Chapter 274 - 273: The Village Head’s Home

Chapter 274: Chapter 273: The Village Head’s Home

A few of the children glanced behind Huo Xingchen. "We’re going to play in the village? Will your parents be okay with that?"

"They won’t mind. We’re going to be staying in the village tonight." Huo Xingchen asked casually, "Whose house is big enough? There are four of us in total—everyone’s an adult except me."

"Me, me, me!" It was the same little girl who had spoken up first. "My house is super big!"

Huo Xingchen nodded, making the decision on the spot. "Then we’ll go to your house, as long as your family agrees."

"Let’s go ask right now!" The little girl was so eager she forgot all about playing and grabbed Huo Xingchen’s hand, ready to head home.

Just then, Huo Yunjing returned, followed by a middle-aged man.

Gu Qingyin stood up and went to greet them with Master Huo.

Huo Yunjing stood beside Gu Qingyin, took her hand, and introduced her to the man. "This is my wife, Gu Qingyin, and that’s my son over there." He then pointed at Huo Xingchen.

"This is Village Chief Liu from Longevity Village," Huo Yunjing explained. "His house is very large. We can stay there tonight."

The ignored Master Huo shot Huo Yunjing a contemptuous look. ’Childish.’

Gu Qingyin smiled and greeted Village Chief Liu.

Village Chief Liu, however, looked toward Huo Xingchen and waved. "Niu Niu, time to come home for dinner!"

The little girl holding Huo Xingchen’s hand obediently ran over, still refusing to let go. Reaching her grandfather’s side, she looked up and asked, "Grandpa! Can the little brother stay at our house tonight?"

Village Chief Liu gave a very benevolent smile. "Of course. If he agrees, you two can even share a room."

Niu Niu beamed with joy. She turned and joyfully reported the good news to Huo Xingchen, "Grandpa agreed! You can sleep with me tonight!"

Village Chief Liu had clearly been joking and hadn’t expected Niu Niu to take him seriously. But he couldn’t very well take it back, so he just shook his head and said lightly, "Oh, this child."

The group headed for Village Chief Liu’s house, with the other children trailing behind them, clearly still hoping to play together later.

Gu Qingyin chatted and laughed with Village Chief Liu. So far, she hadn’t noticed anything out of the ordinary. Longevity Village seemed just like any other village.

As they entered the village proper, they saw more people. Everyone greeted the village chief with a smile. They would give the strangers a curious glance or two, then offer a friendly smile.

Village Chief Liu’s home was a large compound at the eastern end of the village. Space is plentiful in the countryside, and his family had enclosed a huge courtyard—big enough for a large truck to turn around in. Behind the courtyard was a three-story house.

"It’s just me and my wife at home. My son and daughter-in-law went to the city to work, leaving only the child behind." Village Chief Liu pointed to a wooden structure at the edge of the courtyard. "That’s the doghouse. The dog’s a bit fierce, and he’s chained up, but for safety’s sake, it’s best you don’t go near it."

After speaking, Village Chief Liu looked down and instructed his granddaughter, "Niu Niu, did you hear me? Don’t take the little brother near the doghouse."

Niu Niu nodded obediently. "I’ll remember!"

The house was spacious, with many windows. The lighting must be excellent during the day, and it wasn’t dark at night either. A magnificent chandelier on the ceiling brightly illuminated the entire living room.

Village Chief Liu proudly explained, "This house was renovated last year. My son made a fortune doing business, and he originally wanted to move us to the city. But I couldn’t bear to leave the village, so I refused. He’s a good son, so he renovated the old family home for us instead."

"The first floor is all common space: living room, kitchen, dining room, and there’s a garage over there." Village Chief Liu’s face crinkled into a smile. "It’s really spacious."

Gu Qingyin smiled and agreed. "I can tell your son is very devoted."

"Of course!" Village Chief Liu’s smile grew even wider. "The two of us and Niu Niu have rooms on the second floor. The third floor is usually empty. I’ll have my wife go tidy it up in a bit. It’ll be ready for you to stay in."

As he spoke, someone came down from upstairs. It was a plainly dressed woman who looked a bit younger than the village chief.

"This is my wife," Village Chief Liu introduced. "You can just call her Aunt Liu."

"Hello, Aunt Liu," Gu Qingyin said with a smile. "Sorry to impose."

Aunt Liu smiled and waved her hand dismissively, her gaze sweeping over Huo Yunjing and Master Huo. "Are you two twins?" she asked in surprise.

Neither of the two Huo men spoke. They didn’t know what to say—they didn’t want to admit it, but they also didn’t know how to explain their identical appearances.

In the end, it was Huo Xingchen who shouldered the burden. "Yes, we are, Grandma." He tugged on Huo Yunjing’s hand. "This is my dad." Then he pointed his other hand at Master Huo. "And that’s my uncle."

Aunt Liu’s gaze then fell back on Huo Xingchen, her eyes filled with affection. "What a handsome little boy!"

"Enough chatting for now. Go make up the beds in the guest rooms," Village Chief Liu instructed.

Aunt Liu nodded quickly. "Alright, I’ll go right now. The bedding is all from last year, and it’s barely been used. Even though no one stays in the upstairs rooms, I clean them every few days, so they’re spotless."

Gu Qingyin thanked her, then very naturally followed Aunt Liu. When the older woman turned around in confusion, she smiled and explained, "I’m not doing anything anyway, so I might as well go up and help you."

"Oh, no, you don’t have to! You’re our guests, how could we let you do any work? Just stay down here and have a seat."

"I’m also quite curious about the layout upstairs. When I go back to my hometown someday, I’d like to build one for my parents, too."

Since Gu Qingyin put it that way, Aunt Liu couldn’t really refuse. "Well, come on up then. Feel free to look around."

Huo Yunjing gave Huo Xingchen a look, and the boy immediately scurried after them. "Mommy! I want to go with you!"

Gu Qingyin paused to wait for a moment, and the two little ones came up, one chasing the other.

To match the two children’s pace on the stairs, the two women walked very slowly, giving Gu Qingyin more time to observe the house.

She quietly opened her Heavenly Eye and, sure enough, discovered something unusual.

There were three sources of Yin Qi in the house: the family of three themselves. The rest of the house was very clean, just as tidy and spotless as it had appeared before.

It was just too clean. There wasn’t even a single insect.

And then there was the dog in the courtyard. It was said to be fierce, but they had just been lingering in the yard for a while, and not only did the dog not show itself, it didn’t even make a sound.

It seemed to be the complete opposite of what Village Chief Liu had described.

Looking out the window now, there was still nothing unusual near the doghouse.

"Young lady?" Aunt Liu called out from the top of the stairs.

Gu Qingyin snapped back to reality and said with a smile, "Aunt Liu, you can just call me Qingyin."

Aunt Liu nodded and asked, "Where are you all headed? How did you end up passing through a poor, remote place like ours?"

Gu Qingyin’s expression didn’t change. "We’re just out for a drive. No fixed destination—we’re just going wherever the road takes us."

Aunt Liu sighed. "You all live so freely. We could never do that. When we were young, we were busy with the kids at home, and now that we’re old..."

She suddenly stopped herself.

Gu Qingyin smoothly finished the thought for her, "...now you have to take care of your granddaughter."

Aunt Liu laughed. "Yes, that’s right. It’s good, too. It’s good."