Chapter 172
After leaving Master Lu behind, Fan Xiaoxiao briefly told everyone about Gu Zhongtai's stay in Tianshan.
After learning that the two of them were staying in Tianshan for the time being, Xiao Hei and Bai Hua said that they would first take everyone to their destination and then leave for a while.
When Xiao Bao found out, he was very reluctant to part with them. Even now, when driving, he clings to the two of them.
The carriage swayed as the group followed the female disciple from Tianshan across the river Fan Xiaoxiao had seen earlier. After traveling for a short while longer, the female disciple dismounted.
"We've arrived, this is the place."
After saying that, she walked towards the village behind the tree.
"I'll go and fetch the village chief. You all wait here for a while."
Fan Xiaoxiao poked her head out of the carriage and responded. Before her stood a huge ginkgo tree. Not far behind the tree was the village she had seen on the other side of the river.
After getting off the carriage, she discovered that the village was much larger than she had imagined, with houses winding their way from near the ginkgo trees to the distant foot of the mountain.
Xiao Bao, holding Xiao Hei's hand, frowned slightly and let out a soft "ah".
"Ah...this is it."
Fan Xiaoxiao looked at him with some confusion: "Xiaobao, have you been here before?"
"kindness……"
Xiao Bao nodded, but his brows remained tightly furrowed. It seemed he was recalling something unpleasant.
Fan Xiaoxiao looked up at Fan Shi and Aunt Wang with a hint of doubt, but she didn't expect that the others also had furrowed brows or pursed lips. They all looked unhappy.
"What... what's going on?"
Fan Xiaoxiao looked at everyone with some confusion. Just then, the female disciple from Tianshan returned with a tall, thin man.
"Miss Xiaoxiao, this is Chief Fu of Ginkgo Village. If you need anything, just tell him."
Fan Xiaoxiao looked at the village chief she was pointing to. He looked to be about the same age as Uncle Wang and the others, around fifty years old. He had a small goatee, high cheekbones, and upturned eyes, which made him look like someone not to be trifled with.
After listening to the female disciple's introduction, he lowered his eyes and looked at Fan Xiaoxiao with a scrutinizing expression.
"You are the lady the Celestial Venerable spoke of, right?"
Fan Xiaoxiao frowned secretly. The wealthy village chief in front of her was clearly putting on an arrogant and condescending attitude, which she found very irritating.
Village Chief Fu didn't notice Fan Xiaoxiao's expression. His eyes slowly swept over the faces of everyone present, and after letting out a snort through his nose, he said, "I wondered who it was, but it's you all."
The female disciple sensed something was amiss from the village chief's sarcastic tone. However, Fan Xiaoxiao was, after all, someone the Celestial Venerable had instructed, and if the village chief didn't give them face, it would be disrespectful to the Tianshan Sect.
She took two steps forward, her expression cold.
"Village Chief Fu, do you know Xiaoxiao's family?"
The wealthy village chief noticed the change in the female disciple's tone, but he seemed completely unconcerned, still tilting his chin up and slowly nodding: "I know. They came to the village a few days ago, saying they wanted to stay. The people in our village were afraid, so we didn't let them in. Heroine, you know the world is in turmoil lately, and our village is one of the wealthiest places in the surrounding area, while these people were dressed in rags. So…"
He didn't finish his sentence, but Fan Xiaoxiao understood what he meant.
The villagers clearly didn't allow the Fan family to enter the village because of their tattered clothes.
But things were clearly not that simple. After hearing what the village chief said, Xiao Bao's face turned red with anger. He used all his strength to push forward, and no matter how much Aunt Wang pulled, he couldn't get out.
“You’re lying! You want us to pay a lot of money to live in a dilapidated house, and you say there’s nowhere to stay in your village. You even say that since we can drive a horse-drawn carriage, we don’t have to worry about the money! When we refused to stay, you called us poor wretches and kicked us out!”
Xiao Bao rarely speaks so many words at once, but in his anger, he managed to make himself very clear.
The female disciple frowned slightly in displeasure. Most of the people living in Ginkgo Village were related to disciples or elders of Tianshan Mountain in some way. Because they feared enemies would come looking for them, the village was extremely xenophobic.
As expected, after hearing Xiao Bao's words, the rich village chief's expression did not change much; instead, he sneered.
"What evidence do you have that we asked you for money? Go ask someone in the village. We don't lack money for food and other necessities. How could we say we wanted a lot of money from you? Little kid, you can eat whatever you want, but you can't talk nonsense."
"you!"
Ask the villagers, and they'd never tell the truth. That day, a whole group of them were talking at once, saying the houses here were incredibly expensive, demanding a huge sum of money. When they refused, they almost robbed them, hurling all sorts of nasty insults. If Baihua and Xiaohei hadn't reacted quickly, they probably wouldn't have been able to leave the village.
So when the village chief said he hadn't said those things, Xiao Bao was completely enraged by the man's shamelessness. His little chest heaved violently, and he pointed at him for a long time, unable to utter a word. Finally, the little guy's eyes reddened with anger, and he turned and buried himself in Fan Xiaoxiao's arms.
Sensing Tuanzi's anger, Fan Xiaoxiao's expression turned completely cold. Xiaobao wouldn't lie; what he said was most likely true. Besides, he was still young and couldn't speak very clearly. But judging from the extent of his anger, the situation was probably not good.
"Sister, since the Celestial Venerable has promised us a piece of land, can we choose any place we like?"
Fan Xiaoxiao stared at the wealthy village chief with a cold face for a long time, then suddenly thought of something and asked the female disciple.
"Yes."
After the female disciple finished speaking, the village chief frowned.
"The Celestial Venerable said to let them choose for themselves? How can that be? If they choose a place with inhabited houses, wouldn't that mean our village would have to move? Heh, heroine, although this is the Celestial Venerable's will, if that's really the case, then we're afraid we can't comply."
He was getting anxious.
Fan Xiaoxiao looked up at the village not far away and sneered, "Then, according to the village chief, where should we stay?"
“I’ve already decided on a place. If you want to stay, stay in an empty house at the end of the village. It’s quiet there.”
After speaking, Village Chief Fu raised his hand and pointed to the foot of the mountain in the distance. Fan Xiaoxiao and the others squinted and searched for a long time before finally finding another small mud-brick house, but the house looked dilapidated and on the verge of collapse.
Fan Xiaoxiao laughed out loud: "Sister, look, this is the place they gave us to stay. I thought the old man would give us a big place, but when we got here, it turned out to be a dilapidated house."
The female disciple understood that Fan Xiaoxiao's words implied that the people here did not take the Heavenly Venerable seriously at all, and her expression immediately turned extremely ugly.
The village chief narrowed his eyes: "How can you say that, madam? We don't have much room for people to live here. Do you really want to force us to move? If you want the whole Ginkgo Village, do you expect me, the village chief, to move to a different location for you?"
"Oh, I wouldn't dare accept that."
Fan Xiaoxiao waved her hand, mimicking his expression with disdain.
"Your place is too precious, and the people breathe too heavily when they talk. We can't get used to it."
"What does Lady Xiaoxiao mean?"
Fan Xiaoxiao glanced at the female disciple who had spoken: "Let's find another place."
The village chief's lips twitched slightly, seemingly quite pleased with what Fan Xiaoxiao had said.
But then Fan Xiaoxiao added, "However, I like this tree at the entrance of their village. Since we can't live here, I'll take it with me."
(End of this chapter)
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