Chapter 178 Grandfather
Su Meng stood in front of the thatched hut, half-embraced and half-carried by Huo Zhenhua.
Seeing the withered wild vegetables on the barren land at the entrance of the courtyard, and the thatched hut that looked like a pile of loose sand in the cold wind, teetering on the verge of being blown away at any moment, he choked up and couldn't speak.
Two lines of clear tears had long since flowed upstream into a river.
Sue dreamed that her grandfather might have encountered the worst possible situation.
But seeing him living alone at the foot of the cliff in such a desolate state, my heart aches uncontrollably!
Living in misery is worse than dying.
I don't know how my grandfather survived those decades.
A gust of cold wind blew in, chilling me to the bone.
Su Meng couldn't help but cough.
With all that effort, his face turned even paler, his legs went weak, and he swayed weakly.
Like a small white flower about to wither in a strong wind.
Huo Zhenhua tightened his grip on the person.
He looked at Su Meng with concern, gently wiped away the tears on her cheek with a finger, and softly comforted her: "Xiao Meng, don't get agitated, Grandpa is fine."
"You see, your wound has probably reopened."
Before he finished speaking, the thatched hut fifty meters away suddenly opened with a "whoosh".
The old man stumbled out, his gaze precisely locking onto Su Meng.
When he saw the bloodstains on her body, his pupils contracted sharply, and the long beard on his chin swayed more violently than the wild grass on the cliff edge.
A sharp glint suddenly flashed in his cloudy eyes, and his voice was cold and murderous, "Who hurt you? Tell your grandfather, and your grandfather will avenge you!"
Without saying a word, he grabbed Su Meng's wrist, hesitated for a moment, and then stepped aside, saying, "Young man, please help me carry her inside."
She had lost a lot of blood and suffered a mild concussion; she needed acupuncture immediately.
Su Meng weakly opened her eyelids and tugged at the corners of her mouth. Just as she was about to speak, the old man raised his hand to stop her, "Xiao Meng, go to sleep if you want to. Grandpa will take care of everything."
Su Meng smiled slightly and fell into a peaceful sleep.
Huo Zhenhua sighed softly, thanked the old man, and walked out of the thatched hut. He said to A'da, who had been silent all along, "Uncle, I'm going to take a look around the neighborhood."
He was curious about the enemy agent who jumped off the cliff and wanted to see if there were any other secrets below.
Ah Da waved his hand, "Go ahead, I'll take care of things here."
He saw it when he arrived; there was a mountain spring on the cliff behind the thatched house, which was probably the source of drinking water for the villagers back home.
He silently fetched water and boiled it.
Not long after, the old man Xie Jingming came out.
He sat down silently on the rock next to A-Da, staring blankly up at the sky.
Although we couldn't see the blue sky and white clouds, we could feel a ray of sunshine.
He squinted contentedly, his hands tucked into his sleeves, lost in his own thoughts.
Ah Da coughed lightly and respectfully clasped his hands in greeting. "Grandpa, I am Su Ah Da from the Su family. I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."
Xie Jingming lifted his eyelids and casually wiped the wet corners of his eyes with the back of his hand, which resembled old tree bark.
He shook his head. "This is fate! I knew this calamity was coming."
The man said, "This is a deadly situation for me."
But I don't believe it!
I believe that God would not be so cruel to His living beings.
See, haven't you come looking for me?
He spread his fingers and leaned close to the fire to warm himself, saying casually, "For the first five years of my life, I was constantly on the run. Then I jumped off a cliff, and unexpectedly, I ended up living a peaceful life."
Therefore, everything is the best arrangement from God!
Ah Da didn't press for details about who was hunting him down; he simply smiled and agreed, "The old man is right; everything is the best arrangement from heaven."
My master and I were tricked by villains and imprisoned in different places for nearly ten years before finally seeing the light of day again.
