Chapter 77 Taking Advantage of Disaster
"Let's dig up all these sweet potatoes tomorrow!" Du Ruoxia said.
Gao Songbai, Xu E, and the adults in the village all looked over, their expressions filled with shock.
"Comrade Du, we can't dig that land like that; it'll be hard to explain later," Gao Songbai said, looking troubled.
The others nodded in agreement.
Aunt Gao's real name is Gao Aijin. She is known in the village for being stingy and miserly. Anyone who dares to pick up tree roots around her land will be scolded by her for hours. So everyone knows her character very well.
“Aunt Gao is not an easy person to get along with, so it’s best if we don’t mess with her,” Xu E also advised.
Du Ruoxia glanced at them without saying a word; they would know whether she needed it or not tomorrow.
Du Ruoxia had Tie Niu build a mud mound, then took the pot that Grandpa Gao Songbai had brought and used it to boil sweet potatoes with rainwater.
Du Ruoxia sighed, noting that at this time of year, there was no acid rain, so naturally, the rules weren't so strict.
"Let's fill our stomachs first. We'll see how it goes tomorrow. If Tie Niu puts in more, that's fine," Du Ruoxia said, looking at Tie Niu.
Tie Niu washed the pile of sweet potatoes and threw them in; they didn't dig up many.
As the rice was almost ripe, lights shone in from the foot of the mountain, and Du Ruoxia looked at Gao Songbai.
Gao Songbai immediately grabbed a flashlight and ran downstairs, and several elderly men followed after settling their children down as well.
"You all should find seats first, this tent isn't big enough," Du Ruoxia said to Xu E.
Upon hearing that there weren't enough seats, Xu E immediately pulled her child to sit down by the fire, saying, "Let's sit here; our clothes can dry if they get wet."
Du Ruoxia smiled. They were all shrewd people, and she moved over to sit down without making a sound.
"Sister, the sweet potatoes are cooked!" Tie Niu's mouth watered as he looked at the fire.
"Yes, let's dig it out and take a look," Du Ruoxia replied with a smile.
Tie Niu was quick; he and his friends dug out the sweet potatoes.
"Sister, you eat first!" Tie Niu gave Du Ruoxia the first bite.
"Take these to the grandpas first, we'll eat later," Du Ruoxia said, patting Tie Niu's head.
Tie Niu listens to Du Ruoxia very well; he immediately takes action as soon as she tells him to.
Du Ruoxia found the roasted sweet potato very delicious, mainly because she was really hungry.
"The food in the pot is cooked too. If you're still hungry, go get some more." Du Ruoxia said to everyone, then looked up at the hilltop.
There were many flashlights there, forming a long line of lights. Du Ruoxia smiled and pursed her lips.
"Comrade Du, most of the people have gone up the mountain. Just as you predicted, the water level has risen to waist level!" Gao Songbai ran over excitedly.
Du Ruoxia's eyes turned slightly cold. "What about those who didn't come up?"
Gao Songbai scratched his head sheepishly and said, "They collect things from their homes before going up the mountain."
Du Ruoxia sighed, "These people are really courting death!"
"Go down the mountain, and shout together, 'The flood is coming!'" Du Ruoxia said seriously.
The villagers carrying their luggage up the mountain shook their heads upon hearing this, saying, "They have a lot of things at home, and they can't collect them all in a short time. Some of them have already been washed away!"
Upon hearing this, Gao Songbai realized the seriousness of the situation and organized a few people to go down the mountain.
People who had just arrived at the mountain consciously went into the shed that Du Ruoxia had set up, and the shed became crowded as soon as they put their belongings inside.
"Could you move me a little more?" They started arguing about where to sit.
"These sweet potatoes smell so good, I'm starving!" a woman's voice suddenly rang out.
Du Ruoxia looked over and recognized Gao Aijin. She then looked at Wang Hu's mother.
"Of course it smells good! That's from your house, and it took me and Tie Niu a lot of effort to dig it up!" Xu E said proudly, without even glancing at Gao Aijin's expression.
