Su Changsong listened to the village chief's words, his head pounding like garlic. He nodded repeatedly, saying, "Yes, yes, yes, you are right, village chief. I will definitely listen to you and keep a close eye on my mother and prevent her from doing anything wrong again. Don't worry, I know what I am doing."
Seeing his statement, the village chief nodded slightly, turned around and walked away slowly.
After the village chief left, Su Changsong stood where he was and did not move immediately. Instead, he frowned slightly and his eyes fell on San Ya and his son not far away.
San Ya was blinking her big round eyes at this moment, with a cunning look in her eyes. She looked like a clever little fox, as if she was thinking about something in her mind.
Looking at his son again, he was grinning foolishly with a silly look in his eyes. He seemed to have no reaction to the series of events that had just happened.
Su Changsong looked at these two completely different children and couldn't help but narrow his eyes slightly, as if thinking about something.
At this time, several human traffickers saw a large group of people from Sujia Village gathering together. Their eyes suddenly lit up and they immediately ran over.
One of the traffickers, beaming, shouted, "Hey, fellow villagers, do you want to trade for grain? One child can be exchanged for half a bag of grain. If the child is well-behaved and smart, he can be exchanged for a whole bag of grain!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the surroundings were quiet for a moment, and then there was some movement in the crowd.
There were a few people in the village whose eyes widened instantly and flickered when they heard that a child could be exchanged for half a bag of coarse grains, with a hint of struggle and excitement in their eyes.
They subconsciously glanced at the children beside them, then at their own empty pockets. Their once firm beliefs seemed to waver a little, and they couldn't help but wonder, if they could exchange their children for food, maybe they could survive this period...
However, after hearing what the trafficker said, more people showed anger and disdain on their faces.
They all stepped forward, took a few steps forward, and used their bodies to block the human traffickers' gazes that were looking at their children as if they were commodities.
Fourth Grandpa was so angry that his beard stood up. He pointed at the trafficker with trembling hands and shouted, "No, no! We in Sujia Village would never do such a wicked thing as selling children!"
Others echoed this, shouting in unison: "That's right, we won't sell people! Even if we starve to death, we won't trade our children for food!"
That firm voice sounded particularly loud in the chaos, demonstrating the bottom line and dignity that the people of Sujia Village adhered to.
Seeing that most of the people in Sujia Village were determined and no one was willing to sell people, the human trafficker felt a little disappointed, but he also knew that there was no benefit in continuing to argue here, so he didn't say anything more. After exchanging glances, he quickly turned around and walked away.
He walked in a hurry, as if he couldn't wait to find the next possible target.
Mrs. Li stood aside, staring at the human trafficker's departing back, her eyes full of regret and unwillingness, as if she was watching a handful of silver slip away from her eyes, feeling extremely distressed.
She couldn't help but secretly complain in her heart: "Oh, this village chief is really nosy! If he hadn't interfered, maybe I could have exchanged some food for those girls. Now, I got nothing and got scolded. Sigh..."
As she thought about it, she kept smacking her lips, her face full of regret.
The village chief's eyes were now fixed on a group of villagers who were gathered not far away, whispering to each other and watching the excitement.
His heart suddenly skipped a beat, fearing that some of the villagers, after hearing what the trafficker had just said, would also have the evil idea of selling their children for food.
This won't do. Sujia Village has always valued family ties and upheld ethical principles. We must not allow such scandals of selling children to happen in the village, otherwise it will ruin the village's reputation for hundreds of years.
Thinking of this, the village chief immediately shouted to everyone with a serious expression: "Everyone, listen to me! No matter how poor and hard life is in our Sujia Village, we cannot allow things like selling children to happen. This is a red line that our Sujia Village must never cross!
If anyone dares to break this rule, they will be expelled from the clan and driven out of Sujia Village! When that happens, don't blame me, the village chief, for being ruthless. I hope everyone can keep this in mind and not do anything that will make you regret it and bring shame to your ancestors!
The village chief's voice was particularly loud in the noise, like a huge bell, reaching the ears of every villager and shocking everyone's heart.
Among the crowd, there were a few people who had just begun to think about selling their children for food. There was a hint of hesitation and struggle in their eyes. They secretly looked in the direction where the human traffickers left, thinking that in this year of famine, if they could exchange some food for it, their families might be able to survive these difficult days.
But at this moment, the village chief's sharp eyes suddenly swept over and stared at them closely.
That gaze seemed to be able to see through their inner thoughts, piercing straight into their hearts, making them feel like a thorn in their backs. Those little thoughts that had just emerged immediately shrank back in fear like mice seeing the light.
They felt uneasy when the village chief stared at them, and they quickly raised their heads, forcing a flattering smile on their faces, thinking silently in their hearts, Village chief, we are not selling children, so don't look at me!
Most of the other villagers already hated the selling of children, and when they heard the village chief's call, they became even more excited.
Everyone straightened their backs and shouted at the village chief at the top of their voices, "That's right, those who sell their children should be kicked out! We don't want people like that in our village! Anyone who dares to do that will bring shame to our ancestors and is unworthy of being a member of Sujia Village!"
Mrs. Li was standing at the edge of the crowd at this moment. She had something to hide and was just blaming the village chief for ruining her good thing.
Seeing everyone's united hatred for the enemy, he was so scared that he dared not breathe. He lowered his head and shrank his neck, for fear of being noticed by everyone.
Her heart was pounding as she thought to herself, "Please don't see me! If they find out I just had that thought of selling my granddaughter, I'll be drowned in spit. What should I do? I'd better pretend nothing happened."
The village chief stood there, his eyes slowly sweeping over everyone's faces one by one. Seeing the villagers' firm answers, a satisfied smile appeared on his face and he nodded slightly.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
