217 Safety
“I was just about to send the ox cart to Lizheng,” Yang Dashan continued, “I realized you didn’t stock up charcoal in your yard before you left. Yesterday, when I came with Li Miao to help clean up, I brought some charcoal for you. I put it in the small kitchen in the backyard. It’s been freezing these days. If you stay in the house, you can make a charcoal fire to keep it warm.”
“Thank you, Yang Dashan,” Zhao Zhan said with a serious face. “Don’t blame yourself too much for what happened to Chengfeng. I’ll go to the mountains to look for him in the next two days.”
“I’ll go with you!”
The more magnanimous Zhao Zhan and Jiaojiao were, the more apologetic Yang Dashan felt.
In fact, he had followed Chengfeng’s footprints to the mountain on the day he lost him. However, the wolf howled all night and the snow covered Chengfeng’s footprints. He had no choice but to go down the mountain in defeat.
However, Chengfeng hadn’t been found yet, so there was no point in saying all this.
“Jiaojiao,” Zhao Zhan took out the things from the bag and put them away one by one. He then lit the charcoal brazier and placed it in the room.
“Stay at home and don’t go out no matter what happens outside.
“I need to go to the house at the back to check on the guys and think of a way to solve this wolf disaster. Otherwise, it won’t be safe for us to stay here.”
As he spoke, he went to the small kitchen to boil a pot of hot water and brought it into the room. “I’ve heated two charcoal basins in the compartment, and it’s much warmer inside now. Go wash up and have a good sleep, okay?”
As he spoke, he had already reached out to grab Jiaojiao’s wrist and led her into the cubicle. “Don’t worry, Chengfeng will be fine.”
The room was steaming as Jiaojiao was held in Zhao Zhan’s arms. She closed her eyes and grabbed Zhao Zhan’s clothes. “Zhao Zhan, be careful. don’t get hurt.”
“Don’t worry, I won’t act rashly.”
Zhao Zhan lowered his head and rubbed the top of Jiaojiao’s head. Then, he cupped her face with both hands and pressed it against hers affectionately.
Jiaojiao closed her eyes to feel it, but her mind went blank. Her sixth sense, which had always been accurate, seemed to have failed at this moment.
Zhao Zhan saw through the worry in her eyes and said with a smile, “The water is getting cold.”
Jiaojiao snapped back to her senses, removed her clothes, and stepped into the bathtub. Her body, which had been numb from the cold, gradually recovered.
Zhao Zhan, who had already left through the corner gate of the backyard, looked at the courtyard and sighed.
Jiaojiao treated him better than anyone else in the world.
The sky darkened quickly in winter, and there was only a glimmer of light on the horizon.
The shadows of the branches on the mountain were projected on the ground like monsters baring their fangs and brandishing their claws.
Zhao Zhan walked to the door of the large room. Yang Maozhong, who was guarding the door with his men, saw him and felt as if he had seen his pillar of support. “You’ve finally returned!”
Yang Lizheng was being supported by Yang Dashan as they rushed over. He shouted at the top of his voice from far away, “Zhao Zhan! Have you heard the news?”
“Lizheng, please slow down,” Zhao Zhan said loudly. “I just wanted to ask the guys something.”
Yang Maozhong quickly replied, “Go ahead! We’re willing to do anything as long as we can drive those wolves back to the mountain! It’s so cold right now. We can still endure it with our strong bodies, but the elderly and children can’t.”
The New Year is the day after tomorrow. This year, everyone finally has something to look forward to. We can’t just spend the New Year in fear.”
“The wolves are here!”
Someone shouted, and the crowd burst into a frenzy. Zhao Zhan, who was holding a bow in his hand, immediately turned his head when he heard the voice.