Escaped a disaster?

"What's wrong with that bus? I've ridden this route many times. The driver doesn't recognize me, but I remember him. What could possibly be wrong?"

Although many strange things had happened today, Jiang Yue naturally didn't think there was anything wrong with this bus full of living people and a familiar driver.

"The bus is fine, the people are fine, but..."

San Gou hesitated, as if considering how to phrase his words so as not to anger Second Brother, while still being believed by him.

"But what?" Jiang Yue couldn't help but press.

"Second Brother, you believe me about Tangtou, right?" San Gou asked instead of answering.

Jiang Yue stared at San Gou, thought for a moment, and finally nodded without speaking.

"Then will you believe whatever I say?" San Gou asked again.

"Yes," Jiang Yue patted San Gou's head.

"Second Brother, the bus is fine, and the people are fine! But... but there's something coiled on the roof, lots of scary things, didn't you see it?"

Something coiled on the roof?

Jiang Yue recalled the bus approaching, stopping, and driving away.

The entire sequence replayed in his mind several times. In his memory, the bus was a normal coach, the engine sound was normal, the tire tracks were normal, and even the sound of the tires skidding on the ground when braking was not unusual. He hadn't seen anything on the roof either.

"Second Brother, you really didn't see it?" San Gou's voice trembled slightly.

"What did you see? Don't be afraid, tell me carefully."

"Those things, they don't look human, nor ghost-like. They seemed transparent, their shapes constantly changing, more agile than monkeys. Some were coiled on the roof, some hung on the rearview mirror, some stuck to the glass, and some were clinging to the tires. I just don't understand, with so much commotion, didn't anyone on the bus see them?"

The empty mountain road, the desolate wilderness, the bleak sky, the gloomy drizzle, coupled with the dark, oppressive mountain ranges on all sides, added a touch of desolation and terror to the scene.

Adding to that was San Gou's bizarre account...

Deep mountains, wilderness, no sign of human life...

The mountain wind howled and raged, and the clouds and mist in the mountains surged and shifted, as if countless unseen terrors were pressing in from all directions.

"Second Brother..."

"San Gou, stop talking, come with me." Jiang Yue felt miserable inwardly. Is this weirdness never going to end?

Panshi Ridge was definitely not a place they could return to. Jiang Yue made a brave decision: they would go to town.

It was thirty li of mountain road to town, which would take at least two hours even if they walked fast. Fortunately, it was still early in the day.

When San Gou heard they were going to town, he was afraid of walking into a tiger's den. His aunt wouldn't let him wander around in town, so he was a bit resistant. However, he couldn't refuse Jiang Yue's insistence.

Having missed the bus, it was more than a hundred li to the city, and walking back to Star City was even more unrealistic. Going to town might allow them to hire a car back to the city; it would just cost a bit more money.

The mountain road was muddy and slippery, with a slip every ten steps. It was more strenuous than usual.

Along the way, San Gou complained incessantly, "Second Brother, why do you keep making me drink water? I'm too full, I can't walk fast."

"Drink, drink more! Didn't you see Second Brother drinking too? Drinking a lot of water means peeing a lot."

"What do I need so much urine for?" San Gou already found it annoying to constantly pull out his little bird to pee.

"Heh heh, just listen to Second Brother, you won't go wrong." Jiang Yue prayed inwardly. They say virgin boy's urine wards off evil. He hoped that peeing all the way would have some effect.

Perhaps the virgin boy's urine really had some effect. Just a few minutes past 5:30, covered in mud from head to toe, the two arrived in town. They hadn't encountered any major issues along the way.

Their aunt almost didn't recognize them.

"What are you two little brats up to? Are you trying to scare your old aunt dressed as ghosts for Qingming Festival?"

Their aunt, naturally sharp-tongued but kind-hearted, felt a pang of concern seeing her nephews in such a sorry state.

After washing up, they looked about seventy to eighty percent human again. When they heard Jiang Yue wanted to hire a car back to the city, their aunt's expression changed dramatically.

"What's wrong?" Reading people's expressions was Jiang Yue's specialty. His aunt's expression clearly indicated something was amiss.

"Yue, you don't know, people in town are going crazy. Who has the energy to hire a car for you? Besides..."

"What happened in town?"

"Didn't you hear on your way here? A few li west of Mount Dajin, a large section of the mountain collapsed. The bus from town to Star City was buried by it. There were dozens of people on that bus! They were either from town, or related to people in town. At the very least, they were acquaintances. Who would have the mind to drive a car at a time like this? Besides, the road is blocked, impassable."

