A group of women holding basins came up, laughing as they saw Qin Qin and Mo Yunchen.
"Qin... oh, it’s not Ah Man who said you are Mrs. Mo, we were calling you by the wrong name before," a slightly darker-skinned woman said kindly.
"This must be your husband that Ah Man mentioned, truly a man of great bearing,"
"Yes, yes, when I heard from Ah Man yesterday, I didn’t believe it, but seeing him today, it’s indeed true,"
Several people surrounded Mo Yunchen with admiration, but to her surprise, his expression wasn’t of displeasure at these women.
After the women preparing to wash clothes had left, Qin Qin asked Mo Yunchen in a low voice, "Don’t you dislike people getting close to you the most?"
"These women have been taking care of you during this time." That’s why he wouldn’t be angry or unhappy with them.
Last night, Qin Qin had spoken to him about many things concerning her life in this village, how the village people, seeing her pregnant and alone, couldn’t help but take extra care of her.
Feeling warmed in her heart, Qin Qin grasped Mo Yunchen’s hand, and he entwined his fingers with hers.
Qin Qin led Mo Yunchen into Jiannan Village, introducing him to the people here and the local customs. Along the way, many of the people from Jiannan Village approached Qin Qin to speak, all of them kind and friendly. It was only after Madam Ah Man returned yesterday that many learned Qin Qin was indeed married, and her husband was exceptionally handsome. Seeing him today confirmed that, and while many young girls were mesmerized, none bore any ill intentions and were purely appreciative.
"Trouble, trouble, people from Yaoyun Village have come!"
Not far from Jiannan Village was another settlement called Yaoyun Village, whose people were very difficult to get along with. Qin Qin had previously spent a few hours in Yaoyun Village before coming to Jiannan Village, and not taking quite a liking to the people there, had moved to Jiannan Village instead.
"What do the people of Yaoyun Village want? Our Jiannan Village has nothing to do with them, what are they here for?"
A Jiannan Village resident stopped one of the people rushing over.
The one who came running was an elderly man who, panting, said, "It seems there was a dispute between Aier and some people from Yaoyun Village while hunting."
"Let’s go, let’s see what’s happening!"
A group from Jiannan Village grabbed hoes and brooms and ran towards the entrance of the village.
Qin Qin walked over, holding her belly, while Mo Yunchen wrapped an arm around her, telling her to slow down.
Aier was Madam Ah Man’s husband. Qin Qin had only recently arrived at Jiannan Village and had saved Aier’s life; Aier’s family had been especially caring toward her since. Often, they would bring the game he hunted to her, and even if she tried to refuse, she couldn’t turn them away.
"Aier, you injured our Ah Ban and stole the wild boar he hunted; what are you going to do about that?" About ten fierce-looking people from Yaoyun Village confronted Aier, a sturdy man about forty years of age, who was Madam Ah Man’s husband and a skilled hunter from Jiannan Village.
"Nonsense, it was Ah Ban who stole my game and is now framing me,"
Aier, holding his dislocated arm, said to the opposite side, his arm had dislocated in the effort to hunt the wild boar, and as he was about to carry the game back single-handedly, Ah Ban from Yaoyun Village saw him and attempted to rob him of the wild boar. He resisted, and during their struggle and argument, Ah Ban tripped over a stump and broke open his head, then blamed it on him.
"You’re the one talking nonsense, I hunted the wild boar first, you came to rob it, and then pushed me into a tree stump, which caused a big hole in my head,"
A sharp-featured young man, clutching the side of his head, pointed at Aier and accused him.
Seeing such shamelessness, Aier’s chest heaved with anger. Madam Ah Man, standing beside Aier, shot cold glares at Ah Ban. Of course, she believed her husband. Ah Ban was known as the most shameless person in Yaoyun Village, often bullying people from Jiannan Village, and this time framing her husband had enraged her so much she almost rushed forward to give Ah Ban a hard slap.
"What happened here?" The Miao Clan Elder walked up past the crowd, holding a wooden cane in his hand, radiating an aura of authority. The sharp gaze from his aged face fixed itself on Ah Ban and the rest of the Yaoyun Village people.
"Miao Clan Elder, you must give Yaoyun Village an explanation. Your Aier has broken our Ah Ban’s head open! What are you going to do about it?" A man beside Ah Ban shouted. His name was Yi Pu, and he was a good friend of the rascal Ah Ban.
Just as Aier was about to step forward to argue, someone gently grabbed his right arm. He turned, taken aback, only to see Qin Qin smiling at him.
"Don’t move yet, let me set your arm back in place."