Chapter 126, exclusively published on Jinjiang Literature City: They can loot, so why should we...?
Good heavens, this is really something! We just chased away a bunch of people trying to scam us, and now this extortionist has shown up?
[The floating bus cost the streamer hundreds of thousands of points, and now he's asking to hand it over? How shameless!]
No, no, no, the other party definitely wants more than just one car. Four cars together would cost far more than a few hundred thousand; they'd be worth several million!
Wow! That's quite an appetite.
Lu Xuan's eyes were indifferent.
Even if he has over 30 million points in total, it doesn't mean he doesn't care about a few million. Besides, he wants to get something for nothing. He's really ugly but has high hopes.
The villagers knew that the hovercars belonged to Lu Xuan, and it was his prerogative to dispose of them as he pleased; they had no right to interfere. However, the officials' nonchalant attitude, and even the way they were asked to be grateful to the so-called superiors when they handed over the hovercars and supplies, made their anger, which had just subsided, surge up again.
Seeing their lack of response, the officials said impatiently, "Speak up! Where are the carts and the supplies? Are you going to hand them over or not? You're not really going to oppose us, the officials, or the government, are you?"
Chen Rong, standing behind, couldn't help but mutter, "It's like the government is still as powerful as before. If you're so capable, why don't you take care of the other forces in the city? What are you doing here showing off?" He added, "Believe it or not, if all their superpowered individuals unleashed their power, they could uproot the entire government building!"
The other villagers were also seething with anger. They said sarcastically, "The government is so powerful. We're being harassed in the trading street, why don't you come out and uphold justice for us?"
"Provide shelter? Let me see where they provided shelter? They just open their mouths and expect us to hand over the supplies we worked so hard for. Why should we?"
"I heard that during the hottest season, the government not only failed to provide any disaster relief supplies, but also led the way in looting supplies and exploiting the disaster victims in the city. They clearly didn't care about the disaster victims at all, but now they're trying to make themselves look good."
"Are you adults referring to that shameless old man who's over sixty and has taken in eight concubines? All he thinks about is sleeping with women; how can he possibly have any other serious thoughts?"
The villagers chatted away, getting more and more excited, completely ignoring how unpleasant the officials' expressions were.
"Shut up, all of you!" the head officer roared, his eyes filled with humiliation and anger.
How dare a bunch of troublemakers talk back to them and even resist them?
The official shouted, "You're nothing but a bunch of peasants from out of town! Without your superiors' protection, do you think you can even stand firm in this county town? While we're still talking to you politely, hand over your carts and supplies now, or else—"
A loud bang interrupted him.
The official subconsciously turned his head to look and saw Lu Xuan crushing a stone the size of a human head in his hand. He didn't rub it too hard and turned the stone, which had been broken into more than ten pieces, into a ball of stone powder.
Official: "!!!!"
The officials instinctively took a few steps back, their eyes filled with terror as they looked at Lu Xuan.
Lu Xuan looked at them coldly and uttered his first and only sentence: "Do you think I can crush your heads as easily as I can crush this rock?"
The officials turned pale instantly.
The leading official's eyelids twitched wildly, and he subconsciously opened his mouth, but couldn't utter a word for a long time.
After a long pause, he finally managed to squeeze out a dry, menacing sentence: "You, you dare!"
Lu Xuan chuckled lightly, then conjured up another stone and casually crushed it once more, silently declaring with his actions and mocking gaze: You can try me for yourself to see if I dare.
Officials: !!!
The viewers in the live stream were having a blast, cheering: "Go ahead and challenge the streamer with your own heads! Don't back down!"
Seeing Lu Xuan's firm attitude, the villagers were no longer afraid. Young, impulsive, and passionate people like Li Tuo even showed expressions of eagerness and anticipation.
Beating up government officials? They never even dared to dream of such a thing before. If they could actually get their hands on one and beat it up today, they could brag about it for the rest of their lives, right?
They now hope these officials won't back down.
Come on! If you're a man, let's have a fight!
Officials: ! Of course we'll do it if you're not the ones getting beaten up!
The officials recalled the fear they felt not long ago when they witnessed the gambling den's thugs being beaten to a pulp. Their arrogant and angry expressions receded like the tide, and they clearly became hesitant.
Especially when they noticed that Lu Xuan made another gesture to the villagers, and the others excitedly pretended to surround them, they jumped up as if on cue and turned to run away without hesitation.
As they ran, they shouted, "We'll tell the adults what happened today when we get back. They won't let you get away with this. You'll be kicked out tomorrow!"
The viewers in the live stream booed: "If you're so tough, don't run away, you coward!"
"They're leaving already?" Li Tuo's regret was completely undisguised.
Li Tie's lips twitched. "X, do you really want to fight them?"
Li Tuo shrugged. "Let's fight then. It's not like we can't win."
Li Tie slapped the back of his head and cursed, "After all, they are government officials. We've only been here two days and we've already gotten into a fight on the trading street. With one trouble after another, it's hard to guarantee that the four major powers in the city won't think we're troublesome troublemakers and gang up on us. That would be a real headache."
