The other two men were named Zhao Qingzhu and Zhao Qingming, who were brothers.
They were among the first batch rescued by Su Jiancheng. Their house happened to be shielded by a large tree, so when they were found, they weren’t injured—they were just gnawing on tree bark.
Zhao Qingming felt especially guilty. “Little Village Chief, I’m sorry. I even used to curse your dad as an idiot.”
Su Nianyuan’s mouth twitched.
Actually, you guys didn’t really need to say that out loud. How awkward.
After all, throughout Green Bamboo Village, apart from the original owner who relied on Su Jiancheng, not a single other person acknowledged him as village chief. Their ancestors had all more or less served as high-ranking officials, and there was always a certain pride ingrained in their bones.
This mudslide had crushed the very backbone they were so proud of, and it had also made them face reality.
Su Nianyuan grinned, and at that moment, she finally looked like a five-year-old child.
She waved her hand, looking very much like a child playing at being an adult. “It’s fine. I forgive you on behalf of my dad. Everyone is from the same village, so naturally we need to support each other. Once you’ve rested enough, we’ll head back.”
Lin Shoufeng gave Su Nianyuan a deep look and nodded. “Alright, let’s head back.”
Hu Zi watched Su Nianyuan the entire way back. As soon as the group returned to the ruined temple, Hu Zi immediately pulled Mother Hu aside to whisper.
Drag-pulled and forced to squat down, Mother Hu asked with some impatience, “What is it?”
Hu Zi lowered his voice. “Mom, the Little Village Chief is so smart! She actually dug out the uncle who was trapped under the house. I want her to take me to find Dad.”
The child’s tone was extremely forlorn. Ever since Lin Shoufeng was dug out, Hu Zi had been thinking about his dad. What if his dad was also buried in the mountain waiting for him to save him?
Perhaps only the Little Village Chief could save his dad.
Hearing the mention of her husband, Mother Hu’s gaze darkened. She pressed down on Hu Zi’s shoulders and said in a low yet earnest voice, “Hu Zi, as long as your dad is still alive, he will definitely find a way to come back. That’s what he promised Mom.”
Thinking of her husband’s solemn promise, Mother Hu’s heart ached for a brief moment, but she quickly suppressed it deep down.
What they needed right now was to survive!
Su Jiancheng returned shortly after, also bringing back two people.
At that moment, Lin Shoufeng was already being held by Old Lady Lin in a corner as they wept bitterly. Su Jiancheng glanced over and felt much more at ease.
He walked over to Su Nianyuan, seeing that his daughter’s little face was tense, and squatted down to wipe the sweat from her forehead with his sleeve cuff.
Without a word, he untied the hair tie on her head, smoothed her hair out with his fingers, and retied her into two cute hair buns.
When Su Nianyuan was born, her mother had died in childbirth. Su Jiancheng had raised the child single-handedly through all her messes, and he cared far more about this child than about the village.
Su Nianyuan was also observing this cheap dad of hers at the moment.
Twenty-eight years old, his face was dirty, but one could still make out the refined and handsome features between his brows. Raising a child all by himself was truly not easy, and white hairs were faintly showing among his locks.
In this father’s heart, his daughter always came first. Yet she wasn’t his biological daughter, but rather a soul from another world—a stray phantom who had never experienced paternal love.
“Dad,” Su Nianyuan suddenly spoke up, as if wanting to say something.
Instead, Su Jiancheng pulled her tightly into a hug, burying his face into her thin, small shoulders, his voice muffled. “I’m sorry, A-Yuan. It’s all Dad’s fault for being useless, letting the immortal hand such a heavy task over to a little child like you.”
Su Nianyuan: “???”
Su Jiancheng grabbed Su Nianyuan’s shoulders, straightened up with a face full of seriousness, and locked eyes with Su Nianyuan’s somewhat bewildered little face. He swore an oath, “Your grandfather said long ago that our Su family has great fortune! And look, it’s landed right on you!”
“Starting today, Dad will listen to you entirely! Wherever you point, I will strike! Dad has absolutely no objections!”
Su Nianyuan suddenly smiled, and the shred of panic she had felt from transmigrating completely dissipated.
