CH 98

Thingyan: I am being accused of leaving a cliffhanger by a beloved reader. *Sigh .. so here’s another chapter  

Li Changfeng walked away, and the atmosphere at home noticeably cooled down.

Although Li Changfeng didn’t talk much on ordinary days, as long as he was there, the energy at home was different. At night, Tuan Tuan couldn’t help but cry for his father.

“Father! Father! I want my father!”

Tuan Tuan kept rubbing his little face against Xu Qing’s thigh while crying.

Xu Qing quickly put all the blankets, covers, and clothes that could be used into the space, and Tuan Tuan was so busy crying that he didn’t notice Xu Qing playing “disappearing trick!”

After tidying up the things in the cabinet, Tuan Tuan was still crying and making a fuss. Xu Qing sighed, bent down, picked up Tuan Tuan and put him on the bed. He wiped the dirt off the chubby face and looked at his watery eyes.

“You be good and go to sleep, listen to Ama’s words, your father will definitely come back soon.”

Tuan Tuan nodded repeatedly, curled up in his own little bed, and said goodnight to Xu Qing.

Xu Qing sat on the side, guarding Tuan Tuan until he started to snore. Then he stood up, put all the useful things in the house into the space, even the bowls for eating were not left behind, just like he could move the entire house into the space.

Xu Qing didn’t dare to sleep too deeply at night. Their house was in the back mountain, with tall trees and large rocks behind. If anything stirred at night, he would be prepared.

The rain continued the next day. After Xu Qing and Tuan Tuan had some simple food, they sat in the main room and stayed there.

“Ama, where is my car?”

Tuan Tuan searched for his toy car everywhere, but couldn’t find it. He asked Xu Qing.

“Your father took it away to fix it. Can you wait for a few days to play with it?” Actually, Xu Qing had put it in the space. It was easy to lie to a child, and he felt no pressure at all.

“Oh.”

Tuan Tuan felt a little disappointed, but still believed Xu Qing’s words.

“Xie Ama, Xie Ama!”

Tuan Tuan called out to Xie Ama as he entered the yard. The gate was open, allowing the accumulated water to flow out.

Translated on ho lo lo novels dot com.

“Tuan Tuan is such a good boy!” Xie Ama’s voice was loud, but in the increasing rain, it became quieter.

“Xie Ama, why are you here? Aren’t you afraid of falling in this heavy rain?” Xu Qing handed Xie Ama a stool.

“I have something to do. Ah Qing, I have to go to town with Xiao Yu this afternoon. I may not be back for a while. Will you come with me?” Xie Ama was worried about Xie Yu, who was in town with the twins by himself. Lin Fangliang had gone to repair the dam, leaving Xie Yu alone with the two children. Xie Ama was not at ease.

“I won’t go. Most of my house is built with large stones. It’s fine.” Xu Qing refused.

Xie Ama looked at Xu Qing’s house and hesitated, “You’re alone with a baby on the way and have to take care of Tuan Tuan. It might not be convenient. Come with me. I feel better when you’re in front of me.”

Xu Qing shook his head, “Really, it’s fine. Besides, if Changfeng doesn’t see us when he comes back, we’ll be in a hurry. Don’t worry. You should go to town. Brother Yu can’t manage on his own. But how are you going in this heavy rain?”

The water was up to their calves in some places due to the heavy rain.

“Wu family is also going to town to find their son. We’ll go together. We’ll have company!” Xie Ama immediately said when he heard Xu Qing’s worried tone.

“That’s good.” Xu Qing was afraid that Xie Ama would go alone and wasn’t at ease.

Xie Ama heard Xu Qing’s refusal and put aside his advice, but still reminded him, “If you have any trouble, go find the village head!”

“Village head? Didn’t he go to repair the dam with Changfeng and the others?” Xu Qing asked, confused.

“He came back this morning! How can this village function without a backbone? We can’t let people’s hearts be disturbed. I’m leaving. Come on, Tuan Tuan, Ama is going to give you a hug again.”

Tuan Tuan obediently extended his arms and hugged Xie Ama.

It was true. Village head and the other men had left, leaving behind only the children, the old, and gers. If something happened, the men who had left would panic!

“Goodbye, Xie Ama.”

“Take care.”

Xu Qing and Tuan Tuan exchanged a few words with Xie Ama before he hurriedly left with an umbrella. He was worried about Xie Yu.

“Where is Xie Ama going?”

After Tuan Tuan saw Xie Ama leaving, he grabbed Xu Qing’s hand and asked. “To go see your younger brother Lin and younger brother Xie.”

Tuan Tuan shook his head, not quite understanding what “younger brother” meant.

When Li Changfeng and the others arrived at the dam, a large group of people were already there working. Li Changfeng recognized several familiar faces from Anle Village, Jixiang Village, and the town.

“It seems like they’ve called all the men around here,” said Second Wei.

Li Changfeng nodded.

“Hey, you newcomers! Put your baggage up there and come over to work!” a government official shouted loudly at the people from Xingfu Village.

Li Changfeng and the others put away their things and began to strengthen the dam.

In order to work faster, they couldn’t hold an umbrella. Li Changfeng’s eyes were so soaked by the heavy rain that he couldn’t open them, but his movements didn’t stop. He wanted to work quickly and finish quickly, so that they could go home earlier.

Many of the villagers had the same thought as Li Changfeng and worked hard without slacking off.

