Erlang jumped around as he was being hit, but his ears were still held by his mother, so he couldn't jump high or escape. He cried out in pain.
Chen Yuezhi was furious and kept whipping him with the rattan.
Erlang wailed like a ghost, completely devoid of any heroic spirit.
Jiang Wan watched from the side, dumbfounded.
Her mother was truly clever!
She first coaxed Erlang over, then examined his injuries before beating him, which was very rigorous and responsible.
She had originally wanted to protect Erlang, especially after he was injured and had bled so much.
But Erlang was too daring; if he wasn't taught a good lesson to remember, he would surely make the same mistake again.
Moreover, the rattan's damage was not significant, at most causing pain for a few days. She felt relieved and slowly enjoyed the sight of her second brother being beaten.
To be honest, her second brother crying while being beaten was quite amusing, and she couldn't help but laugh out loud.
After Chen Yuezhi finished beating the child, she dropped the rattan and instructed Dalang, "You guys get some food first, I'll go check on the injured."
Jiang Wan quickly followed Chen Yuezhi to the village chief's place.
The village chief was currently very excited. All the stolen grain had been recovered, both girls were brought back safely, and the men who went to rescue them also returned without any losses.
How could this not excite him?
"The recovered grain, let each family come and claim it first. The surplus grain will be divided equally among those who participated in the rescue! The injured people will get a bit more."
The men were also very satisfied. When they went to rescue, they didn't think much about it, only about bringing back the grain and people.
Now that there was surplus grain to distribute, they were naturally happy.
After all, grain was too precious; an extra jin of grain meant an extra chance to survive.
They thought that by giving the injured people more grain, they would feel better.
Unexpectedly, the wives of those few people started complaining, "What's the use of just getting more grain?"
"Village Chief, you asked my husband to go rescue people. Now that he's injured, you have to give an explanation, right? You can't let him take a knife for nothing!"
The wives of the other injured men also chimed in.
The village chief got a headache from the noise, "Can you all quiet down for a moment?"
Those few women became insistent, "If we quiet down, will our husbands' injuries heal? Will the carts run by themselves? The family relies on him for survival. Now that he's injured, who will pull the cart? Who will carry the things?"
The village chief was old, and today he was tired and worried, his mind could barely function.
Jiang Pan saw the village chief in such a difficult situation and went to whisper a few words to him.
The village chief's eyes lit up, and he immediately said, "Don't you worry, all of you. Your husbands were injured for the sake of the village, so the village will naturally not abandon you. I will arrange for people to take turns pulling your carts. Their injuries will be treated by Da Pan's wife, and the medicine money... each family in the village will contribute a little."
Immediately, someone else was unhappy, "Why should we pay?"
The village chief said, "Because you are all part of this small mountain village! Today's events, can you guarantee that you won't encounter them again in the future? If you encounter such situations again, and everyone fears getting injured and having to pay for their own treatment, and no one dares to step forward, how far can we go?"
"Although we are not of the same surname, since we came from the same village, when we are outside, we are one big family! A family naturally supports each other. If anyone thinks what this old man is saying is unreasonable, then they should leave our group!"
Those who were unwilling to pay immediately fell silent.
Jiang Pan stood up and said, "I will also make a statement for everyone. As long as it is an injury sustained for the sake of the village, and the medicine does not need to be bought from outside, my family will cover it all. If it requires buying medicine from outside, we will also contribute to the cost."
Chen Yuezhi also said, "As long as it is an injury sustained for the sake of the village, I will not charge a single penny and will be available whenever called."
The village chief said, "Da Pan, Da Pan's wife, you two are truly remarkable!"
Now, those few women had nothing more to say.
The carts would be pulled, the injuries would be treated, and they even received extra grain. If they had any more complaints, they would be criticized by others.
With this matter resolved, everyone began to worry about the water situation again.
Originally, each family had very little water left, enough to last only half a day at most, and some families had already run out of water.
After the bad guys robbed the grain and water, they immediately drank all the water. Now, their entire small mountain village, except for Jiang Pan's family which still had some water, was facing a desperate lack of drinking water.
Without food, one could find other ways to survive.
But without water, there was truly no way to survive.
Jiang Pan sat without speaking. Jiang Wan found it strange. Their family had already found a water source, so why wasn't her father speaking up?
Jiang Wan looked up at her father. Her father bent down, picked her up, and whispered, "A problem that is solved too easily is not called a problem."
Jiang Wan's eyes lit up. She hadn't realized her father was so cunning.
Jiang Pan smiled without saying anything.
He had no ill intentions, he just deeply understood human nature.
If he revealed the water source issue now, the villagers would at most thank him a few times, and then forget about it in a few days. If the same thing happened a few more times, in the future, no matter what his family did for the villagers, they would take it for granted.
But in this world, there were no such things as taking things for granted.
He was certainly willing to help the villagers overcome difficulties, but he also wanted these people to remember his family's kindness!
Therefore, he would let the villagers worry for a while longer.
Jiang Pan stood up and said to the village chief, "Village Chief, I'll take Wan Wan back first. She's exhausted after a whole day of activity."
Jiang Wan quickly covered her mouth and yawned.
The village chief nodded, "Go back. I heard this little girl made a great contribution today, she's a little hero of our small mountain village."
Jiang Wan pursed her lips and smiled.
Jiang Pan, full of pride and affection, carried Jiang Wan and called for Chen Yuezhi to return to their own place.
Dinner was roasted sweet potato. After eating, Jiang Wan took a sip from her small water pouch and shook it.
There was still a little left, enough to last until tomorrow morning.
Not long after dinner, Jiang Wan couldn't keep her eyes open. Chen Yuezhi carried her into the tent, took off her clothes, and tucked her in.
She slept soundly without dreams and woke up the next morning.
Jiang Pan, concerned about the mountain water source, found the village chief and began to persuade him, "Those people from last night were not far away. If we leave now, we might run into them. It's better to be safe than sorry, so let's stay here for another day and set off after those people have left."
The village chief thought about it and agreed that it made sense.
Upon hearing they weren't leaving, the villagers breathed a sigh of relief.
Without water, how could they travel?
If they continued forward and still found no water, wouldn't that be their death sentence?
By stopping here, if worst came to worst, they could always turn back.
Jiang Pan took his wood-cutting axe, called Chen Yuezhi, and took Jiang Wan into the mountains again.
Seeing them go in, some villagers wanted to follow.
The village chief coldly blocked them, "Haven't yesterday's events taught you anything? You can go into the mountains, but only one man per family. Women and children are unlimited. Everyone else, stay behind to guard the belongings!"