Upon hearing this, Xie Jingming raised an eyebrow, not showing much surprise, and his tone remained calm, "Presumably, since you were able to find this place, the mastermind behind it has already been eliminated, right?"
Ah Da nodded, "Yes! It was Cheng Wangshu who hit Xiaomeng, causing her to fall off the cliff, which is why we were able to chase her here."
Xie Jingming understood. He stroked his beard with his right hand, pondered for a moment, and asked, "Presumably you entered a cave and saw the wooden box I left behind."
Ah Da looked at the old man in surprise, "You came down here because there was no water in the cave? But it's more dangerous here."
Xie Jingming smiled, "Anything in the sunlight is safe. I'll take you to see that cave later, and you'll see."
"There won't be any wild beasts there, will there?" He had barely finished speaking when Huo Zhenhua walked over from a distance, carrying a rusty pistol, and asked with a smile, "Grandpa, you're not even afraid of enemy agents, why would you be afraid of wild beasts?"
Xie Jingming's smile vanished, and he looked Huo Zhenhua up and down seriously, his sharp gaze carrying a sense of pressure. "Where's the gourd pendant I gave you?"
Upon hearing this, Huo Zhenhua's tense shoulders relaxed, and he sat down on a nearby rock. "When I first met Xiaomeng, the gourd pendant had already returned to her."
Grandpa, you didn't tell me it would go back automatically!
Xie Jingming gave him a light glare, his expression softening considerably. "The pendant around your neck is very nice. I hope you two will be together for a long time and live in harmony."
Huo Zhenhua's eyes lit up; he hadn't expected to get past his grandfather so easily.
Now, all that's left is for Su Meng to recover from her injuries and for the two families to discuss the wedding arrangements, and then they can... get married!
He grinned so wide his mouth almost reached his ears, and moved closer to Xie Jingming. "Thank you, Grandpa!"
My parents should be arriving in the next two or three days.
With your blessings and participation, our wedding will definitely be a joyous occasion.
It may take some time before Su Meng wakes up.
After discussing it, the group asked Huo Zhenhua to go back and report on the situation first.
Then, they further investigated Xie Jingming's secret discovery in the cave.
Three days later, Su Meng slowly woke up, looking blankly at the thatched grass peeking out from above, her thoughts instantly returning to normal.
She found her grandfather!
Her maternal grandfather treated her!
"Grandpa!"
She carefully propped herself up, moved to the doorway, and was met by her maternal grandfather, Su Mianzhi, and Ada walking side by side.
"Dad, why did you come down here too?"
Su Mianzhi took two quick steps, smiled, and patted her arm. "Grandpa discovered a rare mineral, and Huo Zhenhua led a team to build a ladder down from the cliff."
Xiaomeng, what do you think?
Su Meng raised her arm. "It's alright!"
Then, she exclaimed with delight, "Grandpa has done a great job! This will make it much easier for us to go back." Finally, they didn't have to climb the rope anymore.
While chatting, the group packed up all of Grandpa's important belongings.
Seeing the old man holding the stone trough on the earthen stove, lost in thought, Su Meng felt a lump in her throat and said in a muffled voice, "Grandpa, I really like your stone pot too. Shall we take it home?"
Xie Jingming snapped out of his daze, quickly wiping his eyes with his sleeve, and put his hands behind his back. "Forget it! Leave it here for the lone animals."
They're pitiful too!
Su Meng fell silent.
This old man is always so open-minded, wise, and kind.
Three hours later, Su Meng and her group returned home.
Fortunately, the new house was completed long ago and is fully furnished.
That evening, the Su family gathered together, along with Division Commander Tang, Director Jiang, and Nie Pingting, to celebrate.
Huo Zhenhua was absent because he was responsible for guarding and managing the mining operations at the back mountain mine.
Director Jiang gave Division Commander Tang a displeased look, "They're a family reunited, and they're about to get married. How could you, the matchmaker, send the main couple out like this? Be careful, or they won't arrange a seat for you at the banquet."
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