Chapter 95 Couple's Double Attack: You dare to lay a hand on me? Just aim right here...
The victims remained silent for a moment before speaking one after another.
"I think people must have died, just not as many as we have."
"They actually started farming. I don't know what they were thinking. In this weather, where can any crops grow? Besides, it's such a waste of water."
Water is extremely precious during the dry season; there isn't enough for people to drink, let alone for growing crops.
One of the disaster victims reminisced and said sourly, "I heard that the bone soup they just cooked for us was made from wolf bones. Ugh... We could only run away when we encountered wild beasts, but they can even kill wolves. There's no comparison between people."
"Now I only regret why I didn't listen to the rumors that the people of Yunlu Village were hoarding grain. My family had at least a dozen taels of silver saved up. If we had used it to exchange for grain, it would have been enough to get through the drought."
"Sigh, who would have thought it would actually be true?"
"In any case, they are already very generous to help us. With the food rations given by Village Chief Li, we can eat for ten days to half a month if we are careful."
“Generous? I think it’s stingy!” While most of the disaster victims were grateful, Lei Shan couldn’t help but shout resentfully.
"Don't you think about it? If they didn't have so much food in their own reserves that they couldn't finish it all, why would they be willing to cook such a big pot of bone broth? They gave us the bones, but they kept the meat for themselves."
Lei Shan said angrily, "If you were really generous, you should have stewed a pot of meat for us! Giving us only a pot of bones, do you think we're feeding dogs?"
The other disaster victims frowned, feeling somewhat uncomfortable.
It's your business if you feel like you've been treated like a dog, why are you bringing it up with other people?
Someone who couldn't stand it said, "Of course they should give their own meat to their own people. In a year of famine, they're already being very generous by making bone broth for us. If you want meat, you can go and hunt for yourself."
But the people of Yunlu Village can even defeat wolves, can you?
Lei Shan's expression froze for a moment, then he glared fiercely at the person who had spoken.
"They're only living a life of luxury because they got into the mountains before us. Now that I'm in too, I'll be eating meat every day and never have to worry about food!"
The other victims curled their lip in disapproval.
Anyone can talk big.
Lei Shan spoke with great confidence, but in reality, more than trying to find a way to hunt, he wanted to get more grain from Lei Yan and the Lu family.
The ideas of Uncle Xu and Fang Dahe's families were similar to those of Lei Shan's.
The three families each formed pairs, each thinking about how to get something for nothing.
The other disaster victims didn't have any other thoughts for the time being; they just wanted to get a good night's sleep and start getting familiar with their surroundings tomorrow so they could find ways to support themselves.
A few widows or teenage girls who were left all alone knew that their abilities were limited, and they wondered if there were any jobs they could do in Yunlu Village so that they could earn a living.
...
"One tael of silver for only five catties of coarse rice, what a bunch of heartless bastards!" Uncle Xu returned to his temporary cave, cursing and swearing, his face ashen, carrying a bag of grain in his arms.
The disaster victims, who were too hot to move in the cave, perked up a little when they heard the words "brown rice".
Someone craned their neck to look at Uncle Xu curiously and asked him, "Did you go to Yunlu Village to buy grain? They actually agreed to sell it to you?"
Uncle Xu snorted coldly, "I bought it with real money, why wouldn't I sell it?"
He gritted his teeth and said, "They not only sold it, but they also took advantage of my misfortune and swindled me out of a huge sum of money!"
The Xu family was one of the wealthiest families in Wangshan Village. After the second son and his wife died, Xu became even richer by inheriting their estate.
Even though he lost some silver during the earthquake, he still had more than thirty taels left. No matter how hard or tiring the journey into the mountains was, he couldn't bear to throw away the silver.
He thought that so much silver would be enough to buy enough food to last the entire dry season, but he didn't expect that the people of Yunlu Village would ask for exorbitant prices, which would increase dozens of times!
Thirty taels of silver were only exchanged for about a hundred catties of grain, which was only enough after he asked several villagers. The missing few dozen catties of grain were used to exchange for some meat, dried mushrooms, bamboo shoots, sweet fruits and other supplies.
It was too hot to change the meat too much, so I only changed the amount for one meal.
Aunt Xu also said angrily, "Before the disaster, a pound of coarse rice only cost five coins, but they charge several hundred coins a pound. Why don't they just rob them!"
The other disaster victims were astonished as they listened, and couldn't help but mutter to themselves.
It's good enough that they're willing to sell.
Today's drought is unprecedented. Apart from the villages nearby, the county town and even the prefectural city are probably in chaos. Even if you have money, you may not be able to buy food.
The people inside the cave looked at the bundles held by the Xu couple and their son following behind them, their eyes gleaming with envy.
Why.
Unfortunately, they had little money before or after the disaster. If they wanted to get food, they had to find it themselves or try to sell their labor to the people of Yunlu Village.
After a good night's sleep, the disaster victims, feeling much better, made do with a bowl of very thin brown rice porridge. After wiping their mouths, they took advantage of the fact that the sun wasn't as scorching as it was at noon and headed towards the direction where the people of Yunlu Village lived.
Lei Shan left the cave after asking Zhao to stay and watch the child.
Seeing this, Fang Dahe, who was limping, quickly asked Zhou to help him catch up.
The Xu couple exchanged a glance, then quickly followed after their son, who was watching over the supplies.
Yesterday, they were so busy drinking bone broth that they couldn't see their surroundings clearly because it was too dark. They had no idea where the people of Yunlu Village lived. Today is the perfect day to explore it properly.
-
The group of disaster victims soon found the fields in Yunlu Village, and then they were all dumbfounded.
