LAVW – Chapter 86 Catching the Villain

Shi Qian assumed everyone was on the same team, but clearly, Chen Niu was used to working alone. As soon as he got ahead, he ran straight into Zhao Kang’s main room without looking back for Qian Niuhua.

Qian Niuhua trotted along nimbly, keeping pace behind him.

Four legs running are still fast; he wasn’t left far behind by Chen Niu.

Once inside, Chen Niu first glanced at Lin Nanyin, then spoke seriously: “How can we not investigate? Leaving a villain like this near us—how many households wouldn’t feel uneasy at night?”

It was a legitimate reason, enough to cover up the more personal motive he had for wanting to figure things out.

Xu Youguang nodded: “Mm.”

He then looked at Zhao Kang, who responded—“That makes sense.”

But the problem remained: how exactly would Chen Niu investigate?

Everyone present looked at Chen Niu, even Shi Qian, who felt a little doubtful.

Although he hadn’t interacted much with him, Shi Qian recognized that Chen Niu wasn’t as quick-witted or scheming as Long Ye. He was just a very “normal” young man.

Compared to his brain, his face was arguably even more remarkable.

But in this era, a straightforward and upright appearance was even more valued. Chen Niu’s name sounded rough, but his features, inherited from the old lady, were cold and stern—someone who looked unapproachable.

Being mistaken for a villain probably had something to do with that face.

Then Chen Niu’s voice suddenly lost a bit of confidence and softened: “I think the person might be the wrong height. The ones you found aren’t much shorter than me anyway.”

He then turned to Lin Nanyin: “If I were to act, Lin Zhiqing probably couldn’t resist.”

“And grabbing someone’s neck from behind is inconvenient—and unnecessary.” Chen Niu gestured at his own strong, muscular arm.

Just a simple gesture showed he really had strength; one hand would be enough to overpower petite Lin Nanyin.

He could easily cover her mouth and start doing bad things.

As Chen Niu spoke, he set aside some of the details he’d thought about the previous night and suddenly came up with a new idea: “Also, in autumn, everyone wears long clothes, especially at night. The sleeve style, guessing what kind of clothes the person was wearing, can also be a clue.”

“Just gesturing isn’t enough to tell,” Xu Guozi glanced at Lin Nanyin. “I’m about the same height as Nanyin. Want me to try?”

Xu Guozi felt something was off, but didn’t realize what.

Without Chen Niu pointing it out, it really was hard to notice the difference in build. His reasoning sounded plausible, so it seemed better to actually try—after all, it was just a demonstration.

“Not a good idea,” Chen Niu said, feeling uneasy.

His gaze shifted to Qian Niuhua beside him.

Then, looking at the table, he exclaimed, “Hey!” and lifted Qian Niuhua onto a nearby empty table.

Shi Qian, confused: ?

What does this have to do with Qian Niuhua?

In the next moment, Shi Qian felt a neck lock again.

Qian Niuhua, standing on the not-so-high table, was about the same height as standing Xu Guozi and Lin Nanyin.

And Chen Niu, demonstrating the neck-locking move, was mimicking the action Zhao Kang had just recalled.

One hand covered the mouth, the arm hooked around the neck, then switching to two hands because of struggling. But because Chen Niu was so tall and his arms long, the second anti-struggle move looked unnecessary.

It wasn’t the most convenient position for someone his height.

“I suspect that person wasn’t as tall as me—probably a bit shorter,” Chen Niu said while demonstrating, “Also, why was that person behind? Wouldn’t it be easier to overpower from the front…? That person probably wasn’t very strong either.”

Their Village was a big village, and Chen Niu had grown so tall thanks to the old lady being generous with food.

Most people didn’t have a physique like his.

The others were rather short, perhaps from bending over too much, or burdened by life’s hardships.

Shi Qian listened in surprise; he hadn’t thought about strength. He only felt that Chen Niu looked huge next to Lin Nanyin.

