The Ger's Contract Marriage [BL]
Chapter 470: Departure

Chapter 470: Departure

It started with a catfight, and in a few heartbeats, the chaos became increasingly physical. The villagers who were tired from the harvest season somehow found the energy to knock each other silly.

Any and all grievances could be solved with a bit of violence... [don’t quote me on that.]

In the end, Xu Hu Zhe needed to step in— the protector had earned his name. He was not the protector of the villagers, but with Xu Feng gone, it was only right for his protected people to be his potential partners— Bai Mo and Xu Zeng— and of course Da Long and Xiao Long.

It was inevitable that the villagers began to lose their fear as their tussles became more out of control. Keeping the two gers out of harm’s way wasn’t as easy as it had been in the beginning. As the villagers became more restless, a few Xu Clan members attempted to use the scuffle as an excuse to knock some sense into one or both of the too "pompous" gers.

Gers had a higher standing than women outside of the village, but in the village, a man was still a man. A man shouldn’t have to take back talk from a ger! This wasn’t how all villagers felt, but there would always be a few idiots in any village or town.

The two gers in question were also rather large targets, especially Xu Zeng, who was considerably taller than Bai Mo.

"SILENCE!!!!"

"The Village Chief called for silence!!!"

"HEYYY!!!"

The village chief, his son, and a few other capable men finally tried to stabilize the situation. The entire village was already here, all those who were able bodies were at the front of Sun Village, it was time to get things back in order.

He had lost face, but their lives were at stake. The village chief made the best decision he could make in a short amount of time. What did the village chief do? What was his final decision?

As soon as the crowd was under control, he threw the Xu Clan under the carriage. If Carriage-kun was present, he would have a field day. All the Xu Clan members might have transmigrated on the spot, or ended up with amnesia!

The accusations of murder or slave trading weren’t light. This wasn’t an outcome that was farfetched. In fact, the Xu Clan members didn’t argue as they were berated publicly by the village chief.

Even the two men Xu Hu Zhe had physically deterred sat dazed on the ground as if confused by how they’d lost their footing, and didn’t understand why their arms were now sore. The rest of the Xu Clan had already been getting either a verbal lashing or physical backlash from their fellow villagers and seemed more meek.

The person who ended up challenging the village chief was a child. Da Niu had regained his nerve as rebuke after rebuke fell from the village chief’s mouth, and in an instant, the stepmother’s character was revealed.

The curse words that fell out of the 5 year old boy’s mouth were so dirty that true silence descended on the crowd. The source of the boy’s imitation was also obvious, there were quite a few curse words the villagers had just heard mimicked by his mother during her brawl with the ’barren’ woman.

After the bombs that fell from Da Niu’s mouth, there was no way the villagers wouldn’t look at the second Xu’s family the same. Even if there was someone or something else they could put all the blame on, too much had come to light.

.

.

.

The walk back to Xu Zeng’s special place was quiet. They’d redistributed the burdens Xu Hu Zhe was carrying after getting out of the eyesight of the villagers, although that probably wasn’t a problem.

The second wave of confusion and chaos that ensued after Da Niu’s special skill was unleashed caused a new round of yelling and fighting. The Xu Clan wouldn’t be thrown away so easily. They generally didn’t approve of the boy’s "skill," but the village chief couldn’t just leave them to be beheaded!

During this time, it was easy for the three to sneak away. It wasn’t even sneaking, it was boldly walking away from a heated confrontation.

Xu Hu Zhe kept the largest back basket for himself easily, but after some heated stares between the raven-haired Hu Zhe and Bai Mo, both backpacks were relinquished. Bai Mo took charge of the backpack packed with the artifact housing Xu Zeng’s space energy-infused eggshell.

Finally, Xu Zeng took control of the backpack with his nephews. He was suddenly glad his nephews were dormant. There was no way he could forgive himself if he taught them such bad language and allowed them to learn such things.

He’d been protective of his younger brothers while in Sun Village. They never wanted for anything—yes his stepmother doted on them, but he did too... but he was still a beggar and a useless existence to them.

In only one year, Da Niu had become so uncontrollable and so cold-hearted... Would Da Long and Xiao Long turn out like that?

It was always a bonus to have the two eggs around, it served to help him calm his nerves. The long walk was also helpful. But now, there was a worry about his capabilities. Could he really do a good job raising his brother’s children?

There was a scandal in Sun Village and Xu Zeng couldn’t care less. All his thoughts had been on hatching the two eggs, but no matter what happened, they would grow up without their dad...

.

.

.

As they made their way through the familiar terrain, Xu Hu Zhe led the trio with confident strides, his tall figure towering over the surrounding landscape.

His newer white mask obscured much of his face, lending an air of mystery to his emotional state in the charged silence. Behind him, Bai Mo stood out with his fiery red hair and distinct fox ears, his light backpack slung over his shoulder. Finally, Xu Zeng followed by his side, his signature silver hair and white mask adding to the trio’s conspicuous appearance.

Despite their attempts to blend in with their "plain" clothes, the events of the previous fight had left them feeling like sore thumbs in the rural scenery. From the clearing in front of the village to the wooded area leading to their current destination, they become more camouflaged with each step forward.

Xu Hu Zhe and Bai Mo had never lived a villager’s life and Xu Zeng had spent some time in the other world, followed by months in Nanshan Estate, his perceptions were more than a bit skewed. They planned to blend in on their journey, but that was never a possibility.

Surrounded by the lively forest scenery, they arrived at Xu Zeng’s childhood hideout. A sense of familiarity washed over him, pulling him out of his thoughts and into action.

Securing his backpack, Xu Zeng moved with purpose, his movements fluid yet distant. Bai Mo, finding a comfortable spot on the large flat rock from earlier in the morning, sank down with a weary sigh. The ordeal had taken its toll on him, stirring a whirlwind of conflicting emotions and doubts.

Reflecting on his own actions, Bai Mo couldn’t help but feel ashamed of his aggressive and possessive behavior. He questioned whether he had overstepped his bounds and worried about the implications for his relationship with Xu Zeng.

Would his actions drive a wedge between them? They weren’t married and there was nothing official between them. Was he too quick to threaten Xu Zeng’s clan with beheading?

Beside him, Xu Hu Zhe set down his back basket, offering silent reassurance to Bai Mo who was resting his feet, and staying out of any more trouble. The eye contact between them seemed to last forever.

Bai Mo gazed into the tall snake’s eyes. It wasn’t him threatening Xu Hu Zhe this time, it actually felt like they were having a conversation complete with nods and head shakes.

It was strange, but the fox felt as though he was being soothed and praised. Praised for doing what? Praised for threatening an entire clan...

Bai Mo couldn’t help but blush, his cheeks heating up slightly. Xu Hu Zhe was proud of him for being a bully and acting like a territorial fox. He, a fox immortal beast descendant, was being territorial over an entire fox immortal beast. He was clearly overstepping his bounds.

Still, the praise and nods from Xu Hu Zhe served to calm his nerves. Maybe Xu Zeng wasn’t upset and rethinking their proposal.

After his short nonverbal conversation with Bai Mo, Xu Hu Zhe seamlessly transitioned into his role of assisting Xu Zeng. before seamlessly assisting Xu Zeng.

With the sounds of nature as their backdrop, the two worked in harmony, Xu Zeng leading the way while Xu Hu Zhe followed closely behind, expertly emptying the traps set up in the stream.