C15 Lin Xiaoqiang Was Expelled from the Village

Old Deng crouched among the villagers, a look of loss on his face as he spoke, "Has Xiaoqiang brought some kind of trouble upon himself? He's always been such a good kid; how could he have drawn the attention of such a vicious wolf?"

It was clear that Old Deng's statement had been influenced by Lee Erhei's claims from the previous night, which pointed the finger at Lin Xiaoqiang as the one who had brought the wolf into the village.

As Old Deng finished, a wave of unease spread across the crowd, their eyes narrowing with suspicion as they turned to look at Lin Xiaoqiang.

In the hearts of the villagers, a consensus had formed: Lin Xiaoqiang was to blame for the calamity that had befallen them. Not only had Lee Erhei witnessed Lin Xiaoqiang leading the wolf into the village, but now even the typically trustworthy Old Deng echoed the sentiment.

What they didn't realize, though, was that Old Deng had only heard about the incident from Lee Erhei. The events of that morning had lined up so closely with Lee Erhei's account that Old Deng had become convinced of its truth.

"What are we going to do now? Can our village even survive after this? Just look at those wolf paw prints—they must weigh at least two or three hundred pounds each. Not even the best hunters could stand against a pack of wolves like that."

"Why would Lin Xiaoqiang bring such a disaster upon our village? If he weren't living here, would those wolves still come?"

Lee Erhei, with a shifty glance, chimed in, "It's clear as day. As long as Lin Xiaoqiang remains in our village, those wolves will keep coming back. They'll continue to threaten our innocent villagers. We have to make Lin Xiaoqiang leave our village. I warned you all yesterday that disaster would strike us as punishment for harboring him, given all the wrongs he's done. But you didn't believe me. Do you believe me now?"

A hush fell over the villagers as they absorbed Lee Erhei's words. He had indeed warned them about Lin Xiaoqiang being a harbinger of disaster, but they had dismissed him, even ridiculed him. If only they had heeded his warning, last night's events might have been avoided.

"I agree with Lee Erhei," declared a dark-skinned man in his forties, rising to his feet. "We should go check on Lin Xiaoqiang's house. If everything there is untouched, it'll confirm our suspicions that he's the one who brought these wolves upon us. We'll have no choice but to expel him from our village to safeguard the rest of us."

After he spoke, the rest of the villagers raised their hands in agreement, echoing, "I'm with Big Kui on this. Whether or not it's Lin Xiaoqiang's fault, we have to expel him from the village to see if he's the one who brought these vicious wolves upon us."

Amidst the heated discussion, Lin Xiaoqiang sauntered over to the group.

The chatter ceased abruptly, and a hush fell over the crowd. Some villagers even began to shake with fear at the thought of Lin Xiaoqiang's rumored ability to summon wolves, terrified of provoking him and meeting the same fate as the two unfortunate families.

Oblivious to the tension, Lin Xiaoqiang approached with a friendly smile, calling out to Da Kui, "Hey, Brother Da Kui, what's all the commotion about? Did you guys hear that eerie howling last night?"

At the mention of the incident, the villagers' simmering anger boiled over.

An elderly man, his hands shaking as he smoked his pipe, stood up and pointed at Lin Xiaoqiang with the stem. "Xiaoqiang, why can't you just be honest? Are you responsible for summoning the wolf that killed our villagers last night? How do you explain that?"

"Grandpa Liu, what are you talking about? Me, summon a wolf? I don't have that kind of power."

"Then go take a look at the aftermath in those two families' homes. If you can live with yourself, go ahead and keep lying to our faces."

Lin Xiaoqiang quickly made his way to the window and stepped into the courtyard. The sight that greeted him made him gasp in shock.

Even Lin Xiaoqiang, no stranger to death, recoiled in horror at the gruesome scene that had befallen the two families.

"Brother Da Kui, what happened here? How could this be?"

But the more Lin Xiaoqiang seemed bewildered, the more the villagers suspected his sincerity, convinced he was concealing something.

Da Kui, visibly irritated, retorted, "Don't you know what's going on? Weren't you seen wandering around the village yesterday? Isn't that right?"

Lin Xiaoqiang's face tensed, and he frowned as he scanned the crowd.

Their gazes were different from the day before; fear mingled with deep resentment. What in the world was happening? Lin Xiaoqiang's mind raced, yet he couldn't make sense of what he might have done wrong.

"Last night, I stepped outside because I heard an eerie howling. I wanted to investigate and ensure our safety. Why does everyone doubt me?"

Lee Erhei sprang forward with a sly grin. "There, he's admitting it! We all saw him prowling the village with a pack of wolves. They've got our place mapped out. Give it a few days, and our entire village might be wolf chow, leaving him as the sole survivor. Satisfied then?"

Lin Xiaoqiang felt a real fear grip him. Wiping out a village was a grave moral issue, and he'd never done such a thing—how could he confess to it?

"Lee Erhei, I have to ask, why have you been gunning for me since times changed? Spreading lies about me... it's like you want me dead."

Lin Xiaoqiang's rage built, his eyes sparking with fury as he clenched his fists and advanced on Lee Erhei.

Seeing trouble, Lee Erhei ducked behind the others, calling out, "Help me, everyone! Look at Lin Xiaoqiang, so brazen, ready to silence me in broad daylight!"

"Lin Xiaoqiang, hold it right there! This village is too big for you to run wild on your own!" The old man on the ground swung his pipe with vigor.

Meanwhile, other villagers rose to their feet, forming a line against Lin Xiaoqiang, who froze in place.

"You don't believe me? You really think I brought the wolves here?" he asked, met with only their cold, silent stares.

Da Kui, with a heavy heart, finally spoke, "Lin Xiaoqiang, don't take it personally, but you need to leave the village. Once you're gone, the truth will come out. If the wolves stop coming, then we'll know you weren't involved."

"But Big Kui," Lin Xiaoqiang protested, "you realize that being alone out there, I'd be a goner if I ran into those wolves."