The villagers were surprised that after the village chief and the princess discussed it for so long, they ended up saying the same thing, and finally gave up all hope.
Although they were still somewhat confused, the habits they had developed over the years had made them extremely trusting of the village chief and the Li family.
At this point, obedience is the only option.
So everyone turned around and ran home.
But instead of leaving, Uncle Zhao and the others found a place to sit down.
Jiayin sighed; needless to say, they had made up their minds to stay and guard the house.
She braced herself to try and persuade him, but Uncle Zhao waved his hand first and said with a smile, "Princess, don't say anything. It's hot. Drink some water and don't waste your time on us."
"We should have died at the foot of the mountain when we were fleeing famine, but everyone respected us and went to great lengths to bring us to Suijintan."
"Over the years, we've had plenty to eat and drink, and we've enjoyed a lot of good life."
"Logically speaking, he should have gone to see the King of Hell long ago. We've managed to take advantage of him for over ten years, so we're content."
"This time something happened, and everyone went south. We don't want to hold everyone back. So we'll stay here and guard the Broken Gold Beach for everyone."
"Even if someone thinks our old lives are worth a knife, we're not afraid. We'll always have these young lads in our village to avenge us someday, won't we?"
"That's right, these kids only know how to play around all day. It's really because of some family feud that they're more mature than ever." Uncle Wei chuckled, as if paving the way for the boys with his own sword was a happy thing.
The village chief couldn't help but glare, laughing and scolding, "Can't you say nice things? Why are you scaring the princess! If you want to stay, then stay. Nobody cares. Everyone's busy. You should go patrol. Be careful someone tries to take advantage of the situation."
Uncle Zhao was the first to stand up, jokingly saying, "Look at us, we're just destined to be busy, we can't even sit down for a moment. Let's go, let's go on patrol!"
After saying that, the old men called Big Black and Little Black and went out.
Jiayin watched their faltering figures, and her nose stung with tears.
Mu Xu, who had been quietly watching everything, stepped forward, half-turned to block her, and then gently took her hand.
No one understands this feeling better than him, after all, he too has experienced the loss of loved ones...
He gently comforted her, "You've done your best, don't blame yourself. Everything will be alright."
Jiayin silently squeezed his hand back, "Come on, let's go invite Mr. Jiang."
"No, you stay and rest, I'll go." Mu Xu was reluctant to let Jia Yin leave, so he settled her down, turned around, and went out the door.
The village chief called over a literate servant, who brought paper and pen, set up a table, and planned to record the names of those who left and those who stayed.
Soon, villagers who had packed their belongings began to gather again.
As Jia Yin had predicted, almost all the families sent away their children and young couples, while every single elder planned to stay.
The saying "It's hard to leave one's homeland" is not without merit.
Having endured countless hardships and risked their lives traveling south from Jiangbei, these elderly people cherish their current lives and are reluctant to leave Suijintan, the home that holds all their hopes.
They are like big trees, having grown for many years, no longer having the strength to uproot all their roots and move them again.
However, the children and young couples, who haven't fully settled down yet, can start over in the south and may even have better opportunities.
The village chief sighed and advised again, "The village doesn't need so many people to stay. Don't worry about home; if it's time to leave, then go with them. After all, no matter how sensible the children are, they'll still need their elders to guide them when they go south."
A man in his forties, with a simple and honest smile, replied, "Village chief, we've made up our minds. The village's orchards are about to be harvested, and the fields still need water for irrigation. We really can't bear to part with them."
"Although the children are young, they will be taken care of by the master when they go south, so we are at ease."
Another elderly woman chimed in, "Actually, even in the village, the families take care of the children's education and clothing; we haven't really interfered much."
A woman, holding her son, chimed in, "Besides, the Old Madam, the Fourth Madam, and the Princess can't leave, can they? If we stay, we can lend a hand. If something really happens, we'll need people to hold things off, won't we?"
After saying that, she gave her son a hard push, signaling him to stand with his friends.
The entire village of forty-odd young men and women, along with more than thirty young couples, totaling about eighty people, all had swollen eyes, clearly showing their reluctance to part, but not one of them uttered a sound of crying.
The village chief, fighting back tears, nodded repeatedly.
"Good, well done! That's what people from Broken Gold Beach should be like—they have backbone!"
At this time, the people from the second village also came over.
Similarly, those carrying luggage were all children.
All the veterans, wounded soldiers, elderly people, and even young women stayed behind.
Before the village chief and Jiayin could persuade her, Xiaocui stepped forward as a representative and said, "The men in our family are still fighting in the north. We must wait for them to come back no matter what. They've been away from home for months, risking their lives. How can we let them come home without even a hot meal? We're not leaving!"
The old people nodded in agreement. "Yes, we refuse to believe that all the officials in the court are heartless! Our son is killing barbarians for Tianwu, and the court doesn't care whether we have enough to eat and wear, but they even want to cut off our heads! Even if we become ghosts, we will support our son's return to fight his way back to Jiangnan!"
The veterans and wounded soldiers were thrilled and burst into laughter.
"That's right, Uncle is right. When the time comes, we'll also take up arms and fight. Maybe we can even coordinate from the inside and outside and take Xindu directly."
"Don't underestimate me just because I've lost an arm. I can take down ten of those cowards guarding the city gates without a problem!"
After a few rounds of laughter and banter, an old soldier finally said something serious.
"Back then, thanks to the Marquis's good fortune and the kindness of our master, we were taken in and settled down in Suijintan. Suijintan has become our home. No matter what happens, we can't leave."
"Besides, now that the Marquis is away, we must guard Broken Gold Beach even more carefully. Otherwise, how will we face the Marquis in the future! We never ran away on the battlefield, and now we're making a fool of ourselves? No, no!"
"Children, go ahead and don't worry about home. We old bastards are here for you!"
Everyone nodded in agreement.
The air in the courtyard seemed to freeze for a moment.
Everyone felt a sense of tragedy, gratitude, and even more so, the courage to unite as one!
There was no fear or retreat!
"Then everyone can rest assured, with me here, the children will definitely be safe and sound!" Mr. Jiang responded loudly, and accompanied by Mu Xu, he strode in from outside the courtyard.
The crowd immediately erupted in noise, bowing and trying to say a few words of request, but it seemed that nothing they said could express their feelings.
Two updates today!
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