After Jiang Pan and the village elder reached an agreement, Jiang Pan immediately arranged for many people to patrol.
The patrolling villagers were quite puzzled. There were no other fleeing teams around, so why be so cautious? Was it related to the mother and son Jiang Pan had brought back?
However, everyone was very obedient to Jiang Pan. Although they were confused, they didn't say anything.
The diligent women roasted all the prey. Someone ran over with a smile to find Jiang Pan to distribute the meat.
They had originally gone to find the village elder, but the elder had something on his mind and had no interest, so he told them to find Jiang Pan.
Jiang Pan also had no interest, but seeing the men, women, old and young of the village waiting for him with smiles, he perked up and distributed meat to each household.
Afterward, let everyone have a peaceful meal, and then discuss matters. Anyway, Xiao Mazai was taken by Jiang Wan to stand guard. If a wolf pack approached, it would definitely be discovered immediately.
Today's prey was even more than yesterday's, so each household received more meat.
Both adults and children had smiles on their faces.
Jiang Lao Er, with his family, swaggered to the meat distribution stand and said with a grin, "Boss, you're my brother, you have to look out for your brother, right? Come, cut the knife this way, I want this piece."
Jiang Pan showed no favoritism and directly cut off a piece according to the established order and handed it to him, "This piece, take it or leave it. If you don't want it, I'll give it to others."
Jiang Lao Er immediately started to make a fuss, "Boss, if it were any other day, I wouldn't argue with you, but this meal today is different. After all, we don't know if there will be a next meal after this one. If I don't eat enough at this meal, I won't have the strength to walk the road to the underworld!"
The villagers, who were happily eating the roasted meat, heard Jiang Lao Er's words and thought he was going to cause trouble again, so they looked up.
Seeing many people looking at him, Jiang Lao Er threw down the plate he had prepared to hold the meat and said, "Everyone, stop eating. You don't know yet, our little mountain village is in grave danger!"
Madam Zhou also chimed in, "Yes, we are in grave danger, and it's all Jiang Pan's fault!"
The villagers looked at them in confusion. Jiang Lao Er sneered, "Do you know the origin of the mother and son he brought back today? When we entered this path, wasn't there a team ahead of us? That mother and son were people from that team. Guess, they were walking in front of us, so how could they appear in our team with injuries?"
The villagers' curiosity was piqued.
Jiang Pan stopped Jiang Lao Er from speaking, "Shut up!"
I refuse!
Jiang Lao Er gave him a provocative look, opened his mouth, and began to spout nonsense, "That mother and son's team encountered a wolf pack, and everyone was eaten by wolves, only they escaped. No, they didn't escape, they were rescued by Jiang Pan's children. Originally, the wolves would have dispersed after eating the people from that team. Jiang Pan's children snatched food from the wolves' mouths, making those wolves hungry. If the wolves are not full, what do you think they will do?"
The villagers were so scared they didn't dare to make a sound.
Jiang Lao Er smiled maliciously, "Of course, they will eat other people! And on this path, besides our little mountain village, there are no other teams."
"Guess who will be eaten next? Is it Uncle Liu who can't run, or Little Tie Dan'er with his tender skin? No matter who is eaten, Jiang Pan's family will be fine, after all, they have a carriage and can surely rush out of the wolf pack immediately."
These words scared the villagers so much that their faces changed color. They all looked at Jiang Pan in terror, and some children even started crying immediately.
Jiang Lao Er looked at Jiang Pan triumphantly, conveying his meaning with his eyes: Aren't you very capable? I'd like to see how you'll resolve this!
Jiang Pan looked at the villagers who were already stunned with fear and, enraged, stepped forward and punched Jiang Lao Er in the jaw.
He was strong, and Jiang Lao Er was a weakling. This punch almost sent Jiang Lao Er flying.
Jiang Lao Er cried out in pain, and Madam Zhou and Grandma Jiang immediately rushed out, "Jiang Pan, what do you want to do? What right do you have to hit someone?"
Jiang Pan ignored them and turned to the bewildered villagers, "Fellow neighbors, what Jiang Dengwen said is partly true. That Madam Cheng was indeed the owner of the team that was ahead of us, and her mother and son did encounter a wolf pack's attack, but the claim that they snatched the wolves' food is clearly nonsense!"
"My children have always been upright. When they see someone in distress, they will naturally not stand by and watch. Whether it is Madam Cheng and her son or any of you present who were pushed to a dead end by the wolf pack today, I, Jiang Pan, and my children will extend a helping hand to you!"
"As for the wolf pack, Hunter Yang should know more about it than I do, so let Hunter Yang tell everyone what this wolf pack is all about."
Before this, he had already found Hunter Yang to inquire about the situation, and Hunter Yang was also aware of the wolf pack.
He stepped forward and said to the villagers, "Everyone, I said yesterday that there is a wolf pack in this forest. I just didn't expect that after decades of reproduction, the wolf pack has grown to such a large number."
"Wolves are beasts, ferocious beasts. No matter if you provoke them or not, if they set their sights on you, it's your bad luck."
"Currently, our team has not seen any sign of wolves, which means our team is safe for now. However, this safety can be broken at any time, so you should stop infighting and quickly think about the next step."
Jiang Lao Er said indignantly, "Hunter Yang, you're taking money from others, so you're speaking well of Jiang Pan!"
Hunter Yang sneered, "I've seen plenty of beasts in my life, but all the beasts in this mountain are far inferior to you."
With the situation so urgent, it was obvious to anyone that this person was causing trouble with a group of people.
Jiang Lao Er realized he had been insulted and glared, "Old man, say that again if you dare!"
Jiang Pan really didn't want Jiang Lao Er to waste everyone's time here, so he winked at Da Lang and Er Lang.
The two brothers immediately got up and dragged Jiang Lao Er away. Madam Zhou, fearing they would suffer, quickly pulled her two sons and ran, and Jiang Yu also followed.
After the annoying flies were cleared out, Jiang Pan said, "Everyone, I only recently learned about the wolf pack, and I have already discussed it with the village elder. There are two paths before us: one is to turn back, and the other is to continue forward."
"If we continue forward, we will eventually run into the wolf pack. But given the situation outside, even if we turn back, we will only be trapped in the mountains."
"Although I am the village chief of the small mountain village, this matter is of great importance, and I cannot make a decision for everyone. Therefore, the village elder and I suggest that everyone make their own choice, to advance or retreat, and follow the majority."