Chapter 141: Chapter 141: A Casual Remark, A Serious Interpretation

Zhao Nuanyue and Hua Yusen walked side by side into the village.

"Xiao Zhao, over here!" Li Guihua waved her over at once, having Zhao Nuanyue sit next to her. After all, besides herself, everyone else in here was a man, and it wouldn’t be right to have Zhao Nuanyue sit with those rough-hewn fellows.

Li Guihua was very fond of Zhao Nuanyue. ’This girl is sharp,’ she thought. ’All it took was a single look from me today for her to understand what I meant. She’s no simple girl.’

Many people in the room were smoking pipes, filling the air with a foul haze. Zhao Nuanyue held her breath the moment she stepped inside, hoping the meeting would end quickly.

Zhao Nuanyue sat down next to Aunt Li and asked in a low voice, "Aunt Li, why did Miao Cunzheng call us all over?"

"To discuss how to deal with Zheng Delin, of course," Li Guihua said softly. "You and Mr. Hua are educated and well-connected, so we asked you to join the discussion to make sure we don’t overlook anything."

"Oh!" Zhao Nuanyue acknowledged. "I hope those people don’t come back!"

"Those people are like locusts. They bring disaster to the village whenever they show up. We don’t want them here either," Li Guihua said. "But don’t you worry. We still have a few tricks up our sleeve. We’re not afraid of them."

Seeing that everyone had arrived, Miao Cunzheng cleared his throat and said, "Everyone, please be quiet. Tonight, we’re going to discuss how to deal with Zheng Delin’s retaliation. He’s Wang Dadan’s brother-in-law, he has connections in the county town, and he has backing. He was humiliated in our village today, so after he goes back, he’ll definitely try to find a way to get even."

At Miao Cunzheng’s words, everyone quieted down. This was exactly what they were worried about.

Dong Sanshu thought for a moment and said, "Miao, has the report you submitted last time been approved yet?"

"I don’t think so. If it were approved, someone would have come to inform us," Miao Cunzheng sighed. If that report had been passed, they would have had much more initiative. After all, they would just be acting according to an official document, which would be justified, well-founded, and reasonable.

"But will it be dangerous for us to go to the county town?" Wu Dazhu asked, worried. "We gave Zheng Delin a hard time today, but he didn’t dare to fight back because this is Nianqiao Village, our turf. But if we go to the county town, that’s his turf. We’ll be at a disadvantage."

Hua Yusen chuckled to himself. ’Zheng Delin took quite a fall. He won’t be causing any trouble for the next three months.’

’That Zheng Delin is just one of Leader Zhao’s dogs. Now that this dog is injured and can’t bite anymore, his master certainly won’t value him as much.’

"There’s no need to be afraid, Miao Cunzheng. Don’t forget, we have the Zhou Brothers," Hua Yusen reminded him softly. "They will help us. This is a good opportunity. I think we should make a trip to the county town."

Li Guihua looked around, then asked gently, "Should Nuanyue and I go? After all, those men bullied the women of our village."

Hua Yusen glanced at Zhao Nuanyue, then shook his head. "Aunt Li, there’s no need for Mr. Zhao to go. It would be too deliberate and seem staged. However, as the director of the Women’s Federation, your work is with the Women’s Federation, so you can go report the situation. After all, our village has had two prior incidents involving women. Your words will definitely draw the attention of the higher-ups."

Miao Cunzheng had also wanted Zhao Nuanyue to go, but since Hua Yusen had spoken, he couldn’t very well insist. He nodded. "Right, Mr. Zhao doesn’t need to go. You just rest at home for a couple of days. Aunt Li, Mr. Hua, and I will make a trip to the county town. Sanshu, Dazhu, I’m leaving the village in your hands. No matter who it is, don’t let anyone cause trouble in our village."

Li Guihua understood perfectly. ’Hua Yusen is protecting Zhao Nuanyue.’

’Still, this is for the best.’

"Alright, it’s settled then," Li Guihua said. "I’ll go back and write up the report right away. We’ll go prepared tomorrow. We don’t fight battles we’re not ready for."

The village had made its decision, and Zhao Nuanyue said nothing more.

That night, Hua Yusen and Zhao Nuanyue walked under the moonlight. The hazy glow stretched their shadows long behind them—one tall, one short—drawing ever closer. Hua Yusen suddenly grabbed Zhao Nuanyue’s hand, enveloping her small hand in his palm.

"Ah?" Zhao Nuanyue gasped. "Getting handsy, are we? Aren’t you afraid Nuanyang will see you?"

Hearing Zhao Nuan Yang’s name, Hua Yusen was a little speechless. He rolled his eyes where Zhao Nuanyue couldn’t see and chuckled. "Hmph, I’m not afraid of him. I’m usually so good to that kid, yet he’s still on guard against me."

"Hehe, you’re about to steal his sister away, of course he’s going to be worried," Zhao Nuanyue said with a flirtatious laugh. "You’re pretty bold yourself, getting so handsy."

With a gentle pull, Hua Yusen drew Zhao Nuanyue into his arms, holding her tight. Then he started spinning her around, saying, "Hmph, I’m not just getting handsy, I’m getting grabby too!"

"Ah?" Zhao Nuanyue cried out. "Put me down! Hurry!"

"Nope, not gonna," Hua Yusen said playfully, burying his face in the crook of Zhao Nuanyue’s neck. "Your brother is always watching me, always on guard. Once we get back to the Dragon King Temple, I can’t hug you or kiss you, so I’m going to get my fill of hugging and kissing right now!"

Hua Yusen’s lips and tongue brushed gently against Zhao Nuanyue’s neck, sending a shiver through her.

"You... You let go of me!" Zhao Nuanyue said, her voice breathy. "We’re outside! What if someone sees us..."

"Then let’s go to the cave!" Hua Yusen said, his voice muffled. "There are still two chickens there. We can go make something delicious and bring it to the old folks tonight."

"Okay!" Zhao Nuanyue nodded. "Now let go. It wouldn’t be good if someone saw us."

Hua Yusen reluctantly let go. He felt conflicted. ’I could have kept hugging her, could have stolen another kiss.’

To prevent Hua Yusen from suddenly grabbing and kissing her again, Zhao Nuanyue quickly asked, "Why didn’t you want me to go with you?"

’It’s not just to protect me,’ she thought. ’There must be other reasons.’

"I don’t want you going to the county town. It’s dangerous," Hua Yusen said softly. "I’ll go tomorrow and check out the situation. If things go smoothly, we might be able to solve this problem once and for all. But if they don’t, Miao Cunzheng and the others might get arrested."

"What?" Zhao Nuanyue was shocked. "Heavens! Are you saying Uncle Miao and Aunt Li could be arrested?"

"Mm, it’s possible," Hua Yusen replied. "But not certain. I’ll be going too, and we have people in the county town. Right now, several factions are fighting constantly. It’s either the east wind prevailing over the west wind, or the west wind prevailing over the east wind. There are bound to be sacrifices."

Zhao Nuanyue blinked her big eyes, then frowned and retorted, "Then just have winds from the east, south, west, and north all blow at once. That way, nobody will dare to make a move."

Hearing Zhao Nuanyue’s words, Hua Yusen’s eyes lit up, and he seemed quite intrigued by the idea.

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