The male supporting character was actually myself.

He Gousheng himself didn't know how many times he had been bitten, but his whole body was in pain. He was yelling and shouting when he heard the village secretary's authoritative voice and immediately began to wail like a banshee: "Secretary, help! Quickly drive this beast away, someone's going to die..."

"Help! Mother, Mother, please protect me!"

"You unfilial brat! I raised you all these years, it's your turn to protect me..."

Qian Shuandi and He Yongqiang were tearing at each other, trying to get the other to protect them from being bitten by the dog. They lay on the ground, kicking their legs wildly, their hair disheveled and covered in dirt, looking as miserable as could be.

The yellow dog didn't go too far; it simply kept watch and prevented any thief from escaping.

Anyone who dares to run up will be bitten hard and their head will be shaken repeatedly, making them scream in pain.

"Wang Wang Wang!"

Seeing someone come to take charge, the yellow dog puffed out its chest and barked wildly at the door, wagging its tail as it carried the whetstone that He Gousheng used to break the lock to the doorway.

"Wow, this dog's pretty clever; it knows how to tattle."

"The door lock was bent like that, it must have been smashed open, right?"

"The Gou Sheng family is really something, stealing so openly, aren't they ashamed!"

"If they had any shame, they wouldn't have treated their nephew so badly..."

…………

The villagers outside pointed, whispered, mocked, and made way for the village secretary. He went over and frowned.

The yard was a mess, with muddy ground dug and kicked by the dog. He Gousheng and his family of three had their clothes torn and were covered in dirt and bloodstains, indicating that they had indeed been badly bitten by the dog.

"Stop watching!" Seeing that they were not in any immediate danger, the village secretary finally breathed a sigh of relief. He turned to Huang Mao and ordered, "Find a rock and smash the lock. We can't just stand by and watch them get bitten to death."

When Huang Mao heard that he was going to smash He Jiangchen's door lock, his heart skipped a beat. A brand new big iron lock would cost almost a dime. If he smashed it and angered He Jiangchen, wouldn't he have to crack his own head open?

No!

You can't do this yourself!

Having made up his mind, the blond-haired man turned around and, feigning intimidation, shouted, "Hey you, go find a rock and smash the lock!"

Some onlookers, eager for a good show, laughed and shouted, "Why smash anything? Let Gou Sheng's family come out the same way they went in. If the lock is broken, it'll be unusable. If you ask me, He Jiangchen's family probably doesn't have anything more valuable than a lock. Let's leave them some belongings!"

"Exactly, three people couldn't beat a half-grown dog, how embarrassing would that be if word got out?"

“This little dog can’t bite hard enough, why are you in such a hurry, Party Secretary? Let’s see if they can get out first.”

"A family of cowards! If a dog bites you, you bite it back, let's see who can bite whom!"

"Yes, yes, yes! Gousheng, don't hide! Go up and bite me, and the dog will be scared..."

Chapter Sixteen: Wrong

"Fuck your mother!"

Despite wincing in pain, He Gousheng continued to curse, "Secretary! Secretary, you can't just stand by and watch me die!"

His retort drew laughter from outside, and someone sarcastically replied, "Gou Shengzi, you can't even beat a half-grown dog, what do you want to do?"

The laughter from the crowd grew even louder, and He Gousheng's face turned a deep purplish-red from his sullen expression.

Seeing this, the village secretary curled his lip and said irritably, "Stop making a fuss, opening the door is the priority. Find a rock and smash the lock."

"No, no, no! Don't smash it! No need to smash the lock, He Jiangchen is back." Someone with sharp eyes spotted Jiangchen turning the corner not far away.

Behind him followed a few unruly rascals from the village, who, for some reason, were walking behind He Jiangchen like lambs.

"What are you all doing gathered around here?" Jiang Chen greeted everyone with a smile, nodding as she walked to the door. Her expression immediately hardened when she saw the three people in the yard. "Uncle? What are you doing in my yard? Secretary, what's going on?"

