Gu Sisi sat on the chair, staring straight at the door.
After a long while, there was a knock on the door from outside. Gu Sisi tensed up, walked to the door, and stammered, "Who? Who's there?"
"It's me."
Hearing the familiar voice, Gu Sisi opened the door. Seeing Huo Cheng's face and confirming it was him, she let out a sigh of relief and threw herself into his arms.
"I was so scared."
"What happened?" Instead of being flattered by Gu Sisi's enthusiasm, Huo Cheng was more concerned about her panic.
Gu Sisi shook her head. "Just now, about an hour ago, someone knocked on the door. But when I asked who it was, there was no answer. I don't know if it was just a prank."
Biting her lip, Gu Sisi still looked terrified.
The person just kept knocking on the door without answering. Every time she asked who it was, the knocking outside just continued. It went on for a few minutes before the person finally left.
A thoughtful look flashed across Huo Cheng's eyes. The light from inside the house shone outside, and there were a few peanut shells where he was standing. Obviously, it wasn't just Gu Sisi's imagination.
"Don't worry. As long as you're careful and don't open the door, you'll be fine." Huo Cheng hugged Gu Sisi tightly, closed the door again, looked at his watch, and asked, "It's so late. Why aren't you sleeping yet?"
This question hit the nail on the head.
"I was scared and worried about you." Gu Sisi's eyes were full of grievance.
Huo Cheng stroked her hair gently and said tenderly, "I'll definitely never leave you alone in this place again."
Maybe it was just an off - the - cuff promise, or maybe it was a promise for a lifetime. But they weren't going to stay in this place for long, so it would be quite easy for Huo Cheng to keep this promise.
However, the next day, Huo Cheng was summoned by the village head.
This time, it wasn't the previous courtyard but the village head's house. Compared to the houses of other villagers, it was a bit better, but overall, it was still very shabby.
Gu Sisi hid behind Huo Cheng, being led by him.
"I heard that the other woman left?" The village head glanced at Gu Sisi indifferently, his expression extremely solemn.
Huo Cheng raised his eyebrows. They found out earlier than he had expected.
"Village head, there's no need to ask about this. Er Zhuzi from down the mountain saw it with his own eyes. Can it be false?" A spectator villager spoke up.
The village head shifted his gaze back to Huo Cheng.
"Yes." Huo Cheng affirmed directly. "I bought her. Don't I have the right to decide what to do with her?"
Huo Cheng's arrogant attitude of 'I decide everything about my own people' left the group speechless.
"But..." The village head was about to say something.
At this moment, a group of people rushed in from outside.
"Village head, the person ran away."
"What?" The village head stood up in shock, knocking over a cup of tea beside him.
"When we caught up with the bus, we found that there was no one on it. The driver said that the person got off the bus less than an hour after getting on."
The expressions of everyone present were not good.
"Then search in that area. I don't believe a living person can just disappear." The village head said with a dark face and gave the order. The person who had just come in to report shot a hostile look at Huo Cheng and then went out as the village head had instructed.
Huo Cheng crossed his arms and looked at everyone with interest. "What do you mean? Are you interested in my people?"
His eyes were filled not only with dissatisfaction but also with contempt.
Those who had received favors from Huo Cheng lowered their heads in shame. They had to admit that their village was really unreasonable in this matter.
"Wang Hubiao." The village head called out Huo Cheng's 'name'. "If that woman goes outside to complain, it will have extremely serious consequences for our village's reputation."
Gu Sisi was so angry that she laughed. These people were actually worried about their reputation after doing such things. It was really ridiculous.
She wanted to step forward and refute.
But Huo Cheng squeezed her palm and shook his head slightly.
"So you think I'm going to harm your village?" Huo Cheng retorted.
The village head was left speechless.
"This..."
This man had brought a lot of benefits to the village, which was why they had let him stay here. There were almost no drawbacks. Would such a person suddenly do something bad to the village?
The village head hesitated.
At this time, a man ran in from outside.
"I think this man is here to harm our village. Why are we still keeping him? Kick him out!" The man who spoke looked righteous, as if he had seen through Huo Cheng's intentions.
This man was Chang Jian, who had always been dissatisfied with him.
"Chang Jian, shut up!" The village head shouted. Without evidence, he couldn't draw a conclusion.
Chang Jian was so angry that the veins on his neck bulged. He pointed at Huo Cheng and said, "There's nothing to doubt. We've been searching for a few hours, and there's still no news. He must have planned this long ago."
The village head hesitated for a long time.
"Hubiao, I want to hear your explanation."
Not getting the result he had expected, Chang Jian was so angry that his eyes turned red. He clenched his fists, threw his hands, and walked out of the door, leaving behind a sentence: "I think you'll all die in his hands sooner or later."
After a few seconds of silence, Huo Cheng obviously didn't take the little episode just now to heart. He asked calmly, "I also want to ask you. Why are you so afraid of communicating with the outside world?"
Huo Cheng's usual imposing manner was revealed, and the momentum of the crowd gradually weakened.
This village was indeed too closed - off. It wasn't just because of its location. Logically speaking, since they couldn't make money here, they should all go out. But they had been staying here, waiting for their resources to run out.
"Communication is meaningless." The village head withstood Huo Cheng's imposing manner, and his expression became serious. "Where is that woman?"
Only then did everyone react. What they should be concerned about now was the whereabouts of that woman, not reflecting on why they didn't go out.
Huo Cheng let out a soft laugh. "Do you know why I'm so rich?"
The non - sequitur left everyone present stunned. But indeed, this question was more attractive.
"Why?" Someone asked along.
Huo Cheng put his hand under his chin. "I'm a businessman. What do you think I buy people for? Of course, it's for business, to make money for me."
"..."
Who would have thought that he bought people for business.
They had never heard such a statement before.
"As for you, if you want to continue being poor and let your children be like you?" Huo Cheng shook his head. "Buy a daughter - in - law, then have children, and then buy a daughter - in - law for your children."
This was the first time such a thing had been brought up so openly, and everyone present couldn't help but feel a bit embarrassed.
"But aren't you the same?" Someone at the scene retorted.
This was referring to the fact that he had just bought two girls yesterday.
Huo Cheng waved his finger. "I'm different from you. As I just said, I buy people for business."
"..."
This reason was too strange, and everyone present was left speechless again.
Before they could react.
Huo Cheng continued to ask, "Do you know why I came to this village and what I saw in it?"
No one had ever thought about this question. They were completely confused.
"You don't think I just came here out of pure liking, do you?" Huo Cheng's tone was tinged with a hint of sarcasm.
Gu Sisi also became interested. She only knew that Huo Cheng came here to recuperate, but she really didn't know why he had chosen this place.