After seeing off the group, Zhou Chengbin received a few more people.
It was the young man who had harassed the appointment room with his voice, along with his parents.
The young man was still defiant, claiming that Koushanli village used the sweet and charming voices of women to attract tourists.
Zhou Chengbin asked him if he frequently made such calls.
The young man readily admitted it.
Zhou Chengbin clapped his hands, stating that he would not only sue the young man for trespassing into the Koushanli village committee’s office, causing great disruption to two staff members, but also for treating Koushanli as a place for such activities, severely damaging its reputation.
The name Koushanli represented not only the tourism industry but also a national poverty alleviation program's seed production and supply base.
Such losses were beyond the young man's ability to compensate, and Koushanli did not seek compensation, only justice.
After forcefully sending away the young man and his family, Zhou Chengbin collapsed into his chair, exhausted:
“Zhang Shit-tou, quickly gather all the evidence. It’s time we hired a lawyer.”
…
Zhang Shit-tou went to the hot spring valley to find Lin Duo'er and recorded a long conversation she had with a tourist making a reservation.
Her clear and cheerful voice had apparently given rise to the young man’s perverse thoughts.
As the investigation deepened, several criminal groups that used telephone customer service to lure people into committing crimes were busted.
The young man was sentenced to six months.
His family was unconvinced, claiming they were also victims and questioning why he should be imprisoned.
The court explained that trespassing into the appointment room was akin to trespassing into a private residence.
Because the appointment room had a sign reading 'Confidential: No Unauthorized Entry,' it was not considered a public area within the village.
The young man’s parents remained unconvinced and appealed.
The second trial upheld the original verdict.
The young man’s parents then accused the judge of accepting bribes from Koushanli.
This led to the young man's parents nearly facing charges themselves.
Only then did they quiet down.
As they left the courthouse, they lamented that Koushanli was bullying ordinary people.
The lawyer hired by Zhou Chengbin informed the young man's parents that Koushanli would continue to defend its rights if any rumors or discussions defaming its reputation surfaced.
The tears and wails of the young man's parents came to an abrupt halt.
A sense of suffocation, unable to inhale or exhale, made them feel extremely uncomfortable.
Lin Duo'er’s incident was resolved, and she no longer wanted to work in the appointment room.
She found working in the back kitchen, washing dishes, to be quite safe.
Thus, Yuan’s Private Kitchen gained a new employee.
…
The lawyer continued to help Koushanli defend its rights.
Lin Enhu’s school also felt that the matter had dragged on for too long.
They agreed to go to court.
In court, it was not determined who had taken the photo of Lin Enhu.
The scope of the investigation expanded.
All students in that first-year high school class were investigated without any suspects found.
In the adjacent first-year high school class, the suspect was identified.
The identity of the suspect enraged Lin Er-lai.
The suspect’s name was Fang Zhao-su, Fang Qiu-hong’s nephew.
Lin Er-lai and his wife demanded severe punishment for the perpetrator and refused any settlement.
They sought justice.
Fang Qiu-hong pleaded with Lin Er-lai, asking him to spare her nephew in consideration of their past relationship.
Lin Er-lai firmly refused.
Fang Zhao-su was sentenced to a juvenile detention center for intentional injury and ordered to pay 80,000 yuan in compensation for Lin Enhu's medical expenses, nutritional costs, and emotional distress.
The students who had mocked and humiliated Lin Enhu were ordered to pay 250,000 yuan for emotional distress.
The school bore significant responsibility for Lin Enhu being bullied and injured during his time there, and was ordered to pay Lin Enhu 150,000 yuan.
Several students involved in the fight jointly compensated 120,000 yuan.
Outside the courthouse, Fang Qiu-hong threatened Lin Er-lai.
Lin Er-lai was unfazed: “My lawyer was hired by the village committee. The village committee seeks justice. Dare you provoke me? You might end up in there again to taste the consequences.”
Fang Qiu-hong paused, glared fiercely at Zhou Chengbin, and then left with her sister-in-law and mother.
The students and their parents, after months of legal battles, were both physically and mentally exhausted.
These students not only affected their own studies but also received demerits from the school. They regretted their actions, but it was too late.
