Chapter 47: Trouble in Dong Gou Village

This time, Xiao Huai’an didn’t object. He sat back down and let Lin Shu check his leg.

Lin Shu rolled up his pant leg and pressed on the acupuncture points in the area. After finishing the examination, his expression showed concern. “It looks worse than last time. If this continues, it’s not going to work. It seems that the trip to the Southern Border should be planned sooner rather than later.”

Seeing Xiao Huai’an lowering his head and saying nothing, Lin Shu continued:

“Last time you said your wife is quite reliable, right? You were worried about the three children before, but now someone’s taking care of them. What do you still have to worry about?”

Xiao Huai’an sighed and casually replied, “It’s an old injury. Even you can’t help, so what’s the point in making a big deal out of it?”

“What nonsense are you talking about!”

Lin Shu suddenly became emotional, his eyes reddening. “I’ve told you before, there’s a secret technique in the Southern Border that can reconnect bones and restore tendons. I’ll take you there, and we’ll definitely find someone who can heal your leg.

The Dragon Abyss General who once galloped across the battlefield, he shouldn’t have ended up like this today!”

Xiao Huai’an replied, “I’ll consider it.”

“You’ll consider it?!” Lin Shu suddenly snapped, his anger flaring.

“A person who’s destined for greatness must make decisions swiftly! Have you been taking care of the kids for too long, becoming indecisive and sentimental?”

Xiao Huai’an didn’t get angry. “Why, has Dr. Lin become humble too? Weren’t you the one who claimed to be the best healer in the world?

Now, why do you think someone else could heal what you can’t?”

“Bullshit!” Lin Shu laughed in frustration. “Of course, I’m the best healer in the world, but if someone can fix your leg, I’ll call them my ancestor!”

“My leg, I know it best. Even if it stays this way, I’ll still do what needs to be done.”

Xiao Huai’an let down his pant leg, straightened his clothes, and then asked, “Have we received any news from the northern border?”

“Not yet.”

Lin Shu shook his head. “It’s been so long, and there’s still no news. Do you think Li Mo… will he…”

“He won’t.” Xiao Huai’an interrupted, firmly rejecting the thought. “Li Mo is not that kind of person.”

“Human nature is hard to predict!” Lin Shu still didn’t feel at ease. “If he’s really fine, why has there been no news from there for so long?”

Xiao Huai’an replied, “Unless he died in battle, he would definitely have sent me news by now.”

After saying that, he stood up again. “I’m going hunting. If you have nothing else, you can go back now.”

Lin Shu responded, “That’s enough. The mountain rats will run as soon as they see you. Do you really intend to not let a single one get away?”

“No choice, gotta feed the family.”

Xiao Huai’an said that without stopping, then walked out of the cabin.

His mention of hunting wasn’t just to appease Lin Shu.

Since coming to Yun Bian Village, he had been living off hunting.

But because his legs were not as functional, he rarely chased after wild animals. Instead, he set up over a dozen traps in areas where wild animals frequently appeared.

In addition to the traps, there were also snares and clamps.

Fortunately, the area was quite remote. Otherwise, if someone stumbled upon these, it would be difficult for them to get away unscathed.

Today’s haul was average. Xiao Huai’an checked several traps, but not a single animal hair was in sight. By the time he returned to the cabin, Lin Shu had already left.

He rested in the cabin, planning to go deeper into the mountains the next day.

Back in Yun Bian Village, after Xiao Huai’an left, a group of uninvited guests arrived.

In the morning, under the direction of the village head, the villagers were digging a dam, preparing to store the water flowing down from the mountain and regulate the water flow as needed.

Halfway through the work, a group of people stormed in.

The leader was a short, fat old man.

From a distance, he saw the village head and shouted, “Zhang Ya Suo! I was wondering why you stopped coming to the village to beg for alms. So you secretly found a water source!”

His voice was loud, and his words echoed before he even got close.

The village head, without even raising his head, recognized the voice. It was Zhao Fu Sheng, the village head of Dong Gou Village.

He put down the pick axe in his hand and smiled, greeting him, “Oh, what wind brought you here today? Why has Village Head Zhao come all the way to Yun Bian Village?”

Zhao Fu Sheng, walking with a swagger, replied, “This world is tough nowadays, probably a bad wind that blew me here. Otherwise, how would you have gotten such a good deal?”

He continued, “I heard that you found a water source on Misty Deer Mountain?”

As he spoke, he looked towards the distant rice fields. The fields were glistening with water, in stark contrast to the half-dried, almost barren fields in their village. It was like day and night.

The village head followed his gaze and smiled, “Exactly! We owe it all to this life saving water, or else the rice in our fields would have died from thirst!”

“How can you enjoy such a good thing all by yourself? Misty Deer Mountain is right between our two villages. If there’s something good, it should be shared between us, right?”

With that, he turned to his men and said, “We won’t bother your villagers. We’ll just open a branch of the water channel beside the one you dug and take half of the water for ourselves.”

“This water is what we found. Why should we give you half of it?”

Wang Tie Zhu immediately got angry when he heard this.

He slammed the pick axe onto the ground and glared at the intruders.

Clearly, the people from Dong Gou Village were prepared. As soon as Wang Tie Zhu made a move, they immediately raised their pick axes, ready for a confrontation.

Zhao Fu Sheng, with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes, waved his hand. “Ah, you young folks, why are you all so quick-tempered? Let’s talk this out. Zhang Ya Suo isn’t hard to deal with, right?”

Zhang Ya Suo glanced at Zhao Fu Sheng and smiled with narrowed eyes, “Of course, we’ve been friends for many years. Alright, I’ll make a concession. You can use our water, but you’ll have to pay a fee of five taels of silver per month. That’s quite reasonable, right?”

As soon as Zhao Fu Sheng heard about the fee, his expression immediately turned cold.

“Zhang Ya Suo, don’t push your luck!”

He sneered. “This mountain channel may have been dug by you, but Misty Deer Mountain doesn’t belong to your village. If you can use the water, we can use it too. I’m giving you face by notifying you, otherwise, I’d just divert the water to our village. What can you do about it?”

Zhao Fu Sheng gave a subtle signal to his men. “Go ahead!”

Several people immediately began to dig the channel.

Seeing that the situation had turned hostile, Zhang Ya Suo stopped pretending.

“I’d like to see who dares to make a move!”

His goatee stood up as he yelled, “Zhao Fu Sheng, for someone of your age, you should know better! Do you think I dug this mountain channel just like you? I was able to dig it because I bought Misty Deer Mountain!”