Chapter Eight: Dominance

"Mom! I'm home!" The chubby boy had already gotten off the bus in the county town; his family was wealthy enough to buy an apartment there. So now, only Song Nianqiang returned alone. Yet, as he stepped through the door, he was greeted by the sight of someone he deeply despised.

The village chief was in his fifties, a bachelor notorious for preying upon widows in the village. He had always coveted Song Nianqiang's mother, but had never succeeded. While Song Nianqiang was away, the chief had likely visited their home more than once.

"Song Min! Don't think you can get away with this! If you don't give in today, you'll never have peace in this village!" The chief, face flushed, threatened as he held onto Song Nianqiang's mother's hand. He had once been a small-time hoodlum, but after bribing the town mayor, he'd landed this position.

Song Nianqiang's mother was a virtuous woman; the chief dared not act recklessly. Still, he used his authority to harass her. Today, Song Nianqiang happened to walk in on him.

"You bastard! Old scoundrel!" Song Nianqiang charged in, his anger blinding. He kicked the chief squarely in the back, sending the old man flying. The chief crashed to the ground, knocking out two of his front teeth.

"You brat! You dare hit me!" The chief, clutching his mouth, picked up the broken teeth and pointed at Song Nianqiang, cursing. Song Nianqiang only smiled, stepped up, grabbed the chief’s collar, and threw him over his shoulder.

Having sparred evenly with a major, dealing with an old rogue took little effort. But Song Nianqiang was furious; his mother was his only family, and anyone who dared lay a hand on her would pay dearly.

"Qiangzi, stop!" His mother finally grabbed him, or else Song Nianqiang might have beaten the chief to death. The chief, his face covered in blood, scrambled up and ran off without a word.

Less than half an hour later, the sound of police sirens filled the air outside their home. Three police cars arrived, the chief pointing at their door and talking to the officers. After years as village chief, he had connections—especially the director of the county police, his drinking buddy—so a single phone call had summoned three police cars.

Song Nianqiang wasn't bothered. If he had to go to the station, so be it. But his mother couldn't stand by and let her son be arrested because of her. She took out her phone, made a brief call, and hung up after only a few minutes.

"Qiangzi! Go sit inside!" For once, his mother was angry—a rare occurrence in Song Nianqiang's memory. Whenever she lost her temper, someone was bound to suffer, and not just a little.

Ten officers piled out of the police cars, led by a squad leader, heading toward Song Nianqiang's house. But when they entered, they found his mother sitting upright on the sofa, indifferent to their presence. The squad leader quickly realized she wasn't bluffing.

"Madam..." He began, but Song Nianqiang's mother cut him off. "No need to speak with me. Someone will come to talk to you shortly." Her tone was calm and unyielding, her face expressionless as she waited quietly.

Sure enough, less than thirty minutes later, the roar of a helicopter could be heard overhead. A colonel, his shoulder adorned with four stars, disembarked, ignoring the stunned crowd. He strode straight to Song Nianqiang's mother and saluted crisply. "Major General Liu Zhaohou has dispatched me to resolve this matter for Madam!"

By then, the police officers had been ushered aside by the arriving troops, and the chief was placed under special supervision. Twenty minutes later, a police car sped up, carrying the directors of both the town and county police bureaus.

"Arrest this old fool, and take this abuser of authority as well!" The county police director wasted no words, issuing orders before turning to the colonel with a flattering smile. "Is this satisfactory?"

"I have no say here—it depends on Madam's wishes," replied the colonel, turning to Song Nianqiang's mother. She rose from the sofa, her voice cool and steady: "I never want to see these two again." With that, she walked into the inner room as though nothing had happened.

"Director, please escort these two out with us," the colonel said, understanding her intent. The director nodded eagerly, not daring to refuse. The soldiers quickly drove off with the village chief and town police director, while the colonel and county police director left by helicopter.

"Qiangzi, I never expected you to be as formidable as them. I only wished you could live an ordinary life. But that's no longer possible. Promise me this: either do nothing, or if you do, rise above all but one!" That night, before bed, his mother spoke to Song Nianqiang. Though he didn't fully understand her words, he nodded resolutely.

"Go on, sleep now," she said, switching off the light and leaving the room.

Song Nianqiang wanted to ask about his father, but ultimately kept silent, fearing he would reopen old wounds.

He drifted off, sleeping until nine the next day, when the ring of his brick-like phone woke him. Holding it to his ear, he heard the familiar voice of the chubby boy: "Qiangzi, get up! I'm on my way to your house!"

"Alright, bye," he replied, rolling over to sleep again. But just as his head touched the pillow, his door burst open. The chubby boy leapt onto his bed, landing squarely on top of him.

"Oh!"

Now fully alert, Song Nianqiang shoved the chubby boy off, rubbing his bleary eyes. "Why are you here so early?" he grumbled, pulling on clothes from the bedside.

"Your mom asked me to go with you to buy a new phone—after all, you can't look too shabby in high school." The chubby boy puffed up, pulling out a wad of cash and sniffing it with exaggerated delight. "Smells great!"

"Get lost! Where'd you get that money?" Song Nianqiang, now dressed, sat cross-legged on the bed.

"Your mom gave it to me. I ran into her on the way here. Let's go!" The chubby boy headed out, Song Nianqiang trailing behind in slippers.

They wandered through the county's supermarkets and finally, Song Nianqiang picked a Nokia E66 for sixteen hundred yuan, leaving him with four hundred. "Come on, lunch's on me!" he declared with bravado.

"Wow, you're finally treating! I’m going to eat you out of house and home!" The chubby boy seized Song Nianqiang’s arm, dragging him outside.

They ended up at the snack street, where Song Nianqiang spent thirty yuan on lunch for both. The chubby boy kept complaining he wasn't full, but Song Nianqiang ignored him.

"Hey, hey, Qiangzi, look! Who's that?" The chubby boy pointed excitedly at the supermarket entrance. Song Nianqiang was used to his antics, but this time felt different. He looked where the chubby boy pointed and exclaimed, "Damn it, who’s that pretty boy with Jiang Ningzhi?"

"You ask me, who should I ask? Let’s go!" The chubby boy dragged Song Nianqiang toward Jiang Ningzhi. At first Song Nianqiang protested, but when the chubby boy said, "What if Jiang Ningzhi ends up in someone else's arms?" he immediately steeled himself like a martyr.

He charged at the pretty boy, the chubby boy following behind. Song Nianqiang collided with the slender fellow, knocking him over without effort.

"Sorry! Sorry!" Song Nianqiang put on his best apologetic face. Jiang Ningzhi hurried over in concern, "Cousin, are you alright?" Hearing her call the pretty boy cousin, Song Nianqiang broke out in a cold sweat. "Uh, Jiang Ningzhi, I have something to do, I’ll go now!" He made a hasty exit, the chubby boy following after him, laughing so hard he collapsed onto the ground.

"Do you know him?" The pretty boy asked Jiang Ningzhi as he stood up.

"My classmate," she replied, covering her mouth to conceal her amusement. She knew Song Nianqiang had done it on purpose and was entertained. "He's got quite the physique," she said, flashing a grin and flexing her shoulder.