His flawless acting made Huang Mao tremble with fear.

I thought to myself, this guy has been hiding his true colors! He used to be such a coward, never fighting back or arguing, but now he's all grown up and starting to show his fangs!

No, no, I need to stay away from He Jiangchen from now on. You can't mess with someone like that.

The village secretary glanced back at him, looked him up and down, and thought to himself that this boy was really growing up to be more and more handsome. It was a pity that his family was too poor and he couldn't make a living. Otherwise, he would have given in to his daughter's wishes and made him his son-in-law back then...

"Ahem! Your clothes are fine, what are you doing dressed so neatly?" The village secretary dismissed his unrealistic thoughts. His grandson could run around already, so it didn't matter how good-looking He Jiangchen was.

Jiang Chen lowered his voice and chuckled, "I went on a blind date. I'm not getting any younger, you know."

"You really should find a wife to help you manage the household." The village secretary nodded, pointed to the yard, and asked in a low voice, "See that? Someone climbed a ladder into the yard, and your guard dog bit them. What do you say to do about it?"

Jiang Chen took out his key from his pocket, slowly unlocked the door, and slipped a banknote into the village secretary's hand. "Secretary, you know my situation. There's no one in charge of my family."

If my aunt finds out I want to get married, it'll definitely ruin everything. So, could you do me a favor and give me a letter of introduction so we can get our marriage certificate first, and then have a wedding banquet at home?

"We'll handle the matter of moving into the yard as it comes. I'll be settling down and starting a family someday, and things can't go on like this forever."

The Party Secretary felt a hard little thing in his hand. He looked down and saw that it was a brand new red two yuan note. His eyes lit up and he subconsciously turned his head to look around.

Those watching the spectacle were too busy laughing and joking to notice the brief exchange between them that lasted less than two seconds.

"Hmm, you have a good point. Come to the village committee this afternoon to pick up the letter of introduction. If it can be done, do it as soon as possible." The village secretary put the money in his pocket and stuffed it into his pants pocket, his stern expression becoming even more pronounced.

Jiang Chen clicked open the large iron lock and slipped inside.

"Woof woof woof!" The yellow dog, its eyes bright and tongue lolling out, came running up, wanting to rub its head against him, but then suddenly realized that it was dirty, so it had to back away timidly, its front paws sticking out and its tail wagging vigorously.

Seeing that He Jiangchen was under control and that the dog wouldn't bite anyone, the village secretary walked into the yard with his hands behind his back, frowning as he looked at the ladder and then at the three disheveled people.

"What were you doing in someone's yard? You got bitten like this by a dog!"

He Gousheng sat on the ground, looking at the rows of bloody teeth marks on his arms and legs, tears welling up in his eyes. He pointed at the yellow dog and said fiercely, "This stray dog ​​came into the yard and started causing trouble. I was afraid it would ruin my nephew's house, so I came to help..."

"Uncle, this is my guard dog." Jiang Chen feigned surprise. "Didn't you see it when you came over this morning? You even asked me why I decided to get a dog. How did Big Yellow become a stray?"

To prove that the yellow dog's "identity" was perfectly legitimate, he pointed to the east wing with an innocent expression, "I even specially made a doghouse for Big Yellow, Uncle, your excuse is so perfunctory."

Just tell me what you want. You've already taken everything from my yard, haven't you?

Even the camphor wood chest that my mother brought as part of her dowry—you said my aunt took it because she had nowhere to put her clothes—I didn't stop her, did I?

Why did you have to pull this stunt while I was out, making yourself a laughingstock?

"Woof woof woof!" The yellow dog wagged its tail and went forward to pick up the blood-stained whetstone and put it at his feet. Then it turned around and ran to the smashed doorway, barking at the crooked lock.

Jiang Chen picked it up, glanced at it, and frowned slightly. "Secretary, look, a piece of the whetstone is broken off..."

