixing remained silent, staring at Wang Dazhu. After listening to everything, he finally spoke. “Wang Dazhu, setting aside why you came here in the middle of the night, how can you be so certain they have a banned book?”

“I personally received them when they arrived. I checked all their belongings. Are you implying that I am protecting them?”

His face hardened, and his sharp, tiger-like eyes bore into Wang Dazhu.

He had checked everyone’s belongings himself and found nothing. Now Wang Dazhu was claiming there was a banned book in the cattle shed, wasn’t that accusing him of negligence?

Wang Dazhu’s expression shifted, and he quickly denied it. “Brigade Leader, I’m not questioning you. Of course you wouldn’t protect them. But since we don’t know what happened after they settled in, I thought checking would put everyone at ease.”

He then signaled to a plump woman in the crowd. She nodded and chimed in.

“That’s right, Brigade Leader. If they really didn’t hide anything, everyone will be relieved. But if they did, they should be sent to the farm. Our village cannot keep people like that otherwise, it will look bad if others find out.”

“What are you implying, Niu Dacao? Are you saying my son would deliberately protect these people?” Zhang Guihua immediately frowned and turned to scold the woman.

“I know exactly what you two are scheming. Let me ask you if nothing is found, what will you do?”

Her words stirred the crowd, and others quickly joined in.

“Aunt Zhang is right. Our Brigade Leader has worked diligently for the Maple Leaf Brigade for so many years. We’ve seen all his hard work. And now Wang Dazhu dares to falsely accuse him?”

“I can vouch for this. My husband went with the Brigade Leader to receive them. They only had one bundle among them, there was nothing extra.”

“Wang Dazhu, if no banned book is found, what will you do? Publicly apologize to the Brigade Leader? Or should Aunt Zhang call the police and have you spend a night at the station?”

“I agree. These two always steal things. The other day, a carrot went missing from my field, no doubt it was them.”

Wang Dazhu awkwardly spit out the dogtail grass and forced a smile. “Brothers, sisters, grandparents, uncles, aunts, neighbors; there’s no need to take this so seriously.”

“I just glanced at it quickly and didn’t dare look too closely. Whether it exists or not, we’ll know once we check inside.”

He continued, “I never intended to slander the Brigade Leader. I trust his character. With a leader like him, the Maple Leaf Brigade can only grow stronger.”

“But as a member of the Maple Leaf Brigade, I cannot allow rotten elements to damage our village’s spirit. If no banned book is found, I will apologize to the Brigade Leader. Is that acceptable?”

He said the last part through gritted teeth, staring at He Daixing as if to say, “I’ve made my stance clear, now it’s up to you.”

Today, Wang Dazhu was unusually shrewd. His words left no easy openings to refute. The villagers hesitated mainly because he seemed so resolute.

Moreover, those staying in the cattle shed had prior records. Even if the Brigade Leader found nothing at first, no one knew what trouble they might cause after staying for so long.

Those who had spoken earlier now fell silent, but their attitude subtly shifted in Wang Dazhu’s favor.

Wang Dazhu raised his eyebrows. “Brigade Leader, everyone agrees that we should go inside and check. What do you think? I promise I won’t touch anything.”

He Daixing snorted, the corner of his mouth lifting slightly. “Since you’ve said that, why would I oppose it? But let me make one thing clear, if no so-called banned book is found, you will not only apologize to me, but also to the people you slandered.”

“As long as they’ve done nothing wrong, they remain part of the Maple Leaf Brigade. Asking you to apologize for falsely accusing them is not excessive, is it?”

Wang Dazhu’s smile stiffened. Gritting his teeth, he replied, “Fine. I’ll do as the Brigade Leader says.”