Li Tuo curled his lip. Lu Xuan's abilities were so strong, and there were quite a few awakened people in the village. Why be afraid of them?
It's a pity he hasn't awakened his superpowers yet, otherwise he could have shown off his power.
The others weren't as impulsive as Li Tuo; they were more worried: "Won't they really bring a group of people to drive us away tomorrow?"
"So, should we leave or actually fight?"
"Fine, let's go!" Li Tuo scoffed. "At worst, we can just find a spot in the city ruins to pitch a tent, or move into a safe house! It'll be more comfortable than living in a big house!"
As Lu Xuan walked into the house, he said calmly, "We will still pay the rent. As long as we don't want to leave, no one can kick us out."
The viewers in the live stream laughed: "The host's comment sounds like those holdouts from ancient times who refused to leave during demolition disputes."
With Lu Xuan's words, the villagers, who had been filled with all sorts of worries, immediately felt relieved, their brows unfurrowed, and they happily followed him back to their houses. They even told the people who stayed behind about their day's harvest.
·
The actions of the Yunlu Village people during the day caused quite a stir among the four major forces.
The county government, which had lost face, and the gambling den, which had suffered a great loss, were so angry that they wanted nothing more than to rush to the houses in the east of the city and beat up the villagers of Yunlu Village to vent their anger.
The old county magistrate was barely appeased by his subordinates' promise to bring him the most beautiful woman among the group. As for Feng Hu, he was unsure of what strange sorcery Lu Xuan had used and dared not make any rash moves.
However, several of his men had broken bones, and one of them was likely to die. Despite this, Feng Hu still threw a tantrum in the house, smashing and beating things, making a huge commotion.
The wealthy merchants, who were also located in the south of the city, naturally wouldn't be unaware of this.
While they gloated, they were also very tempted by the wealth displayed by Yunlu Village.
Although they were so focused on finding out how much good stuff the other party could offer that they forgot to test them, for them, knowing that the other party had the supplies they wanted was already a huge gain.
Furthermore, the people of Yunlu Village proved with their actions that they were not people who could be easily bullied, and the attitude of the wealthy merchants and landlords towards them was also very clear.
Become friends!
First, try to establish a relationship with them, and then exchange as many supplies as possible from them!
Leave the things that cause hatred to the gambling dens and government offices.
If the people of Yunlu Village suffer losses at the hands of these two groups, they can find an opportunity to make peace and do them a favor, making it easier to obtain supplies later.
As for the power of the local gentry...
Inside a small courtyard in the west of the city.
Chen Bing recounted his encounter with the people of Yunlu Village and the details of his transaction with Lu Xuan.
At the end, he specifically reminded everyone: "You uncles and elders have all heard about what happened today. Young Master Lu and his group are very powerful, so it's best not to provoke them."
One wealthy man said, "We have no conflict of interest with them, nor any grudges between us, so there's no need for us to provoke them."
The others nodded in agreement.
Chen Bing has already agreed to stand with them. With the addition of the caravan's thirty-odd skilled men, their overall strength has increased considerably. There's no need to force the people from Yunlu Village to join them; doing so might displease them and backfire.
With Chen Binghe's business dealings with them, they already have an advantage over the other three forces.
They discussed for a while the vacuum packaging that Lu Xuan mentioned, as well as the satiating nutritional supplements they had heard about today. Someone even contributed a few vials of nutritional supplements that they had managed to snag during the day, sharing a small bite with everyone so that they could all experience the taste and satiety firsthand.
"It tastes a bit like porridge, but you can't see any rice grains in it, and it doesn't have the unique aroma of millet..."
"It has a texture I've never tasted before, and I can't tell what it's made of."
"But it is really filling. I didn't have time to eat dinner, and I'm already half full after just one bite."
The elderly don't have the same appetite as the young. All the elders and wealthy men had eaten a meal before, but now, after just one bite of the nutritional supplement, they felt uncomfortably full.
Several old men couldn't help but quietly loosen their tight waistbands and silently breathed a sigh of relief.
Then, with a look of delight, he said, "This is indeed a good thing. I heard that it's not expensive. If we can exchange more, then the disaster victims in the west of the city will have less to go hungry."
The others nodded in agreement, "We just don't know how much stock they have."
"Since they're willing to put it up for trade, they must have plenty. Brother Chen Liu still has a deal with them that's not finished, right? We can ask them later if they can give us a little more of this... what's it called again?"
"Nutritional supplements".
"That's right! Nutritional supplements."
"It is said that this thing can be preserved for a year and a half or even longer as long as it is not opened, making it perfect as emergency food during famine years."
"It's a pity we didn't have this kind of good stuff during the previous heat wave, otherwise those people who were so hungry that they went out to find food wouldn't have died from the heat."
"It's all in the past, let's not talk about it."
"The heatwave is over, but aren't those people saying there will be floods next?"
The room, which had been filled with lively discussion, suddenly fell silent, and the elders' expressions darkened slightly.
