The courtyard was filled with the stench of blood.
The wailing gradually subsided, leaving only suppressed sobs and heavy breathing.
A fierce life-or-death battle ended in a way that no one could explain, shrouded in mysterious fear.
Wengjia Village is finished!
The remaining people in Wengjia Village were completely overwhelmed by the fear of the "mountain god's manifestation."
Hearing Jiang Chan's resolute theory of "divine punishment," seeing the bizarre, inhumanly caused bloody holes on their companions' foreheads, and recalling the strange wind that extinguished the lights and the inexplicable death... their last fighting spirit vanished.
"Spare me! Mountain God, spare me!"
"We'll never do it again! We'll never do it again!"
Several women collapsed to the ground, kowtowing repeatedly into the void.
The few remaining men also threw away the weapons they had symbolically picked up. Their faces were ashen, their eyes were unfocused, and their bodies trembled like leaves in the wind. They had no intention of resisting whatsoever.
The people of Liushutun are still immersed in a huge shock and bewilderment.
Looking at the Wengjia Village people across from him, who were collapsing and begging for mercy, and then at his own side, which, although wounded, outnumbered the able-bodied men, the village chief momentarily forgot his next move.
"Village Chief!" Jiang Chan's cold voice broke the silence. Holding Xiao Tao, she stood at the back of the crowd, pointing at the remaining people of Wengjia Village, "They're still alive! Aren't we going to tie them up and wait for the 'Mountain God' to unleash his wrath again?!"
These words were like a wake-up call. Village Chief Chen suddenly came to his senses. "Yes! Yes! Quick! Quick, get the rope! Tie them up tightly!" he immediately ordered.
Liu Dazhuang, Zhang the butcher, and others also realized what had happened, and their immense fear transformed into a strong drive to act.
"Find the rope!"
"Quick! Tie their hands behind their backs!"
"Stay still! Don't move!"
The people of Wengjia Village offered no resistance, allowing the men of Liushutun to use the hemp ropes they found in the woodshed or houses to tightly bind their wrists and ankles one by one.
The whole process went exceptionally smoothly; the other party was as docile as a lamb to the slaughter.
Soon, the few remaining men and women from Wengjia Village were gathered together in the center of the courtyard, huddled together, their eyes filled with terror, sobbing softly, no longer daring to look at the people from Liushutun.
Looking at the people of Wengjia Village who were tied up like rice dumplings, the men of Liushutun looked at each other, at a loss for what to do.
"Village chief...the person's tied up...and then what?"
Old Wang clutched his injured arm, his voice filled with confusion, "We can't... we can't keep him tied up like this, can we?"
"Yes, then... kill him?" Liu Dazhuang asked tentatively, but his eyes clearly showed hesitation and resistance.
He had fought desperately to survive, but now he couldn't bring himself to kill prisoners who offered no resistance and were even trembling with fear, especially some of the women.
"Send them to the authorities?" another man suggested. "But...where are the authorities? We're refugees ourselves! We can't possibly take this whole group with us, can we?"
"Exactly! Take them with us? Who will watch them? What if something happens on the way? What if they run away or cause trouble?"
"Release them?"
"Let them go? They'll just turn around and harm others? Wouldn't that make us accomplices?!"
Everyone chimed in with their own opinions, but they couldn't reach a conclusion.
Killing him is something I can't bear to do, and I dare not do it; letting him go would leave me feeling resentful, and I'm even more afraid of causing trouble for others; sending him to the authorities is a risky move with no future prospects, so it's simply not realistic.
The problems piled up like a mountain.
Jiang Chan watched the crowd argue with a cold eye.
She desperately wanted to say: Kill them! Clean and efficient! Eliminate all future troubles! These beasts deserve to die! But looking at the hesitation and struggle on the villagers' faces, she knew that getting them to actually kill, especially since there were women and children among them, was almost impossible.
She took a deep breath and interjected in a calm, analytical tone: "Uncles and brothers, you all have a point. Killing someone is indeed difficult. Handing them over to the authorities is also impossible, as we can't go that far. Releasing them back into the mountains is even more out of the question!"
She paused, her gaze sweeping over the trembling prisoners, her voice clear, "What do these people rely on to harm others? They rely on those despicable drugs! They rely on deceiving people with food and water! Now, it's their turn to taste that poison!"
Her words immediately drew everyone's attention.
"Girl Jiang, what do you think we should do?" the village chief immediately pressed.
"Find their harmful drugs! Destroy them all! So they won't be able to harm anyone again!" Jiang Chan declared resolutely. "Then, take all their stockpiled food, water, and valuables! Leave nothing behind! Let them taste the bitterness of hunger, thirst, and utter desperation!"
Pointing at her wounded and wailing companions and the unconscious man, her voice suddenly rose, accusingly demanding, "Look at the injured lying here! Look at the people they drugged, tied up, and took away! And look at the blood of the dead thugs from Wengjia Village! Is this all we're going to do? Let them eat and drink their fill, recover from their injuries, and then go and harm others?!"
Jiang Chan's words were like a key, unlocking the floodgates of resentment in the villagers' hearts!
It also pointed out a way for those who were hesitant to vent their anger and feel "at ease"!
"Yes! Destroy their medicine!"
"Take away their grain!"
"Let these sons of bitches starve to death!"
"Let them experience the full bitterness of fleeing famine!"
Public sentiment was once again inflamed!
This time the target is clear—to cripple its claws and teeth, and to deprive it of its means of survival!
Jiang Chan's suggestion to destroy the medicine and search for the grain was agreed upon by everyone, but the heavy darkness and the mess in the courtyard made the operation difficult.
Most of the lanterns were damaged, and the remaining flames flickered precariously.
“Girl Jiang is right! The medicine must be destroyed! The grain must be taken!” The village chief stamped his foot. “But it’s pitch black now, we can’t see anything at all…”
His gaze swept over his equally exhausted and wounded companions, and he decisively ordered, "Liu Dazhuang! Take a few men and drag them all into a side room! Remember, nail the windows shut!"
"Find the chain and lock the door from the outside!"
"Leave two people on duty in shifts! Don't let them cause any trouble! The rest of you, rest here and save your energy! We'll talk again at dawn!"
The command was executed swiftly.
Liu Dazhuang, Zhang the butcher, and others dragged the bound prisoners from Wengjia Village roughly to a side room, just like dragging a dead dog—the very room that Wengjia Village had previously used to imprison the drugged "fat sheep"!
The windows were nailed shut with thick wooden strips, making them completely airtight!
"Go in!"
"Stay put!"
The prisoners were shoved and crammed into a dark room filled with mold and dust.
The heavy wooden door slammed shut with a bang! "Let us out!"
"My child! My child is still outside!" came the woman's terrified scream from inside.
The man guarding the door impatiently knocked on the door with his stick: "Shut up!" The cries from inside turned into suppressed sobs.
The remaining people in Liushutun, exhausted, could barely sit down and rest in the courtyard or in an unlocked gatehouse, leaning against the cold walls or the ground.
No one dared to fall asleep; they still gripped their sticks tightly.
After a tense night, my nerves finally relaxed for a moment, followed by immense fatigue and lingering fear.
Many people's eyelids droop as soon as they sit down, and soon heavy snoring begins, but their bodies still twitch from time to time as if startled.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
