Chapter 4: The Orphanage is in Trouble

During dinner, all the children in the orphanage gathered together. Chu Zifeng was the oldest among all the orphans, so he usually took good care of his younger brothers and sisters. Even when he was in poor health, he would stand up for them if they were bullied by others.

"Brother Zifeng, I heard that you worked in the fields for the past three months. It must have been very hard. This piece of braised pork is for you."

In the dining hall, a boy around ten years old picked a large piece of braised pork from his bowl and gave it to Chu Zifeng beside him. His innocent and pure smile was truly endearing, and it was hard to understand how his parents could abandon such a lovely child.

"Xiaoming, you're really well-behaved, but Brother Zifeng isn't tired. You're in the stage of growing, so you should eat it yourself."

Chu Zifeng put the braised pork back into the boy's bowl and also gave him some of the dishes from his own bowl.

"Brother Zifeng, your health isn't good. Don't go to the fields to work anymore."

Across from Chu Zifeng, a cute little girl said with her mouth full of oil.

"Xiaoli, Brother Zifeng is fine. Look, Brother Zifeng is much stronger than before."

"Brother Zifeng, I heard you're going to college in a couple of days. Can you take me with you?"

"Haha, Xiaoman, you're really well-behaved. As long as you study hard, you can go to college like Brother Zifeng in the future."

Looking at these younger brothers and sisters, Chu Zifeng really didn't want to leave. He had lived here for eighteen years, and the thought of leaving for Yanjing in a couple of days made him feel uneasy. Most importantly, Chu Zifeng was reluctant to leave everyone here!

"Dean Li, they're here again."

At this moment, a woman around forty years old ran into the dining hall, looking very anxious.

Dean Li's face turned grim. She stood up from the table next to Chu Zifeng, said something to the woman, and then walked out of the dining hall.

Chu Zifeng felt that something was wrong. Dean Li had never shown such an expression before. Could something have happened?

"Aunt Hong, who did you say came again?"

Chu Zifeng walked up and asked.

Aunt Hong was a staff member of the orphanage, specifically taking care of children under ten years old. She was like a nanny in the orphanage.

Aunt Hong looked outside. She didn't want the children to know about this, but since Chu Zifeng was already an adult and the leader of the children, he could make his own decisions. So she said, "Zifeng, this is what happened. After the dean passed away, his nephew Liu Hu approached Dean Li, saying he wanted to buy the land of our orphanage to build a villa! But Dean Li refused to sell it, so Liu Hu threatened her, saying he would come and cause trouble every day if she didn't sell."

Just as Aunt Hong finished speaking, a man's voice came from outside, "Li Shuang, what's the point of you staying in this破地方 all day? In the end, you'll end up like my dead uncle, without even a decent coffin!"

"No matter what you say or how much you offer, I won't sell this land. This is my home and the home of all the children. I can't let you destroy our home," Dean Li said firmly, facing a fat man around forty years old. The fat man was wearing a floral shirt, wearing sunglasses, holding a Persian cat, and smoking a cigar, looking like a complete thug. He was the deceased dean's nephew, Liu Hu. Behind Liu Hu stood four or five men, all looking like hooligans.

"Li Shuang, it seems you need a taste of your own medicine to understand why blood is so red."

Liu Hu waved to a man with a crew cut behind him. The man looked arrogant, his fists clenched, and was about to punch Dean Li.

"Stop!" Chu Zifeng rushed out from the dining hall and stood in front of Dean Li, facing Liu Hu and his gang.

"Zifeng, what are you doing here!"

Chu Zifeng shouted at Liu Hu, "We are all kind people here and won't fight with you, but if you dare to do anything, I'll call the police."

"Hey, kid, you've got some guts. I guess all the orphans here are tough," the man with the crew cut said.

"Skinny, step back. The kid is right. It's broad daylight, and it's not a good time to act. If we have to, we'll wait until night."

"The boss is right. I almost forgot. It's still broad daylight, so let's let them off for now!"

As the man with the crew cut returned to Liu Hu's side, Liu Hu spat to the side and said to Dean Li, "Li Shuang, I won't play with you today, but I warn you, my patience is limited. If you remain stubborn, be prepared to clean up the bodies of the orphans here."

With that, Liu Hu and his gang turned and left, ignoring Chu Zifeng.

"Dean Li, what's going on? Why didn't the dean's family members mention buying the land, but his nephew is causing trouble?"

Dean Li sighed deeply and said, "Actually, Liu Hu approached the dean about this while he was still alive, but the dean scolded him away! I didn't expect that as soon as the dean passed away, Liu Hu would come back and use thug tactics!"

Chu Zifeng had heard before that the dean had a nephew who was a bad character, involved in murder and arson, but because of his connections with a city leader, he had never been caught. He never thought that Liu Hu would now be in the real estate business and target the orphanage, trying to force a sale!

Chu Zifeng asked, "Dean Li, what do you plan to do?"

"What else can I do? The orphanage is the dean's life's work. No matter what, I won't sell it. If they force the issue, I'll have to call the police."

Chu Zifeng knew that if calling the police were effective, these people wouldn't have come. They probably had connections in the police department!

"Dean Li, don't worry. They're just trying to scare us. They won't do anything rash."

Chu Zifeng's heart was filled with anger. This was his home, and if anyone dared to harm his home and his family, he would make them pay a heavy price.

Dean Li frowned and said, "I hope so!"

At this moment, all the children had gathered outside the dining hall, pouting and looking at Dean Li. Although they were young, they were quite perceptive and probably knew that the orphanage was in trouble.

To keep the children from worrying, Dean Li forced a smile and said, "Has everyone finished eating? If you're done, go do your homework. I'll be testing you tonight."

Seeing Dean Li's forced smile, Chu Zifeng thought, "Dean Li, I know you're under a lot of pressure, and I don't think the dean would want to see you bear it alone. As a member of this big family, I should help you. I hope the dean and his spirit in heaven won't blame me for doing this!"

---

---

---