The Stepmother’s Counterattack: Raising a Child in a Bygone Era
Chapter 709 - 708: The Shop is Gone

Chapter 709: Chapter 708: The Shop is Gone

As soon as the young man spoke, the Shen Family was anything but calm.

Shen Hao was known for his explosive temper, and his eyes bulged like a bull’s as he bellowed, "What bullshit are you spouting? Do you think just because my sister isn’t here, the shop suddenly belongs to you?"

Shen Dashan was equally infuriated, glaring at the young man. "I’m Shen Baolan’s dad; this is Baolan, his wife, and his mom, and this storefront belongs to the Shen Family!"

Tian Wenfang said, "We give you a bite to eat, and you think you’re the boss, you piece of crap! You’re fired, get lost immediately."

At that moment, the Shen Family assumed the young man was an employee of the shop trying to take over the photography store for himself.

The young man’s name was Wu Yiming.

After learning the family’s identities, his expression of enmity lessened somewhat, "Oh, so it’s you guys. But this store is no longer owned by the Shen Family."

Shen Hao’s fists clenched in anger, "That’s your mother’s nonsense. The shop is registered under Baolan’s name, how could it not belong to the Shen Family now?"

Wu Yiming didn’t bother with useless talk and pulled out the property deed.

"Half a month ago, I bought this store for 150,000 yuan. Now, I am the landlord and the boss of this shop!"

"Bullshit! Baolan has been missing for over a month, who did you buy it from?"

Shen Hao cursed and suddenly realized something was amiss; he grabbed the other man’s collar:

"You met Baolan half a month ago? When? Where did you see her?"

Liu Cuihua also rushed forward to grab Wu Yiming, "Where is Baolan? Take us to her now!"

Hearing there was news of Shen Baolan, Shen Dashan and Tian Wenfang both showed hope.

As a father, Shen Dashan did care greatly about his daughter Baolan.

And Tian Wenfang thought, if the person was found, maybe the five million could be recovered too. Wouldn’t they have good days ahead?

The disappearance of Shen Baolan caused quite a stir in Fengcheng, and Wu Yiming had heard about it; worried the Shen Family would connect him with Gao Hualiang’s crowd, he hurriedly explained:

"No, I didn’t buy it from Shen Baolan; it was Brother Cao who sold me the shop!"

...

Following the address given by Wu Yiming, the Shen Family met Cao Haigang at a mahjong parlor.

Cao Haigang had a fierce look, a bulky figure, and his eyes carried a threatening aura, clearly an individual not to be trifled with.

Had it been another time, they would have avoided him had they encountered him on the street.

But with the ownership of the shop and the whereabouts of Shen Baolan at stake, the Shen Family was willing to risk it all.

"Are you Brother Cao? The photo shop belongs to my Baolan, by what right did you sell it to someone else?"

Cao Haigang, sitting with his legs crossed, seemed to have anticipated the Shen Family’s visit, not at all surprised as he signaled to a henchman by his side.

The henchman produced the house sale contract for the Shen Family: "Take a good look. Your daughter willingly sold the shop to Brother Cao; her signature and thumbprint are here."

"Haozi, take a look quick!"

Among the family, Shen Hao had the highest education, having finished elementary school.

As the henchman had said, the signature on the document was indeed Shen Baolan’s, with the signing date being on the 8th, which coincided exactly with the day Baolan went missing.

"Why would Baolan just sell the shop out of the blue? It’s worth 150,000, and she sold it to you for 100,000. What did you guys do to her?" Shen Hao demanded an explanation.

Cao Haigang scoffed, "Young man, be careful what you say. Don’t talk without evidence, mind I sue you for libel, you believe that?"

"Niudan’s dad, did Baolan really sell the shop? Are you sure you saw it clearly?" Tian Wenfang was beside herself with anxiety.

She had thought she’d struck it lucky, looking forward to being a boss’s wife and living the good life, but now the shop was someone else’s?

Liu Cuihua and Shen Dashan also wore faces of deep distress; was the shop going to vanish like the five million, barely enjoyed before it was gone?

Looking at his family’s faces, filled with confusion and fear, Shen Hao’s anger rose from the heart, and he violently tore the contract to shreds.

"If I’ve torn the contract, the deal is off, right?"

But who is Cao Haigang?

A notorious local bully and ruffian in Fengcheng, he had always been the one to intimidate others; nobody dared to act wild on his turf.

Several of Cao Haigang’s henchmen beat Shen Hao until he was black and blue, and along with the other Shen Family members, threw them all out.

Seeing her son needing support to walk after the beating, thinking about her daughter whose fate was unknown, and the loss of their money and shop, Liu Cuihua was overcome with sorrow and collapsed on the ground, wailing loudly:

"What misdeeds have I done? O Heaven, do you really not want us to live...?"

Several passersby were drawn over, asking curiously what had happened.

The family, grasping at straws, tearfully told the story of how Cao Haigang had seized their shop, hoping that some kind soul would help them reclaim it.

However, upon hearing the name Cao Haigang, the passersby’s faces turned pale, and they scattered as if avoiding the plague.

"You should leave quickly too. If you mess with those people, you’ll never have good days for the rest of your life."

Seeking to avoid harm is human nature, and seeing everyone’s fear of Cao Haigang, Liu Cuihua knew they would not succeed today and dared not make more trouble.

She could not bear to let the shop go easily but was powerless against Cao Haigang.

Tian Wenfang had an idea, "Why don’t we ask Shen Mingzhu for help? She’s a big boss and knows more people than us. She must have a way!"

Shen Hao considered his wife to be dreaming, "Her and Baolan have been at odds since childhood. Baolan caused her to fall into the water and even spread rumors about her; she’s lucky if Mingzhu doesn’t hate our family to death, so how could she possibly help us?"

Shen Dashan, biting his pipe, said, "Let’s go back to the village and find Dequan; let him mediate. It’s normal for villagers to quarrel. If she really turns a blind eye, then it’s her fault!"

No sooner said than done, the father and son headed back to Shenjiagou.

...

After listening to the father and son’s request, Shen Dequan almost used a broom to chase them out the door.

The local bully that you don’t dare to provoke, should others dare to do so? Isn’t that just bullying those who are soft and fearing those who are hard?

"Dashan, I’m just going to ask you one thing. If you were in her shoes, would you be willing to do it?"

Shen Dashan confidently claimed, "We’re all from the same village, and I would absolutely help if I could."

Shen Dequan scoffed lightly, "Keep that to yourself. Do I not know what kind of person you are? Don’t blame me for not helping. Mingzhu has helped the village a lot over the years, and it wouldn’t be too much to call her a benefactor. Even if you don’t repay her kindness, you shouldn’t harm her, right? Even a five-year-old knows the principle that one must live with a face, a tree with bark; don’t you understand?"

The village chief’s words struck Shen Dashan like slaps to his face.

He might have been well aware that his request was shameless, but he had no choice; he simply couldn’t watch as their shop was taken away.

Their daughter was likely lost forever, and the shop was the family’s last hope.

Despite all their pleading, Shen Dequan refused to agree to mediate, and the father and son left dejectedly.

"Dad, why don’t we just forget it? Uncle Dequan is right. Shen Mingzhu has no close ties with our family; why would she help us?"

No sooner had the words left his mouth than he received a slap across the ear from Shen Dashan.

"Forget it? You can’t forget this matter! Let’s go!"

Shen Hao, covering the side of his face that was hit, asked subconsciously, "Go where?"

"To find Shen Mingzhu."

Even if hope was faint, he had to try his luck.

The father and son had just left the village when they ran into an anxious Tian Wenfang.

"Dad, it’s bad news!"