Chapter 488: Chapter 488: Sense of Security
For generations, we’ve all lived here. If it wasn’t uninhabitable, who would want to leave? The village chief couldn’t bear to look at Song Family Valley, but when his gaze met the surviving villagers, his eyes became determined.
"There’s nothing to think about. As long as Chief Hua is willing to take us, we’ll follow."
Life in Hua Village is good. Even though we can’t get into Hua Village, being closer is still nice, and there’s a place we can turn to for help if needed.
Looking at the devastated Song Family Valley, the elder Hua finally nodded, understanding the village chief’s desire to take the villagers away. In his place, he too wouldn’t dare to stay here with the villagers.
"Alright then, pack up what you can take with you."
It’s going to be a tough journey, but there’s enough of us, so there’s no need to worry.
When his eyes fell on the dozen or so severely injured, the elder Hua called over Hua Meng, Hua Zhuang, and some others.
"Find some wooden poles and make some wooden frames."
The conversation between the two village chiefs wasn’t conducted in private, and upon hearing this, everyone understood what it meant. Without further ado, they called over more than a dozen people to start selecting and building from a pile of timber.
When the people of Song Family Valley learned they could leave with Chief Hua and his group, all who could move did. Faces finally loosened from anxious sorrow, and relief was evident as they buried their grief deep within.
If such a huge disaster had occurred a few years ago, many might not have survived.
Yet, after struggling through disastrous years, almost everyone has prepared for the worst. Although still very sad, they strive to keep living.
There’s really not much to pack, just gather everything usable from the ruins, mainly food. Even if the rain has stopped, they still tightly wrap it with excavated tarpaulin.
Fearing Chief Hua and his group might be impatient to wait, the people of Song Family Valley moved quickly. Other than those who had lost everything, the living who could walk made efforts to carry their belongings. Despite this, many things were left behind, especially where people were gone but food remained.
Just as the village chief was in a bind, the elder Hua instructed Hua Zhuang to lead people in carrying all the remaining items.
Even those unable to walk and severely injured were placed on wooden frames and carried by the men of Hua Village.
The village chief felt embarrassed and tried to have their own people carry, but was waved off by elder Hua’s words.
Having been buried for so long, shocked and frightened, their bodies were nearly at their limit, and with the load, though they might manage, their shaky state was more worrying for the injured on the stretchers. Plus, it would be too slow.
Simply helping together made for a faster pace.
With the help of everyone from Hua Village, the village chief’s dilemma was completely solved, as they left the Song Family Valley they’d lived in for decades behind.
Returning was much slower than coming, even though extreme care for the elderly and weak among them was taken. Elder Hua looked up at the increasingly overcast sky, realizing they wouldn’t make it home by nightfall.
They even offered a few livestock for the exhausted women and children to ride.
Hua Jin gazed on his mud-stained clothes with regret, wishing he hadn’t changed, knowing he had to walk again. Clean clothes wasted, they’d have to be washed once back.
Unfortunately, the terrain was too uneven, or they might have managed to rig up a cart for the livestock to pull.
They paused briefly upon reaching Shang Wu Village, where Chief Hua specifically asked for the village chief’s opinion. Shang Wu Village’s location was still relatively good, and beyond the collapsed houses, the village hadn’t suffered earth cracks. If their village chief was willing to stay there, elder Hua was willing to negotiate.
Unsurprisingly, the village chief shook his head, expressing no desire to join Shang Wu Village. Elder Hua understood, knowing they would be considered outsiders if they joined. Welcome or not, at least their future life could be quite restricted.
He nodded, and the procession continued.
In the village chief’s view, apart from Hua Village, they did not want to join any village.
Integrating into an unfamiliar environment really was difficult, especially with so few of them, fearing they would be bullied and worried their food would be stolen. Apart from following Chief Hua’s lead, no one else felt trustworthy.
As night fell, the sky was completely dark, and after walking nearly three hours, the group finally stopped. Now, they were very close to Hua Village, and everyone couldn’t help but feel much more at ease.
They passed many places along the way, some suitable for settling, but they all were rejected by the people of Song Family Valley.
According to them, they just wanted to be closer to Hua Village, making it easier for future medical assistance with so many injured.
Of course, it would be better if Hua Village was willing to take them in.
The elder Hua smiled without commenting.
Although Hua Village still had some open space and could take in some people, more people meant more potential troubles. Unless absolutely necessary, elder Hua didn’t want to burden himself more.
Moreover, Song Family Valley was different from the previous Li Village and Wang Village; elder Hua was truly unfamiliar with them. They seemed alright for now, many being quite hardworking, and at least there were no complaints on this short trip back to Hua Village.
Considering many were just dug out from the ruins, they haven’t had much time to recover.
For this, elder Hua found them commendable, but following them back into the village was not an option.
With the village’s main road in sight, elder Hua called for a stop. Moving further would bring them to Hua Village’s entrance.
"Village Chief, have you not decided where to go yet?"
The village chief replied, "Chief Hua, can we stay in the woods outside your village?"
The village chief was quite familiar with Hua Village. Years ago, whether selling winter vegetables or buying coal, he had been there and knew there was a patch of forest in front of the village. The terrain was relatively flat, suitable for living, but he wasn’t sure who owned it. Now their Song Family Valley was uninhabitable, and if it belonged to the government, he wondered if it could be granted to them.
...Overthinking, all they sought now was a temporary space, just as long as it was near enough to Hua Village.
Elder Hua, amused and exasperated, couldn’t believe the old fellow had his eye on the woods outside their village.
That area was indeed flat, and with some tidying up, livable houses could indeed be built, plus it wasn’t part of Hua Village.
"It’s possible, but cleaning it up will be quite a task."
The earthquake had cracked the ground, altered the mountains, and caused landslides. Many trees were uprooted and broken, leaving the forest a chaotic mess with fallen trees everywhere.
The only relief was that, whether due to the terrain or different tremor strength, this area was much better than those passed along the way. This could be one reason why Hua Village houses had endured.
Of course, it also couldn’t be denied that his son’s preparations before building were invaluable, another reason they withstood the quake.