"That...that's from when my dad picked it up to hit the dog and accidentally hit me on the head!" He Yongqiang covered the back of his head with his right hand, blood trickling down between his fingers, indicating a serious injury.

The village secretary took the piece, glanced at it, and angrily rebuked, "If such a big piece had hit your head, it would be smashed to pieces by now! And you're still here yelling? You have no right to interrupt adults!"

Knowing they were in the wrong, He Gousheng and his family all lowered their heads and dared not utter a sound.

In the village, the village party secretary and the village head have the most prestige and power. The village head recently twisted his back while harvesting wheat and is resting and not in charge of anything. Now, the village party secretary's words are law, and they don't want to offend him.

"Clang! Creak~"

To increase the persuasiveness, the lock on the door, protected by the Horcrux, finally held up until the time for the performance, then fell down with a bang and rolled a few times on the ground.

The marks from the smashing were fresh and undisguised.

The half-old house door, now unlocked and no longer dragging, slowly opened, revealing to the onlookers a room empty except for the earthen kang (heated brick bed), and eye-catching new bedding on the kang.

"Ha, they climbed over the wall and broke the door lock while no one was home."

The village secretary, holding a whetstone, turned to look at the obviously expensive bedding, his face darkening as if he could wring water out of it. "I'm not saying you're a jerk, but you're my uncle, my elder."

He Jiangchen is your own nephew. The villagers all know how you've treated this half-grown child all these years!

Your son is of marriageable age; you should have some self-respect. If you continue like this, who would want to marry their daughter into your family?!

He Yongqiang glanced at the Party Secretary with resentment, thinking to himself, "I'm about to marry a stunning female student from the big city. You'll all be green with envy then!"

Back then, my mother practically begged a matchmaker to marry your fat, ugly, dark-skinned son. You were so arrogant, with your nose in the air. And now? Humph! Once my new bride is married, I'll bring her to your doorstep every day to show her off!

Your son will never even touch the heel of a fairy-like female student in his entire life!

"I...I..." He Gousheng stammered and couldn't get any words out.

Qian Shuandi knew she had no right to speak in this situation, and her body was throbbing with pain from the dog bites, so she huddled in a corner with her head down and remained silent.

Chapter Seventeen: Completing Missions

"Wow, He Jiangchen, your new bedding is really nice!"

The housewives who had come to watch peeked into the house, smacking their lips in admiration, "I've never seen such a beautiful pattern before! Where did you buy it? How much did it cost?"

"Your clothes are very nice too, where did you buy them?"

"This kid has quietly dressed himself up really well!"

"Hey, he looks like a groom..."

…………

Seeing that he had indeed attracted the attention of the villagers, Jiang Chen explained with a smile, "I sold the grain at home and bought it in the county town. I'm not getting any younger, so I need to plan for getting married in the future."

Next, I plan to renovate the house thoroughly and add some furniture so it will look like a home.

Selling grain?

The onlookers looked at each other in bewilderment, and even the village secretary couldn't help but frown.

"Where are you going to get so much grain to sell?" He looked at the empty rooms and thought to himself, "The little bit of food He Gousheng gave you isn't even enough to fill your stomach. If you sell it, you can afford to buy clothes and bedding."

Jiang Chen said sincerely, "Secretary, the land in our village hasn't been redistributed. Although my parents are gone, I'm still farming the land."

These past few years have been good harvests, with plenty of crops. Look at my uncle's family of three, they farm nine acres of land and still live a life of luxury and leisure.

I farm nine acres of land all by myself, so I must have saved quite a bit, right?

Uncle, don't you think so?

Village party secretary: く(＾_?)ゝ

Onlookers: (⊙_⊙)?

A good harvest?! A large crop?!

Isn't that all you earned by working hard, carrying water to irrigate the land, and spending almost every day tending to the crops?

There aren't many farms in the village that can match the yield of your land!

Besides... the reason your uncle's family can live so leisurely is because you did all the hard and tiring work, and they took almost all the grain from the eighteen acres of land...