The four Western Moon soldiers chatted amongst themselves for a while longer before descending the mountain, without continuing their search.
If they had searched around, they would have found many people hiding there, but they genuinely believed what Zhao Dazui said was true.
The others probably moved away a long time ago, which is why they left.
As the Xiyue soldiers walked away, the villagers silently gathered around. Zhao Hulu, his eyes bloodshot, dragged Zhao Dahua to the corpses of Zhao Dazui and Zhao Daniu, kicked them to the ground, and roared, "It was all your fault for instigating Daniu! Today I'll make you pay with your life!"
As he spoke, he went up and grabbed Zhao Dahua by the neck.
"Help!" Zhao Dahua struggled violently, trying to pry Zhao Hulu's wrists open. She was terrified too. When she sent Zhao Daniu down the mountain to get the silver, she didn't mean for him to die. She hated Zhao Daniu and Zhao Dazui, but she never imagined they would die like this. She really didn't expect it. She just couldn't bear to part with the silver; it was money she had secretly and painstakingly hidden away.
"Uncle Zhao, Uncle Zhao, please wake up." Zhao Youtian quickly pulled her away. Actually, he also felt that Zhao Dahua deserved to die, but now was not the time: "Aunt Dazui and Da Niu are already gone. Let's settle them down first."
The other villagers silently helped dig the pit. There was no coffin, not even a tattered straw mat. The two were buried together, and a blank tombstone was erected. Zhao Hulu squatted in front of the small grave, silently wiping away his tears.
Zhao Dahua was terrified. She and Zhao Hulu were now locked in a deadly feud, and she feared that Zhao Hulu would definitely try to take advantage of her on the way. She had no one to rely on now, what should she do?
Just then, she instinctively saw Li Rouniang and Sanni, whom she was holding. Suddenly, a thought struck her, and she knelt before the grave, crying, "Father, I could never have harmed Da Niu. Da Niu went to get the money for me last night after I told him I had left some silver at home. He thought that if he brought the money back, Mother would be happy. I didn't stop him. I was about to tell you, but it was too late. I thought he might just come back quickly and wouldn't be in any danger. I never expected it to turn out like this. I really didn't mean to."
Zhao Hulu just lowered his head and glared at her fiercely. Zhao Dahua knew that what she said was not enough to stop Zhao Hulu from killing her.
So she clutched her lower abdomen and said, “Father, I’m already pregnant with Da Niu’s child. How could I possibly kill the father of my child? Believe me, I’m really doing this for the good of our family. I dug a small hole under my bed in my bedroom, and there are two taels of silver stored inside.”
"A mere two taels of silver cost my Da Niu his life," Zhao Hulu said, his voice trembling.
But at this moment, he no longer had the intention to kill Zhao Dahua, because he heard Zhao Dahua say that she already had his Da Niu's child, which was the grandson he had been longing for. Even if it was a girl, it would be fine, as his Da Niu would have an heir. If it was a girl, then they could marry into the Zhao family and continue the lineage of the Zhao family.
So he stared intently at Da Hua's belly and asked, "Are you really pregnant with Da Niu's child? Are you sure?"
"Dad, this can't be kept a secret even if it's fake," Zhao Dahua stammered, her heart pounding with anxiety.
Zhao Hulu believed in Zhao Dahua and sighed deeply, saying, "Alas, perhaps this is fate."
Hearing this, Zhao Dahua breathed a sigh of relief; he had completely given up on killing her.
He covered his stomach with his hand; that was his weapon for survival.
But these first three months have been fine. What will she do if her belly starts to show after three months? She's starting to worry.
After dealing with Da Zui's funeral arrangements, Zhao Youtian continued to bring up the old matter: "Now I plan to head into the deep mountains before dawn. Those who are ready to come with me can come now. If you want to stay, I won't stop you, but I have a word of advice. As you just saw, those people are inhuman. If you stay on the mountain and get caught by them, you can imagine the consequences."
Everyone fell silent, including the old man who had just said he couldn't bear to leave his homeland. In fact, he was also hesitant. He had originally thought that if he stayed, his son and grandson would naturally stay with him, and they would hide in the mountain for a while.
The Western Moon people will leave sooner or later, and we'll go back, but right now it seems that if we're not captured, then death is the only outcome.
He was old, and it wouldn't matter if he died, but he still had a son and a grandson, and he couldn't let them all die because of this, so no one said anything about staying.
Zhao Youtian looked at Li Rouniang again. Li Rouniang wanted to stay because Mo Bei hadn't returned yet, but Old Man Mo, holding Xiaoshan, said, "Let's go too, clan leader."
"Uncle Mo, I..." Li Rouniang wanted to say something, but after looking at Sanni in her arms and then at Dani and Erni beside her, she couldn't say anything.
If she were alone, she would stay. Even if it took all her strength, she would go back into the town to look for Mo Bei. But now she is a mother with three children. Moreover, if Mo Bei is not there, she also has to protect Old Man Mo and Xiao Shan. So she absolutely cannot leave.
She had to protect them; it was something she owed Mo Bei!
Without the protection of the clan chief, the old and the young would likely find it difficult to move an inch in these mountains.
“Rou Niang, let’s follow the clan leader. Mo Bei Ruo is back and will find us by following his footprints. If it is him—” Old Man Mo choked up as he said, “That is his fate.”
Li Rouniang said with tears in her eyes, "I'm sorry, Uncle Mo, it's my fault that Mo Bei was harmed."
“Rou Niang, you are not wrong. The mistake lies in the state of the world. It was the people of Xiyue who invaded our land and murdered our people. We will remember this blood debt and avenge it, and we will avenge it if we have the chance in the future!” Although Old Man Mo’s voice was not loud, it shook the hearts of everyone present.
Yes, if given the chance, I will definitely avenge this.
"Without further ado, let's pack up and prepare to head into the deep mountains. Since this is a deep mountain, I plan to form a team. We have about 60 people now, so we'll form six teams, with about ten people per team."
The team included elderly people, children, women, and of course, men. It was a well-balanced group.
"If any team encounters a problem, we can help each other out." Zhao Youtian organized the discussion methodically, and everyone nodded silently.
Zhao Youtian tried his best to group the family members into one team, and then added a few men. Therefore, Li Rouniang and her family were not separated, and a family of three was added to the team: the Zhao brothers, Dahe and Erhe, and their widowed mother, Zhao Li.
Neither Dahe nor Erhe is married yet. Although one is sixteen and the other is fourteen, they are considered to be in their prime at the moment.
Zhao Lishi was a kind person and loved children. She had her two sons, one leading the way and the other bringing up the rear, while the rest of the family walked in the middle.
Every now and then, she would ask Dahe and Erhe to help carry Da Ni and Er Ni, saving Li Rou Niang a lot of effort.
Li Rouniang was very grateful to Zhao Lishi. Zhao Lishi understood Li Rouniang's feelings at that moment. When she was young, her husband had passed away so early, leaving behind two children. Fortunately, the village was stable back then, and the situation was better than Li Rouniang's family's now.
Now that the entire village is being relocated, the environment is even harsher, and it's uncertain whether these children will survive the long journey. Zhao Li sighed.
It's all about timing and fate!
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