Reincarnation and Rebirth

Su Wan'er felt that she should give Old Man Su a little push.

“Grandpa Village Chief, I offended the Black Tiger Stronghold last night. I don’t know if any of them escaped back to inform the villagers. In order not to implicate the villagers, I should leave. I don’t want to implicate Grandpa and Grandma because of me.”

Upon hearing this, Su Youlu said with a heavy heart, "Wan'er, it's my fault for being useless. I couldn't protect you, but we are all family. I won't watch you go to your death. Uncle Village Chief, please, don't drive Wan'er away."

The second branch of the family was crying and sobbing, and Old Man Su's face grew darker and darker. Some of the more timid villagers also chimed in, all worried that the Su family had offended Black Tiger Stronghold and would ultimately implicate the entire village.

When Grandma Su heard that someone was going to drive her family away, she got so angry that she started arguing with those people.

Old Man Su suddenly shouted, "Shut up, all of you!"

The villagers had never seen Old Man Su so ruthless, and they all showed expressions of fear, and the air suddenly became quiet.

Old Man Su cleared his throat and said to Su Dewang, "Village Chief, as you can see, everyone is worried about being implicated by this girl. So, I, this old man, have no choice but to expel them from the Su family and drive them out of Suhe Village for the sake of the villagers."

Su Youlu could hardly believe his ears, "Father..."

Su Wan'er immediately interrupted Su Youlu, "Master, I can leave, but please, please leave my parents here."

Chen was secretly delighted, but said sarcastically, "I'm telling you, Wan'er, they are your parents after all. If they stay, and the people from Black Tiger Stronghold find out, it could implicate the whole village."

"Yeah, we don't want to die."

Su Wan'er sneered. Even if they left, would Black Tiger Stronghold let them go? Right now, food is scarce everywhere, and they won't let any village go. Since these people are heartless, then they shouldn't blame her for being ruthless too.

Old Man Su pretended to be heartbroken and helpless, "Youlu, it's not that your father is biased, it's just that I can't let the villagers suffer along with me. Don't worry, once this matter is over, your father will still allow you to go home."

"Father, are you really going to be so heartless?"

Madam Wang had recovered from her shock. Looking at the children beside her, she kowtowed to the Su family elders and said, "Father, Mother, we can leave, we can leave, but Xiang'er and the other two are still young. We mustn't let the children suffer. Please, let them stay."

How could Old Lady Su agree to that? She stepped forward and shoved Wang Shi aside, saying, "Pah! A few little beasts, they'll only cause trouble if they're left alive."

"Mother, are you really so heartless?" Su Youlu asked, suppressing his anger.

Some villagers couldn't bear to watch and advised, "Village chief, surely the little ones shouldn't be driven away. Let Su Youlu and his wife take Wan'er away."

The village chief remained silent.

Grandma Su was unwilling to keep a few money-losing children, and no matter how much she was persuaded, she would disagree.

"Stop arguing!" Su Youlu suddenly shouted, and everyone immediately fell silent.

"Father, Mother, your son is unfilial and will no longer be able to fulfill his filial duties to you."

Old Man Su remained silent, while Old Woman Su turned her face away and, upon seeing Su Wan'er, glared at her.

"Youlu, where can you go? There's chaos and war outside." The village chief still couldn't bear to leave.

“Village chief, I…” Su Youlu’s eyes were red, and he didn’t know how to answer.

Su Wan'er didn't think that Old Man Su would give them anything when the family split up, but it would be good to annoy them a little.

"Grandpa and Grandma, since you want to separate us, and everyone is here today, let's do it."

Hearing Su Wan'er say this, the Su family members were no longer calm. Old Madam Su was the first to object, "What division? If there's nothing, you'll all leave with nothing."

"Mother, aren't you sending our entire second branch of the family to our deaths?" Su Youlu said in despair.

"Pah, you little brat, aren't you so capable? Even without our Su family, you won't starve."

Holding Su Ming in her arms, Wang's forehead was red from kowtowing. "Mother, we don't need money, please give us some food. The child is so small, he can't stand being hungry."

"No, no." If the village chief hadn't stopped her, Old Lady Su would have been so angry that she would have scratched her again.

Su Wan'er cried, "Grandma, what kind of family division is this? It's not even fair to sever ties like this."