But upon reflection, it made sense.

Lin Nanyin probably wasn’t a “strong” woman. Someone unable to overpower her naturally wasn’t among the “strong men” either.

Everyone listened thoughtfully. Xu Guozi was eager to try: “Little Niu won’t resist at all. But a real person would get stronger at that moment! Let me try.”

Shi Qian: “Moo moo.”

I can do it, but I don’t want to scare you.

Lin Nanyin hesitated: “He probably wasn’t that tall. I’ll try myself; only I know what that person was really like.”

Recalling last night, Lin Nanyin also began to doubt—was that person really as tall and strong as Chen Niu?

She was a little afraid of Chen Niu.

This person was so tall and sturdy, and when not smiling, looked especially fierce—not like… a good person.

Lin Nanyin knew judging by appearance wasn’t fair; Chen Niu’s reputation was actually pretty good, but her timid nature was hard to change.

Although it was a bit terrifying, Lin Nanyin was even more determined to find the person from last night.

Just thinking about not knowing who that person was—and that they might secretly come after her again in the middle of the night—made it impossible to sleep peacefully. Other girls might also be harassed, experiencing the same horror she went through last night. Thinking this, Lin Nanyin’s resolve strengthened.

So Lin Nanyin pulled away from Xu Guozi, who kindly wanted to take her place, and walked over to Chen Niu alone, turning her back to him.

“Y-you come,” Lin Nanyin said, her voice trembling slightly.

Earlier, Chen Niu had choked Shi Qian with pleasure, but now he didn’t dare move.

Holding the little calf by the neck, he stood frozen in place, clearly not expecting Lin Nanyin to step forward on her own.

Being the closest, he could hear Lin Nanyin’s fear and was even more shocked by the girl’s bravery.

Shi Qian: “Moo.”

Let go of me.

Chen Niu still didn’t move, so Shi Qian took a step back, butted with his head, and freed himself from Chen Niu’s hold.

He even lifted a hoof and gently kicked Chen Niu, as if to snap him out of it.

“All right.” Chen Niu, coming to his senses, responded and awkwardly stepped forward, his arms and legs moving in sync.

He only took a couple of steps, unnoticed by anyone, though he himself felt awkward. He regretted not washing up at noon and sleeping in the little calf’s hay pile.

Now he was covered in stinky sweat, his clothes probably stuck with grass. He even doubted whether the mud on his hands had been washed clean…

But with so many people watching, Chen Niu knew catching last night’s intruder was more important. So he stopped hesitating, decisively lifted his hands, and locked Lin Nanyin’s neck.

Once serious, his arms exerted enough force that he could hold Lin Nanyin from behind, making it hard for her to struggle.

There’s a term called “iron arms,” and that’s exactly what it felt like.

With his other hand as well, as he intended, Lin Nanyin couldn’t struggle at all, like a rabbit caught by him, left only with her wide, red eyes.

“That’s enough! Let go, let go!” Xu Youguang shouted, stopping the silly boy who almost scared her to tears.

Chen Niu immediately released her.

Xu Guozi ran over as well, supporting Lin Nanyin: “It’s okay, it’s all acting. Don’t be afraid.”

“I’m fine,” Lin Nanyin said firmly, shaking her head.

A stranger’s hands and arms coming from behind not only terrified her but also confirmed something: “Last night, that person definitely wasn’t this tall, and their strength wasn’t this great—they were much shorter.”

A brave attempt and realistic simulation helped Lin Nanyin recall more details.

“That person’s clothes were pretty good, not thin like these, but somewhat thick, not soft, and the fabric held its shape. Probably only wearing one layer.”

Chen Niu’s clothes had been washed many times, a thin jacket over a single shirt.

Most villagers wore clothes like this, washing the same few pieces repeatedly—nothing could avoid being thin.

“Thick? Then that’s almost like new clothes,” Xu Youguang said, stroking his chin. “Not many can make new clothes.”

