Back To The 80s-Chapter 475 - 486: Sky Worship_1

Uncle Axing’s gaze turned icy, as he coldly stared at the crowd, his voice full of disappointment: "I told you to burn all the chickens that had fallen ill, bury their droppings from before, and clean everything thoroughly. You couldn’t bring yourselves to throw them away, yet you eat chickens that died from disease. Is it any wonder that you fall sick too? Now, because of your ignorance, why are you dragging innocent people into this?"

"Uncle Axing, since that person arrived in our town, numerous things have happened. Just a few days ago, there was even an earthquake, shaking the ground and causing the rocks on West Mountain to roll down and kill the old yellow ox in Uncle Zhengcai’s family."

"Right, and Brother Amu’s wife was perfectly fine during her pregnancy, so how could she give birth to a child with albinism?"

"Old Lady Yuexiu was fetching firewood from the mountain, and she fell and broke her leg."

"Someone burgled my house a few days ago and stole a rabbit with black ears."

"My family too, we lost two bundles of firewood..."

...

As the crowd babbled on, Uncle Axing’s disappointment deepened. These people blamed everything—the earthquake, the child born with albinism in the town, broken legs, lost belongings—on the person he had saved.

The more the crowd talked, the more indignant they became. They said harshly, "Uncle Axing, no matter what, we must take the person inside your house today and offer him as a sacrifice to the heavens. Otherwise, our town that has been peaceful for hundreds of years will be unrestful." As they spoke, they all crowded towards the courtyard.

Uncle Axing stretched out his arms to block them, saying angrily: "He’s just a sick man, a living person. On what grounds are you using him to appease the heavens? If anyone dares to take a step further today, don’t blame me for getting angry."

The crowd was subdued by Uncle Axing’s ferocity and halted their steps. They looked at each other, unsure of what to do.

Someone brave said: "Uncle Axing, it’s not that we don’t respect you, but you’ve been caring for this person for several years now, and he’s neither dead nor alive."

"Yes, yes, Uncle Axing, you spent money to save a plague! It would be better to throw him onto the mountain, let the eagles eat him to appease the gods."

"Uncle Axing, you should also consider the people in the town. If you insist on being stubborn, don’t blame us for not being able to accommodate you in the town."

"Either move out, or hand over the man." Uncertain who shouted, the crowd stirred up, jostling forward.

"Who dares!" The door opened, and Uncle Axing’s son, Awang, angrily walked out. He pointed at the people and said, "Have you guys lost your conscience? When your old man was sick and on his last breath, and the town’s doctor couldn’t save him, was it not my father who saved him?"

"When your child fell from a tree last year and broke his arm, was it not my dad who fixed it back in place?"

"When your daughter-in-law gave birth and had a hemorrhage, was it not my dad who controlled the bleeding by applying acupuncture?"

"Tell me, which one of you has not drunk the soup my dad made? Now that our family has saved a person, you guys come to our house and pressure us like this?"

Awang angrily pointed at the crowd, rebuking them.

Uncle Axing shook his head, held down Awang’s arm, and said to the crowd, "If our fellow villagers can’t accommodate us, we will leave."

"Dad, why should we leave? We didn’t do anything wrong." Awang retorted.

Looking at a group of ignorant villagers, Uncle Axing sighed and said, "Awang, go inside and pack up. Trees die when moved, but people survive. We have our skills, and we can earn our living wherever we go."

He then glared fiercely at his former neighbors and said loudly, "We’ll move out tonight. We hope our fellow villagers can respect our past contributions and refrain from causing trouble on the road. Otherwise, don’t blame us for being heartless."

At first, the crowd felt a little regret and hope upon hearing they were about to leave. They all thought about ambushing the man on the road to offer him as a sacrifice.

Now hearing Uncle Axing’s words, they immediately dismissed the idea. A Miao medicine man, who could save lives, could also take them. There was no cure for the toxins used by the Miao medicine men.

Uncle Axing ordered Awang to go inside and bring all the herbs they could take. Then he placed their clothes and bedding on the cart. He entered the small house where, in the dim light, a tall man lay on a bamboo bed. Long hair swept over his shoulders and his slightly uplifted peach-blossom eyes were tightly shut. He looked peacefully asleep.

Uncle Axing gently wiped the man’s face with a warm towel, murmuring, "You said you wouldn’t wake up, nor would you die. What are you holding onto? I wonder what unfinished desires you have. Sigh..."

After wiping his face, Awang came in and carried the sleeping man out of the house, gently placing him on the cart. He covered him with a thin blanket and said to Uncle Axing, "Dad, let’s go."

Uncle Axing took one last, reluctant look at the small courtyard, then followed his son out, closing the small wooden door behind him and locking the small lock. With that, he also locked away his trust in his fellow villagers.

Everyone stood on the small path outside the courtyard, watching as Uncle Axing locked the door. Everyone’s face abruptly changed. In this down-to-earth small town, neighbors never locked their houses. Even if they went far away, they would ask their neighbors to look out for their house, watch their plants and animals.

Uncle Axing locked the door, helped Awang push the cart, and left without looking back. The world’s warmth turns cold, and the hardest to cure is the human heart.

...

The provincial city had entered December, with several unusual heavy snowfalls. Sometimes it snowed all night, and the snow could reach up to the knee.

After two consecutive days of heavy snow, Gu Xiaobei simply took a few days off, waiting for the snow to stop and the weather to clear before opening the shop again. She took her two children back to the staff housing complex to stay.

Now, both Xiaopang and Mo Wang had entered the chatty stage. Xiaopang started speaking earlier, and her pronunciation was already very clear. Mo Wang did not speak very clearly yet, but they both had one thing in common - they would repeatedly ask questions, incessantly questioning what is this? Why is that so?

Xiaopang also loved to wear her mother’s high heels. Every day she would rummage through the shoe rack, take out Gu Xiaobei’s small summer heels, put them on her feet, and totter around the house.

Mo Wang loved to dismantle things and would fiddle with small clocks, trying to unscrew the coil at the back, shake vigorously, and try to shake out the minute and hour hands.

Exhausted, Gu Xiaobei leaned on the sofa, having been thoroughly worn out by these two little troublemakers.

"Mom, do you want to drink water?" Xiaopang asked happily as she shuffled towards Gu Xiaobei in her high heels.

Gu Xiaobei shook her head: "Mom is not thirsty, thank you, Xiaopang."

Xiaopang, swaying her chubby body, waved her hand: "You’re welcome, Mom, do you want candy?"

Gu Xiaobei smiled and shook her head. This little girl was probably up to her little tricks again, "Thank you, Mom does not want candy."

"Mom, do you want an orange candy or a coconut candy? Mom, you should have the orange candy; it’s delicious." Xiaopang blinked her big eyes seriously and suggested.