Of course, Su Nianyuan knew about this—it was a memory straight from the original owner’s mind.
When she was two years old, Su Jiancheng was appointed as the village chief of Qingzhu Village. He had been very busy that day, so Su Nianyuan had been left in the care of an old grandmother next door.
The grandmother had been very kind, stroking her head with pity as she said, “Poor child, your mother went to that Mountain God Temple every single day to pray for blessings when she was pregnant with you, so why didn’t it protect the two of you, mother and daughter?”
Little Nianyuan hadn’t understood back then, but she had remembered it.
Su Jiancheng looked at Su Nianyuan in shock, and Lin Shoufeng’s gaze also began to shift. Could there really be immortals in this world?
Su Nianyuan raised an eyebrow, continuing to add weight to her own persona.
She raised her little hand to her mouth and shushed, then cupped her mouth and lowered her voice: “Of course the Great Immortal told me! The Great Immortal said that Qingzhu Village used to be a sacred land, so as long as we work together with one heart and mind to rebuild Qingzhu Village into a sacred land once again, we don’t need to worry about money.”
Although ancient people lacked the internet, their imaginations were extraordinarily rich.
The two grown men squatted there, their eyes wide open.
In their minds, they had already automatically filled in and completed the cause and effect of this whole matter.
Lingnan was a place of exile for the Qin and Ning Dynasty. Because the living conditions here were harsh, the humid and hot weather easily caused people to fall ill, and effective medical treatment was unavailable.
Yet Lingnan’s produce was abundant, especially all kinds of fruits; all things considered, it could indeed be called a sacred land.
So, as long as they transformed Qingzhu Village into a sacred land, the Great Immortal would protect them?
Even Lin Shoufeng couldn’t help but believe it at this moment.
And if he didn’t believe it, what else could he do?
They had already run out of retreats.
Lin Shoufeng took the lead in expressing his loyalty: “Little Village Chief, I’ll listen to whatever you say!”
Su Jiancheng was a step slower and glared at Lin Shoufeng: “Daughter, Dad will definitely listen to you!”
Su Nianyuan was very satisfied; the origin of this money now had a “scapegoat.”
She smiled, stopped talking about these things, and instead shifted the conversation to business: “Aside from that flooded main road, are there any other paths leading to the county town?”
Qinghe Village had a river on its left, flowing out to the sea.
On its right was a mountain, prone to mudslides.
Coupled with the fact that the water level hadn’t receded yet, the main road was impassable.
As for whether the county town would be flooded, Su Nianyuan wasn’t worried about that. The construction of every city was tailored to local conditions in the first place, and Qingzhu Village was in such a miserable state only because it had been abandoned.
Those high-ranking officials probably hoped that everyone in Qingzhu Village would die in the natural disaster anyway.
That way, they would have fewer worries on their minds.
Yet she, Su Nianyuan, refused to let that happen; she was going to lead Qingzhu Village back up on its feet!
Lin Shoufeng thought for a moment and nodded: “There is one. I remember there’s a cave on the mountain that leads directly to the neighboring village. If that village wasn’t flooded, we can go straight to the county town.”
The neighboring village was called Qingmei Village. The straight-line distance was actually less than ten kilometers, but whether they took a detour or crossed the mountains, the journey would multiply manifold.
Only that cave offered the shortest distance.
Su Nianyuan’s eyes lit up: “Do you know where it is?”
Lin Shoufeng smiled bitterly and shook his head: “I certainly don’t, but there is one person who does.”
“Who?”
“Huzi’s dad, Qu Hu.” Lin Shoufeng shook his head: “However, he hasn’t come back yet, and I don’t know…”
Whether he was dead or alive.
Su Nianyuan couldn’t just sit around waiting like this. She got up and went to find Mother Hu, who had witnessed Su Nianyuan’s reverse psychology earlier and now held even greater respect for the little village chief.
“Little Village Chief, is there something you need me for?”
“Auntie, do you know how to get to the cave on the mountain that leads to the neighboring village?”