But several days of continuous rain made many people unable to cope. Those who were too young or too old were starting to have a fever, and only Li Changfeng and others around his age were doing relatively better.

“Officer, this isn’t going to work. It’s easy to get sick in this kind of weather, and illnesses are easily spread,” Lin Fangliang whispered to a government official during a break.

Lin Fangliang grew up in the town and succeeded the clinic from old Dr. Lin. The government officials from town all knew him.

Moreover, Lin Fangliang was speaking the truth. They had overlooked this issue.

Thinking about it, the government official clasped his fists and politely asked Lin Fangliang, “Then I’ll trouble Dr. Lin to brew medicinal soup for everyone.”

Lin Fangliang quickly agreed. Uncle Xie’s body had already been feverish since the night before yesterday, and Lin Fangliang was worried.

“The herbs in my pharmacy were abundant. I asked the officials to send someone to follow me,” but Lin Fangliang couldn’t convince anyone to come with him.

The official hesitated, “Um…,” but Lin Fangliang quickly said, “Don’t worry, sir. These herbs are just sitting here. It’s better for me to donate them, so everyone can have a better chance of staying healthy.”

“Good, good, good! Lao Liu, take two of your brothers and follow Dr. Lin!” The official liked to talk to smart people, and seeing that Lin Fangliang understood his intentions, he immediately laughed and called a few more of his brothers.

“Changfeng, I’m going to the pharmacy and then to see my family. Do you have anything you want me to pass on?” Lin Fangliang whispered to Li Changfeng.

Li Changfeng looked up and thought for a moment, “If anyone goes back to the village, please tell my wife to take care of himself and the child until I come home.”

Upon hearing this, Lin Fangliang patted Li Changfeng’s soaked shoulder and quickly left.

Watching Lin Fangliang and his group leave, Li Changfeng’s longing eyes seemed to follow them.

Li Changfeng had not returned home for more than ten days. Except for a message brought by Xie Ama, he had no news from Xu Qing and the child.

Late at night, heavy rain poured down, and several large rocks behind the Xu family’s house began to shake. The long-term impact of the rain had loosened the soil, and fist-sized pieces of gravel began to slide down.

Then several large rocks also followed and rolled toward the Xu family’s backyard, taking a few big trees with them!

Just as the boulder and the tree were about to hit the Xu family’s yard, Xu Qing, who was supposed to be sleeping soundly, suddenly opened his eyes, grabbed the bundle on the small bed next to him, and disappeared from the spot.

At that moment, the Xu family house collapsed instantly, making a loud noise!

Meanwhile, Li Changfeng, who was repairing the dam, suddenly felt a sense of restlessness and panic in his heart. He had to stop his steady steps and stay in place, touching his chest.

“What’s wrong, second brother?”

Eldest Li passed by carrying something and happened to see Li Changfeng’s lost look.

Li Changfeng couldn’t describe it, “I suddenly felt panicked.”

Eldest Li quickly put down what he was carrying and anxiously took the thing from Li Changfeng’s hand. “What’s wrong? Did you catch a cold even after drinking Dr. Lin’s medicine?”

Translated on ho lo lo novels dot com.

Li Changfeng shook his head and put the thing back on his shoulder that Eldest Li had taken. “Nothing, elder brother. Maybe I’m just a little tired.” They worked day and night, sleeping only a few hours a day. Today’s rain was particularly heavy, and everyone who could work was still working to prevent delays.

“Okay, if there’s anything, you must tell me.”

Eldest Li instructed with concern.

Li Changfeng waved his hand to indicate that he understood and then threw himself into this huge project again.

****

Gradually, the sky turned white and it became light. Last night, several poor thatched houses in Xingfu Village collapsed, and a two-year-old child unfortunately died. The child’s mother held the child and cried heartbrokenly.

The village head sighed, and the villagers present also tried to persuade the mother, but the child’s mother said, “This is not your child! Of course, you’re not sad!” No one dared to step forward to comfort him.

People’s hearts are made of flesh, especially those with children who didn’t feel good after seeing this scene. Some sensitive people even wiped their tears.

“Village head, this won’t do. The rain may not stop soon, and someone has died. Why don’t we gather the people from the houses that are easy to collapse? At least there is a care for each other!” Mason Liu’s wife suggested.

“I agree! Now I live alone in my big tiled house alone. I can share it with others!” someone said.

“Yes, village head!”

At that moment, the villagers who were left all agreed.

The village head thought for a moment and said, “Okay, let’s do it!”

Second Wei’s wife quickly added, “And Xu Qing in the back mountain. He is pregnant for seven months and is also taking care of a child!”

After listening, Zeng Ama’s expression was a bit sad. “Then just him stay at our house. My husband is not here, and our two sons are already married. The more people we have, the more at ease we’ll be.”

“Okay! Then I’ll arrange a place to stay for those willing to move to stay. Send someone to have Xu Qing pack up and come over,” the village head said and immediately started taking action, making everyone feel more at ease.

The person who went to look for Xu Qing in the mountains was a man in his thirties who was good at swimming and had a strong physique, so he took on the task himself.

However, before he even reached Xu’s courtyard, he was stunned by a scene in the distance. He hurriedly held up his umbrella and waded through knee-deep water back to the village in a panic.

“Oh no! Oh no! Xu family’s house in the mountains has been crushed by a big boulder! Oh no! Oh no!”