It's not the season for planting crops at all, especially in such hot temperatures.
But what did they see?
The fields in front of them, which looked quite impressive, were actually lush with half-grown rice and wheat. Upon closer inspection, they were even better than the fields they grew in the village!
What's even more surprising is that, judging from the size of these crops, they must have been planted for at least two months.
But how could that be?
It's impossible that the people of Yunlu Village came into the mountains to cultivate land and grow grain more than two months ago, right?
When people noticed the strange plants growing sporadically in the ground, some over two meters tall, some completely black, and some entirely purple, they were even more startled.
"My God, what is that weird thing!"
"Just look at the color, you can tell it's poisonous! Why aren't you pulling it up? What if you ruin all the crops!"
The disaster victims shouted at the people of Yunlu Village, their faces full of tension.
The villagers of Yunlu Village explained with some pride: "Those are just some mutations. Don't worry, they're not poisonous. In fact, the grains inside are even bigger than ordinary grains."
The disaster victims, however, became even more skeptical.
What is mutation? The crops are obviously the wrong color, how could they not be poisonous?
The villagers knew that the matter of immortal arts couldn't be kept secret, especially since people in the surrounding villages had already heard rumors before the disaster. So they didn't bother to hide it and took the opportunity to tell them about how Lu Xuan knew immortal arts and helped them accelerate the growth of their crops.
The disaster victims were stunned.
Does magic really exist?
Isn't that just them bragging?
The villagers of Yunlu Village retorted unhappily, "Who's bragging? Can't you see all these crops right in front of you? The first batch of grain will be ripe in five or six days, then you can open your eyes wide and see for yourselves."
Not only the crops in the fields, but also the Lu family's villa was soon discovered among the disaster victims.
The news that the immortal palace was bestowed upon the Lu family by a deity by the people of Yunlu Village caused an uproar.
"impossible!"
Lei Shan's expression twisted with jealousy. "What merit or ability does the Lu family have to receive a celestial palace bestowed by an immortal! I think you've clearly been bewitched by the mountain spirits. This celestial palace is just a fake illusion!"
Hearing the commotion outside, Lei Yan, Lu Qing, and Lu Chen frowned simultaneously and looked at Lei Shan with displeasure.
Lu Chen couldn't stand anyone speaking ill of his brother, and shouted, "It was my brother who obtained the Celestial Palace! You're the monster! You bad guy!"
Zhao was equally astonished by the magnificent building before her, which she couldn't tell was a celestial palace or an illusion. But once she noticed the large, several-sized vegetables in the yard, she couldn't care less about anything else.
Her eyes gleamed greedily as she said, "Sister-in-law, you've grown so many vegetables, how can just a few of you possibly eat them all? Why don't you let me go in and pick some? You wouldn't be so stingy as to not even share these vegetables with me, would you?" Without waiting for their permission, she tried to climb over the fence and go inside.
Lei Shan perked up after hearing this.
He muttered, "Whether it's a real immortal palace or a fake one, I'll find out once I go in." He strode towards the main gate, clearly preparing to force his way in.
If he finds it comfortable there, he can bring his wife and children to live with him.
As long as he doesn't want to leave, what can Lei Yan do to him?
Even if Lei Yan is unwilling to give them supplies, he can still get them through his own abilities!
The villagers were all shocked by Lei Shan's shamelessness.
Zhang Chengming, Xiong Mao, and others who had a good relationship with Lu Xuan, who rushed over upon hearing the news, turned pale.
Xiong Mao was a man with a bad temper, and he couldn't stand seeing an outsider acting so arrogantly. He rolled up his sleeves and prepared to teach the other man a lesson.
"I think you're just asking for it—"
Before he could finish speaking, Lei Yan and Lu Qing, who were equally unable to bear it any longer, each stopped Lei Shan and his wife.
Xiong Mao stopped in his tracks.
Lu Qing strode up to Zhao, who had already climbed halfway over the fence, and with a gasp from the other woman, lifted her up with one hand and threw her outside forcefully.
"Ouch—!" Zhao fell hard on her bottom, howling in pain, and yelled angrily, "Lu Qing! What are you doing! How dare you throw me—!"
Lu Qing sneered, "I'm throwing this at you! Why should you get to pick my vegetables!"
Do you really think she and Lei Yan are made of clay, allowing them to constantly take advantage of each other?
Lu Qing brandished her fist and said fiercely, "If you dare to barge in again without permission, I can not only throw you away, I can also beat you up, you believe me?"
Zhao's face flushed red with anger, "You—"
Similarly, Lei Shan was also stopped by Lei Yan.
Lei Shan could vaguely see the luxurious living room on the first floor of the villa through the half-open door. He was both anxious and angry: "Get out of the way! You live in such a big house, but you make us live in a cave. Do you have any conscience? You heartless bastard!"
Lei Yan said coldly, "This is Ah Xuan's house. No one is allowed to move in without his permission!"
Lei Shan's eyes blazed with fury: "What can you do to me if I insist on staying here? Do you want to hit me? Hit your own brother?! You try it then."
Lei Shan pointed at his face arrogantly and said, "Come on, if you've got the guts, try hitting me here!"
Lei Yan stared at him with a sullen face and said nothing.
Lei Shan chuckled.
I knew he wouldn't dare to make a move. How could he not know what kind of person his younger brother was?
Lei Shan reached out to push him aside and continue walking forward, but before his hand could even touch Lei Yan, the latter raised his arm and, under Lei Shan's astonished gaze, forcefully threw a punch, sending him flying.
The surrounding villagers: Wow!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com