81: Chapter 81 Our deputy leader said, get out!

[His wife—Madam Jin—is a sharp-tongued shrew.]

[The night she found out about the Xiuchun Pavilion incident, Madam Jin smashed everything she could in the house: teapots, bowls, dishes, benches, and finally even flipped over the vanity that had cost eight taels of silver to make.]

[Lin Datong was dragged off the bed by his ear, leaving three bloody scratches on his Face.]

["Lin Datong, you spineless wretch! I bore your children and kept your house, and you use our money to keep that slut..."]

[Madam Jin cursed for the entire night.]

[The next day, three of her brothers from her maiden family arrived, blocked the entrance to the Lin residence, dragged Lin Datong out in front of half the street, and slapped him a dozen times while pinning him to the ground.]

["My sister has been married to you for eighteen years, and this is how you treat her?"]

[Lin Datong scrambled, clutching his head, daring neither to fight back nor to talk back, only able to howl.]

[After that, the shop could no longer open.]

[It was smashed once, repaired, then smashed again; by the third time, Shopkeeper Wang, who sold cloth next door, came over to take a look, shook his head, and walked away without even offering a word of comfort.]

[No one dared to be his neighbor anymore.]

[To be precise, no one dared to be neighbors with someone who had offended the Vice Gang Leader of the Black Tiger Gang.]

[Lin Datong was not stupid; he knew who was behind all these events.]

[That wretched girl.]

[But he was not afraid.]

[He knelt at the entrance of the Black Tiger Gang branch, his calculations clear in his mind.]

[He was Lin Shuangwan's uncle, a blood relative, the kind connected by Bloodline.]

[What is valued in this day and age? Filial piety.]

[Even if she had climbed up to Wei Feisen now, even if she had become some damned Vice Gang Leader, she still had to acknowledge this kinship. She wouldn't? Fine, then he would kneel right here, kneeling until everyone in the city saw it.]

[Then let's see how Lin Shuangwan would be able to hold her head up.]

[A woman who didn't even care for her own uncle—who would dare to cooperate with her? Who would still trust her?]

[This was Lin Datong's trump card.]

[He felt it was a sure thing.]

[So he knelt with extra effort and cried with extra volume.]

["Emperor Shuang Wan! Uncle knows he was wrong! Uncle shouldn't have treated you and your mother like that back then! You've beaten me and punished me, and Uncle's shop is gone; please, just spare Uncle this one time—"]

[His voice echoed down the street, drawing many passersby to stop and watch.]

[A few women whispered to each other, and Old Zhang, who sold wontons, pricked up his ears to listen.]

[Lin Datong was secretly delighted.]

[The more people, the better.]

[Hmph, you wretched girl, don't you want Face? Aren't you most afraid of people calling you unfilial? Today, I will make this matter known to everyone and force you to come out!]

["Creak—"]

[The main gate opened.]

[Lin Datong lifted his head abruptly, instantly putting on a pitiful expression, his Face streaming with old tears.]

[The one who walked out was the female gang member named Xiao Cui.]

[She was in her early twenties, with a round Face, a neat ponytail, and a short blade tucked at her waist.]

[She looked down at Lin Datong, who was kneeling on the ground, with an expressionless Face, her lips curling slightly downward.]

["The Vice Gang Leader has spoken."]

[Lin Datong's eyes lit up, and he quickly crawled forward on his knees two steps: "I knew Emperor Shuang Wan would..."]

["She told you to get lost."]

[Lin Datong's smile froze on his Face.]

["W-what?"]

[Xiao Cui tilted her head, her tone devoid of even a hint of emotion: "Get lost. Do you not understand?"]

[Lin Datong's Face turned instantly pale.]

[He froze for a moment, then gritted his teeth, brought his knees down hard, and slammed his forehead against the bluestone slab, producing a dull thud.]

["Emperor Shuang Wan! Are you trying to force your uncle to his death!" He shrieked, blood seeping from his forehead, "I am your own uncle! Your father's own brother! Is this how you treat me? Is there any Junior in this world who acts like you!"]

[He kowtowed and wailed, snot and tears streaming down his Face, the commotion loud enough that the entire street was watching.]

[Xiao Cui looked down at him for two breaths.]

[Then she turned her head and gestured with her chin toward the inside of the door.]

[Two burly gang members walked out from behind the door.]

[Lin Datong's wailing stopped abruptly.]

["Y-you, what are you doing?" He shrank back, "I am your Vice Gang Leader's uncle! If you dare to touch me..."]

[The gang member on the left sneered: "We know, we've known for a long time."]

[The one on the right crouched down and patted Lin Datong's Face: "To have an uncle like you, the Vice Gang Leader must have owed a debt in her past life. I heard that when Brother Lin died, you immediately snatched the house and shop from the orphan and widow? Tsk tsk, what a fine uncle."]

[Lin Datong's Face turned the color of a pig's liver: "That was my Lin family's ancestral property! It originally..."]

["Alright, enough with the nonsense." The gang member on the left stood up, grabbed the back of Lin Datong's collar, and lifted him off the ground like a chick.]

["Let go of me! Let go!" Lin Datong kicked his limbs wildly, "Lin Shuangwan! If you won't care for me, I'll go to the yamen and sue you! Sue you for being unfilial! Sue you..."]

[A punch landed on his stomach.]

[Lin Datong curled up like a shrimp, his mouth agape, unable to catch his breath for a long time.]

["Go ahead, sue then." The gang member on the right clapped his hands, "Are you going to sue when Magistrate Lü is drinking with our Gang Leader?"]

[Another kick landed on his lower leg.]

[Lin Datong screamed and fell to his knees, clutching his leg and rolling twice.]

["Get lost further away." The gang member on the left spat on the ground, "Come back one more time, and we'll break your legs."]

[Lin Datong lay on the ground, trembling all over, his lips quivering, and finally he dared not speak again.]

[He crawled and tumbled away from the entrance of the branch, losing one of his shoes in the process.]

[Xiao Cui didn't even glance at him, turned around, and closed the door.]

[Outside the door, the onlookers whispered among themselves.]

["Serves him right. Back then, just after Miss Lin's father passed away, this old thing conspired with the clan to drive them out. How many years did the orphan and widow live outside?"]

["Indeed. I remember that back then, Miss Lin's mother almost died of illness in the alley, and we never saw this 'good uncle' go to check on them."]

["Tsk, now that they've made it big, he comes to claim kinship? Is there such a cheap thing in this world?"]

["And suing for unfilial behavior, pfft, I think he is the one who is unfilial and lacking in brotherly love."]

["Let's go, let's go, nothing to see here. People who deserve it, can't feel pity for them."]

[The crowd gradually dispersed.]

[The main gate of the Black Tiger Gang branch was tightly shut, the afternoon sunlight baking the lintel, quietly.]

[Inside the door, in the study.]

[You didn't even lift your head, continuing to write on the rice paper.]

[The tip of the brush set down the last character—"The finished product should be cut into squares and air-dried for seven days."]

[You put down the brush, blew the paper dry, folded it, and pressed it into the bottom of the drawer.]

[Then you picked up the teacup and took a sip; the temperature was just right.]

[From beginning to end, your heartbeat had not skipped a single beat.]

[Half a year later.]

[The sky over the Black Tiger Gang changed.]

[The old Gang Leader of the Black Tiger Gang officially abdicated, and Wei Feisen, witnessed by the core members of the five branch divisions in Dongzhou, took over the position of Gang Leader.]