Fabric production was limited and not prioritized in national production plans. Sometimes, even newlyweds couldn’t wear a full set of new clothes—having a piece of red cloth was already considered good.

“So now we have another clue to investigate!”

Xu Guozi exclaimed with excitement, then glanced at Zhao Kang, who had been silent for a while. “Zhao Kang, you really haven’t learned well.”

Zhao Kang explained, “I didn’t dare move last night, afraid of scaring Lin Zhiqing.”

Hearing this, Shi Qian felt something was off.

If he was afraid of scaring Lin Nanyin, why would he interrogate her through the night? It was clearly to catch the best opportunity to “solve the case.”

If he was worried about missing the prime time to find the culprit, then during his previous statements… it felt like he was emphasizing difficulties, hinting that Lin Nanyin and Xu Youguang should give up.

A person with genuine public concern shouldn’t behave so inconsistently.

Only someone selfish would try everything to continue communicating with Lin Nanyin or find more clues, rather than giving away the choice.

The little calf’s big, bright eyes turned toward the stiffly seated Zhao Kang.

Zhao Kang’s subordinates spoke for him: “Brother Zhao didn’t sleep all night. His eyes are dark underneath. Isn’t that too much?”

Xu Guozi said, “Earlier, we wanted to ask the old security officer, but Zhao Kang didn’t allow it. Now that Chen Niu has come up with a method, of course I’d doubt his ability and competence.”

She wasn’t just criticizing Zhao Kang arbitrarily.

Last night, she heard how Zhao Kang said “easy to find.”

Earlier, when Lin Nanyin talked about giving up, Xu Guozi almost said “not acceptable” too, but Chen Niu beat her to it.

Shi Qian began to suspect that Zhao Kang wasn’t incompetent—he might just be too “by the book.”

A trained professional couldn’t possibly miss so many details. Both he and Chen Niu had thought of them.

Xu Youguang, hearing the tension in his daughter’s voice, acted as peacemaker: “Alright, alright, everyone thinks the same—to catch that hooligan.”

“Now that we have new clues, isn’t that good news? No need to create internal conflict.”

Then Xu Youguang looked at his daughter: “Guozi, sit down and say a little less. Captain Zhao isn’t being lazy. He stayed up all night, and sometimes he couldn’t anticipate everything—that’s understandable. And he’s truly busy; he rarely has time at home, running to different places, so his energy is naturally limited.”

Zhao Kang had studied under an old police officer and solved quite a few “cases,” earning some credibility with Xu Youguang. Plus, the public safety team had many responsibilities—they couldn’t afford to be delayed by one case, and everyone had their difficulties.

“The height issue? Probably because Lin Zhiqing was too scared last night, seeing that shadow as very tall, and mistook the other person for being taller. That’s easy to misinterpret.”

Zhao Kang nodded, apologetic: “I wasn’t careful. I just wanted to catch them quickly and didn’t consider this point.”

Since it had been said, Xu Guozi wasn’t the type to argue blindly and pulled Lin Nanyin back to her seat.

Xu Youguang then called out to Chen Niu, “Chen Niu, come, sit too. I see you have some ideas as well; we can all brainstorm together.”

Chen Niu was about to sit down when Shi Qian hurriedly called him, “Moo moo moo!”

Oh! Don’t forget about your little cow again.

Chen Niu finally remembered that he had placed Qian Niuhua on the table earlier.

He went to pick the cow up and apologized to Zhao Kang.

After all, normally a cow wouldn’t be allowed on a table.

Xu Guozi also knew how heavy Qian Niuhua was and remarked, “Chen Niu, your strength is really impressive.”

Chen Niu smiled, unsure how to respond to such praise. In his heart, he was a little pleased.

He tried to glance at Lin Nanyin secretly, only to find that Lin Zhiqing didn’t seem to care at all.

