Perhaps Li Lanzhen's anxious mood affected the heavens, for the rain gradually subsided just after Chenshi (7-9 AM).
Han Shunde then called on the people of Hanjiacun to bring their belongings, carry their children, and help the elderly to the wooden bridge.
According to Xue Laohu's plan, several strong young men were to go first, firstly to scout the way, and secondly to check if the wooden bridge was stable. If it was not stable, they would need to pave it and repair it.
When Li Lanzhen saw that Han Shunde was also among the group that had gone ahead, she said, "Brother Shunde, you shouldn't go over yet. Stay here and keep an eye on the people of Han Family Village, and make sure they don't get into trouble."
Han Shunde thought it made sense, so he stayed.
The first group to go was led by Xue Laohu, and included Han Mingjiang, Zhang Songshu, and Li Guangyang, a total of four people.
They carried two axes given to them by Li Lanzhen, and as they walked, they looked around and tried to smooth out any uneven or bumpy areas with the axes.
Li Lanzhen glanced at Han Yanyan in the crowd. Seeing her crazy appearance, she was a little scared, so she whispered to Han Shunde, "Keep an eye on your sister. If people are on the bridge, she might rush across and cause danger."
Han Shunde nodded, then shook his head and walked up to his mother, whispering, "Mother, keep a close eye on my sister. If another conflict breaks out this time, I won't be able to protect her either."
Aunt Huaihua nodded and held her daughter tightly. Gu Yushi was also afraid that her mother would rush out and fall into the water, so he also held her tightly.
The four people who led the way had now reached the middle of the wooden bridge. Beneath their feet was a rushing, churning floodwater, and above them, a light drizzle was falling, which was quite chilling.
However, the four of them were quite spirited. As they walked, they trimmed the protruding, untrimmed tree branches and continued forward. Fortunately, the wooden bridge was fairly stable, and they crossed it smoothly.
Once they reached the other side, the crowd on this side shouted and cheered with joy, and some children laughed and jumped for joy.
The four of them used axes to chop down the spot where the log had landed, creating a groove. They then used stone slabs to stabilize it, making sure the wooden bridge was secure. Only then did they wave to the other side, indicating that it was safe to cross.
Xue Laohu circled around the area. The mountain was quite high, and all he could see below were trees and shrubs. It would probably take another day to get down the mountain.
Upon seeing the hand signal from the other side to let everyone pass, Han Yanyan immediately rushed forward, shouting, "I'll go first! I'll go first! My parents and I will go first!"
Han Shunde said, "Shut up and stand still. You're last."
"Why? Why should I go first?"
Li Lanzhen picked up the stick, pointed it at her, and said, "If you shout again, I'll smash your head in with this stick!"
Han Yanyan, her neck stiff, shouted, "You dare!"
Li Lanzhen walked up to her step by step, raised the stick in her hand, and smashed it hard on her head.
When Han Yanyan saw that Li Lanzhen was serious, her face turned pale and she quickly took a few steps back in fright.
Li Lanzhen slammed the stick she had raised onto the ground, sending wet mud flying everywhere. Han Yanyan was so frightened that goosebumps rose all over her body. "You, Li Lanzhen, you're serious!"
Li Lanzhen said, "You'd better stand here obediently. I'm saying this for the last time. If you don't listen and behave, I'll break your head with this stick!"
After settling Han Yanyan down, Li Lanzhen turned around and beckoned everyone to come over. Han Mingjiang and Xue Bao walked over from one end to the other. They planned to bring the donkey and the big blue mule over first.
Zhang Deshui blindfolded the donkeys and the big blue mule with cloth and led them around in circles on the ground. When they saw Han Mingjiang and Xue Bao, they handed them the reins. It took the two of them two trips to pull the three donkeys and one mule across the bridge.
Next, Zhang Deshui's family crossed the bridge first, and then Zhang Songshu came from the other side, carrying loads and baskets, along with his parents Li Sanya, and Da Niu, Er Niu, and San Niu.
Although Da Niu, Er Niu, and San Niu were just children, they were very brave. Their father told them not to look down from the bridge, so they kept their eyes straight ahead and focused on the road beneath their feet. As a result, they made it across relatively smoothly. After their family crossed, the village butcher Han Da Zhong and his family followed.
This family was quite large, with more than a dozen people, carrying baskets, carrying baskets on their backs, and a donkey. It took them quite a while to get there, but so far, everyone has made it smoothly.
Next, Li Lanzhen said that her family needed to cross the bridge, and asked Li Erhan and Ye Shi to go first.
Li Erhan and Ye Shi led the way, pulling Dingdang along and carrying baskets. Li Xishui, Tonghua, and Li Guangyang followed behind, also carrying loads and baskets.
When they reached the middle of the wooden bridge, Li Lanzhen prepared to bring the children across, but unexpectedly, Han Yanyan suddenly rushed onto the wooden bridge.
