Zhongshan Shenzhu Chi

At dusk.

The low-lying earthen houses in the new village are scattered in the afterglow of the setting sun, their square and crisscrossing paths weaving a network that covers the entire village.

At this time of day, villagers would gather in the alleys and streets, chatting and laughing as they digested their meals, while children chased each other, their laughter filling the air.

But now, it's lost its popularity.

The paths between the earthen houses were deserted, and a cold wind swept through the alleyways, disappearing into the shadows.

Roads divide each household in the new village from the whole, creating distinct divisions, much like isolated islands at sea.

"Are you all leaving?" Zhong Yan stood at the village entrance, watching one villager after another who didn't want to stay in the mountain village and wanted to follow the caravan of Wenshu Shanhaige to live in Xia'an City.

Although he had considered that many people would leave when he discussed it with the clerk.

But now it's truly time to say goodbye... These are all children I've watched grow up and get married.

The old village chief felt a pang of sadness and couldn't help but step forward to stop them.

"Village Chief..." The villager who was stopped looked at Zhong Yan with guilt in his eyes, but still tried to climb onto the cart that carried people.

Zhong Yangan stood still, his thin body like a copper wire stuck in the ground, and it took him a while to make way for him.

Seeing this, the villagers quickened their pace, scrambling to climb onto the cart that was about to travel to Xia'an City from Wenshushan Haige.

"Yang Er!"

Suddenly, Zhong Yan saw a man in the crowd, dragging his family along, trying to get onto a cart. He sternly shouted, "Your wife is already showing, and you're still letting her ride in a carriage!"

"There's no doctor in the village, so I plan to go to the city to stay first, and then come back to the village after the baby is born," Yang Er explained hastily, shrinking back in surprise.

"I won't stop you from going to the city, but your wife is showing!" Zhong Yan stepped forward and, without further ado, tried to stop Yang Er's wife. "Can she withstand the jostling? Get down right now!"

"Village chief, we discussed it last night..." Yang's second wife stood still, her head down, not daring to meet Zhong Yan's gaze, but her feet seemed rooted to the spot, refusing to move an inch.

Wenshu Shanhaige is a top-tier, long-established brand in Xia'an City.

To this day, this plaque has been passed down for 250 years and has never done anything to disgrace the family.

Today, Boss Wen personally came to the village to recruit workers, and even asked us to bring our families... Even if we can only get a job as laborers carrying water and moving goods, it's still better than toiling away in the mountains.

"Yang Er!" Zhong Yan shouted angrily.

The meaning behind it is a mixture of anger, regret, resentment, and disappointment. A complex blend of emotions ultimately intertwines into a sense of frustration and resentment at the perceived lack of progress.

Without needing to be explicitly stated, Yang Er understood what the village chief wanted to say.

As he helped his wife into the car, he bowed sincerely to Zhong Yan and said apologetically, "Village Chief, I will..."

"Why are you apologizing to me!" Zhong Yan interrupted him angrily.

"I will never forget the kindness of the Mountain God!" Yang Er gritted his teeth. "But Village Chief, whether in the city or the village, I can still make offerings to Him..."

"You—!" Zhong Yan paused, as if something was stuck in his throat, and he couldn't speak for a long time.

The villagers around them nodded in agreement, their expressions resolute, indicating that they shared the same idea as Yang Er.

Regardless of whether they stay or leave, the incense offerings to the mountain god will certainly continue.

"You guys!" Zhong Yan stomped his foot angrily, the sole of his foot hitting the stone painfully.

His back, which had been straight just moments before, suddenly hunched over as if crushed by something, looking so old that it was hard to look directly at him.

"What's wrong? What's wrong?" Wen Shuyan was explaining the itinerary to the driver when he suddenly noticed Zhong Yan squatting down in a desolate manner. He quickly came over and helped him stand up.

"Old Zhong, let's go back, let's go back to the village."

After helping the elderly man up, Wen Shuyan turned to the villagers and said, "Hurry up and get on the bus, hurry up and get on the bus."

After saying this, the fat merchant helped the limping old man back to the village.

After entering Zhong Yan's house, Wen Shuyan carefully observed his surroundings before closing the door.

"Old Zhong...didn't we already agree that the villagers can decide for themselves whether to stay or leave, and we won't interfere?" Wen Shuyan said softly as he sat down.

"Sigh..." Zhong Yan took off his shoes and looked at the bruise on the sole of his foot caused by a small stone. His emotions and thoughts surged, and finally turned into a sigh.

"I can't bear it, I really can't bear it, it breaks my heart to see this." The old man's eyes reddened.

"Then don't bother looking." Wen Shuyan quickly took out a handkerchief from his pocket and handed it over. "Don't worry, Old Zhong, although I won't let the people from your village go to Xia'an City right now, I will definitely arrange a good place for them..."

"Now, besides Zhongshanli, where else is there a good place..." Zhong Yan placed the handkerchief on the table, stared at the ceiling, and spoke in a low voice.

"Don't you trust my character? Take that Yang Er, for example. I've arranged a special carriage for his wife to ensure her safety."

"As long as they see Wenshu Shanhaige as a good place, that's fine."

The tone of the written document was equally serene.

As a businessman, he knew far more than Zhong Yan.

For example, as the Zhou Dynasty was about to collapse, various cities in Yongning Continent sought to establish their own independent regimes, and the ambitions of the city lord of Xia'an City and the Chixian Sect were obvious to the naked eye.

In other words, there are gods suppressing the evil spirits on Zhongshan Mountain. Surrounded by mountains, bandits do not rise up and there is no chaos. Even a small mountain village like Xincun has been able to live in peace until now.

"Old Zhong, don't be sad."

"Our road may not be a good road... The villagers who walk out now may be the incense that spreads from your village to the world."

Wen Shuyan stood up and said to Zhong Yan, who was slumped back in his chair, "You haven't even started the Serpent God's orders yet."

"The remaining people in the new village, and my family, all depend on you to help them live in Zhongshan."

"..." Upon hearing this, Zhong Yan nodded, but his expression remained gloomy, and his whole body was shrouded in a dejected and defeated aura.

The fat businessman was anxious, but he couldn't think of a solution.

"Knock knock knock—"

Just as things were getting tense, there was a sudden knock on the village chief's door.

"Village Chief—" A clean and clear male voice rang out, like a bird singing, "Village Chief, open the door quickly, we still need to eat, and we still have to go out to work tomorrow."

"Yes, yes." Wen Shuyan nodded repeatedly and quickly stepped forward to open the door.

The first thing you see is a man as tall as an iron tower, with a resolute face, but the lines on his cheeks are not square; instead, they gently slope down from his forehead.

She has the body of her father, but her temperament is somewhat like her mother's.

After bowing to Wen Shuyan, Nuosong strode into the hall, followed by children who mimicked the fat merchant's gestures.

"village head……"

"No need to say anything." Seeing them, Zhong Yan finally regained some of his spirits.

He looked up at Nuosong's earnest face, and a hint of relief finally appeared in his eyes.

"Gather all the villagers who are willing to stay, and we'll have a big meal together tonight."