Shi Qian returned to the ground, not wanting to get close to Chen Niu who had almost been forgotten, and started wandering a bit.

There were two tables in Zhao Kang’s main hall: one was the square table where Shi Qian had been standing, and the other, now surrounded by everyone, was a larger round wooden table.

The thick, solid round table reflected that Zhao Kang’s family was quite well-off.

On the table, besides cups of water, there were autumn pears in season.

Perhaps out of respect, the bowl of pears was placed closest to Xu Youguang.

On the other side of the pear bowl sat Zhao Kang.

Qian Niuhua stared at the pears, eyes glowing as it circled, eventually stopping between Zhao Kang and Xu Youguang.

Chen Niu called out, “Qian Niuhua, come back.”

Zhao Kang, the host, wasn’t stingy. He reached out to pat Qian Niuhua’s head and picked up a pear, asking, “Want a pear? You worked hard just now; here, have one too.”

Zhao Kang teased Qian Niuhua with the pear.

Shi Qian immediately bit into it. As soon as the pear entered his mouth, Zhao Kang turned to invite the others to eat.

The pear fell from Shi Qian’s mouth onto Zhao Kang.

And then Shi Qian’s mouth followed, chomping down.

Shi Qian made sure he wouldn’t bite Zhao Kang’s private parts.

If he made a mistake, he’d have to compensate.

Shi Qian bit the pear along with the fabric of Zhao Kang’s clothing and pulled back with his 200-plus-pound body.

Snap—

Zhao Kang’s buttons were forcibly torn off.

More than one fell; two or three rolled down together.

As the buttons fell, the clothes tore open. Zhao Kang hurriedly reached to cover himself but couldn’t prevent a large portion of his chest from being exposed.

Zhao Kang tugged at his clothes, glaring at Qian Niuhua with ferocity.

“Moo~”

Why are you glaring at me like that?

Shi Qian released his bite, spitting the crushed pear onto Zhao Kang’s face.

Xu Youguang, being closest, saw the marks on Zhao Kang and exclaimed, “You—”

Before he could finish, Chen Niu, sitting opposite Zhao Kang, had already completed a full set of actions: rise, circle, grab by the neck.

Chen Niu grabbed Zhao Kang’s neck and, with his other hand, forcefully pulled, exposing Zhao Kang’s arm which had been tightly wrapped.

Compared to the chest, the scratches on his arm were even more obvious.

Zhao Kang didn’t have a wife; he was a single young man.

Seeing Zhao Kang’s thin frame and average height, Chen Niu was about 80% sure of something in his mind.

Before Zhao Kang could react, Chen Niu started punching.

Bang—

Accompanied by an angry roar: “You worthless whelp! I can’t kill you fast enough!”

With added pained screams.

Zhao Kang’s underlings were dumbfounded, probably questioning reality.

How did their investigation end up hitting their own security team leader?

Xu Youguang clicked his tongue, quickly realizing that Zhao Kang had tricked them all along.

The “too tall” excuse was just a smokescreen Zhao Kang released while Lin Zhiqing panicked.

It wasn’t that he hadn’t learned anything; he just learned it the wrong way.

No wonder he ran so smoothly, leaving no trace. The one catching the “thief” wasn’t exactly inexperienced.

Moreover, Zhao Kang’s house was conveniently close.

After Chen Niu struck several times, Zhao Kang’s face twisted, blood gushing.

Xu Youguang finally said, “Alright, alright, let’s just give him a lesson for now. He’ll pay the price later.”

Xu Guozi and Lin Nanyin had initially jumped up, startled, and hid to the side.

The braver Xu Guozi still felt a chill watching. Chen Niu’s moves were so fast, even drawing blood in a punch—fierce.

Lin Nanyin stood in shock for a while before hearing Xu Secretary’s voice, helping to urge: “Stop! Chen Niu, don’t hit him anymore.”

Shi Qian, who had been secretly kicking, retracted his little legs.

