CHAPTER 312: 312. HUGGING THE THIGH

Old Hua nodded, "I am Hua Man, the village chief of Hua Village. Don’t be afraid, we are not bad people; the bad ones have been captured by us and can no longer do evil."

"Hua Man?" Li Laosan was just about to speak when the village chief behind him motioned for him to stop. The limping village chief Li Dazhi took a step forward, brushing aside his disheveled white hair and carefully scrutinizing the people by the torchlight.

... It’s that face, unchanged.

Wearing the same tattered clothes, the difference was that, though thin, he gave a strong impression. Even in the night, where one couldn’t see their complexion, it was clear they lived better than us, judging by the spirited young men surrounding them.

"It’s truly the village chief Hua Man from Hua Village! Village Chief Hua, I am Li Dazhi, the village chief of Li Village!" At this, Li Dazhi, who had lived for so many years, was so overwhelmed with excitement that he burst into tears.

"We are saved! We are saved," he cried as he spoke.

Thinking of how Li Village sent out over twenty men for food, only for a few to return, Old Li was inconsolable in his sobbing.

"Village chief..." Li Laosan, who wanted to say something, could only tightly support Village Chief Li.

If not for the belief of wanting to return alive, their aged village chief wouldn’t have held on after enduring continuous beatings; even now, he struggled to stand with Li Laosan’s support.

Excitement coursed through him, his face terrifyingly flushed, nearly unable to breathe, prompting Li Laosan to quickly help him calm down.

"Village chief, you must stay calm. We’ve barely been rescued and have yet to return to see our families, so you must endure," Li Laosan urged, concerned.

In the rush, a water pouch was extended, "Have some water to soothe yourself."

Heaven shows mercy to such an old man finally being rescued. It wouldn’t be fair if he cried himself to death now, thought Hua Jin watching compassionately.

Li Laosan gratefully glanced and quickly fed their village chief a few sips, moistening his throat, finally easing his strained breath.

"Thank you," Li Laosan sincerely thanked the young man before him, his voice hoarse from long-term dehydration.

Now, he believed these people were indeed from Hua Village, not bad people.

Moreover, the young man, who vaguely seemed familiar, made him feel as if he’d seen him before but couldn’t recall where.

Not remembering, Li Laosan, never one to get trapped in circular reasoning, let it go.

By now, Village Chief Li had regained composure, apologetically gazing at the people from Hua Village, especially Old Hua.

Sudden joy had caught him off guard, but thinking of the recent hardships, he couldn’t help but feel moved.

"I’m sorry for my loss of composure," Village Chief Li said to Old Hua, embarrassed.

"It’s nothing to mind, everyone faces challenges in life," Old Hua replied with an understanding smile.

"Can you walk? If so, let’s go up the mountain, and I’ll prepare something for you to eat." Seeing Village Chief Li and his people weak, Old Hua could not hide his sympathy. Given their condition, going down the mountain without food seemed difficult.

"Yes, yes, yes..." Village Chief Li quickly nodded.

Even if not, they had to manage; they were relying on Hua Village now.

"Alright," Old Hua nodded, refraining from saying more given their unfamiliarity, and signaled the young men from Hua Village behind him to lend a hand.

With Old Hua’s help, they took more time than before to laboriously ascend the mountain.

Meanwhile, Hua Qiang stayed behind to watch over the livestock, while Hua Rong led people directly to raid the cave of those scoundrels, bringing out all the food supplies, even enduring the psychological shadow to retrieve strips of hanging meat.

If possible, one would indeed want to turn those scoundrels into hanging strips of meat; it’s utterly repulsive.

As the supplies were moved out, shadowy figures slowly appeared from the distance. Hua Qiang, vigilant, approached only to relax in relief.

"Village Chief Uncle..." He reached out to pull the village chief, just a few steps away, onto the mountain, his gaze then shifting to the brothers helping those poor villagers up.

They were truly pitiful, barely surviving a year and a half of disasters, thinking they might live, only to be taken here as food reserve.

These people no longer resembled human beings, appearing worse off than anyone they encountered along the way.

Everyone quickly came to help, bringing the unfortunate villagers to the fireside.

Glancing at the food supplies raided, Old Hua immediately instructed Hua Qiang, "Qiang, arrange for some food. They’ve suffered from starvation," glancing at Village Chief Li’s group.

"I’ll get on it," Hua Qiang nodded promptly.

He then looked at a middle-aged man not far away, "Old Liu, hurry and bury the pot for cooking."

"Uncle, include this as well."

"Wild chicken?" Hua Qiang’s surprise was evident at Xiaoxiao’s words; this child had incredible luck or skill, catching such a plump wild chicken in such a short time, now flapping in Hua Jin’s hands.

"No need, take it back for yourself. I have a small piece of cured meat; I’ll dice it into the porridge along with salt and meat."

As a grown man, Hua Qiang felt uneasy accepting the wild chicken caught by Hua Jin.

"Uncle, the bacon is too oily and strong in flavor, which might not sit well with the digestion of those who’ve been starving for long. Wild chicken is milder."

If not for seeing how struggling they were, Hua Jin would not have been so generous as to contribute such a plump wild chicken, figuring some nourishment is better than none.

After a brief inner conflict, Hua Qiang decided to accept the wild chicken from Hua Jin, acknowledging her point that the bacon flavor was indeed too strong for those who’ve been starved.

Li Village and all rescued individuals, upon hearing Hua Village’s intention to cook for them, were deeply grateful.

Honestly, they hadn’t held any hope for escape; in their current state, it was impossible to travel far. They were merely defiant, unwilling to give up.

Never in their dreams would they expect a turnaround, finally encountering good people.

At that moment, they couldn’t believe that after extreme evil experiences, there could still be good people, their hearts slowly thawing and hopes for the future inexplicably arising.

"Thank you, thank you," said everyone, including Village Chief Li, weakly expressing gratitude.

Receiving so many thanks, Old Hua opened his mouth but said nothing. Though it was coincidental, saving them was a fact, and their gratitude was well deserved.

The people had been rescued, but now the most critical task was how to deal with those scoundrels.

Leaving aside the elderly, women, and children who were conscious, those trussed up in various positions began regaining consciousness on the ground, some already struggling.

But tied up with gagged mouths, their efforts were futile except for chaos and fear.

These individuals had done endless evil and could well be executed; however, Old Hua hesitated when he looked at the elderly, women, and children, especially when his gaze landed on the children.