Chapter 138 Alas, Village Chief Wu is gone.

Bai Zilin shook his head with an "I don't know" look on his face, thinking to himself, "Of course I killed him. If that old man wanted to harm him, would I let him live?"

At this moment, Zhao Hanzi came out of the courtyard of Village Chief Wu's house. Seeing the two of them, he went up to them and said, "Oh, you've just come back? I bet you don't know yet, but Village Chief Wu is gone. Alas, now there are only a widow and her child left in the family. It's so pitiful. How will they survive? It seems I'll have to come and help out more often. We're all from the same village, and I can't bear to see this. Hehehe, I'm just a kind-hearted person."

Liu Ye touched her nose, thinking to herself, "You're so kind-hearted, but you seem quite happy to me. Your mouth is practically stretched to the back of your head, and you're radiating joy. It's good that Village Chief Wu died. Could it be that he killed Village Chief Wu...?"

Bai Zilin asked in surprise, "How did Village Chief Wu die? He was perfectly fine yesterday. Liu Ye and I went to town early this morning and just got back."

Old Zhao sighed and said, "Well, here's what happened. Aunt Wu woke up early this morning and found that Village Chief Wu was missing. She searched her house and the surrounding area but couldn't find him. So she went to look for him in the village, but she couldn't find him there either. Later, Aunt Wu came to me and asked me to bring the villagers to help her look for him."

“I’m a kind-hearted person, so I quickly gathered more than a dozen young men in the village to help look for Village Chief Wu. But we searched the whole village and the surrounding area and couldn’t find him. Then I thought that he might have gone to see Changgui, so I quickly led people to Changgui’s grave to look for him. And that’s when we saw him… He was lying in front of Changgui’s grave, already dead, his body frozen stiff. Alas, it was so pitiful!”

Bai Zilin nodded with a look of sympathy: "It is indeed quite pitiful, Brother Hanzi. Now, only an orphan and a widow are left in Village Chief Wu's family. I can't go and help them, so I'll leave it to you. Liu Ye and I will go back first."

"I understand, you guys should hurry home, it's getting late." Zhao Hanzi said with a simple and honest smile, secretly pleased that Bai Zilin wouldn't get too close to Wu Xincao, otherwise he would stand out.

He had liked Wu Xincao since he was a child, but unfortunately, Wu Xincao, relying on being the village chief's daughter, always looked down on him and never reciprocated his feelings. Now, her father was dead, her brother was dead, and she was left as a widow and her child. Surely she would finally take a liking to him, right? "La la la la." Zhao Hanzi quickly covered his mouth. Oh dear, why couldn't he hold back again?

As Liu Ye and Bai Zilin walked home, they would occasionally look back and say, "What happened to Village Chief Wu's family? They've done too many bad things and are now getting their comeuppance. Wu Changgui just died, and now Village Chief Wu is right behind them. It's like a rope always breaks at its weakest point, misfortune always finds the unfortunate, and when it rains, it pours; when the boat is broken, it encounters a headwind."

Bai Zilin smiled and held Liu Ye's hand: "Although the Wu family is just a widow and her child left, they are not pitiful. There are plenty of people willing to take care of them. The one who spoke just now was Zhao Hanzi, a neighbor of the Wu family. He hasn't married yet, and I guess he has his eye on Wu Xincao. Old Mrs. Wu is past her prime, and the Wu family left her a lot of wealth. I guess there are other people eyeing her too."

Liu Ye said with a smile, "I was just saying. Now that Village Chief Wu and his son are dead, no one in the village will bother us anymore. We can move to the town and still come back to the village from time to time. By the way, we still have land in our village. When spring comes, we'll plant fruit trees on the land. I've already contacted them about the saplings. There's a family in the next village who planted a lot of saplings, and I've already placed an order with them."

Bai Zilin didn't doubt her words after hearing them. His little wife was quite capable and lucky: "I'll listen to you."

The two returned home and cooked together. Bai Zilin helped with the fire, while Liu Ye made hand-pulled noodles and a sauerkraut and meat sauce. By the time they finished eating, it was completely dark. After washing up, they went to bed on the kang (a heated brick bed), each in their own room.

