Three days had passed since the shooting, and everything was calm. Yang Jian watched the workers at the construction site, but his mind was on whether the casino should reopen. It was already the twelfth lunar month, and with less than twenty days until the New Year, he needed to make a quick fortune.
"Brother Jian, something big has happened at the construction site next door. Hundreds of people suddenly showed up and blocked the main gate. They've even sealed off the entrance and exit to our site, preventing vehicles from coming in."
Jing Yongli ran over in a panic.
"Hundreds of people blocking the gate? Do you know why?"
"I heard it's to demand justice for the migrant workers injured that night. Those three injured workers are all from Fengjia Village in Qingfeng Town. Fengjia Village isn't far from here, and everyone, old and young, has come."
"Let's go take a look."
This matter was related to him, so he needed to understand it. Yang Jian grabbed his cousin and ran towards the entrance.
The construction site next door was for the power plant's factory project, while Yang Jian's site was for the power plant's building project. Although the contractors were different owners, the meal tickets were printed and distributed uniformly by the power plant and were interchangeable.
The two projects shared a single access road, which was now completely blocked. When Yang Jian emerged, the cement road was filled with people, mostly elderly, women, and children, along with some curious migrant workers. The young and strong had all stormed into the construction site opposite, and it sounded very noisy inside.
As Yang Jian and Jing Yongli were about to go in and see, three police cars sped towards them. A path quickly opened up in the crowd.
Seeing the police cars enter, Yang Jian followed behind into the construction site.
Work had already stopped. Someone had pulled the power switch, and the door to the distribution room had been smashed open.
The site's site office was surrounded by an impenetrable crowd. To understand the progress of the situation, Yang Jian squeezed his way to the very front.
More than a dozen police officers had separated the crowd from the office. The construction site manager was anxiously making a phone call at the entrance, clearly reporting to his boss.
"Fellow villagers, please calm down. If you have any demands, send a representative to speak with us. This is a key national project. If anyone uses this opportunity to cause destruction, we will crack down severely and show no mercy," a police officer, around forty years old, shouted from the steps at the entrance of the office, holding a loudspeaker.
"I'll speak. I am the cousin of the injured Feng Taiping, my name is Feng Qiang, and I am the village head of Fengjia Village in Qingfeng Town." Feng Qiang raised his hand at the front of the crowd. As a grassroots official, he had some legal awareness and knew that this matter could only be resolved through dialogue.
The middle-aged police officer sized him up and nodded. "Alright, Director Feng, you speak. Why have so many people come today?"
"My cousin Feng Taiping and two others have been working at this construction site for almost a year. A few days ago, they were suddenly injured by someone. They are now in the hospital without medical expenses. The doctor said amputation is necessary and it will cost eighty thousand. As workers for this project, when workers get injured, the project department ignores them. We are here to demand an explanation."
"Feng Taiping? Is that the migrant worker who was shot a few days ago?"
"Yes, it's him. He has parents over sixty and a pair of children aged thirteen or fourteen, all of whom rely on him alone to work and support the family. Now he's lying in the hospital with no money for treatment, and he needs amputation. How will his family survive in the future?"
The middle-aged police officer shook his head. "Director Feng, you might not understand the situation. I am handling Feng Taiping's case. He himself admitted that he was robbed and injured while out watching a video. This matter has nothing to do with the construction site. It's a bit laughable for you to bring so many people here to demand an explanation."
"How is it not related? He is a worker at the construction site, and the site is responsible when something happens. If this is not resolved, the elders and young men of Fengjia Village will not leave." Feng Qiang adopted a stubborn stance. The law does not punish the masses. With hundreds of people causing trouble here every day, the police dared not do much.
"Director Feng, you are a leading cadre. How can you say such things? Feng Taiping's injury is due to his personal behavior. We, the police, will continue to pursue the culprit. His medical expenses can only be compensated through civil claims after the culprit is apprehended. He was not injured during construction, nor was he injured within the construction site. The project department has no obligation or responsibility to bear the medical expenses."
"I don't care about all that. I only know that he has been working at this construction site since the beginning of the year and rarely goes home. Now that something has happened, the construction site must be responsible." Feng Qiang knew his reasoning was weak, but to fight for the greatest benefit for Feng Taiping's family, he could only choose to be stubborn. Otherwise, that family would collapse.
Yang Jian knew that such matters could not be clarified in a short time. Just as he was about to leave, he heard someone nearby whisper, "What robbery while watching a video? He was a robber himself, and he was counter-killed. How dare he come to the construction site to cause trouble."
"Shh, don't talk nonsense. These are all people from Fengjia Village. If they hear you, you'll get beaten." Someone nearby quietly stopped him.
"What nonsense? I was also returning from playing mahjong at Huangjiaping that night and happened to see two groups fighting. There were more than ten of them, all masked, carrying steel bars to rob. I didn't expect the other party to have a gun. Although there were only four or five people, they were fierce. They fired two shots and took down three people, then charged forward and routed these robbers."
"Even if you saw it, you can't say anything. The police haven't found out yet."
"Cough, it's not just me who saw it. At least seven or eight people returning from the casino, mahjong parlors, and video halls that night saw it. They just didn't want trouble and didn't tell the police. They all wished these robbers were dead."
The speaker was unintentional, but the listener was thoughtful. Yang Jian suddenly felt a sense of crisis. As the situation escalated, the police might investigate them.
Seeing that Feng Qiang had been invited into the office by the middle-aged police officer, Yang Jian squeezed out of the crowd.
"Liangliang, Sanpang, get up quickly. I have something important to discuss with you." Back at the dormitory area, Yang Jian pulled up the two who were sound asleep.
Liangliang, groggy, asked, "What's wrong, Brother Jian? What happened?"
"The family of the person we shot that night is causing trouble at the construction site next door. I'm worried the police will re-investigate this case and eventually find us."
"What should we do?" Liangliang instantly woke up.
Yang Jian frowned and thought for a moment before saying, "We might have to go home early. We can come back after the New Year when things have calmed down."
"Going home is fine. It's almost New Year anyway. What about Lu Feng?"
"I'm considering his whereabouts. The national police system is not networked. If we leave, the police won't pursue this kind of assault case across provinces. But where can he go?"
"Why don't we discuss it with Huang Hua? They are locals. It shouldn't be difficult to hide someone in this mountainous area. Lu Feng is wanted nationwide and can't run around. Staying here is the safest."
"Yes, the Huang brothers can definitely hide Lu Feng. This place is a mix of people, and there's no safer place than here." Liangliang's suggestion was also agreed to by Sanpang.