Chapter Twenty: The Collapse of the Rear Mountain

“What should we do when morning comes?” Zhang Xiu’e leaned against Tang Long, hugging her knees, and asked softly.

The torrential rain had torn off the roofs of more than thirty houses; no one even knew how many had collapsed entirely, but it wouldn’t be few. Almost every household in the village was leaking in one way or another.

“As long as everyone’s safe, the rest are just minor issues,” Tang Long said with a relaxed smile.

Zhang Xiu’e shot him a look, unsure whether to scold him for being so optimistic or for being so heartless. Yet, looking at it another way, as long as everyone was unharmed, nothing else truly mattered: a leaking house could be repaired, a collapsed one rebuilt.

After a night of anxious waiting, dawn finally broke.

“The wind seems to have died down a bit,” Zhang Xiu’e said, getting up to look outside before returning.

The rain was still pouring down, showing no sign of letting up. Judging by the intensity, it would surely amount to a significant deluge. Yutou Village was by the sea, so most of the rainwater would drain through the lowlands into the ocean, but other places might not be so fortunate; disaster could already have struck elsewhere.

“Call the town,” Tang Long said calmly as he got up.

Zhang Xiu’e was taken aback, her eyes lighting up with energy. “What should we say?”

Standing by the window, Tang Long looked out at the sheets of rain. “Just report the facts: the houses have collapsed, but the villagers are safe.”

It was as simple as that. By now, the town and county offices were likely in total chaos. But as always, as long as no one was hurt, they had reason to be grateful.

“Liansheng, take some people and get something warm for the children and the elderly to eat,” Tang Long instructed as he walked over. After a night of cold and exhaustion, if they didn’t have something hot to warm themselves in the morning, everyone would fall ill.

At 10:38 a.m., on the mountainside behind Yutou Village, there came a crisp crack, followed by a dull crash.

“Damn, the mountain’s collapsing!”

Tang Long, Zhang Xiu’e, and the villagers rushed out into the rain, gazing anxiously toward the mountainside. In the distance, it looked as if half the mountain had been split open by a giant axe, with the slope sliding down at an angle.

“Look, isn’t that a cave?”

Someone with sharp eyes cried out in alarm. But with the rain curtaining their view, no one could see clearly, nor did anyone dare approach for a better look.

The shadowy gash on the mountainside—whether it was a cave or not—would have to wait until the rain stopped and someone could go and see for themselves. Yet, in all their years, even the oldest villagers had never seen a rainstorm split a mountain in half overnight. Generations had lived in Yutou Village, and none had ever heard of such a strange event.

Zhang Xiu’e whispered in Tang Long’s ear, “Do you think maybe some monster in the mountain was about to ascend to immortality, but drew down a heavenly tribulation and was struck down right there?”

Tang Long looked at her, nodding with mock solemnity. “That’s a pretty convincing theory. Secretary Xiu’e, you’re becoming more and more like the rest of us in this village.”

“Are you looking for trouble?” Zhang Xiu’e glared at him; she could easily hear the teasing in his voice.

After all, what was a story without a touch of mystery?

By afternoon, the rain had finally let up a little, though it still showed no sign of stopping. The town’s instructions to Zhang Xiu’e were to calm the villagers, ensure everyone’s safety, and wait for rescue on site.

“That downpour last night swept through the entire Taoyuan County!” Zhang Xiu’e said to Tang Long, her brow furrowed.

Tang Long nodded. “For now, all we can do is look after our own doorstep.”

When you’re struggling, you can only keep your own house in order; only when you’re well-off can you help others. Even if Zhang Xiu’e and Tang Long wanted to help elsewhere, they simply didn’t have the capacity.

Whatever was happening outside, Tang Long couldn’t control it. All he could do was make sure the people of Yutou Village were safe, every last one of them.

The rain continued for two more days and nights. It wasn’t until the third morning that the skies finally cleared.

“Twenty-one houses have collapsed, thirty-one are now dangerous, and nearly every villager’s house needs repairs.”

Zhang Xiu’e’s face was grim. The storm had made the already difficult life in Yutou Village even harder.

“What now?”

She looked to Tang Long, hoping for a solution. Though she was the village secretary, she had no idea how to handle a disaster of this scale.

“Tear them all down and rebuild,” Tang Long said with a bitter smile. Who could have predicted such a calamity?

Zhang Xiu’e was speechless. Demolishing and rebuilding all the houses would cost a fortune.

“How many households are there in Yutou Village?” Tang Long asked.

“One hundred and eighty-nine,” Zhang Xiu’e replied without hesitation—she had counted them herself. Whether an old bachelor or a big family, as long as they had their own household registration, they counted as one household.

“Tell everyone: a subsidy of twenty thousand for each family. We’ll rebuild every house in the village from the ground up,” Tang Long said, without the slightest hesitation.

He didn’t want to see another storm like this force the villagers to scramble for shelter, with nowhere to call their own.

Zhang Xiu’e looked at him. She knew where the money for the subsidies would come from, but if they used those funds to repair the houses, there’d be nothing left to start a company.

“As long as everyone’s alive, anything can be solved,” Tang Long said, unconcerned with her worries. For now, rebuilding was the top priority in Yutou Village.

Fortunately, the weather was warm, so people didn’t have to worry too much about shelter for the time being—a makeshift tent would do for a night. If it were winter, it would be truly unbearable.

“Village chief, there really is a huge cave on the mountainside!” Liansheng came running to Tang Long—some brave villagers had already gone to take a look.

The mountain had been split at an angle, exposing a cut about forty or fifty meters in diameter. On the sloping face was a cave, several meters high and five or six meters wide. No one knew how deep it went; from the outside, it was pitch black and bottomless.

Tang Long had already seen it that morning. It was a cave, but what kind, he couldn’t say.

“Come on, let’s go have a look!” Tang Long took the lead toward the mountain, curiosity piqued by the mysterious cave. No one in the village had ever mentioned a cave on the mountainside before.

As for Zhang Xiu’e’s story about spirits and the wrath of heaven, he didn’t believe it, but he couldn’t deny its appeal to the ordinary folk.

The cave mouth was semicircular, and even before getting close, you could feel the cool air rushing out from within.

“Wait here,” Tang Long ordered, then strode into the cave alone.

When Zhang Xiu’e arrived and didn’t see Tang Long, she found Liansheng and asked curiously, “Where’s Tang Long?”

Liansheng blinked and pointed toward the dark cave on the mountainside.

“He went in there?” Zhang Xiu’e’s eyes widened.

“Mm.” Liansheng nodded honestly.

Zhang Xiu’e stamped her foot angrily and cursed, “Absolutely no sense of order or discipline! We don’t even understand the geological structure of the mountainside yet—there’s still a risk of further collapse, and he just runs inside. Is Tang Long tired of living?”

The villagers nearby shrank back, not daring to say a word.