Reincarnation and Rebirth

Su Dewang directed several uninjured men to deal with all the bandits. After all, they were all peasants who had never killed anyone. The village chief ordered them to throw all the bandits into the river next to the village. Whether they lived or died was up to fate.

"Listen up, everyone. You've all seen the situation. Black Tiger Stronghold is eyeing us covetously. Today, Wan'er dealt with it, but what about tomorrow? What about the day after? We've done something terrible by driving Wan'er out of Suhe Village. If they come back, how are we supposed to deal with it?"

The crowd looked at each other, then began to blame one another. Finally, everyone looked at the Su family.

Old Mrs. Su felt uncomfortable being stared at and scolded, "What are you looking at us for? Didn't you all agree to drive away that wretched girl Su Wan'er back then?"

“We said we should hand over Su Wan’er, but you insisted on severing ties with them.”

"Exactly, if Su Youlu were still in the village, would Wan'er not care about us?"

Old Man Su said with a gloomy face, "Have you ever thought about why that brat suddenly became so powerful?"

Having been married to Old Man Su for many years, Old Lady Su naturally understood what he meant, and quickly interjected, "That's right, that's right. I think that girl is possessed by a demon. Maybe all the disasters in our Ziyun Kingdom were brought by this demon."

Su Dewang was so angry he almost lost his footing. "What nonsense are you spouting? Wan'er is your granddaughter. Besides, what kind of monster would save people without eating them? Wan'er learned her skills from Doctor Lin."

"Tch, what skills could that Lin Nanxing possibly have?"

Su Dewang's second son suddenly spoke up, "Uncle Lin is indeed very skilled. Otherwise, how could he dare to go into the deep mountains alone to find medicinal herbs? I've even seen Uncle Lin practicing his skills. His posture shows that he's no ordinary person."

"Really? Oh dear, where did Lin Nanxing go? I want to learn from him too."

"Yes, Wan is really lucky. She has learned so many skills. I should have let my son learn them too."

Seeing that the topic was getting off track, the village chief coughed and continued, "Now is not the time to talk about this. Let's discuss what to do next."

Zhang Dazhuang said, "Uncle Village Chief, we'll listen to you."

"Yes, we'll listen to the village chief."

“Alright, since that’s the case, I’ll get straight to the point. I’m planning to leave Suhe Village with my family first thing tomorrow morning.”

"what?"

These words struck like a bolt from the blue, shocking everyone.

“Village chief, do we really have to leave? I still have so much land and livestock at home.”

"Yes, my house was just renovated."

"I don't want to leave either, our roots are here."

The village chief gestured for everyone to be quiet. "I know you all don't want to come with us, and I'm not saying you have to. But you need to think this through. If we really attack, it might be too late to leave then. Go back and think it over. If you want to leave together tomorrow, we'll wait at the village entrance. We'll leave at Chenshi (7-9 AM). We won't wait for you if you're late."

The crowd erupted in chaos. Su Wan'er looked at the distant village and understood the importance of land to ordinary people in this era.

But no matter how important something is, is it more important than life?

That's all I can do to help. If they insist on not leaving, there's nothing I can do. You can't reason with those damned devils.

When Su Wan'er returned, she found Wang Shi and Su Youlu anxiously looking around. For some reason, she felt a warmth in her heart.

"Father, Mother, why aren't you asleep?"

"I can't sleep, Wan'er. Are they alright?" Su Youlu asked.

"Dad, don't worry, everything's fine now. I've also told Grandpa Village Chief to leave as soon as possible. Whether they listen or not is beyond our control."

After thinking for a moment, Su Wan'er asked again, "Is Father worried about the Su family?"

Su Youlu sighed, "Wan'er, they are still my family. They can be heartless, but I cannot be ungrateful. But since we have already warned them, if they don't listen, there's nothing we can do. It's almost dawn, so you should rest for a while. We still have to travel early in the morning."

Su Wan'er nodded. No matter the era, the Chinese people's emphasis on filial piety will not change. Naturally, she did not want Su Youlu to be a heartless and ungrateful person. As long as they were not overly compassionate, she could ignore them.

"I can't sleep, let's get something hot to eat."

Looking at the small bag of grain on the cart, Madam Wang hesitated and said, "Wan'er, you can cook your own food. Your parents have some leftover steamed buns from the daytime, just enough to tide us over."

"You didn't finish eating?" Su Wan'er was a little surprised.

"It's alright, we're not hungry. We're used to staying at Old Su's house."

"That won't do either. How can we walk if we don't eat our fill? Besides, carrying food with us might bring trouble. We might as well eat it all. Don't worry, I'm capable. You won't go hungry."

Seeing that Su Wan'er had said so, Su Youlu said to Madam Wang, "Listen to your daughter. We are fleeing for our lives, and there will likely be more and more people behind us. If we bring food, we might attract envy. It's better to eat it."

"But what do we do after we finish eating?"

"Father, Mother, didn't you say you would listen to me?"

"Ah, well, alright then, Mom will help you."

Su Wan'er glanced around and saw that several families had already started cooking in the dark, probably thinking the same thing as them: they were worried that cooking during the day would attract jealousy.

Su Youlu hurriedly got up and went to the edge of the woods to find some branches and firewood. Wang Shi carried the old earthenware pot to the side to fetch water. The pot had a chip in it, and the Su family didn't want it. When they saw Wang Shi taking it away, they didn't stop her.

Su Wan'er used whatever was available to build a simple stove. She boiled water, added some flour, and a simple version of the batter was ready. She made it thick so that her family could have enough to eat.

On the bus, the children slowly woke up and, seeing everyone cooking, quickly came over and said, "Big sister, let us help you."

"No need, just wash your face and eat something to warm yourself up."

When Madam Wang saw that Su Wan'er had cooked such a thick rice porridge, she felt a little sorry for her, but remembering Su Youlu's instructions, she held back and didn't say anything. She only ate a small bowl and then refused to eat any more.

Su Wan'er didn't try to persuade her; she figured she'd behave after a few meals of hunger.

A large jar of porridge warmed the stomachs and hearts of several people. After they finished eating, it was already bright daylight, and it was time to start another day's journey.

At that time in Suhe Village, Old Man Su sat in the main room, smoking his pipe, without saying a word.

Su Youcai became a little anxious. "Dad, should we go with everyone else? I see that most of the villagers have gone with the village chief."

Grandma Su sat cross-legged on the kang (a heated brick bed), her triangular eyes glaring. "Why would they leave? It's best if they leave. From now on, all the land and houses in this village will be ours. It would be best if they all died outside."

"Mother, but what if the Purple Flame Kingdom really attacks?"

“Impossible,” the old woman said, her ignorance unfounded. “They’re just cowards. We’re hundreds of miles away from Ziyan.”

Su Youfu was also reluctant to leave his hometown. To be precise, he didn't want to fight. He would be taking the provincial examination next year, and if he passed, he could become an official.

“I think Mother is right. Our Ziyun Kingdom is strong and its people are happy. The Ziyan Kingdom is no match for us at all.”

"But……"

Before Su Youcai could finish speaking, he was interrupted by the sounds from outside.

The visitor was the village chief's grandson. He stood in the courtyard and called out, "Uncle Youfu, have you thought it through? Are you coming with us or staying? My grandfather sent me to ask."

Su Youfu walked out, looked at him, and asked, "Are you leaving too? What about next year's provincial examination?"

"Sigh, if a fight really breaks out, the provincial examination will be in jeopardy, and your lives will be in danger. Are you leaving or not? If you don't leave, my grandfather won't wait for you."

Su Youcai grew anxious, "Dad, say something!"