The next day, Bai Zilin went up the mountain before dawn. Liu Ye heard the commotion and got up early to cook. She made a pot of pancakes and half a pot of pickled cabbage and Sichuan-style pork. She put everything in the pot to keep warm because it was cold and it would cool down quickly if she left it outside. If she were alone at home, she would have kept it in her space.

Suddenly, there was a loud banging on the door. Liu Ye went to the door and opened it. To her surprise, it was Wu Xincao. She was wearing a small white flower in her hair, and her face was pale and swollen, with her eyes swollen shut.

Liu Ye was curious. She was in such a sorry state, why was she running around here instead of staying at home? Was she here to see Brother Bai?

"Is there something you need?" Wu Xincao nodded pitifully and said in a hoarse voice, "I need Brother Bai's help. Could you please ask him to come out for a moment..."

Upon hearing this, Liu Ye realized that the girl was indeed looking for Brother Bai. The brat was still up to no good. "Brother Bai went hunting in the mountains. Tell me what you need him for, and I'll tell him when he gets back."

Wu Xincao hesitated for a moment and said, "Tell Brother Bai to come to my house. My mother needs to see him. I'm going back now. You must tell him that it's not me who needs to see him, it's my mother..."

Liu Ye rolled her eyes and said, "I know, I'll tell Brother Bai."

Suddenly, Wu Xincao looked at the hillside and shouted, "Brother Bai is back!"

Liu Ye also looked towards the hillside. On the hillside, Bai Zilin was carrying his prey back. She rolled her eyes speechlessly. He really came back at the right time.

Bai Zilin carried his prey to the front door. He glanced at Wu Xincao and looked at Liu Ye, saying, "It's so cold outside. Why are you standing there freezing? Go back inside."

Liu Ye glanced coldly at Wu Xincao and said sarcastically, "Isn't someone asking you to go to their house? Brother Bai, give me the prey and go see what's going on."

Bai Zilin frowned and looked at Wu Xincao: "You want to see me about something?"

Wu Xincao nodded with a wronged look on her face: "My mother needs to see you. Brother Bai, please come to my house with me. Now it's just my widow and her children left at home, and there are some things we can't do..."

Bai Zilin threw the prey into the yard: "Leave it there and I'll deal with it when I get back. I'll be right back."

Liu Ye nodded: "Okay, come back soon."

Bai Zilin and Wu Xincao arrived at her house, where she invited them to her mother's room. Old Mrs. Wu was sitting on the kang (a heated brick bed), her hair disheveled and her face pale, as if she were ill. As soon as she saw Bai Zilin arrive, she hurriedly asked him to sit down in a hoarse voice: "Please sit down, Auntie is not feeling well, so I won't get up. Xincao, quickly pour Zilin a cup of sugar water. Look how cold it is, Auntie is so sorry to trouble you to make this trip."

Bai Zilin sat down on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) and asked bluntly, "I wonder what brings you here, Auntie?"

Wu Xincao poured a glass of sugar water and handed it to Bai Zilin: "Brother Bai, have some sugar water. I put in two spoonfuls of sugar. Try it, it's very sweet..."

Bai Zilin took the bowl and placed it on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), showing no intention of drinking it. Wu Xincao sat down next to her mother, feeling wronged.

With a pained expression, Granny Wu took Wu Xincao's hand and held it tenderly in her palm. "Alas, now it's just the two of us left at home. Life is tough. With the New Year and spring approaching, there's still a lot of land to cultivate. This family can't function without a man to manage things. Zilin, I think you're better than any of the young men in the village. You're capable, hardworking, and a good person to manage a household. I'd like to invite you to marry into the Wu family. If you agree, you'll be in charge of all the big and small matters in the family from now on. We'll listen to you, and you'll manage the finances. I know Liuye is your fiancée, and you two have a deep affection for each other. You can marry Xincao first, and then, a month later, marry her as your second wife. Xincao and I have no objections. It all depends on whether you agree or not."