My daughter was so scared she was trembling and crying.
At that moment, the man lit another cigarette and, without my noticing, pressed it directly onto my daughter’s calf.
Instantly, my daughter let out a heart-wrenching scream.
I looked at my daughter's burned calf and pushed the man away.
At that moment, I wanted to tear him to pieces, but the unit had rules. [An army can't lay a hand on ordinary people.]
Thinking of this, I quickly took out my phone and called the nearest village chief.
Soon, the village chief came with a group of villagers.
The nature of the base's work was confidential, but we had been dealing with the village chief there for five years.
I briefly explained the situation to the village chief.
“Please, keep an eye on him until the police arrive. I'll take my daughter back to the unit first."
I thought I had made myself clear, so I picked up my daughter and started walking back to the base.
But as soon as I turned around, I was hit on the head with a blunt object.
The person who beat me was the village chief
Soon, the villagers surrounded me in three layers.
“Mr. Gale, what are you doing? Didn't you hear what I said? He's the one who abused my daughter. Why are you attacking me instead of him?”
The man approached slowly, his steps heavy with disdain, then drove his boot into my lower abdomen.
“Idiot!” he spat. “How many times do I have to say it? As long as we’re in the U.S., only the Roberts family can command me. You? You’re just a worthless punk who doesn’t know his place!”
The village chief stepped forward, eyes filled with helplessness as he pointed at me.
“Son, you’ve overstepped. Do you really think you can afford to offend the Roberts Family?”
He turned to the crowd, his voice somber. “Everyone here depends on them to survive. Out in these remote mountains, even the rice in your bowl might come from the Roberts Family’s donations.”
When Lakeisha and I first married, she was nothing more than a struggling secondhand property agent.
But over the years, my company recognised my contributions and gave her company preferential treatment in policies, from land acquisition, land approval, to loans—every process was smooth sailing.
Yet she not only failed to show gratitude, but instead grew arrogant to this extent, taking advantage of the company’s support for her family.
But if she pushed too far, all it would take was one snap of their fingers and she’d be right back where she started.
“Why waste words with him? Teach this scum a lesson!”
As soon as the man finished speaking, dozens of villagers armed with iron rods rushed forward.
I clutched my daughter tightly to my chest, as countless fists and iron rods struck my body, instantly soaking my clothes in blood.
Seeing this, my daughter frantically struggled out of my arms and once again knelt before the man with a thud, bowing her head and pleading, “Father Elton, please spare my father. I'll go back with you.”
“I'll wash your clothes, cook for you, bow to you every day and wash your feet. Okay?”
Tears could no longer be held back. I forced myself to stand up to help my daughter, but I kept falling down under the blows.
The man laughed wildly.
Ignoring the pain on my body, I began crawling toward my daughter.
Amidst the chaos, a familiar voice came from afar. “What’s going on? All this commotion!”
When my daughter saw Lakeisha, fear filled her eyes.
She knelt on the ground, not even daring to raise her head.
I took advantage of the villagers stopping to quickly get up, walked to Lakeisha and pointed at my daughter kneeling on the ground, shouting, “Lakeisha! You promised me that you would take good care of our daughter, is this how you act as a mother?”
“You must give me an explanation today! Otherwise, we will get a divorce!”
