Chapter 509 Kick them out
As for Ye Wanxi and the others, apart from Shi Yuyan who humbly volunteered to kneel in the ancestral hall, they all accepted their fate and slept soundly, carrying the peace charms and insect repellent pills given to them by Ye Wanxi.
While things were peaceful on their side, Wu Chi, along with several elderly people in the village, didn't sleep well all night.
No sooner had Ye Wanxi and the others left than Wu Chi pulled his father and grandfather aside to ask about what had happened that night.
"Grandpa, what exactly happened? Doesn't our village not welcome outsiders? Why were these people let in? What if..."
Grandpa Wu waved his hand reassuringly to his grandson, his expression complicated, and said, "This really wasn't our idea."
Wu Chi frowned slightly. All the people in the village who could make decisions were here. If it wasn't them who made the decision, then who was?
Seemingly sensing Wu Chi's inner doubts, Grandpa Wu pondered for a moment before recounting to Wu Chi what had happened in the ancestral hall that night.
Wu Chi was completely bewildered after hearing this. It turned out that while he was frantically attacking from below, the ancestors in the ancestral hall not only hindered him but also helped outsiders steal the tower.
Wu Chi was stunned for a moment, then his face darkened, and he said seriously, "Have you confirmed that this matter has been investigated? Could it be that someone deliberately caused trouble at the ancestral hall, and it was just a coincidence?"
Wu Chi's words were not unfounded. He was in his early twenties, a few years older than Tao Wan, and being a boy, he had been going out with his uncles for the past two or three years.
It was through his experiences outside these past few years that he understood why his grandfather and father had to defy the pressure from their uncles and elders who opposed their involvement in the world, and insisted on letting them go out and see the outside world from time to time.
Even though Wu Chi had previously held prejudices against everything outside the village and disliked it, he had to admit that there were many things outside that they could not see in the village, and many things that they could not encounter in the village.
Before this, Wu Chi had the good fortune to witness several sophisticated and ingenious scams, which had a significant impact on him.
Therefore, upon hearing his grandfather's words, Wu Chi's first thought was not that his ancestors had appeared to him, but that someone was deliberately causing trouble behind his back.
Grandpa Wu knew what he meant. If he could, wouldn't he also hope that this was just a coincidence orchestrated by someone with ulterior motives?
"When the earthquake struck the ancestral hall, the patrol team was nearby and didn't notice anything amiss. Moreover, the second anomaly happened right in front of all of us, leaving us no choice but to believe it."
Wu Chi choked. He knew that such a big matter couldn't be baseless if his grandfather had brought it up.
It's likely that these senior figures present had already engaged in a debate before he arrived, and what we see now is simply the final result of that debate.
"But why is that? They're just outsiders, why did our patriarch and the others..."
"None of us can say for sure what the ancestors meant. The only thing we can be sure of is that the ancestors did not want us to drive them or any of them away."
Wu Chi wasn't stupid. Hearing his grandfather say this, he immediately realized: "Grandpa suspects that this person is that kid, so he made him kneel in the ancestral hall?"
"There were only a few people who came here tonight, and since Tao Wan came, it's most likely this kid."
Grandpa Wu didn't immediately draw a conclusion: "But that's not necessarily true. Anyway, it wouldn't be unfair to make this brat kneel in the ancestral hall for a whole night."
To put it bluntly, Grandpa Wu harbored some resentment towards Shi Yuyan for abducting a girl from their village, a girl he had watched grow up and who was practically his own granddaughter.
Don't be fooled by Shi Yuyan's confident and responsible words just now. If he were truly responsible, his friend would have brought his child back immediately after it was born.
"We'll know tomorrow morning whether it's him or not. If it really is him..."
Grandpa Wu didn't say what he would do if it were him, so everything is still unknown and it's too early to talk about it now.
However, if the person the ancestor was truly concerned about was him, then he certainly couldn't be let go so easily.
As Grandpa Wu spoke, he suddenly seemed to remember something and looked at his grandson with a complicated expression: "You know about Tao Wan's matter, right?"
Wu Chi was slightly taken aback, then nodded and said, "Yes, Father told me everything."
"So what's your thought?"
Wu Chi was startled by his grandfather's pitying look, as if his own child had been cheated on and cuckolded. He twitched his lips and said, "What else could I possibly think? I've told you all this time and again. Xiao Wan and I aren't what you think. I only see her as a younger sister. Since she's willing to have children with that brat, she probably doesn't have any feelings for me. She only sees me as a brother. Stop trying to play matchmaker!"
Wu Chi was right; he disliked Shi Yuyan, purely out of brother-in-law disdain for his brother-in-law.
Grandpa Wu saw that he didn't seem to be lying, and while he breathed a sigh of relief, he was also a little disappointed. He had indeed considered marrying into the Tao family before, but it was a pity.
"Alright, alright, since you're not interested, Grandpa won't force you."
"Grandpa, what should we do about Xiaowan and her grandfather's relationship, as the clan is preparing for this?"
Grandpa Wu glanced at the silent crowd and sighed, "This is a difficult matter for us too. Your Grandpa Tao's family has been struggling these past few years, but this matter is no small thing. You were still young when that happened back then, but you should have heard about it."
“Many of the victims’ relatives and family members are still alive in the village. Most of these people have harbored deep hatred for outsiders ever since. Although they have not objected to the clan sending young people out to see the world in recent years, their own children have always been excluded and unwilling to go out. This time, the same thing happened again. A few days ago, they secretly joined forces to make trouble, trying to get us to drive your Grandpa Tao and Tao girl out.”
"Kick them out?" Wu Chi's expression changed slightly, and he became somewhat anxious. "Grandpa Tao and Xiao Wan have no relatives or friends. Where can they go if we kick them out? No, we absolutely cannot do that."
Grandpa Wu sighed. They wouldn't want to do that either, but if the majority of the villagers demanded it and public sentiment was agitated, they would have no choice but to make a statement.
"We'll talk about this later. You just got back, go back and rest first. I also need to see your Grandpa Tao and tell him about that kid."
After Grandpa Wu spoke, everyone dispersed.
Most people didn't sleep well that night, and the next morning, everyone went to the ancestral hall without prior arrangement.
As soon as I entered, I saw Shi Yuyan curled up under the incense table, fast asleep with a futon in her arms.
The incense in the censer in front of the ancestral tablets had long since burned out.
It seems... nothing happened?
(End of this chapter)
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