Chapter 395 - 393, Arrived in the village! Poor village!

"Is that a Cloud Leopard?"

Bai Lu was also stunned for a moment.

But as soon as Luofeng’s car stopped, the rare dots slipped into the forest; it was obvious that, even as large predators, they were still afraid of humans.

The fear imprinted in their genes is unchangeable.

After all, the ancestors of humans had conquered them.

In the food chain, during ancient times, these predators were the prey of humans.

"I suddenly feel that you were quite brave as a child!"

Luofeng sighed with emotion.

He also dismissed the idea of bringing Duanmu Yunji or Little Fairy here, to this uninhabited wilderness, to perform the ’hands on the hood’ maneuver.

After all, if a Leopard were to suddenly burst out? It would be too late...

COUGH. COUGH. COUGH.

Anyway, they’d probably have to make a run for it.

To think that even now, there were still leopards in the mountains. What else could have been here in the past? Were there tigers?

Bai Lu said sheepishly, "I’ve encountered a Cloud Leopard before, and it even made me cry. But it’s very timid. If it encounters people, it won’t dare approach if you shout loudly. That’s what my mother taught me when I was a child."

Luofeng couldn’t help but admire her.

How big-hearted must parents be? But then again, under such conditions, what else could they do? It was fortunate it was a Cloud Leopard. If it had been a tiger, would shouting loudly really scare it away?

"There used to be tigers in the mountains too, but only the older generation has seen them. I’ve never seen one. Oh, and there are black bears now, and of course, wild boars," Bai Lu said.

The two of them chatted as they continued.

Another half an hour went by.

When they rounded a hill, the view suddenly opened up before them.

Scattered houses were enveloped in clouds. Luofeng could only think,Are these people living in the heavens? Living here for long, the dampness would surely cause rheumatism, wouldn’t it?

According to Bai Lu, there were fewer than a hundred households in Bai Family Village, with a total of about 400 people. Their main sources of income were agricultural products and mountain produce.

These mountain people were an existence forgotten by the bustling world.

Their monthly income was just around 1,000 yuan.

Beyond the unstable electricity supply, there was no natural gas, nor any running water here.

Of course, if spring water channeled through pipes could be called tap water, then sometimes during heavy rainfall, their tap water would be yellow. Muddy and turbid.

This place seemed completely disconnected from the outside world.

The internet? Don’t be ridiculous. In such a place, they would be fortunate to have a 2G network.

In many of the wilderness areas Luofeng had passed through, there was no signal at all.

Watch short videos on a network like this? Impossible.

The lack of infrastructure made accessing the internet very difficult.

Some of the older mountain dwellers hadn’t even used a smartphone before. It wasn’t because they couldn’t afford one—smartphones were available for a few hundred yuan, or second-hand from shops—but due to their low education, they simply didn’t know how to use them.

When Luofeng arrived at Bai Family Village, some of the older villagers had already gathered on the slope to watch.

The Toyota Land Cruiser broke the tranquility of the mountain village.

For the vast majority of villagers, seeing such a car was rare, so they had all been waiting at the entrance of the village since spotting the vehicle from a distance.

Luofeng soon stopped the car at the village entrance.

Bai Lu got out from the co-pilot’s seat first. After exiting, she quickly greeted everyone, but Luofeng noticed Bai Lu speaking the local dialect.

Many people in Bai Family Village belonged to the local ethnic group and naturally did not speak Mandarin.

When Luofeng got out of the driver’s seat, many children shyly sized up Luofeng and his car.

For these children, while not having never seen such a behemoth, it was definitely a rare sight; so, valuing its rarity, they were all very curious.

Luofeng went to the trunk of the car and took out a bucket of lollipops he had taken from his supermarket without paying.

After opening it, he took out a lollipop, extended his hand, and offered it to a child. "Hello, I am Bai Lu’s friend. I’m very pleased to meet you all. This is a gift for you, one for each person, okay?"

After Luofeng finished speaking, almost no one responded.

They all looked at him shyly.

"You are Sister Bai Lu’s friend?"

However, a brave little boy soon spoke in very non-standard Mandarin; his local accent was heavy, making his Mandarin somewhat difficult to understand.

"Yes, I am her classmate, and we are also very good friends!" Luofeng nodded.

The surrounding older villagers who could understand Mandarin laughed.

They had obviously misunderstood Luofeng and Bai Lu’s relationship.

The little boy thought for a moment. He clearly distrusted Luofeng but trusted Bai Lu, so he took one of the lollipops.

With that boy taking the lead, the other children also mustered their courage and began to take the candy.

"What’s your name?" Luofeng asked the little boy.

However, he heard some rather tongue-twisting names in response, indicating that many ethnic minorities lived here.

"Sister Bai Lu, are you on holiday?" a little girl asked.

"Yes, that’s right. How are your studies going?" Bai Lu replied with a question.

"I’m working hard. I want to go to university just like Sister Bai Lu!"

Luofeng remained silent.In the bustling world, it seems like anyone can go to university, right? But in their hearts, it was a very sacred thing.

Of course, they also knew that one could go to university even with low scores, but their parents said such colleges had expensive tuition and wouldn’t send them there. So, everyone understood that only for undergraduate programs or higher might the tuition be a bit lower.

"Why aren’t you eating?" Luofeng noticed that most children had started eating, but the brave boy was just holding his candy.

"He has two younger sisters!" Bai Lu hinted.

Luofeng smiled and took out two more. "Here, take these. Now you can try one yourself!"

The boy did not reach for the lollipops; instead, he looked at Bai Lu.

Bai Lu nodded. "Remember to say thank you!"

"Thank you, big brother!" the boy said as he took the candy and expressed his gratitude.

But at that moment, a worn voice called out.

"Bai Lu!"

Luofeng turned to look.

It was a woman with a sallow complexion and a frail figure, who appeared to be around fifty years old.

From her face, one could vaguely make out that this was Bai Yue’s mother.

"Mom!"

Bai Lu quickly walked over and embraced her tightly.