Chapter 488: The Village Chief
The so-called village was nothing more than a few houses clustered together..
The doors of each house faced each other as if to monitor the other’s actions.
Except for the two storey house that faced what could be said to be the entrance of the village.
The village was fenced using a waist-high mud wall. Explaining why Leng Pan and her group could still see the entire village even though they were still outside.
To their surprise, a couple of women were washing clothes outside and occasionally looked up to watch them as they approached the village.
There wasn’t a single man in sight, except for the old man who had led them there.
Once outside the village entrance, the group didn’t drive in. Instead, they asked the elderly man where the road to connect to the other side of the road was.
The old man seemed to panic for a moment before his expression went back to normal, smiling at them.
"It’s almost time for the locusts to pass by. Why does don’t you come into our village first to rest before setting off after the locusts are gone? There isn’t any houses nearby and you won’t find another place to take refuge." The old man suggested.
Yet, one could hear the almost pleading tone in his voice.
Why was this old man so contradictory?
His expression said he didn’t want them to come to the village one moment, yet the next, he was pleading with them to come in.
Even though he tried to hide it well, the astitude people in Leng Pan’s group weren’t idiots.
They could tell that even though the elderly man clearly harboured some designs on them, there wasn’t much malice.
More like he was holding out hope for their assistance.
Assistance with what? That, they would have to find out later.
"You have a point. Let’s enter the village and find somewhere to rest." Leng Pan stepped out of the car as she spoke.
However, her actions sent a signal for the others not to drive their cars into the village.
Even though they were confident in their strength, Leng Pan had been a commander leading a large army before.
She knew not to be complacent in front of the enemy.
Thus, she left a way out for themselves in case things went south. They could escape promptly.
She wasn’t worried about the people in the village tampering with the cars since once everyone was out, she covered them with a thin layer of mist that would prevent anyone from getting close.
The mist was almost invisible but because of her high level water ability, a little mist could now create an impenetrable barrier.
The group took a few backpacks filled with some snacks, noodles, and a few bottles of water and followed the old man inside the gate.
The inside of the village was as bare as everywhere else. There was not a single tree in sight.
However, Leng Pan’s group was still wondering where the village got so much water they could wash clothes.
What made it unrealistic was the old man who had brought them to the village.
He was obviously very hungry and thirsty. From his chapped lips, one could tell he hadn’t drank water for a long time.
He was also overwhelmingly excited when Lu Zhen gave him a bottle of mineral water.
So, what was the issue exactly? Was there water or not? And if there isn’t, was what they saw when they entered the village an illusion?
If not, why did some people have water to wash clothes while others couldn’t even get a sip?
It was confusing, but no one asked anything.
"Is there an empty house we can rest in to avoid the locusts?" Ouyang Jin walked to the elderly man and smiled in a polite manner.
The man seemed not to have expected someone to talk to him with such politeness and if not for the mud on his face, it would have turned red from either embarrassment or excitement.
"There are a few empty houses but most of them either lack doors or windows. The house next to the chief’s house is still intact though." The elderly man replied honestly.
Leng Pan frowned when she heard the chief mentioned again.
Was it just her suspicions or did this old man keep mentioning the village chief to tell them something?
Also, how could all the empty houses lack doors and windows except for the one closest to the suspicious chief’s house?
Ouyang Jin turned to look at Lu Zhen as if to ask for his opinion.
"We won’t disturb the chief. Having so many strangers move next to his house will surely cause him discomfort. So, we will make do with one of the other empty houses." Lu Zhen stated.
The old man looked surprised . He hadn’t expected anyone to prefer to live in a house without a door or windows in such dangerous times.
"But the locusts might invade the house..." the elderly man started to speak but was interrupted by Ouyang Jin.
"Old sir, don’t worry about us. There are many of us and even if the locusts come, we just need to guard the door and windows and kill any that sneaked inside. So, there is really no need to disturb your chief."
What a joke. That chief had obviously set up a trap in that house next to his. Which idiot would walk straight into it just for some superficial comfort?
Leng Pan thought to herself. Not knowing that many idiots had indeed walked into that house never to walk out again.
Seeing that they couldn’t be convinced, the old man didn’t speak further and limped towards the furthest thatched house in the village.
The house looked most dilapidated with doors held together with ropes.
One would wonder, what was really going on?
After entering the house, the old man turned back to look at the place he had left the few young fellows and sighed in distress.
Yet, he could do nothing and closed the door, securing it with a rope.
Then, as if he had transformed into a different person, he plastered a bright smile on his mud-filled face before cheerfully turning around.