At this moment, Liu Hai couldn’t possibly admit that Zhang Nu wasn’t a villager. If he confessed now, it would only confirm the accusations against him. Seeing that Liu Hai was still refusing to acknowledge the truth, the villagers' disappointment deepened.
If Liu Hai had admitted that Zhang Nu was an outsider and taken responsibility, the villagers might have shown him leniency. After all, they had cared for him for so long. However, his continued denial and attempt to deflect blame were unexpected and only made things worse.Now, the villagers saw no reason to be polite to him. If Liu Hai didn’t care about them or their rules, why should they care about him? They weren’t foolish, and there was no reason to protect someone who had turned his back on them."Liu Hai, after everything we've done for you, you still refuse to admit the truth?" one villager said, his voice full of disappointment.
“We treated you like family, but now it’s clear we were wrong about you. You’ve just been using us this whole time.”
An elderly woman, highly respected in the village, voiced this harsh truth. Her words carried weight, and many villagers quickly sided with her. Sure enough, the looks in their eyes changed, viewing Liu Hai as a traitor.
“Granny, I really don’t understand what you mean,” Liu Hai said, his voice filled with confusion. “What did I do wrong for you to target me like this? If I’ve made a mistake, I’ll change. Isn’t that enough?”“Liu Hai, do you know? I once thought you would be the hope of this village,” the old woman began, her voice heavy with disappointment. “I was even prepared to tell you everything. But now I see how wrong I was. You’re no different from those outsiders trying to destroy our home. How could I have ever considered you our savior?”Zhang Nu held back Liu Hai, stopping him from speaking further. He whispered to him, “There’s no point in arguing anymore. They’ve already figured out who we really are. If you don’t want to be thrown out of the village, your only option now is to appeal to their emotions. Convince them to let us stay.”
Liu Hai, trusting Zhang Nu completely, nodded in agreement. If it hadn’t been for Zhang Nu, he would’ve died back at Nine Fox Ridge. Since Zhang Nu suggested playing the emotional card, Liu Hai was fully prepared to do so.
“Uncles, aunts,” Liu Hai began, his voice filled with sincerity, “I never wanted things to come to this. I’ve been wanting to tell you the truth for a long time, but the village chief’s warnings terrified me. I was afraid that if you found out about my true identity, you’d make me leave. And if I leave, I’ll have nowhere else to go. I don’t even have a family to return to.”
Following Zhang Nu’s advice, Liu Hai started to appeal to their emotions. He believed that the villagers still had some feelings for him, and if they heard him speak from the heart, perhaps they would let him stay. Surely, they wouldn’t be so heartless as to throw him out just like that.