Severing ties? Old Lady Su's eyes lit up. "We will sever ties, Village Chief. I don't want this son anymore, so that when the Black Tiger Village people come back, they won't take their anger out on us. Village Chief, expel them from the family register."

"Old Su, do you even care about your wife?" the village chief roared, panting heavily, clearly furious.

Old Su thought for a moment and nodded, "I think the old woman is right, village chief, I'm entrusting this matter to you."

"You, you guys... Su Youfu, you think so too?"

Su Youfu lowered his head, "I'll listen to my parents."

"You, you, you're supposed to be a scholar, yet you're kicking someone when they're down... cough, cough cough..." The village chief was almost driven mad with anger.

Su Wan'er quickly stepped forward, helped Su Dewang up, and whispered a few words in a voice only they could hear.

The village chief turned his head, his eyes filled with surprise and uncertainty as he looked at Su Wan'er.

"Grandpa Village Chief, I'm counting on you today."

"Wan'er, are you sure?"

"Ah."

Su Dewang hesitated for a moment, then nodded and told his eldest son to go back and bring the family genealogy to the ancestral hall.

Zhang Dazhuang panicked, "Youlu, this is not right."

Su Youlu gave a bleak smile, "Dazhuang, I'm fine. As long as the family is together, nothing is difficult."

The Su Youlu family was expelled from the clan genealogy, completely severing ties with the old Su family. Old Mrs. Su insisted that the family had no extra money or food, but some people, unable to bear it any longer, accused them of buying so much in the village just yesterday.

Finally, the village chief made a stern remark, and only then did Old Man Su allow Old Woman Su to go back and get it.

The family was kicked out of their home without even having lunch. A bag of flour, weighing only ten jin, was placed at their feet. According to Old Mrs. Su, that was all the flour the family had, and it had to be divided according to the number of male members. Su Youlu was already heartbroken and didn't want to argue anymore. Su Wan'er didn't care about these things anyway, so she naturally wouldn't cause any more trouble over a meal.

"Honey, where are we going?"

Su Youlu glanced at the back mountain. Su Wan'er saw through her father's thoughts and said, "Father, this area is not safe now. Bandits are rampant and the government doesn't care. Why don't we head north? Look, there are still so many refugees. Let's go with them."

"Heading north?" Su Youlu considered the feasibility of this.

"Yes, isn't the capital city to the north? It should be safer to go there."

Su Youlu thought for a moment and nodded, "Yes, I'll listen to Wan'er."

The family set off with a small bag of flour, a bundle stuffed with a few tattered clothes, and no bedding.

"Youlu, Youlu, wait a moment..."

Just as they reached the village entrance, someone caught up from behind. When they turned around, they saw that it was Zhang Dazhuang leading several other villagers.

Zhang Dazhuang was followed by Zhang Tiezhu, who was looking at Su Xiang'er with a reluctant expression.

"You Lu, take this. It's getting cold, so don't mind that it's old." Zhang Dazhuang handed over a half-new quilt.

Su Hongmei's mother also took a bundle off her body and handed it to Wang Shi, saying, "My father-in-law asked me to send this over, please take it."

Other villagers also donated items, such as a small bundle of vegetables, a few eggs, and a handful of rice.

Looking at these simple, honest faces, Su Wan'er felt a lump in her throat. Although these people didn't stop the villagers from driving them away, they didn't kick them when they were down either. Su Wan'er knew that they also had their own difficulties, and no one wanted to live in constant fear.

But can Suhe Village really escape this calamity?

Hongmei looked at Su Wan'er and said to Madam Wang, "Wan'er has become quite capable and strong. I feel much more at ease now. Where are you all headed?"

"Auntie, let's head north."

"Yes, yes, Zi Yan is in the south. It's definitely not safe to go south. Going north is good, going north is good. We'll come back after this is over. I'll talk to Dad."

"Thank you, thank you," Mrs. Wang said, already sobbing uncontrollably.

Madam Wu, also in the crowd, advised, "Sister, don't cry. Wan'er seems like a capable girl. In the future, you should listen to her opinions more. Sigh, those ungrateful people who drove such a good girl away will regret it someday."

After saying goodbye to the villagers, the family embarked on a journey of escape.