Chapter 52 – The Crowd, Flustered in the Wind

The sun was slowly sinking, the bright daylight turning into a warm golden hue, signaling the arrival of dusk.

Xiaojiu’s group drove the carriage at full speed. The closer they got to Taoyuan Village, the stronger their longing for home became.

“Where are we going to live?” Jiang He asked curiously.

Xiaojiu glanced around, looking a bit troubled. It seemed she’d have to arrange for someone to build a bigger house tomorrow—maybe even a villa. After all, she was a rich person now.

“What’s there to worry about? The village chief’s place is probably too small now, but you can stay at my house!” A’Dou said enthusiastically. “My mom’s super gentle, and my sister’s gone to your master to learn medicine. That makes you and my sister fellow disciples, which is just like being siblings. My sister’s mom is your mom too, so just relax and stay!”

…Was family connection calculated like this?

“Your mom’s really gentle?” Jiang He asked.

He was an orphan who had never seen his parents. In his heart, his master was like a father, though sometimes a strict one. Deep down, he had imagined what a mother might be like. Hearing A’Dou say his own mother was gentle made Jiang He curious—he wanted to know what it felt like to have a mother.

Tie Zhu quickly slung an arm around Man Cang’s shoulders. “Man Cang, you can stay at my house. My grandpa’s cooking is amazing.”

“Yeah, Man Cang, don’t worry,” Zhao Hu chimed in. “Our village folks are all nice and gentle. Just ask Wang Zherong and Shen Zhiyuan—they’re living here and don’t even want to leave. Once our school dorms are built, we can all stay there together.”

The chubby boy and Shen Zhiyuan both nodded eagerly. “The villagers here aren’t fierce at all—they’re all really nice. And every day there’s so much delicious food.”

Hearing this, Jiang He and Man Cang finally relaxed, their hearts full of anticipation for the days ahead.

The carriage gradually approached the village entrance.

Xiaojiu faintly heard sounds of fighting. Her heart skipped a beat, and she quickly sent her spiritual sense sweeping over the village.

“Not good! Something’s happened in the village!”

Hearing this, Shi Xian, who was driving the carriage, immediately sped up. The horses galloped madly, and they soon reached the village.

Xiaojiu and the others jumped down—
Only to see…

Liu Auntie and Zhao Dalang on horseback, waving large sabers; Old Lady Ma and Old Lady Liu whacking the men on the ground with bricks; Old Lady Liu’s mother-in-law, nearly toothless, stabbing furiously with a sewing needle; and the elderly clan elders pounding away at the prone men with their walking sticks—thump, thump, thump.

Xiaojiu stood frozen, utterly baffled by the scene.

Zhao Hu and the others were so shocked their jaws nearly hit the ground.

Seeing the kids standing dazed, Jing Xin assumed they were scared stiff.
“Your villagers are about to be beaten to death by bandits! Can’t you see they’re all lying on the ground? Hurry and help them! Look at those vicious people on horseback—they clearly aren’t going to let your villagers go.”

“Should we report this to the authorities?” Qin Xu asked.

“No, no, no,” Xiaojiu and the others quickly shook their heads.

“Are you out of your minds? If this isn’t the time, then when? Those mounted bandits look like they kill without blinking!” Jing Xin was almost frantic.

As soon as he finished speaking, one of the “vicious-looking female bandits” on horseback waved toward them and rode over.

“Village Chief! A’Dou! You’re finally back!” she shouted.

The rest of the riders quickly dismounted and ran toward Xiaojiu.
“Village Chief! You’re finally back!”

Here’s the full translation of your passage into English, keeping the tone and humor intact:

“Village chief, we missed you so much!”
One by one, the crowd came forward to give the village chief a hug.

Old Madam Ma was still holding the village chief, giving her a little shake, and said with concern, “Our precious village chief, you’ve gotten thinner after just one trip away! When we get back, I’ll have the old man cook you something delicious.”

After hugging the village chief, Aunt Liu finally noticed her own son and quickly pulled him into a hug. “Oh! My A Dou is back! Did you miss your mom? I’ll make you something delicious when we get home.”
After speaking, Aunt Liu wanted to hug Big Sis as well. “Eh? Where’s your sister?”

“She went to the Valley of the Medicine God to study medicine,” A Dou replied in a daze, clearly still not recovered from the earlier shock.

“The Valley of the Medicine God? You mean that Valley of the Medicine God that saves the sick and the poor?” Aunt Liu asked excitedly.

A Dou nodded.

“See! I always said that Big Sis was destined for great things. She’s been fiddling with herbs alongside Doctor Huang since she was little—she must have talent,” Old Madam Ma praised.

Aunt Liu was starting to feel a little lightheaded—her Big Sis was that capable?

“Village chief, next time you can’t be gone for so long. You’ve made us old folks worry ourselves sick.”

When the clan elders saw the village chief, they nearly burst into tears. When had their village chief ever been away from them for so long? Ever since she was a child, she had always been under their watchful eyes; they were afraid she might bump into something or get hurt. Once they realized the village chief could protect herself, they stopped shadowing her everywhere.

But this was the first time the village chief had been away from the elders for so many days, and they had truly been so worried they couldn’t even eat—terrified that some sinister, heartless people outside might bully her.

Shi Xian, seeing how well the people of Taoyuan Village treated her niece—better than family—felt her own tears nearly fall. Thank goodness her niece had been picked up by Taoyuan Village. She was living so well here; it was just like a loving, big family.

The elders saw the group of people the village chief had brought back and quickly invited everyone into the village.

Jiang He poked A Dou. “Didn’t you say your mom was really gentle?”

A Dou thought about the sight of his mother just now—perched on horseback, a broadsword slung over her shoulder—a full-on bandit queen. His face burned with embarrassment.

Now it was Jingxin and the others who were left dumbfounded.

Wait… was the folk of Taoyuan Village all this fierce?

From elders in their seventies or eighties to kids as young as four or five!

Xiaojiu glanced at the half-dead men tied up on the ground and asked, “What’s going on here? Who are they?”

“No idea. About an hour ago, this bunch came charging into the village with knives, yelling for us to hand over our valuables or they’d kill us.”

Zhao Dalang kicked the leader. “It’s this guy. He even said to hand over our village chief.”

“You say you want to rob us, fine, rob us—though there’s nothing worth much in the village anyway. But these bastards were specifically after our village chief. Like we’d ever agree to that! So, well… we fought them.”

Xiaojiu looked down at the half-dead man on the ground and asked, “You’re their leader?”

The man on the ground trembled and shook his head.

“Tell the truth, or if I find out you lied, I’ll cut your tongue out,” Xiaojiu threatened viciously.

The man nodded frantically, afraid that if he was too slow, Zhao Hu’s broadsword—already aimed menacingly—would come down on his tongue. “Yes, yes, yes, I’m their leader.”

“What’s your name?” Xiaojiu asked.

“B-Brother Biao…”

Xiaojiu kicked him. “What kind of trash name is that, daring to use the same nickname as me!”

“Change it. You’re not allowed to use that anymore.”

“Then I… I’ll be called… what?” the man stammered in fright.