"Oh my, when your aunt heard about this earlier, my heart has been pounding ever since. I was so afraid that you two little beasts would have gone to the city and gotten on that bus... How could your aunt live then!"

As she spoke, their aunt cupped their faces and burst into tears.

Jiang Yue and San Gou exchanged glances, their eyes filled with shock. Did this mean... they had escaped disaster by not getting on that bus?

Their aunt's crying completely dashed the brothers' hopes of returning to the city that night.

Once a woman's maternal instincts kick in, there needs to be a process of resolution.

The resolution could be a meal, a chat, or listening to her nagging.

Because of her elder nephew's unexpected arrival, their aunt prepared an exceptionally lavish dinner.

Their aunt's family was considered well-off in town.

Her husband was also diligent and dependable, a man of few words but honest and kind. He had never uttered a single complaint about San Gou, his wife's nephew, who was staying with them.

"Yue, eat more. This is my specialty, black pepper beef ribs."

"Try this, braised pork knuckle. See if Aunt's cooking has improved?"

"And these cultured prawns, spicy and fragrant. You loved them the most when you were little."

At the dinner table, Aunt sat to Jiang Yue's right, constantly serving him dishes, forcefully stuffing them into his bowl with an unrefusably strong hand.

Aunt's sharp gaze indicated that not eating them would lead to serious trouble. Jiang Yue had no choice but to brace himself and eat.

Fortunately, he was young and growing, so he didn't resist the rich, hearty meat dishes.

This inevitably made San Gou, sitting nearby, a little jealous.

Am I, San Gou, no longer Aunt's most beloved little pet, even though we're both nephews from her side of the family?

Uncle, watching San Gou's dejected look from across the table, chuckled and put a piece of beef short rib into San Gou's bowl, then a piece of pig's trotter: "Come, let our San Gou get strong and healthy too."

San Gou almost cried. How come I never realized Uncle was so kind and lovable before?

Fortunately, Aunt's own children were still too young to understand jealousy and rivalry. Otherwise, this dinner table might have turned into a three-kingdom battle for affection.

The conversation inevitably turned to the bus, and the atmosphere instantly became extremely heavy. For the foreseeable future, the town would likely be shrouded in gloom, with funerals one after another.

San Gou, surprisingly, held his composure. He didn't have the boastful mentality common in children his age. He didn't mention the bus incident, nor the strange experiences of the entire day, not a word.

Jiang Yue certainly wouldn't add to the gloom at this juncture. Some things were destined to remain unspoken, to be buried deep inside.

Once the news spread, from one to ten, then to a hundred, who knew what it would turn into.

If it caused public panic and had severe repercussions, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Fortunately, this oppressive topic didn't continue for long. Aunt changed the subject and asked about the ancestral worship.

"Yue, no matter how successful you and your brother become, no matter where you drift off to, remember this: Panshi Ridge is your root. Don't be like your father, sigh..."

Speaking of her brothers, Aunt sighed again.

She had three elder brothers. The eldest died unexpectedly in his twenties before he could get married.

Second Brother, Jiang Yue's father, suddenly left a letter and disappeared two years ago.

Third Brother, San Gou's father, hadn't disappeared. He was healthy and strong. He and his wife worked in a prosperous city, but earned little money throughout the year and neglected their home. Their only child, San Gou, became a left-behind child.

Sometimes Aunt couldn't help but wonder if something was wrong with the Old Jiang Family's ancestral graves. Why was the family's fortune declining year by year?

"Aunt, what exactly is 'work'? Why do my parents always go out to 'work'? After working for so many years, haven't they achieved anything yet?"

San Gou, prompted by Aunt's nagging, actually started to miss his parents. He held a piece of pork knuckle in his hand, his greasy lips still smeared with a few grains of rice, and asked blankly.

"What does it matter what it is! Just you be successful in the future! Don't be like your father, wasting your time on who knows what all day, not even looking after your child."

Uncle quickly intervened to smooth things over: "Hey, hey, why are you always nagging the kid about these things?"

After dinner and a round of washing up, Jiang Yue received an anxious call from his sister, Jiang Ying. Clearly, she had just seen the news. Upon learning that her brother wasn't on the bus, Jiang Ying breathed a sigh of relief.

After hanging up, Jiang Ying opened the news and scanned it briefly.

News about the bus was reported by major media outlets, but they were all short bulletins.

The shorter the news, the bigger the incident.

The comment section wasn't closed, but most of the messages were expressions of concern, worry, and prayers.

Although there were a few perverts gloating and making a big deal out of a natural disaster, making insinuations, they were quickly drowned out by the public's condemnation in the comments.