As soon as she stood on the wooden bridge, she began to stomp her feet violently and screamed loudly, "Jump, jump! Jump down! Give me back my daughter! Give me back my daughter!"
She stood on one end of the bridge, stomping her feet and kicking the wooden planks. Her frantic movements caused the bridge to sway slightly.
Ye, who was on the wooden bridge, began to feel nervous. Her legs went weak and her face turned pale. Li Erhan held her tightly.
Upon seeing this, Li Lanzhen felt her blood boil. She grabbed a stick and struck Han Yanyan on the back of the head, knocking Han Yanyan to the ground.
"Han Shunde, pull your sister away! If you don't, I'll kick her into the floodwaters! You beast!"
Gu Yushi and Aunt Huaihua rushed over and quickly pulled Han Yanyan over. Han Yanyan was like a dead dog, with blood flowing from the back of her head. Neither of them blamed Li Lanzhen, and everyone who saw it was terrified.
Because of Han Yanyan's shout, the wooden bridge swayed a little, and Lingdang suddenly stopped walking. "Grandma, I'm scared! Grandma, I'm scared!" she cried, her eyes fixed on the churning floodwaters below the bridge.
She held onto Ye tightly, and at this moment Ye also began to tremble, standing still and not daring to move.
Li Erhan, Li Guangyang, and the other two were carrying loads and walking ahead. Just as they were about to turn around, Li Lanzhen shouted, "Don't turn around, keep walking forward!"
"Don't be afraid, Lingdang, your aunt is here." After crossing the bridge, Li Lanzhen picked up Lingdang and pulled Ye Shi along. "Mother, let's go."
Li Lanzhen safely escorted them across the bridge, then returned to fetch her own children. Tonghua followed behind her, also returning to pick up some of her children.
Zhang Yuniang was more than six months pregnant, her belly was very big, and it was raining, so the ground was a bit slippery. Her already delicate body was a little scared at this moment.
Zhang Deshui, who was on the other side, asked his son to come and help his daughter cross the bridge.
Zhang Songshu and Li Sanya both came over.
When Li Lanzhen saw this, she said to her eldest son, "Eldest son, don't take anything, just help your wife walk over slowly."
Han Mingjiang said, "Brother, we'll go first, and you and sister-in-law will go in the middle. That way you won't be scared. Sister-in-law, don't look at the floodwaters below the bridge. Just look ahead, or look at your feet. Don't be afraid, your parents are waiting for you on the other side."
Zhang Yuniang also understood the implications, and nodded repeatedly, saying, "I'm not afraid, I'm not afraid, I'm not afraid."
Han Yinan looked at his mother with some worry and called out to her, "Mom, don't be afraid. I'm here to support you. Hold on tight to Dad, he'll get you across. Don't look at the flood. Grandma and Grandpa are on the other side."
Zhang Yuniang's eyes reddened. Her son was so sensible, the little boy was still comforting her, so she said loudly, "Mom, don't be afraid. You follow behind slowly and watch your sister."
Zhang Songshu and Li Sanya carried baskets and hampers on their backs, walking ahead.
Xue Bao came over and picked up his sister's two children, Han Yisong and Han Yibo. Xue Nizi carried a basket and a wicker basket on her back, while Han Mingjiang also carried a basket and a wicker basket. The two of them slowly followed behind Xue Bao.
Xue Nizi instructed the two children, "Don't move around. Stay in your uncle's arms and don't wriggle. If you move around, you'll fall off and never see your mother and father again."
The two children were still very nervous, their little faces tense, their hands tightly wrapped around Xue Bao. Xue Bao told them to spread their legs apart, wrap them around his waist, and carried them step by step across the wooden bridge.
Li Lanzhen saw the remaining children: Han Yinan, Miaomiao, Linglong, Su Chen, and her own little daughter.
Han Yuemei said, "Mother, I'll hold Miaomiao's hand, you carry Linglong, and Su Chen will follow behind his sister."
Su Chen looked a little nervous at this moment, but he clenched his fist like a little adult and said, "It's okay, I'll go with Yinan."
Han Yinan held Su Chen's hand, Han Yuemei held Miao Miao's hand and walked ahead, while Li Lanzhen carried Linglong and walked slowly forward.
When they reached the middle of the wooden bridge, Su Chen was so nervous that he suddenly slipped and fell to his knees on the bridge. Han Yinan was also pulled down by him and fell onto the bridge, their legs sliding off and hanging in mid-air.
His legs dangled below the wooden bridge, and Li Lanzhen's heart leaped into her throat.
Shout loudly, "Yi Nan! Hold on tight to the log and don't slip!"
Han Yinan didn't dare to move, holding the wood tightly with both hands. Su Chen quickly got up at this moment, grabbed Han Yinan's arm tightly, and cried out, "Brother Yinan, I'm sorry, it's all my fault for falling and causing you to fall."
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