She stretched out her small hands to wrap them around Su Nianyuan’s neck, her voice sounding sweet and childish, “Dad, you’re so good!”
Su Nianyuan laughed from ear to ear. “Hehe, my daughter is good too.”
Initially, Su Nianyuan thought Su Jiancheng had figured out she wasn’t his biological daughter. Only later did she realize that he actually, truly believed in the immortal’s words.
Clutching Su Jiancheng’s shoulders and feeling an unprecedented warmth of paternal love, Su Nianyuan vowed silently in her heart: Little Nianyuan, go ahead and be reincarnated in peace. I hope you have a safe and peaceful next life. Your dad is my dad from now on, and I will provide for him in his old age.
Since she had come to this world, she would still follow her inner convictions: to serve the people and climb to the top!
“Dad, help me count how many people there are in total right now.”
After a brief moment of acting all mushy, Su Nianyuan returned to reality.
A moment later, Su Jiancheng answered in a deep voice, “Fifty-six people in total. Two are still missing.”
“I’ve already searched everywhere that could be searched. The only two roads out of the village are both blocked. Do you think it’s possible those two went to the county town and escaped this disaster?”
Su Jiancheng’s hypothesis was well-intentioned, but Su Nianyuan did not think so.
The villagers of Green Bamboo Village might look like ordinary commoners, but in reality, generation after generation of them had been branded with the label of exile.
One could tell simply from how their household registration documents differed from everyone else’s.
Every villager and their descendants in Green Bamboo Village had a black stamp on their household registration documents.
They weren’t even allowed into the county town because people found them unlucky.
Su Nianyuan was just about to voice her thoughts when a scream came from the guest room. Su Jiancheng and Su Nianyuan exchanged glances and hurriedly rushed over.
There were two guest rooms. After being cleaned up, the beds and the floor could sleep over twenty people; the elderly, children, and women slept in the guest rooms.
The strong young men slept on the floor of the main hall.
As Su Nianyuan rushed into the guest room, her vision was immediately greeted by a hemp rope hanging from the roof beam. Her heart skipped a beat, but fortunately, there was no corpse dangling from the rope.
The person who screamed was Old Lady Lin, who at that moment was holding another woman, her eyes filled with sorrow. “Liu Ju, have you lost your mind?! The village chief went through all that trouble to rescue you back, and you still want to seek death!”
“Hanging yourself in our quarters—are you trying to die just to show us?!”
Old Lady Lin was frustrated by her failure to live up to expectations and raised her hand as if to strike, but looking at the desolate expression of her old friend in her arms, she raised her hand only for it to fall back down powerlessly.
There was still a red mark on Liu Ju’s neck, and her tears had completely dried up.
Staring blankly at the ceiling with lifeless eyes, she spoke in a hoarse voice, “Old Lin, my son died right in front of me trying to save me. He was the hope of the Qin family; he was only nineteen this year and had just taken a wife.”
“He’s dead. You tell me where I’d find any reason to keep living?”
She clearly wasn’t crying, clearly just stating facts, yet everyone around who heard it couldn’t help shedding tears.
Su Nianyuan looked up at Su Jiancheng. Su Jiancheng pressed his lips together, squatted down, and whispered in her ear, “When I found her mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, they were shielded underneath. Qin Liangmin used his own body to protect his wife and his old mother.”
Su Jiancheng pointed to a woman sitting in the corner against the wall who also wore a completely blank expression: Deng Yinghe.
Qin Liangmin’s wife of half a year showed no reaction whatsoever even when her mother-in-law tried to hang herself, looking just like a marionette.
Watching her husband (son) die before her eyes to save her—anyone would likely feel completely despairing.
Old Lady Lin wanted to comfort her, but didn’t know what to say.
At that moment, Su Nianyuan walked over and stood right in front of Liu Ju.
Her little face was pulled tight as she said earnestly, “My dad saved you, so your lives belong to my dad. You don’t want to leave owing a debt of gratitude, do you?”
“Settle the debt first, then go hang yourself.”
Old Lady Lin stared at Su Nianyuan in shock. Not just her, but everyone standing at the doorway was utterly stunned.
Why did the Little Village Chief speak with such viciousness?