How else could Lai San choose? Given his situation, if he reported it to the police, he would definitely be locked up for a few days, or even a few months. He would still have to pay compensation, just not as much. The key was that having a criminal record was a very big deal in this era. Although he was a hooligan and had no reputation to begin with, having a criminal record and not having one were two different things.
He finally compromised, and Su Yu got the ten yuan he wanted.
"Let's go home."
Su Yu picked up his little sister, called out to Hu Zi, and the three of them slowly walked towards the Village.
"Yu Ge, why did you agree to let that dog, Lai San, go? He should have been brought to justice and locked up for a few years."
In his previous life, he remembered fighting back hard, and both sides were injured, and it eventually came to nothing. He didn't get any benefit at all at that time. Now, being able to get compensation was already very good.
"Forget it, we're too close to Majiawan. We can see each other when we farm. We often run into each other. The key is that there are many daughters-in-law from Majiawan married into the Village. It's not good to make things too tense, and it makes it difficult for the Village Secretary."
Of course, he said this on purpose. After all, the current Su Yu was not the previous Su Yu. He was not that impulsive. Whether it was beating the other party or calling the police, he wouldn't get any real benefit. It was better to take the money and give Face to the Village Secretary. If he wanted to deal with the other party, there would be plenty of opportunities later.
"Sigh..., it's just that Yu Ge, you're kind-hearted. If it were me, I would have definitely brought him to justice."
The three of them chatted and laughed as they returned to the Village. After saying goodbye to Hu Zi, Su Yu took his little sister into the house.
"Little sister, where is Su Mother? Is she not home?"
"Uh..., Su Mother and Fourth Brother went to the wild fields to pick wild vegetables. Big Brother went to the fields. It's just the two of us at home."
He thought so; his head was bleeding, so why hadn't he seen Comrade Liu Yuzhi? It turned out she had taken Fourth Brother to pick wild vegetables.
"You play by yourself. Third Brother is going to wash up. I'm covered in blood, and it feels sticky if I don't wash it off."
After speaking, he entered the room. The Su Family had four adobe houses. One West House was the kitchen, the East house was for storing some farm tools, firewood, and other things. There were four North Houses: one for his parents, one for his eldest brother, one for his little sister, and one for him and his fourth brother.
His eldest brother needed his own room because of his age; otherwise, it would be hard to find a wife. As for his little sister, she used to share a room with his eldest sister, but after his eldest sister got married, only his little sister was left in that room.
Logically, his fourth brother and little sister should share a room, as they were both small children—an eight-year-old little sister and a fourteen-year-old—who could perfectly live together. Su Yu, being nineteen, could have his own room, but he found moving back and forth troublesome, so this matter was repeatedly postponed.
As soon as he entered the room, a sense of antiquity washed over him. Upon entering, there was a square table, with a grandmaster's chair on each side. Behind each chair were stacked bricks with a horizontal piece of wood on top, like an altar. On the altar, there was a standing mirror, and next to it, an old alarm clock.
To the left of the entrance, behind the door, was a washbasin stand with an enamel basin on it. The basin had a large '囍' (double happiness) character, and even the thermos was woven. Simply put, it was just like a live filming set in Hengdian.
He never imagined that he had truly undergone Rebirth, returning to the 1970s. His family was not considered impoverished because his father had been a soldier, was injured, and returned from the army. He worked at the Commune's Brick Factory and earned a legitimate income.
His eldest brother was determined to go to college, but the college entrance examination was reinstated in 1977. There were still seven full years until its reinstatement, so it was a long way off. The key was that his eldest brother was already twenty-three years old, so he no longer had the opportunity. Seven years later, he would be in his late thirties, and he would probably have several children by then. Whether he would still be willing to go was another matter.
"Sigh..., why think so much? Just worrying for nothing."
Saying that, he poured some warm water, washed his hair, changed his clothes, dried his hair, looked for medical alcohol in his father's room, and then applied a little. As for seeing a doctor? He decided against it. The bleeding had already stopped, so there was no need to spend that unnecessary money.
"Third Brother..."
Just as he finished tidying up, he saw the little girl timidly peeking at him through the crack in the door.
"Girl, what's wrong?"
"Third Brother, I'm hungry."
As soon as she said she was hungry, Su Yu's own stomach rumbled.
"Cough, cough..., I'll go look for something for you to eat."
In those days, people generally didn't get enough to eat. Even though his father worked at the Brick Factory, his salary was a mere eighteen yuan, and it often wasn't paid out. After all, few people in the countryside used bricks to build houses; they were mostly for the city, pig farms, or other uses.
If the bricks couldn't be sold, there was naturally no money to pay salaries. But he was reluctant to give up this job, after all, there was a limit to overdue wages, and at least they would get a month's pay every few months.
After searching for a long time, Su Yu couldn't find a single pancake, not even any cornmeal. There was nothing in the house, no wonder Comrade Liu Yuzhi had gone out to dig wild vegetables. Sigh...
After searching for a long time, he only found less than half a catty of chaff. Su Yu even doubted whether pigs would eat this stuff.
Actually, he knew that in this era, it was just wild vegetables and chaff, made into a thin gruel, enough to eat until one was half-full.
If there wasn't a food shortage, his mother wouldn't go digging for wild vegetables. She would have gone to the fields with his eldest brother to earn work points, because without work points, they wouldn't be allocated grain.
Logically, his family shouldn't have run out of food, since his father at least had a job. But his family was a bit different; he also had his grandparents, an uncle, and a third uncle. His father was the second oldest.
His grandmother favored his eldest brother, which was quite normal in the countryside, as the eldest was the head of the family. For instance, the job at the Brick Factory was almost given to his uncle, as his grandmother had insisted. Later, his mother, unable to bear it, knelt at the old family's gate with his newborn little sister, making it known to everyone. The Village Secretary had no choice but to intervene, and his grandfather also felt like he had lost Face, so he stepped in to secure the job.
After all, this job was arranged by the government after his father's military discharge. Unless he gave it up or gave it to a family member after starting work, no one could take it away.
His family was in such a dire state because the old lady was causing trouble. His second son's meager salary was taken away early under the pretext of not feeling well. As for where it went, the answer was obvious.
"Cough, cough... little sister, there's nothing to eat at home. I'll go out and find something for you. You stay home and be good."
Saying that, Su Yu ran out. He sprinted all the way to the small river ditch at the west end of the Village. There were fish here, and it was flowing water. However, his head was injured, so he clearly couldn't go down and hold his breath to catch fish. That meant he could only use a wooden branch to spear fish.
Su Yu found a branch, took off his shoes and socks, and slowly entered the small river ditch along the water.
Su Yu had been Fishing since he was a child and was quite experienced. Perhaps it was also good luck, as a half-jin fish swam over shortly after he entered the water.
Su Yu's Face lit up with joy. His hand instinctively tightened its grip on the branch. He took a deep breath, held the branch with both hands, and thrust it down forcefully. In an instant, the branch pierced through the fish's belly.
"Ding-dong... Experience +1."
Huh? What's going on?
While he was stunned, a panel popped up.
Host: Su Yu
Age: 19 years old
Strength: 8 (Adult: 10)
Speed: 8 (Adult: 10)
Skill Points: 1
Skills: Fishing Lv2+
"Is this... a proficiency panel? Or a stat-adding System?"