The young people realized they had said the wrong thing and shut their mouths, not daring to say another word.
An elder looked around at the people and asked, "What do you all think about the flood they're talking about? Do you believe it?"
The group exchanged glances, and someone whispered, "It's been raining a bit more lately, but didn't it stop raining for over two months? Maybe God is just letting it rain all at once. It'll be fine once it passes."
“That’s right!” Several people agreed with this statement.
"Perhaps those people were just making things up to scare people."
Chen Bing disagreed, saying, "What good will it do them to scare people with this kind of thing? They have no grudge against the disaster victims in the city, so why would they do something so annoying and disliked?"
The others were speechless.
It seems unnecessary.
Old Master Chen pondered for a moment and said, "Whether it's true or not, we still need to meet the people in person and carefully inquire about their evidence before we can make a specific judgment."
Whether or not there will be a flood is a matter of life and death for all the affected people in the city, and there is no room for ambiguity.
The other elders nodded in agreement, "Indeed, it won't hurt to confirm."
A wealthy man suddenly asked, "Do you think the county government and the gambling den might be saying what Yunlu Village said?"
The elder next to him shook his head with a subtle expression and said, "It's hard to say. We might just take it as a joke, or we might have doubts, or we might even wish it were true."
The others understood his meaning after a moment's thought.
Fear of natural disasters coupled with greed to maintain current power and status naturally creates a contradiction in one's thoughts.
But they are different.
They've all lived a long and happy life, experiencing both the good and the bad. They've never been officials, have no craving for power, and certainly don't have the twisted ideas of someone like Feng Hu, who wanted to trample everyone under his feet and control them at will.
The main reason for becoming the fourth largest power in the city was to ensure the survival of as many people as possible; they were not particularly interested in vying for power and profit.
Old Master Chen looked at Chen Bing: "Among us, only your caravan has had contact with them, so we still need you to act as a go-between. You said they asked you to get pepper seeds, do you have any?"
Chen Bing said with a bitter face, "The seeds and other goods were left in the warehouse in the north of the city."
Speaking of this, Chen Bing thought of his home, which was separated from him by an underground fissure and from which he could not return, and a large amount of goods whose whereabouts he did not know if they had been taken away. His expression became extremely painful.
Grandpa Chen patted his nephew on the shoulder and comforted him, "We're going to the north of the city tomorrow. You can come with us. There's still a chance to get the supplies back, and it will be easier to contact Yunlu Village then."
Chen Bing nodded vigorously, "Okay!"
So many supplies are crucial resources in the event of other disasters, and he would absolutely not give them up.
Even once they get their hands on something, they have to quickly find a way to sell off some of the less important items in exchange for more cold-dispelling medicines and other supplies for keeping warm.
·
The next morning, the rain was still falling, and a thin layer of rainwater had accumulated in the courtyards of the villagers' houses. The temperature was also lower than the previous two days, and it was already a bit cold. But this did not stop the young and strong people who stayed behind yesterday and the villagers who had not had enough shopping yesterday from going out to stroll around.
The disaster victims, who had tasted the benefits yesterday, were exceptionally enthusiastic when they saw people from Yunlu Village appearing on the trading street. They rushed over and took the initiative to pull people over to their stalls to look at the goods.
Lu Xuan did not go out today; to be precise, he did not go to the trading street.
He leaped onto the roof and pointed the live stream camera towards the north of the city.
The audience, who were wondering what he was doing, took a closer look and found that the underground fissure, which should have been empty, was actually crowded with people, numbering around a hundred.
Why are so many people in the city rushing towards that place? Didn't Miao An say that the streamers and the others weren't allowed to get close to the crevice?
Could there be some treasure hidden beneath the crack?
[Perhaps he felt life was too unbearable and wanted to end it all by jumping off?]
[A hundred or so people agreed to go down to the toilet together for company? What nonsense are you talking about?]
Lu Xuan glanced at the large number of buildings in the north of the city that were blocked by the city wall, and said slowly, "Is it possible that they are not interested in the crack, but in the north of the city?"
He didn't believe the four major powers would remain indifferent, given that the area occupied at least a quarter of the county's resources. Sure enough, their people arrived.
"Ah Xuan, what's going on over there?" Li Tie and the other villagers looked up at Lu Xuan in the courtyard.
Lu Xuan stated his assessment: "It seems that the four major powers are preparing to plunder resources in the north of the city."
Everyone was surprised, "Isn't there a crack over there? How do we get across?"
"Build a wooden bridge."
Lu Xuan easily leaped down from the roof and said, "I'm going to take a look. Village Chief, do you want to come with me?"
Li Tie's heart skipped a beat, and his eyes lit up slightly. "The four major powers are going to plunder the supplies in the north of the city, so let's go there..."
Lu Xuan chuckled lightly, "If they can loot, why can't we?"
Li Tie clapped his hands, "Let's go! Everyone, let's go together!"
Not only are they going, but they're going to go in hovercars!
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