Mother Hu frowned, recalling what her husband had used to say: “It seems you climb up that way, and there’s a pool of water right next to that cave…”
She couldn’t quite remember and said with some distress, “I’ve never been there. The green mountain range has many ferocious beasts, and Huzi’s dad wouldn’t let me go up the mountain.”
“I’m sorry, Little Village Chief. If only Huzi’s dad were still here.”
Su Nianyuan quickly said, “Auntie, you don’t need to apologize; you’re already amazing!”
When faced with hardship, she didn’t drown in sorrow or grief; she could even shoulder heavy burdens. Mother Hu was stronger than quite a few men.
Mother Hu smiled bitterly: “What else can I do? I still have a child.”
She looked at the small figure sitting on the temple threshold—that was Huzi waiting for his dad.
They say mothers become strong for their children; because she had a child, she didn’t even dare to cry, forcing herself to stay busy instead.
Turning back, Su Nianyuan saw this scene as well. She narrowed her eyes and turned to run back to Su Jiancheng.
Whispering something into his ear, Su Jiancheng frowned in hesitation: “Will they listen to me?”
Su Nianyuan nodded and pointed at Lin Shoufeng: “Uncle Lin will help you.”
She was going to hold a mobilization rally!
After undergoing a rescue operation, it was visible to the naked eye that most people had lost their physical strength once again.
Just like Deng Yinghe.
When a person ran out of things to do, they would fall into confusion. Coupled with some restless instigation from others, everyone would lose all hope of living.
For now, Su Nianyuan was not yet qualified enough, so she needed to push Su Jiancheng forward.
Seeing that Su Jiancheng was still somewhat afraid, Su Nianyuan wasn’t in a hurry. She whispered her thoughts to the two men, bit by bit.
The gazes of Su Jiancheng and Lin Shoufeng grew increasingly resolute. Ultimately, Lin Shoufeng spoke up a step ahead again: “Village Chief, if you can’t say it, I will. I think the Little Village Chief is completely right. Right now, the most important thing is hope.”
Su Jiancheng immediately vetoed: “Of course I can do it!”
Don’t even think about stealing his daughter’s attention!
Lin Shoufeng cast a sidelong glance at Su Nianyuan, his eyes brimming with smiles, and Su Nianyuan chuckled secretly as well.
This surrogate dad of hers was quite interesting—he responded to tough approaches rather than gentle ones, especially Lin Shoufeng’s reverse psychology, which was guaranteed to work.
Taking a deep breath, Su Jiancheng stood at the entrance of the main hall and shouted at the top of his lungs: “Everyone gather up!!!”
His voice reverberated among the mountains, and everyone walked out with curious expressions.
Some sat down casually on the steps at the doorways of the kitchen and guest rooms.
Without exception, however, all of their gazes landed on Su Jiancheng.
The village chief whom they had looked down upon for three years, yet who had gathered them all together after the mudslide.
No one spoke. Even if some remained dissatisfied, they kept their mouths shut.
Other things aside, Su Jiancheng’s debt of life-saving grace was right there; that grace alone was enough to alter their attitude toward Su Jiancheng ever so slightly.
Su Nianyuan and Lin Shoufeng stood to the immediate left and right of Su Jiancheng. She counted heads one by one; aside from Deng Yinghe, everyone was present.
Stared at by so many people, sweat began to bead on Su Jiancheng’s back. Looking down at his daughter’s two hair buns, he found a bit of courage in his heart.
In a deep voice, he spoke slowly, word by word.
“I know that with me acting as this village chief, no one is convinced. Actually, I’m not even convinced by myself.”
“My becoming this village chief wasn’t really because I know how to read; more than half of the people present know how to read. The real reason is that my father-in-law once saved a secretary of the county yamen. This is both repaying a favor and bearing pressure.”
“Actually, I’m no different from any of you. To the imperial court, we are sinners, we are dead weight, and our deaths are of no consequence, aren’t they?”