Chapter 23: A Colossal Trouble

Chapter 23: A Colossal Trouble

In the west room, the person carried back was someone Ye Xiaoxiao didn’t recognize, but blood dripped from the man's arm, as if something had bitten it.

After a while, two more people entered.

It was the village chief dragging Old Liu with him.

Though a barefoot doctor, he was accustomed to treating wounds from wild animal bites, so he stayed calm and immediately fetched medicine and gauze to stop the bleeding.

"Ah!!!"

Without painkillers, the injured man let out agonized screams.

The Ye family men struggled to hold him down.

"The village doesn’t have much to offer, so we can only stop the bleeding for now. Whether he survives is up to fate."

Despite the cold, Zhang Rengui was drenched in sweat. "We appreciate it."

Miao Cuifang asked Ye Jianguo, "What did you encounter in the mountains? This guy looks unfamiliar."

Ye Jianguo waved his hand, "Don’t ask. Those kids really messed up this time."

After hours of running through the mountains, Ye Jianguo's clothes were drenched, particularly his cotton pants and boots.

The others were no better.

Zhang Rengui told Old Liu to stay and keep an eye on things, as he had other matters to attend to.

Old Liu nodded, "Village chief, go on. Don’t let this hold you up."

Miao Cuifang fetched clothes for Ye Jianguo to change into.

After coming out of the east room, Ye Xiaoxiao peeked into the west room from the door.

"What are you staring at? Go back to bed."

Ye Changning, who seemed to appear out of nowhere, pulled her braid and pushed her out of the room.

"I..."

She wanted to ask what happened, but since she was already being pushed out, she had no choice but to return to her room.

Whatever it was, she’d find out tomorrow.

Ye Xiaoxiao went back to sleep.

But Baichuan Village was anything but peaceful that night.

Occasional groans of pain echoed from the Ye family’s courtyard.

Early the next morning, the snow in the courtyard had piled up even thicker, and Ye Changqing was sweeping the snow in the yard.

Ye Changning climbed up the ladder to the roof to deal with the snow there.

In the winter temperatures here, if the snow isn't cleared in time, it will stay in the courtyard for the entire winter.

If the snow gets any heavier, it could even collapse the roof.

The person in the west room was moaning all night, but now it’s quiet.

"Xiao Xiao!"

Ye Changyuan ran in from outside the yard.

"Brother Yuan, what brings you here?"

"Do you know what went down last night?" Ye Changyuan said, lowering his voice.

Ye Xiaoxiao replied calmly, "Someone from the village went missing."

Ye Changyuan pulled her into the house, "It’s worse than that. Zhang Erni and her group got lost in the mountains and ran into a bear. You’ll never guess how they made it out alive."

Ye Xiaoxiao shook her head.

Ye Changyuan continued, "Turns out they ran into some soldiers on a mission in the mountains! The soldiers had guns, and that’s what saved them."

Ye Xiaoxiao glanced toward the west room, where a soldier was probably resting.

Ye Changyuan said excitedly, "But Zhang Erni and the others messed up the soldiers’ mission. I heard that rescuing them messed up the mission, and someone even got hurt. The village head is bending over backward to apologize to them. If this gets serious, the folks who went into the mountains could end up in jail, and Zhang Rengui might even lose his job as village head... Ouch!"

Miao Cuifang walked over and knocked Ye Changyuan on the head, "You little troublemaker, quit spreading gossip. Where’d you pick up all this nonsense?"

Ye Changyuan retorted, "It’s not nonsense! I got it straight from the brigade. This news has spread all over the village!"

In a small village like ours, with not much else going on, gossip like this was the main way to pass the time.

Miao Cuifang said, "Even so, you shouldn’t go blabbing about it. Have you eaten yet? If not, come help dish out the food."

Ye Changyuan chuckled and obediently kept quiet.

The village doctor also had a meal at the Ye family's house.

"That soldier’s not doing well. He’s running a fever now."

Ye Jianguo said, "What are we gonna do? We can’t let anything happen to him here."

Ye Changning, however, was a bit impatient, "Why’d the village head dump him on us?"

Old Liu understood, "Their place is cramped and not as clean as yours. Besides, you know Zhang Rengui's wife. If they sent him there, there would definitely be a big fuss."

Ye Changning said, "But they can’t just freeload at our place."

With many rooms in his house, he felt they should charge for hosting guests.

Ye Jianguo glared at his son, "Can’t you just eat without running your mouth?"

Ye Changqing said, "We’ve still got some anti-inflammatory meds Xiao Xiao picked up from the clinic. Can we use it for this comrade?"

Old Liu said, "Bring it over, let me take a look!"

After Old Liu's inspection, the medicine indeed had anti-inflammatory properties and could be used on the injured man.

The Ye family finally relaxed a bit.

After the meal, with no other plans and unable to go outside, Miao Cuifang and Zhang Xue washed up and started prepping for the New Year feast. Miao Fengshan set up a table on the kang and taught the children in the house how to write with a brush.

Putting yesterday’s drama aside, the New Year spirit was really kicking in.

While they were occupied, the village head once again brought people to the Ye family.

Ye Xiaoxiao had been reading a book with Ye Changsheng in the room when she suddenly looked up and saw a familiar figure flash by in the yard.

She set the book aside...

Ye Changsheng: "What's wrong?"

Voices came from the west wing, explaining to someone that the current weather conditions made it impossible to leave Baichuan Village or communicate with the outside world.

"Baichuan Village is far from the surrounding villages. If the person you're after is still in the mountains, they're probably in serious trouble. If they come down the mountain, the nearest village is Baichuan Village, so they won't get far."

Zhang Rengui assured them confidently.

He glanced nervously at the man in front of him, a young but commanding lieutenant colonel who had left a deep impression on him last night.

He was also worried that if the man got angry, he might round up all the kids who went into the mountains.

His own daughter was among them.

Ye Xiaoxiao opened the door to the east wing and locked eyes with someone looking up.

Lu Hanchuan was taken aback.

What a stroke of luck!

"Alright then. Please arrange lodging for us, and we'll cover the costs, including the necessary food coupons."

Lu Hanchuan gave a cold nod, his face devoid of any smile.

He had only brought five men with him this time, and now one was wounded.

Recalling that shrill and ill-timed scream, his expression turned even frostier.

Zhang Rengui grew even more nervous.

"Alright, we'll set up the comrades in the villagers' houses. Lieutenant Colonel Lu, where..."

Lu Hanchuan: "Is there space here? I'll bunk with the wounded soldier."

Zhang Rengui immediately replied, "Yes, check out this yard. It's the biggest in Baichuan Village."

This was all thanks to the Ye family father and son, who tirelessly gathered stones and leveled the ground over the summer, creating a spacious and well-kept yard. Not only did the sons have their own rooms, but even the daughter had her own quarters. The courtyard walls were stone-built, making them more structured than others.

In many village homes, kids as old as seventeen or eighteen still lived with their folks.

Other families weren't so particular.