The old man shook his head behind him, recalling the conversations he had with everyone over the past few days.

The river god's requirements for choosing a bride were indeed a bit too high.

The river god wasn't the only one who liked her—she was young and beautiful; everyone else had already made their move.

That's the contradiction.

"What are we going to do? We can't survive here without that river, Chieftain!"

"We're already struggling to survive, are we really going to have to..."

Upon hearing the old man's words, the middle-aged woman with curly hair behind him couldn't help but wipe away her tears with her sleeve.

"Don't cry yet, this isn't over yet."

"There's no need to be so pessimistic; we still have a chance."

The clan chief remained silent for a moment before speaking up to offer comfort.

"Even if we can't find a suitable person, didn't they say they'd send someone down to manage it? What if they succeed?"

"Let's wait a little longer, just a little longer."

“If it really doesn’t work out in the end, we’ll move away. I can’t gamble with the lives of my younger generation.”

The middle-aged man behind the old man gritted his teeth and turned his back.

"Move away? You make it sound so easy."

"We've already shown all the mines that could be shown to outsiders. There's only so much of it. Who's going to pay us to move them? How are we going to be resettled?"

Another middle-aged man shouted in a deep voice, expressing his disapproval of his unrealistic idea.

“Those companies that want to build factories here will have to give us resettlement fees, and we will also receive land dividends.”

"Fool, do you think this is enough for you to move out and live?"

Seeing that the two were about to start arguing, the clan chief slammed his cane down hard, making a dull thud.

"What's all the noise about? Are you making a scene in front of our ancestors and giving them a reason to laugh at us?"

“If they really move away, our Mo Family Village will fall apart.”

Everyone fell silent as they listened to the middle-aged woman's choked words.

They have a strong sense of clan and value family relationships more than any other group.

If we just let things fall apart like this, won't our ancestors blame us?

Will I be punished if I go to the underworld a hundred years later?

The clan chief sighed and tried to straighten his hunched upper body by supporting himself with his cane.

"Let's take another look, let's take another look."

"If all else fails, we must find another way. The living are far more important than the dead."

Everyone understood that the clan chief would not agree to the method of using his own juniors as sacrifices.

"Then let's try harder."

In fact, everyone knew that the outcome was unlikely to be what they wanted, and they were all somewhat disheartened.

While the villagers of Mojia Village were gathered around the ancestral hall discussing the matter, Shen Yulou had already worked hard to clear a space underwater.

This is the residence of the River God's Palace, where the pollution level is not as severe.

Piao Piao~ Little Piao Piao~

A plump, pink betta fish, radiating an ethereal aura, floated slowly across the water.

Don't be fooled by the baby's chubby body; its tail and paws undulate and wrinkle like silk as it swings, as thin as a cicada's wing.

No one expected that such a dirty river would have such beautiful little creatures living at its bottom.

What is Dad doing?

The baby swam towards its father, but it swam too fast and capsized again.

His head fell off?

Conversely, conversely.

The little guy fluttered its paws vigorously, and the whole fish swam backwards for a distance with its belly up.

It was the little octopus who used his tentacles to straighten the baby back up.

The two walked side by side as good friends toward Shen Yulou.

Shen Yulou is pulling up water plants underwater.

The clothes of the river god have always been woven from water plants, a tradition of the river god clan.

"The baby's here? Wow, the baby is so beautiful."

"The baby is a beautiful fish, with an ethereal aura."

Upon hearing his father's words, the little one happily wagged his tail and spun around in front of his father.

Beautiful little fish!

Wow, Daddy, do you still remember when our baby was a baby?