Chapter 146 Why is she running around while pregnant?
The small fishing village was completely destroyed by the flood. Broken wooden pillars were stuck in the mud, scattered fishing nets were covered in mud, and a large number of houses had collapsed. The village entrance was quiet and deserted.
Jiang Zhi and Lu Yuan walked through the fishing village, their feet sinking into the muddy water. After a while, they saw a woman dressed simply.
Upon seeing people enter the village, she immediately became wary, sizing up the two unfamiliar men.
"Who are you? What are you doing in our Yulu Bay?"
Jiang Zhi stepped forward and cupped her hands in greeting. "Auntie, we have a friend who went missing in the flood, and we'd like to inquire about his situation."
The woman looked impatient. "No, no, hurry up and leave."
Lu Yuan frowned and stepped forward. "We haven't even asked any questions yet, and you're already kicking people out. Is there something shady going on in your village?"
"Nonsense," the woman said, her eyebrows furrowing. "Everyone is busy repairing their houses right now. The village chief has already said that no one is allowed to enter the village, especially strange men. You'd better leave now."
He then went to chase them away.
At this moment, two more men dressed as villagers came over, and they looked at Jiang Zhi and Lu Yuan with wary expressions.
"What are you doing? We outsiders aren't allowed into the village now. Leave immediately, or don't blame us for being impolite!"
The villagers, armed with hoes and shovels, firmly blocked the entrance, preventing them from entering.
Jiang Zhi looked at the three menacing-looking people in front of her, who clearly regarded them as intruders.
It seems that without resorting to some extraordinary means, we won't be able to enter Yulu Bay today.
She moved closer to Lu Yuan, took his arm, and tried to put on a sweet smile. "Brothers and sisters, please help us. My husband and I came here to find our relatives, but we are too tired to walk any further. There is nowhere else to stay nearby. Please let us stay for the night."
Lu Yuan stiffened slightly, glanced down at her, but said nothing.
The older woman, however, asked in surprise, "You are... a woman?"
She looked very delicate, and although her voice was low, it wasn't rough. Upon closer inspection, she certainly didn't look like a man.
"No, no, not even women," the two men waved their hands and tried to shoo them away again. "There are so many bandits these days. I heard the other day that the next village was robbed by bandits. Who knows if you are spies in disguise?"
“The streets were too chaotic, so I had no choice but to dress as a man,” Jiang Zhi looked earnestly at the old woman. “Please do us a favor. We really have nowhere to go, and I’m not feeling well either. If you could take us in for the night, my husband and the child in my womb would be eternally grateful.”
Jiang Zhi tugged at Lu Yuan's arm.
Lu Yuan realized what was happening and cupped his hands in greeting to the three of them, "Yes, please take care of my...wife, I beg you."
"You're pregnant, why are you running around like this? How many months pregnant are you?" The old woman's attitude softened when she saw Jiang Zhi clutching her lower abdomen.
"I've only been two months pregnant and only found out a few days ago," Jiang Zhi said, feigning shyness. "Please, auntie, for the sake of the child in my womb, let us into the village."
The old woman hesitated for a moment, then sighed, "Alright, alright, come in with me, but you can only stay for one night. You must leave the village at dawn tomorrow, otherwise I won't be able to explain it to the village chief."
Jiang Zhi thanked him repeatedly and winked at Lu Yuan, who looked astonished beside her.
But even after entering the village, the scene inside was not optimistic.
Although the roads have been cleared, the houses on both sides have only undergone simple repairs, and traces of the flood can still be seen.
The old woman's name was Li E, and her residence was located in the middle of Yulu Bay. She suffered much less damage than other families.
The husband went to help repair another family's house, leaving only their seven- or eight-year-old son at home.
Upon seeing Li E bring back two strangers, the skinny little boy immediately hid behind his mother, peeking out shyly.
Jiang Zhi smiled and took out a few pieces of candied fruit from her purse to give to him, "What's your name?"
The little boy looked at his mother, and seeing that she didn't refuse, he took it. "Thank you, sister. My name is Wang Miao."
"You two will sleep in Miaomiao's room tonight. It's a simple place, so don't mind." Li E observed that the two men's mannerisms and speech did not suggest that they came from poor families; they exuded an air of wealth and privilege.
Especially that man. Her husband was already considered quite robust in the village, but this man was half a head taller than her. His clothes looked simple, but his overall demeanor made people not dare to underestimate him.
"How could that be? We are already extremely grateful that the old lady took us in."
Jiang Zhi chatted with Li E for a few minutes, and inquired about things in the village.
“Many people died in the village, and the losses were huge. There were already many poor people in the village, and now there are even more.” Li E looked worried when she talked about this.
"In addition, there are bandits causing trouble. It is said that the high-ranking officials sent to provide disaster relief have been killed by them. How are we going to live from now on?"
Li E sighed repeatedly.
Hearing her mention Shen Ci'an, Jiang Zhi's face also darkened.
At this moment, Lu Yuan finally spoke up, "Auntie, could we take a walk around the village? And see if there's anything we can do to help?"
“Your wife is pregnant, how can she wander around like this?” Li E said disapprovingly.
Lu Yuan's expression was unnatural, but he still said, "I will protect her."
Jiang Zhi insisted that she was fine, so the two left Li E's house and headed into the village.
"What do you want to investigate here?" Lu Yuan asked her when no one was around.
“I don’t know either,” Jiang Zhi said, looking confused. “Since we’ve already searched the Bian River, I’ll just go from village to village and investigate. Maybe one day we’ll find his body and then I can finally give up.”
Lu Yuan didn't know what to say, so he just silently squeezed her hand to comfort her.
Just then, a gasp of surprise came from not far away.
Jiang Zhi looked closely and saw a man who had been climbing on the roof to repair it, but suddenly slipped and rolled down.
Fortunately, just as he was about to fall off the roof, he reacted quickly and grabbed a protruding beam from the eaves, preventing him from falling directly.
He was hanging there with only one hand, and the beam was already rotten and fragile. People around him tried to move the ladder over, but it was too late.
With a few sharp cracking sounds, the beam broke, and the man fell to the ground amidst the gasps of the crowd!
Before Jiang Zhi could react, she saw Lu Yuan's figure flash by, and he disappeared like a startled swan.
She lightly touched the pillar with her toes, used the momentum to leap into the air, and in an instant grabbed the falling man by the back of his collar, bringing him lightly to the ground.
Everything happened in an instant. Before anyone around could even see what was going on, Lu Yuan had already safely put the person down.
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