In years of famine and drought, their village even rejected fatty meat.

"I didn't steal anything!"

Chen Jin loudly defended himself, saying, "The three of us brothers were just passing by Chen Dao's house when his chickens started attacking us. We really didn't steal anything!"

"Go to hell, you still dare to argue!"

Chen Dayi slapped Chen Jin across the face, making Chen Jin see stars, but he still wasn't satisfied and wanted to continue hitting him.

Village chief Chen He reached out and stopped Chen Da: "Chen Da, don't be impulsive."

After stopping Chen Da, Chen He looked at Chen Dao and said, "Xiao Dao, are you sure they wanted to break into your house?"

Chen Dao nodded without hesitation: "I saw it with my own eyes."

"Row."

Chen He nodded and said to the young men behind him, "Take the three Chen brothers to my house."

Soon after, the group escorted Chen Jin and the other two to the village chief's living room.

The village chief looked at Chen Jin and his two companions, who were surrounded by the crowd, and said, "Speak! Why did you break into Chen Dao's house?"

“We did not break into his house.”

Chen Jin forced a smile and said, "We're just passing by!"

"You still don't admit it?"

Chen Dahu glared at him, and Chen Jin shrank back, not daring to speak, but also unwilling to admit that they wanted to break into Chen Dao's house to steal things.

"These three brothers are completely shameless and will definitely not admit it."

"What else could they be up to besides stealing if they were running near Chen Dao's house in the middle of the night?"

"Damn it, those three scumbags from the village!"

"..."

The able-bodied men in the village ultimately sided with Chen Dao, since the three Chen brothers had a notorious reputation in the village, and people were naturally more willing to believe Chen Dao.

"It's okay if you don't admit it."

Chen He didn't bother to say anything more and directly told the villagers next to him, "Second brother, take these three away, give each of them 10 lashes, and then send them straight home."

Chenjia Village, though called a village, is actually a clan gathering of people with the surname Chen. As the village chief, Chen He still has the power to enforce family rules when the government has no jurisdiction over the area. The villagers also recognize Chen He's power, since Chen He's actions in the village are relatively fair, and the villagers have great faith in him.

"I see!"

The villager whom Chen He called "Second Brother" nodded and led several strong young men to drag Chen Jin and the other two out. Soon, screams of agony from Chen Jin and the other two could be heard outside the living room.

Chen He seemed accustomed to the screams, his expression remaining unchanged. He simply asked Chen Dao, "Xiao Dao, are you satisfied with my handling of this situation?"

Are you satisfied?

Chen Dao was naturally dissatisfied.

The three people who broke into his home filled Chen Dao with extreme dissatisfaction, and he wished he could kill them all. However, Chen Dao also knew that this was the most that village chief Chen He could do, since Chen He was only the village chief and not an official, and could not execute the three men.

"If you ask me, we should just kill these three brothers!"

Chen Dao remained silent, but Chen Da spoke up: "These three brothers are a complete waste of food if they live. Killing them would save some food."

Upon hearing this, everyone nodded in agreement. The villagers had long been disgusted with Chen Jin and his two brothers. These three brothers shamelessly went to each other's houses to freeload every day, which was truly shameless.

A bitter smile flashed across Chen He's face. He didn't have a good impression of Chen Jin and the other two, but he was, after all, just a village chief. He could usually use his position to deal with some unruly villagers, but to execute someone...

He absolutely wouldn't dare, after all, a dead person is no small matter, and the government would hold those responsible accountable.

"Chen Jin and the other two were so badly injured and beaten. They won't be able to get out of bed for at least a month or two. Let's leave it at that."

Chen He reassured everyone, then looked at Xiao Hei at Chen Dao's feet: "Xiao Dao, where did you get this chicken?"

In fact, Chen He had noticed Chen Dao's chicken long ago. There was no way around it; Chen Dao's chicken was just too extraordinary. Its eyes were bright and piercing, its feathers were shiny white, and its beak and claws reflected a metallic luster, making it quite extraordinary.

"This chicken is so beautiful!"

"It's huge! I bet there'll be a lot of meat if we kill it!"

"This chicken looks very plump and delicious."

"..."

The other villagers also looked at Chen Dao's chickens with envy. In these days when people can't even get enough to eat, such plump chickens are enough to make the villagers' hearts flutter.

What surprised everyone even more was how powerful this chicken was. It chased Chen Jin and his two young men so hard that they fled in panic, and even pecked them until they were covered in wounds.

Of course, everyone was just envious. As fellow clansmen, they were not as greedy as Chen Jin and his two companions, who were thinking of stealing Chen Dao's chickens.

"These are the chickens I raise at home."

Chen Dao naturally wouldn't tell everyone the truth, but only said, "I don't know if this chicken ate something special, because it's quite big."

"I see."

Chen He nodded, not delving into the matter further, but giving Chen Dao a deep look before looking away: "Alright! It's late, everyone should go back and rest!"

Soon, the crowd dispersed in twos and threes, heading home into the cold wind.

After leaving the village chief's house, Chen Da and Chen Dao walked side by side, and Chen Da asked as they walked, "Xiao Dao, are you hurt?"

"No."

Chen Dao shook his head. The three Chen brothers hadn't even been able to enter the front yard of their house before being attacked by Xiao Hei, so it was impossible for them to have harmed Chen Dao in the slightest.

"That's good!"

Chen Da breathed a sigh of relief and continued, "If you encounter something like this in the future, shout loudly immediately, and I will arrive right away."

Chen Dao felt a warmth in his heart and nodded, saying, "I understand, thank you, Uncle."

"No need to thank me! Let's go home and rest."

…………

…………

When Chen Daofang returned home, Li Ping immediately came to greet him, carefully examining him by the moonlight: "Xiao Dao, are you alright?"

"fine."

"That's good!"

Li Ping breathed a sigh of relief, still shaken, and said, "Thank goodness for Xiao Hei, otherwise our family might not be safe tonight!"

Although Chen Jin and his two brothers only wanted to steal, no one could guarantee that they wouldn't turn on their evil intentions and hurt people. Fortunately, Xiao Hei successfully repelled them; otherwise, the two women in the house and Chen Dao, a half-grown boy, wouldn't have been able to stop the three Chen brothers.

At this moment, Li Ping no longer felt that Xiao Hei was wasting food; on the contrary, she was grateful for Xiao Hei's existence, which saved her family from disaster.

Chen Dao remained silent, but a sense of regret lingered in his heart.

If only the village chief and the others had arrived a little later, Chen Dao, who had been hiding behind the door and observing, knew that if they had arrived any later, Chen Jin and the other two would have surely died tragically under Xiao Hei's chicken beak.

but……

Even if Chen Jin and the other two were killed, it might not be a good thing. After all, murder is a serious crime. Although the government's control over villages outside the county town is very weak, it can be said that they do nothing except collect taxes.

However, he would still take murder cases quite seriously. If he killed Chen Jin and the other two, he would probably not be able to escape the government's pursuit.