Novels online

Chapter 194 Someone Fell into the Ravine

Another one-on-one duel was about to begin!

The private salt smugglers naturally joined Xing Honglang's cheering squad, while the Gao Family Village residents instinctively rallied behind Gao Chuwu.

However...

A significant portion of Gao Chuwu's cheering squad seemed to have defected, switching sides to support Xing Honglang instead.

One of the salt smugglers felt something was off. He turned his head and saw that standing beside him, cheering for their boss, was actually a woman from Gao Family Village, leading a child by the hand.

The salt smuggler, intrigued, asked, "Sister, aren't you from Gao Family Village? Why are you cheering for our boss instead of Gao Chuwu?"

The woman was Madam Gao San, and the child she held was Gao Sanwa. She was one of the original 42 elders of Gao Family Village, but mother and son had switched allegiances without a moment's hesitation.

Madam Gao San chuckled mischievously, "Miss Xing isn't an outsider anymore, is she? I consider her one of our own now. When two of our own fight, of course I'll cheer for the one I find more agreeable."

Then she bellowed, her voice booming, "Miss Xing, hit him! Beat that oaf Gao Chuwu into submission and show him who's the boss of the household from now on!"

The male villagers also joined in the teasing, "Gao Chuwu, don't let the men's prestige falter! You absolutely must beat your wife into submission!"

Xing Honglang exploded, "Who's his wife?!"

Everyone quickly clamped their hands over their mouths.

Madam Bai and Young Master Bai also arrived at the edge of the circle. Young Master Bai was about to head towards Gao Chuwu's side when Madam Bai suddenly pulled him back. "Let's go cheer for Miss Xing."

Young Master Bai protested, "Huh? But I want to cheer for Brother Chuwu."

"Whack!" Madam Bai delivered a resounding slap. "You unfilial child! Are you trying to contradict your own mother?"

Young Master Bai pondered the question seriously, then suddenly "whacked" himself. "Mother, you are right. Your son is unfilial; I need a good slap to clear my head."

With another "whack," he slapped himself again. "But even after clearing my head, I still want to help Brother Chuwu. So... I'll let Mother hit me again. Forgive me, Mother, your son must go!"

With that, he swiftly darted towards Gao Chuwu's cheering squad.

Madam Bai exclaimed, "Hey! Hey, hey, hey! A grown son no longer listens to his mother, ahhh!"

Amidst the dense crowd, packed three layers deep inside and out.

The duel began!

Xing Honglang struck first. Her Jin Hong Fist's Thirty-Six Hand Forms were fierce from the outset. But Gao Chuwu was no longer the novice he once was. He unleashed the Shaanxi Guanzhong Hong Fist's Thirty-Six Hand Forms. Although still a bit unpolished, his immense strength and agility made the martial art appear quite formidable.

The two styles of Hong Fist were quite similar, with only subtle differences.

They fought like a senior and junior disciple sparring in the same martial art, a truly captivating sight.

However...

Ultimately, experience triumphs. After about two dozen moves, Gao Chuwu's technique had already faltered, but Xing Honglang remained exceptionally steady, her movements showing no confusion. Seizing Gao Chuwu's opening, she instantly flashed forward, unleashing a dizzying flurry of attacks, each punch landing on Gao Chuwu's vulnerable spots.

The figures abruptly separated. Gao Chuwu's massive, bear-like frame slowly toppled once more, crashing down with a thud that sent up a cloud of dust.

Xing Honglang dusted off her hands, took the thick-backed broadsword from her subordinate, and tossed it beside Gao Chuwu. "Hmph! Take that!"

Everyone applauded in unison. "Well fought, Miss Xing!"

The Gao Family Village residents, who had just been cheering for Gao Chuwu, suddenly all switched sides. "Hahahaha, Chuwu got beaten down again, hahahaha, hilarious! He won't be able to hold his head high at home anymore, he'll be getting smacked by his wife every day, hahahaha!"

Zheng Daniu squeezed into the circle and helped Gao Chuwu up.

Padi Tu came over, picked up the thick-backed broadsword, and the three quickly retreated.

Hearing the good-natured laughter from the surrounding villagers, Xing Honglang truly felt that she was considered "one of their own" here, and couldn't help but feel a little delighted. Waving to her subordinates, she smiled, "Go, open a jar of Wuliangye. We'll celebrate properly today."

Just as the lively, boisterous atmosphere peaked, a villager suddenly sprinted down the hillside, shouting, "Bad news, bad news! Come quickly, someone needs help!"

Everyone froze in surprise.

Li Daoxuan also let out an "Oh?"

The villager's face was etched with panic. "Zhang Lao Wu fell into the gully! Hurry, come save him!"

Hearing this, everyone immediately ran towards the other side of the hillside.

The messenger villager ran ahead, explaining as he went.

It turned out that while the villagers were watching Gao Chuwu and Xing Honglang duel, another group of villagers hadn't been idle. They were still on the northwestern hillside, working on a road leading to Zhangjia Village.

Zhangjia Village was ten *li* away from Gao Family Village, and it was also a village that Li Daoxuan had brought into his field of view. Of course, it had also received the Heavenly Lord's rain.

The Zhangjia Village residents were diligently building a cement road connecting to their village.

But a middle-aged man named Zhang Lao Wu, while clearing stones to carve out the path near the edge of a gully, accidentally slipped and tumbled, falling into the gully below. The drop wasn't too great, about a dozen meters, but rolling all the way down the slope caused him serious injuries, leaving him unable to climb back up on his own.

There weren't many villagers working nearby, and the remaining few were too few to rescue him, so they had to return for help.

Hearing this, Li Daoxuan quickly tapped the "West" and "North" buttons on the outside of the box several times... Following the path to Zhangjia Village, the box's field of view soon reached the top of the gully.

He saw a group of villagers on the gully's edge, shouting down. He peered down into the gully and indeed saw a middle-aged villager lying at the bottom, covered in injuries.

Li Daoxuan immediately reached his hand down, preparing to pick up Zhang Lao Wu from the gully as if plucking a mosquito. This movement required extreme caution; if he applied even a fraction too much force, he would crush the tiny figure.

Just as his hand was halfway down, a commotion suddenly erupted nearby. A man slid down the hillside, moving with impressive agility. In a flash, he reached the bottom of the slope and helped Zhang Lao Wu up.

He then hoisted Zhang Lao Wu onto his back and looked up at the top of the gully.

As he looked up, Li Daoxuan saw his face and recognized him—it was a labor reform prisoner named "Zhong Gaoliang." The name was so unique that Li Daoxuan remembered it clearly.

Zhong Gaoliang supported Zhang Lao Wu with one hand behind his back, while his other hand grasped at vines and wooden stakes on the hillside, painstakingly climbing upward.

Li Daoxuan discreetly positioned his hand behind him, ready to catch both of them if he slipped.

But this labor reform prisoner, Zhong Gaoliang, was quite skilled. He carried Zhang Lao Wu steadily, and in a short time, he climbed to the top of the slope, handed Zhang Lao Wu over to the other villagers, and then collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath.

Zhang Lao Wu had made a brief, unannounced appearance in Chapter 148; readers curious about his first showing might want to revisit that chapter.