After being discharged from the hospital, Lin Enhu did not return to school.
With two lawsuits concluded, time had already reached November, and winter had begun.
Lin Er-lai was discussing how to allocate the 600,000 yuan in compensation with his wife when the village loudspeaker crackled to life.
Village Head Li personally convened a meeting via loudspeaker.
He publicly reprimanded Lin Enhu, stating that a student who did not study diligently in school had succumbed to temptation by beauty and lost his integrity.
This had not only brought shame to his parents but also to Koushanli. He warned that if Lin Enhu’s future conduct was poor, Koushanli would not tolerate such a villager.
During his probationary period, Lin Enhu was required to attend the annual law classes for Villages One and Two, and must rank in the top three in the exams.
Otherwise, he would receive a negative evaluation.
The announcement also stated that Lin Er-lai’s storefront in the hot spring valley would be repossessed.
This was because Lin Er-lai had been solely focused on the lawsuits for the past few months and had neglected to manage the business in the hot spring valley.
Allowing a prime storefront to remain closed for an extended period demonstrated a lack of regard for collective honor.
The next offense would result in Lin Er-lai’s shares in the scenic area being revoked.
All villagers were instructed to use Lin Enhu's incident as an example to educate their children.
Those who did not study diligently in school would be barred from any employment opportunities in Koushanli.
The total legal expenses for Lin Enhu's lawsuits amounted to 114,000 yuan, and Comrade Lin Er-lai was urged to pay this sum at the village committee office promptly.
…
After the meeting concluded, the entire village erupted in cheers.
They had known all along that the village committee would not offer such significant support to the stepson of a villager with a questionable reputation.
Now, not only had the Third Village gained notoriety, but Lin Er-lai had also lost his hot spring valley storefront and was obligated to cover the lawsuit expenses.
Lin Er-lai almost crushed the bank card in his hand.
Li Zhengguo had clearly acted intentionally, misleading him and making him believe the village was wholeheartedly upholding the honor of its villagers and the collective.
In the end, he had been used as the chicken to scare the monkeys.
Lin Er-lai’s wife sighed, “Er-lai, we truly made mistakes. The village committee sent Accountant Zhou and a lawyer to help. We shouldn't have been involved in the entire process.”
“It was the busiest time for the scenic area, and our actions indeed did not prioritize the collective.”
Lin Er-lai slammed the bank card down, “No, I’m going to find Li Zhengguo!”
“Are you crazy?” Lin Er-lai’s wife grabbed him. “If you stir up more trouble, your shares in the scenic area will be revoked. Do you not want that annual dividend of over 200,000 yuan?”
“Did I cause the trouble?”
Hearing his wife mention ‘stir up more trouble,’ Lin Er-lai exploded:
“Didn’t you say Huzi was such a good student? Would a student who loves to study be easily swayed by beauty?”
“You also said you were counting on him for our old age! I haven’t even reached that point yet, and he’s already ruined one of my storefronts!”
“Let me tell you, he has no right to claim even an iota of what is mine.”
“He’s utterly disgraced me. With the public reprimand over the loudspeaker, all three villages know who he is.”
“He's learned bad habits at such a young age, even dating others. Fine! Let him drop out of school and come home. Once he gets married, he can get out immediately.”
Lin Er-lai’s wife nodded repeatedly, “Yes, yes, yes. It’s Huzi’s fault. Young people are prone to acting on impulse.”
“Give him some time, and give me some time. I will diligently guide him, and he will definitely change.”
“Who will we rely on if not him? Relying on our daughter means giving away the money we worked hard to earn to outsiders.”
“Absolutely not!” Lin Er-lai threw off his wife’s grasp. “You have another child.”
“Me?” Lin Er-lai’s wife was surprised. “I’m over forty, and you want me to have another child? I’m capable of bearing sons, but you’ve had four daughters already.”
“Go to the provincial hospital for IVF treatment,” Lin Er-lai declared resolutely. “I heard they can select gender. I won’t be content if I don’t try.”
“Huzi is your son, but he is not of my Lin family’s lineage.”
“If you don’t agree, we’ll divorce, and I’ll find someone younger who can have children.”
Lin Er-lai’s wife looked at their son sitting in the corner and nodded in agreement.