Did the Seventh Prince attend court today?

Xikou Village is not large, with only about twenty households. If something happens in any of them, the news will spread like wildfire.

The news of the bet being made at the village entrance quickly spread like wildfire, until the entire village knew about it.

Just as Liu Zhuang finished discussing the matter of evacuation with several village elders, he went outside and heard that someone was betting on the mountain god. He was both angry and anxious, and immediately rushed to the village entrance with the village elders.

At that time, Lu was sitting cross-legged on a large stone at the entrance of the village, busy signing a contract with the people he had bet on. After he had put away a stack of contracts, Liu Zhuang and the others arrived.

"This young master looks somewhat familiar. It seems he came to the village with the officials before." The sprightly old man carefully examined the boy on the stone for a few moments, then squinted and smacked his lips.

Hearing that it was related to the government, Liu Zhuang's anger subsided considerably.

Firstly, he dared not go against the government, and secondly, the government now had a good reputation, which he respected from the bottom of his heart.

Upon looking at the boy's face again, Liu Zhuang felt that he looked somewhat familiar, but he really couldn't remember where he had seen him before.

The Pixiu spotted Liu Zhuang and his group rushing over. Seeing Liu Zhuang staring intently in their direction, it ruffled its fur and asked worriedly, "He won't recognize you, will he?"

You Lu clicked her tongue. "What's there to be afraid of? Even if they recognize me, I can cover it up."

The Pixiu put its heart back in its belly, thinking, "The boss is still the best."

Fortunately, Liu Zhuang did not recognize him.

After observing for a while, Liu Zhuang stepped forward, politely cupping his hands in greeting, and said, "May I ask what brings you, young master, to our Xikou Village?"

Upon seeing him, the villagers all stepped back a few paces and greeted him warmly.

You Lu raised an eyebrow; it seemed the village chief had some reputation in the village.

"You saw it all, I came here to make a bet." He patted the document in his pocket, not beating around the bush at all.

Liu Zhuang choked.

Lu asked with a smile, "Want to make a bet with me?"

He lowered his voice and said, "To be honest, village chief, the mountain god appeared in my dream last night and told me that Xikou Village is in danger tonight. He specifically instructed me to persuade the villagers to leave. But I have no proof, and I was worried that the villagers wouldn't believe me, so I came up with the idea of ​​a bet."

Liu Zhuang was taken aback, a look of surprise and doubt flashing in his eyes.

He immediately thought of the immortal who asked for tea. The two had said the same thing. Was it a coincidence or a warning from the mountain god?

He also considered that the boy might be lying, but what benefit would he gain from tricking them into leaving the village? Besides, the boy had promised them silver.

After weighing the two options, he leaned more towards the boy's statement being true.

Youlu added fuel to the fire, "Village chief, why don't you listen to me and lead the villagers to evacuate the village first? If there's real danger, everyone can avoid disaster; if nothing happens, we'll get five taels of silver for free. There's no loss either way, so why not?"

With the mountain god and silver laid out, Liu Zhuang was indeed tempted. Without further hesitation, he stroked his beard and said, "Then I will do as you say, young master. I hope you will keep your promise."

"Of course." Youlu patted his chest.

Liu Zhuang turned around and discussed with the village elders who had come with him. They heard that as long as they moved out for one night and the village did not suffer any trouble, they would receive five taels of silver. Those who originally did not agree to the evacuation also softened their stance. The group quickly came up with a suitable explanation.

Liuzhuang sounded the alarm at the village entrance.

When the villagers arrived after hearing the news, he announced loudly, "I've called you all here today because I have an important announcement to make. After discussing it with some of the village elders, we've decided to move out of the village before dark today and move back early tomorrow morning. Anyone who wants to leave with us can sign up now."

The villagers were in an uproar.

Those villagers who firmly believed the mountain god would protect the village, refused to take the bet, and insisted on staying, angrily questioned, "Does the village chief also believe the nonsense this young brat spouts, and betray our Xikou Village's mountain god for a mere five taels of silver?"

"With the mountain god here, the village will be safe! We're not leaving!"

Liu Zhuang raised his hand to quell the unease, then continued, "To be honest, it wasn't just the immortal mentioned by this young master who foretold the disaster that would befall our village; I also dreamt of the mountain god a few days ago."

"In my dream, the mountain god kept pointing out of the village and wouldn't answer no matter what I asked. At the time, I didn't understand what it meant, but after meeting this young master today and hearing his words, I finally understood what the mountain god meant. The mountain god was reminding us to leave the village and avoid disaster."

"And what a coincidence! Today, a celestial being came to ask for water, saying that there would be heavy rain tonight and the rocky hill behind the village would collapse. I didn't believe it at first, but now I have no choice but to believe it, because everything has come together!"

As the village chief, Liu Zhuang knew how to manipulate the villagers. Seeing that what he said made sense, the believers of the mountain god were truly fooled.

After all, the villagers of Liuzhuang had witnessed their reverence and fervor for the mountain god.

"Since it is the mountain god's instruction, of course I will obey."

"I'll go home and pack now, and leave with the village chief this evening."

"Me too!"

"I believe the village chief too!"

Many villagers hurried home immediately, while those who had made written bets with Deer looked uneasy, fearing they would lose and have to pay money.

Youlu immediately reassured them, "It's clearly written in black and white on the agreement. You only need to move out of the village for one night, and even if you lose, you don't have to pay any money. Don't worry."

Those who made the bet breathed a sigh of relief and turned to go home to pack their things.

With this two-pronged approach, whether out of faith in the mountain god or simply for the money, ninety percent of the villagers decided to leave the village with the village chief.

As for the remaining few households, some wanted to bargain and ask for more money, while others suspected a conspiracy and were afraid of encountering misfortune if they left home.

Regardless of their reasons, Lu ignored those who were unwilling to leave. His only goal was to get the main force to leave, and someone else would handle the rest.

You Lu had been secretly keeping an eye on things, and as he expected, the pretty widow did not choose to leave.

As the sun set, Liu Zhuang led the villagers who wanted to leave out of the village. They didn't go far, finding an open space on the opposite bank of the river to spend the night. They were also curious whether something bad was really going to happen to the village and wanted to see for themselves.

After dark, only three households in Xikou Village had their lights on. The villagers who were sleeping outdoors would look up from time to time, their expressions both anxious and uneasy.

But soon, everyone's feelings were completely replaced by fear.

Without warning, rain began to fall, and it grew heavier and heavier, with strong winds, heavy rain, and thunder and lightning.

A silver lightning bolt tore through the night sky, illuminating Liu Zhuang's slightly pale face. He murmured to himself, "It's raining, it's really raining. The immortal was right, Xikou Village is truly facing a great calamity..."

Thinking of the three households still remaining in the village, he urgently called out, "Quick! Go and call everyone who's still in the village out!"

The heart-wrenching screams were drowned out by the sound of rain.

The others were terrified. They barely managed to gather some grass to shield themselves from the wind and rain, and said tremblingly, "We don't know when the mountain might collapse; we dare not go!"

At this moment, everyone firmly believed in the mountain god's warning.

Liu Zhuang was so anxious that he stamped his feet, wanting to go back to the village to call for help, but the villagers stopped him.

Just as everyone was filled with fear and unease, a row of lights suddenly appeared in the distance, indicating that something was rapidly approaching them.

Lu, mingling in the crowd, smiled. The person he was waiting for had arrived.