Shi Qian also bit Chen Niu’s clothing, helping pull him back.

“Moo.”

Control yourself; don’t cause a fatality.

Chen Niu was still angry. As he was pulled back, he kicked Zhao Kang, who had curled up, once more.

It landed on the spot where Shi Qian had previously kicked hard, causing another scream from Zhao Kang.

Howl! The noise startled the neighbors who were resting.

Several people came over to see what was happening.

By the time the villagers arrived, Xu Youguang had already tied Zhao Kang up like a pig with rope.

He even made sure not to cover Zhao Kang with clothes, exposing all the evidence.

Facing numerous questions and inquisitive glances, Xu Youguang stayed silent and instructed Zhao Kang’s underlings and Chen Niu to search through clothes, wine bottles, and tableware.

The clothes were quickly found, all picked apart by Lin Nanyin, showing how panicked she had been.

After Lin Nanyin’s confirmation, it was indeed the same texture and material.

The wine bottles had been opened. A pile of unwashed tableware remained, though there were no cups smelling of alcohol.

“Drinking? You didn’t drink last night, did you?”

Xu Youguang spoke reasonably, “You were busy all night last night, and today you’ve been busy again. Just so happens your parents aren’t home, and there’s no one to wash your dishes. But I have to ask—what did you use to drink? Did you blow into the bottle?”

Now the evidence of his deception was right there; no need for more words.

Zhao Kang, bare-chested, hung his head low and didn’t dare look up again.

The people around began cursing, with every insult imaginable, after all, who didn’t have a wife or daughter?

Even if they didn’t, they were still human—unable to tolerate someone so worthless.

Shi Qian even saw an older woman throw rotten vegetable leaves at Zhao Kang, probably from hearing plenty of stories before, and genuinely stirred by anger.

But he truly exhaled in relief—he had found the culprit.

From now on, Lin Nanyin wouldn’t have to worry about dying young in this small village. She would get into university, study alongside like-minded friends, dedicate herself to work and her research passions, and live the brilliant life she deserved.

Wasn’t that the mission accomplished?

Shi Qian, feeling bewildered, suddenly sensed something was wrong.

1958 hadn’t come to pick him up, which meant the mission wasn’t over.

And—apparently, he had to protect Lin Nanyin until she pursued a medical career and became a top expert.

Doing the math, that was another ten to twenty years.

So I still have to keep being a “cow” in these harsh times?

Impossible.

Shi Qian turned his gaze to Chen Niu, whose fists were bloody, feeling no fear at all, and set a new goal in his heart—he needed to find a way to become this foolish little brother’s “true ancestor.”

Of course, it would also be best to stay close to Lin Nanyin, to get news at any time.

The mission was long and dangerous; he couldn’t be careless.

This time, he had finally successfully protected Lin Nanyin, and his guilt lessened enough to step closer.

Qian Niuhua mooed and trotted over to Xu Guozi and Lin Nanyin, forming a “frightened” little team.

Across the table, Xu Guozi and the others didn’t see Qian Niuhua’s bravery.

Xu Guozi crouched down, patting Shi Qian’s head, and looked up at Lin Nanyin, saying, “It’s all thanks to Qian Niuhua. Otherwise, who knows how long he would have pretended, and how many people he would have fooled!”

“Yeah, thanks to Qian Niuhua.”

Lin Nanyin crouched down too, reaching out her hand for the first time to touch Qian Niuhua.

She wasn’t very familiar with the village’s Qian Niuhua yet and curiously asked, “But it’s called… Qian Niuhua? Is it a little heifer?”

Shi Qian lowered his head, showing his horns: “Moo!”

He had grown horns.

Xu Guozi, who often heard Xu Aigang talk about raising cattle, laughed, “Qian Niuhua—some female cows have horns too.”

Shi Qian: ??

Sorry. Only been a cow for two days—still not very familiar with it!