"Xu E, what did you say! You dug up my sweet potatoes!"
"You dare to steal my sweet potatoes! You shameless bastard, I'll beat you to death today!" Gao Aijin said, grabbing her tools and rushing over.
"You owe me a chicken, and I dug up a few sweet potatoes and you're complaining? Who's shameless here!" Xu E also rushed up to argue with Aunt Gao.
Du Ruoxia stepped aside and gave up her seat; only someone like Xu E could command such respect.
"You son of a bitch, you led outsiders to steal so much from me and you still say you only stole a few? You've dug up most of that plot of land!" Gao Aijin said, pointing with her flashlight at the dug-up area.
“Gao Aijin, I’ll have some of your sweet potatoes too. Tie Niu was worried I’d starve, so I dug up a few extra for you!” said Gao Songbai’s grandfather, Old Master Gao.
Others who ate the sweet potatoes echoed this sentiment, and no one said it was Du Ruoxia's idea.
"You're all robbers! You owe me sweet potatoes, you owe me money!" Gao Aijin collapsed to the ground, crying and screaming.
"Dream on! We ate it, so we ate it. You've taken advantage of us plenty of times before!" Xu E pointed at her and cursed.
"It's all because of this vixen! She must have bewitched you into doing this!" Gao Aijin immediately changed her tune when she couldn't win the argument with Xu E.
Du Ruoxia closed her eyes, unable to hold back her anger, and started cursing.
"Are those inanimate objects more important than life?"
"At this moment, saving your life is the most important thing. What use are those dead things if you're dead?"
"You're facing disaster and you're still thinking about useless things? This rain won't stop for three to five days, and you won't even be able to see your homes tomorrow. If you want to survive, you have to rely on yourselves!"
Du Ruoxia said a few words, paused, and looked at the shed that was already full of people. "Tie Niu, dismantle the shed, so she won't complain that it's taking up her space!"
The onlookers' faces changed upon hearing this; with the rain pouring down, how could they survive without shelter?
"Gao Aijin, we're in trouble today, can't we even use your land for a bit?"
"Yes, we helped you before!"
“Yes, Aunt Gao, we owe you today, and we will definitely repay you in the future!” Some people pointed at Gao Aijin and said.
Gao Aijin felt as if she were being roasted over a fire, so embarrassed she wanted to disappear.
"That's not what I meant. I just don't want to give it to this vixen!" Gao Aijin argued, but no one agreed with her.
Du Ruoxia wants to dismantle the shed, and everyone will have nowhere to go. If they don't kick Du Ruoxia out, it's like she's using the sweet potatoes for free, and they'll even lose them. She's not willing to accept that.
"Since she wants to use it, then she has to pay for it!" Gao Aijin gritted her teeth and glared fiercely at Du Ruoxia.
Upon hearing this, everyone glared at her angrily.
Instead of getting angry, Du Ruoxia smiled, her clear eyes fixed on Gao Aijin.
"Oh, how many do you want?" she asked calmly, her tone revealing no emotion.
"What money? I don't agree!" Xu E blocked Du Ruoxia's way.
"Yes, we disagree!"
"You don't have any money. Go find the brigade!"
Voices of opposition rose and fell in the crowd, and the rainy night was no longer so bad for Du Ruoxia.
Gao Aijin has been forced to retreat step by step by everyone, and from now on it will be a downward slope.
The things she brought up the mountain fell out. Du Ruoxia saw that they were all tools and items. She was covered in mud and looked extremely disheveled, but Du Ruoxia felt nothing.
"How much sweet potato do you want from your plot?" Du Ruoxia asked again.
Everyone looked at her with disapproval, but Du Ruoxia just smiled calmly.
Gao Aijin was too scared to look at everyone, but when she heard that Du Ruoxia was going to give her money, she immediately showed a satisfied expression.
"Such a large piece of land should cost at least 8 yuan!" Aunt Gao said guiltily.
"Why don't you just rob it!"
"You shameless bastard! Taking advantage of my misfortune!"
"You're dreaming!"
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